Something else I love about skill based games: You can gain skills based on use.
Now, Call of #Cthulhu does this explicitly, which I love about it. However in the #GURPS game I am in we'll often get five points, then have to spend at least three of them on social skills (when we've spent most of our time being diplomatic), outdoors skills (after a long trek through the wilderness), or even just a point in boating (River trip)
@Canageek You can still advance and change character descriptions in low-definition games. It just doesn't have to be micromanaged in a spreadsheet.
And I say this as a recovering Rolemaster player.
@Canageek Then your character is not just the description you wrote down at character creation, it is a representation of who they are and what they have done.