How to Play a Genius WITHOUT Actually Needing to Know Everything

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Hello! My name is Jay, and I am a long-time veteran of storytelling and a semi-seasoned DM! I began playing Dungeons and Dragons roughly 5 years ago and began my first ever game as the DM. I figured things out by watching online games and fumbling my way through the rules, and never looked back! I've fallen in love with TTRPG's in general and want to share my experience and thoughts with the world and community I love so much. I currently DM two separate games regularly, and continue to learn every day.
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[@PlayYourRole]

GUYS THE LINK FOR GFUEL IS BROKEN. THEY GAVE ME A BROKEN LINK. WHY DO THEY HATE ME I JUST WANT THEM TO LOVE ME

[@sky0kast0]

We love you anyway

[@Firegen1]

I'm gonna check the link because your wife is so sweet. That was so cute

[@masterbuilder7577]

agreed lmao, got a sub from me just for that @@Firegen1

[@scottyrose9106]

Sorry, just needed to point something out. This entire video you seem to be conflating intelligence, with knowledge. Intelligence, is the ability to process information, make new connections, and your general abilities in abstract thought and three-dimensional space. Anyone, of any intelligence level, could possibly learn all knowledge. But again, knowledge, is not intelligent. If you can figure out tricky problems, your intelligent. If you simply know a lot of facts, you are simply knowledgeable. AKA smart. But again, smart and intelligent are not the same thing. Smart... I mean, you could technically say a set of encyclopedias is smart, but is not intelligent. Because it cannot learn anything new. That it does have, process it with other, seemingly other unrelated knowledge contextualize these two forms of knowledge into a new, and more useful answer. That would be intelligent. Also, you must learn knowledge. Therefore no one is born with knowledge, accepting maybe what one would consider instinctual knowledge but intelligence, is most certainly granted at birth, if not a conception. Now, one can boost their intelligence to a point. But the greatest boost ever recorded, never exceeded 10 points on any IQ scale. Plus, the fact that your IQ slowly declines over time, means that you were literally born as intelligent as you will ever be in life. So as you go through life, you trade intelligence, for knowledge. And hopefully, you pick up a little bit of wisdom along the way.

[@ianweckhorst3200]

I was going to make some point about how in doctor who David tenant often feels more intelligent than Matt Smith (the actor behind Sherlock) but I frankly respect the essay on the difference between knowledge and intelligence so much that I feel like I’d just be repeating the same points, but I do recommend doctor who if you’re interested because you’re never told he (or she) is intelligent, instead they’re clever, and they get that point across much more clearly and don’t try to use knowledge to make up for it

[@SessVlogs]

I love how the intelligent character in our campaign is played. He’s basically a prodigy artificer and can make insane things…but he’s also a 15 year old orphan with abandonment issues. He makes big, flashy weapons because he wants to impress everyone around him so they don’t leave him. Unfortunately, making big things means we have no way of transporting anything he makes, so he ends up having to ditch his creations at every town we visit. He’s now learning that building smaller, more practical devices actually makes him way more of an asset to the team, and makes us all less mad at him 😅 Update on this character: our other characters had stuff to do one day so we went and did our own thing. He thought the party had abandoned him so he stole an airship, shrunk it, stuffed it in our bag of holding, and then ran away. Needless to say, he's still on that learning curve!

[@Maninawig]

Or, hear me out, hire an ogre as your assistant. Lol. Nah, that sounds like an awesome charcter.

[@incontinentiabuttocks366]

that's a pretty great character, please protect him at all cost.

[@AkodoGarou]

This means, whatever big machines he's left are being collected, and will be a problem later. Signed, A DM who would use this, haha

[@techwizsmith7963]

Optics, Looksee, Lookout, Peep Love the character, absolutely no hate

[@SessVlogs]

@@incontinentiabuttocks366 Oh, we are! It’s been amazing to watch him soften over the course of the campaign.

[@hammock1804]

I played a Wizard who was that world's first Wizard reborn, but he learns his spell book was turned into a text book to teach students. They treated his theories as fact and copied his spell list, he was obly pissed that they stopped where he stopped. The words i used were "You were supposed to explore the frontiers of Magic, not build a foundation pn my grave" he was so excited to see how magic had changed too.

[@thomasallen9974]

May I just say that line went so hard.

[@aazhie]

That is fantastic!! I love it :D a true scholar

[@Primezilla_Japan-style_1998]

I love this, and I wanna make it my character but I don’t wanna steal you’re into intellectual property

[@hammock1804]

@@Primezilla_Japan-style_1998 Go right ahead, make it better even. Make it you

[@colecook834]

Love this idea

[@cydude5856]

I like to call this trope House Syndrome. Characters like Sherlock are very high intelligence with low wisdom. They don’t know how to interact with people properly. A character with high intelligence and high wisdom (or just a nice character with high intelligence) would look more like Yoda and Iroh, showing their intelligence as a mentor role.

[@BornToBeUai]

And this is precisely why I can't watch House. Sherlock is arrogant, yes. But House is unbearable. Also every single other doctor is as dumb as a doorknob in the hospital

[@cydude5856]

@BornToBeUai Wilson just standing there while House figures everything out by himself.

[@psychocomytic9778]

At least house better displayed the ramifications of this type of behavior. Dude was a mess from.the beginning.

[@cydude5856]

@psychocomytic9778 and it's only ever portrayed as a bad thing. I think some people idolize the House trope when it's meant to be a cautionary tale.

[@Kajowwojak]

It should also be mentioned that house regularly points out where he learned things, so he's better than Sherlock and just being born a genius

[@JamieJamesVT]

I will always remember Percy running off during a cannonball contest to get a copper kettle and raw sodium. Taliesin used some actual chemsitry knowledge to add to a comedy bit, playing both into Percy's intelligence and that intelligence will not save you from dumb ideas for the sake of a laugh.

[@cobaltsable1800]

In his defense, he did still win

[@Wanttowrite]

​@@cobaltsable1800 Because he drew blood, not because he made a smart decision.

[@psychocomytic9778]

I always thought he played well to his audience. "Oh grog is the judge. Let me just blow something up"

[@Wanttowrite]

@@psychocomytic9778 Good point. 👍

[@WoeUponThee]

​@@Wanttowrite difference between smart and wise.

[@norsethenomad5978]

Just to back up this notion at 8:39, one of my friends in highschool was extremely smart in the academic sense. 4.0 GPA, Principles List, Graduated a year early and already completed a year of college when she did graduate. Super smart, extremely intelligent. Didn’t know how to deposit cash into her bank from her banks ATM. Didn’t know that water and engine coolant had VERY different boiling points. Genuinely thought I was very smart (maybe) This person who ran circles around everyone academically and went to school dressed like a female CEO of a billion dollar company knew very little outside of academics. They were also an amazingly kind and empathetic person who would help people without hesitation, just a wonderful person

[@RsFanficReadings]

Yeah, that resonates with me. 4.0 GPA, but I had to get help to begin my computer course. I aced it, but I nearly couldn't start it. My fellow students and teachers alike marvel at my grades, but last time I was supposed to start a new class, I straight up got lost and ended up going home without applying. There’s so much more to it than 'be super smart', and anyone who can’t grasp those complexities yet believes they know everything of worth is duller then a C average student who's really trying.

