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What skills that EVERY character should have a few ranks in ?
- Thread starter questing gm
- Start date
Mustrum_Ridcully
Hero
I think there are no skills you really need. Spot and Listen might seem important, but the most important thing is that the party has access to nearly all skills.
lukelightning
First Post
Knowledge (D&D rules), Profession (metagamer), and Craft (reasonable justification for knowing metagame knowledge).
Kurashu
First Post
Craft is helpful. We used that a lot in our last campaign. There were nights when a good portion was spent making stuff. Arrows, sling bullets, swords, bows, alchemist fire, acid, pretty much anything you could want (except, sadly, siege devices that halfling died). We didn't even have to buy bottles, had the air gensai make some for us.
Spot, Listen, Move Silently, Hide, Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate and Sense Motive also tend to be helpful as well. I'm going to start investing in Climb, especially since my character enjoy heavy armor. Spellcraft is useful for the spell users, though generally not everyone else; however, Use Magic Device would be good for non-spellcasters. Escape Artist is helpful, even if you don't get caught a lot you can use it to escape grapples, though a typical fighter will have good BAB and Strength to do this anyways.
Really, it depends on the campaign and the most common occurances. But Spot and Listen would be two I'd put ranks regardless of if they're class skills or not.
Spot, Listen, Move Silently, Hide, Bluff/Diplomacy/Intimidate and Sense Motive also tend to be helpful as well. I'm going to start investing in Climb, especially since my character enjoy heavy armor. Spellcraft is useful for the spell users, though generally not everyone else; however, Use Magic Device would be good for non-spellcasters. Escape Artist is helpful, even if you don't get caught a lot you can use it to escape grapples, though a typical fighter will have good BAB and Strength to do this anyways.
Really, it depends on the campaign and the most common occurances. But Spot and Listen would be two I'd put ranks regardless of if they're class skills or not.
Hypersmurf
Moderatarrrrh...
I actually find that Spot and Listen aren't that key for everyone. If there's something to Spot, the Ranger with his +21 will see it, and it doesn't matter if I'm at +1 or +5... those few ranks aren't going to change whether or not we as a party notice something.
I think the skill that lets us down the most, where one specialist just can't cover it, is Move Silently. When we have to sneak past the guard post, it doesn't matter if the halfling rogue moves like a cat with a roll of 43; it's the cleric and his 6 that are going to get us all in trouble.
With a nod to Climb, based on the time that all of us Took 10 to climb the knotted rope up the side of the cliff, except for the sorcerer with his -1 modifier... who had to walk around the long way up the path overlooked by the watchtowers...
-Hyp.
I think the skill that lets us down the most, where one specialist just can't cover it, is Move Silently. When we have to sneak past the guard post, it doesn't matter if the halfling rogue moves like a cat with a roll of 43; it's the cleric and his 6 that are going to get us all in trouble.
With a nod to Climb, based on the time that all of us Took 10 to climb the knotted rope up the side of the cliff, except for the sorcerer with his -1 modifier... who had to walk around the long way up the path overlooked by the watchtowers...
-Hyp.
lukelightning
First Post
Kurashu said:
But it takes forever to make things. More than a single night.
Ridley's Cohort
First Post
I think Hyp's answer is right on the mark.
You want at least half the party to have "decent" Spot/Listen, and at least one guy to have a sky high Spot and one guy to have a sky high Listen. It is pretty optional after that.
Move Silently directly affects the range at which you are detected and whether you detect them first. In a way it is a direct complement to your party's best Listen.
When determining who knows first who is coming in a dungeon, the DM must compare:
Your best Listen vs. their worst Move Silently
AND
You worst Move Silently vs. their best Listen
I have a PC in a Underdark crawling party, and we have an Elf Wizard with a Bat familar. His Listen at 5th level is like +14. We detect most encounters when there are somewhere up the tunnel ~170' away before they have heard us. We can ambush our enemies ~80% of the time because we are forewarned.
You want at least half the party to have "decent" Spot/Listen, and at least one guy to have a sky high Spot and one guy to have a sky high Listen. It is pretty optional after that.
Move Silently directly affects the range at which you are detected and whether you detect them first. In a way it is a direct complement to your party's best Listen.
When determining who knows first who is coming in a dungeon, the DM must compare:
Your best Listen vs. their worst Move Silently
AND
You worst Move Silently vs. their best Listen
I have a PC in a Underdark crawling party, and we have an Elf Wizard with a Bat familar. His Listen at 5th level is like +14. We detect most encounters when there are somewhere up the tunnel ~170' away before they have heard us. We can ambush our enemies ~80% of the time because we are forewarned.
nittanytbone
First Post
Spot/Listen are pretty much worthless unless they're maxed out. A party facing a sneaky NPC or monster of an appropriate CR will only detect it with maxed out spot/listen.
Dropping a few ranks in something is really only useful for the trained only skills -- knowledge, tumble, and jump (due to the falling prone thing) come to mind.
Dropping a few ranks in something is really only useful for the trained only skills -- knowledge, tumble, and jump (due to the falling prone thing) come to mind.
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