Hey everybody! Out of both boredom and an effort to make skills more useful, I've added to, subtracted from, and shuffled around the 3.5/4.0/PF skills (and incorporated a few skill ideas from GURPS 4.0). After tweaking it for a while, I'd like to try it out on my gaming group.
All of the skills are broad in application, and I tried to give them maximum flexibility while still having only a little overlap. What I've listed next to each skill isn't exhaustive of what each could do, but it's representative.
I've made a finite list of 10 Knowledge and 6 Craft skills (for a total of 30 skills total). I'm pretty sure they cover anything a player might want to know or create, but let me know if you think there are any gaps! Please also note the secondary abilities of some of the Knowledge skills and the expanded roles of craft skills. (For example, Open Lock/Disable Device is now part of Craft Device, the DEX-based craft skill.)
So what I'd like to know, is:
1) Is there anything missing? Or anything that doesn't need to be there?
2) Is anything over- or under-powered?
3) I wanted to balance the skill load for each ability. Do you think Heal and Survival are proper as CON-based skills?
4) I was thinking of making Craft skills cost two points per rank to account for their increased utility. Thoughts?
5) Any other comments or criticisms?
Thanks everybody! And enjoy!
SKILLS (organized by ability)
STR
Athletics: Swim, climb, run, lift more than normal maximum, endurance, hold breath, sports, related knowledge
Break: Break doors, chests, weapons, bonds and other objects; find weak points (also incorporates strength checks)
DEX
Acrobatics: Balance, tumble, jump, fly, escape artist, flexibility
Stealth: Hide, move silently, shadow, sleight of hand, camouflage, shake pursuers in a crowd or forest
CON
Heal: Diagnose condition, first aid, stabilize dying, surgery, improvise medical supplies, anatomical knowledge
Survival: Track, fish, forage, make fire, find shelter, intuit direction, endure elements
WIS
Concentrate: Autohypnosis, control shape, mind block, mental endurance, meditation, psionics checks, combat casting (maybe, but I like how Pathfinder does it)
Perception: Actively or passively spot, listen, feel, taste, and smell; notice important details and stealthed foes, (search is now under investigate)
Intuition: Send, receive, and intercept hidden messages and lies in speech, body language, dreams, etc...; read lips
Investigate: Gather info, research, analyze objects or areas to reconstruct past events, search areas for hidden things
CHA
Convince: Diplomacy, bluff, haggle, fast talk, hypnosis
Daunt: Intimidate, taunt, confuse; instill fear, anger, shame etc...
Handle Animal: Ride, handle, tame, calm, and care for animals and similar creatures
Perform: Act, dance, sing, play musical instrument, oratory, etiquette, disguise
KNOWLEDGES (all based on INT)
Arcana: Dragons, magical beasts, magic, arcane rituals; use to identify, create, and use magic spells and items
Cosmology: Outsiders, deities, major religions, astronomy, astrology, the planes, fortune-telling
Economy: Markets, trade customs, currencies, commodities; use to appraise items
Engineering: Constructs, math and physics, technology, architecture; use to intuit building layouts and find structural weak points
Esoteric: Aberrations, oozes, undead, secret organizations, profane rituals, hidden lore, dungeons, the Underdark
Geography: Locating landmarks, natural resources, and towns; use to navigate and for pathfinding
History: World and regional history, wars, prominent lineages, legends, myths, folk tales
Nature: Animals, plants, fey, vermin, geology, weather, natural phenomena
Society: Humanoids, laws, customs, politics, fashion, art, common folk, the upper class, royalty
Strategy: Monstrous humanoids, fighting styles, tactics, logistics, military training; use to gamble and help formulate strategies
CRAFTS (each based on different ability) - Used to identify, understand, appraise, craft, disable, and/or use relevant items.
STR It takes a strong arm to swing the hammer and stretch the hides.
Armament: Most melee and thrown weapons, armor, shields, helms, gauntlets, etc...
DEX A bit of finesse is required to get all those little moving parts in place.
Device: Most ranged weapons, firearms, locks, traps, machines, vehicles, etc...
CON Working with all these dangerous chemicals might make you sick.
