How to RP low Int, high Wis?

[jaappleton]

Long story short, my Druid is a Bear that’s been cursed to be a Humanoid, and Wild Shape is the only way he can have his normal form again. When he’s not a Bear, he’s a Gold Dragonborn.

My Intelligence is 5
My Wisdom is 18

I can’t read, but I can speak and can recognize certain symbols. So if someone points to a sign on the road that states a town name, I can recognize that same jumble of letters as I enter the town on a sign that states “Welcome to Town Name”

How can I pull this off?

[Man_Over_Game]

Intelligence is related to memory and understanding how things work.

Wisdom is related to understanding what your own sensations are trying to tell you, and how things are.

So you don't necessarily understand things, but you do notice when they stand out. You can't piece together why someone is sad, but you definitely recognize that they are.


Likely, you are blunt, you take the simplest course of action (because why would anything else make sense?), and sometimes you recognize things about people that they're unwilling or unable to see in themselves.

You state things in factual, simplistic terms, even if they're something personal like an insult or a compliment. "You are beautiful, and are very graceful when you walk" might be something you'd say to a barmaid who you've met once. You might also say "You are being impolite. Why do you do that? Does being mean make you feel better?" to a jerk harassing the barmaid.

High Wisdom is about using common sense, and it's common sense to put things in their place, to bring the truth to light, and to not avoid confrontation due to a non-existent fear.

----------

In terms of your "sign" example, you know roughly what the sign is for, and you likely can piece together enough of the words of the name to sound it out. That, or you've heard of this town before, knowing its location and its name based on hearsay, and the sign (likely used to mark where it begins) puts all the pieces together. One of the aspects of Wisdom is hearing people (Perception) and tracking locations (Survival).

Or make it easy on yourself and just say that you "know" all the languages you're proficient in, but just aren't fluent in writing (but can still understand it).

[OracularPoet]

Debating with myself on this one: would Forrest Gump be high WIS?

[MaxWilson]

In a word, "feral cunning." Not clever per se, certainly not a human way, but smart like a fox or a wolf.

This is a case where if you just roleplay your backstory ("I'm a bear!") everything should just fall into place naturally.


Debating with myself on this one: would Forrest Gump be high WIS?

I think so, probably. He certainly showed plenty of mental and emotional fortitude, with things like his run through the jungle with Lt. Dan or his later run across the United States or building his successful business later on. I don't see anything that shows him as having remarkably high Wisdom (18) but there's nothing to disprove it either. I see his behavior as consistent with anywhere from Wis 12 to 18.

It's been a long time since I watched it so I may be overlooking some data. If there's ever a situation where someone provokes him intensely and he responds calmly and humanely despite that provocation, that would bump up my estimate of his Wisdom range.

[jaappleton]

In terms of your "sign" example, you know roughly what the sign is for, and you likely can piece together enough of the words of the name to sound it out. That, or you've heard of this town before, knowing its location and its name based on hearsay, and the sign (likely used to mark where it begins) puts all the pieces together. One of the aspects of Wisdom is hearing people (Perception) and tracking locations (Survival).

Or make it easy on yourself and just say that you "know" all the languages you're proficient in, but just aren't fluent in writing (but can still understand it).

Emphasis mine.

That's actually incredibly easy for me to imagine, because my wife is Dominican and I'm Irish. I'm mostly fluent in Spanish, I can have a conversation, but I can't read it to save my life. :smallbiggrin:

[iTreeby]

Debating with myself on this one: would Forrest Gump be high WIS?

His highest stat is definitely con but I'd say he displays quite a bit of wisdom throughout the film.

[Sigreid]

Not really a conflict. There's a saying "intelligence and wisdom are often strangers". Don't over complicate things. Deal with every person and situation from a core issue perspective. Don't look for wheels within wheels.

[kyoryu]

Makes good decisions, can come up with good plans. Doesn't have much use for "book learning" and can't figure out puzzles.

Experience and cunning. They've seen how stuff plays out, and know how to make it play out to their advantage, but they probably can't explain why it works or use fancy words to describe their plan.

[Man_Over_Game]

His highest stat is definitely con but I'd say he displays quite a bit of wisdom throughout the film.

High Dex, Medium Strength, High Con, High Wisdom, low Intelligence, average Charisma.

If he was a class, he'd be a Dexterity Champion. Low on skills, but does anything he does do very well.

