Disclaimer: I made the skill system what I envision it to be so you may not fully agree (and/or disagree) with me on some points. Regardless, I would like some feedback on what I did well and criticism on what I royally screwed up. Don’t hesitate to let me know. I want to get a better grasp of what the community as a whole thinks rather than just what I think.

Also, if you have any ideas for skill, let me know and I could update the post (and credit you of course)

Hello.

I felt like playing Game Director since I really don’t like the Edge, Grit, & Rush system at all in Payday 3. This led to me overhauling the entire skill system. 

I tried to specialize skill lines to further the “role-playing” aspect of the game by sorting the lines into role-specific, weapon-specific, and playstyle-specific skill lines.

This resulted in moving skills around and creating entirely new ones that I felt could supplement the skill line’s playstyle that it was trying to incentivize. I also buffed pre-existing skills to make the player at least consider them for whatever build they’re trying to make.

Of course, I still tried to keep in mind synergy between lines but I probably screwed it up since I was focusing more on individual skill lines than the “bigger picture”.

Some other things to note:

• I took some skills from Payday 2 and toned them down a bit to fit the more “grounded” feel of Payday 3.
• Those “mastery” skills at the end of skill lines can no longer be picked up on a whim. You’d have to invest 2-3 skill points (excluding the basic skill) to get access to it. Don’t worry, I think I made those mastery skills worthwhile.
• By default, the player can repair an armor chunk with an armor repair kit if they have no armor.
• Melee does damage (except to civilians)
• Dodge is back but the max you can get is 45-ish (really situational).
• The Full Recall skill from the Scrambler skill line is now given to every player by default.
• An entire armor chunk can regen but it will take twice/thrice as long as regenerating armor chunk damage (damage recently taken and highlighted in red on armor bar). I like the idea of armor being a limited resource but the way the game is currently designed, it’s not fun at all since you’re punished no matter what you do.
• Scrambler sucks. I can’t fix it.
• I bolded some skill that I'm especially proud of

It would be nice if someone at Starbreeze sees this and maybe takes note of a few changes to implement into the game.

New Medic: Medic Bags & Helping Downed Teammates

Medic Basic: You revive teammates 20% faster. Medic Bags you deploy have 2 additional charges.

Medic Aced: You take 40% less damage when reviving a teammate. 

Steady Hands: All placed Medic Bags heal you and your teammates for an additional 20% upon interaction. Every additional crew member equipped with this skill increases the bonus by another 5%.

Extra Charge: Medic Bags you deploy have 2 additional charges.

Combat Medic: Successfully reviving your teammate will give both you and that teammate a 75% damage reduction for 5 seconds and that teammate 10% more health.

Code Blue: Whenever a teammate is downed or disabled, you gain 15% movement speed and pick up teammates 30% faster. This resets when the teammate is helped.

Triage: When you are below 50% health, interacting with a medic bag will heal you for an additional 20% for every 15% of health below 50%. You interact with medic bags 50% faster. 

(Mastery Skill) Field Surgery: Interacting with any Medic Bag will restore an additional 10% of your max health, restore 1 "down", and heal all of your crewmates for 5% of their max health. Any teammate who also interacts with your medic bag cannot be disabled for the next 15 seconds.

New Ammo Specialist: Picking Up Ammo

Ammo Specialist Basic: Your reserve ammo capacity is increased by 20%. Ammo bags you deploy have 2 additional charges.

Ammo Specialist Aced: Whenever you pick up ammo, if your current weapon's magazine is full, you can overload your reserve weapons magazine by an additional 25% of its max capacity.

Scrounger: Picking up ammo drops have a 5% chance of replenishing one of your throwables.

Fully Loaded: Ammo bags you deploy have 2 additional charges.

High Grain: All placed Ammo Bags increase armor penetration for 30 seconds after interaction for you and all your teammates. Each additional crew member equipped with this skill increases weapon damage by 5% on top of that.

Mag Throw: Reloading your weapon within 10 meters of crew members will also give them ammo. This won’t trigger the Mag Throw skill of other players.