Substance: Potions, poisons, acids, medicines, alchemical items, etc...
INT Only a sharp mind can have this kind of attention to detail.
Document: Scrolls, maps, contracts, licenses, passports, currency, forgeries, origami, etc...
WIS A wise man knows that simplicity and function are among the highest of virtues.
Mundane: Tools, clothing, supplies, food, buildings, handicrafts, etc...
CHA You can't make beautiful things without a bit of a creative spark.
Finery: Jewelry, gemstones, holy symbols (might put this under mundane for the sake of clerics), crowns, scepters, wands, bardic instruments, etc...
Notes:
1: Origin-, race-, class-, or profession-specific knowledge checks may gain a bonus or penalty based on the character's familiarity with them (Thus, there is no Knowledge Local). Characters may expend skill points to gain levels of familiarity for their present location. Professions are gained as feats and grant relevant skill bonuses.
2: To craft magical items, one must have sufficient caster levels, and sufficient skill ranks in Knowledge Arcana. He may choose to use his Wisdom or Charisma modifier instead of Intelligence for Knowledge Arcana checks used to make items.
If you are going to change the Heal key ability, change it to Intelligence, the reason for this being that one can receive an education about how to use the skill, but not all healers have compassion. Healers with the compassion to tend to the masses and wanting to do the most good might be able to add their Wisdom modifier in addition to their Intelligence modifier via feat.
Humane Healer
Your insight allows you to out perform other healers.
Prerequisite: Wisdom 13
Benefit: You add you Wisdom modifier in addition to your Intelligence modifier to your Heal skill check.
If you are going to change the Heal key ability, change it to Intelligence, the reason for this being that one can receive an education about how to use the skill, but not all healers have compassion. Healers with the compassion to tend to the masses and wanting to do the most good might be able to add their Wisdom modifier in addition to their Intelligence modifier via feat.
Humane Healer
Your insight allows you to out perform other healers.
Prerequisite: Wisdom 13
Benefit: You add you Wisdom modifier in addition to your Intelligence modifier to your Heal skill check.
Thanks for the idea. I was also thinking I could switch healing back to Wisdom and put Concentration back under Constitution (but I never really felt like it belonged there. :/)
Edit: Of course, I put Heal under Con for functional reasons as well. I figured healers should be encouraged to have a higher Con so that they have more staying power and are thus able to stabilize their squishy, dying friends, instead of the healer being squishy himself and dying prematurely.
I figured it could be explained as, "Those with high Constitution are better at Heal because they don't get squeamish, can avoid contracting diseases from patients, and have a better intuitive sense of their own and others' bodies and health."
Even some doctors can lose their lunch though after seeing their buddies killed on the battlefield.
Even some doctors can lose their lunch though after seeing their buddies killed on the battlefield.
Absolutely true.
EDIT: I'm beginning to feel that my version of Perform might be a little too loaded. And I'm not sure about divorcing etiquette from Diplomacy, it may be better to fold it into Knowledge Society instead.
Okay, I'm changing things so that social grace or etiquette is included with Convince. The skill will now be called "Charm". So the four CHA-based skills are:
Charm: Diplomacy, bluff, haggle, fast talk, hypnosis, etiquette
Daunt: Intimidate, taunt, confuse; instill fear, anger, shame etc...
Handle Animal: Ride, handle, tame, calm, and care for animals and similar creatures
Perform: Disguise, act, dance, sing, play musical instrument, oratory
(Should Disguise go under Charm or Perform? I think Perform.)
With all the other elements of this system considered, I'm thinking of making Arcana into a Craft skill. It can use any one of Int/Wis/Cha, and like the other craft skills, it can be used to identify, understand, appraise, craft, disable/disrupt, and/or use magical items and spells.
This sort of makes me want to come up with a Craft skill that uses any one of Str/Dex/Con, but I'm not sure if that's really necessary.
Craft Finery will also include costumes. Craft Substance will include makeup and perfume. :D
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Please also note:
With this system, there would be no Craft Feats. To make an item, you only need a number of relevant skill ranks, as determined by each item. Some items need multiple Craft skills to be made, as well, and require a check for each.
