Why do intelligence bonuses from magical items effect skills the way they do?

[Creamsteak]

More specifically, why do we have to deal with intelligence boosting magic items granting additional skill points the way they do? I find it a bit annoying that a character that gets a +4 intelligence item one or two levels before another character gains a larger benefit.

 

[FireLance]

You no longer have to deal with it under 3.5e. It was "fixed" as follows:

Headband of Intellect: This device is a light cord with a small gem set so that it rests upon the forehead of the wearer. The headband adds to the wearer’s Intelligence score in the form of an enhancement bonus of +2, +4, or +6. This enhancement bonus does not earn the wearer extra skill points when a new level is attained; use the unenhanced Intelligence bonus to determine skill points.

Me, I ignore this rule, and the no retroactive skill points for increasing Intelligence rule.

 

[Geoff Watson]

More specifically, why do we have to deal with intelligence boosting magic items granting additional skill points the way they do? I find it a bit annoying that a character that gets a +4 intelligence item one or two levels before another character gains a larger benefit.

So people can't change their skills by taking them off and putting them on again.

Geoff.

 

[tleilaxu]

i remember back in the day when (or just before) 3e came out i asked (on EN) the question of retroactive skill points and skill boosting items. the official response was "con increases act retroactively but int increases don't... if you wear a int boosting item for the majority of a level, you get the bonus skill points"

i found this a very dissatisfying ruling and have ignored it to this very day.

 

[The Souljourner]

It's because you have to allocate skill points to certain skills, and hitpoints just go into your total. Here's an example - you are a 12th level wizard and make it to 13th. You're lucky enough to have a headband of intellect +6. You gain 3 extra skill points, which you decide to dump into craft: basketweaving, giving you 3 ranks. Later on in the campaign, you realize craft: basketweaving is crap, so you take off the headband, lose the 3 skillpoints, and thus the 3 ranks... then put it back on, regaining the 3 skill points, and putting them in search.

And that's only for the last level. Actually, when you take off the headband at 13th level, you lose 48 skills points (don't forget the bonus at first level).... where did you put those specific 48 skillpoints? Do you remember? Well, now you need to go back and update all those skills... now you put it back on... boom, 48 new skillpoints. You could max out 3 different class skills that way, every single time you take off the headband. Need search, spot and listen today? Ok. After lunch do you need some knowledge: arcana? No problem.

And how *do* you determine class skills? What if you were a fighter 6/wizard 7? When you get those 48 skillpoints, are all wizard skills class skills, or do you need to go back and figure out which levels you took when....

No... it's definitely way better just to not have intelligence be retroactive, and not allow intelligence items to grant skillpoints. Otherwise, it's nearly impossible to keep track of your skills, even with a complicated spreadsheet.

-The Souljourner

 

[Thanee]

More specifically, why do we have to deal with intelligence boosting magic items granting additional skill points the way they do? I find it a bit annoying that a character that gets a +4 intelligence item one or two levels before another character gains a larger benefit.

Because the skill points represent the amount of training between two levels, which is not just a point in time where you actually level up.

Because intelligence makes you learn faster and being more intelligent over a larger time period, makes you learn more.

It's not, that wearing the headband of intellect grants you access to more skills. It increases your ability to learn. Whatever you learned will stay with you, even if you take off the headband later.

And note, that in 3.5 intelligence boosting items do not grant additional skill points anymore.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Scion]

You're lucky enough to have a headband of intellect +6. You gain 3 extra skill points, which you decide to dump into craft: basketweaving, giving you 3 ranks. Later on in the campaign, you realize craft: basketweaving is crap, so you take off the headband, lose the 3 skillpoints, and thus the 3 ranks... then put it back on, regaining the 3 skill points, and putting them in search.

This isnt true no matter which version of the rules you use. Skill points do not change retroactively, that rule is in the phb. So, once you spend your skill points, that were gained at the appropriate time, it is done and over with.

There is no headache about having to worry. All you have to do is figure out how long you have to have the bonus before getting the bonus from leveling. Once that is done then there is nothing more to worry about.

If what you said above were true, then I could simply cast touch of idiocy on myself, lose some skill points, wait for the spell to expire, and then respend all of my skill points. However, this does not work in either case.

I dont like they change about having the magic item not grant skill points anymore, it seems heavily artificial. How come con increases hp but I cant get more skill points? Effectively the change is exactly the same, but one has a special case. Can I actually lift more? Am I more charismatic? There isnt any real reason to disallow it, just made up ones for no real reason. Personally I will simply keep it so that they can grant skill points. It gives the fighter types all the more reason to try to spend some money on something other than their normal primary equipment. Without the extra skill points there is effectively no reason for them to want it at all, seems like a pretty bad way to go.

 

[The Souljourner]

OK, Scion, you weren't getting my point... people had said they ignored the ruling that they don't give retroactive skill points and I was explaining how many problems that would cause.

So, I guess you're saying you'd allow the headband to give more skill points when you level up, but then they wouldn't go away when you took it off? Ok, that does fix a lot of problems with retroactive stuff.... but then how long do you have to wear the headband? Half a level? More than half? All of it? What if you take it off to bathe? Could two people share one for a level? How much time is enough? The problem is that "levels" are an artificial construct of the game, and you don't really gain skill all in one lump at the end of x amount of time. It's just very difficult to adjudicate, so they threw it out.

-The Souljourner

 

[Scion]

Majority means more than half. So if you got your last level over the course of a week (this is easy enough to time, you know when you 'level up', just count from then).

That is 168 hours. So if they wear the headband for more than 84 hours in that week then its fine. Others might want 3/4, or all of it (wearing it for the full week). Whatever, it doesnt matter, just make a ruling and stick with it.

It is incredibly easy, if there are any problems that could occur I have seen none happen so far. 'Did you have the bonus for X amount of time or more for your last level? yes? good then, you get the skill points. No? ok then, you dont.' Skill points arent retroactive so once you get them or not it is over and done with. No spreadsheets necissary

 

[IceBear]

To me, if you only wore it for half the time it took you to level, you should only get half the bonus skillpoints. If intelligence is the measure of how quickly you can learn and absorb, then only wearing it for half the time would meak you only learn and absorb 50% of the information (skillpoints) than if you had it on all the time.