Top Up: Interacting with any ammo bag will restore an additional 20% ammo and fully restock your throwables.

New Mower: ARs & SMGs

Mower Basic: For every 35 bullets you shoot, 10 bullets are returned to your reserves.

Mower Aced: Whenever you reload a weapon with an empty magazine, you will gain a 10% damage bonus for 5 seconds.

Recoil Handling: The longer you fire, the more your weapon recoil is reduced.

Suppressive Fire: Every shot from your weapon has a chance for enemies to stop firing and dive for cover (like the weapon threat level in Payday 2).

Ammo Funnel: Your reload speed increases by 1% for each shot that hits an enemy, up to a maximum of 60%. This bonus expires once you've reloaded or swapped your weapon.

Replenish: You automatically pick up ammo dropped by enemies you have killed. This cannot occur more than once every second.

(Moved From Gunslinger) Locked & Loaded: Ammo pickups for your unequipped weapons are added directly to those weapons' magazines.

(Mastery Skill) Sprint Loaded: Sprinting will gradually reload your weapon over time up to 65% of your max magazine capacity.

New Infiltrator: Stealth

Infiltrator Basic: You gain 10% movement speed while crouching.

Infiltrator Aced: Your sound signature while sprinting is reduced.

(From Grifter) Open Mic: You answer radios 50% faster and you can now walk while answering the radio.

(Taken from Assassin) Skimming The Ground: As long as you are wielding a suppressed weapon, your crouching movement speed is increased by 20%. This can't let you move faster than your current armor speed penalty allows.

(Taken From CQC Specialist) Pressure Points: Corpses you've left after performing a takedown need to be examined in detail before civilians and guards realize they are dead. 

(Taken From CQC Specialist) Cover-Up: Taking down a guard will automatically answer their radio if it wasn’t already answered.

(Mastery Skill) (Moved Drop Cloth from Assassin here): Whenever you kill a guard with a suppressed weapon or throwing knife, their body can't be detected during the first 5 seconds. Any radios from guards you kill this way won't activate until the 5 seconds have passed.

New Tank: Armor, Armor, & Armor

Tank Basic: Increase the regeneration speed of your armor chunks by 25%. Your armor bag has 2 additional charges.

Tank Aced: When you use an Armor Repair Kit, your most recent armor chunk will gain an additional 5% damage reduction for its duration.

Ditching Dead Weight: The more damage your armor chunk has taken, the less the speed penalty affects you.

Extra Plates: Your armor bag has 2 additional charges.

Armor Up: Interacting with any armor bag will give you a 10% damage reduction to the armor chunk you have and reduce the chunk damage regeneration time (the red zone of the armor) by 25%.

Last Man Standing: Whenever one of your armor chunks breaks, you gain damage immunity for 2 seconds.

(Mastery Skill) Clean Slate: Interacting with an Armor Repair Kit will restore 1 additional armor chunk. (or half of another).

New Sharpshooter: Snipers & DMRs

Sharpshooter Basic: Standing still for 1 second while aiming down your scope will give you a 15% damage bonus for your first shot.

Sharpshooter Aced: Performing a headshot while aiming down your scope will increase your stability by 35% for the next shot. This cannot happen more than once every 2 seconds.

Collateral Control: If you destroy an environmental hazard or a Special enemy's weak point, like the Zapper's battery or the Nader's belt, the explosion will only affect enemies.

Long Shot: As long as you are aiming down your scope, distance penalties do not apply to headshot multipliers.

Precision Shot: As long as you are aiming down a scope, your shot will deal extra damage based on your scope magnification.

Cutting Shot**:** As long as you are aiming down a scope, your shots will penetrate through 1 additional target.

Headhunter: As long as you are aiming down your scope, headshot kills with will restore 1 ammo to your weapon’s magazine. This ability has a 1 second cooldown.

Speed Aim: Increase your ADS and scope speed.

