What is the value of skill stat requirements?

I couldn't find an existing post about this so...

The skill gems typically have stat requirements for strength, intelligence or dexterity. I believe this is unnecessary and prevents the game from being what you intended it to be; a game offering at least a modicum of freedom regarding your character's abilities.

There's a lot of talk about the ability to get your skills from items and how many options that gives you. Unfortunately, putting stat requirements on the gems negates that freedom completely. With this simple fix you allow people to have actual control over their character as opposed to the illusion of control.

Example of why stat Reqs on skills are unneeded:

Strength is the primary requirement for the Leap Slam skill. The benefit of the skill, besides the leaping, is a percentage increase to melee damage with the main-hand weapon. Adding a strength requirement is redundant because the effectiveness of the skill is already being limited by the player's stats.

In other words, a witch will not gain as much benefit from using the skill as a marauder will simply because the marauder has greater strength and, usually, better weapons. Why prevent a witch from leveling up the gem? If a wizard wants to use Leap Slam then they should be allowed to without restriction. It does not create imbalance because, like I said, the witch will be less effective, not to mention using up a gem slot that could be used for something more suited to them.

To put it simply, the stat requirements are not needed because stats inherently effect the skills. If someone wants to use a skill that's less effective for their class than it is for other classes, they should be allowed to.

Another example:

A marauder should not be prevented from leveling a Raise Zombie gem because they don't have enough intelligence. The fact that they have less intelligence automatically makes the gem less useful because they have less mana and the mana cost is relatively high.

You can keep the stat numbers on the gems as recommendations but they should not prevent the player from leveling the gem. The level requirement is enough of a restriction.

I haven't evaluated every single gem but all of the skills I can think of don't need the restrictions.

Hey, I like the game and have convinced a couple of other people to try it. So please don't think I'm bashing it or something.

I think you did a pretty good job of proving why your suggestion is flawed in your own analysis of it, so I won't add further to it.

However, had you asked why is there a LEVEL requirement in addition to the attribute requirement on skill gems, I think I you might have found support for that question. If a gem requires 150 Intelligence, how are you going to use it at level 10 anyway? What does the level requirement add that's not already part of the attribute requirement?

Everyone has access to stat gain passives and +stats from gear.

To call this "freedom negated completely" is laughably exaggerated.

If everyone can use every skill without any restriction, you're REDUCING the variety of the game, because you're lessening the difference between starting stats and the 6 character positions.

Each class has a tendency to certain flavors. That's part of their distinctiveness. They all have the opportunity to use all the gems: You just won't be able to max out your non-easily acquired stats. I'm a witch and I use a level 8 item quantity gem (it's at 70 str req), for example, and I might be able to bring it up more if I grab some more of the 10%life 20str nodes. People who focus on hybrid stats (crossing int/str/dex pick two) have the freedom to cross gem types even more.

It's good as it is. I don't know what the level 20 max possible requirement is for each stat, but if anything, it's too easy to even max out some of them. My Arc is at level 15 with 130 int required, for example, and I'm at 365. That's where the level requirements come in - I had to hit 59 to bring it up to that, iirc.