D&D 5E So 5 Intelligence Huh

[MechaPilot]

This also raises the question: which is the appropriate 'real' frame a reference for a D&D character?

Real people with low intelligence?

Or fictional main characters with low intelligence?

Unless you're playing "The Tomb of Special Needs", you probably want to base your character on stupid (usually comedic) protagonists from fiction, say like Inspector Clouseau from the Pink Panther movies or, even better yet, Jack Burton from Big Trouble in Little China.

That's certainly a valid question. It also hearkens back to the discussion in this thread about how there is no quantification for what a low int actually translates into IQ wise.

 

[MechaPilot]

You implied it heavily with your statements about what I said. Without said perfection, your argument falls flat and I am right with my statement. Go build your Argument from Fallacies on your own.

Max, don't quote me when you're just arguing with yourself. I don't need notices to show up every time you are disagreeing with one of the statements that we can all read that you made in this thread.

 

[Maxperson]

Max, don't quote me when you're just arguing with yourself. I don't need notices to show up every time you are disagreeing with one of the statements that we can all read that you made in this thread.

Let me know when you get what I said right. You might learn something.

 

[Yardiff]

I think I've noticed a trend to the way I see things.

I have no problem with people down playing an ability score but I have a big problem with people trying to play above an ability score.

At least the way I perceive things.

 

[Mallus]

How many of you have seen or heard of someone with a high mental ability score roleplay it as signifigently lower then it is.

One of the best PCs I've ever had the pleasure of running for during a long-running D&D 3e campaign was a glorious idiot of an alchemist named Burne (and his sarcastic artificial cat familiar, Abraxas). And he certainly wasn't the only PC played somewhat at odds with the mental stats. Anyone with a 7+ WIS should have given the group a wide berth.

You can read about them, if you're curious. There's an old Story Hour about the campaign here on ENWorld written by my friend who played Burne. Link's in my signature. Honestly, it's pretty amusing.

edit: just found the thread with Burne's stats: at 10th level, INT 21, WIS 10.

 

[iserith]

I think I've noticed a trend to the way I see things.

I have no problem with people down playing an ability score but I have a big problem with people trying to play above an ability score.

At least the way I perceive things.

It sounds like you attach some notion of fairness to this issue. If so, why do you think that is? If not, what do you think it could be?

 

[Mallus]

I think if you have a particular character concept in mind, you should opt for a point-buy or base array method so you can ensure you will get the ability scores that describe your character accurately.

While this is good advice, it's also a bit of question-begging. We're discussing what a low INT means in terms of how you play a character, not the best way to get an average or better INT score.

What if your concept is a particular kind of stupid PC? I probably should have led w/this... or not, because I'm going to tell you about my (old) character!

(no hard feelings if you're out)

My 4e PC was Sir Yatagan Fracas, Paladin of the Dragon Within, poet, playwright, writer of "highly erotic labor propaganda", and stone-cold moron. High CHA, above-average WIS, 8 INT. This was my design. Heart of gold, head of tin. Or maybe clay.

I like playing talk-y PCs, so I have Yatagan as impressive verbals skills as I could muster; by turns formal, florid, and fanciful. He sounded smart, until you listened carefully. Because I also gave him the reasoning power of a child. Or of an adult on a lot ketamine. His knowledge of history came from lurid historical romance paperbacks that survived the fall of the Dragonborn Empire. Everything he wrote sounded like pornography, because he didn't understand how mammalian reproduction worked (his people laid eggs). He was very impressionable, which led to him becoming a Communist (thanks to his red dwarf pal Lizzie).

He had no idea how anything worked, and no idea he had no idea. I would just open my mouth a let words come out, in hopes they made a cut-rate Jabberwocky-kind of sense. It was very liberating. I also hosted the game, so I could do this with the aid of bourbon.

Did I play an 8 INT accurately? I have no idea. Did I amuse the, ahem, poop out of myself & my friends? Absolutely.

(I think)

 

[TheCosmicKid]

My 4e PC was Sir Yatagan Fracas, Paladin of the Dragon Within, poet, playwright, writer of "highly erotic labor propaganda", and stone-cold moron. High CHA, above-average WIS, 8 INT. This was my design. Heart of gold, head of tin. Or maybe clay.

I like playing talk-y PCs, so I have Yatagan as impressive verbals skills as I could muster; by turns formal, florid, and fanciful. He sounded smart, until you listened carefully. Because I also gave him the reasoning power of a child. Or of an adult on a lot ketamine. His knowledge of history came from lurid historical romance paperbacks that survived the fall of the Dragonborn Empire. Everything he wrote sounded like pornography, because he didn't understand how mammalian reproduction worked (his people laid eggs). He was very impressionable, which led to him becoming a Communist (thanks to his red dwarf pal Lizzie).

He had no idea how anything worked, and no idea he had no idea. I would just open my mouth a let words come out, in hopes they made a cut-rate Jabberwocky-kind of sense. It was very liberating. I also hosted the game, so I could do this with the aid of bourbon.

Did I play an 8 INT accurately? I have no idea. Did I amuse the, ahem, poop out of myself & my friends? Absolutely.

(I think)

It almost sounds like you're describing Williams syndrome.

 

[Yardiff]

It sounds like you attach some notion of fairness to this issue. If so, why do you think that is? If not, what do you think it could be?

So why do you feel there isn't fairness to this issue?

 

[Connorsrpg]

We have always used 4d6 but you can only make 1 swap - no putting all scores where you want to, so on the odd occasion you get a low score in an unusual spot. Our group usually embraces this. Low stats as well as high stats can really add to the RP side of things.

My long time cleric of Pholtus had a DEX of 4 or 5 and it was fun to play up on. His CHA was not that high either - hence he flunked 'Paladin School' and that framed a lot of his background.

Embrace the low scores