Balancing Resist v. Wrestling, my opinion is based on utility: the character will get more mileage out of Resist, than Wrestling: bear in mind that we have not been discussing the traditional Bard "hotroom" template, but a template more-focused to MiBs and Treasure Maps. Digging up a chest, one wants to crack it open, loot it quickly, and scram: Resist is more useful than Wrestling in this regard. Mind you, the template I've suggested boasts a paltry 60 Resist: maybe GM Magery + 50 Wrestling is indeed better.
I will also concede that my pro-Resist argument is "more true back then on OSI" than here & now at UOSA: spell-casting chest Guardians don't instacast here, as they did on OSI, which makes rather a big difference; Wrestling would also help one avoid getting bottled-up by nuisance spawns (rats and slimes constantly interrupting attempts to Recall away from PKers ...); but considering we're after a Fisher-MiB-Treasure Hunter, mostly out on the open seas and only sometimes coming ashore for treasure chests, I still think Resist will be more useful. It's a toss-up, though.
This direction of discussion does, certainly, reinforce the "too many hats" argument.
SS
EDIT: for Sadistica's most-recent questions:
1. Yes, but no Resist is simply going to be a nuisance both in the dungeon, as well as on the water; you also have a Lockpicker that can not do Treasure Maps (so, if you do want to Treasure Hunt, you'd have to make a whole new character anyway, and either GM LP all over again, or find a way to bring your Fisher-LPer along overland: it would be much easier to have Fisher-without-LP bring along a "proper" Treasure Hunter hidden on the boat.)
2. You can make good money doing this; it will be entirely up to you whether or not you will be happy.
3. I answered this above. It's not a complete waste.
4. It is exactly as I explained it. It seems you did not apprehend the point: if you aren't using directed damage spells, GM Magery is a waste of skill points, time, and hella money to buy the reagents; 90 Magery will "guarantee" 8th Circle; 75Magery is enough if Magery is only used for utility. In a similar context, a Bard who only uses Magery to drop EVs to kill off the provoked spawn has no need either for GM Meditation: 50-75 is way more than ample (at 75ish Med, you will be regenerating around 1pt/second passively, and almost 2 pts/second actively, and you'll still succeed to actively Meditate almost all of the time, even when your mana is down below 15-20). Wrestling is similar: you are considering GMing a skill which will *maybe* save you no more than 50% of the time, once per month (at most) ...
I am trying to be helpful, and I certainly do not mean to be rude, but I feel compelled to point out that you seem to be struggling with 2 obstacles:
- An insistence in cramming too much expectation into a single template (you can make 15 characters here), and
- GM-or-bust tunnel-visionitis.
Anyway, lots of people have given good advice here.
SS
