Since I don't care very much for the default skill list, and one member of my group really prefers the ability to customize his skills to the binary trained/not trained system, I plan to implement the following method instead:
Graduated Proficiency System
Proficiency Categories: Armor, Weapon, Tool, and Skill proficiencies are considered the same resource (save proficiencies are still granted by class) and are used as categories. Categories are nominally linked to certain ability scores but don’t always have to use the linked ability. Some proficiencies can be in more than one category (and even more than one linked ability).
Proficiency Slots: Each character has a number of proficiency slots equal to double the normal number of non-save proficiencies they would get, which the player can then spend as they like on any category available to them (from species, class, or background). If a proficiency does not already exist, they can define it themselves. One full proficiency costs one slot, but characters can divide slots in two to be half-proficient in two proficiencies (even ones that don’t belong to an available category). The character can also spend two slots to get half-proficiency in ALL a given category’s proficiencies (which can be upgraded to full proficiency with another half-slot). To take a full proficiency outside your granted categories at character creation, you must have the linked ability modifier at +1 or higher and expend two proficiency slots. The only limitation on choosing proficiencies is that each character must be at least half-proficient in one or more weapons.
Optional - INT Bonus: If you wish, you can grant each character a number of bonus half-proficiencies equal to their Intelligence bonus. These half-proficiencies cannot be combined for a full proficiency or used to upgrade an existing half-proficiency.
Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Each individual weapon and armor type (not category) is considered its own proficiency. You can’t have half-proficiency in armor, but you can in weapons.
Languages: Languages (in addition to those granted by species or background) count as half-proficiencies (and are thus open to anybody). Under normal circumstances, learning a language includes learning to read and write it as well as speak it.
Specialization: As a feat, you can gain +1 to a proficiency’s linked ability score and select a subset of a single proficiency (for instance, someone trained in acting might specialize in imitating voices). You add double your proficiency bonus to this specialty. You can only gain one specialty, and the DM may rule that certain specialties are off-limits to certain classes/species/backgrounds or are not narrow enough.
Training: Whenever you have downtime of at least 90 days (which don’t have to be consecutive), you can learn a new half-proficiency or upgrade an existing half-proficiency to full. This costs 250gp in training fees, supplies, and lost income opportunities.
The following is a sample list of proficiencies, and is not meant to be exhaustive. Players can make their proficiencies more specific if they wish.
Acrobatics Proficiencies (DEX)
Free-Running – Traversing urban environments through climbing and leaping.
Gymnastics – Doing stands and flips and looking stylish in the process.
Rope Tricks – Tight- and slack-rope walking and trapeze.
Animal Handling Proficiencies (WIS – available to any character that gets proficiency in Survival)
Animal Husbandry – Domestication and breeding of animals.
Animal Training – Teaching old dogs new tricks.
Beast Lore – Knowledge of natural animals.
Leatherworking – Tanning, cutting, and fitting animal hides.
Riding – Exhorting a mount to do plainly insane things.
Tracking – Following a creature’s trail.
Arcana Proficiencies (INT)
Alchemy – Creation of chemical concoctions.
Ancient Languages – Knowledge of dead languages.
Appraisal – Identify traits and value of items.
Magic Lore – Knowledge of arcane powers and traditions.
Planar Lore – Knowledge of the planes and planar denizens.
Artisan Proficiencies (DEX or INT – available to any character proficient in artisan tools)
Alchemy – Creation of chemical concoctions.
Brewing – Creation of alcoholic beverages.
Carpentry – Making things out of wood.
Cooking – Preparing food.
Fine Arts – Drawing, painting, calligraphy, cartography, etc.
Forgery – Passing fake goods or documents off as real.
Glassmaking – Creation of glasswork and ceramics.
Jewelery – Creation of fine pieces with precious materials.
Leatherworking – Tanning, cutting, and fitting animal hides.
Locksmithing – Creating and opening locks.
Masonry – Knowledge of architecture and the creation thereof.
Tailoring – Creation of cloth and clothing.
Tinkering – Creation and repair of mechanisms.
Athletics Proficiencies (STR)
Cross-Country – Long-distance running.
Free-Running – Traversing urban-like environments through climbing and leaping.
Strongarm – Lifting and carrying heavy things.
Swimming – Moving in water.
Wrestling – Attempting to throw or pin an opponent.
Deception Proficiencies (CHA)
Acting – Presenting a false appearance or demeanor.
Body Language – Reading someone’s mannerisms.
Confidence Tricks – Playing upon misplaced trust to get your own way.
Flattery – Making people feel good about themselves for your ulterior motives.
