Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TheAnthroDM 11-16-06, 10:56 PM	Ayup, A Barbarian with 16 Int ^-^ So... Here's the problem, how do you roleplay a Barbarian(with Human Paragon Levels) with 16 Int? Also, what are good feat options for a non spellcasting character with 16 Int O.o?? Vuh "Ink Master" Clawhunter Stats: STR 14 DEX 14 CON 14 INT 16 WIS 10 CHA 10 Max Ranks in Following Class Skills: Listen, Intimidate, Survival, Swim, Handle Animal, Climb, Jump, Use Magical Device(Adaptive Learning) As for the Nickname, "Ink Master", comes from being the only character in his tribe capable of using the Magical Scrolls.(via Use Magical Device)
Revlis 11-17-06, 12:00 AM	Sweet Jesus! What in god's name? I have to ask, is this character organic? The only thing that screams out at me for this character is Whirlwind. The INT gives you the capability of Combat Expertise and he has a decent DEX for Dodge and such. A decent role I can think of is maybe the up-in-coming cheif/elder/sage and he's on some rite of passage type quest. Play his intelligence more toward a natural sense and knowledge of the environment. I might even suggest swapping one of his skills for Knowledge (Nature) if you can.
blackjackg 11-17-06, 12:06 AM	A high-int Barbarian would probably play out like any other Barbarian. Since you don't seem to have much in the way of Knowledge skills, and you're probably still considered illiterate, you probably don't have much in the way of 'book learnin'. You're probably fairly good at puzzles and strategy. Your intelligence might come out in the way you roleplay your survival, handle animal and UMD checks. Good feats might be Combat Expertise and its various subfeats.
TheAnthroDM 11-17-06, 12:08 AM	Sweet Jesus! What in god's name? I have to ask, is this character organic? No, just thought it would make a interesting character concept. The only thing that screams out at me for this character is Whirlwind. The INT gives you the capability of Combat Expertise and he has a decent DEX for Dodge and such. Whirlwind... yes, as for Combat Expertise, I was thinking about that, the only problem is that I can't use it while Raging. A decent role I can think of is maybe the up-in-coming cheif/elder/sage and he's on some rite of passage type quest. Play his intelligence more toward a natural sense and knowledge of the environment. I might even suggest swapping one of his skills for Knowledge (Nature) if you can. The only skill I could swap for Knowledge(Nature) is Use Magical Device... not a sacrifice I'm willing to make, but agood suggestion on the Tribal Cheif thing.
TheAnthroDM 11-17-06, 12:10 AM	A high-int Barbarian would probably play out like any other Barbarian. Since you don't seem to have much in the way of Knowledge skills, and you're probably still considered illiterate, you probably don't have much in the way of 'book learnin'. You're probably fairly good at puzzles and strategy. Your intelligence might come out in the way you roleplay your survival, handle animal and UMD checks. Thank for the suggestion, however the character is not illiterate... unfortunately the Human Paragon level(s) kind of destroys that concept, also if that character was illiterate, crunch aside, UMD on scroll would make no sense.
TheAnthroDM 11-17-06, 12:11 AM	You're probably fairly good at puzzles and strategy. Good feats might be Combat Expertise and its various subfeats. Hmm... Battle tactics and strategy, that could work....
Fithero 11-17-06, 01:34 AM	Have him well versed in the ways of logic, when the other barbarians think its angry demons that create the fire, you know its fuel. Perhaps a barbarian who's too smart for his own good even, one who isnt at all spiritual. He doesnt believe in the spirits of animals and gods and such, counts them as drivil, but has the intelligence to back up his claims. Hope this helps some. Peace
Revlis 11-17-06, 01:58 AM	The only skill I could swap for Knowledge(Nature) is Use Magical Device... not a sacrifice I'm willing to make, but agood suggestion on the Tribal Cheif thing. You could still swap any other skill for it, it would just be cross classed.
