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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Patryn of Elvenshae" data-source="post: 1836131" data-attributes="member: 23094">Likewise, I'd probably allow the Survivalist to figure out that a reef was near - based on whatever natural intuition he's developed - and, if he survived the ship running aground, he'd be able to live off of reef fish and mollusks, but, just like you ruled, he doesn't get to steer the ship or the carriage.In other words, useless.  Does anyone in any of your campaigns ever take a Profession skill and, more importantly, do they ever add points to it past 1st-level?I wouldn't.  I'd be better served with cross-class skill ranks in Spellcraft.  At least then I'd have the chance, albeit slim, to do *something* with my precious few skill points.Only if you fubar it as a DM.No, you don't.  Certain Profession skills don't exist, because any checks that would be made by them are already covered by other skills / mechanics.  Hit someone over the head with a sap? BAB.  Pick Locks? Open Lock.  Etc., etc., etc.In other words, if you allow a redundant, unbalanced Profession and rule that it acts in redundant, unbalanced ways, you'll get a redundant, unbalanced skill.Pretty simple, actually.Except, as above, you still don't get to steer the carriage *or* the boat.No.  It gives you the knowledge and ability to "know how to use the tools of your trade, how to perform the profession’s daily tasks, how to supervise helpers, and how to handle common problems."Manning a ship, setting the rigging, plotting courses, proper ship maintenance, all these things are "the profession's daily tasks."Having a character history of "He was born on a ship o'war to a smuggled concubine and a random member of her crew, and spent the next 20 years of his life at sea" gives you the appropriate background.And where did I say the NPCs would only have Profession (Sailor)?The trained hands would likely be Experts, with max ranks in Profession (Sailor), Use Rope, Climb, and Balance.  Some would have ranks in Swim, some in a Craft skill or two.  Others might have Survival, or Heal.  An exceptional sailor might be a Rogue, instead of an Expert.The ship's carpenter would have Craft (Shipmaking), and possibly Skill Focus in it, as well.The ship's doctor?  Also, likely, an Expert - or an Adept if the crew is particularly lucky.The pressed crew - if they exist - would be a hodge-podge mixture of Commoners, Experts, Warriors, and possibly some PC classes.  Very few, if any, would have the appropriate skills, and, therefore, would need constant supervision by the trained crewmen.  For most shipboard tasks, Taking 10 would be sufficient, assuming none of them were complete morons.The ships marines would be warriors - many of whom would have taken cross-class ranks in Profession (Sailor) - with perhaps a Fighter or other class officer.  In this way, they could fill in for a regular sailor if necessary though would be less effective at it.In summation, if you *force* the Profession skill to be a background and downtime-only skill, you are not following the RAW, as they allow for Profession checks to accomplish specific tasks.And, besides that, you are ripping out one of the very, very few reasons that a PC would ever "waste" his skill points on such an otherwise useless skill.</blockquote>

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