KevLar
2008-10-28, 07:47 PM
Skills
Introduction:This is a combination of several houserules that I've made / used / seen through the years. Many of them on these very forums, so thanks to everyone.
Goal:This is a fix for people who find skills ill-defined, or skill points very few, or are often frustrated from a lack of options regarding skills.
It's supposed to add both flavor (take skills you'll never use! why? because you want to!), and options in-game (so, remember that good-for-nothing Use Rope? turns out I can use it for a lasso, and also gain a bonus to special attacks with my chain and my whip. huh). It's supposed to make skills important throughout the game, for everyone and not just the Rogue, but without robbing the Rogue from his advantage.
Finally, it gives special attention to social skills (which we erase from existence and start from scratch) and knowledge. Which is your friend. Even if you're a barbarian.
Method:
Give more skill points.
Merge skills.
Define new uses for skills.
Tweak synergies.
Use the basic idea behind 4E's challenges, but doing it right this time.
Drawbacks:
Definitely more bookkeeping.
Utterly indifferent to anyone who sees skills as bookkeeping.
Spectacularly useless for hack'n'slash games.
Here we go.
Basic Rules
Class skills and cross-class skills
Your maximum rank in a class skill is your character level + 3.
Your maximum rank in a cross-class skill is one-half of this number, rounded down.
A rank in both class skills and cross-class skills is bought with one skill point.
Notes: Versatility for everyone, which is good. But it causes the Able Learner effect, which is bad news for Rogues and Factotums: 1 level dip in one of those classes, and anyone can take advantage of their expanded skill lists, which is what makes them special in the first place.
In my games, I can counter this by removing this bit from the rules: "Regardless of whether a skill is purchased as a class skill or a cross-class skill, if it is a class skill for any of your classes, your maximum rank equals your total character level + 3". And the reason I can do that, is because we've had a mass Epic Spot Fail all those years and never noticed the damned thing, so no one will miss it. :smalltongue:
Normal people, unlike us and without ADD, may ignore this rule altogether. It gets better from now on, I promise.
Skill points at 1st level
A character gains at first level either 24 skill points or (Intelligence Modifier+Number of skills points provided by class) x 4 , whichever is higher.
A character also gains at first level 4 skill points that he can only spend in Profession (any) or Craft (any), divided as desired.
Notes: Tweaking Fax's fix (http://wiki.faxcelestis.net/index.php?title=Mechanically_Fluffy), the x4 rule is changed to represent background knowledge for all, but allows a brilliant skill monkey to benefit from it. Cross-class limitations always apply. The Profession/Craft rule again represents background, and it might give an unfair advantage to Artificers and the like, but I can live with that. If you can't, limit this to Profession only.
Or you can add more skills to be used like this, for more versatility. I'd say this depends on the setting rather than any arbitrary rule, so I'd personally decide it on a case-by-case basis.
Skill points at leveling up
At 2nd level and every level thereafter, a character gains (Intelligence Modifier+Number of skills points provided by class) skill points.
At 2nd level and every even level thereafter, a character also gains a number of skill points equal to his Intelligence Bonus (if any), which he can only spend on Knowledge (any), divided as desired.
Notes: Skill points at each level as normal, and we add bonus Knowledge. Why? Because a character traveling and adventuring has the best opportunity to learn anything - barring locking himself up in a library. But he has to be a bit smarter than average to pick up things on the fly. Knowledge is, IMO, the only skill that should somehow scale with level. I thought of this rule, any others are welcome.
Note possible synergies with the Knowledge Devotion feat, and Draconic Knowledge and the like. That's fine with me (I don't believe it will be broken) but you should know in advance.
Skill Descriptions
(Changed and merged skills only. Social skills will be dealt with separately.)
Acrobatics (Dex) (Balance, Tumble)
I'd say that anyone who gets Balance or Tumble as a class skill, gets Acrobatics.
Notes: Have in mind that making enemies flat-footed with Grease, marbles, and other ways of forcing a Balance check, becomes less reliable.
Athletics (Str) (Jump, Climb)
Anyone who gets Jump or Climb as a class skill, gets Athletics.
Disable Device (Dex) (Disable device, Open lock)
Whoever gets Disable Device but not Open Lock cannot use this skill to open a lock with a DC higher than 20. Those who get both of them take the merged version, of course, and I don't believe there's anyone who gets only Open Lock.
Notes: Why Dex and not Int? In order to disable a device, you need to first figure out how it works and how to do it, and the rest is up to your deft hands. We can assume that the "figuring out" part is covered by your training (skill points, which indirectly are affected by intelligence anyway). Hence, I used Dexterity instead of Intelligence as a modifier. No butter-fingers should ever be allowed to disable anything reliably.
Perception (Wis) (Listen, Spot)
Anyone who gets Spot or Listen gets Perception.
Notes: I was hesitant about this. I opted for merging after all, for convenience more than anything. It goes without saying that penalties for being blinded etc apply normally, as well as the Hard of Hearing and other relevant traits.
