What do ranks in Knowledge skill really represent ??

[Erevanden]

Greetings everyone,

A few days ago, while spending some time with my friends in a club, one of them asked me a question about his character in my d&d campaign, and the others (all being my players) joined soon enough. By the end of the conversation, something like this came up:

Player 1: I'd be really happy if you could make me a handout for my character's knowledge from all his skills
Me: Ok, you mean - what is his knowledge based on his skill ranks
Player 1: Yup, basically Religion and Geography (Underdark in our case)
Player 2: Hey, I'd like one too, we have similiar ranks in those skills, oh and I'd be grateful for something about my Knowledge [planes] as well
Me: Sure, no problem

One day later

Me: Crap, what did I get myself into again...

Based on the above, I began wondering, what knowledge skill ranks do represent in meaningful terms that can be written and handed out to the players without the need of creating 50 pages of encyclopedic musings... ??

If anyone has any experience with something even remotely similar, I'd be very happy for a good advice, or two

 

[FEADIN]

Seems impossible to make a list, you can give answers to specific questions following guideline:
Answering a question within your field of study has a DC of 10 (for really easy questions), 15 (for basic questions), or 20 to 30 (for really tough questions).
With 5 ranks you know the basics (=15 with take 10): Drows exists, beware strange mushrooms and so on....
With 10 ranks: Drows have spell resistance, Kuo toa use glue on their shields.....
Unless they meet the creatures or the hazards there is no reason to make a list unless they want to write an encyclopedia

 

[pawsplay]

Nothing. Knowledge ranks do not represent any specific piece of knowledge, they represent the likelihood that you will have the knowledge you need in the future. Knowledge skills do not represent acquired knowledge any more than Climb ranks represent all the things you have climbed.

Case in point: Centuries old monsters without Knowledge skills. They know some things. They are not likely to happen to know certain other things unrelated to their personal history.

Second example: Elf ranger with favored foe (orcs). He knows a fair amount about orcs, especially the local orcs, without Knowledge. He is not, however, an expert on humanoids in general, or likely history related to those orcs.

 

[El Mahdi]

deleted

 

[Erevanden]

It would be nuts to expect a GM to write up a plethora of fictional fantasy treatise, tomes, books, scrolls, and what have you. Unless you're J. R. R. Tolkien or his son.

Heh, thanks for backing up my own point of view everyone !!

And yet, I am determined to give them handouts, so I'm asking you for help in establishing a common ground as to what these should consist of:

1. the entirety of material in the first handout's case is "Pantheons of Forgotten Realms" (now, many of you will say "heck, just hand them the damned F&P book, mark paragraphs or something and your done", well, without any further elaborations, I'll just say that this course of action is *impossible*. period.)

1 rank = Names of commonly known deities (Greater and Intermetiate I think - Mystra, Tyr etc.) and their basic spheres of influence (Magic, War etc.), existence of racial pantheons and names of their chief deities (only in the case of races known in your region, don't think every acolyte knows that Lolth is the main deity of drow, Maglubiyet of goblins etc.) (all deities if you revere such a pantheon).

5 ranks = ....

10 ranks = ....

More to come

 

[Ashtagon]

For 4 ranks in K/the planes, a character should have access to the potted plane summaries from the DMG.

4 ranks in K/religion gives you a summary of all the major and minor deities in the campaign (for those cultures that are friendly to, trading partners with, or actively hostile to the PC's own culture). This would include basic knowledge of favoured weapons, domains, common worshippers (by culture/social position/class/region), divine allies, and commonly summoned creatures.

4 ranks in K/local gives knowledge of all the major cities and towns within the character's home country, and all major cities of neighbouring countries, along with a broad knowledge of socio-economic and political issues in the area. Something similar to the CIA factbook entries (eg. Germany).

This would be the level of detail the character would have access to if given a couple of hours to spend thinking on the subject trying to recall everything he could. It still requires a skill check to come up with this information on the spot on demand.

 

[El Mahdi]

deleted

 

[Erevanden]

Instead of highlighting books, or having to do a lot of typing, maybe try cut-and-pasting from some of the wikies.

Heh

While the idea itself is something a normal person would do in the first place, the main reason I am making those handouts is: they have to be translated, as two of my players can't use english...at all...

 

[Jack Simth]

Heh

While the idea itself is something a normal person would do in the first place, the main reason I am making those handouts is: they have to be translated, as two of my players can't use english...at all...

That's not an inherently bad thing. If you'll note, nobody here has so much as suggested you're not an English speaker - which pretty much means that your English, at least in typed form, is close enough to native-level that nobody notices sufficiently as to mention it or ask for clairification on your intended meaning. As you're actively playing with people who do not speak English, that strongly implies you've got similar mastery of at least one other language, as well.

 

[Dandu]

Heh

While the idea itself is something a normal person would do in the first place, the main reason I am making those handouts is: they have to be translated, as two of my players can't use english...at all...

DnD books have been translated into other languages by WotC.