(Example: If you wanted to make a magic scroll, you would need to roll both Craft Document and Craft Arcana. If it were, say, Document DC 15, Arcana DC 20, you would need a minimum of 5 ranks in Craft Document and a minimum of 10 ranks in Craft Arcana.)
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I really like having more uses for physical skills- especially Strength (waaay too many Dex fanboys out there).
That said, Craft skills based on every different attribute? Some of the premises make a bit of sense, and some of them- not so much. Dex and Int in equal parts seem like they would overlap for most functions (steady hand for forging documents, cleverness for making locks of any size). Wisdom seems an odd attribute to require architects to have, so why do they craft buildings with it? Especially when Knowledge of architecture is using Int?
Also not too thrilled to see a return of Concentration. If it includes combat casting functions, it's a must-have skill for any caster again, and is essentially a skill tax. If it doesn't, I'm reasonably sure that few people will use it unless the GM makes it a point to need it.
Small notes:
I really liked Linguistics as a skill, but you seem to have pulled it apart into several others. Not sure where learning languages goes anymore- it was terrible to pay skill points for a language and get nothing else out of it.
I would almost price the bulk of Knowledge skills lower than any other skill. I have not been in many games where the Knowledge skills were as crucial as, say, Perception or Acrobatics- it's more of a useful perk instead of a necessary vehicle for the character. Primary reason: if it is sorely needed, and the player blows their roll- story stops dead. You either know something or you don't, and can't reroll within the rules (GMs might allow a reroll after gaining another point).
Unless you are changing the time it takes to craft something, I would leave the Craft skills cheap. Even using them to craft magic items, it looks like the aspiring artisan will need to sink points into Knowledge: Arcana anyway, making every craft skill cost more than one point to begin with. It does get cheaper the more craft skills you acquire, but by then, it's already extremely expensive.
Also, have you considered the process for enchanting existing items (weapons, armor, jewelry, etc.) rather than making them yourself? Will that only require Knowledge: Arcana, potentially making it very, very valuable? How will spell requirements of objects (and perhaps the lack of a few required spells) affect their crafting?
All things considered though, pretty good. Also, good timing, I was about to pick up the PDF "A Skill for Everything" to look at just this subject...
Forgive the following wall o' text.
I really like having more uses for physical skills- especially Strength (waaay too many Dex fanboys out there).
Thanks! I agree with the Dex sentiment.
That said, Craft skills based on every different attribute? Some of the premises make a bit of sense, and some of them- not so much. Dex and Int in equal parts seem like they would overlap for most functions (steady hand for forging documents, cleverness for making locks of any size).
Ah, a very good point, but I made things the way they are for more than just flavor reasons (although that had a role). The people who will be crafting the most documents are wizards (for scrolls) and Rogues (for forgeries), and they're both Int-heavy classes. As for Device, it uses Dex because the people using ranged weapons, setting traps, and picking locks are the Dex heavy classes, mostly Ranger and Rogue.
Similarly, Strength is used for weapons and armor because the ones making the most use of them will be Strength-based classes like the Fighter and Barbarian. And Con is for poison so that when applying poison you're able to resist it when you fail in applying it, or you cut yourself by mistake (Other than that, it didn't NOT fit, so... :p).
Anyway, the main purpose of the arrangement was to spread the skill load out among the abilities a bit better, and try to get each craft skill at least a little more useable by the classes that need them. I agree that it's not perfect, but having all Crafting based on a single ability score is worse, in my opinion.
Wisdom seems an odd attribute to require architects to have, so why do they craft buildings with it? Especially when Knowledge of architecture is using Int?
That's true. There's also some overlap between Knowledge Engineering and Craft Device, which is based on Dex. I wouldn't expect most PC's to be making grand monuments, but if they're just making a basic shelter, then it is somewhat related to Survival, a Wis-based skill. Think of Craft Mundane this way: Could a frontiersman, farmer, housewife, or average villager do it? Then it goes in here. Log cabins included.
That being said, these Craft skills sort of function secondarily as Knowledge skills in their own right, just much more narrowly.
