I happen to like both of these ideas, but see them in very different lights. To be succinct, I believe Azarepth's idea would be better off as a power yielded to recepients of high * levels of the ghouling spell, or as another race or guild entirely.
The polymath is a beautiful idea (it's basically the newbie guild revisited) but one that I think could be expanded upon. Perhaps by allowing a Polymath to level in the Polymath only to a certain point, and then join the guild to which their skills/spells most fit, losing the vast majority of skills/spells that don't fit that guild. This would stop people from having to remake characters after they've decided what they like, and may guide them toward a class they wouldn't have otherwise considered.
Or maybe that idea isn't well thought out. I'm totally enamored with the idea of a race/guild/item ability that allows you to consume foe's powers (anyone seen Heroes recently? heh) right now.
