Roleplaying your dump-stat

[Halivar]

I'm starting in a new campaign, playing a gestalt fighter-wizard with a high-stat of 16, and a low-stat of 7. I decided to put the 7 in charisma (duh), but now I face a quandary. Although I know it's the cliche to put charisma as the dump-stat, I've never actually done that before. Normally I put the dump-stat as either Wis for fighters, or one of the "physical" stats for straight mages.

How do you make an interesting character with a low charisma? Are your characters just ugly, or do they have a serious social problem? Did I pick the wrong stat? What's your typical dump-stat, and how do you roleplay it?

 

[Jin_Kataki]

I would give him an annoying way of speaking or maybe play him as some what of a drunk who speaks his mind regardless of who he may offend. I don't really buy into the Charisma as looks belief. I believe Charisma to be more of a social graces type thing.

 

[TwinBahamut]

I'm starting in a new campaign, playing a gestalt fighter-wizard with a high-stat of 16, and a low-stat of 7. I decided to put the 7 in charisma (duh), but now I face a quandary. Although I know it's the cliche to put charisma as the dump-stat, I've never actually done that before. Normally I put the dump-stat as either Wis for fighters, or one of the "physical" stats for straight mages.

How do you make an interesting character with a low charisma? Are your characters just ugly, or do they have a serious social problem? Did I pick the wrong stat? What's your typical dump-stat, and how do you roleplay it?

I can't say how to roleplay a dump in Charisma (I never do so), but for my latest character I dumped Wisdom. This translates into recklessness, stubborness (it takes him a while to realize that his great battle plan isn't working anymore), drunkeness, and a bad habit of singing Brellish war anthems in a Karrnathi tavern (playing in Eberron).

For low charisma, I suggest that you play the character as shy, nervous, or just socially awkward. Low charisma characters would have few friends (possibly preferring it that way), would be less likely to voice their opinions, might hesitate before acting, and are more likely to ask the opinions of others. At extremes, they might act more like a side-kick than a central character. I don't think Charisma reflects either good looks or "social graces", but rather raw force of personality, confidence, and possibly (and I'm quoting a WotC boards post here), Nietzsche's "Will to Power".

 

[William drake]

I'm starting in a new campaign, playing a gestalt fighter-wizard with a high-stat of 16, and a low-stat of 7. I decided to put the 7 in charisma (duh), but now I face a quandary. Although I know it's the cliche to put charisma as the dump-stat, I've never actually done that before. Normally I put the dump-stat as either Wis for fighters, or one of the "physical" stats for straight mages.

How do you make an interesting character with a low charisma? Are your characters just ugly, or do they have a serious social problem? Did I pick the wrong stat? What's your typical dump-stat, and how do you roleplay it?

Its not simply your physcial looks; its how people view you, how easily they may except you. Ugly people can be charismatic just as pretty people can be soical retards. Perhaps he's just with drawn, quiet...an introvert for w/e reason. Just think about it, and you'll come up with something.

Game ON

 

[Olaf the Stout]

There are a couple of ways that you can go with low Charisma. You may simply be unattractive. That is a bit of an easy out if you don't want to roleplay it too much. Another option is that it is the way you come across to others. You may be shy and introverted.

On the other hand you could be boorish, a know-it-all, racist, talk down to others, etc., There are quite a number of traits that many people find uncharismatic. Think of one or two of them and really play them up. Your character might have a religious zeal that offends other people. He might not have a sense of humor or he might have a temper that goes of at the slightest thing.

Olaf the Stout

 

[Brother MacLaren]

A 7 Charisma really isn't terribly low. Just someone rather nondescript, a little bit coarse, slightly awkward, and so on. Possibly not even low enough to be memorable as "That really quiet/creepy/annoying/boring guy."

Rolled on 3d6, 16.2% of human NPCs will have a Charisma of 7 or lower (and 37.5% of dwarves).

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

The PC may have a physical or personality characteristic that is socially unacceptable to many people- he may have stronger B.O./Halitosis than normal, speak loudly, interrupt others often.

Be a smug know it all who doesn't know when to shut up. It may be that the person is a bit brusque, or amazingly stoic.

Strong & silent can be just as off-putting as a Chatty Kathy.

But, as has been pointed out, Cha 7 isn't THAT low...don't overdo it.

 

[castro3nw]

I've been playing with cha-8 for a little while in an eberron campaign. Basically, I'm going with being socially awkward... Telling people exactly what he thinks of things/telling the same stories over and over/excited over things no one else really cares about...

I have the whole party involved really. Pretty much anytime I start on any of his "Back in the Reaches..." stories, they all completely ignore everything that comes after. Whether it's useful or not.

Just make a game of it.

 

[irdeggman]

In d20 Modern we have a gamer who is running a PC with a low Cha.

His PC's name is "Dick" and I think you can see how he is playing it

I ran a Klatoonian in a Star Wars game - low Cha, low Int.

He "thought" he was the handsomest male on the planet and that all of the females wept when he left. He also thought he was a good actor too.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

Cha can work.

He (I'll just assume it's a he, much of it works for she, too) dresses for functionality. Since he's a fighter and a mage, there isn't much room left for style. He looks like someone dressed by a blind man in a hurricane.

His hair is probably close-cropped (because long hair is bad under a helmet, and if you don't wear one, you just gave the enemy something he can pull you with), something he does himself - not very expertly.

Much of his spare time is spent alternating between sparring with dummies or reading ancient tomes. Not much real people contact. His voice sounds like he's reading something boring, a rambling monotone that would make the director of an early science fiction b-movie hire him to do the computer voices at once. He doesn't stutter (that's deadly for a wizard), but he's used to convince (wizardly) magic, not people. Magic is usually convinced by careful pronounciation and timing, not so much whether you sound interesting. It might sound alright if you recite ancient rhymes, but introducing yourself, not so.

Part of it also stems from the fact that he can't really get excited at many things that aren't about sword or sorcery. When you tell someone the horrible time you had when those bandits hunted you and cut down 10 people while you watched, you don't want the guy asking what kind of swords they had or whether they used slashes or stabs.