Also not too thrilled to see a return of Concentration. If it includes combat casting functions, it's a must-have skill for any caster again, and is essentially a skill tax. If it doesn't, I'm reasonably sure that few people will use it unless the GM makes it a point to need it.
Yeah, that's why I put that note there. I think the current way of doing combat casting is much more preferable (psionics should probably use a similar mechanic). I know the term "Concentration" has some baggage in terms of game mechanics, so perhaps a name change is in order for the skill. Having autohypnosis and control shape in there is a good start, but maybe there's more we can include in there to make the skill more useful?
I really liked Linguistics as a skill, but you seem to have pulled it apart into several others. Not sure where learning languages goes anymore- it was terrible to pay skill points for a language and get nothing else out of it.
I liked linguistics a lot too, and I toyed around with including it for a while. Most of it was folded into Craft Document (and some into Intuition. I didn't write this down in the original post, but it can be used to get the gist of a language that you don't understand).
As for just languages, I think a skill point for an entire language is generous (and how many besides common do you really need to know anyway?). But I just had a cool thought, "What if language acquisition was automatic?" Each language has 3 levels of fluency (Unknown-Basic-Advanced-Fluent). Each level, you can gain a level of fluency in any one language. Alternatively, you could stay simple and just gain a full language every 3 levels.
But how does intelligence come into play? I'll have to think about the language thing a bit more. So stay tuned!
I would almost price the bulk of Knowledge skills lower than any other skill. I have not been in many games where the Knowledge skills were as crucial as, say, Perception or Acrobatics- it's more of a useful perk instead of a necessary vehicle for the character. Primary reason: if it is sorely needed, and the player blows their roll- story stops dead. You either know something or you don't, and can't reroll within the rules (GMs might allow a reroll after gaining another point).
Another good point, with the "no rerolls" thing. My groups have always found Knowledge to be extremely useful (especially for identifying enemies in combat). Maybe I should make some kind of house rule? Such as, if you spend sufficient time scrying/researching/investigating, you can reroll the knowledge check (not always an option, I know, but maybe that will lead them on a little side quest to an ancient library :p)
One thing to remember is that most characters wouldn't invest a lot of points in ALL of the Knowledge skills, just a few of the ones most relevant to the campaign or their background. Also, with all of the skill condensation going on here, maybe they'll have a few points to spare for Knowledge skills anyway.
Unless you are changing the time it takes to craft something, I would leave the Craft skills cheap.
I'm not too sure about this one. It's not just a craft skill anymore. It incorporates all of the following skills for each item category:
Craft, Appraise, Knowledge, Disable Device (when applicable), and some use skills like Use Rope or Use Magic Device. To account for the possibly lower ranks taken in craft skills, maybe craft DC's could be made lower as well?Even using them to craft magic items, it looks like the aspiring artisan will need to sink points into Knowledge: Arcana anyway, making every craft skill cost more than one point to begin with.
For magical items, that's true, rolling for two skills is harder than just one. But not so for mundane items.
Also, have you considered the process for enchanting existing items (weapons, armor, jewelry, etc.) rather than making them yourself? Will that only require Knowledge: Arcana, potentially making it very, very valuable? How will spell requirements of objects (and perhaps the lack of a few required spells) affect their crafting?
I have considered it, and yes, Arcana would be the main skill here. Maybe it's easier to enchant something while in the process of actually making it? As such, maybe enchanting an existing item requires a higher Arcana check than one made while crafting it from scratch?
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I have an idea that might solve a few of your grievances. If PCs' skill points are all doubled, you could make Knowledges cost 1 point each, Skills cost 2, and Crafts cost 3 (or maybe just 2). That way Knowledges are effectively 50% cost, Skills stay the same, and the new, more useful crafts cost 150% (or just 100%). Too complicated?
Oh, and also remember that with the Craft Feats gone, that opens up the road for my aforementioned Profession Feats to add bonuses to Crafts and other skills.
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All things considered though, pretty good. Also, good timing, I was about to pick up the PDF "A Skill for Everything" to look at just this subject...
Thanks for all of your insightful input! Oh, that sounds like my kind of PDF, let me know if you make a skill system based on it.