[Willie the Duck]

The first question I'd ask is: does this character want others to know they are low-int (or more accurately, the they strongly want others not to know)? Everyone I know in real life who prolonged exposure has allowed me to figure out are 'cagey, but unintelligent' seem to be exceedingly scared that people will figure this out and have elaborate covers for such things -- "he's not dumb, just vacuous and shallow," "She's not dumb, nerds were picked on a lot in her high school and she never got over it, so doesn't admit to any kind of intellectual interests," etc. That might not work for a bear, but maybe. Give him some kind of tell that others can catch, but only if they are looking for it.


Debating with myself on this one: would Forrest Gump be high WIS?

I don't feel he maps to D&D stats very well. He's simple, probably not intelligent, but his memory is fine. Likewise he's actually exceedingly sensible, which I consider a high wisdom state, but who knows about willpower and the like. Plus his awareness is all over the board. In some ways, Forrest Gump maps real life better than what the D&D Int/Wis system has evolved into.

[JackPhoenix]

I wouldn't focus on Int and Wis, but on the fact that the character isn't a human(oid).

It's a bear. Smart bear, sure, but it should still behave primarily as a bear. It's smart enough to understand it's weaker in humanoid form, but also that humanoid form offers it some advantages... opposable thumbs and spellcasting... it lacks in the natural form. It propably won't form elaborate plans or use it's abilities to their full potential, and it will likely behave in a more instinctual way. Bears don't care about justice, or wealth, or all that stuff humans do,[Citation needed] they care about their immediate needs, about food, about their territory, reproduction, etc..

[Grear Bylls]

I tend to think of low int and high wis as people like yoda. They talk strangely, but are incredibly wise. I might also think of an American Indian stereotype, being very in tune with the natural world.

[HappyDaze]

Since your character is smarter than the average bear, just ask yourself WWYBD (What Would Yogi Bear Do)?

[Naanomi]

Int/Wis disparities are not too tough to navigate... big Int/Cha disparities are harder for me, how eloquent can you be at 4 INT?

[Willie the Duck]

Int/Wis disparities are not too tough to navigate... big Int/Cha disparities are harder for me, how eloquent can you be at 4 INT?

Elan (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/ootscast.html)would like to have some words with you.

[GlenSmash!]

Int/Wis disparities are not too tough to navigate... big Int/Cha disparities are harder for me, how eloquent can you be at 4 INT?

Charisma is the force of personality, i.e. getting people to do what you want. Eloquence isn't necessarily required.

I could point out some real world examples, but I don't want to bring politics into it.

[Naanomi]

Charisma is the force of personality, i.e. getting people to do what you want. Eloquence isn't necessarily required.

I could point out some real world examples, but I don't want to bring politics into it.
I had a 3e Sorcerer with 4 INT and 28 CHA... we were always amazed that people always agreed with my idiotic babbling

[GlenSmash!]

I had a 3e Sorcerer with 4 INT and 28 CHA... we were always amazed that people always agreed with my idiotic babbling

Sounds like they really had the best words. Tremendous words. Really the best words.

[Talakeal]

Int/Wis disparities are not too tough to navigate... big Int/Cha disparities are harder for me, how eloquent can you be at 4 INT?

Stereotypical blonde bimbo (of either gender) fits that pretty well.

[strangebloke]

Simple.

Your mental capability is geared towards your senses, IE, the things that are right in front of you. Abstract things like math, trade, or political theory will be hard, but tangible things that directly effect you will be easy for you to pick up on.

So you'll notice when someone is in pain. You'll know how to sort out and make sense of your own feelings. You'll see that a bridge's supports are too weak even if you can't do a complex structural analysis. You rely more on your instincts and judgement than on any kind of inspection or logic. When your friend dies, you'll be sad/angry, whatever, but you'll know why you're feeling the way you are.

Compare that to a low-WIS, high-INT character, who might be incredibly upset at the death of someone he didn't acknowledge as a friend and wouldn't know why.

The most common form of a high-WIS, low-INT character would be the simple but wise folksy farmer archetype. Samwise Gamgee, Forrest Gump, Davos Seaworth, etc.

[dragoeniex]

Another interpretation I've seen people take is Intelligence as "book smarts" and Wisdom as "street smarts." You can still have a smart character with low Int when looking at it that way; it's just that your formal schooling/learning areas are deficient.

I agree with a couple of the earlier posts saying it'd be enjoyable to focus on the differences of bear wants vs human wants. You could pair that with a dumb but perceptive character, but you don't have to. The character is likely still teachable and will just take extra time and effort to train on any given Humanoid Thing.

