TheSagaContinues

If UtF vs. Defense skills is NOT a problem at your table then there is no reason to use SAM.  What constitutes a problem is up the GM, and to an extent the Players although they are often the one abusing it, and how well (s)he can deal with it when following the RAW.  Using the SAM is just one possible solution if the GM finds things getting out of control.  This covers points 1 and 3 from Jedi Ronin's post.

I could say that changing when Skill Focus can be taken has NOTHING to do with SAM.  It definitely has a major effect on a lot of other areas far beyond the "skill vs. defense" issue as it alters how skills work across the entire game.  Ok, maybe not the "entire" game but certainly when the game makes the most sense which is to say at those low to mid levels.  Forbidding Skill Focus until 12th or 13th level is restricting it to the "gods" of the Star Wars Universe who really don't need it to dominate lesser beings.  Even restricting it until 8th-level makes it one massive power jump AND allowing it at that level really does nothing to solve the "skill vs. defense" problem; at low levels even just getting the +5 "attack" from skill training makes Defense scores far less useful although a bit more so than when Skill Focus enters the equation.  Delaying Skill Focus just pushes back the skill vs. defense power a bit but really does little to control it.

All of that also ignores how Skill Focus works with other skills that never even bother looking at defense scores but rather look at either fixed DCs or other skill checks.  Those are the cases where Skill Focus is an essential piece early in a character's career and delaying that hurts not only the character but the concept as well.

I'd agree that my proposed method does throw off some of the DC steps for certain skills so just restrict Skill Focus: Use the Force to later levels if you want low level super-experts geared for hitting the tougher DCs of some skill uses.  Persuasion - like Use the Force - still targets Will Defense but at least has a built in moderating factor (the disposition modifier).

But I disagree that this doesn't address the issue of "skill v.s. defense".  Defenses increase at a greater rate than skills after Skill Training and Skill Focus so at a certain point the +5 from Skill Focus won't give the force user an outsized advantage hitting Defenses (or matching attack rolls for Block/Deflect, etc).