Daxen 11-17-06, 03:30 PM	While his tribe mates fight with a fevered passion, this man fights with a calculated rage. He would soon leave his tribe as they would constantly foul up his sugically precise tactics against their traditional foes. You have debated on many occasions with the elders that the fury of your people need not be quelled by aquisition of knowledge. There is reason behind your rage, you know exactly why you are angry, and are aware how best to use it. Your average Wisdom and Charisma would indicate that though you can percieve and acknowledge concepts beyond the grasp of your tribe mates you cannot for the life of you teach them the finer points nor convince them that your way of thinking is anything less than sacriligious. Many of your lower Int tribe mates call your fighting style an insult to Kord (or whoever) as they do not believe that you truely throw yourself into the abandon of battle. What they call honor and glory, you call lunacy and suicide. Your shaman or chief would understand more where you are coming from, but tell you, this is the way our people have always been, and they do not want or need to change, and that perhaps it would be better if you were to seek your own fortune elsewhere. Kord (or whoever) has grand plans for you my son, but you can not fulfill them within the shadow of our tents. Wee that was fun. Hope it helps Dax
JulesCARV 11-17-06, 06:26 PM	Hmm... let's see: high intelligence, non-lawful (neutral? chaotic?) alignment, rage... I see this guy as something of a revolutionary. Far from being a tribal elder or chief, I see him as the guy the tribal chiefs and elders are scared of -- because he has new ideas, doesn't pay much respect for authority, is ****** off about all of the irrational customs that they like, and he knows too much. The elders also know that many people respect him for his ability to use magic, but he's a threat. They want him to go away, somehow. Maybe they send him on a quest to learn more about some civilized lands, in the hopes that he'll be happier there and not come back, maybe they drive him out with their own loyalists.
Doomed_Penguin 11-17-06, 08:34 PM	I think that he seems to be a lot more logical than his tribemates. While they shun technology, he looks at it from a different perspective. While they are wary magic, he tinkers with it and uses it to his advantage. Many of the elders fear that his reklessness in toying with the "unknown" will bring the wrath of the gods. He knows that the tribe will surely die if they do not adapt and use what tools are available to them. He feels that they could harness and understand these things without sacrificing the ways of their ancestors; but is constantly frustated at the tribe's superstitions and closed-mindedness.
AMGriffin 11-17-06, 10:39 PM	Yeah. I'd think about giving him a marked fascination with things like magic or science. One thing is his wisdom score, which is pretty average. I think he may be at odds with his tribal shamans or clerics, preferring the use of logic or reason over instinct and intuition. Overall, the average wisdom and charisma may even make him more basically the same as his tribesmen, but simply has an easier time understanding the unfamiliar.
Reversefigure4 11-18-06, 04:06 PM	I'll take a counterpoint to those who have said his tribe shuns him. He loves his tribe, and doesn't like that they are viewed as "backwards barbarians" in the outside world. Their way of life has kept his people happy and healthy for thousands of years. Progressive city dwellers may have more technology and books and widgits, but none of those things are actually improving the quality of their lives. He isn't an idiot. He knows all about civilisation and what it offers, and has actively chosen to reject much of it, prefering the simple but happy life. City crime, poverty, scraping to make the next dollar because nobody knows how to live off the land? Where's the appeal? Despite being smart enough to be a successful businessman or wizard, he's chosen to learn the skills of his forefathers. He takes great pride in being a barbarian, and hates being insulted about it. He might attempt to look cultured, giving people a good first impression before he reveals he's a barbarian. Alternatively, he might dress to the stereotype - loin cloth, axe, wild hair, etc, as his own subtle way of mocking those who look down upon them, only to then out-think them and school them in intellectual debates.
Timespike 11-18-06, 07:02 PM	For a great example of what a high-INT barbarian looks like, watch Braveheart. "He's just a lying savage!" "I never lie, but I am a savage." You can be educated, erudite, tactical, and smart, and still flip right the :censored: out when you get into a fight.
Daxen 11-20-06, 04:20 PM	For a great example of what a high-INT barbarian looks like, watch Braveheart. "He's just a lying savage!" "I never lie, but I am a savage." You can be educated, erudite, tactical, and smart, and still flip right the :censored: out when you get into a fight. Amen.
