Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Goblinaldo 03-25-07, 12:30 PM	My current character is a rogue, and I don't have all the skills that I necessarily want. I asked my DM about it, but he said if I got new skills, it would just make my ranks and stuff more complicated. I just want know if adding new skills is really that much more complicated, and how do I know how many skill points I get, is it just based on what class I am or what level (going from 5 to 6) I am, or what. I remember picking 12 skills when I made my character, Do I just do that again, and not add ranks to my current skills? I hope you can answer my question, -thanks-
Kintara 03-25-07, 12:54 PM	Okay. This is basically a matter of reading the beginning of the Players Handbook. Each class has a list of skills that are "class skills." That means that it costs one skill point to improve it by one when you gain a level. Once you have taken a class with a skill as a class skill, the maximum amount of ranks you can have in the skill becomes 3+character level (and your character level is the sum of all your class levels added together, basically how many HD you have). Cross-class skills (the ones not on your class skill list, or lists) cost twice as much skill points to raise and the max is halved. So, besides each class telling you what its class skills are, it also tells you how many skill points you get each level. Rogues get 8 + Intelligence Modifier each level. At character level one, you get four times that number. You may spend these skill ranks any way you want, bearing in mind what your maximum is in each skill (which I explained above). I think your DM has two concerns: firstly, if you spend your skill points on skills to different levels instead of maxing them out each level then you're going to have to remember that for each skill (which isn't too bad). Secondly, there's an unsaid problem. If you don't keep your skills maxed out, beginning players like yourself sometimes have a tendency towards spreading themselves too thin with their skill points. In other words, if you have lots of skills that aren't at the max that they could be then you might not succeed very often.
Goblinaldo 03-25-07, 01:04 PM	Okay thanks, that helps, and I think I know what I can do. I'm already fairly strong in the skills I have now, and I don't want that many more skills, I think I will just focus on building up the skills I want and becoming good at those skills as well, plus, many of the skills I want are part of my class already, such as crafting traps and poisons, and using magic devices, most of what I want is more or less part of my class. -thanks again- p.s.: If this sounds like a bad decision, please tell me, but I think it's a reasonable choice.
Kintara 03-25-07, 01:14 PM	Okay thanks, that helps, and I think I know what I can do. I'm already fairly strong in the skills I have now, and I don't want that many more skills, I think I will just focus on building up the skills I want and becoming good at those skills as well, plus, many of the skills I want are part of my class already, such as crafting traps and poisons, and using magic devices, most of what I want is more or less part of my class. -thanks again- p.s.: If this sounds like a bad decision, please tell me, but I think it's a reasonable choice.No, it doesn't sound that bad. Use Magic Device is a pretty cool skill. Do you have a skill or two that you don't really like or want? If so, then you could ask your DM if you could switch the skills around a little. Normally you can't just do that (though the Players Handbook II does have rules for it), but your DM can allow it if he feels like it.
Goblinaldo 03-25-07, 01:24 PM	Yeah, My DM is pretty cool about that kind of stuff, I'm just not sure that there are any skills I would want to get rid of, I'd have to think about it.