So you want to be a [].

[Prak]

Working on helping a newish player work on a new character, I wound up suggesting some skills based on the idea that he's a runaway noble, and thought that perhaps a list of general areas of knowledge and skills for people of various social classes, professions and archetypes throughout history might become useful to others. It's also something we can point newer people to when they want to play a prince, ninja, pirate, farmer, whatever.

Noble
A noble is brought up to administer to people, but more precisely, to take the power and money that comes from being part of the ruling class and do something with it that vaguely benefits their people so that they and their family can continue living as rich people rather than having all their money taken away by an ad hoc executioner. Generally they will be expected to know a combat form, usually whatever is considered the most honorable in their society, but occasionally they will be taught something that is more generally useful. They will also usually receive a broad education in what being a noble means, and how their family became nobility. Typically this means they will have:
Diplomacy
Riding
History
Nobility/Royalty (lineages, famous decrees, who's who, etc)
Religious Education
Combat Form usually this will be something like fencing, and probably some archery, more from hunting, but England did have a law on the books dictating that every man should practice Archery for two hours every sunday, or something.
Profession/Craft/Specific Class Many nobles served in the military at some point. This may give them, apart form a handful of levels of a martial class, an actual marketable skill. If you're down on your luck and running from the guy that slew your family, telling the blacksmith you were a prince won't get you fed, unless he liked your family. Telling him you were an armourer in the military might. You may have simply not had any interest in a skilled job in the military, so you may have been a grunt. This would mean you have a proficiency in at least one martial weapon, and one type of armour, if your class doesn't already give them to you. You may also have either nightmares (if you didn't take to trench life too well), or a gift for inspiration and oratory if the sarge bit it and you suddenly found yourself surrounded by a bunch of miserable, frightened men who had only gotten there by following and trusting in the man, and stepped up to the plate.
This is all for a noble who was expected to take their parents' place, or otherwise become part of the ruling elite. Children who were not expected to do such usually wound up with actual jobs and less education, and so are likely to be a soldier, military caster, cleric, or have many ranks in a respected profession.

Pirate
A pirate is a person who has cut themselves away from the social order of their land to live in a community where worth is determined more by what you can do than to whom you born. Oh, yeah, and they sail around and mug merchant ships and get in sea fights with the royal navy. Typically they will have the following:
Profession: Sailor Helps to know what the fuck you're doing on a boat
Balance Drinking only helps so much, and it may not be allowed while you're on duty.
Climb* And you better be good at it
Craft*Whether for recreation (Scrimshaw), Necessity (Tailor), or as part of your job on the ship (Sailmaking, Cooking, Carpentry, Weaponsmith, etc.)
Heal* If you're the Ship's Medic.
Intimidate
Jump
Knowledge: Nature Tides, weather, currents, wind, etc.
Perform Largely a recreational skill, but occasionally job related. A crewman who can keep time and rhythm with a not-terrible voice makes work more bearable and less of a hastle by calling out work songs and shanties, a crewman who knows how to play a simple instrument will generally be fairly well valued for the simple ability to play a tune.
Search and Spot Useful those in the Crow's nest
Survival
Swim
Use Rope
Weapon Proficiencies, High Intelligence, etc. Piracy is violent work, and you need to be able to handle yourself when the Navy comes to cut your throat. A high intelligence score allows one to better use a catapult, while ballista use heavy crossbow proficiency.
Skills marked with an asterisk are job related, and you really only need one of them. The Medic won't be up in the rigging, the guys in the rigging are better served by being able to catch a fellow than stitch him up, etc. Other skills may be helpful, being the limited democracy they are, a sailor on a pirate ship may be well served by Diplomacy. Knowledge Arcane is as useful as it is in any unsettled area, and Knowledge Religion can be helpful in knowing superstitions or realizing that, hey, those other guys have a lot of visible bone, maybe we should get the missionary to bless some water.

I'll do some others later, and if anyone else can think of anything, they're welcome to add it in.
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