Giving Fighters Another Class Skill

[Remathilis]

I'm thinking the Fighter Class List is a BIT too limited, so I have some suggestions. Vote on which you think should be added to the Fighter Class Skill List.

Suggestions Discussions Below.

 

[CRGreathouse]

I think fighters should have Profession and not Intimidate. I wouldn't be opposed to fighters with Heal, though.

 

[Squire James]

I voted for "profession". It might make sense that a Barbarian would not easily gain a skill that makes money, but I don't see how a fighter should have that kind of difficulty. It seems strange, for instance, that it's easier for a wizard to get Profession (city guard) than it is for a fighter!

 

[Fauxargent]

Most of my fighters get so few skill points that the limited selection isn't a problem.

 

[Chun-tzu]

I voted for Profession, Survival, and Use Rope. All PCs should have access to Profession, since it's such a generic skill. Survival seems like a natural choice for soldiers and many other "tough guy" archetypes. And Use Rope is essential for sailors, who would mostly be Fighters or Rogues (unless you have a Sailor or Mariner class in your campaign).

Tumble is a must-have for swashbucklers, except the core Fighter really isn't a swashbuckler. Rogue fits much better, plus of course light-armored warriors like the Swashbuckler and Unfettered. Spot and Listen are essential for sentries, but the thing is, generic sentries aren't particularly renowned for their sharp vision and hearing. Exceptional sentries would have a PrC with Spot and Listen skills.

 

[Greylock]

Oddly enough, I also voted Profession, Survival and Use Rope, before I saw the above reply.

They just make sense. I think Handle Animal should be on the list as well, and mayhap Knowledge. Who says fighters are unedjumacated?

 

[shilsen]

Definitely Profession. Any and all of the others can work too, though I'd probably list Handle Animal too, as Greylock mentioned. With the low skill pts they have, it's not like they can take great advantage of a big skill list.

 

[Chun-tzu]

Remathilis probably left Handle Animals off the list since Fighters already have it as a class skill.

 

[Chun-tzu]

By the way, letting Fighters choose any one skill would make it a LOT easier for Fighters to qualify for certain PrCs. Although this arguably won't have a huge impact, Wizards of the Coast has gone the opposite direction in 3.5. There was a 3.0 feat (Cosmopolitan) that allowed characters to change any cross-class skill into a class skill. It's been completely re-written in 3.5, possibly because they felt it was too good for a feat.

 

[Humanophile]

Profession, for all the reasons everyone said above.

I'm fond of Balance for fighters, because they're supposed to be the best at fighting in any circumstance. Given that they're probably going to be wearing heavy armor anyways, some way to let them keep their "best fighter" status on unstable footing would be helpful.

Survival I'm a little iffy on, since it seems like it would cut into the Barbarian's and Ranger's niches. Said yes to it since I wouldn't have too big a problem with it, but I'd have to think before giving it a thumbs-up in my game.

And finally, Use Rope sounds good. Just because fighter action-hero types seem to be good with that sort of thing in the movies. I might also throw in some knowledge skills, since History, Engineering, and Nobility all have use to hardcore military men.

Things I would *not* give to Fighters are Spot and Listen, and I wonder why people are so happy handing those out. Maybe it's just me, but I see the three S's (Stealth, Sensory, Social) as being the highly valueable skills, where access to them is a class perk. Granting these skills without forethought can lead to a rush on them and an "everyone's gotta" mentality, which 3e goes out of its way to avoid.