DarkKestral
First Post
OK... I'm tired of a long skill list that seems to repeatedly do the same things. I'd put this in the 4th ed rules, but.. I'd like to see some ideas on how to deal with a list that is less than half of the current list for D&D. My goal is to make skills broadly applicable while remaining reasonably focused in one 'area' of ability. Rogues get a LOT of benefit here, however; their 'necessary' number of skills is cut to about... 4-5 to hit ALL of the classic Rogue-ish abilities. However, many classes would get some decent boosts here, so they aren't the only ones.
I think that, with the new skill system, things like the Complete Scoundrel trick system and skill specialties (to allow characters who suck at most components of a skill but are excellent at one small part of it) would need to be added, so that characters with high Int are actually rewarded, since a Int 16 Rogue with stock would be capable of maxing most, if not all, the skills in the game, and what few skills they aren't normally maxing are left to the Wizard or some other high Int character.
The old skills and abilities that are folded into new skills are now listed:
Spot+Listen+Search+Appraise+Sense Motive?+Scent (the extraordinary ability)=Perception
Hide+Move Silently+Sleight of Hand=Sneak
Open Lock+Disable Device+Use Magical Device+Use Psionic Device=Use/Disable Device
Bluff+Intimidate+Diplomacy+Disguise+Forgery=Persuasion
Handle Animal+Ride=Handle Animal
Balance+Tumble+Escape Artist=Acrobatics
Climb+Jump+Swim=Athletics
Concentration+Autohypnosis+Sense Motive?=Mental Control
Survival+Track (the feat)=Survival
Decipher Script+Speak Language=Languages (with learning languages as a bonus based on ranks or as a specialization type thing)
Spellcraft+Psicraft+the use of knowledges that involves spells=Magecraft
Gather Information+Investigate (d20Modern skill)=Gather Info
Craft+Profession=Profession
Use Rope would be gotten rid of... it's either too limited in application or part of another skill; checks would remain as parts of other skills, where appropriate. The Peform skill and Knowledges would remain, but would be slightly modified; they'd be more focused on one class of check now associated with knowledges, and would create active in-game effects in scenes (Like getting +2-+4 to a skill check or +1-+2 to attack rolls during combats) Perform would also be condensed into just 4 categories: act, dance, music, and oratory. Categories for Knowledge would be ones like: Knowledge: magic/psionics (lore about magical items, artifacts, and various miscellany tied to the magical aspects of the world), knowledge: environment (includes the physical aspects of Planes, and various bits of local knowledge about the physical area btw), knowledge: monsters, (catch-all what is this thing?? answering skill) knowledge: culture (governments, religion, and the day to day workings of societies and the other half of what is now considered 'knowledge: local') and are designed to obviously clue you in on what you do with the check. If you want to know how to physically move/get around, you get knowledge: environment, but it is useless to answer questions like: "What is the title of the hereditary ruler of Thatland?" which is covered by knowledge: culture.
Scent, BTW, would still be an extraordinary ability tied to some races; it would just require a perception check to use some of it's abilities.
Any suggestions? Ideas?
EDIT: The "new" skill list.. in a short form and alphabetical order.
Acrobatics, Athletics, Gather Information, Handle Animal, Heal, Knowledge, Languages, Magecraft, Mental Control, Perception, Perform, Persuasion, Profession, Sneak, Use/Disable Device.
This is a reasonably short list without having skills generally impinge on one another, IMO, and designed to let skill checks counter other skill checks as much as posslble and keep spells like Jump/Spider Climb/Knock less versatile than their skill counterparts while remaining more effective in single cases.
I think that, with the new skill system, things like the Complete Scoundrel trick system and skill specialties (to allow characters who suck at most components of a skill but are excellent at one small part of it) would need to be added, so that characters with high Int are actually rewarded, since a Int 16 Rogue with stock would be capable of maxing most, if not all, the skills in the game, and what few skills they aren't normally maxing are left to the Wizard or some other high Int character.
The old skills and abilities that are folded into new skills are now listed:
Spot+Listen+Search+Appraise+Sense Motive?+Scent (the extraordinary ability)=Perception
Hide+Move Silently+Sleight of Hand=Sneak
Open Lock+Disable Device+Use Magical Device+Use Psionic Device=Use/Disable Device
Bluff+Intimidate+Diplomacy+Disguise+Forgery=Persuasion
Handle Animal+Ride=Handle Animal
Balance+Tumble+Escape Artist=Acrobatics
Climb+Jump+Swim=Athletics
Concentration+Autohypnosis+Sense Motive?=Mental Control
Survival+Track (the feat)=Survival
Decipher Script+Speak Language=Languages (with learning languages as a bonus based on ranks or as a specialization type thing)
Spellcraft+Psicraft+the use of knowledges that involves spells=Magecraft
Gather Information+Investigate (d20Modern skill)=Gather Info
Craft+Profession=Profession
Use Rope would be gotten rid of... it's either too limited in application or part of another skill; checks would remain as parts of other skills, where appropriate. The Peform skill and Knowledges would remain, but would be slightly modified; they'd be more focused on one class of check now associated with knowledges, and would create active in-game effects in scenes (Like getting +2-+4 to a skill check or +1-+2 to attack rolls during combats) Perform would also be condensed into just 4 categories: act, dance, music, and oratory. Categories for Knowledge would be ones like: Knowledge: magic/psionics (lore about magical items, artifacts, and various miscellany tied to the magical aspects of the world), knowledge: environment (includes the physical aspects of Planes, and various bits of local knowledge about the physical area btw), knowledge: monsters, (catch-all what is this thing?? answering skill) knowledge: culture (governments, religion, and the day to day workings of societies and the other half of what is now considered 'knowledge: local') and are designed to obviously clue you in on what you do with the check. If you want to know how to physically move/get around, you get knowledge: environment, but it is useless to answer questions like: "What is the title of the hereditary ruler of Thatland?" which is covered by knowledge: culture.
Scent, BTW, would still be an extraordinary ability tied to some races; it would just require a perception check to use some of it's abilities.
Any suggestions? Ideas?
EDIT: The "new" skill list.. in a short form and alphabetical order.
Acrobatics, Athletics, Gather Information, Handle Animal, Heal, Knowledge, Languages, Magecraft, Mental Control, Perception, Perform, Persuasion, Profession, Sneak, Use/Disable Device.
This is a reasonably short list without having skills generally impinge on one another, IMO, and designed to let skill checks counter other skill checks as much as posslble and keep spells like Jump/Spider Climb/Knock less versatile than their skill counterparts while remaining more effective in single cases.
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