(Mastery Skill) Graze: Shots that headshot-kill their target deal 35% of the damage dealt in a 100cm radius around the point of impact (so a radius around the enemy head, not the trajectory)

New Escapist: Dodge & Running Around

Escapist Basic: You will have a 10% chance to dodge when sprinting.

Escapist Aced: You can now jump higher and slide further.

Balanced: If an enemy or effect attempts to stagger you, the stagger is ignored.

Move & Cover: If you vault or mantle over a surface, you gain an additional 15% chance to dodge for 5 seconds. This effect cannot stack multiple times.

Slide Tackle: Sliding into one or more non-Special enemies causes you to stagger them.

Second Wind: When an armor chunk breaks, your movement speed is increased by 25% for 5 seconds.

Swift (+ Disengage): Nader gas grenades no longer prevent you from sprinting. Your base sprinting speed when masked on is increased by 10%. 

Misdirect: You can free yourself from a Cloaker or Zapper, after which you can't be disabled by them again for 5 seconds.

(Mastery Skill) Battering Ram: You can now stagger charging clockers and bulldozers by sprinting into them (or them running into you). You can also sprint through locked doors to breach them.

New Demolitionist: Frag Grenades & Shock Grenades

Demolitionist Basic: Explosions caused by your shots or throwables have their area of effect increased by 20%.

(Split Extra Munitions) Demolitionist Aced: Throwable capacity is increased by 1.

Cooker: Whenever you hold a throwable for at least 1.5 seconds before throwing it, that throwable will do an additional 15% damage.

Shell Shock: Non-special enemies damaged by your explosions get a permanent penalty of 25% to accuracy. This effect can only be applied once per enemy.

(Split Extra Munitions) Blowback: Non-special enemies damaged by your explosions lose all armor. Throwable capacity is increased by 1.

Blast Shield: Any damage normally done to you from explosives will be negated.

Overcooked: Any throwable or weapon you use that has an explosive component will no longer run on a timer but will immediately explode on impact with the environment or an NPC. 

(Mastery Skill) Four For One: Killing at least 4 enemies with a single explosive will instantly refund the grenade you threw.

New Enforcer: Shotguns & Melee

Enforcer Basic: Meleeing an enemy will stagger them.

Enforcer Aced: Shooting a staggered enemy will heavy stagger them.

Face to Face: You deal 15% extra damage to targets within 5 meters of you. 

Solid: You're immune to stagger effects. Any attempts made to stagger you will give you a 10% damage reduction.

Combat Reload: Meleeing and staggering an enemy will speed up your next reload by 25%

Shock & Awe: Killing an enemy within 5 meters of you has a 35% chance to heavily stagger all non-Special enemies within 5 meters of you.

(Mastery Skill) Pumping Iron: Every kill you get will increase your next melee attack damage by 100%, up to a maximum of 1600%. This effect gets reset when you kill an enemy with a melee attack.

New Manipulator: Hostages & Trading Them

Manipulator Basic: You tie up and trade hostages 50% faster. 

Manipulator Aced: Whenever you trade a hostage, they count as one additional hostage.

Overbearing: Your shout range for intimidating civilians is increased by 20%. Civilians stay down 50% longer after being shouted down. Shooting your weapon near civilians or at police attempting to rescue them will keep them from running.

Silver Tongue: Trading Employees, Guards or Law Enforcement counts as trading an additional hostage. 

Negotiator: Trading hostages for First Aid now yield 1 additional resource.

Menacing: You can shout at guards, SWAT or Heavy SWAT within 5 meters of you to force them to surrender. As long as you're aiming at them, they will go down on their knees and drop their weapon. Any damage dealt to them or taking your aim off of them interrupts this process. Once fully surrendered, the SWAT obeys all the rules of a civilian, including any penalties for killing them. You can't have more than one SWAT as a hostage at any time. 

Stockholm Syndrome: When you're downed, you can shout at a tied-down or cowering hostage within range to try and reach you and revive you. You also revive with 15% extra health.

