I understand where you're coming from, and alot of what's been done makes it hard enough to get by as it is, what with wood being a bitch to come by and crops taking longer to grow. I honestly have little need to grow waxroot cause, you know, the hivers can't eat it raw and cooking it renders it useless except to make the hivers shut up anyway. And in regards to that, rock stuff is still viable, but you gotta be extremly careful about it, starting with the heaviest crap if possible before buying food and such. All in all, with just the industry and farming overhauls an average DF player will have a nightmare of things, so making things a tough slog from the outset was done very well and I commend you.
Still, on the learning rates, damn near everything that doesn't run on plasma/ isn't the size of a small house is desgined to be so simple only someone with an Ogryn's intellect wouldn't be able to use it. I know from Corrosion you can inhibit learning rates in some skills while leaving others alone, or increasing others. such as:
Mechanics: they aren't techpriests, and how any of them have any mechanical knowlege above firearm operations would amaze me outside tech or brat gangs. 55. much slower learning rate that is perfectly reasonable.
Medical skills: I don't really think that they have medschools in the underhive. 55. again, much slower learning rate. Given what I'v'e read, it's miracle anyone surives injuries inflicted in the gang skirmishes at all.
Mining: It's a stupid drill. it'd be impossible to not become skilled with it no matter what you do. Especially since the rockdrill is designed for a semi-destructive task, no skill is needed except for the gamplay reason of actually, you know, having some stone left to work with, since half of what's there evaporates, is undiggable, or is otherwise useless and unskilled miners digging into rockcrete/iron slag/plascrete is a waste. I think a normal learn rate is excusable for gameplay reasons. Personally, I only use miners if I have no other viable options and they're the only ones close enough to respond to a threat, as they're more valuable to a fort digging out living and storage space than getting shreded by only god knows what. And for the record, even at proficient and no other fighting skills it's really the drills that are dangerous (older version, got jumped by a wolf spider, miner tore it to shreds; she'd only dug a little ways into the hill and the hunter was busy killing a different spider)
Rifleman/crossbow: If a stupid runt from say, a fuedal world who only knows enough numbers to count how many shots a lasgun pack or autogun mag holds can learn how to use the weapons quickly, why can't hivers? the damn things seem to be everywhere, based on both fan and official descriptions. a slight boost to ranged weapons (and as a balance, melee weapon usage deficit) learning rate. Lets face it, ranged combat will be the way to go in this, espesially against wildlife and with simple weapons like stubbers and autos, a learning deficit doesn't seem to fit.
The other skills I guess is understandable, since those are things you'd really need to have a knack for to be good at it, save for weaving (if kids in the 1800s could be good loom workers, an adult hiver shouldn't have an issue with that.) Sorry if I seem demanding or anything, as that's not my intention. I'm just vomiting up my grievances since with the industry overhauls and damn near every peice of wildlife indirectly/activly wanting to make you dead, it's hard enough to survive without 2+deaths due to labor induced stupidity in year one if you leave certain labors on. (I'm looking at you, Hiver Mcdumbassfisherman and Hiver McHunterwithdeathwish)
Again, I apologize in advance or your response, just a total skill rate handicap didn't seem to fit with the basic imperial tech hivers have access to.
And now for a joke, followed by a question: If they have this much of a learning issue, a whole lot of people have been fucking thier cousins in this mod. And what the heck is Carbide? is it like, solid carbon fiber or something? That's been bugging the crap out of me not knowing what it is.