more ranks in skills

[Frostthehero]

The question is very simple. Is there any way to have more than your level +3 ranks in any particular skill? I am not counting ability bonuses, or misc. modifiers, just actual ranks.

[Zanos]

CityScape. The feat Primary Contact(Requires Favored) can grant you 1 rank in a skill over your normal cap.

[Thurbane]

I think there's also some shenanigans involving Polymorphing into a Dusk Giant, and eating sentient creatures until your HD increase. Not sure of the exact mechanics though.

[Fax Celestis]

I thought Apprentice/Mentor from DMG-II did it too. Can't check atm.

[jiriku]

If you can artificially inflate your hit dice on a temporary basis, such as with the dusk giant's consume ability or with bardic music, then benefit from an effect that allows you to reallocate skill points, like psychic reformation, a strict reading of RAW would allow you to use your current (inflated) hit dice total to determine your max number of skill points. When the buff wears off, your skill points remain allocated even though the allocation is now illegal. However, many DM's might not allow you to use a temporary buff to meet qualifications in that way.

[Chronos]

The only other method is the Illithid Savant prestige class, which can gain skill points (among many other things) from the brains that it eats, and which can explicitly exceed the HD-based limits. This is cheesy as heck, though, especially on a PC, and opens up for all sorts of other abuse.

[Cruiser1]

I thought Apprentice/Mentor from DMG-II did it too. Can't check atm.
No, the Apprentice/Mentor feat gives you 2 skills as class skills for all classes, and also give you 2 extra skill points beyond those gained from level up (which must be spent on those 2 skills), but unfortunately there's nothing that says the bonus skill points can exceed standard limits. It even says on graduating from apprenticeship that "the mentor's associated skills remain class skills for purposes of determining the maximum rank he can have in those skills".

[Frostthehero]

What I am trying to do is get the feat improved metamagic at level 21, instead of the usual level 27, for the required 30 ranks in spellcraft.

[sideswipe]

cant find it right now but there is a feat that allows 1 extra skill point above maximum for knowledge skills

[HaikenEdge]

cant find it right now but there is a feat that allows 1 extra skill point above maximum for knowledge skills

I think you may be thinking of Laborious Training from Ravenloft: Legacy of the Blood, which allows you to have a max rank in any intelligence based skill equal to character level + 5.