As you can tell by my posts, I don't mind walls. Maybe I should be an architect? :-)
I know the term "Concentration" has some baggage in terms of game mechanics, so perhaps a name change is in order for the skill... maybe there's more we can include in there to make the skill more useful?
One possibility I was exploring was typing certain effects with the [Pain] descriptor, and including pain tolerance bonuses in archetypes that would deserve it (barbarian and fighter, for example). In that vein, perhaps renaming "Concentration" to "Discipline?" One could use it to help resist pain-based effects and the like. A more disciplined person could better focus for Autohypnosis, too, so it makes sense. You might also offer the rare prestige ability to add a small fraction of it to Concentration checks, though this would have to be carefully handled.
There's also some overlap between Knowledge Engineering and Craft Device, which is based on Dex. I wouldn't expect most PC's to be making grand monuments, but if they're just making a basic shelter, then it is somewhat related to Survival, a Wis-based skill. Think of Craft Mundane this way: Could a frontiersman, farmer, housewife, or average villager do it? Then it goes in here. Log cabins included.
Good point on the monument-building. By the same token, I haven't had any PCs building simple buildings either, and had considered emergency shelter a part of Survival. I have had some PCs design fortifications or estates, and once as a player I did end up designing a monument (though it wasn't a story-important challenge at all).
My groups have always found Knowledge to be extremely useful (especially for identifying enemies in combat). Maybe I should make some kind of house rule? Such as, if you spend sufficient time scrying/researching/investigating, you can reroll the knowledge check (not always an option, I know, but maybe that will lead them on a little side quest to an ancient library :p)
I also enjoy those monster-IDing benefits when they're available, and that might make Knowledge more useful in a practical sense. It is still somewhat situational though- Perception always helps you spot things. Acrobatics always helps you jump. Athletics always helps you climb or swim. Knowledge of a monster's attack helps you avoid it- sometimes. Other times, it's just letting you know what it's eye-rays are going to do to you now that they have hit you.
The overwhelming majority of my experience with the Knowledge skills is when they're being used to "pick up clues" in a mystery scenario, or as a requisite roll to clue in to a plot hook. It's more of a problem in adventure design, where all progress hinges on a single die roll than with the Knowledge skills themselves. Though, these are really the shining moments of Knowledge skills- either they show you the crucial piece of evidence to prove the Duke really is the murderer/werewolf/vigilante after all, or there is an alternative clue, meaning that it wasn't really that crucial.
I liked linguistics a lot too, and I toyed around with including it for a while. Most of it was folded into Craft Document (and some into Intuition. I didn't write this down in the original post, but it can be used to get the gist of a language that you don't understand).
As for just languages, I think a skill point for an entire language is generous (and how many besides common do you really need to know anyway?). But I just had a cool thought, "What if language acquisition was automatic?" Each language has 3 levels of fluency (Unknown-Basic-Advanced-Fluent). Each level, you can gain a level of fluency in any one language. Alternatively, you could stay simple and just gain a full language every 3 levels.
I do have to disagree with you here. I absolutely love having many, many languages when playing arcanists, con artists or mercantile-based characters. Arcanists who collect magical lore from around the multiverse and speak with outsiders frequently benefit from tons of languages, and con-artists or traders find it useful to know what their partners/rivals/victims are saying to one another (especially if they think you don't know the language). Having to wait three levels to be considered fully comprehensive of a language makes in-game development of events weirdly dependent on metagame mechanics (even more than the availability of skill points), and also puts the GM in the position of "Can this phrase be understood at Advanced level, or does it require Fluency?" Some can fly with this, others can't.
The original Linguistics skill also went back to the sometimes-always thing; even if you didn't know the language, it always helped you in trying to decipher it.It's not just a craft skill anymore. It incorporates all of the following skills for each item category:
Craft, Appraise, Knowledge, Disable Device (when applicable), and some use skills like Use Rope or Use Magic Device. To account for the possibly lower ranks taken in craft skills, maybe craft DC's could be made lower as well?
