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Message: <blockquote data-quote="jgsugden" data-source="post: 8564851" data-attributes="member: 2629">I'm a firm believer that a player should play as their character, and not use their own intellect.  Here is how I go about it resolving this challenge in my games.Player better than PC: If the player is more intelligent, wise, or charismatic than their PC, and the player has their PC do something out of line with their attributes, I ask the player to roll an appropriate roll with a DC that I set. If they beat the DC, then we figure out how their PC came up and executed the approach. If, however, they fail, I ask the other players to make similar rolls for their PC and if any of them beat the DC, I say something like, "Now, Grog may not have been smart enough to come up with that solution, but Keyleth was."PC better than player: If the player is not on the same level as their PC, I'll ask the player to "Roll a d20 ability check". I won't tell them what ability they're using, or why we're rolling, but if the score high enough, I'll drop bread crumbs in their lap to guide them to the answer. Intelligence is not knowledge: The intelligence of a PC is a measure of their ability, not a measure of their memorization. It measures mental acuity, accuracy of recall and the ability to reason. Accuracy of recall or ability to recall is not knowledge. It is the ability to access the knowledge to which you've been exposed. I determine what a PC has been exposed to based upon their background, experiences in game, etc...  Then, when they make an intelligence based role, it is a role to determine whether they are able to recall that informtation to which they've been exposed.  The DC is set based upon how hard it would be to recall the information for that PC, which is going to be a factor of several things, including whether it is subject matter that they care about or whether it was a piece of trivia that would not really appeal to them.  This is a DM judgement call, but it tends to lean in favorof the PCs.The DC to remember anything significant that has taken place within the game is 10.  If they're not rushed, it is automatic unless the PC has an intelligence of 7 or lower (as when a PC is not rushed I allow passive intelligence checks to be a floor for the roll).  The DC to remember things that seems to be less significant when encountered rises up to 20 depending upon how trivial it would have beenat the time encountered.  In my setting, there is a book that is widely available and it covers lore on all the monsters in the Monster Manual, all the magic items in the DMG, and all the spells in the PHB. It is not an instruction book, but it is descriptive as to how these most well known magics and monsters work.  If a PC is a spellcaster or is trained in any intelligence based skill, I assume they have read it closely and thus the DCs related to it are pretty low because they have reason to learn about these things if they plan to adventure (or are adventuring).  Puzzles are in game: A lot of my puzzles are built into the game. What I mean by this is that you need in game knowledge or in game observations to solve them. This prevents a player from solving the puzzle that is laid out for the PCs by themselves. For example, if I give the PCs a riddle, I usually do not give the players a riddle.  Instead, I describe the riddle to the players and tell them that this is not something the players would be able to solve, but the characters could using their in game capabilities.  For example, "The Sphinx leans forward with a grin that shows both confidence, and curiosity.  You have a moment to cast a spell such as guidance or enhance ability.  Then is speaks the riddle.  It tells you a story of a young boy that fishes in the same spot every day for 40 years, and each day he catches the exact same number of fish, of the exact same size, and at the exact same time of day.  He describes the boy, the fishes, the beah upon which he fishes, and all of the tools the boy uses in very fine detail.  At the end, the Sphinx asks you, 'Now - what will the boy do with his life?'  You sense the answer is not a fisherman - that there is something about the story that has a hidden meaning for those with the right view.  Everyone roll a d20 ability check.  Sam and Liam, roll with advantage."  After determining that Sam has beat the DC for the riddle, I pass him a card that explains that the beach and repetition are references to the Hourglass of Cyndor, the Oeridian god of Time, and that the 40 years of repetion refer to the rites to become a priest of Cyndor.  Thus the boy must be studying to be a priest of Cyndor.  Then I let him answer the riddle in character.  If someone tolls particularly bad, I'll also have a card prepared with a wrong answer and tell them they feel confident in their answer to give them a chance to role play their perspective.  I can do similar things with physical puzzles.  The key is to keep some elements of the puzzle dependent upon 'in game' knowledge.  However, I will say that I sometimes toss in puzzles where the players, using their real world knowledg, can solve it.  These generally are not going to be a 'huge story element', and if a PC with a low ability score solves it, I use the technique listed above in the player better than PC area.</blockquote>

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