It is a common piece of advice that classes should not be able to skip gameplay, or otherwise reduce the time players spend interacting with parts of the world that the class is connected to. For example, a ranger should not have the ability to fast forward through overland travel, since presumably players choose to play rangers because overland travel is a core part of their ideal gameplay or narrative experience.
The natural answer to this is that classes should give their players more options to interact with the world, not less. In particular, we should give players options that are hard to come up with simply with ad-hoc creative thinking, or otherwise quick improvisation at the table. Not only are simple and predictable class abilities boring, they also lead to questions like "if the rogue can roll to sneak, does that mean nobody else can"?
Here are some ideas for rich and option-expanding class abilities. Names in italic are references. I leave out the magical classes because of all the classes they are the most well-equipped with options already.
Meta note: I use dice-based checks to gate uses of abilities because they are a common gameplay "button" and offer a good dose of uncertainty (especially for the failure-gated abilities). Depending on the preferences your table you may want to skip the checks.
Martial Classes
Battle-cunning: When you succeed on a to-hit roll, you can always specify a body part to target. You can also target accessories or pieces of equipment like rings, sword hilts, or bowstrings for disarming or other manoeuvres. You can also choose to simply roll damage as usual, or forego damage to perform a specific trick or manoeuvre taught to you by a master.
Lightning Reflexes: When you roll to dodge or evade an attack or trap, you can specify what side of the attacker you end up on, or what part of the room you dodge to. If you are holding a weapon or a large item, you can always drop what you are holding to automatically succeed at an evasion roll.
Recoltes et semailes: When you fail on a to-hit roll, you can choose from the following options: If you push, you can still hit and deal the minimum damage for your weapon or attack, but the next attack against you by any opponent gains advantage. If you withdraw, you fall back out of range of the enemy's melee attacks (they will need to move to get to you), but are now prone (you'll need to use your movement to get up).
The Body Speaks: When you fail on a to-hit roll, you can use the chance to observe a weakness, current ailment, old wound, or past scar on an enemy as they strain to block or deflect your attack. If they are a notable foe, the GM will tell you what you see and a snippet of their history or lore. As an alternative, you can make a perception check. On a success, you can predict what they will do next turn in broad strokes (attack, flee, go for an item, shout a command).
Specialist Classes
Perspicacious Loris: When you succeed at a perception check in any inhabited area, you can see, as if it were playing out before your eyes, 1d4 ways in which the space could be used. One of them is accurate to the way it is currently used, if it is used at all. This can reveal traps if the traps require regular maintenance. The vision takes place over the course of a second and is reflexive. (Credit to @choiroffire and this post)
A Quiet Fellow: When you succeed at any check related to hiding, deception, or passing undetected, you will be informed of the explicit requirements for someone to discover your presence or uncover your deception by the GM. If you or anyone else does not break those requirements, you are considered undetected by default. If the situation changes significantly, the GM may alter the deal.
Liar's Friend: When you succeed at a check related to detecting magical or mundane deception, disguise, illusion, or charm, you can work backwards and discover what the deceiver or liar was trying cover up, or at least have a very good hunch.
Improvise! : When you are discovered in a deception or uncovered from hiding (or simply fail a check related to these activities), you can immediately improvise and describe how you use a learned ruse, trick, part of the environment, or piece of training to escape from the situation. Roll another check for persuasion, deception, stealth etc.: If you succeed you can extract yourself from the scene unscathed. However, if you fail this new check the consequences will be much worse (suspicious guards become hostile, angry customers become violent).
I met a traveller: You can determine upon hearing a rumour or a tall tale the sort of person who would spread it, its approximate provenance, and how likely it is to be embellished (but not how likely it is to be true).
Overland Classes
The Folkways: If you succeed at a check related to tracking or navigation in an outdoors or wilderness area, you can name something you want (a shortcut, food, water, shelter). The GM will offer you a deal for it: a shortcut can be dangerous, food can be off the beaten track, shelter can require 1d4+2 hours of work to set up. You can choose to take the deal or not.
Hwaer cwom symbla gesetu: When you encounter ruins, habitations, or other buildings in the wild, you can immediately tell how old they are, their approximate purpose, and how much force it would take to tear them down.
Reading the Leaves: When you come across a patch of disturbed wilderness and succeed at a perception check, you can sense what happened here in the last while (it can be the last few hours or the last few days depending on the weather). You can then ask questions of the GM: Did someone or some animal pass through? What kind? Was there a struggle? Were they wounded? Was magic involved?
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