(Mastery) Master Trader: Every hostage you trade between assault waves reduces the next player's time in custody by 20 seconds; the minimum time spent in custody is capped at 10 seconds. This time reduction resets after any player has been taken into custody. The Federal Negotiator loud modifier will also be null for each teammate in custody if you have traded hostages after the first response (which was when you traded to delay assault). (basically, if a teammate is in custody and you traded a hostage before, they will be released in 60 seconds rather than wait for a hostage)

New Engineer: Sentry

Engineer Basic: Unlocking this skill gives you access to the Sentry Turret equipment. This turret can be equipped in the equipment slot of your loadout. The turret will shoot any non-mechanical enemies it sees until the enemies are dead or no longer within sight. As it shoots, it will build up heat until it reaches max heat. Once the sentry is at max heat, it will stop functioning. The owner of the turret can pick up the turret at any point to reset the heat to 0 and redeploy it. Equipping this skill increases the max heat build-up of your turret by 20%. 

Engineer Aced:  Increase the max heat build-up of your sentry turret by another 20%. 

AP Turret: Increase armor penetration of sentry turrets you deploy by 1. 

Cooling System: Reduce heat build-up from damage, electrical explosions, or hack attempts by 30% for all turrets. 

Detonation: Whenever your turret overheats, it will cause an explosion that damages everyone in a 5-meter radius.

Spin Cycle: Your sentry turret can now rotate 360 degrees to acquire its targets. 

Targeted Fire: Your turrets will switch targets to whichever enemy you mark manually, if it's within line of sight. If you mark multiple enemies, it will prioritize the last one you marked.

(Mastery Skill) Dual Sentries: You can now deploy a second sentry turret, but all your turrets build heat 25% faster while shooting. 

New Gunslinger: Pistols & Revolvers

Gunslinger Basic: Whenever you switch to your secondary weapon, you gain a 25% damage bonus for your first shot.

Gunslinger Aced: Performing headshots with your weapon secondary weapon in hip-fire will give a 25% stability bonus until you miss a headshot or reload.

From the Hip: Your hip fire spread is decreased. 

Heavy Hipfire: Hipfire shots will cause heavy stagger. 

Finisher: The last shot of your magazine will deal 200% more damage. 

Quick Draw: Increase your weapon swap speed.

(Mastery Skill) Showdown: You can now mark an enemy as an opponent. If you shoot them before they shoot you, you will instantly kill them (besides the bulldozer). If they shoot you first, you lose 15% of your health. This cannot happen more than once every 10 seconds.

New Grifter: Social Stealth

Grifter Basic: As long as you are masked off, cameras will not see you do illegal things in public places.

(Slippery) Grifter Aced: After getting cuffed by a guard, you can break free by lockpicking the cuffs. The guards will not go into search mode after this.

Walk the Walk: As long as you're unmasked, cameras can't detect you trespassing in private areas. (They will still detect you performing an illegal action.) 

Social Engineering: As long as you're unmasked, employees will ignore you performing illegal actions. 

(From Infiltrator) Quick Fingers: A successful lockpick jiggle on your first try will immediately pick the lock.

(Mastery Skill recommandation courtesy of u/Deadkilldude4) Feign Ignorance: While unmasked, if caught in a secure area by a guard you will be escorted out instead of cuffed. This will not trigger a search.

This can only be used once per heist and will not work on the lead guard or if the search has already been triggered.

New Hacker: Cameras, Drones, & Guards

Hacker Basic: You can hack cameras to gain access to the area's CCTV system. This functions as though you had accessed the heist's security room. You gain one Runtime. 

Hacker Aced: You can overload a device that already has an active Runtime. This will cause an electrical explosion that will stun anyone within range and destroy the device. You gain one additional Runtime.

Secure Loop: You can use one Runtime to make the security camera you're controlling loop its footage. Cameras looping their footage cannot detect you or anything out of the ordinary. If the camera is destroyed, you regain your Runtime use. If you apply a new Runtime when you're at max Runtimes, your oldest active one is removed.