Scribe (Int) (Decipher Script, Forgery)
Anyone who gets Decipher Script gets Scribe. Whoever gets Forgery but not Decipher, cannot use the Scribe skill for a Decipher DC higher than 20.
Notes: Deciphering an unknown script is not exactly the same with forging a document (or determining if one is genuine), but they are related. For Forgery, I'd personally add another level to the Reader’s Check Modifier: {table=head]Condition|Modifier
Type of document completely unknown to reader|-4
Type of document unknown to reader|-2
Type of document somewhat known to reader|+0
Type of document well known to reader|+2
Reader experienced in scribing type of document|+4[/table]
Stealth (Dex) (Hide, Move Silently)
Whoever gets Hide or Move Silently gets Stealth.
Use Rope (Dex)
For every 5 ranks in Use Rope, the -4 penalty for not being proficient with a Whip, Spiked Chain or similar weapon is reduced by one.
A character with 8 ranks in Use Rope may use his Dexterity instead of his Strength modifier for opposed Disarm and Trip checks when using a Whip, Spiked Chain or similar weapon he is proficient with.
Add Use Rope to the Class Skills lists of Barbarian and Monk.
Notes: That's a much needed boost to Dex-based martial characters, and it makes sense to me. I don't believe it's broken, it's an equivalent of Weapon Finesse for a very specific case, which can be attained at 5th level minimum. Most DMs ban Spiked Chain, anyway, and your Bard will love you.
The fact that "feats are supposed to give a greater advantage than skills" doesn't bother me, personally, because the whole purpose is to make skills more useful. If you disagree, you can make that a Skill Trick, to be used only once per encounter, or a Feat.
Weapon Flourish (Cha) (Bluff as used in combat, Perform (weapon Drill))
Weapon Flourish is given to all classes with full BAB.
Social skills
coming soon
Synergies
coming soon
Number of skills points for each class (Optional Rule)
coming soon
I'm tempted to give +2 skill points to everyone. But I fear it's an overkill. The poor Fighter and Cleric etc are covered by merged skills and 1st level. Any arguments, for or against, are welcome.
For now, I'd use it only in very very low-magic settings.
....
More tweaking needed
Of course, the problem with houseruling D&D is that you change one thing and ten others tumble and fall. So we need to also:
Fix skill-related feats
Fix traits
Fix the prerequisites for skill tricks
Revisit items, familiars and spells that give a bonus to skills
God knows what else
And I'm not even touching Epic uses of skills
First post in the Homebrew Section! Comments and cookies are welcome. :)
Introduction:This is a combination of several houserules that I've made / used / seen through the years. Many of them on these very forums, so thanks to everyone.
Goal:This is a fix for people who find skills ill-defined, or skill points very few, or are often frustrated from a lack of options regarding skills.
It's supposed to add both flavor (take skills you'll never use! why? because you want to!), and options in-game (so, remember that good-for-nothing Use Rope? turns out I can use it for a lasso, and also gain a bonus to special attacks with my chain and my whip. huh). It's supposed to make skills important throughout the game, for everyone and not just the Rogue, but without robbing the Rogue from his advantage.
Finally, it gives special attention to social skills (which we erase from existence and start from scratch) and knowledge. Which is your friend. Even if you're a barbarian.
Method:
Give more skill points.
Merge skills.
Define new uses for skills.
Tweak synergies.
Use the basic idea behind 4E's challenges, but doing it right this time.
Drawbacks:
Definitely more bookkeeping.
Utterly indifferent to anyone who sees skills as bookkeeping.
Spectacularly useless for hack'n'slash games.
Here we go.
Basic Rules
Class skills and cross-class skills
Your maximum rank in a class skill is your character level + 3.
Your maximum rank in a cross-class skill is one-half of this number, rounded down.
A rank in both class skills and cross-class skills is bought with one skill point.
Notes: Versatility for everyone, which is good. But it causes the Able Learner effect, which is bad news for Rogues and Factotums: 1 level dip in one of those classes, and anyone can take advantage of their expanded skill lists, which is what makes them special in the first place.
In my games, I can counter this by removing this bit from the rules: "Regardless of whether a skill is purchased as a class skill or a cross-class skill, if it is a class skill for any of your classes, your maximum rank equals your total character level + 3". And the reason I can do that, is because we've had a mass Epic Spot Fail all those years and never noticed the damned thing, so no one will miss it. :smalltongue:
Normal people, unlike us and without ADD, may ignore this rule altogether. It gets better from now on, I promise.
Skill points at 1st level
A character gains at first level either 24 skill points or (Intelligence Modifier+Number of skills points provided by class) x 4 , whichever is higher.
A character also gains at first level 4 skill points that he can only spend in Profession (any) or Craft (any), divided as desired.
Notes: Tweaking Fax's fix (http://wiki.faxcelestis.net/index.php?title=Mechanically_Fluffy), the x4 rule is changed to represent background knowledge for all, but allows a brilliant skill monkey to benefit from it. Cross-class limitations always apply. The Profession/Craft rule again represents background, and it might give an unfair advantage to Artificers and the like, but I can live with that. If you can't, limit this to Profession only.
