Shamanic Magic: Animal Handling (Spirits)?

[Prince Charon]

Basically, applying the Animal Handling skill to spirits that have low IQ, and bestial behavior. Depending on the setting, this might be a range of specializations (Animal Handling (Cat spirits), AH (Sea spirits), AH (Lesser Fire Elementals), et cetra), or it might be one or two skills. Likewise, you might need an advantage or two to get any use out of it (any of Spirit Empathy, Medium, Magery, and so on), but there are settings in which spirits commonly manifest to ordinary mortals.

This could be thought of as a very simplifies magic system, depending on how you look at it, or as an aspect of a wider system (perhaps applying social skills to more intelligent spirits, for example).

Thoughts?

[AlexanderHowl]

Animal Handing specifically assumes animals, which the majority of spirits do not qualify as (though animal spirits may qualify). Now, you could come up with a skill of Spirit Handling, which could be functionally equivalent for non-sapient spirits. In the case of Spirit Handling, it may be a necessary and important skill in some settings with very active spirits, and it would absolutely require Spirit Empathy as a prerequisite.

[Refplace]

Also Religious Ritual (Shamanic) can apply as a means of interaction.

[Anders]

I think Ritual Magic is the skill for dealing with spirits. But if you want to make an Average skill that doesn't deal with manipulating them to work magic, that would work fine. I wouldn't use Animal Handling, because then you'd get a bonus for Animal Friend, which seems... off (unless they are the spirits of animals). I would call it Spirit Handling or maybe something less silly.