Post/Author/DateTime	Post
arcady 12-03-03, 12:36 PM	High Int and Cha, but low Wis - Charming clueless intellectual? High Int, but low Cha and Wis - classic brainy intellectual - nerd? High Int and Wis, but low Cha - insightful intellectual? Low Int and Cha, but high Wis - insightful idiot? Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? High Cha, but low Int and WIs - Ditzy 'blonde'? How would go about framing these characters' mental states in terms of broad archetypes? While 'stats don't make the character' they can certainly frame the possibilities. So what frame are we dealing with here, and what are some potential sample personalities that might evolve out of it? Of particular concern to me at present are these two: High Int and Cha, but low Wis - Charming clueless intellectual? Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? Which I find to be the most difficult for people to conceptualize, presently I've begun playing a character in the 'Charming clueless intellectual' category.
StormKnight 12-03-03, 12:59 PM	Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? Low Int doesn't neccessarily mean idiot; might indicate a bad memory, poor ability to learn, or various other things. I tend to associate "idiot" with low Wis rather than low Int.
Taran Alvein 12-03-03, 02:59 PM	The funniest way to play a low WIS, high INT character is to have his INT score through the roof, but his WIS score in the toilet... And make him a Wizard. There you have the absentminded Wizard. He's incredibly smart, but he's always forgetting things and he has no common sense.
Bacon and Eggs 12-03-03, 03:06 PM	High Int, but low Cha and Wis - classic brainy intellectual - nerd? Or more of a computer based persona. All the intelligence in the world and no sense to hush up. So perhaps.
xect 12-03-03, 04:01 PM	Originally posted by arcady High Int and Cha, but low Wis - Charming clueless intellectual? Good INT and CHA, but has a weakness in the weakness area. Probably always shows his strong sides, doing an extra job of proving himself superior so that people will never test his weakness. High Int, but low Cha and Wis - classic brainy intellectual - nerd? Intellegent professor. The classical shady, abscent-minded or just plain weird professor. He is the one that seems to care only for his research, though that might not be true. (loves his fiancee, but forgets the wedding over and over). High Int and Wis, but low Cha - insightful intellectual? Yeah, "strider" type of guy, only with less force of personality. The one everyone hates at first because he's rude and seems weak, but once he's adventured for some time, he ends up being the most important guy in the party. Could also be the advisor that stands in the shadow of the king, yet is the true ruler of the country. If evil, he is VERY likely to act trough a puppet most of the time. Low Int and Cha, but high Wis - insightful idiot? He's weak, he's not bright, and he knows it. Probably the guy that lags behind, trying to be usefull. No one ever notices, him, because his strength is in not being noticed, but yet having a strength of his own (tremendous will, great insight, good understanding, all those qualities that are important but no one appreciates). Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? Good understanding, good force of personality. The leader that guides the party by morale. He decides what happens, but he does so on basis of gut feeling, never rational decisions. High Cha, but low Int and WIs - Ditzy 'blonde'? Yeah, "blonde" is probably dead on.
Schmendrick 12-03-03, 05:58 PM	high CHA, low INT or WIS: a certain professor from the Harry Potter series.
Princeoflowlight 12-03-03, 09:50 PM	High Cha and Wis, but not necessarily high Int: Yoda, or any other "mentor" types. Everyone loved Yoda. EVERYONE.
Babson99 12-04-03, 12:04 PM	Low Int, low Wis, high Cha: Joey Low Int, low Wis, high Cha: Phoebe High Int, low Wis, low Cha: Ross High Int, low Wis, low Cha: Chandler High Int, high Wis, low Cha: Monica Low Int, high Wis, high Cha: Rachel
arcady 12-04-03, 06:59 PM	It's interesting you use a Friends analogy... That sort of thing is so generational. I mentioned to my group recently an article on designing a team the Scooby Way (http://mywebpages.comcast.net/EFBQ/Scooby/) and one of them came back that she felt it made no sense to do so, that Buffy makes a better model. To which I responded that it's a generational issue - I simply don't relate to Buffy being about ten years older. 'Kids these days' grow up with Scooby on the toon channel as a cute cartoon about a dog and fake ghosts rather than a hip statement about current popular culture and values masked in animation... :D Of course Friends is a show that probably belongs the late 20s early 30s crowd more than anyone else - the people just under the Scooby radar and just over the Buffy radar on average. :cool:
Ancient Wyrm 12-04-03, 07:08 PM	Low Int, High Wis, High Cha: Forrest Gump. Insight and charm, but no book smarts. High Int, Low Wis, High Cha: Captain Jack Sparrow, but more successful with the ladies. The classic "swashbuckler" mentality: quick-witted and dashing, but impulsive and rash.
