Why isn't hiding your trail skill vs skill?

[Vahktang]

So, the bad guy barbarians don't want our heroes, which includes a ranger, to follow them that well.
So, one of their number hangs back and the DC on the tracking increases by 5.
The same number if the barbarian is 1st level or 20th level.

Hide and move silently are skill vs skill.
Why isn't tracking?
Because it's a feat, not skill?
But it uses a skill.

Any thoughts?

More later,

Vahktang

 

[Jeff Wilder]

Because tracking (and hiding tracks) is much more a matter of situational modifiers than it is of opposed skills.

For instance, when tracking, rocky ground makes things tougher; for hiding tracks, however, it should be a benefit. (It's much easier to "sweep" rock than mud.) Conversely, something like poor visibility would be a penalty to both. Keeping track of which is which suddenly complicates a "simple" opposed skill check.

I don't agree with the way they ended up doing hiding tracks, but I definitely agree that it's not appropriate for an opposed skill check.

 

[CCamfield]

There should still be possibilities between the two. For instance, the penalty for hidden tracks could be +1 to +10 - half of the other character's bonus to Survival. Or +5, +1 for every 4 points of the other character's bonus to Survival.

 

[rkanodia]

Because tracking (and hiding tracks) is much more a matter of situational modifiers than it is of opposed skills.

For instance, when tracking, rocky ground makes things tougher; for hiding tracks, however, it should be a benefit. (It's much easier to "sweep" rock than mud.) Conversely, something like poor visibility would be a penalty to both. Keeping track of which is which suddenly complicates a "simple" opposed skill check.

I don't agree with the way they ended up doing hiding tracks, but I definitely agree that it's not appropriate for an opposed skill check.

Of course, a 'penalty to both' is the same as 'nothing' in an opposed skill check. I think it should be rather feasible to come up with a list of conditions, and then a single DC modifier. The hider makes an unmodified Survival check, and then the tracker has to make a modified check based on the conditions listed. Seems simple enough. It isn't any more complicated than the current paradigm.