[@yeen.7209]

it really does end up being like that, because academia sucks your soul to the point where nothing else can matter

[@fernando4959]

@@RsFanficReadings ah yes Dunning-Kruger effect my beloved

[@simonwatkins3236]

TBF Watson takes time to point out Sherlock is not as smart as he thinks.

[@PlayYourRole]

Nah but that's my PROBLEM though! The original books were from Watsons point of view, and he would constantly admire Sherlocks intelligence but because we saw things from his perspective we also understood that he disagreed with Sherlocks mannerisms towards others. But the BBC show basically removes Watson from any meaningful role and therefore we don't get the perspective that Sherlock is wrong for being a jerk. It treats it as his right... Okay I gotta stop arguing my thoughts on this in the comments lmao. I am, in fact, not a media channel and the video wasn't about Sherlock

[@anarchclown]

You are right though. It's a horrible TV show with a somewhat promising first season that sets up things that then are completely squandered in the rest of its run. Moffat is a hack in general.@@PlayYourRole

[@Maninawig]

​​I think you have a point though. The books were indeed penned by the good doctor in a favorable light towards the scholar, but more specifically towards his continued pursuit of knowledge. As a medical doctor, he often chastised Holmes for his insensitivity, for his disregard for his own health (and using Watson's degree as an excuse), and would often tease him for not knowing basic things that others consider common knowledge. "His ignorance was as remarkable as his knowledge. Of contemporary literature, philosophy and politics he appeared to know next to nothing. Upon quoting Thomas Carlyle, he asked in the naïvest way who he might be and what he had done. My surprise reached a climax, however, when I found incidentally that he was ignorant of the Copernican Theory and of the composition of the Solar System. *That any civilized human being in this nineteenth century should not be aware that the earth traveled round the sun appeared to me to be such an extraordinary fact that I could hardly realize it.* "You appear to be astonished," he said, smiling at my expression of surprise. "Now I do know it I shall do my best to forget it." ~ A Study in Scarlet, Chapter 2 Holmes was not all knowing, and his family were geniuses in their own right, but only because they devoted their lives to the application of accumulated knowledge. Likewise, he leaned heavily on Watson for his area of expertise such as medicine, social communication, and common knowledge. To take this fact away takes away the very essence of who Sherlock Holmes was and how he could achieve his goals.

[@stereotreme]

for like 2 episodes, then he's just relegated to a background prop for reflecting Holmes' glorious brilliance.

[@b0therme]

In both Doyle's work and the tv show, Watson is the emotional genius. Watson IS Doyle after all. Also, in the tv show's Christmas party the pathologist smitten by Holmes does a great job revealing Holmes for the Social/Emotional idiot he is.

[@starlepus9437]

i like playing genius characters like teachers. the dont put others down. instead they try to raise everyone up to their level. one of my characters is currently teaching the barbarian in my party to read

[@PlayYourRole]

Teaching in a roleplay game is so fun! It's also hilarious because you get to play the whole 'tired teacher' aspect of it as well

[@BGrimoire]

This was an aspect that, while roleplaying, made me realise how much I like to teach, leading me to my profession irl

[@Ugarimpty]

My Homebrewed Campain's (Wich I DM in) Royal Scientist tends to show a lot of curiosity towards others and what they need, how to improve the life of everyone, he did not become a reknown genius alone but had an assistant wich was way more clever than him but lacked that sympathy for others, this also leads to the first vilain of the campain. Anyways, the Royal Scientist Always tried to push others to be self-taught with the right materials & tools he can provide and loves to see what players comes up with basic knowledge he can give 'em As for teachers : In have basically 2 kinds of 'em -The academic teachers, that shows a lot then answers any question, may or may not be tired. -The fuck around to learn teachers, that gives very little knowledge but enjoys seeing the students learn stuff by experimenting and developping their own stuff Always good to give the basics to a very sandboxy mechanics to let 'em experiment. But sometimes you need an info dump on how rules are rules and how some pretty basic stuff works.

[@analyticsystem4094]

The party Wizard in a campaign that I played in, was a teacher in the past. My character multiclassed into Wizard and we flavored it in game as the party’s Wizard teaching my character Arcane magic. It was fun to roleplay and my character, was really happy when he got to show off to his Teacher.

[@cadenayers9253]

YES. THIS. I’ve got a gunslinger that I’m waiting to play who is also a father. He’s naturally very curious and I plan on him actually NEEDING the party for a lot of his stuff. He’s smart enough to realize he can’t do everything himself, and he genuinely values companionship. I’m so excited to both learn the basics of black powder chemistry and apply them in game. Plus I get to act like a proud father to the other players! (Though I believe I’m actually the youngest of everyone lmao)

[@JustASleepyFox]

I swear bro is single handedly carrying my roleplaying skills.

[@718jef]

Brooo fr

[@PlayYourRole]

I'm trying so hard I'm just glad it's helping I swear

[@GenesisBoi]

​@@PlayYourRolethanks to you my barbarian is technically seen as the leader of the party even though he has a 9 charisma xD

[@718jef]

@@PlayYourRole Playing a smart character and I'm not that smart. It's been so fun letting his hubris (or dnd random bs) get in the way.

[@claudiamcfie1265]

The most intelligent person I knew in my life was my Dad (RIP Dad). He always knew what he didn't know, and would seek out someone to ask. When interacting with less well educated people, he'd make a point of asking something they knew that he didn't.

[@corasgrove3474]

That is so beautiful - I love that

[@superawesomegoku6512]

I end up having a situation where when I play a wizard, i end up also playing a noble, because its easy to mask that "Jerk-ness" as being a noble rather than having a character just be a jerk because hes smart

[@karatekoala4270]

I get it. I like playing off type so I have a nibble that isn't a jerk at all but everyone assumes cause he is a noble wizard. I have another wizard that is more warrior priest like she explains things through parable and poem. I also have an artificer that is a gun nerd but urban.

[@PlayYourRole]

I mean, privilege can often lead to more chances to gain knowledge you assume other people would also have, so it makes perfect sense!

[@Altrantis]

@@PlayYourRoleIt's also more expected. If you're a farmer no one expects you to be knowledgeable. If you're someone within the sphere of power, being unknowledgeable is... disdainable.

[@Firegen1]

Play with the need to make "smart" mean jerk. I'm sorry to borrow from D20 here but some the snartest PCs and NPCs are also some of the most emotionally intelligent. Adaine, Lapin, Esther. Brennan seems to have a whole treatise on how being cold actively makes you more stupid. His greatest villains are often taken out because they over estimate how clever they are (classic melodrama) suffice to say. Flip the script. You might find something fun

[@Bluecho4]

It's also just internally consistent. In a pre-industrial world where books must be copied by hand, and the powerful hoard knowledge, it's only logical that the lion's share of your traditional Wizard types are members of the wealthy classes. They can afford the books or the tutoring in magic. They have the free time to spend on their studies. This is hardly universal. You can have rural "witch" style Wizards, that pass along carefully preserved grimoires from master to student. You could have a magical tradesmen apprenticed to a master who sought them because they showed the best potential. You could be someone who stole a Wizard's spellbook, or inherited it from a Wizard or adventurer relative, or found one in a ruin. There's lots of ways you can be a Wizard without being a noble. But it's a lot easier to justify, if your character just comes from money. A lot easier to gain access to other Wizards, if you're part of the same social class. And, by nature of definition, someone with magical expertise represents a person with utility that can be leveraged to make them rich. (You might not be a Noble, but you might have had your education funded by one, as an investment in your talents).

