A new system/2k

This new system of skills, which I will call 2k, will focus on simplicity over variety, and personalization
over archetypal adherence. To achieve this, the class skill mechanic is altered, the skill points
mechanic almost entirely removed and the skill list severely shortened. As such, the 36 core skills (39
if you also count psionics skills, and 49 if you count all the knowledge skills separate) will be replaced
by a set of 20 skills. These 20 skills, each described in detail below, are:

 Academics (Int)
 Acrobatics (Dex)
 Arcane schooling (Int)
 Athletics (Str)
 Beast Mastery (Cha)
 Deception (Cha)
 Deft hands (Dex)
 Engineering (Dex)
 Heal (Wis)
 Insight (Wis)
 Intimidate (Cha)
 Linguistics (Int)
 Occult mastery (Int)
 Perception (Wis)
 Persuasion (Cha)
 Profession (Any)
 Soldiering (Any)
 Stealth (Dex)
 Theology (Wis)
 Wilderness Mastery (Wis)

How it works

2k revolves around two core mechanics:

 Choosing your class skills

 The focus attribute

Choosing your class skills

When a character picks a class, in the 3.5e system they would gain a preset list of class skills and a
certain number of skill points (x4 if that was their 1st level) that they could spend on gaining ranks in
their skills. In 2k the notion of class skills is entirely different because there is no preset list of class
skills that belong to a class. When you gain your first level in a class, regardless of whether it was
your 1st character level, you pick the class skills for that class from the total list of available skills. The
number of skills you can pick as class skills is determined by the amount of skill points you would gain
in the 3.5e system when attaining a level in that class, plus your Intelligence modifier.

E.g. A human fighter in 3.5e would gain 2 skill points on any given level, plus his Intelligence modifier
and an additional point for being a human. Hank the human fighter has an Intelligence score of 12,
and a resulting Intelligence modifier of +1. He would thus gain 4 skill points. As such, for his fighter
class, he may select 4 skills as class skills.
Picking a skill as a class skill will determine the ranks you gain in that skill based on your class level.
Each class skill will gain ranks equal to the number of class levels for which that skill is a class skill.
Each skill you do not select as class skills are automatically cross-class skills for you. These cross-class
skills gain ranks equal to one-half of your class levels which have that skill as a cross-class skill
(rounded down). For multiclass characters, these are be combined.

 Class skills: The skills you choose as class skills gain ranks equal to the level of the
corresponding class(es).
 Cross-class skills: The skills you do not select as class skills are automatically cross-class skills
for you. These skills gain ranks equal to one-half your class level (rounded down).
 Combined skills: For multiclass characters, a skill may be designated as a class skill by one
class and a cross-class skills by another class. The ranks that skill has is simply the combined
ranks from calculating it as a class skill in the one class, then calculating it as a cross-class skill
in the other class and adding the results.
E.g. Bert is a halfling Ranger 2/ Rogue 3. For his Ranger class skills, he has not chosen the
Stealth skill, but for his Rogue class skills he has. As such, he would gain 1 rank in the Stealth
skill for his Ranger levels, and 3 ranks for his Rogue levels. The total ranks Bert has in his
Stealth skill is 4.

The focus attribute

In addition to the personalizing aspect of choosing the skills that you excel at, your character also
gets to choose a focus attribute. The focus attribute can be any of the six attributes (although
Constitution has no preset skills bound to it, so that might be a poor choice). The modifier of this
focus attribute is added twice, rather than once, to any skill that belongs to that attribute. Your focus
attribute is chosen at character creation. It can represent a natural affinity that you possess, or a
diligent training to excel in those skills.

E.g. John is a Paladin with a Strength score of 18, making him a formidable opponent in melee
combat. He also has a Charisma score of 14 and has chosen it to be his focus attribute to represent
his diligent training to achieve great skill as a diplomat despite other paladins to whom that might
come more naturally. The total attribute modifier for all his Charisma-based skills is thus not +2, but
rather +4.

The spread of the skills among the attributes are as follows:

 Strength: 1 skill. Athletics.

 Dexterity: 4 skills. Acrobatics, Deft Hands, Engineering, Stealth.
 Constitution: 0 skills.
 Wisdom: 5 skills. Heal, Insight, Perception, Theology, Wilderness Mastery.
 Intelligence: 4 skills. Academics, Arcane Schooling, Linguistics, Occult Mastery.
 Charisma: 4 skills. Beast Mastery, Deception, Intimidate, Persuasion.
 Any: 2 skills. Profession, Soldiering.

