ToME Wiki
Skill gain
Current situation:
* Experts may have less points per skill point than other classes
=> I have Mindcrafters vs. various other classes in mind
* Mastering is easy
- Why should I be able to max sorcery when I don't know basic facts (Magic lower than 30)
Ideas
* Make it harder to max out a skill
- the increase should be lower later
* Make it easier at first
- perhaps have some skill points on character level 1
rejected/retreated
* Handle skill points like stat gain potions.
- Make it possible that my skill doesn't raise when trying to learn a skill
Chatter
MayLith: I believe I see what you are saying, but yikes! There are few enough skill points to go around as it is, without introducing a percent fail.
MassimilianoMarangio: Please, no percent fails ! The better approach is the second idea. With one skill point you may increase your skill by the skill modifier at lower skill levels (0 - 20), by 0.75* the skill modifier at level 21 - 40, by 0.5* skill modifier at level 41 - 50.
SoulWynd: It would become a really pain to rebalance all the classes... Some classes relatively end up with less skill points because they're slightly more powerful while other classes (such as Paladin) end up with lots of free points to become more useful.
RavenRed: I'd prefer a prerequisite system. Subskill X cannot be Y times greater than Parentskill Z. If we use 1.2 as the multiplier... If your magic is at 20, you cannot have any Magic School subskill greater than 24. If you raise magic-skill to 25, then you can raise it to 30 and so on. Same for combat and Spirituality skills. This has the advantage of requiring the parent skill to be somewhere in the vicinity of the parent skill. The disadvantage is the same as the advantage. 
Simon: No fails or random amounts of skill gain please! Planning where all the skill points will go at character creation is a key feature I don't want to lose... I don't want my skills to get stuck one point below a cool spell just because of a dice roll...
Also in a classless system, warriors would be crippled by having the same hit points as any other class. Hit points is the only thing that prevents warriors from being killed by strong magic! Can we make warrior-skill skill gain +2 HP per skill level (+1 if archery type)?
I agree that higher skills levels should be harder to get. But to force another skills as a prerequiste means many classes will have HALF the effectiveness they had before, and so would making slower skill progression at high levels.
What we CAN do is make more multi-skilled spells and abilities. This would somehow favor the old classes all over again, but you don't HAVE to play something like the old warrior or mage. For example the warrior mage could get a timed strike ability that disrupts the spellcasting of monsters by striking during the spell. And while at it he could learn basic alchemy and basic sword mastery. And low level sorcery to get some utility spells... level 1 symbiosis just for hit points...
If you think there is something wrong with a character having some skills points in everything with a good low level spell making characters mostly all alike, you can make the starting of a new skill have a increasing cost to start it.
Example:
Og the warrior learns weaponmastery: very first skill. 5 free skill points to start the character!
Swordmastery: normal
Disarming: normal
Symbiosis: 4th skill, costs 2 points to "open" the skill.
alchemy: 5th skill, costs 4 skill points to "open" the skill
stealth: 6th skill, costs 6 points to "open" the skill
geomancy: 7th skill, costs 8 points to "open" the skill
necromancy: 8th skill, costs 10 points extra to "open" the skill
other: 9th skill and above, 10 extra points each!
This system would force players to have a plan, not just a jack-of-all-trades who is exactly like other jack-of-all-trades (classless systems often have the "every classless character is designed the same" problem)! Each player should be encouraged to be unique by the very rules of skill gain. Even to make himself play like a standard class if he chooses to.
FF was originally planned to allow out-of-class skills, which will be obsolete. In the new system, would FF allow the gaining of any skill unlike the current limited selection(he doesn't give alchemy or sorcery right now)? Would he only give you raw skill points to spend anywhere? Would he allow you to raise a certain skill above character level +4 with the skill points you already have without giving you skill points(letting you do that as long as he's accompanying you, meaning try to keep him alive)?
By the way. The skill gain potion is the most often savegame-cheated thing of all time. Maybe it shouldn't be random?
PeterWiersig: Simon, good ideas. I began playing a MMORPG where a similar system is implemented: You have an limited amount of skill points and a tree of skills. To learn a master profession you have to learn all skill levels from a branch of the basic profession. All basic professions are free, but require a premium of skill points. All of this encourages specialization and cooperation of the players. A bonus is, that you can surrender skills and gain the points back. To learn a skill level you must also make experience for that skill branch.
And SoulWynd, we are in the pain of rebalancing all the classes because of the dropping of angbands intrinsic class skills.
SimonSorc: And rebalancing the races! Hobbits used to be about having the best intrinsic race bonuses total in the game... now they're just +5 luck and make food, which is a bit short. Maybe hobbits should get more AC for being small & agile. Or perhaps just 1 more skill point per level. Everything needed an adjust anyway except the humans.
I think Ultima Online (or is it everquest?) has a similar system where you can allow a skill to be lowered to gain skill elsewhere(paying XP for it all over again). It kinda works out if you make a stupid choice and don't want to restart your character from scratch. They also made weak skills cheaper and overpowered skills more expensive in a very good balance, unlike most roguelikes games in existence where balance is a low priority... (i'm hoping for more balance in ToME's classes when the beginner subrace - and perhaps expert subrace - comes out, but hey wishful thinking!)
kfoelsch: what is being proposed sounds a lot like ICE's RoleMaster game system. Around 1996 or so they revised the system substantially, and in several ways, it's close to what has been proposed here. It's my favorite system... The coolest thing about it (IMO) is that it has general "skill categories" which you can put points into and they add to all of the subskills underneath them. TOME works in reverse, and I rather prefer the RoleMaster way 
SimonSorc: I think it's a well-liked system by all types of players. Unlimited flexibility! (-; now is somebody coding, or are we all waiting for ToME 3.0 to show up so we're compatible with it?