JimboG
2013-01-21, 09:37 AM
So, I have a lot of simple questions about skills and their limits that I can't seem to find the answers to, which is also allowing my players to get a lot more out of their skills than I really think is supposed to be appropriate. I have numerous questions about many aspects, so I'm going to list them below in the most organized fashion I can manage, and you may feel free to answer as many or as little as you like. I'm particularly interested in how you handle these skills and what your suggestions are for handling these issues. Thank you in advance for taking the time to help me out!
Taking 10: If I recall correctly, back in the 3.5 days taking 10 was limited to certain skills and only if there was no severe consequence for failing and extra time to perform the skill. However, with Pathfinder it appears to be different. As far as I can tell, nearly any skill can Take 10 now in the same amount of time it takes to roll, and nearly all of my players use this to pretty much pass nearly every check they're exposed to. I remember Taking 10 used to take 10 times longer to perform and wasn't always the best solution, but now that doesn't seem to be the case and virtually all mundane skills are now completable at around Level 5 as long as you have 5+ plus ranks in the checks you're worried about. Is this how it's really supposed to work, or am I missing something?
Aid Another Pretty much all of my players tell me they are aiding another every time any of them makes a skill check, and far as I can tell with the rules there's very few skills that don't benefit from Aid Another. Are there any limits to Aiding Another for skills, or is pretty much a free +2 with every check they make that isn't in combat?
Appraise and Knowledge Checks These are grouped together because my players are doing the same thing with both and I can't think of a logical reason to tell them no. Basically, every time one of my characters asks to make a knowledge check, all my other players shout in unison that they want to make one too. This causes them as a group to pass nearly all Knowledge checks made simply because with all 5 of them rolling, it's unlikely one of them won't get a high enough roll. With Knowledge checks requiring no action, I can't think of any logical reason to say only one of them can make a check, because otherwise they'll pass nearly every check made. How do you handle Knowledge checks?
Sense Motive This is pretty much identical to the Knowledge check issue above, in that every time one of my players elects to make a sense motive check, everyone in my party says they will make one too, making it nearly impossible for the group as a whole to fail to fail any Sense Motive check they make. I've started saying that only the "Group Face" can make the checks because he's the only one engaging in the bulk of the conversation, but I feel like that's a weak excuse.
Fly and Swim Checks Are Fly and Swim checks in Pathfinder still subject to double Armor Check penalties as they were in 3.5? I can't find anywhere that says they are, and because of that I have a Level 7 Half-Dragon Fighter player who is flying around with Full Plate and a medium load and still bossing nearly all of his checks.
Sleight of Hand Unless I've missed it, there does not seem to be any listed limit to the size or weight of an item that can be pick-pocketed off a person. I was always under the impression you can only steal items that can fit in the palm of your hand, but without any worded limit I can't think of any reason why players can't steal weapons, shields, and other bits of items that aren't literally strapped to a character's body. Is this how it's really supposed to function, or are players actually supposed to be able to do that?
Taking 10: If I recall correctly, back in the 3.5 days taking 10 was limited to certain skills and only if there was no severe consequence for failing and extra time to perform the skill. However, with Pathfinder it appears to be different. As far as I can tell, nearly any skill can Take 10 now in the same amount of time it takes to roll, and nearly all of my players use this to pretty much pass nearly every check they're exposed to. I remember Taking 10 used to take 10 times longer to perform and wasn't always the best solution, but now that doesn't seem to be the case and virtually all mundane skills are now completable at around Level 5 as long as you have 5+ plus ranks in the checks you're worried about. Is this how it's really supposed to work, or am I missing something?
Aid Another Pretty much all of my players tell me they are aiding another every time any of them makes a skill check, and far as I can tell with the rules there's very few skills that don't benefit from Aid Another. Are there any limits to Aiding Another for skills, or is pretty much a free +2 with every check they make that isn't in combat?
Appraise and Knowledge Checks These are grouped together because my players are doing the same thing with both and I can't think of a logical reason to tell them no. Basically, every time one of my characters asks to make a knowledge check, all my other players shout in unison that they want to make one too. This causes them as a group to pass nearly all Knowledge checks made simply because with all 5 of them rolling, it's unlikely one of them won't get a high enough roll. With Knowledge checks requiring no action, I can't think of any logical reason to say only one of them can make a check, because otherwise they'll pass nearly every check made. How do you handle Knowledge checks?
Sense Motive This is pretty much identical to the Knowledge check issue above, in that every time one of my players elects to make a sense motive check, everyone in my party says they will make one too, making it nearly impossible for the group as a whole to fail to fail any Sense Motive check they make. I've started saying that only the "Group Face" can make the checks because he's the only one engaging in the bulk of the conversation, but I feel like that's a weak excuse.
Fly and Swim Checks Are Fly and Swim checks in Pathfinder still subject to double Armor Check penalties as they were in 3.5? I can't find anywhere that says they are, and because of that I have a Level 7 Half-Dragon Fighter player who is flying around with Full Plate and a medium load and still bossing nearly all of his checks.
Sleight of Hand Unless I've missed it, there does not seem to be any listed limit to the size or weight of an item that can be pick-pocketed off a person. I was always under the impression you can only steal items that can fit in the palm of your hand, but without any worded limit I can't think of any reason why players can't steal weapons, shields, and other bits of items that aren't literally strapped to a character's body. Is this how it's really supposed to function, or are players actually supposed to be able to do that?