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maestro78
2008-11-16, 10:16 AM
Have a simple and specific question that I couldn't find answered here or WotC forums.

Does a negative Int modifier, say -2 for argument's sake, give you 2 less skill point per level?

My current DM insists no and is allowing a player with 7 Int to get full amount skill points/lvl.

I know there are RAW that state a PC will always get at least 1 skill point/lvl, but I cannot find any text that says neg Int mod has no effect on skill points/lvl. Which leads me to believe that my DM is wrong, as far at the RAW.

Does any one know any specific text in the RAW that says something either way?

thx

Saintjebus
2008-11-16, 10:23 AM
PHB p. 62 "A character gets one skill point per level, even if she has an intelligence penalty"

Thus a penalty could conceivably lower your skill points to less than one, so they wrote a rule that prevents that. Negative Int modifiers affect skill points.

Emphasis mine

Weezer
2008-11-16, 10:24 AM
Skill Points at 1st Level
(4 + Int modifier) ×4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level
4 + Int modifier.

This says you add your int modifier, so if the int modifier is negative you add a negative number thus reducing the number of skill points gained.

hotel_papa
2008-11-16, 12:38 PM
What everyone else said.

And furthermore, said character won't be able to benefit skill-point-wise from a higher intelligence unless s/he bumps it the old-fashioned, 1/4 levels way. (Or gets an inherient bonus or 5) Magic items that boost INT have no effect on skill-point gain.

HP

Jeramiahh
2008-11-16, 02:31 PM
I like Pathfinder's way of deciding how Int boosting items affect skillpoints; you get your level's worth of extra skills points auto-invested in a randomly chosen (usually Knowledge) skill, as long as you wear the item.

Shhalahr Windrider
2008-11-16, 02:39 PM
And if you need further support, find any creature in the Monster Manual that has an Int penalty and reverse engineer how many skill points it recieved compared to a creature of its type with an Int of 10 and the same number of HD.

Do this with several creatures, since a few have an incorrect number of skill points and never recieved errata.

Douglas
2008-11-16, 02:42 PM
There is an explicit precise definition of the terms penalty, modifier, and bonus. If "penalty" is used, only negative modifiers apply. If "bonus", only positive ones. If a rule says "modifier", then the number is applied regardless of whether it is positive or negative.

The rule for skill points uses your intelligence modifier, so an intelligence score low enough to have a penalty does indeed decrease your skill points per level.