[@claudiamcfie1265]

Caleb from the Mighty Nein was a very well played high intelligence character.

[@stingerjohnny9951]

Part of why he worked is he didn’t really have a desire for recognition and didn’t look down on others for having less intelligence. In fact, later on when he’s in a better state of mind, he is quick to point to other’s strengths and talents that he is useless in. The only time I ever remember him having an ego fueled moment was when he was trying to grab that necromantic emerald, but that was less to prove his might to others and more him challenging himself. Caleb doesn’t want to become stronger to be better than other people, he wants to become stronger because he’s a student and just wants to perpetually learn.

[@joshangrian]

@@stingerjohnny9951another arrogant moment was in the final boss fight at Rumblecusp when he casted disintegrate. In post game interviews Liam talked about how Caleb was being cocky and assuming he was going to annihilate Vokodo when in reality he was risking everyone’s lives

[@stingerjohnny9951]

@@joshangrian Fair enough, could you imagine if that went wrong with all the guilt he’s got already…and then jester gets turned into a little blue cloud in the water?

[@bulldozer8950]

I’d argue this is in a large part because Liam just is quite smart, so he sort of just played into some of his personality traits which makes it easier.

[@ermacmacro7136]

I once played a wizard that was also a monk, he was smart (had a full 20 int thanks to being an elf and getting a lucky die roll for the stats) but he had dumb moments. He'd try and think his way out of situations, he'd be afraid of monsters that he'd recognize as substantial more capable than themselves (the party as a whole). But he'd also have stupid moments like trying to (and actually almost succeeding in) kicking down magically enchanted door because he didn't trust the abjuration magic on the door. But he'd also use his intelligence in a way that was profound. He'd give little bits of existential knowledge that could help. I actually did take the genius angle in terms of "I'm enough of a genius to know that I'm not a genius"

[@PlayYourRole]

Sometimes the smartest people can do the dumbest things out of arrogance it makes sense!

[@ermacmacro7136]

@@PlayYourRole my intention wasn't to be arrogant, my wizard just had detect magic up at the time and saw that the door had Abjuration magic on it. And the tower itself seemed to just to loop around endlessly on itself and some of the other doors we found were trapped, so my thought (and therefore the character's thought) was that the door's handle and lock were rigged with glyphs of warding and would explode the door if we opened it. I conveyed that to the party, and told them. "Hang on, let me try something." Then proceeded to just full on big boot the door to try and knock it down without setting off the glyphs. I bowed the door inwards, but didn't quite put enough oomph to knock it off its hinges (remember, this wizard was also a monk). Uh....turns out the door was just a effect from part of the Guards and Wards spell and using dispel magic got rid of the door. But I didn't know that spell could just summon doors, and my character didn't think about the door itself being an abjurative construct either. So I just made a guess based on the other information present and let that inform my character's decision. It was a dumb solution, but I made a way to work my character's intelligence into making that an (while incorrect) informed decision. After the game, my friends even asked me why I had the wizard instinctively kick the door instead of trying to cast a spell at it. I told them "we kept falling for non-magical mechanical traps, so my character knew this tower was trapped. He saw the door was magic and based on our past hour of bad luck didn't want to chance it"

[@Garrett236]

Overthinking things is also a great way to play the high Intelligence character. In the planning stages your character comes up with the most convoluted plan, when the easiest solution is just... walking through the front door.

[@VanNessy97]

​@@Garrett236 "Someone could have slipped a note underneath the door." "..."

[@LocalMaple]

2:06 The Supreme Scientist. It’s very common in science fiction because it’s written by scientists to simultaneously glorify science and the scientific process, while putting down theories and other scientists they don’t like. It’s a trope because it’s basically a scientist writing their own superiority over other scientists and plebeians in story form.

[@PlayYourRole]

Yupppp

[@snowmanmanvideo]

No. What scientist ever wrote a show with this trope? The only show I can think of that was really written by scientists for a general audience is Futurama, where they AVOID this. Can you tell me which show was actually written by a scientist or scientists that does this? Because it seems like a lib arts writer projecting what they wish they were if science were magic.

[@LocalMaple]

@@snowmanmanvideo Did I say show? Or did I say “write?” Eric Temple Bell wrote the book _The Ultimate Catalyst_ about how it’s okay for a scientist to experiment on a dictator because he is smarter. Julian Huxley similarly wrote _The Tissue-Culture King_ about how the scientist has a right to meddle and experiment on all forms of life. After those two came John McConnell and _Learning Theory,_ where a human scientist is captured by a much smarter alien scientist, who attempts to study the human scientist but misses the interpretation as he goes mad from the conditions of his capture. He criticized that school of thought, that being smarter gives you a right over others.

[@snowmanmanvideo]

@@LocalMaple still more sci fi that doesn't. Still a dumb point. There propaganda by every group that group is superior. It says more about writers with self inserts than scientists, weird to make it about scientists. Here let me make it more accurate. The superior writer. The writer says their superior. They do this in every genre. It's like people who are self centered are self centered. Weird to make it sound like it's scientists with egos when it'd be more accurate to focus on the writer half. A lot of media is "why I'm better than everyone and should be in charge". But that shit doesn't show up in scientific journals. Is it a trope? Or is everything a trope once it's done twice and called attention to once. Your mom is an overdone trope.

[@arnowisp6244]

​@@snowmanmanvideo It's an Old trope that was Very Common bqck in Early Sci Fi. Why do you think New Sci fi shows Bend over Backwards to avoid it like the Noble savage trope?

[@JJJSmit9026]

In any context other than being a player in a ttrpg I would give the advice of "you have hours to figure out what your character thinks of on the spot."

[@thewingedporpoise]

I mean, in a ttrpg you can take more than the actual time needed, but not to the same extent no

[@fernando4959]

@@thewingedporpoise just shrink it instead of thinking hours for on-the-spot moment, it's thinking minutes for split-second reaction

[@thewingedporpoise]

@@fernando4959 people spend an hour thinking about the next 6 seconds

[@shybard]

People in the real world who are intelligent tend to be eternal students. They're always wanting to learn and are willing and eager to listen to and learn from other people who can teach them something new. And importantly, they know when they aren't familiar with a subject or know very little about it. Playing the eternal student allows other characters (and their players) to shine and have fun, while also demonstrating the character's intelligence. As an added bonus, you don't have to be a jerk to pull it off.

[@alexanderglass2057]

This comment section was making me start to think I wasn't applying my intelligence how I could best be doing it, giving up on engineering to become to go into welding and absorb every practical concept I possibly could, but this, this here makes me more confident in my Jack of all trades approach. I said it in my main comment which is too below you on my screen so I'm not gonna say it here. My proficiency with learning might come from the fact I'm running on the autism spectrum brain operating system but if it does it's got its cons and keeps me humble. Generally walking encyclopedias don't constantly say that they are walking encyclopedias, unless they're a jerk or lack wisdom. No, information sponges will just share their information, because a soaked sponge leaks. Academic knowledges fun and good, and I'm kinda itching for a textbook right now, but the eternal student looking for all knowledge is the best character archetype and personally I represent those stats as both wisdom and intelligence being high.