Forgery – Passing fake goods or documents off as real.
Fortune-Telling – Use of traditional divination methods.
Gambling – Winning at games of chance or skill.
Half-Truths – Misdirecting while not telling outright untruth.
Sincerity – Sounding as if you believe even blatant lies.
Tale-Telling – Muddying the line between fact and fiction.
Endurance Proficiencies (CON – available to any character that gets proficiency with Con saves or Survival)
Cross-Country – Long-distance running.
Fasting – Going without food and water for long periods.
Mountaineering – Climbing, trudging and surviving environments with low temperatures and thin air.
Pain Tolerance – Enduring discomfort or torture.
Swimming – Moving in water.
Insight Proficiencies (WIS)
Body Language – Reading someone’s mannerisms.
Gambling – Winning at games of chance or skill.
Linguistics – Figuring out unfamiliar languages.
Signing – Non-verbal communication.
Intimidation Proficiencies (CHA)
Blackmail – Gathering incriminating facts against a victim.
Looming – Using presence to imply the possibility of harm.
Stalking – Following people who don’t want to be followed.
Threats – Verbal intimidation.
Investigation Proficiencies (INT)
Body Language – Reading someone’s mannerisms.
Deduction – Drawing conclusions from clues.
Research – Finding information in reference works.
Searching – Finding things that are hidden.
Stalking – Following people who don’t want to be followed.
Medicine Proficiencies (WIS)
Alchemy – Creation of chemical concoctions.
Chirurgy – Stitching, healing broken limbs, and treating internal wounds.
First Aid – Treating minor or immediately life-threatening conditions.
Herbalism – Natural pharmacology.
Nature Proficiencies (INT – available to any character that gets proficiency with Survival)
Agriculture – Understanding of farming techniques.
Beast Lore – Knowledge of natural animals.
Herbalism – Natural pharmacology.
Navigation – Determining cardinal directions, pathfinding using maps, charts, or landmarks.
Survival – Useful tricks to endure hostile environments.
Tracking – Following a creature’s trail.
Perception Proficiencies (WIS)
Ambush – Identifying good places for an ambush and being wary of such places.
Lip Reading – Translating speech you can’t hear.
Searching – Finding things that are hidden.
Tracking – Following a creature’s trail.
Performance Proficiencies (CHA)
Acting – Presenting a false appearance or demeanor.
Dancing – Rhythmic movement.
Gambling – Winning at games of chance or skill.
Drummer – Playing percussion instruments.
Gymnastics – Doing stands and flips and looking stylish in the process.
Juggling – Keeping objects from succumbing to gravity.
Lautist – Playing stringed instruments.
Piper – Playing wind instruments.
Rope Tricks – Tight- and slack-rope walking and trapeze.
Singing – Making music with the voice.
Tale-Telling – Muddying the line between fact and fiction.
Persuasion Proficiencies (CHA)
Carousing – Getting information out of people when they’re drunk.
Contacts – Knowing the right people to talk to.
Etiquette – Proper behavior in a given scenario.
Flattery – Making people feel good about themselves for your ulterior motives.
Rumor – Acquiring or spreading hearsay.
Sincerity – Sounding as if you believe even blatant lies.
Speechcraft – Inspiring people with the power of words.
Religion Proficiencies (INT)
Doctrine – Knowledge of religious creed(s).
Etiquette – Proper behavior in a given scenario.
Fortune-Telling – Use of traditional divination methods.
Research – Finding information in reference works.
Ritual – Conducting religious services.
History – Knowledge of recorded events.
Planar Lore – Knowledge of the planes and planar denizens.
Scholarship Proficiencies (INT – Replaces History)
Appraisal – Identify traits and value of items.
Etiquette – Proper behavior in a given scenario.
Forgery – Passing fake goods or documents off as real.
Gambling – Winning at games of chance or skill.
History – Knowledge of recorded events.
Linguistics – Figuring out unfamiliar languages.
Research – Finding information in reference works.
Sleight of Hand Proficiencies (DEX)
Juggling – Keeping objects from succumbing to gravity.
Locksmithing – Creating and opening locks.
Manipulation – Moving small objects about your person surreptitiously.
Pickpocketry – Obtaining or placing objects about another person’s body.
Trapwork – Creation, placing, and disarming of traps.
What's the difference between "half-truths" and "tale-telling"? They sound identical to me.
Half-truths is what Aes Sedai or Vulcans do - saying something that's technically true and failing to correct the assumptions that your interlocutor makes which make it functionally a lie ('exact words').
Tale-telling, is (probably) truth with lots of poetic license applied to it ('unreliable narrator').
