I can see a dark-knight using sneak. Also, a charmie would negate it at higher levels, making them choose.
Thoughts?
Sneak for dark-knights
Play a Drow DK. The 500 xp penalty is there for something.
Is there any reason for it, balance wise? Sneak is all but useless for DKs because of charmies, mounts, movement drain, no AUTOsneak, and lack of hide (similar to monks...).
If you are judging from RP, then a lot of classes should have a lot of skills I think...
It would be useful up until a charmy, for getting the drop on people. And as many know, Dark-knights are all about lots of pain, fast. This would help them have a slight edge.
It's just sort of an underhanded tactic a dark-knight would use on an enemy.
At least you have the ability to charm a sneaking charmie, elven paladins dont have sneaking beasts.
Autosneak without hide is useful. Sneak without hide is a waste of moves.
Monks get sneak without hide. And it is useful.
It is useful in very specific situations. I don't really see a point to it overall.
Dark knights don't need an edge at any point. They are completely fine. Just because many people can't get used to playing them doesn't mean they need anything.
Play a Drow DK. The 500 xp penalty is there for something.
Bingo!
sneak is incredibly useful, because you shouldnt only consider a situation that's optimal circumstances for the class. i.e., when you're getting your booty kicked. i've escaped a few pk's against people who were just as slow at chasing as i am. quite a few actually. it has RP purposes too. it's a serious skill charmie or not, but never add the skill, b/c like someone pointed out...
that's why play you a drow dk and pay a pretty large ranking cost.
But why take 500 xp penalty along with lowered str and con? I just think that it fits DKs, they are opportunistic, why not sneak up on someone then hit them with a polearm and knock 'em out?
Sneaking while running is idiotic. It destroys your moves.
EDIT: And am I the only one who feels that dark knights, with skills like extort, are not the type to sneak up behind someone like a thief?
Well, you could have the extortionist that comes in, with a sword or whatever, puts it to their neck and says, I'm taking this duck.
Then, another type that walks in, no weapons and says quietly to the shopkeeper, It is in your best interest, to let me have this duck, understand?
Yeah... always saw DKs as the former.
I'm fine with giving them sneak as a class skill if you take away bash and fireball.
Hell, give them sneak. I don't see how that'll help at all, or much, really. It'd really just nullify the effect of using drow dark knights, (aside from the auto-sneak/dex).
It won't overpower them, it'll just give them a useless skill they probably won't ever use anyway. 
It won't overpower them' date=' it'll just give them a useless skill they probably won't ever use anyway.
So why give it to them in the first place? Your average schoolyard bully won't put it to use, but some Evil Overlord sure as hell will find a way to grow even more powerful.
So why give it to them in the first place? Your average schoolyard bully won't put it to use' date=' but some Evil Overlord sure as hell [i']will find a way to grow even more powerful.
Bingo #2 for the night! We're on a roll!
It would be useful up until a charmy, for getting the drop on people. And as many know, Dark-knights are all about lots of pain, fast. This would help them have a slight edge.
It's just sort of an underhanded tactic a dark-knight would use on an enemy.
Dark-knights get charmies at level 37, I do believe.
You can ask any experienced player - that's about the level when DKs leave their highest power peak. A DK hits their niche at level 29, and doesn't leave it til the mid-thirties. They then briefly enter it again at 37. So yes, let's further improve things for the people trying to get qraces/qclasses, causing the other people in the high-twenties to low-thirties range to stand even LESS of a chance against dark-knights trying to get the jump on them.
I see no reason to implement this change, and a whole lot of reasons not to. It's been said - if you want sneak as a DK, play a drow.