Incorporating Disable Device into it does make it more useful, but truly only for two categories (Dex and Int based). The Arms & Armor suffer badly, since characters making their own equipment will still have to wait months for their mundane gear (doing nothing else) and have to pay double skill points to do it. It also makes everything except for the clothing under the Wisdom crafts very expensive- I have never known characters to make anything under it normally- tools, food and other details are usually considered too small and unimportant to want to expand on. They usually use Tiny Hut/Magnificent Mansion/Heroes Feast/etc. or a handy haversack/bag of holding containing what they need to "get on with it."
Incorporating Use Magic Device doesn't make much sense to me personally. A fighter might be an excellent blacksmith, but not know anything about how to get the Holy Cudgel of Banishment to actually use its Banish on a demon, or activate any of the abilities on a magical staff (crafted as a quarterstaff, technically a weapon). Magical understanding is independent of mundane design ability in my mind.
Also, using Knowledge: Arcana for the bulk work of all enchanting makes it disproportionately powerful compared to all other Knowledges (being able to identify magical beasts and dragons is just icing). It also changes the dynamic abilities of spellcasters, too (I'm operating under the assumption that only spellcasters are expected to make magic items). Most of them can already wake up one day and decide to completely change their theme and abilities by preparing different spells- now they can also decide to make magic items of whatever variety they are at least passingly familiar with. Spend a few skill points one level, and voila- rings, amulets, and headbands galore. Next level it's capes, cloaks, boots, belts, slippers, backpacks and gloves (but not gauntlets?). Most will find it harder to make staves, oddly (since they count as weapons and operate off of Strength).
I might advocate having a single "gateway" feat to allow the crafting of permanent magic items. Potions, scrolls and maybe even wands are fine without a feat, they are basic to most magicians; suddenly sprouting rings, rods and slippers one day is a little odd. Perhaps it also acts as Master Craftsman, allowing the character to sub their Craft skill ranks for caster level (meaning half-casters with stunted caster level can also make powerful items fitting their ability and theme too!). Even only having one feat for everyone is an improvement over 5+ feats with 2 minimum for non-casters.
Simply making the DCs for crafting magical items high and giving classes that are supposed to be making them bonuses to do so (along with the "gateway" feat giving a bonus) might be the way to go instead of making mundane crafting expensive to the character. I would really consider making the exceptions more difficult before altering the normal.
Lastly, on pricing skills differently from one another: I've had the pleasure of introducing a ton of new people to the hobby. I would strongly suggest taking the simplest character you can think of in terms of skills, and make sure that they can spend 1 skill point for 1 rank of their most important "skill features" and be just fine for play. The advanced classes can get more complicated no problem- but a new player wanting to play the easiest class there is really ought to be able to choose skills in as straightforward a manner as possible. Exceptions should be optional if at all possible.
Okay, I've revamped it a bit. All skills, including Knowledge and Craft skills, cost one point. While reading, let's continue assuming for the time being that the Craft feats are no more, and that Professions are now feats.
SKILLS
Athletics: Swim, Cimb, Running, Endurance, lift more than max, hold breath, sports
Break: Effectively break doors, chests, locks, walls, support beams, etc... (bonus to Sunder?)
DEX
Acrobatics: Jump, Tumble, Balance, Fly, Escape Artist, general flexibility and coordination
Stealth: Hide, Move Silently, Sleight of Hand, stalk without being noticed, camouflage, shake pursuers in a crowd or forest
CON
Heal: Diagnose condition, first aid, stabilize dying, surgery, improvise medical supplies, anatomical knowledge
Survival: Track, fish, forage, make fire, find or make shelter, intuit direction, endure elements
INT
Knowledge: (See below)
WIS
Focus: Autohypnosis, Control Shape, Discipline, mind block, meditation, (possible psionics/spellcasting applications)
Intuition: Send, receive, and intercept hidden messages in speech, body language, dreams, etc...; read lips; detect lies; interpret unknown languages
Investigate: Gather info, research, analyze objects or areas to reconstruct past events, search areas for hidden things
Perception: Actively or passively spot, listen, feel, taste, and smell; notice important details and stealthed foes, (search is now under investigate)
CHA
Charm: Diplomacy, Bluff, good etiquette, hypnosis, haggling, fast talking, sex appeal
Daunt: Intimidate, taunt, confuse, distract; instill negative emotions like fear, anger, shame, or despair
Handle Animal: Ride, handle, tame, calm, scare away, or care for animals and similar creatures
Perform: Act, dance, sing, play musical instrument, oratory, Disguise
VARIES
Craft: (See below)
NONE
Speak Language: (See below)
KNOWLEDGES
The DC of a knowledge check made to give a bonus another skill roll is equal to half of that roll's DC, rounded up. If the Knowledge check fails, a -2 penalty is applied to the roll instead.
