Variant Skill system tweaks.

[(2d10,1d6)dl]

I am trying to flush out an simplified skill system. I like the Ability Check Proficiency variant in the DMG, but it does not really address the issue of Stealth and Perception being S-tier compared to the other skills.

I really like the DMG Background Proficiency variant but I feel like it makes Expertise DM dependent, which makes bard and rogue feel like they are taking a nerf. Determining which backgrounds would have perception also seems iffy to me.
I wonder if there is a way to integrate perception separately from skills.

I have seen a lot of people trying expanded skill systems, but does anyone have any experience or thoughts on trying a more streamlined approach?

[Greywander]

I think the issue is just that Stealth and Perception are especially useful for adventurers. Other professions wouldn't find those skills as useful. Since the PCs are usually adventurers then these skills are often good picks. The problem is that if the system is tailored to closely to adventurers then it won't work as well for other kinds of characters (e.g. most NPCs). I think it's actually in a decent place right now; these skills are good, optimal even, but not so much so that you couldn't take something else instead and still do just fine. Often I'll have a character concept and need certain skills to fit the concept. If I have skills to spare, I might grab these, but given how sparse proficiencies usually are, I'm often not able to.

Rather, I think the better answer to this issue is to lean into the separation of skills and ability scores. Anyone can grab these two proficiencies, but they can't max out all their ability scores. So then you get things like Charisma (Stealth) to blend into a crowd or Strength (Perception) to notice an object weighs too little or too much. This allows different characters to be better at sneaking or noticing things in different circumstances, sometimes even without proficiency. It also makes DEX and WIS slightly less important.

[Catullus64]

Maybe this is a radical idea, but what about axing the Perception skill altogether?

Every PC would still have a Perception Score = 10 + Wisdom Mod + Proficiency Bonus to determine surprise and stuff like that, but there are no ability checks associated with it, and it doesn't cost a skill proficiency. What changes?

Wisdom still has, I think, enough useful skills tied to it to still be valuable (Insight and Survival, mainly), as well as boosting your Perception Score. Finding traps and secrets and stuff like that can be all folded into Investigation. Races that grant Perception proficiency, like Elves, can instead boost your Perception score.

The reason that I think that this would be ok is that outside of determining if PCs are surprised, Perception rarely has much interesting stuff going on behind it. Oftentimes, I feel that DMs pad their gameplay by hiding clues and info behind Perception, but it's a pretty hollow challenge most of the time, and I would rather just be told what there is to be seen, and have the challenge come from putting it together into something useful.