The reason that the Profession and Soldiering skills are listed as ‘Any’ Attribute is because their
requirements can be met several ways. For example, a woodworker is a profession which would
require dexterity, but a librarian would require intelligence. When the character is created, a
profession should be chosen and a corresponding attribute allotted to the Profession skill for that
character. Similarly, the Soldiering skill can be used by those with great strength, in the front lines
leading the charge, or by those in the command tents using their wisdom and intelligence to direct
the troops from there. Again, upon character creation an attribute should be chosen and allocated to
the Soldiering skill.

The end result

Calculating the total modifier of a skill then goes by the following formula:

Total skill ranks

(Ranks gained from being a class skill + Ranks gained from being a cross-class skill)
+
Total attribute modifier
(Attribute Modifier + Focus Attribute Modifier (If applicable))
=
Total skill modifier

Why 2k is better

2k is better than 3.5e’s skill system because:

 It is easier to use
 It does not limit characters to archetypal abilities
 It does not require a tedious amount of upkeep
 It eradicates the almost never used skills, such as ‘Appraisal’
 It allows characters to be good at things that ‘stereotypes’ are not generally good at
 It represents a character’s overall development with the increase of the cross-class skills
 It allows for personalization by picking the right skills and by the focus attribute mechanic
The way 2k differs from the conventional 3.5e skill system is that 2k does not use skill points to
progress the skills or use class skills in the way 3.5e does. Rather, in 2k, for every skill point you would
gain for gaining a level in that class, including your Intelligence modifier, you may choose one skill
from the list that becomes a class skill for that class.

E.g. A fighter in 3.5e would gain 2 skill points on any given level, plus his Intelligence modifier. Hank
the fighter has an Intelligence score of 12, and a resulting Int modifier of +1. He would thus gain 3
skill points. As such, for his fighter class, he may select 3 skills as class skills.

This way of selecting specific skills that your character is good at will provide greater personalization.
Since heroes are often the exception to the rule, there is no reason why these heroes cannot have a
wizard that is good at athletics or a warrior that is schooled in the ways of academics. Sure, some
more conventional types might excel further in that specific skill, for generally wizards of great
intellect will know more than a fighter that studies hard, but in 2k the fighter-scholar is not barred
from existence, as is the case in 3.5e. The way your ranks in the skills increase is as follows:

 Class skills: The skills you choose as class skills gain ranks equal to the level of the
corresponding class.
 Cross-class skills: The skills you do not select as class skills are automatically cross-class skills
for you. These skills gain ranks equal to one-half your class level (rounded down).
 Combined skills: For multiclass characters, a skill may be designated as a class skill by one
class and a cross-class skills by another class. The ranks that skill has is simply the combined
ranks from calculating it as a class skill in the one class, then calculating it as a cross-class skill
in the other class, and adding the results.
E.g. Bert is a Ranger 2/ Rogue 3. For his Ranger class skills he has not chosen the Stealth skill,
but for his Rogue class skills he has. As such, he would gain 1 rank in the Stealth skill for his
Ranger levels, and 3 ranks for his Rogue levels. The total ranks Bert has in his Stealth skill is 4.

In addition to the personalizing aspect of choosing the skills that you excel at, your character also
gets to choose a focus attribute. The focus attribute adds it attribute modifier to its skills not just
once, but twice! This is so that while one may have a natural tendency towards one set of skills
because of their attribute, other skills can be a defining part of their personality and even while not
training on them, these skills are clearly better than some others. The focus attribute can be any of
the six attributes (although Constitution has no preset skills bound to it, so that might be a poor
choice). The modifier of this focus attribute is added twice, rather than once, to any skill that belongs
to that attribute. Your focus attribute is chosen at character creation.

E.g. John is a Paladin with a Strength score of 18, for he is a formidable opponent. He also has a
Charisma score of 14 and has chosen it to be his focus attribute to represent his diligent training to
achieve great skill as a diplomat despite other paladins to whom that might come more naturally.
The total attribute modifier for all his Charisma-based skills is thus not +2, but rather +4.

Calculating the total modifier of a skill then goes by the following formula:

Total skill ranks (Ranks gained from being a class skill + Ranks gained from being a cross-class skill) +
Total attribute modifier (Attribute Modifier + Focus Attribute Modifier (If applicable)) = Total skill
modifier

We may summarize the whole as such: