Characteristic question

[Bazil]

Hi fellow Keepers

Last game one of my PC after interaction with artifact left only with 4 INT. And I don`t know how to role-play this? One of ideas - he`s now quite slow learner. Lower his skill increase to half, or just give him other way of it during investigator development phase. Slow interaction with other, penalty die for social skills and intelligence related skills for the first time(removed later), to show change of mind. Do you have any suggestions? 

 

[rust]

Hmm ... provided you are using the 6th edition of Call of Cthulhu, an INT of 4 is the equivalent of a not very bright gorilla's intelligence. The character should be unable to use any science or technology skills at all, and should otherwise have very much reduced intelligence related skills.However, I would not reduce social skills which are not obviously intelligence based, the character is still a "social animal". As for learning new skills, you should probably take a look at animal training, because the character would probably do only a little better than the average dog or horse. Frankly, as the character's referee I would be very much tempted to tell the player to retire the character or at least to remove him temporarily from the game - for example in an asylum - until his condition can be healed.

Edited July 11, 2016 by rust

[Bazil]

I`m using  7th edition

[rust]

1 hour ago, Bazil said:

I`m using  7th edition

Unfortunately this makes it even worse, because with the 7th edition the character with an INT of 4 has only 1/5 of the intelligence of a not very bright gorilla from the 6th edition. 

[Mankcam]

The character is almost brain dead...

[Mysterioso]

Character is pretty much unplayable now and should be retired via placement in a sanitarium, which gives a hook for a future scenario.

[Darius West]

So basically the character is severely brain damaged.  They still eat and breathe and move but they are operating at an animal or infantile level.   They have lost most of the power of speech, but may remember simple words and commands, but behaviors will have to be trained as with animals.  They likely have no sense of self i.e. they have no reflexive association with the idea of themselves as a person, they cannot "be" they merely "do".  They have no notion of deferred gratification i.e. they cannot plan ahead.  They also have no theory of mind i.e. they don't identify with people and don't understand their relationship with other people because they don't recognise sentience in others or themselves. It goes without saying that they will not be toilet trained, and will have no notion of personal hygiene.  They may also become aggressive if frightened.  They will also scream quite a lot because they don't understand what they are doing.  They make Ruprecht the Monkey Boy seem like the model of civility.