Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Razorgrin 05-26-07, 01:40 PM	He's a shifter, with the Wild racial-variant template and the Feral template applied. I don't recall his specific physical stats - though they're all at least 14 - but his mental stats are Int 3 (technically, -4), Wis 19, Cha 9. Aligned NG, but emphasis on the neutral. I'm thinking he's essentially a bipedal animal; he can barely speak and he responds to stimuli like an animal (when upset, he lowers his posture and growls; when frightened, he runs or hides, etc.). He travels with his party because he thinks the cleric is pretty and likes to be around her. For the time being, he's a gestalt druid//ranger with every druid variant I could find, so he's got relatively little in common with the SRD druid except the spellcasting. Mostly, his spells are the personal-enhancement ones; he doesn't mess around with anything that requires more thought than "this makes me better at biting things." Occasionally he'll heal, but only the cleric unless she specifically asks him to heal someone else. His combat approach is essentially "activate rage and shift, then charge and commence tearing with claws and fangs." Not a lot of subtlety or tactical thinking going on here. I suppose what I'm asking is whether I'm interpreting his scores in a way that makes sense. I see him as very willful and perceptive, but only a bit more intelligent than the average housecat. He is, however, wise enough to realize that he's not very smart, so he's happy to leave the thinking to the others. (I don't necesarily know that having a slightly-below-average Charisma necessitates any specific role-playing application.) Thoughts?
Gingerbread Guy 05-26-07, 02:36 PM	It sounds to me like you have it down. Concerning tactics, he probably doesn't have much in the way of planning, but his natural intuition (wisdom) should usually lead him down the right path. He's certainly sharp enough to know what works from experience, though he almost entirely lacks the ability to deduce why or to extrapolate. For example, he should be easily intuitive to know when he's facing a superior opponent, when to attack, when to run, etc. However, he might struggle with logic, such as figuring out that if he encounters one trap at the entrace to a dungeon, that there are likely more, that the trap is an indication of intelligent occupants, that the poison in the trap is evidence of recent occupation, etc. Some tips to consider incorporating into your portrayal: - He probably has almost no concept of privacy, chosing to urinate and defacate whenever and wherever he feels like it, not understanding shame over nudity, and has a different take on what constitutes "personal space". Because these things clash so much with humanoid societal norms, he'll probably be corrected quickly. Its up to you to decide if he's the obedient kind or not. - Its likely that he's picked up pack-mentality behaviour, such as feeling uncomfortable with sustained direct eye contact, not liking to be touched in certain ways, and he should always be mindful of what he feels is the heirarchy within the pack. Like most dogs, he may not have the desire to be the alpha male himself, but he does want to know his place in the pack, and everyone else's place as well. Behaviour that is inconsistent with his aproximation of the heirarchy should be confusing and even upsetting to him. - Though he has at best a minimal grasp of language, he can probably pick up a lot through tone and bodylanguage, so make a lot of sense motive rolls. - There should be a basic heirarchy of needs that you should keep in mind at all times. You may want to glance at Maslow's heirarchy of needs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs) for an interesting read. Anything above pysiological needs and safety and maybe a little love/belonging should be beyond his capability to completely understand, and thus worry about. You might want him to pester the group about his and their physiological needs (mostly food) more often than is likely necessary, and tune out whenever the pack is dealing with more complex issues such as morale, the nuances of relationships and friendships, doing what is morally correct, etc. Anyway, just some ideas there. I hope some of it is helpful! Best of luck playing a very difficult character! ^_^ ~Ginger
the_francat 05-26-07, 06:49 PM	i think if he focuses on attacking and spells then I would recomend you have your two highest on strength and wisdom, but thats only what i think.