Demonwolf 11-20-06, 06:30 PM	I'm a huge proponent of the idea that a character who defies stereotype doesn't necessarily have to be ironic, so I love doing stuff like this. I already have a million possible ideas. First, things that would help you with this historically would be information about Germanic and Celtic tribes from the time of the Roman civilization, as well as American Indian culture. The former will give more examples of tribal cultures already in touch with large civilization, the latter will give you that but also ideas of how tribal societies and large civilizations interact when first encountering each other. Both will give plenty of examples of how societies can be technologically deprived but still have other things that require or imply intelligence- a knowledge of local flora/fauna/geography, tribal religion and philosophy, astronomy, politics, martial arts, military tactics, etc. That said, here are some ideas for the character- 1. Strategic genius, war chief, tactician, etc. 2. Self-taught and ambitious street urchin turned street fighter who wants to ascend the station of his birth. Would mesh well both mechanically and RP-wise with rogue, swashbuckler and warblade, if you choose to multiclass. Especially if you do warblade, since they have knowledge skills. I also believe there's a feat that grants knowledge skills. 3. A member of a primitive society trying to integrate himself into other cultures as a representative of his people, and trying to bring back knowledge, technology, culture etc. that the larger civilizations have. 4. A religious tribal leader or philosopher, possibly a pseudo-paladin (or even a regular old multiclassed paladin, there's a feat in Eberron CS that lets that happen). 5. A tribal 'scientist' of sorts. You're the tribes go-to guy, you understand rudimentary physics, you have an enyclopaedic knowledge of local zoology and botany, you know when and how to plant and harvest crops, you can read your location by looking at the stars. 6. A variation of 3. You've been kidnapped and taken to a city by people who want to "civilize" you. The extent to which they've succeeded will vary. Maybe they have educated you, but you may still be clinging to your tribal religion and be persecuted because of it. There are a lot of examples of this with American Indians. Alternately, it could be a happy education, with missionaries teaching you in your own homeland and only accepting willing converts. 7. An anti-monk. The Sufi dervishes come to mind. Your religiosity and/or spirituality aren't orderly like the monk's, but you manifest them in some other way, such as dance, a fluid and intuitive martial art, raw anger and warfare, etc. Would work well with the whirling frenzy variant and the dervish PrC. Could be a reformed monk or fighter. 8. You are to fighters what sorcerers are to wizards, partially because of your quick-thinking. You were formerly a warrior or even a commoner, thrust into war for whatever reason, and your physical ability and intellect both have made you a natural in combat. Another good one to pair with swashbuckler. 9. Barbarian/Wujen/Eldritch Knight. 'Nuff said. 10. A brilliant tribal politician, possibly cutthroat. This would work very well with a half-orc. 11. Wild elf or any dwarf. You're "primitive" but you still have millenia upon millenia of elven(/dwarven) history and culture to draw from. A variation of this would be a warrior-skald from any culture. This could mesh well with 7. 12. Like Frederick Douglass, but with fighting instead of (or in addition to) reading. Someone who wants to be a warrior but doesn't have the resources because of society's constraints. As a result, is self taught. A woman, a member of a minority of some sort, a member of a lower caste, a peasant, a slave, etc. I know I have more, but those should be enough for now.
Demonwolf 11-20-06, 06:47 PM	Oh, one more. 13. Your tribe could have already integrated itself into an encroaching civilization by taking up settled agriculture, architecture, technology and printed words, but has kept aspects of its old culture that were compatible, taking an "if it ain't broke, why fix it" attitude. Religion, ritual, agricultural practices, language and (most importantly) fighting style would be among these. Your society could be identical in almost every way to a neighboring city except with barbarians, rangers and druids composing your military instead of fighters, paladins and clerics. Look up the Choctaw, the Chickasaw, the Creek, the Seminole and the Cherokee for more info. An alternative to this could be that your tribe is integrated as a minority in a city, either in a ghetto or in a Little Italy/Chinatown kind of setting.
Demonwolf 11-20-06, 06:53 PM	OMFG, I knew this was going to happen. 14. A frontiersman, originally a decadent noble or ambitious peasant exploring a new land as a means to wealth. Develops fighting skills throughout his journey, possibly integrating himself into a tribe.
Shaggy_Shaggs 11-20-06, 08:20 PM	I can't help but picture this guy as extremely erudite, and wearing a monocle. "It's Berserker, the greatest conversationalist of our time! Also, everything he says is scary."
Horny_Ork 11-21-06, 05:59 PM	Errr... isn't a high intelligence Barbarian called "Ranger"? Just thinking, maybe you want to come up with your character concept FIRST and then fit classes to it instead of choosing classes and fitting a character concept into the chosen class. Like a Ranger/Animal Lord thing.
TheAnthroDM 11-22-06, 12:01 AM	Errr... isn't a high intelligence Barbarian called "Ranger"? No, I'm sorry but if this is you're conclusion you shouldn't ever be allowed to play a martial characters. Ever.
TheAnthroDM 11-22-06, 12:03 AM	Just thinking, maybe you want to come up with your character concept FIRST and then fit classes to it instead of choosing classes and fitting a character concept into the chosen class. Just because you can't contribute to the suggestion does not give you the right to insult the OP character planning.
Aiden_Bautista 11-23-06, 01:09 AM	You coul;d use really inteligent language while slaughtering or prior to slaughtering your opponents. "Excuse me, unfortunate knave, but I am about to deconstruct your cranium and use it for a nice candy dish. I do hope it isn't too much of an inconvenience."
Boshi 11-23-06, 06:05 AM	You could do it Dr. Jekyl (sp!) and Mr. Hyde-style...
Tjuk 11-23-06, 07:45 AM	Well it's quiet easy, since you have just a base wisdom, i'd say drop a bit of wisdom for dex or whatever... then just play a extremely intelligent character, though he doesn't know how to put it to words.