Functionally I think they're the same thing, it's just a matter of approach. As one of my other group members commented about Star Wars SAGA, it was slightly ridiculous that his pilot was technically better at hacking than the slicer because he had a higher Use Computer skill, even though the uses he put the skill to were entirely different. If he'd renamed his skill to 'Use Navicomputer' and the slicer renamed his to 'Computer Crime,' without changing anything else, it wouldn't have seemed quite so bizarre.
That makes sense.
By the way, while I don't think I'd bother implementing a system like this myself, I do quite like the idea.
I'd rather do skills 13th-Age style myself, but I don't think that would have satisfied my 'Pathfinder is awesome because I can give my paladin three points in Craft (cooking)' player 
I might grab this as a list of general specialties for my Expanded Proficiencies module. (link in sig)
Yes, this means that I like.
I also do not like where the skill system ended up.
I’m a big fan of your more granulated skill list. I think the overall system is a bit cumbersome for me, though, with half proficiencies and what-not.
However, this would be easy to implement without such a complete system overhaul. I might consider just picking maybe two specific proficiencies when you otherwise would get an entire skill (Ex. Elf chooses two (or maybe just one) perception skills, Acolytes picks two religion skills, two insight skills, and two extra languages, etc.).
I'd be tempted to give out 4-6 proficiencies for background, and 4+int modifier for class (8+int modifier for rogue), and 1 or 2 for race proficiencies. Hmm, I might try this. I think it would result in the same result as your system, with a little less on the way of character-creation intricacies.
I'd also probably re-install the spot, listen, and search skills into perception. They seem to fit.
Also, I would be hesitant to include weapons and armor. Having combat and non-combat abilities on the same resource scale raises a lot of tough issues, and pits the powergamer and role-player in each of our souls against each other. Also, I assume a fighter doesn’t get a slot in your system for every simple and martial weapon that they are normally proficient with?
This method is geared toward my specific needs, so I don't imagine it would be for everybody At my table at least, characters rarely need proficiency in more than two types of weapons and one type of armor - their basic loadout is pretty much decided at character creation and anything else is just a straight upgrade within the same type. Nobody has ever played the 'walking arsenal' type of fighter in any group I've been in, so I personally don't need them to be proficient in everything - but if somebody did, I don't think it would break balance to let them be.
I also like this, ChrisTheS. Especially the Weapon and Armor proficiencies. It's always bugged me that weapons are categorized as Simple and Martial, as if that somehow defines how dangerous it is or how much skill is required to use a weapon proficiently. I'd be tempted to still tie these to Class, so that Martial characters have more to acknowledge the wide variety of weapons that Fighting Styles, or Martial Arts Schools, train their students in. To a lesser degree, I feel the the same about Armor, which I believe has more to do with the situation and personal training than whether it is in a Light or Heavy category.
I may come up with more precise ways of doling out proficiency slots when I actually have the PHB - the one in place at the moment is just a rough rule-of-thumb.
Of course, in an ideal world, you'd be able to define a character's equipment proficiencies by their character concept (you're a Roman legionary? Then you're proficient with banded mail, shields, spears, javelins, shortswords and shortbows), but that's the Fate player in me talking
I might quibble over minor details but I like the idea. I think "half" anything though is confusing. I'd just double the number of proficiencies you get and the charge two where you charged one before and charge one where you charged a half. I'd call normal proficience - double proficiency - and I'd call half proficiency just plain proficiency.
That's more a mechanical analysis. I think your idea though is a good one. Don't let anyone tell you there is anything wrong with a cooking skill.
My position on skills is to go all the way like you have done or go totally like the way C&C does. In between systems to me are all the pay and none of the play.
Well, the rationale between charging half a proficiency slot is that you only get half your proficiency bonus, which seemed fairly straightforward to me But I'll grant it might be a bit confusing.
ChrisTheS wrote:
For my actual campaign, I'm going to add another category:
Vehicle Proficiencies (available to Fighters and Rogues)
Aeroplanes
Cars
Gunnery
Rocketships
Submarines
Tanks
Zeppelins
I made some changes to simplify conversion:
Proficiency Slots: Each character has a number of proficiency slots equal to 12 + double their Intelligence bonus. If a proficiency does not already exist, they can define it themselves. One slot allows the character to add half their proficiency bonus to a roll related to that proficiency, two slots allow the use of the full proficiency bonus. The character can also spend four slots to get half-proficiency in ALL a given category’s proficiencies.
Granted Skills: Whenever a species, class, or background says you gain proficiency in a skill, you instead gain half-proficiency in that skill’s entire category (as if you had spent four proficiency slots on it).