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<blockquote data-quote="Reynard" data-source="post: 8188851" data-attributes="member: 467">On the subject of ability scores: the things they measure in the game are very specific and I don't think they are particularly good role-playing tools. First of all, on the subject of intelligence: we, here in the modern era, can't even define what it IS, let alone whether there is such a thing as unilaterally &quot;smart&quot; or &quot;stupid.&quot; What we call intelligence covers such a broad range of aptitudes it would be impossible, and pointless, to try and make it work in D&amp;D (but various editions sure have tried; looking at you, AD&amp;D 2.5). So, instead, in 5E the Intelligence score of a character affects a very short list of very specific things and THAT IS ALL.As to the example upthread of the 6 Int barbarian who was raised in a demon hunting culture: it makes far more sense to use the result of that Int check to inform us about the barbarian. If the roll succeeds, that means the barbarian knows the important things, which implies a bunch of potential things about that barbarian's upbringing and personality. Other things are implied by a failure. Use that information to enrich the game, rather than hamstring the player.Personally, at this point I think D&amp;D could eliminate ability scores as descriptors entirely and instead just refer to them as aptitudes. Strength becomes Athleticism, Intelligence becomes Education and Charisma -- well, you just toss that one because it is a mess anyway (guile? charm? strength of will? magical magicness? who knows!). Players should engage the game however they want, whether pretending to be an elf or operating as an RTS commander. The numbers on the sheet are just part of the decision making process.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Reynard, post: 8188851, member: 467"] On the subject of ability scores: the things they measure in the game are very specific and I don't think they are particularly good role-playing tools. First of all, on the subject of intelligence: we, here in the modern era, can't even define what it IS, let alone whether there is such a thing as unilaterally "smart" or "stupid." What we call intelligence covers such a broad range of aptitudes it would be impossible, and pointless, to try and make it work in D&D (but various editions sure have tried; looking at you, AD&D 2.5). So, instead, in 5E the Intelligence score of a character affects a very short list of very specific things and THAT IS ALL. As to the example upthread of the 6 Int barbarian who was raised in a demon hunting culture: it makes far more sense to use the result of that Int check to inform us about the barbarian. If the roll succeeds, that means the barbarian knows the important things, which implies a bunch of potential things about that barbarian's upbringing and personality. Other things are implied by a failure. Use that information to enrich the game, rather than hamstring the player. Personally, at this point I think D&D could eliminate ability scores as descriptors entirely and instead just refer to them as aptitudes. Strength becomes Athleticism, Intelligence becomes Education and Charisma -- well, you just toss that one because it is a mess anyway (guile? charm? strength of will? magical magicness? who knows!). Players should engage the game however they want, whether pretending to be an elf or operating as an RTS commander. The numbers on the sheet are just part of the decision making process. [/QUOTE]

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