Demonwolf 11-23-06, 12:18 PM	Oh, another interesting idea. 15. This ties into 7. You could do something like Henry David Thoreau's Walden, and have a sophisticated weapons expert (renowned as a competetive duelist, teaches young noblemen, etc) or a knight of high station become disillusioned with society. He then goes to live in secluded wilderness for an extended period of time, and develops physical toughness, predatorial instincts and an intuitive fighting style. This might work better for druid, monk or ranger, but I see it being feasible for barbarians too.
ShadowWarrior 11-23-06, 12:23 PM	This (http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=040710) is my suggestion for playing an Int 16 barbarian.
MalakiTyrel 11-23-06, 10:16 PM	Some really good ideas already, I'm going to add my thoughts. In normal situations, I would play the character as I would any other smart character -- quick to solve puzzles, having sound tactical strategy, literate, etc. But, in battle the Rage of the Barbarian could be more like a Berzerker Frenzy -- he turns himself over to the thrill of battle as opposed to some type of murderous rage. While the Barbarian clad in animal skins and covered in tribal tatoos and ignorant of the world at large is an iconic image, the class could also be used to model a normal fighter with a natural affinity for battle who excels more on aggression, zeal and adrenaline than on crisp tactics or formal training. Or, it could be a merging of a more traditional fighter with the classic barbarian -- he has the focused rage of the Barbarian but the intellect to seize upon sound strategies and training that a more disciplined Fighter would use and is able to meld the two together. He would be both a soldier and a general. While Barbarians tend to rush in and hack until everything stops moving, perhaps he is more aware of things like flanking maneuvers, ambushes, terrain advantages, etc. and uses them to his advantage. He could be the war chief of his tribe (or being groomed as such) -- in charge of defenses of his tribe and leading the warriors of the tribe into battle. He's not particularly gifted in Wisdom or Charisma, he's actually average. But, that doesn't mean that he couldn't have a position of importance. He's not any more persuasive or aware than any other average person is. But, neither is he really limited in these areas either. As far as personality goes, he may not be one of many words, preferring to leave inspiring speeches and diplomacy to others and instead being someone who leads by example and is a man of action not words. He could be cautious and like to weigh options (that high Intelligence) before committing fully to something. On subjects that he knows little about (which he could be aware of his limitations because of his Intelligence), he could defer to others more knowledgable in those areas as he instead only asserts himself on those areas he knows well. In other words, he only speaks when he knows he is right and is quiet at all other times. On the flip side, he could be a braggart convinced of his own superiority due to his gifted Intelligence and talk down to all -- treating them as beneath him. He could believe that his Intelligence gives him the right to make every decision -- even when his knowledge on the subject is non-existant. This could make others dislike/mistrust him and prevents him from ever being a truly great leader, despite having the capacity to become one. His average Wisdom would prevent him from noticing how he affects others (unless he devoted some training and skill ranks into overcoming this).
JBeauMI 11-25-06, 09:48 AM	16. Mommy and Daddy wizard were walking in the wilds with their very promising child. A big-bad-beasty, or band-o-brigands is encountered, and while they are able to protect their child, the parents are slain. The child is found by a tribe of barbarians, who take him in, although he is different. The child can read and write, and seems to understand a lot about that "magic" stuff. While he is a competent fighter, he is not physically gifted compared to others in the tribe. Perhaps his magical dabbling have upset the tribal leaders? Perhaps he seeks to reclaim his birth-rights? Perhaps the barbarian tribe killed his parents, and he is torn between love and hate for them? How about a level 1 only feat that permits your character to cast a few simple spells like Magical Training (FRCS)?
RellenMarn 11-26-06, 04:55 AM	I actually ran a Barbarian in the Worlds Largest Dungeon that had a 14 int. I played him with the traditional.... "Me smash" speech. This was because common was his third language. He would also chime in with comments like, "Me believe most efficient method for solving this horned dilemma be utilization of leverage." Fun to play. "Hey! Me no dumb! Me take correspondance course in advanced Metaphysics, me find Humian perspective particularily edifying, if not inherently cohesive."
Demonwolf 11-26-06, 11:33 AM	No, see, this is what a barbarian with 16 int with common as a third language would sound like. "This is Sammy Davis Jr. Jr... She is Grandfather's Seeing Eye *****. Father purchased her for him not because he believes Grandfather is blind, but because a Seeing Eye ***** is also a good thing for people who pine for the opposite of loneliness. In truth, Father did not purchase her at all, but merely retrieved her from the home for forgetful dogs. Because of this, she is not a real Seeing Eye *****, and is also mentally deranged. "