Pongolyn 12-05-03, 12:21 AM	High Int and Cha, but low Wis - Charming clueless intellectual? Rather than an archetype, how about examples? The absent-minded professor who everyone likes. He has a weakness for knowledge, and has been known to hawk family heirlooms to buy books of obscure knowledge. He has a passion for figuring out how things work and explaining them so other people can understand--but his kindly, trusting nature has led to his downfall by those who take advantage of his trust. OR The charismatic, conniving rogue who just can't resist a vice, whether it's gambling, women, intoxicants, or rich living. He's always dreaming of "one last big score" that will land him and his colleagues permanently in the lap of luxury, and because he's so GOOD at planning things and following through with him, people are likely to follow him as he gets swept up in one mad scheme after another. Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? Those with high Charisma are often found in leadership positions, and high Wisdom coincides with sheer willpower and faith in one's own actions. So you'll see a lot of clerics and monks like this, and low Int combined with high Wis and Cha probably outlines a self-styled messiah or founder of a new religious group or discipline. These people may not know geography or monster lore, but they appear to achieved true enlightenment, which is one reason so many people believe in them. The shaman of a barbarian tribe, the simple old woodcutter who hears the problems of the village and gives good advice despite never learning to read, and the fanatical leader of a religious cult can all fall into this category. Pongo
spray paint affiliate 12-05-03, 05:03 AM	Originally posted by xect ------------------------------------------------------------------ High Int and Wis, but low Cha - insightful intellectual? ------------------------------------------------------------------ Yeah, "strider" type of guy, only with less force of personality. The one everyone hates at first because he's rude and seems weak, but once he's adventured for some time, he ends up being the most important guy in the party. Could also be the advisor that stands in the shadow of the king, yet is the true ruler of the country. If evil, he is VERY likely to act trough a puppet most of the time. Strider? Que? i'm interested in this, because i've a monk 'waiting in the wings' with a high INT (16) & WIS (15), but low CHA (9). despite the fact i'm appreciative that CHA isn't just looks, but force of personality et. al. i'm still at a loss at how to play 'the scores' effectively. Help?
Larus 12-05-03, 06:36 AM	INTELLIGENCE is key ability for -knowldedge checks -the "alchemist" check -craft checks -disable checks etc... WISDOM is the key ability for -listen -spot -search -sense motive -profession etc... CHARISMA is the key ability for -bluff -intimidate -diplomacy etc So.... High INT, low WIS and CHA: "where you say? over there? RIGHT! I see it!...a lever....leading to something extremely complex sort of puzzlework. AHA! It's a mecanism to destroy us all! I wonder how it works...." high INT, high WIS low CHA: "Oh look, it's a lever. Probably a trap...best not to touch it..." low INT, high WIS, low CHA: "AHA! a lever! I found it first! Let's see...the last lever I pulled was a trap. Could this also be one? Well, you don't know untill you've tried..." Low INT, igh WIS and CHA: "Hey, there lovely Miss Wizard...read any interesting books lately? Really? By the way, has any one told you how increadably SEXY you look with those glasses? No? Hey, you see that lever over there? Yeah, how 'bout the two of us take a looksee, eh? You think you could figure out how it works? Think we should pull it?" low INT, low WIS, high CHA: "Hmmm? where? a lever? Oh...Do you want me to pull it? What do you mean "too beautifull to die?"...." Low INT, low WIS, low CHA: "lever? Pull? Okay..."