Appliance Breach: You can activate lures from a distance, as long as you have a clear line of sight. You also gain 1 more tool.

Routed Ping: You can spend a Runtime to make the hacked camera automatically mark any guards or law enforcement within its range. Targets stay marked for 5 seconds after leaving the camera's view and do not count towards your maximum number of marked targets. 

Signal Catch: You can answer radios remotely if you have a line of sight to the guard's body.

(Mastery Skill) Glitch Protocol: You can hack a guard’s radio to cause a disturbance, stopping and distracting them, pausing any action they are doing. You must have a line of sight to the guard to hack them. The guard is distracted for 5 seconds, after which they will go back to their previous action. If the guard was escorting a player, the guard will go back to patrolling. If the guard was about to detain a player, the guard will go into Search mode instead. Using this ability has a cooldown of 60 seconds.

New Tactician: Flashbangs & Smoke Grenades

Tactician Basic: Your flashbang and smoke grenade area of effect is increased by 20%.

(Taken Death Kneel From Assassin) Tactician Aced: Any enemy affected by your throwables becomes marked.

Coup de Grâce: You will deal 10% more damage to enemies that are stunned by your flashbags or in your smoke. 

Discombobulate: Enemies affected by your flashbangs suffer a 40% damage and accuracy debuff for the duration of the stun and for 5 seconds after it wears off. Enemies affected by your smoke grenade suffer a 40% damage and accuracy debuff while in the smoke, and it has a duration of 5 seconds after they have escaped the smoke. 

Expose: Shots fired at enemies affected by your flashbang or smoke will ignore armor for as long as they are stunned or in the smoke.

Scramble: Any stun effects you apply last 20% longer. 

(Mastery Skill) Smoke & Mirrors: While standing inside a smoke, you and your crew avoid 35% of all bullets. Any enemies that stand in the smoke will have their accuracy reduced by 20%.

New Strategist: Marking Targets

Strategist Basic: You can now mark up to 2 enemy target (which includes regular SWAT). Your marks last 20% longer.

Strategist Aced: You can mark 2 additional targets. Your marks last 30% longer. 

Combat Marking: Marked targets take an extra 10% damage from you and your crew. 

Threat Assessment: Marked targets deal 10% less damage to you and your crew.

Misdirect: Any marked Cloaker or Zapper that tries to disable you or your crew will instead suffer a heavy stagger. 

**(**Took Killer Kinesthetics from Assassin): Marked for Death: Whenever you kill a marked enemy, the nearest unmarked enemy within 10 meters of the target will become marked.

(Mastery Skill) In Your Sights: Aiming down sights will automatically mark any enemy in your line of fire. You also mark special enemies without shouting at them (this won’t affect the maximum number of marks you can have). Increase the duration of marked enemies by 75% and marked enemies' damage vulnerability by 15%.

New CQC Specialist: Human Shields

CQC Specialist Basic: You can now take SWAT as human shields as long as they have been inflicted with heavy stagger. 

CQC Specialist Aced: Shoving a human shield away will temporarily prevent SWAT from firing at you.

Soft Assets: If you shove away a SWAT you held as a human shield, you repair your current armor chunk if it's damaged. This ability only triggers once per enemy. You move 5% faster while holding a human shield.

Groundskeeper: You perform takedowns 60% faster. 

Pin Puller: If you shove a SWAT you held as a human shield, the SWAT’s smoke grenade is triggered when they land. Only one grenade per SWAT can be triggered. You move 5% faster while holding a human shield. 

Savage Takedown: Whenever you grab a human shield, any civilian within 5 meters will immediately become intimidated. Guards will also immediately surrender if they see you like this.

Special Shield: If you shove a Zapper or Nader you held as a human shield, their shock pack or gas grenade is triggered when they land. Only one grenade per special can be triggered. You move 5% faster while holding a human shield. 

(Mastery Skill) Playing Tough: You can now threaten a human shield with your pistol (which can be an option while holding them) which will cause SWAT to instantly back away. Can only work once per human shield.