If any Knowledge check fails, the same Knowledge check cannot be made by the same character for a period of 24 hours.
Knowledge Uses:
Arcana: Magic, spells, arcane rituals; use to identify spells being cast; notice magical effects; read magic; bonus to Spellcraft
Cosmology: Major religions, religious rituals, astronomy, astrology, the planes, fate and fortune
Economy: Markets, trade customs, currencies, commodities; use to enhance item appraisal
Engineering: Math and physics, technology, architecture; use to intuit building layouts and fing structural weak points
Esoteric: Secret organizations and cults, dark rituals, hidden lore, dungeons, the Underdark
Geography: Locations of landmarks, natural resources, and towns; basic cultural information; use to navigate or for pathfinding; read maps
History: World and regional history, wars, prominent lineages, legends, myths, folk tales
Nature: Biological processes, natural phenomena, geology, weather
Society: Laws, customs, politics, fashion, art, commoners, upper class, royalty
Strategy: Fighting styles, tactics, logistics, military training, arms and armor; use for gambling and formulating stratagems
Creature Identification:
Arcana: Dragons, Magical Beasts
Cosmology: Outsiders, Deities
Engineering: Constructs
Esoteric: Aberrations, Oozes, Undead
Nature: Animals, Plants, Fey, Vermin
Society: Humanoids, ((Put Fey here instead?))
Strategy: Monstrous Humanoids, Orcs, Goblinoids
*(Note: If you're playing an Orc, Goblinoid, or Monstrous Humanoid, these creature categories might be covered by Knowledge Society, while Humanoids are covered by Knowledge Strategy.)
CRAFTS
The following Crafts are used for non-magical items, or for the non-magical aspects of magical items (example: Know the materials used to make a cloak, but not the enchantments on it. Know the physical
damage and attack of a sword, but not its magical properties).
STR
Armament: Melee Weapons, Armor, Shields, Gauntlets, Bracers
DEX
Device: Ranged and Siege Weapons, Locks, Traps, Machines
CON
Substance: Poisons, Medicines, Draughts, Acids, Cosmetics
INT
Document: Scrolls, Maps, Forgeries, Contracts, Drawings, Currency
WIS
Mundane: Food, Clothing, Tools, Supplies, Handicrafts, (Holy Symbols? Clerics = Wis)
CHA
Finery: Rings, Necklaces, Crowns, Scepters, Gemstones, (Musical Instruments? Bards = Cha)
SPELLCRAFT (the magical crafting skill)
Spellcraft: Spellcraft is a special Craft skill which is used to create, suppress, use, identify, understand, and/or appraise magical enhancements on an item. All magical items first have to be created or conjured, and then given magical enhancements. In order to enhance an item, the caster must have access to the requisite spells, and the ability to cast them.
The Spellcraft DC to enhance an item is equal to... ((help me out here)). Failing to enhance an item destroys 50% of the cost of any material components. Failing to enhance a non-magical item by a margin of 50% or more destroys the item and the entire cost of the material components.
If multiple effects are to be put on an item, it must be done at the same time, increasing the Spellcraft DC. Trying to magically enhance an item which is already magical will either fail entirely, or replace the previous enhancement, depending on the strength of the spells involved.
Examples:
- Armament >> Magical Arms & Armor
- Device >> Magical Traps & Locks, Constructs
- Document >> Magical Scrolls & Maps
- Finery >> Magical Rings, Brooches, Wands, Rods, Staves
- Mundane >> Wondrous Items
- Substance >> Potions, Alchemical Items
LANGUAGES
He also starts with a number of additional languages equal to his intellegence modifier. Upon leveling, he may pay one skill point to learn new language.
