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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Crazy Jerome" data-source="post: 5999603" data-attributes="member: 54877">@<a href="http://www.enworld.org/forum/member.php?u=7006" target="_blank">DEFCON 1</a> , the objection to that, I think, is going to basically be, "we don't want a game where everyone can pick locks." The objections will be very weak to very strong, depending on the group, and the scope will vary, but it will be there. So perhaps an alternative to the current setup that might work is something like this: Everything is done on ability checks. Everyone can do all skills, using that ability check. The exception is anything called out as requiring specific skill. Then the background "skills" instead of providing a bonus*, allow you to use your normal ability check on that otherwise excluded activity. * This has some niche problems with people having a bad roll on a trained skill. I'm not sure what it means for a clumsy person to be trained in lockpicking, for example. So now the list of skills becomes a default for the game as to what requires skill training and what can be done by anyone. Your background gives you three things that require training. However, there should also be a section on changing this list by campaign. Now, the only thing I can see that this leaves out is this concept of the character that is stupendeous at some particular activity, such as Mr. Ultra Sneaky Guy, beyond what ability scores can provide (assuming a campaign where everyone can "sneak"). That's where I see what you had in that last post coming back to help more broadly, as Mr. Ultra Sneaky Guy probably has a particular context for his sneakiness that doesn't apply to every last stealth check, but does apply to a few things outside of it.  Edit: It also occurs to me that here is a good place to reintroduce that concept from the earlier L&L articles, with different mastery levels of skill. That is, if "lockpicking" is something done only trained, your background starts with "apprentice lockpicker (+0)"--which can then be improved to get those bonuses. Hmm. That's a way for backgrounds to grow over time, too.  Also, if the bonuses are taking out of the starting skills in favor of unlocking "required training"--then we are back to allowing the background itself to allow a bonus where applicable, as discussed in the OP.</blockquote>

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