qxe9898 05-27-07, 07:44 PM	I'm struggling with the idea that someone with an extremely low IQ could be a spellcaster, even though the spells are granted by a deity. I can understand the concept of "I need strength" and you get "Bull's Strength." But if you take this character up into higher levels, how would you justify a primitive urge for spells like "Transform Metal to Wood" or "Reverse Gravity"? Maybe the low IQ would be better understood in terms of no formal education--illiterate, untrained in math or formal logic, but not necessarily stunted intellectually. :confused:
Terjon of the Blue Rose 05-27-07, 11:58 PM	I tend to think that casting the spells wouldn't be any more difficult for a low int character though finding a tacticle use would be. What really gets me on such a majorly low int is the idea of preparing spells ahead of time. Can someone like this really understand the regiment of prayers needed every morning (or night or whatever)
Gingerbread Guy 05-28-07, 03:29 AM	I think that by virtue of not being an int-based caster, he shouldn't need high intelligence to grasp his method of spellcasting. What I mean is that his spell preparation or meditation should be essentially instinctive or intuitive. In the same way that he won't understand his biological functions on an academic level, he won't grasp the mechanics of his spellcasting.. but that shouldn't stand in his way from using them. As an example, if you'll forgive the random metaphor, most NBA basketball players won't be able to explain the mechanics of shooting a free throw - the muscles they're using in what sequence, how much force they're exerting or in what trajectory - but rather they've learned how to perform a precision task with exceptional reliability (insert Shaq joke here). They develop muscle memory with practice and shoot intuitively. Likewise, I don't think the character needs to understand his spell preparations any more than that meditation is required to give him his powers, just as eating food makes the hungry go away. How exactly it works isn't his concern.. he just knows that it does and his instincts (wisdom) do the rest. ~Ginger
Terjon of the Blue Rose 05-28-07, 04:28 AM	For game purposes I agree that its prob best to let him prepare his spells without worrying about it. But as for the example... well a 3 int BBall player may be able to make the shot but does he know that he has to practice? Can he maintain, on his own, a rigorous set of practice sessions or develope a well rounded routine?
Gingerbread Guy 05-28-07, 02:41 PM	For game purposes I agree that its prob best to let him prepare his spells without worrying about it. But as for the example... well a 3 int BBall player may be able to make the shot but does he know that he has to practice? Can he maintain, on his own, a rigorous set of practice sessions or develope a well rounded routine? I'm going to have to say no, such a stupid person probably wouldn't apply his or herself properly. However, we're talking about a feral character who's out in the wild.. he's going to be forced to use his powers regularly. He starts off with only a minor connection to his spellcasting powers (1st level spells and the like) and as he uses them he gets better. I really don't see a problem with that. Remember, though his intelligence prevents him from significant foresight, his incredible wisdom helps him learn from experience. As another example, to get away from the basketball players, my 8 pound Manchester Terrier probably has about Int 2 by these standards, but probably a decent Wis score. I can't for the life of me get her to understand why she needs to learn to heel, sit and stay. I live on the corner of two busy 4 lane streets in a downtown metropolis, so she can't just run all over the place. Because I always protect her and keep her on leash, she's never had to learn that road = bad. However, when she's motivated to learn something on her own, she'll pick it up in a flash. I live in an apartment, and so when someone buzzes from downstairs only one phone in the kitchen rings. After about two days living here she already understood that when only that phone rings, it means someone is coming upstairs. She can even judge by my tone of voice on the phone when its someone I'm familiar with, such as my parents who spoil her rotten with treats, or a stranger like my plumber, and she reacts with excitement or aggression accordingly, even before the person shows up. She learns all kinds of strange tricks to get food when she's hungry, water when she's thirsty, attention when she's lonely, and so on. I have to spell out the word "walk" or she freaks out with excitement in anticipation of firing off some p-mail in the park, and she even knows that when I draw a bath when I'm still dressed, the bath is for her, not me. My point is that the dog doesn't learn these things by using her intellect and thinking it through with logic, she just learns quickly from experience and develops routine responses. This is exactly what a feral character is doing when he develops his spell power. When he taps into his spell power in a way that makes him stronger, he's bound to figure out how to do it again. Like any character, he'll grow stronger with experience. I think the only issue is how he got that spell power in the first place, and wether his intelligence was a barrier there. Thats really up in the air, as it isn't clearly defined in the rules how one becomes a druid or ranger. ~Ginger
Terjon of the Blue Rose 05-31-07, 01:36 AM	A much better example in this case I think and I see where you are coming from. Perhaps the starting spells prepared should be chosen by the DM and the character should then be allowed to refine it by choosing to keep the ones that prove useful on a regular basis then? Try to give the concept of spells gifted by the gods and then he learns to ask for ones he knows?