[@LinkG6C4N]

I was about to point out a Sherlock video that I had watched a long while ago, but then I remembered it was Hbomberguy and everyone already knows about him.

[@PlayYourRole]

Hbomberguy started my disdain for the show. I knew I didn't like it before but I couldn't hit the nail on why and he so clearly helped define it. Honestly, it was partially my 'joker moment' because watching that video helped me define how I wanted to make videos

[@m4rcyonstation93]

IT WAS A BOOMERANG

[@MrAceofspades627]

Its especially funny cause hbomb is the Sherlock of youtube

[@jayobrine999]

POV: you don’t play dnd type games and you chose this video to just hear how to write a good smart character in a story

[@PlayYourRole]

Man that is my entire goal. I love TTRPGs and DND but I really just wanna talk about character writing man

[@RasmusVJS]

My genius character is the exact opposite, arguably the moral compass of the group and naively nice, to the point where he struggles to understand selfishness because he finds it irrational. It helps that his backstory is that he awoke one day with no memory of his past, so he doesn't have a lot of knowledge, he's just extremely logical.

[@monikaisdonewiththeinterne2039]

Wow it seems like we have characters that share some similarities, sadly, she isn't really naive, mostly because once her parents died, she had to find work somehow as a kid, so she became a fixer, and since she no longer lived in the Nests (aka Rich people's areas), going to the Backstreets (aka slums) means she had to grow up maturely speaking, too soon, however she is still a person who holds to her values at all times, but she may have to do things she doesn't agree, because she needs money. She also has a very concerning lack of self esteem and is very prone to self loathing even though she is a prodigy

[@feitocomfruta]

Also, I agree with the important part is knowing WHERE to get the knowledge. A master contractor fixing an HVAC unit will often look up the how-to articles on how to replace the air filter, even if they replace 30 identical filters in a day. The difference between a genius and a know-it-all is a genius checks their own work.

[@Alche_mist]

As a teacher who actually tries to support my students and a DM, thanks for the kind words. Also, while I don't really care about the dancing squrrels, I haved loved The Wife's quips since she first appeared on the channel - but this time, she was even more amazing. Keep her, feed her, pet her (if she's into it), be good to her. She deserves all the love and all the dumb ideas. Seriously.

[@draughtoflethe]

I've always thought of Intelligence as less (or at least not entirely) what a character already knows, and more their "processing power" for problem solving and reasoning. And the way I usually play high-intelligence characters without them being jerks is by making them interested in solving problems collaboratively. They'll seek out other characters who have knowledge or experience with a particular facet of the problem and ask for their input and opinions -- kind of what you were talking about re: knowing how to Google, except the other characters' brains are the internet. I try to show my character being smart by asking the right questions and bringing the rest of the group along for the reasoning process -- including being open to ideas that I didn't think of or solutions that go in different directions than I was headed. It still shows the character "being smart" by guiding the problem-solving process and juggling all these ideas, but without it turning into the My Character Show.

[@lilgoblin3687]

this is the best way to do it, you involve the whole table, you show your character is smart, everyone has fun and likes your character, and it makes them more inclined to take your character's thinking process as a lesson rather then a command, and will likely use what they learn in the future, thereby you have made positive character growth in others through your methods

[@christianolson9817]

Dune has a good quote for this that I always think of when making a smart character: “Muad'Dib learned rapidly because his first training was in how to learn. And the first lesson of all was the basic trust that he could learn. It's shocking to find how many people do not believe they can learn, and how many more believe learning to be difficult. Muad'Dib knew that every experience carries its lesson.”

[@antoniosantiago5303]

*googles how to make a grenade* CIA: oh yeah? Me: I promise it’s for D&D

[@missedthebandwagon976]

Senku from Dr. Stone is an excellent intelligent character. He's so smart, and he wants to learn more. He wants to learn about everything. He does insult his friend Taiju for being a smooth brain, but he does teach others necessary information and tries to simplify it so they can all be on the same page, instead of Senku shutting his friends out.

[@siddhantchauhan1975]

I think the specificity of intelligence was hinted at in Sherlock and mainly the books. He didn’t know the planets in the solar system and other standard things as he pinpoint focused on solving crimes so he excelled at that.

[@arnowisp6244]

It was also Victoria Era London. So such Knowledge wouldn't even be standard yet in schooling.

[@CodexQuinn]

​​​@@arnowisp6244"The observations that established Uranus as something other than a regular star were made on 13 March 1781 by Sir William Herschel." Victorian era is mid-late 1800s. They knew there were at least a few other planets. Maybe not the general population, but it was known.

[@tedcoop4392]

1. Part of the problem stems from equating knowledge with intelligence, when they are two separate things. Very intelligent people tend to learn more information, but I've met some people (one professor emeritus in particular) who knew crap-tons of information but couldn't do a thing with it other than regurgitate it. 2. No reason to be embarrassed about a high Int score for a martial character. If you're unfamiliar with the name Roy Greenhilt, you really should start reading a webcomic called The Order of the Stick.

[@sparklefulpaladin]

I've definitely pulled off both the library and "know enough" tricks! I had a student character in a Magic School TTRPG setting who was known for being the class genius and she was constantly "let's go research this at the library". The "know enough" is very much a trick I use with every character, alongside the "if I don't know, I know who to ask" trick (usually for high wisdom, low intelligence) and pull the other character or NPC into a roleplay scene. Our DM for the current TTRPG I'm in has done a great job of learning enough to build a fantastical setting based on Mesoamerica and if there's something they don't know, there's someone else in the group who has specific knowledge about this historically and can provide information, which our DM can either be like "yeah, it works that way in this setting" or "it's a little different here and..." One of my favorite ways to think about the "genius but not insufferable jerk" is to work the other stats into roleplaying a character. If a character has low wisdom, maybe they're prone to making rash decisions or things that would look good on paper, but would absolutely not work in the real world... or have unforeseen consequences! Low charisma might mean they attempt to explain things, but it does come across in a way that's a bit insufferable, even if that's not the intent. Or other characters might just ignore them because they're boring.

[@coopersutherland8550]

This reminds me of a quote that a good friend told to me: “There are those who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge; that is Curiosity. There are those who seek knowledge to be known by others; that is Vanity. There are those who seek knowledge in order to serve; that is Love.” ― Bernard of Clairvaux

[@ethanbaer65]

My favorite example of genious is actually Tarzan. He knew literally nothing about human society but over the course of what was probably a month or so became basically fluent in English along with learning everything he could about human societies. He didn’t know everything, but he learned *so fast.*

[@roikellner414]

Currently playing a Gunslinger in PF2E. He used to be a demon hunter, so now he uses his experience with the fiendish foe to point out weaknesses the party's caster can use. I think this really sorted out all the different ideas that popped in my head. Thank you Jay!

