How do you play a character who is much smarter than you are?

[MechaTarrasque]

For high wisdom, you can never go wrong with fortune cookies. If you could explain what they meant, you would have high int instead of high wisdom.

 

[Laurefindel]

Players who choose characters with extremely high intelligence, IME, tend to be highly intelligent themselves so are able to play the part well. The same question could be asked, and even with more of a potential conundrum, around playing a character with a much higher level of wisdom.

At a point, I accepted that D&D Wisdom =/= our modern conception of wisdom (as in common sense or good judgement), or even a more antiquated definition (as in knowledge or experience), similarly to how Charisma =/= beauty or friendliness. From there, it's not a long stretch to consider that D&D Intelligence =/= ability to make quick and accurate deductions and assertions.

because yeah, your typical D&D player is anything but wise.

 

[NakedFury]

Well if he wants he could try the Sherlock Holmes approach.

Just keep asking for more details to make it seem like your character always pays more attention and remembers more than anyone else.

Oh and write in a notebook things about the game so you can keep the super smart theme when players forget things.

 

[jgsugden]

With assistance from the DM.

Intelligence differences: Explain what the PC realizes. Explain what the PC figures out. Tell them the facts they are not seeing.

Wisdom differences: Explain the solution to the problem. Explain the meaning of the facts. Advise the player as to which choices have better ramifications.

It is really not as hard as people make it out to be.

The flip is also the way to go for players with more knowledge or wisdom than their PC - tell them to make a roll when they try to use capabilities their PC probably should not have... and then tell them no if the roll fails.

 

[iserith]

Same as anything else, just state an approach to a goal that is reasonably appropriate for the fictional situation. "As a humble sage who is smarter than most, I try to recall useful lore about this monster's weaknesses. Surely I learned something while studying at the world's greatest libraries." Or perhaps "A lover of art with an eye for detail, Lucida Blackletter studies the subtleties in the painting more closely, trying to deduce what useful clues may be hidden in the image."

The DM can then adjudicate the action into success, failure, or ask for a roll. If it is an Intelligence check, the character will likely have a better chance than most to succeed.

 

[77IM]

Metagame.

 

[GMMichael]

How to play a smarter character? Abstraction. And visit the OGRE to generate some smart-sounding lines to deliver.

The flip is also the way to go for players with more knowledge or wisdom than their PC - tell them to make a roll when they try to use capabilities their PC probably should not have... and then tell them no if the roll fails.

Tell a player "no?" Tell a player who thinks he's smart "no?" Playing with fire, here. I hope it works out for ya.

 

[Hriston]

The same way Peter Capaldi plays the Doctor. Just act like you understand everything.

 

[jgsugden]

...Tell a player "no?" Tell a player who thinks he's smart "no?" Playing with fire, here. I hope it works out for ya.

Well I've only been playtesting the approach for 30 to 40 years, but I have to say the results look promising.

If Gretta is playing Bob the 8 Intelligence Barbarian when the party encounters a logic puzzle, I expect her to offer some fun for the encounter, but not contribute to the solution because her CHARACTER is not smart enough to do so. If she sees the solution herself, she is expected not to share it. If she does, we reduce the encounter to a dice roll to see if the PCs (as opposed to the players) solve it.

On the flip side, if my friend's younger kid has joined us for a game and is playing an 18 Intelligence PC when the challenge is encountered, I will ask him to make a roll to see if he can figure out the puzzle. With the right roll, I explain it to him quietly and let him share the solution with the group.

This works when people remember they're playing characters in a game rather than themselves. In the few instances - and I mean very few over 40 years of gaming - where it didn't, it was taken as a good hint that the player in question wasn't a good fit for the group.

 

[Li Shenron]

How do you play a character who is much stronger than you are?
How do you play a character who is much more agile than you are?
How do you play a character who is much tougher than you are?
How do you play a character who is much more alert than you are?
How do you play a character who is much more charismatic than you are?

By trying to use your key ability's checks as often and possible, and succeding often on average.

How do you play a character who is much smarter than you are?

See above