New Transporter: Moving Bags & Bodies

(Move Bagger from Infiltrator here) Transporter Basic: You bag loot and pick up bodies 50% faster.

Transporter Aced: You throw bags 25% farther.

Beast Of Burden: The speed penalty for carrying bags is reduced and you can also sprint with them.

Brutal Carry: Any civilian or employee who sees you carrying a body will immediately become intimidated and will not call the police for the time they see you and 5 seconds after.

Deep Pockets: If you have a deployable bag in your loadout, you start the heist with one extra deployable of that type, but all your deployable bags have 2 charges less (minimum 1).

Stockpile: If you have a deployable bag in your loadout, it has 2 additional charges.

(Mastery Skill) Power Lifter: You can carry up to two bags. This incurs a movement penalty and police will prioritize fire on you if crew members are nearby.

New Technician (Renamed From Scrambler): Tools, Tools, Tools

Scrambler Basic: You can hack drones by spending one runtime. Stealth drones stop moving and are unable to detect you or your crewmates for 7 seconds, after which the stealth drone will continue working as normal and your runtime will be refunded to you. Combat drones will become indestructible for 6 seconds and fight on your side, after which they will self-destruct and your runtime will be refunded to you. You gain one runtime. 

Scrambler Aced: You gain 1 extra tool.

Speed Hack: As long as an ECM Jammer is active, your hacking attempts, phone searches, QR code interactions and the radios of guards you and your crew kill are answered instantly.

Kinetic Short-Circuit: As long as an ECM Jammer is active, Guards, First Responders and SWAT will become stunned for 5 seconds whenever you shoot them. Whenever you destroy a Zapper’s battery or takedown a guard, you replenish one ECM Jammer.

Cam Distortion: Cameras within 0.5 meters of ECM Jammers you own are disabled. This effect starts when the ECM Jammer is placed and lasts until the ECM Jammer is removed or used up. Disabled cameras can’t be hacked and all active runtimes on them are refunded.

Double The Trouble: When at least 2 ECMs are active, all cameras, pagers, and civilian phones are blocked until both ECMs are used up.

(Mastery Skill) Signal Scan: As long as your ECM Jammer is active, all cameras, all special enemies, and the FBI vehicle on the heist are marked for your crew and their respective abilities are disabled.

New Fortitude (Should be renamed to Daredevil): Adrenaline 

Daredevil Basic: Increase your base maximum health by 50. 

Daredevil Aced: The maximum number of 'downs' you can have is increased by 1, and your bleedout time is extended by 50%.

Health Siphon: When a crewmate heals using one of your Medic Bags, you heal for 40% of the amount they healed. Any amount of healing gained this way that exceeds your total health is gained as Adrenaline instead.

Suprahyscialogical: Whenever you have Adrenaline, you gain 10% additional Adrenaline for each "down" you currently have.

Walking Tall: Your Adrenaline degrades 25% slower for each "down" you currently have. If you have any amount of Adrenaline, you can use First Aid Kits to pause its degradation for 15 seconds.

Pain Asymbolia: You take 20% less damage to your Adrenaline.

(Mastery Skill) Unyielding: Your maximum health is increased by 25 for each "down" you currently have.

New Assassin: Suppressed Weapons & Throwing Knives

Assassin Basic: You are 30% less likely to be targeted by enemies when with your crew.

(Taken Retriever From Infiltrator) Assassin Aced: Your throwing knives won't break on impact with the environment.

Duck & Weave: You deal 25% more damage to enemies unaware of you. This bonus is reduced by 5% for each armor chunk you currently have beyond the first.

Assassin’s Mettle: Killing an enemy with a throwing knife will heal you for 10 health.

Blade Bouncer: Your throwing knives will ricochet off the environment up to two times. The throwing knife will do an extra 10% damage for each bounce.

(Mastery Skill) Multi-Reaping: Killing an enemy with a suppressed weapon and a throwing knife in quick succession will give you a 20% dodge chance. This cannot happen more than once every 3 seconds.

So, how did I do?

Let me know.