Parhelion Skill System

The Parhelion Skill System is an alternate skill system for use in Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition, designed to eliminate the "feat tax" and provide a more involved method of developing a character's skills.

Most important to this skill system are talents, which act like feats but specifically for skills and skill-related options. This frees up feat choices to be purely for combat options for characters. Characters get one talent for every five ranks in a skill.

Implementation

At character creation, the character gains a number of skill points determined by their starting level and whatever quirky rules the DM is using. They apply these skill points to the skills they want, and every five points in a skill allows them one talent in that skill.

Rather than adding a half-level bonus to the skill ranks, extra skill points are handed out by the DM as the campaign progresses, either at every level gained, or as rewards for completing tasks. The difficulty checks should be modified to reflect this slower gain in capability.

For example, a character puts 6 points into Lore, granting them a talent in that skill. Later on they have a chance to study at an ancient library, at which point the DM gives them an additional 4 points of Lore, which is enough to grant them an additional talent.

Whenever a feat grants an untyped bonus to a skill, the character gets points in a relevant skill equal to the bonus. Whenever a feat grants skill training, the character gets a talent in a relevant skill (but no additional points).

Skills

Athletics

Athletics covers the physical capacity of a character. Their ability to swim, climb, balance, escape from bonds and jump are all based off their Athletics rank.

Battle Leap

Benefit: You can make a long or high jump as part of a charge.

Escape Artist

Benefit: You can attempt to escape a grab as a minor action, instead of as a move action. You also gain a +2 talent bonus to Athletics checks made to escape a grab.

Exceptional Athlete

Prerequisite: Athletics rank 15
Benefit: When making an Athletics check, you can roll twice and use either result.

Long Jumper

Benefit: You can make all long jumps as if you had a running start.

Slow Fall

Benefit: When you fall, you reduce the falling damage you take by your Athletics check result instead of one-half your check result.

Sure Climber

Benefit: A successful Athletics check allows you to climb at your normal speed, rather than half speed.

Sure Swimmer

Benefit: A successful Athletics check allows you to swim at your normal speed, rather than half speed.

Culture

Culture is contemporary knowledge of society, local customs, proper conduct and other aspects of civilisation. Culture checks can be made to gather information and recall useful knowledge.

City Guide

Prerequisite: Athletics rank 10, Culture rank 10
Benefit: You ignore difficult terrain in encounter areas where the difficult terrain is the result of people, buildings, or urban sprawl. This talent does not allow you to ignore challenging or hindering terrain.

Connected

Prerequisite: Culture rank 10
Benefit: When making a Culture check to gather information, you can roll twice and use either result.

Influential

Prerequisite: Culture rank 10, Presence rank 5
Benefit: Intuition checks made against you or any allies within 15 squares of you take a -5 penalty.

Linguist

Benefit: Choose a non-archaic language. You can now speak, read, and write that language fluently.
Special: You can take this talent more than once. Each time you select this talent, choose a new non-archaic language.

Urbane

Prerequisite: Eloquence rank 5
Benefit: You gain a +2 talent bonus when making an Eloquence check.
Special: You can take this talent more than once. Each time you select this talent, the talent bonus increases by 2.

Eloquence

Eloquence is used to influence others using subtlety, guile and command of language. A character can use Eloquence to make checks for diplomacy or to bluff.

First Impressions

Prerequisite: Presence rank 5
Benefit: You gain a +5 talent bonus to the first Eloquence check you make with a creature.

Liesmith

Prerequisite: Eloquence rank 10
Benefit: When making an Eloquence check to bluff or lie, you can roll twice and use either result.

Outspoken

Benefit: Your first success in a skill challenge using Eloquence counts as two successes.

Perform

Prerequisite: Culture rank 5
Benefit: You can fascinate those around you with poetry, song, stories, and similar performances. A performance takes at least ten minutes, and increasing that time may induce a penalty at the DM's discretion. During the performance, all creatures within 15 squares of you take a penalty to passive Perception equal to your Eloquence rank.

Quick Wit

Prerequisite: Eloquence rank 10
Benefit: During a skill challenge, you accrue failures on Eloquence checks only if you fail by 5 or more.

Silver Tongue

Benefit: When you succeed on an Eloquence check, you gain a +1 bonus to Eloquence checks until the end of the encounter. This bonus is cumulative with itself. When you fail an Eloquence check, or attempt any hostile action, you lose any bonus from this talent and cannot gain the bonus again during this encounter.

Storyteller

Prerequisite: Culture rank 10
Benefit: You gain a bonus to all Eloquence checks equal to the number of Culture talents you have.

