We’ve tried several mechanisms to work around this issue – mass Aid Another works, but it feels cheesy – six people are crowded around one guy, helping him be quiet?  It feels wrong even if it’s legal.  Having only one character Aid Another feels more reasonable, but it’s also kind of weak sauce at high levels … oh, boy, a +2.  The guy listening for us has a +18 Perception …

After some discussion, we came up with a possible House Rule – Aid Another on Skill Checks might confer a scaled bonus based on the margin of success.  For example, a Rogue Aids the Cleric on his Stealth check.  Normally this would be a DC 10 for a +2.  Perhaps for every 5 ranks of success, we get another +1?  So the low-level Rogue rolls a 21, and grants a +4 Stealth.  If the same Cleric was being aided by a 19th level Ranger with some Skill Focus, he could reasonably roll say a 38, which would confer a +7 … after all, he knows a lot more about sneaking than the low level Rogue.

It’s a thought at least, and something that might make Aid Another seem like a good investment of an action even at high levels.