Or you can add more skills to be used like this, for more versatility. I'd say this depends on the setting rather than any arbitrary rule, so I'd personally decide it on a case-by-case basis.
Skill points at leveling up
At 2nd level and every level thereafter, a character gains (Intelligence Modifier+Number of skills points provided by class) skill points.
At 2nd level and every even level thereafter, a character also gains a number of skill points equal to his Intelligence Bonus (if any), which he can only spend on Knowledge (any), divided as desired.
Notes: Skill points at each level as normal, and we add bonus Knowledge. Why? Because a character traveling and adventuring has the best opportunity to learn anything - barring locking himself up in a library. But he has to be a bit smarter than average to pick up things on the fly. Knowledge is, IMO, the only skill that should somehow scale with level. I thought of this rule, any others are welcome.
Note possible synergies with the Knowledge Devotion feat, and Draconic Knowledge and the like. That's fine with me (I don't believe it will be broken) but you should know in advance.
Skill Descriptions
(Changed and merged skills only. Social skills will be dealt with separately.)
Acrobatics (Dex) (Balance, Tumble)
I'd say that anyone who gets Balance or Tumble as a class skill, gets Acrobatics.
Notes: Have in mind that making enemies flat-footed with Grease, marbles, and other ways of forcing a Balance check, becomes less reliable.
Athletics (Str) (Jump, Climb)
Anyone who gets Jump or Climb as a class skill, gets Athletics.
Disable Device (Dex) (Disable device, Open lock)
Whoever gets Disable Device but not Open Lock cannot use this skill to open a lock with a DC higher than 20. Those who get both of them take the merged version, of course, and I don't believe there's anyone who gets only Open Lock.
Notes: Why Dex and not Int? In order to disable a device, you need to first figure out how it works and how to do it, and the rest is up to your deft hands. We can assume that the "figuring out" part is covered by your training (skill points, which indirectly are affected by intelligence anyway). Hence, I used Dexterity instead of Intelligence as a modifier. No butter-fingers should ever be allowed to disable anything reliably.
Perception (Wis) (Listen, Spot)
Anyone who gets Spot or Listen gets Perception.
Notes: I was hesitant about this. I opted for merging after all, for convenience more than anything. It goes without saying that penalties for being blinded etc apply normally, as well as the Hard of Hearing and other relevant traits.
Scribe (Int) (Decipher Script, Forgery)
Anyone who gets Decipher Script gets Scribe. Whoever gets Forgery but not Decipher, cannot use the Scribe skill for a Decipher DC higher than 20.
Notes: Deciphering an unknown script is not exactly the same with forging a document (or determining if one is genuine), but they are related. For Forgery, I'd personally add another level to the Reader’s Check Modifier: {table=head]Condition|Modifier
Type of document completely unknown to reader|-4
Type of document unknown to reader|-2
Type of document somewhat known to reader|+0
Type of document well known to reader|+2
Reader experienced in scribing type of document|+4[/table]
Stealth (Dex) (Hide, Move Silently)
Whoever gets Hide or Move Silently gets Stealth.
Use Rope (Dex)
For every 5 ranks in Use Rope, the -4 penalty for not being proficient with a Whip, Spiked Chain or similar weapon is reduced by one.
A character with 8 ranks in Use Rope may use his Dexterity instead of his Strength modifier for opposed Disarm and Trip checks when using a Whip, Spiked Chain or similar weapon he is proficient with.
Add Use Rope to the Class Skills lists of Barbarian and Monk.
Notes: That's a much needed boost to Dex-based martial characters, and it makes sense to me. I don't believe it's broken, it's an equivalent of Weapon Finesse for a very specific case, which can be attained at 5th level minimum. Most DMs ban Spiked Chain, anyway, and your Bard will love you.
The fact that "feats are supposed to give a greater advantage than skills" doesn't bother me, personally, because the whole purpose is to make skills more useful. If you disagree, you can make that a Skill Trick, to be used only once per encounter, or a Feat.
Weapon Flourish (Cha) (Bluff as used in combat, Perform (weapon Drill))
Weapon Flourish is given to all classes with full BAB.
Social skills
coming soon
Synergies
coming soon
Number of skills points for each class (Optional Rule)
coming soon
I'm tempted to give +2 skill points to everyone. But I fear it's an overkill. The poor Fighter and Cleric etc are covered by merged skills and 1st level. Any arguments, for or against, are welcome.
For now, I'd use it only in very very low-magic settings.
....
More tweaking needed
Of course, the problem with houseruling D&D is that you change one thing and ten others tumble and fall. So we need to also:
Fix skill-related feats
Fix traits
Fix the prerequisites for skill tricks
Revisit items, familiars and spells that give a bonus to skills
God knows what else
And I'm not even touching Epic uses of skills
First post in the Homebrew Section! Comments and cookies are welcome. :)