Intuition

Intuition is a character's instincts and gut feelings that let them make decisions and judgements when they don't have solid evidence or knowledge.

Alertness

Benefit: You cannot be surprised.

Danger Sense

Benefit: You gain a +5 talent bonus to your passive Perception for detecting traps or hazards.

Discernment

Prerequisite: Perception rank 5
Benefit: You gain a +5 talent bonus to Perception checks opposed by a creature's Stealth check.

Keen Insight

Prerequisite: Intuition rank 15
Benefit: When making an Intuition check, you can roll twice and use either result.

Worldly Wise

Benefit: You gain a bonus to Intuition checks equal to the number of Culture talents you have.

Lore

Lore is obscure knowledge of magic, legends, myths, the occult and so forth. Lore checks can be made to recall useful knowledge, or to fathom the mystical nature of items or spells.

Apothecary

Benefit: You can make a Lore check and collect an amount of alchemical reagents from the surrounding environment equal to the result of the check. This process usually takes at least 1 hour, and certain environments might take more or less time at the DM's discretion.

Enlightened

Prerequisite: Lore rank 15
Benefit: You gain a +5 talent bonus when making a knowledge check using a skill that is not Lore.

Healer

Benefit: You can administer first aid to stabilize a dying creature as a minor action, instead of a standard action.

Literary

Prerequisite: Eloquence rank 5
Benefit: You gain a +2 talent bonus when making an Eloquence check.
Special: You can take this talent more than once. Each time you select this talent, the talent bonus increases by 2.

Scholar

Benefit: Choose an archaic language. You can now speak, read, and write that language fluently.
Special: You can take this talent more than once. Each time you select this talent, choose a new archaic language

Surgeon

Prerequisite: Healer
Benefit: When making a Lore check to administer first aid or treat a disease, you can roll twice and use either result.

Perception

Perception is a character's senses, and how sharp they are at identifying the obscure or searching for the hidden.

Light Sleeper

Prerequisite: Perception rank 10
Benefit: If you're asleep, you do not take the -5 penalty to hear things.

Night's Eyes

Prerequisite: Perception rank 10
Benefit: You gain low-light vision. If you already have low-light vision, you gain darkvision.

Observation

Prerequisite: Intuition rank 5
Benefit: You gain a +5 talent bonus to Intuition checks to see through disguises.

Sharpened Senses

Prerequisite: Perception rank 10
Benefit: You do not grant combat advantage to enemies invisible to you. While you are blinded, you do not take the normal -10 penalty to Perception checks.

Staring At Shadows

Prerequisite: Stealth rank 5
Benefit: When making a Perception check actively made to find creatures that are hidden from you, you can roll twice and use either result.

Presence

Presence is the unspoken ability to influence others, either through force of personality, great beauty, or threatening appearance. Presence checks can be made to feint, intimidate, and impress.

Alluring

Benefit: You can make a Presence check to captivate another creature, opposed by an Intuition check. When you succeed on a captivate check, you gain a +2 bonus to all Presence and Eloquence checks made against that creature until the end of the encounter. If you fail, you take a -2 penalty to all Presence and Eloquence checks made against that creature until the end of the encounter.

Battle Scars

Benefit: You gain a +2 talent bonus to Presence checks made to intimidate.
Special: You can take this talent more than once. Each time you select this talent, the talent bonus increases by 2.

Body Language

Prerequisite: Presence rank 10
Benefit: Through pantomime, you communicate with a nonhostile creature you can see, even if it does not speak your language. The creature must have an Intelligence score higher than 3. You can communicate simple ideas and concepts, such as figuring out where a monster went, where one might find fresh water, if there's a safe place to camp, and so on. Conveying complex ideas might take a penalty, at the DM's discretion.

Dancer

Prerequisite: Culture rank 5
Benefit: You have mastered the art of dance, and can make Presence checks to do so. If you have the Perform talent, the penalty to passive Perception increases by 5. In addition you gain a +5 talent bonus to Athletics checks made to balance or jump.

Hand Signals

Prerequisite: Thievery rank 5
Benefit: You can communicate simple information silently with any ally who has this talent and has line of sight to your position.

Impressive

Benefit: During a skill challenge, you accrue failures on Presence checks only if you fail by 5 or more.

Stoic

Benefit: You gain a +2 talent bonus to saving throws against charm, illusion, and fear effects.

Stealth

Stealth is used to avoid detection, or conduct oneself in a discreet manner.

Ghost Who Walks

Prerequisite: Stealth rank 20
Benefit: While you are hidden from an enemy, you can move through that enemy's space and remain hidden.

