Really guys I was torn but after playing with it abit I really like it alot.I would like Minimum of 4 skills at 1st level not 2 though.The new system is close enuff to the old to be backward campatable so I say damned good call jason .
I agree, I like the new skill system.
I also like the new system, particularly as a DM for creating high level npcs. But I think there need to be fewer skills awarded at 1st level than there are now. Between the combining of skills from the old system resulting in fewer choices and the automatic maxing of skills the current numbers are just to many. Most classes will have max ranks in every class skill by the level 12+ (a rogue with no int bonus has 14 maxed classs skills at this level, fighters and clerics have 8). I think this allocation system would have been fine with the old skill choices, but with the new ones there's simply no hard choices to make when designing a character.
The multi-classing issue needs to be resolved as well. A character that takes rogue at level 1 can have 18 maxed rogue skills at 20th level. There needs to be a mechanic for preventing this kind of abuse.
I do really like the new system though, especially how it makes cross-class skills worth taking for the first time.
Ive said thi all over this board Please Keep the new skills
We have no idea how he is changing Multiclassing so he might have a way to handle the problems you guys are talking about
i posted this in another thread but im gonna put it here too
Ok guys I had a thought alot of the dislike of alpha seems to be that if you pick a skill up at 6th level its as good as say ones you had at first.
so maybe something like 3+modifier+level{starting when you took it}
like so 6th level fighter
climb 3 str17+3 that's +12 at 1st and if taken at
2nd 3+3+5=+11 and cross 3+3+2=+8
4th 3+3+3=+9 cross 3+3+1=+7
6th 3+3+1=+7 cross 3+3+0=+6
still fast and easy to figure out but it scales so your better with skills you have had longer and more easily ports over to the 3.5 skill system.