[@dum5882]

I play an Artificer/Fighter in a campaign who is trying to become a member of the military, despite their low constitution and strength. They are nervous but they study history of weaponry and other things. They can explain or try to figure things out without trying to make others feel like an idiot. They use magic in creative inventions and other ways with components. I find it fun to not put others down and think about creative ways things work. If someone is curious, they try to help them and teach. They also make a lot of mistakes, but I think what conveys their knowledge is the ability of being willing to fail, which I think is important for that as well. They are willing to tinker and have it go wrong, but get up and try again until it works.

[@stwbmc98]

The next character I will hopefully eventually play (cries in DM) is a scholarly werewolf who doesn’t want to cure lycanthropy, but understand how it works and where it came from. They’ve studied local folklore about lycanthropes, the phases of the moon, and other similar magical diseases like vampirism, but they haven’t found enough information to put the pieces together yet. I think it would be fun and interesting to play out this process of scientific discovery in a fantasy setting

[@redman7775]

I'm imagining the rest of the party walking into a clearing to see a werewolf gazing into a mirror muttering "What am I. Why do you happen." over and over.

[@BornToBeUai]

Nice concept, Hank McCoy

[@stwbmc98]

@@BornToBeUai I’m not that familiar with X-Men, but it seems like he’s a good comparison

[@Psycomega1]

Just throwing it out there since you mentioned it in the video, but I would definitely be interested in "Media literacy in TTRPGs" as content. You're probably the closest D&D related choice for when it comes up in my group, and you might be surprised by just how addressing media literacy directly impacts how much more character depth you can achieve in playing your role.

[@PlayYourRole]

I have been needling around that idea for a while. I think I may release it more alongside a video on Critical Role Campaign 3 when I can get to it. It's been a very interesting topic that I just haven't been able to tackle yet, but I find the topic most useful when discussing negative reaction to CR 3

[@Psycomega1]

@PlayYourRole I could only imagine, and I'm sure you've got your work cut out for you. Just don't forget that in using characters as examples and references for the topics you discuss, you are already teaching aspects of media literacy implicitly! Oh, and since you suffer the life of an interactive creator, I just wanted to say that I love your work, man.

[@Garrett236]

I've always approached high Intelligence characters as the awkward genius. They'll relay the information, but go on tangents while doing so. They, like you said, learned a specific bits of knowledge that apply to this situation. They step up to the plate and solve the problem because they just... know it. Maybe it's expected of them to know it as part of training (Arcana for a wizard). I also have the character speak in absolutes most of the time. They don't think or guess, they know. Being a forever DM I try to add a bit of narrative to it. For example: The party approaches a stone monolith in front of the ruins. There's a plaque with unusual writing on it. Being a language nerd (a fact that's probably been revealed before), my wizard character runs over to it and begins to translate. "The writing is in Abyssal. This used to be a temple dedicated to Talona. Followers would sacrifice diseased people or force them to ingest poison as a rite. Sometimes it would lead to the followers becoming afflicted themselves, which they considered a high blessing in her name." Rest of the party looks like "wtf is this guy talking about?" Me noticing their stares, "It was a part of my teachings at the academy. You'd be surprised how a cane rod can motivate one to overachieve..." I flex my hand instinctively.

[@VanNessy97]

"I don't know everything, I just know what I know." - Hanekawa Tsubasa

[@Bloodyshadow1]

I think another great example of a well done jerky genius is Beau also from critical role. even before she got her circlet, she had a 14 int, but she due to her monk subclass she had a lot of proficiencies that helped her with more varied information that someone like Caleb had. When she rolled for int, it was explained that since she was abducted by monks and forced to be a part of their library and she was a smart girl so she learned against her will. Even when she became more comfotable with her friends, she uses her time trapped in the library as an excuse for what she knows instead of being confident. And what helped sell her being smart is that she spent a lot of time in the library investigating topics, and has a thirst for knowledge. Matt had Marisha roll for history or religion to find out information to help the group, it's not just she has it already, it's something she has to earn

[@mizublackriver7021]

I hate how they butched Sherlock in the BBC series. Because I'm the book he instigate others, specially Whattson to reach the conclusion, he knows what it is already yes, but he instigate others to see on his eyes, which I find fascinating. And is a Opium addict but shhhh

[@BomberNut]

Playing' an Inquisitor Rouge in ToA that's suppose to be smart and felt like I wasn't meeting the bar for that. But your video helped validate to me that I am doing my part mostly, by teaching other player characters things they didn't know. Thanks for wisdom and advice Jay! ^^

[@andrewdiaz3529]

Always loved that Tumblr post that summed up Sherlock perfectly to the point the guy who made the entire genre of long as hell video essays about it said was better than his video "We only thought Sherlock was smart because we were like 14 and didn't know anything about storytelling or how to tell actual good writing from fools gold in crap that was covered in perfume" or something like that

[@gristen]

i was on tumblr back during the peak of superwholock and god im so glad i never got into any of it. i saw a clip of the "mind palace" scene a few years ago and it was so ridiculous it had me dying 😂 cant imagine how anyone ever watched that with a straight face, its practically a parody

[@Gir0Fan0Number01]

I needed this. I have an artificer character in a campaign who's supposed to be very intelligent, in a party of idiots. Which has left me as a player feeling a lot of pressure to know, plan, and ask for all the smart and relevant information/situatuons. And I've been stuggling a lot with it lately. This has helped me shift that perspective, and see why some situations have been easier to navigate in the campaign than others. Hopefully it'll help improve my roleplaying for that game, and I'm gonna bookmark this to come back to if I get frustrated again

[@vincentabramo7175]

I am currently playing a kalashtar barbarian with 14 INT. It's not extremely high but above the average intelligence. He has gained knowledge from others that traded with his people's goods (decorative pottery, furs etc). I have him being able to use hunting traps, snares and even alchemical bombs. He has awareness of knowledge but knows his current limits. He only speaks up to the party about certain matters but lets others share their worth too.

[@Archy_The-Wizard]

The way I let the intelligent character shine in my games is a mix of two things: 1) I often DM information that will be important to that player before the session. Letting them suddenly say something that was unknown without having to ask me. 2) (Risky) I let my players make shit up on the spot. Sometimes they knew something even I didn't. As a DM I still hold the power to decide how much of what they say was true vs legend, but so far I've let almost everything be true. (It's a cooperative story telling game and this has enriched my world without me needing to do any work.) Since I do that with all characters, not just the smart ones, it lead to very interesting situations where a character will bring up a new piece of info, and the other players have no idea if it's something I DMed them or something they made up, as such, even as players, they have to judge the character that's talking to figure out if it's true or bullshit.

[@firekirby123]

I just recently started playing a high Int, low Cha archeologist, and I cannot agree enough with the mentality of finding ways to prove intelligence through the character. One of the things we knew going into the campaign was that an ancient civilization with a dead and forgotten language was going to be at the centeral core of the story, and the DM actually made a full cipher language for the ancients. When I heard this, I immediately jumped for the archeologist angle, not only because it would let me directly interface with the core mystery surrounding the story, but because I love ciphers and knew that in play, it would let me display this personal interest as a character trait to showcase my character's intelligence. So far, we've encountered enough that I've started to crack the language, (it's a simpler substitution cipher) and am starting to get to the point where I have the full alphabet. Once that happens, I'm fully planning to set up SRS flash cards to actually *learn* the language myself and sight-read it in game. Also, cannot stress enough how much more fun it is to play a character that _wants_ to share knowledge. My character will talk to EVERY academic with the assumption that they ALSO have something they could teach her, despite 9 times out of 10 having already learned more about the subject than they have due to... well, being an adventurer protagonist. :p But even still, this leads to asking in-character questions and creating a narrative bridge of being able to reinforce information you've gathered through your intelligence rolls through role-play opportunities. For example, "Hey, I keep seeing the name Ardor written across all these ancient texts, does that name have any significance in this country's history?"

