Each Class starts with a number of bonuses to a number of skills.
 
For reference: http://pillarsofeternity.gamepedia.com/Skill#Skill_Bonus
Do note that I'm not sure that is still correct. I only checked the one I reacted to in-game yesterday, the Paladin and the Fighter.

• The Fighter gets 1 Athletics, 1 Lore and 1 Survival.
• The Barbarian gets 2 Athlethics, 1 Survival.
• The Paladin gets 2 Athletics, 1 Lore.

Does anyone else feel this is odd? The Fighter, I would think, would be more likely to be the Athletic guy compared to the Paladin. The Barbarian's starting Skills are spot-on, whereas the Paladin's is.. odd. Out of all of them, only the Paladin and the Barbarian, which I would expect to the on opposite ends in thematic physical combat prowess, gets Athletics 2.
 
My suggestion would be that:

• The Fighter gets 2 Athletics, 1 Lore.
• The Barbarian retains 2 Athletics, 1 Survival.
• The Paladin gets 1 Athletics, 1 Lore, and 1 based on his Paladin Order.

Athletics: Goldpact Knights
Stealth: Bleak Walkers
Suvival: Kind Wayfarers
Lore: Darcozzi Paladini and The Shieldbearers of St. Elcga.

 

Yes, this means that the Paladin setup isn't unique (for example, a Goldpact Paladin and a Fighter would have the same), but there is already precedence (Chanters & Wizards) for that.

 

Also, is there any reason that Class bonuses show up upon levelup, when investing in Skills, but other bonuses do not? It's confusing and strictly speaking, the Class Bonus to skills isn't more mechanically relevant than bonuses from any other source, such as your choice of Culture & Background (or Talents, for that matter).

 

 

I also want to sneak in here that I really think we should get a few Skill Points on creation, even if it's only 3 or so, and a Talent, to help chisel the character concept out and differentiate the character from other characters of the same kind. It's of no direct relevance to the thread as such, but I have to mention it somewhere before I explode and it's not worth me creating a whole new thread over.

 

I think changing what Attribute bonuses you get from Cultures (so you can actually get bonus Perception, or Consitution), and maybe more varied skill bonus combos you get from Backgrounds are more important than this.

I think changing what Attribute bonuses you get from Cultures (so you can actually get bonus Perception, or Consitution), and maybe more varied skill bonus combos you get from Backgrounds are more important than this.

 

More important? Maybe; after all, I'm really just touching on the allotted skills for a single class, really.

 

That said, I find it more important that the bonuses make sense, since they are largely conceived as fluffy bonuses rather than on min/max diversification in an even spread. You should start a thread on which Cultures and Backgrounds should get what bonus and why.

 

I can see The White That Wends giving +1 CON, but I have no idea what'd grant +1 PER. There's no Athletics/Survival Background, that could go straight to the Drifter. Athletics/Lore for Aristocrat? Arguably a stretch, but it could work, I mean, Aristocrats have the best food and so on.

 

On that note, I find it more important that human subraces don't have any mechanical effects at all, and odd that they'd all share the same.

Edited January 5, 201511 yr by Luckmann