Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Gargs454 03-31-04, 12:13 PM	Hey all, I'm getting ready to start playing in a new campaign and was hoping you could give me some roleplaying ideas for my Wizard. My wizard has a high intelligence (18, not natural 18 but with generous DM gen rules was able to get an 18), but a really low Charisma (4). The DM gave me the option of rerolling to get better balanced scores, but I liked the idea of playing a character with low abilities (also has Str 5). Anyway, its pretty easy to roleplay the low strength, but I was looking for some creative ideas about playing with the low charisma. I did not want to just use the stereotypical dull fighter motif. My thoughts so far are to have my character badly scarred my a previous mishap during his studies, as well as to be highly arrogant. I was planning to have him constantly keeping his deep hood up so that his face was covered. Additionally, my thought was to have him entirely devoted to his studies to the point where he pretty much neglects his body and hygiene (no exercise helps explain the lack of Str.) But other than that, I wasn't sure how exactly to roleplay it appropriately so that it becomes clear that I have very little charisma. Any thoughts would be appreciated, and I am certainly not wedded to the above. Thanks in advance.
Sisyfos 03-31-04, 03:45 PM	"Additionally, my thought was to have him entirely devoted to his studies to the point where he pretty much neglects his body and hygiene " If your campaign world has any resemblence to Europe during middle ages the lack of personal hygiene argument really doesn't work :)
TheMightyMcClaw 03-31-04, 03:57 PM	Hmm.... if you were to swap that 5 from strength to con, I would recomend making him a leper. Seriously poor health, and lepresy tends to make others want to avoid one. You could wrap yourself in bandages like the lepers in princess mononoke.... it was a fairly cool "look."
Sisyfos 03-31-04, 06:10 PM	Heh... as a concept it is not bad, but really... a wizard with 1 hitpoint/level? No matter how cool the concept the character will not stay around long enough for the player to enjoy it. Just make the character have really tough time communicating his intentions to people. To be totally insensitive to people no matter what his intentions. Make him very ugly or hideously scarred (lab accident?). This might be the classic character who is totally obsessed with magic. Sisyfos
Morka 03-31-04, 08:09 PM	You could stammer. Especially when communicating with a really beautiful girl, or with a really ugly girl, or with important peoples, or with people who thinks you are important, finally when communicating with everyone. The only time you don't stammer is when you cast a spell, because you past a long time to learn it.
Sorel 04-01-04, 12:12 AM	-He could always be the one who says *exactly* what everyone else is thinking but doesn't dare say. (By Boccob, your highness, that is one HUGE zit on your nose!) -He could constantly interupt conversations with loudly announced unrelated matters. (Newt's blood mixed with hog's bile? HAH!) -He could dress really really badly.... or not at all.... He might think he's an attractive man and dress revealingly, but it's just horribly horribly wrong..... (Hey, check my Speedo!) -He could develop phobias and quirky irritants that he responds to in spectacular fashion.... (I swear, bard, one more note from that flute and it's a lightning rod! Dammit, my soup is too hot, maybe you would like me to set *YOU* on fire!)
Trydan 04-01-04, 04:03 AM	Equating charisma with leadership, one could consider factors such as: A really soft voice that no-one can quite hear properly. Very, very depressed. He doesn't inspire any confidence in anyone (e.g. Marvin the paranoid android from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, or Xan from Baldur's Gate) He could be a complete an utter coward, and would only do anything to save his own skin (if that!) He could be ruthless like some chaotic evil villan, but without any spine whatsoever to back his threats. He could have some pretty disgusting habits He could be indecisive.
Sorel 04-01-04, 02:12 PM	I would have him talk like Mr. T.
Gargs454 04-02-04, 09:34 AM	Thanks all for the replies. You've given me some great ideas.
JohnSnow 04-06-04, 06:43 PM	A few other ideas.... High Int, Low Charisma - This is the classic bookworm character. He's sharp as a tack but totally lacks people skills. He ALWAYS says what he means, he's blunt to the point of rude and he doesn't understand why people don't appreciate being told why what they're doing is just flat out WRONG. He's probably arrogant, and most likely dismissive of abilities that don't "measure up" to his own. My guess is he thinks fighters (and most other people for that matter) are stupid, belittles physical achievement and thinks manual labor is beneath him. Try getting the gist from these comments: "Well, the answer is so OBVIOUS to anyone with even HALF a brain, any idiot could solve it. Oh, you can't? None of you? Well, I suppose it's up to me to save the day...AGAIN." "Well, of course we have to go the long way. Did you honestly think that bridge would support our weight? I mean after all, the ropes were fraying and old, and the bridge has been there for decades. It would never hold our weight. No option? Rubbish! I'm not exposing myself to certain death because the rest of you are afraid to fight." "But your majesty, you HAVE to do this. There is no option! And if you weren't an arrogant fool and a total moron, even YOU would see that. Your advisers disagree? My lord, I know your chief vizier, we were in school together, and the man has the intelligence of a carrot compared to me." "HA! A sword? You must be joking. How quaint..." *casts spell* Get the idea?
D.K.R. 04-06-04, 06:53 PM	The low con / leper thing could work out - there are 2 or 3 feats out there which let you use Int for bonus hit points at 1st level, and either continue to do so at every level, or (WotC official version) a bonus hp every time you get a metamagic or item creation feat. With all the wizards bonus metamagic feats . . . So you would start with 8 hp at first (max d4, plus 4 from 18 int). Or, as one generous DM interpreted it for a fellow player once, 9 hp (scribe scroll is an item creation feat). At 2nd level, you would have 9 or 10 HP, 3rd would be 10, 11, or 12 if you use you're 3rd level feat for item creation or metamagic . . . or if you go with toughness, as much as 14. A Wizard with a 10 con would get, on average 4, 6, then 9 hit points at 1st, 2nd, and 3rd levels (2.5 average roll on a d4). So you are ahead of the game so far. It wouldn't be until around level 7-9 or so that you start falling behind, and by then your hitpoints should not be as much of an issue (though of course, they always are!) - unless you go spell-blade or something, you could just make sure to stay out of combat and not risk your low HP total. Just a thought.