[@selfiestick1589]

"the lesson is that if you are the smartest person in the room you are aloud to treat everyone else like dogshit" Thats the character flaw they have to overcome, Dr. House for example doesn't and he's punished for it

[@ayhcenkard2965]

How to write a character to b genius 1.curiosity 2. observant 3. Resourceful 4. Creativity Knowing everything doesn't make one genius but one keen to question everything is

[@Thispersonisreal]

Gale from baldurs gate 3 is a good example of how to write a good intelligent character, smart person that doesn't downplay his fellows and usually provides just his wise insight on stuff

[@tatersalad76]

I like playing genius characters that are very old and not well-informed of events or developments that have happened in the last 20-50 years. So they're constantly asking the right people the right questions as opposed to knowing everything off rip. My personal favorite was playing a dhampir wizard who tried to take over the world 600 years ago, teamed up with an Adult Solar Dragon to blot out the sun, and was talked into giving up his plans by the heroes of that era. He retired to his keep with the Solar Dragon (ended up settling down with her) and they just had a happy marriage for several centuries. A world-ending event happened partway through, and he started hoarding every piece of history he could acquire before bunkering down. He's adventuring now to see if the world is ready to be exposed to his sealed artifacts and can progress. But he's also out of touch and out of practice, with a deep appreciation for talking things out

[@oakenshadow6763]

I just rewatched Sherlock. Loved that show so much.

[@DParkerNunya]

Sherlock is not a good show about Sherlock Holmes, its just got some fun drama and shipping. They cannot write Sherlock Holmes at all, but they do a few things worth enjoying.

[@BlueSpams]

Playing a high intelligence, high wisdom character in one campaign was really fun, as the rest of the party found it refreshing to have a wizard who was just genuinely kind, polite and helpful, rather than a wizard who came off as condescending and arrogant.

[@dekdenfor9770]

This is why I love The Doctor. His best moments are when he's teaching someone something new, excited at the opportunity to share his knowledge.

[@moxx2298]

I love Sherlock hate. I am here for it

[@DirewolfMemento]

Senku is best example of a friendly genius

[@halosithmaycry3529]

I like another form of this: a character with average intelligence but is rich with wisdom and tactics. They are not the inventors or heavy hitters, they are strictly the tactical leader of the party and plan everything. I did this once, a fighter who leaned into the whole fighter is your jack of all trades with every stat, but they were leagues and leagues ahead of the rest of the party in terms of strategy and tactics, and thus became the guy who the entire group would expect to create the broad strokes. You do want to check with your DM and group if they are chill with you taking up that role first though.

[@jamicassidy7955]

I feel that the most enjoyable intelligent characters are also deeply kind and considerate. Using their intelligence to help people and build a good life for themselves, as well. Using their skills of observation and reading situations to nudge events in a positive direction. And the most enjoyable intelligent villains have the same abilities but do the opposite.

[@sasha1mama]

Guy Ritchie Holmes is best Holmes. I find displaying intelligence in a healthy way is best done, like you said in the thumbnail, to teach, not insult. Say a party member is wondering aloud about some contraption they aren't familiar with. As the Smart Guy, you could simply bust out the explanation and tell them how it works...or you could ask "Would you like to know how it works?" Create a point of engagement, then point out on the machine. "Alright, you see this catch here?" "Yeah." "Well, this does x, which makes the y there unspool, you see? Tripping the z and activating the machine." "And then it does the thing?" "Precisely." It's showing rather than just telling, creating engagement and interest that elevates, rather than depresses. Like you said, teaching. Or you could just be me and passively exposit one of the four and a half billion floating-pont factoids drifting around the inside of my head when it's relevant. You'll get carped at for being a walking encyclopedia, but you shrug impassively. "I consume a lot of random data. I just happen to know about this, and thought I'd share." It's a very passive, middle-of-the-road sort of sMoRt, but it works. I may also be a sociopath, but eh. I am that which engaging with mankind turned me into.

[@Nutellla]

Me using this in real life to sound intellegent:

[@Spaizman]

Lmao, underrated comment

[@johannesreus5154]

I loved playing my ever-curious chaotic good necromancer wizard. I roleplayed his Intelligence mostly by getting excited about knowledge and secrets, teaching the party about things when asked and his absolute obsession over finding out how to bring back a soul from the realm of the dead. He'd also try to always find a reason for everything instead of reaction emotional so when one party member died and he was stammering "why?" over and over again it really hit home

[@gerdost]

I never watched Sherlock but I did watch House and loved it. I've heard that house is supposed to be Sherlock but in medicine, but I had no idea how similar they are until you showed the charger scene

[@runelt99]

A thing important to remember is that Dr House, while an asshole, has the audience's side. Whenever he is acting like a douche, 9/10 the person in question is either hiding something or deserves it. Whenever he talks to children, he treats them much better and I can still remember that episode where he started out shit talking one girl until he tried to get something and the girl went 'dont touch me' and he goes silent. The next scene, he points out that she was raped. Like, He may be an asshole, but he's not THE asshole.

[@smatt9132]

To be fair, the remark where only a drunk person struggles to plug in their phone is a reference to something Holmes says in the original novels, except it's a pocket watch. The man was a drunk and Holmes figured it out because he struggled to rewind it.

[@benjaminjane93]

The way I play my characters who could fall into “intelligent” is I play them very still, confident, and curious to learn new information and skills. You don’t need to play into the “ I have no social skills because I am smart” trope to play an intelligent character. In real life, most real people with social skills are fairly intelligent because you need to be intelligent to have good social skills.

[@EgotisticApe]

I played a bard in my campaign who's parent were an Archeologist and geologist. We had a dwarf ranger and we would just geek out a bit whenever we were exploring new caves and underground cities and stuff

[@daysand123]

This is why i wish we got another Robert Downey Jr. Sherlock Holmes movie. He was as ridiculous and prone to being called out as he was smart. In fact Scotland Yard barely tollerated him in the first movie because he got involved a lot without many proper procedures despite having the right idea.

[@kenalbus]

When I play a wizard in D&D, one of the way I simulate being highly intelligent is to have a huge variety of basic potions and scrolls available. When the party encounters a situation where one of those consumable resources would help, my wizard gets to seem smart by always having something ready for the situation.

[@gwenfairholm8080]

Speaking as a dm, I think a really good way to show how smart your character is is to riff off of what the dm tells you after the check. Like if my player rolled a religion check to figure out what god the temple ruins they are exploring were dedicated to, and I tell them "you recognize a figure in the carvings on the walls to be the raven queen, goddess of the dead" and then they turn to the rest of the table like "look at this disc of darker stone around this figure's head. Judging by the age of the temple, I believe around the time period it would have been active, that particular imagery would indicate the goddess of death, the raven queen!", not only would I be absolutely thrilled at the role-playing, I'd absolutely add that to my notes and bring it up throughout the rest of the temple.

