After reading though things, it looks very interesting.
The balancing of the races is excellent!!!
I like the realignment and streamlining of the skills, but I still am yet to be sold on the class/cross-class mechanic. This regards the implication that learning things is more difficult for characters of a certain class than it may be for others. I'd rather the system be slightly more open, such that you can have a fighter who has studied engineering for the purposes of siege warfare, and would know it as well as any scholarly type who studied the same, yet doesn't have to sacrifice a massive amount of skill points just to do so. Or, a fighter who was raised among mages could be as well versed in Spellcraft as any Wizard(he can identify magical properties), even if he can’t actually cast any spells. I could give other examples of this too, but it is a simple fix for me. I'd rather just have the classes themselves define the characters, and not have such stringent limitations placed on learning skills. Perhaps you could introduce a Feat called “Variant Training: Choose any two Cross-class Skills. These skills now count as Class Skills for you.” That would cover those instances where players want to play a character of a certain class, but who has skills outside of the norm and knows them very well. While it doesn't suit my view perfectly(like you can ever make all the people happy all the time anyways ;) ), the Skills system is still greatly improved. Some of the racial abilities also address this issue(half-elves and humans), but it would be a good option to make available to anyone through the use of a Feat slot.
The seldom used Escape Artist Skill should probably be rolled into the Sleight of Hand skill(both involve flexibility of the hands/body) instead of how it is now for Theft. Instead, combine Open Lock and Disable Device together, as both skills are completely related and really do require Perception, Dexterity, and Intelligence to pull off, and not just good hand-eye coordination. These tow popular skills will always be focused on, even if they are separate skills, but combining them makes sense and also has the benefit of freeing up a few extra points to spend on other, less used skills.
The Fly skill is an interesting addition. I can see why it was made a skill, as it is a skill that can be acquired through the use of magic, but is also one possessed by creatures that can fly normally(either through the use of wings, internal gasses, or a permanent magical affect). On the other hand, it does suffer from the same problem that the Scry skill did- you must be able to fly somehow in the first place to use the skill. The earliest level a character will gain a fly spell is 5th, and as it is a Trained Only skill it presents a further problem to noob characters who get their hands on a Fly potion. It also prsents the problem of expaling how a 1st level character can train in flying. Potions of flying are expensive, and the simple fly spell is way beyond a novice's abilities. The one odd thing I noticed about the skill is that is doesn’t have any size penalty built into it. Massive creatures ought not to have the same maneuverability as tiny creatures. While this may end up being dealt with in the monster book, it still needs to be dealt with here, as you can of course have things like flying gnomes(Small), and flying, enlarged, fighters(or en-spelled flying giants or whatever). The Fly skill needs to take into account all of these varying factors for it to work well. The size of the flier is one omission that comes to mind. Simply adding the “Fine –8, Diminutive –4, Tiny –2, Small –1, Medium +0, Large +1, Huge +2, Gargantuan +4, Colossal +8” size modifier will fix the size issue in regard to skill checks, but bigger things should also have to spend more movement to maneuver(that isn’t covered at all). An en-spelled flying ferret familiar might be able to practically turn on a dime, but a fire giant who drank a potion of flying probably can’t (speaking of which, Fly should not be a Trained Only skill, as anything can be made to fly via spell or potion). Big things should have to move at least a certain amount before being able to conduct a maneuver. Maneuverability Class handled this before, but taking it out is not a good idea and it needs to be included in some way under the Fly skill. Also, the collision section of the Fly skill should have its DC modified by the current height of the flier as well(maybe DC 25, -2 for every 100 feet of height of the flier), if you collide with something 40 feet above the ground, yes, you are probably going to crash and burn, but if you collide with something at 800 feet in the air, you have a much better chance of pulling out of your death dive in time. There is no distinction made in regard to height when a collision happens under the skill as it is written. 10 feet or 10 miles in the air, it is DC 25 or nothing. That paragraph that says you cannot avoid a fall if you are involved in a collision should therefore be removed as the above option would cover the situation. I’ll leave it to you to hammer out the details though. I’m just here to provide opinions. :D
As to the revision of the 4 Core classes, I mostly like what I see. I think I get the gist of how Orisons are intended to work, but perhaps this re-wording would make it a bit more clear:
“Orisons (Sp): Clerics can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day. They can cast each of these prepared spells an unlimited number of times per day, at will, as a spell-like ability. The number of orisons a cleric can prepare each day is noted in Table 4-2 under spells per day. Orisons are treated like any other spell cast by the cleric in terms of duration and other variables based on level. Orisons cannot be channeled through spontaneous casting.”
If Orisons(and Cantrips) are NOT intended to work this way, please explain a bit more about how they are intended to work. Thanks.
Also, unless druids have some fantastic abilities that already give them bonuses with regards to the 4 elements and animals and plants, they should have access to two Domains the same as clerics do. I’ll have to wait and see what is done with them though. Perhaps they will have a few abilities that they will be able to make use of at will too.
One other thing. Black Tentacles(Evard's Black Tentacles) used to be such a simple thing to take care of in 1e/2e. Please bring the Pathfinder version more in line with what the effect once was. Roll a simple Reflex save to avoid the tentacles or be nabbed. Strength check vs. DC 10 + caster level + ability modifier to break free, or do so much damage(tentacle has 1 hp/2 caster levels perhaps) to a tentacle to destroy it(and break free). The current damage level is just fine. It is just a royal pain to make use of this spell in-game when it has grabbed a whole crap-load of enemies. Resolving this spell each round slows the pace of the game such that even a sloth would scream "Hurry the **** up with that spell effect already!!!" :D Do this with Entangle too, and leave Grappling for non-spell related effects that target individuals(not groups).
Based on what I've seen so far, you have a guaranteed sale from me. I look forward to seeing more of the modifications.
Perhaps you could introduce a Feat called “Variant Training: Choose any two Cross-class Skills. These skills now count as Class Skills for you.”
I like it!
The seldom used Escape Artist Skill should probably be rolled into the Sleight of Hand skill(both involve flexibility of the hands/body) instead of how it is now for Theft. Instead, combine Open Lock and Disable Device together, as both skills are completely related and really do require Perception, Dexterity, and Intelligence to pull off, and not just good hand-eye coordination....
I agree with this analysis from a logic point of view, but the other side of the argument is that neither Escape Artist nor Sleight of Hand are widely used skills so I think the intent was to incorporate them with skills that are. Still I could be sold. What would you call this skill?
As for Fly, I feel strongly that it should not be a skill, it wouldn't come up enough and just isn't really necessary.
I'm not really sure on a name for the combination of Escape Artist and Sleight of Hand. Call it "Legerdemain", as "Prestidigitation" really can't be used again. They are pretty much synonymous anyways, being trerms to describe slight of hand and magician's/ conjurers tricks, like making things disappear from one's hand, or escaping bonds "as if by magic".
The Fly skill is a tricky one, and might be better suited to not being a skill.
