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The listing is: Versatile Performance (Ex): At 2nd level, a bard can choose one type of Perform skill. He can use his bonus in that skill in place of his bonus in associated skills. When substituting in this way, the bard uses his total Perform skill bonus, including class skill bonus, in place of its associated skill’s bonus, whether or not he has ranks in that skill or if it is a class skill. At 6th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, the bard can select an additional type of Perform to substitute.

The types of Perform and their associated skills are: Act (Bluff, Disguise), Comedy (Bluff, Intimidate), Dance (Acrobatics, Fly), Keyboard Instruments (Diplomacy, Intimidate), Oratory (Diplomacy, Sense Motive), Percussion (Handle Animal, Intimidate), Sing (Bluff, Sense Motive), String (Bluff, Diplomacy), and Wind (Diplomacy, Handle Animal).

The debate is:
Does Versatile Performance Automatically allow a bard to substitute his Performance skill rank in place of the related skill rank automatically or does he have to actually 'perform' to get the increased value (assuming he jacks his performance skill up)? That is...does he actually need to sing, dance, string, wind, etc.... or just automatically substitute his Versatile Performance skill anytime? All it states is: "He can use his bonus in that skill in place of his bonus in associated skills."

For example, let's say that a bard maxes out his perform skill and does not put any skill pips into specific skills like Dance or sing. Now in combat he wants to bluff (total rank is say 5), but using Sing (total rank is say 15) under versatile performance, he wants to substitute his bluff and jack it to a 15 (without actually singing) because his argument is that is the whole point of Versatile Performance.

I would contend that you would need to actually perform an act of singing (Bluff or sense motive) to gain the Versatile Performance rank or dance in order to gain the performance level of acrobatics or fly.

His argument for dance would be that since his performance skill is so high, Versatile Performance means that his dancing is so high (took at 6th level)therefore he is so skilled, that he can always use Perform in place of a normal acrobatics check since dancers are just more agile.

Please see if we can get a clarification. Thanks.

I have a question in regards to the creation (crafting) of magic items using the metamagic feats. Craft Wand states:
Prerequisite: Caster level 5th. Benefit: You can create a wand of any 4th-level or lower spell that you know.

This implies that you can only imbue a wand with a spell that you know and have in your repertoire of spells.

Craft Wondrous items as well as the Craft rods, staves, etc… all state:
Prerequisite: Caster level 3rd. Benefit: You can create any wondrous item whose prerequisites you meet.

So lets take one as an example:
Hat of Disguise: Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, disguise self; Cost 900 gp

To me this implies that you need to be able to cast the Spell disguise self as well as meet the other costs. The wording in these feats though make it seem that you could use a scroll, using the skill Use Magical device, and cast the disguise self from the scroll to make the hat.

I think the wording should be altered to reflect the proper meaning of these feats. My issue is that if you can make magical items my casting off of a scroll, then I see Bards as being the best Crafters in the game and that does not sit right with me. It seems more likely that the wizard needs to have the spell in his/her book or the sorcerer needs to have the spell as a known spell. I have read other threads that state you can ‘tag-team’ and have someone else cast a spell into the item to enchant is. This seems wrong to me, but can not find the wording in the rules to say ya or nay to these.

Can anyone help with these clarifications?

The one thing that has been missing from the WOC DND is some way to track reputation. Reputation should have a bearing on the characters as they gain renown for either being famous or infamous thus impacting bluff, intimidate, and diplomacy checks. Other systems include simple version that just increase per character level such as Star Wars Revised Core rules. Others have detailed systems such as the Game of Thrones d20 RPG that allow a lot of options but are a bit more cumbersome. Other games incorporate it much more integrally, such as 7th Sea.

Personally I like the idea of event based reputation. “Rather than determining reputation increases purely by class levels, the DM can enhance characters' reputations based on the characters' actual adventures. At an adventure's conclusion, he can hand out awards to the characters who were known to have participated, representing how much more famous (or infamous) their recent actions have made them.
This variant doesn't change much about the game (beyond what the reputation variant does in general). Characters have a slight incentive to choose adventures that will earn them more fame, because their later social interactions will be more likely to succeed. But reputation is a double-edged sword in the D&D game, because it can turn into notoriety with a simple twist of the plot.

The same peasants who buy the PCs drinks at the tavern one night might try to turn them in for a reward later after the sheriff frames the PCs for murder.

If the characters earned public acclaim for ending a threat to the community's safety, aware each PC a 1-point increase in his or her reputation score at the adventure's conclusion. If the accolades came from a narrower circle of people, then each character gets a 1/2-point increase. A single 1/2-point increase has no effect on reputation-related skill checks, but two such increases combine to provide a fill 1-point increase. Of what the characters accomplishes in the adventure directly affected, or came to the attention of, only a few (or no) other people, the PCs don't get a reputation boost. This determination is obviously a judgment call.“

No matter the final version, I think this type of system is a necessity of the game to add more ‘roleplaying’ in lieu of just more combat abilities. These make for great plot and story devices.

Sound off and let me know what you think and how it would work best in the Pathfinder mechanics.

While testplaying it was pointed out that this version of the Beta lists the toughness as 3 HP +1/HD. Can you take this feat multiple times and does it stack? It does not state one way or another. My ruling was you could only take it once unlike the 3.5 PHB version. Any thoughts? The toughness feat on page 95 should be clarified one way or another.

One interesting skill that I was wondering if it would get a second look at is the heal skill. The rules state about how to apply first aid, long term care, how to treat poison as well as diseas. But one thing that concerns me is how does a character diagnose an illness, disease, or poison short of detect poison? The skill description does not allow you determine a type of disease...only treat it.

One suggestion may be to treat it more like the new identify, where the heal skill can 'diagnose' an ilness or poison but at a higher DC and the Detect poison spell can either be a guaranteed result or add a +10 to the heal skill.

How else would and adventuring party or a village healer (natural) be able to diagnose the vast number and types of illnesses, diseases, or poisons?

Any thoughts or am I missing something?