[@Fewz]

I don’t know if many people noticed this, but this video and everything he said go far beyond just DnD and explore the intelligent character trope people have in real life. Going on about how people aren’t made smart and what makes them smart is the fact that they’re born with it. There are so many things to cover. These aren’t just character tropes, they’re tropes people have. I enjoyed going through the subtle psychological analysis throughout this video.

[@franzgriffle6063]

Excellent point, as somebody who works in a teaching profession, I can definitely see where you’re coming from. A lot of the people who believe they are smarter than everyone in the room tend to be the ones who need the absolute most help refused to ask for it is true, but the most part it is. 10 out of 10.

[@CaedmonOS]

One of the favorite things I've ever done was a DM described the room and was about to ask for a perception check and I immediately just pointed at the thing that needed to be seen without needing a perception check.

[@VerbenaComfrey]

This is the first video of yours I've found! I am so happy to subscribe and hear more of you two!

[@mandos6145]

I had played a very smart wizard in D&D once, first time I had played a backline bandit and the way I played him was to quietly listen through what everyone said and share my thoughts on what they had said. He never actually really came up with plans, more tried to pick out the flaws in others and when he was confronted with a verbal joust, his intention was never to win but to share his perspective, which often ended with everyone thinking he had triumphed, one joust involving a discussion of chains, someone brought up how a chain could be used to harm, to be whipped at someone to cause pain, my character then shared that he much preferred how chains could connect things, because weapons come in all forms but chains are a bit more specific in connecting things and indeed how they connect things, with yet more connections. Towards the end of the run he had made an error made in an emotional state due to his friends essentially being held captive in a limbo between life and death but the thing he attempted to prevent with his blunder did in fact come to pass. I dont play with that table anymore, mostly because of how no one was willing to listen to me or my characters when we made our points but the first few sessions as that wizard were very fun and I enjoyed how I played him

[@kboizero]

We love to see more good content! Thanks so much for helping me, and everyone else watching, grow as players and GMs!!!

[@kekmitkeks9328]

Haven't seen any of your videos before, but I really like your takes, big ups man. Incidentally I love BBC's Sherlock but all of these takes totaly align with understanding of the show

[@gurth-quake1627]

I imagine a primary reason an intelligent person would rude to people who are less so would be out of annoyance because communication should be the most efficient way to find solutions to problems, but it turns out that that is not the case because the other people are not running at the same pace. Also, what you know would be more wisdom than intelligence, would it not? Knowing where to go to obtain knowledge and actually being able to learn it are 2 different things. The first I'd consider wisdom, while the other i'd consider intelligence. Intelligence would be recognizing and applying patterns, while wisdom would be the number of patterns you know ready to be applied. Wisdom is the information you have, and intelligence is the ability to gain new information. Knowing where to go to get information is wisdom, while being able to figure out where to go to get information is intelligence. They go hand in hand, and neither is nearly as effective without the other.

[@colbybarrett2416]

I just want to say that you are my favorite d&d content creator. I really like the positivity and kind vibes.

[@ebonyblack4563]

Two things that should legit upset/unsettle a genius character: 1. Somebody overtly wrong in their special field, especially due to a personal blindspot. 2. Somebody acting like they're trying to compete/offended the genius knows something their character doesn't. How the genius deals with this depends on their personality, but those should almost always bother them on some level.

[@Rolaran]

One of the greatest examples I've encountered in fiction of a genius who uses their knowledge to help others is Madame Therese Ferrier from the webcomic "Lavender Jack". Billed as the "world's greatest detective" in the same vein as Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot, she is able to instantly pick up on details that everyone around her misses, and quickly outpaces the city inspector assigned to "assist" her on the case. However, rather than chastise the inspector for slowing her down, she begins helping her develop her skills as a detective, showing her how to find new information in the facts she has gathered and spot potential clues. Later on, when the inspector uses a combination of those skills and her own superior knowledge of the city's social dynamics to beat her to the punch on a crucial piece of evidence, Madame Ferrier's reaction is one of genuine, delighted pride. She uses her immense intelligence and experience not to bust people down for not being on her level, but to raise them up to the point where they can be her equal or better.

[@lowlife1368]

In Star Wars legends, grand admiral thrawn was one of the smartest characters ever created in the series because he knew how the importance of task delegation. He was only one person and he couldn’t do everything, he surrounded himself with specialists who understood complex information about different tasks. Whenever then acted together as a unit, Thrawn was rewarded greatly on and off the battlefield.

[@DoubleCritFail]

15:06 Golden Advice.

[@docomalleyd4279]

The sponsor section was adorable. The rest of the video was really good and you've earned my sub for it. I honestly wish I had players like you back when I had the time to be a dungeon master.

[@nahlannentrela5376]

"You haven't learned all the lore of the world, word by word, I hope!" Me, side-eying myself awkwardly because I've been DEVOURING all the history and knowledge of the d&d setting for a few Years now

[@zacharypierce2587]

The author here is talking down to us in this video. He speaks as if he has a greater understanding, and instead of coming across as a patient teacher, he chooses to speak to us as if we are wasting his time. As if we walked into his home and said," Please, wise one, tell me about smart people" I think it's more common then people want to admit, especially people with a decent level of academic knowledge. Emotional knowledge is something that takes them longer to come by. Sherlock is a genius, an immature genius.

[@_thorkon]

I played a Arcane Trickster in one campaign that had a 22 INT by the end of the campaign obtained through various means. His backstory was that he started life as a common frog but swallowed a gem that granted him sentience since he lived next to a wizard's tower and the wizard would often throw things out of the window in fits of rage when his experiments failed (mechanically he was a Grung). Before the final fight of the whole campaign, he was gifted a "Potion of Intelligence" by a sort of mentor character the party met about halfway through the campaign, who turned out to be the wizard who made the gem. Said potion *doubled* your Intelligence score for 1d4 hours but then put you into a coma for that many days due to the mental fatigue. Was meant to just be a power boost for the final fight that the DM had warned us was going to be extremely difficult (everyone got something unique to their character for it). After the fight was over, my "Frogue", as we affectionally referred to him, still had a few hours left under its effects and during the "epilogue" where we discussed what the player characters would do when the campaign finished I argued that, with 44 Intelligence, he'd have the means to work out how to make the effects permanent. He did so, and became what my group now refers to as "The Smartest Frog in the Universe™". The problem was, his Wisdom was unnaffected and remained at like, 12, and we came to the conclusion that he would be smart enough to eventually realise that even though he had all the knowledge he could ever imagine, he wasn't wise enough to actually use said knowledge in any way that truly mattered. He then got super depressed about it and decided to return to frog by finding a way to safely remove the gem that granted him sentience in the first place, as life was a lot less complicated for him before he swallowed the damned thing. The party's Paladin helped him build a large pond/reserve in front within the courtyard of the castle the party had been gifted after saving the world from the BBEG, and Sir Robert Hoppington lived out the rest of his days happily leaping from stone to stone and eating bugs with the rest of his frog family.