Ogre Mage 12-07-03, 02:13 AM	Originally posted by arcady Of particular concern to me at present are these two: High Int and Cha, but low Wis - Charming clueless intellectual? Low Int, but high Cha and Wis - Charming insightful idiot? Which I find to be the most difficult for people to conceptualize, presently I've begun playing a character in the 'Charming clueless intellectual' category. [/B] I have a NG cleric with subpar INT (9) but outstanding WIS (18) and good CHA (14). One interesting suggestion I got was to play her as a "motherly" archetype. Great common sense and hearth wisdom with a compassionate understanding for the troubles of others. But she wasn't a very good student and never really paid attention to stuff which didn't have a practical application in life. When a problem involves memorizing or processing a great deal of information, she is keenly aware of her own limitations and leaves it to others. Still, other people greatly value her insight and she communicates her thoughts well when she has to. Not too sure of the high INT and CHA, but low WIS. I've never had a character in that vein.
Sussin 12-07-03, 12:35 PM	There a guy in the party a play with, a sorcerer. He has 10 Intelgence, 6 Wisdom and 17 Charisma. It seems like his low wisdom cancles out his charisma sometimes.... Like when the party was weak from a privious fight and they ran into a tieflin wizard and his responce was "Hey, are you easy?" Then when she shot a spell at him he said "You still haven't answered the question! Are you easy!" Or when the party meets up with an angry city guard he'll say something like "That sword is realy shiny... can i see it?" or "Wow you are no where NEAR as friendly as your daughter!" It wouldn't matter if his charisma was 50! No one could be charming enough to come off good in those situations.
xect 12-07-03, 03:06 PM	Originally posted by spray paint affiliate Strider? Que? Aragorn from lord of the rings. When he is first introduced, he is called "strider". He's the type that no one knows, but everyone dislikes. The one that sits in the corner of the inn with the hood of his travelling cloak covering his face. Everyone feels uneasy about him, and the innkeeper seriously doesn't like him. But once he gets into the story and you start getting to know him, he's one of the wisest characters in the books. (low charisma wouldn't fit Aragorn through many situations though, but seen from his "strider" side, low charisma is dead on.)
avatarolt 12-08-03, 10:57 PM	Through a broken set of munchkinny stat generation, I've ended up with relatively high scores in all three (and low scores in the rest). I play him as a bitter, paranoid druid who can turn on the charm simply because humans can be controlled just as easily as dogs or cattle (which is why plant life is so *pure*, maaaaan). Remember that despite having high stats, some people *choose* to put up a facade to present to the rest of the world -- this adds another level of depth to a character. Think of Eddie Haskel as an archtypical example -- he was a bright, sensible guy who purposefully chose the wrong path and lied his ass off about it (even though it was nothing particularly serious) -- and everyone's parents bought it! Think about a charmingly beautiful woman who purposefully dissuades men or sets her make-up poorly as to give her an artifical age -- she's no less charasmatic than she COULD be, but she chooses, for whatever reason (classic would be previous trauma, if she's your heroin-in-distress type) to hide it behind a mask, psychological or physical. Just something to think about when dealing with the high mental stats, especially two in combination. ;) (another example I just thought of -- a very bright and charasmatic wizard who makes an effort to hide a ridiculous lack of sense by quoting appropos quotations from a book whenever a question of mores comes up)
dogo 12-11-03, 07:27 AM	Originally posted by Taran Alvein The funniest way to play a low WIS, high INT character is to have his INT score through the roof, but his WIS score in the toilet... And make him a Wizard. There you have the absentminded Wizard. He's incredibly smart, but he's always forgetting things and he has no common sense. That's the classic 'Fizban' character of Margaret Weis' and Tracy Hickman's Dragons of <season> <time of day> books set in the Dragonlance setting. The only thing I clearly remember from those is his attempt to open a locked cell door with a fireball, while being in the cell. He also turns up as Zifnab in the Death Gate Cycle if memory serves. Anyway, he rather essentially captures that stereotype.