Hunter's Expertise

Prerequisite: Survival rank 10
Benefit: If you are hidden outdoors and you make an attack, you can make a Stealth check with a -5 penalty to remain hidden as a free action.

Shadow Chaser

Benefit: You can treat dim light as darkness when making Stealth checks.

Secret Stride

Prerequisite: Stealth rank 15
Benefit: You don't take the -5 penalty to Stealth checks for moving more than 2 squares.

Silent Mentor

Benefit: Allies within 10 squares of you gain a +2 talent bonus to Stealth checks.

Unseen Hands

Prerequisite: Thievery rank 5
Benefit: While you are hidden, you gain a +5 talent bonus to Thievery checks made to pick pockets.

Survival

Survival is a character's capacity to survive by themselves in a wild environment. Survival checks can be made to forage for food, navigate through the wilderness, and identify and recall knowledge about animals and plants.

Crafting

Benefit: You can create a nonmagical item, such as a mundane weapon or a suit of mundane armor, or a piece of adventuring gear. This process usually takes at least 1 hour, and certain items might take more or less time at the DM's discretion. Creating the item requires a component cost equal to the item's price.

Herbalist

Benefit: You can make a Survival check and collect an amount of rare herbs from the surrounding environment equal to the result of the check. This process usually takes at least 1 hour, and certain environments might take more or less time at the DM's discretion.

Inner Compass

Benefit: When making a Survival check to find your way in a natural environment, you can roll twice and use either result.

Tracker

Benefit: When you make a Survival check to identify the tracks, you can discern what creature made them, their numbers, and travel direction. If you succeed by 10 or more, you also discern their pace, and any other pertinent details related to the creature's movement, such as whether or not the creature was encumbered or injured.

Trailblazer

Benefit: For the purpose of hourly or daily travel rates, add 1 to your overland speed and the speed of all allies in your traveling group.
Add 5 to the DC required to find or follow your tracks. If traveling with allies, you can share this benefit with up to five other characters.

Wilderness Guide

Prerequisite: Athletics rank 10, Survival rank 10
Benefit: You ignore difficult terrain in encounter areas where the difficult terrain is the result of trees, underbrush, plants, or natural growth. This talent does not allow you to ignore challenging or hindering terrain.

Thievery

Thievery is the ability to steal, purloin, baffle, and circumvent obstacles in the way of said plundering. Thievery checks can be made to pick pockets, use sleight of hand, pick locks, and disarm traps.

Bad Company

Prerequisite: Thievery rank 10
Benefit: Thievery checks to pick pockets or use sleight of hand made against you or any allies within 15 squares of you take a -5 penalty.

Concealment

Benefit: You can hide a small object on your person so that it cannot be found. Make a Thievery check with a +10 bonus. Anyone searching you must make a Perception check with a DC equal to your check result to find the item. The DM can modify the DC based on the size of the object.

Forgery

Prerequisite: Thievery rank 10
Benefit: You can create forgeries of any kind, including written orders, treasure maps, paintings, manifests, and land grants. Forging a simple document takes 10 minutes. More complex works take as long as the DM decides.
At the end of the performance of the practice, make a Thievery check. Your check result determines the forgery's quality. Anyone examining the document must succeed on a Perception check with a DC equal to your Thievery check result to discern the falsehood. If the forgery contradicts other documents or orders, you might have to make a skill check or engage in a skill challenge to convince another creature that the document is authentic.

Monkey's Feet

Prerequisite: Athletics rank 5
Benefit: You can use your feet to make Thievery checks at a -5 penalty when your hands are otherwise occupied. Your feet can even use thieves' tools.

Pickpocket Prodigy

Benefit: You no longer take the -10 penalty to Thievery checks to pick pockets during combat. You still require a hand free to do so.

Sabotage

Benefit: You can make a Thievery check to disrupt mechanisms, such as pulleys or treadmills, and prevent them from functioning.

Underworld Contacts

Prerequisite: Culture rank 5
Benefit: When making a Culture check to gather information, you can spend 10 gold coins for a +1 bonus to that check, up to a maximum of 50 gold coins for a +5 bonus.

Languages

Languages come in two types for simplicity: archaic and non-archaic.

Archaic languages are languages that are ancient, forgotten, or just uncommon. They cannot be taken as a character's starting language. Supernal and abyssal are examples of archaic languages.

Non-archaic languages are still in common use. They can be taken as a character's starting languages. Common, draconic and goblin are examples of non-archaic languages.

This setup allows for an easier way to use custom languages in campaigns.