[@stargazer1998]

A character in a story I’m developing is an inventor. He’s honestly one of the nicest people in the story, despite him eventually getting fed up with the mc. He is a superhuman who sells inventions to both heroes and villains, and often does extreme work for both sides (diving to the bottom of the ocean, going into a cave-in, shutting down interdimensional portals). However, he can get extremely stressed, because the sheer number of high pressure things he takes on can cause him to lose sleep or stop taking care of himself. He had been sheltering and providing for the mc for a few months. The main character kept getting into trouble and not running, causing him to keep saving them. Eventually, he gets fed up after saving the mc from yet another fight, explains the delicate political situation he and the mc are in, and how he keeps coming close to causing a war between his allies and other superhumans. He takes back all the stuff he gave the mc, and tells him that if he wants his help again, he has to prove he can survive, kicking him out of the house and making him live a month on his own.

[@InfiniteWavesTV]

The thing about my genius characters is that I rely purely on my own problem solving abilities while also playing to the character's flaws. Example: My time wizard, Jack, is know for trapping opponents. I'm playing her as a character who sees everything coming (though that's not the true case) and everything she does is calculated (at least in her later levels). She did have a habit of climbing things in her earlier years when it was totally unnecessary. She tends to accidentally burn forests. On the other end of that character though, she one-shotted a boss, ended a boss fight early, and fought a boss while holding a baby.

[@tessawidenhofer]

My very first character was/is a genius prodigy- which could have been a total trainwreck but wasn’t for two main reasons. One, aside from the DM I had the most dnd knowledge of the group, so we basically created a system where when he referenced a creature or something I can ask “does Evangeline know what I know?” and use my general lore knowledge to educate the other players in character about things that are dnd common knowledge (dragon color matters, that a spell exists, Vecna, etc.) so the pace wouldn’t get bogged down by tons of exposition. And two, her intelligence is directly linked to her anxiety and so she’s not deciding the one correct choice for the party to make but rather pointing out potential issues with all plans so they make the most informed choice together.

[@thatoneflowergirl9776]

In my campaign I’ve got a smart guy artificer who makes weapons for the party. But I’ve made it a point to show that she often fucks up royally with her own experiments with mixing magic and machinery - in the last session, she was with the local medics because an arcane kickback sent her flying and injured her. However, the things she does make for the party are always safe, and usually really help them out in tricky situations. But a part of the backstory I’m looking forward to revealing is why she’s so fixated on making new things all the time, risking further injury and not taking care of herself very well. She lost her bestie and lab buddy prior to the campaign starting (unrelated to their shenanigans) and because thinking about them brings up feelings and thoughts that she doesn’t know how to handle, she delves deep into making things because it’s the best distraction and she doesn’t know how else to deal with the emotions except work.

[@wipifire3244]

I love to play high wisdom and average intelligence characters because they are mostly funny helping others while not knowing much info about specifics. The character helps others become a better version of themselves and along the way my character increases intelligence by learning from others.

[@Angryauri]

Oh I currently play a wizard, a ornery over-worked librarian wizard who smokes cigarettes like a chimney, but her stance on the matter is that the acquisition of knowledge is holy, and while sharing and collaborating is important, the joy of discovering knowledge in and of itself is what is important so she never shares more than she needs (so that other people can dive deeper if they want to, and she will always provide resources if asked). This means she also respects the knowledge the other players may have - that she may not have - as she is essentially a library shut in and knows very little of the world outside of books despite her age of 350, and she is well aware of this fact.

[@angstydoodles1101]

Fun fact: I loved BBC's Sherlock for the longest time until I rewatched a couple years later and found out I gaslit the fuck out of myself by "writing" fanfiction in real time. I made up countless scenes, overarching plotlines, and even whole episodes that never happened, and I believed it was all real. For the entire second time I watched it, I was like, "Oh, boy, can't wait for this to happen." Imagine my surprise when it never did. None of it did because it was all in my head. Everything good about Sherlock was my own making, and that was a crushing realization that took several episodes of bated breath to sink in.

[@Thunderscreamer]

INT & CHA, more so than any of the other 6 stats, are made complicated in that your real life abilities blend with your characters. No matter how Wise you are, it’s on your character’s stat block to determine if you perceived the hidden thing, but there is no roll for coming up with a clever plan or quip that ever quite feels authentic. That’s why I think it’s so important to learn a little bit about your character’s subject of knowledge. If you want to play a smart character, nothing in this world will make you feel more like this genius than doing a bit of learning ahead of time

[@titusfortunus2916]

I play an inventor genius know-it-all. He isn't insulting at all, he overly explains and excitedly teaches everything. ... the other characters blow him off and call him annoying and say they don't care and don't want to learn.

[@star2playsstarcraft219]

Honestly i played an extremely intelligent character artificer, the way i played them was making them not know almost anything, but be constantly searching for any bit of knowledge, any bit of lore, any scrap of scroll or his favorite... a good book. Have so many good memories with them and doing crazy things just for the sake of "knowledge"

[@JamesLockerby]

One of my favorite ways to play a high INT character is to play him as extremely excited and passionate about the most practically useless information. Like constantly trying to get across to the party that there is no evolutionary definition of a fish that includes all fish and not people and that it's important.

[@Hamun002]

I know I'm late to the party, but in the medical field(and more recently in other forms of teaching) the maxim has been "see one, do one, teach one". This is considered one of the best ways to learn something as an adult. For Doctors its highly effective, and if you're playing into this archetype I highly recommend incorporating this idea.

[@ToxicMynd]

My own example of playing a smart character was Dr. Spriggs, a kobold with a doctorate in engineering and medicine. Her steel defender was described as being connected to an implant che had put into her brain that allows it to piggyback off her instincts. She became the pseudo aunt to the sorcerer she took under her wing, it was his first adventure at 20 and Spriggs had 15 years on him worth of knowlage about magic and life experiences to share. She was never a jerk, but made no effort to hide her flaws. She was a chain smoking alcoholic. And her best piece of advice was "dont be a hero. People thing that any good thing a hero does is free and thats part of why they die in the end. Be a good person, let them see the dirt so they know they can be better like you with all of their flaws."

[@chadpeanut1995]

I will always love JJBA for prioritizing strategy, tactics, timing, outsmarting, pretending, and tricking compared to just their strength alone, characters like Joseph Joestar always comes to mind when thinking about an intelligent JoJo character.

[@kitkatkk2543]

I play an Artificer, obviously an intelligent character. He’s a straightforward and practical person (and also lacks a face to directly communicate his emotions). He’s a low charisma, high intelligence character, and the kind of person for whom communicating his findings directly and with little explanation makes sense. He doesn’t share how he does things with people because one of his formulas got him turned into a plasmoid in the first place, and he doesn’t want to inflict that on anyone else if he makes a dire mistake again. Just under the surface, he’s an insecure mess, but even outwardly, he’s not a jerk. He’s a little harsh when he thinks his friends are making mistakes, but he’s also constantly worrying that HE’S making a mistake.

[@emdivine]

6:35 "... disproven by its own inventor" I always want that part to be remembered! David Mech proposed the idea of the alpha wolf based on his original observations, and later also published the counter to his own flawed study.