Skill Ranks Question

[Crow]

If I have a multiclass character, how are the maximum ranks handled?

For instance, if I have a Ranger2/Fighter4 (for some reason), can I have up to 9 ranks in survival, or can I only have 7 ranks (5 from the two levels of ranger, and 2 from the 2 levels of fighter)? Or is it 7.5?

This is confusing the hell outta me and I can't seem to find a clarification in the book.

[Jasdoif]

Your maximum ranks in a skill is 3 + character level if it's a class skill for any of your classes. Otherwise, it's half that much. In your example, you have 9 maximum ranks in Survival because it's a class skill for one of your classes, namely Ranger.

You still have to "pay" two skill points per rank when investing skill points cross-class, however. Skill points are gained each time you get a level in a class, that class' class skill list determines what skill points are applied class or cross-class.

[Crow]

I think I've got it now. Thanks. This is the same for characters starting above 1st level too then, right?

[Jasdoif]

Yeah. Accounting for all the class skills and skill points can be a real pain when building a multi-class character, though.

[Chronos]

Yeah. Accounting for all the class skills and skill points can be a real pain when building a multi-class character, though.

Right, since you could get different total numbers of skill points if you spend them at different times. As a hypothetical example, let's say that your fighter/ranger has an int of 9 and is not human. If he takes both of his Ranger levels first, then his fighter levels, he can get 5 different Ranger skills (including Survival) to 5 ranks as a ranger. Then, when he switches to Fighter, he gets 1 skill point per level, so if he wants to keep working on Survival, the most he'll be able to get it to is 7 total (since he can only spend 1 skill point per level, and that only gets him a half-rank each). So at CL 6, he ends up with Climb 5, Handle Animal 5, Ride 5, Swim 5, Survival 7.

Now suppose that he takes his first level in Ranger, then 4 levels in Fighter, then another level in Ranger. His first level in Ranger, he puts one rank each into all of those skills. For his fighter levels, he puts his single point into Climb one level, then Handle Animal the next, then Ride, then Swim (which are also all fighter class skills, so he gets them at the regular price). Then, for his sixth level, he takes another level of Ranger, and dumps all of his points into Survival. Now, at CL6, he ends up with Climb 5, Handle Animal 5, Ride 5, Swim 5, Survival 9. He has the exact same combination of classes, but in this case, he has two more skill points, since he bought them at a better time.

Finally, if his first level is Fighter, he'll have less skill points even than the first case, since he'll get less of a boost from multiplying his level 1 skill points by 4. But he'll have, on average, one more HP, since he gets a bigger benefit fron the maxed first hit die.