Up to one language may be learned per level in this way. You must meet the prerequisites to speak a secret language such as Druidic.
On the level you first learn a language, you only know the basics. You gain a +5 competence bonus to Intuition checks to understand the language.
On subsequent levels, you fully understand the language, and no longer need to make Intuition checks to understand it.
The Profession: Linguist feat removes the limit on languages learned per level, and removes the intermediate step of language learning, allowing a character to learn multiple languages at once, in full and with no delay. You also learn two additional languages and a +5 competence bonus to Intuition checks upon taking the feat.
Feats should be for things above and beyond a normal character progression. Remember the original goal of feats in OGL were to provide customization of the character beyond the strict level progression of the class.
Making professions feats elevates them to a customization point, beyond simple occupations and flavor.
Do not dump professions off on feats just to get them out of the skill system. If anything these should occupy something more akin to Traits then Feats. See Occupations from d20 Modern of examples of how that looks.
You're right, these professions would go beyond simple occupations and flavor and become a customization point. They'd become something akin to Skill Focus, only with a bit more oomph and some possible roleplaying applications.
I think that having them as Traits would be a great idea, except it would be nice for someone to be able to take up a profession at point other than the first level.
(EDIT 2: Oh duh, Additional Traits Feat)
I don't think that making them Feats would be "dumping them off". It could make them more widely applicable and useful if done right. Besides, they'd still be heavily involved in the skill system.
EDIT 1: You did have a good point in the other thread about the floating +2/-2 modifiers. It would be nice to incorporate that somehow. I sort of did it with the Knowledge Skills here, which professions would often modify.
I like most of it, I think 4e does a good job of consolidating skills. I think some skills could be split-stat, for example, jumping or climbing. You can do it with raw Str, or you can be nimble and use Dex. Crafting could be Int or Wis. Intimidate with Cha or Str. And so on. Not everything would be split stat, but some things.
I like the idea of split stats as well (I did it with Spellcraft), but I just want to make sure that things are:
a) Simple
and
b) Distinct
4e had some good consolidation ideas, but I feel it went a little overboard and culled some really useful, flavorful things.
When you start blurring the lines too much, something seems to be lost in the equation. If I recall correctly, both 4e's Athletics and Acrobatics skills can be used as Escape Artist. I like things like that, in which you can use different skills to accomplish the same goal (with slightly different effects). It's like the difference between Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate. You can convince people with all three, but they each leave a distinct impression, and they each have other distinct, unrelated applications too.
I think I'd rather have two different broad skills that each use a different ability, but have some overlap, rather than a single limited skill that can be used with two different abilities.
Curious as to why Heal is still Con based.
Curious as to why Heal is still Con based.
I agree with your reasoning, and logically speaking, in the real world, you're right that Intelligence (or Wisdom) ought to be in charge of Healing. From a gameplay perspective though, and with my fluff-reasoning, Con seems to fit the bill well enough. The squeamishness thing was really the least important reason for Con to be part of Heal. :p
I know of few Cleric/Paladin builds (or even Druid ones) that actually invest what few skill points they have in the Heal skill (especially with their access to spells), so Wisdom as its basis becomes somewhat pointless. It would be much more useful if those involved in melee combat could use Heal to save themselves and others on the front line. With Wisdom often being a dump stat, Con is a much better choice (in my humble opinion).
(EDIT 1: Also, if Con is the basis for making Medicine via Craft Substance, Heal goes hand-in-hand with it.)
(EDIT 2: Rangers, on the other hand, have ample skill points. I could see them taking advantage of a Wis-based Heal Skill. But they could just as easily benefit from a Con-based Heal skill, especially with Survival also being Con.)
Like I said, I wanted to balance out the skill load on the abilities a tad more. Heal and Focus could always be switched to maintain balance (I could also see Focus being important to Con-heavy Barbarians, Monks, and Fighters, if the "Discipline" part is beefed up.) But then most of the mental aspects (Autohypnosis, meditation, psionics/spellcasting) wouldn't fit anymore.
Thanks for your input. Any suggestions besides things related to Heal? :)