Felon said:
Ah, I see. So when a character uses a Jump or Tumble skill check to reduce falling damage--well, that's just a mini-featherfall spell. And using a Diplomacy check to improve an NPC's attitude? Nothing more than a variant spell from the enchantment school. Rogue sneak attack, barbarian rage, heck just chopping a guy's head off with a sword, these are all spells disguised with fluff.
No. There is one important distinguishing characteristic which separates the above from a spell system.
In athe above cases, the assumption is that successfully tumbling, fast-talking, sneak attacking, or chopping something with a sword does not prohibit the character from doing it again. In fact, whenever you assume a naturalistic explanation for events, the assumption is that doing something once indicates that it can be done again. If you have a natural talent for doing something, what should forbid you from doing it whenever you like - or at least more times per day than can be easily tracked?
The one case in the above that doesn't seem to fit into the others is the barbarians 'rage' ability. Why can the barbarian only get angry once per day? Balance reasons. The barbarian's rage ability could just as easily be a spell-like effect because it is not at all clear that it isn't some supernatural ability on the barbarian's part. A few times a day the barbarian gets to call on supernatural forces. OK, that's magical so I don't need a naturalist explanation for why it can only occur a few times a day.
But what is the naturalist explanation for only being able to make better use of cover a few times in a fight? I mean, if you can make superior use of cover once, why are you suddenly unable to make superior use of cover latter? The token system seems to encourage a explaining the situation in a way that fits the mechanics to a degree beyond what we are used to in D&D. Normally, if you had 'Improved Duck Behind Cover' then you'd just be good at crouching behind cover. Now though, the character spends his ability to crouch behind cover as a resource. "Ooops the goblin steps 6" to the left and you are completely out of ideas on how to stay hidden... at least until the sudden beginning of the next encounter."
I don't know where you guys are going with this arguement. Obviously, class abilities, skills, feats, and spells are just things invented to make things happen in the game. But when I go to a movie and see a character miraculously survives an impossible situation through sheer endurance and strength of will, I don't just point at the screen and say "ah, somebody just cast a raise dead spell. Or it's the same thing anyway!"
Only in a system that let's you raise dead at will. You don't normally think that a character who is good at dodging has 'Focused Dodge' and can dodge X attacks per combat, but will be hit by the X+1 attack, or if you do you think it will be because the fight has gone on so long as to cause fatigue. But this system has nothing to do with fatigue.
A different feel is all well and good, but I don't need IL to make spells feel different. 