So maybe bear friend can ask about looking for hidden cave entrances to the castle, etc. Sound strategy- just different wording, and might not know you can raise a trellis until told how the lever works. Retains that information for future levers.

...

All that and all these suggestions aside, though, you really should just play the character how you want. :) Don't worry if it isn't a perfect stat match; it doesn't have to be. You've got the mechanical limiters built in for certain types of checks already, and how far you go past that is up to you.

[Naanomi]

Mechanically low INT means...

-you don’t know/can’t recall information across all domains
-you have trouble finding clues and some kinds of hidden things
-you are easily fooled by illusions
-you are not very resistant to some forms of mental/psionic attacks
-intellect devourers kill you quickly
-you are (in general) a poor craftsman
-you cannot excel in wizardry

Lots of ways to fluff all that adequately... plain old stupidity, simple thinking, lack of education, etc

[Man_Over_Game]

Int/Wis disparities are not too tough to navigate... big Int/Cha disparities are harder for me, how eloquent can you be at 4 INT?

Charming smiles, well timed winks, relaxed but friendly handshakes. You don't truly understand personal space, but you're warm and kind enough that it actually forces people to get out of their shell. You don't really know what's going on, but you've perfected the nods and the "uh huh's" well enough to fool most people not paying attention, and you're quick to change the topic to things you CAN understand, which most people feel like is less of a reflection as to how dumb you are, but rather it makes them feel like they were bothering the prince with details about laundry.

It's a bit tricky, sure, but just imagine what a dumb, charming prince would do.

[Keravath]

Intelligence is related to memory and understanding how things work.

Wisdom is related to understanding what your own sensations are trying to tell you, and how things are.

So you don't necessarily understand things, but you do notice when they stand out. You can't piece together why someone is sad, but you definitely recognize that they are.


Likely, you are blunt, you take the simplest course of action (because why would anything else make sense?), and sometimes you recognize things about people that they're unwilling or unable to see in themselves.

You state things in factual, simplistic terms, even if they're something personal like an insult or a compliment. "You are beautiful, and are very graceful when you walk" might be something you'd say to a barmaid who you've met once. You might also say "You are being impolite. Why do you do that? Does being mean make you feel better?" to a jerk harassing the barmaid.

High Wisdom is about using common sense, and it's common sense to put things in their place, to bring the truth to light, and to not avoid confrontation due to a non-existent fear.

----------

In terms of your "sign" example, you know roughly what the sign is for, and you likely can piece together enough of the words of the name to sound it out. That, or you've heard of this town before, knowing its location and its name based on hearsay, and the sign (likely used to mark where it begins) puts all the pieces together. One of the aspects of Wisdom is hearing people (Perception) and tracking locations (Survival).

Or make it easy on yourself and just say that you "know" all the languages you're proficient in, but just aren't fluent in writing (but can still understand it).


Just a quick comment but I think the two example sentences above are far too complex for a 5 int character.

"You pretty. You walk smooth."

"You mean. You stop. Why you do that, you happy?"

Grammar, vocabulary ... these are things a 5 int character would not be good at.

If you want an interesting way to play this then I would suggest choosing a 50 to 70 word starting vocabulary. Allow party members to teach you up to an additional 30 (or maybe more) but you should have a very limited vocabulary and very basic sentence structure. A typical 3 year old has up to about 200 words so you might look at that as a limit though a 3 year old learns much faster than you will.

P.S. It also depends on how your table interprets the int stat ... for some it reflect education .. and for others a measure of actual intelligence ... this has huge implications for role playing it.

The players handbook defines Intelligence as: "Intelligence measures mental acuity, accuracy of recall, and the ability to reason." So, at least based on the players handbook, a low int goes far beyond a simple lack of formal education. Lack of mental acuity and recall would tend to support simple sentence structures and limited vocabulary.

[Man_Over_Game]

Just a quick comment but I think the two example sentences above are far too complex for a 5 int character.

"You pretty. You walk smooth."

"You mean. You stop. Why you do that, you happy?"

Grammar, vocabulary ... these are things a 5 int character would not be good at.

If you want an interesting way to play this then I would suggest choosing a 50 to 70 word starting vocabulary. Allow party members to teach you up to an additional 30 (or maybe more) but you should have a very limited vocabulary and very basic sentence structure. A typical 3 year old has up to about 200 words so you might look at that as a limit though a 3 year old learns much faster than you will.

That's valid, but it's important to note that there's a separation from Intelligence to Charisma and Wisdom, where many real people might often associate those things with one another, but DnD actually incentivizes not utilizing these stats together. To me, that implies that what "we" define normal Intelligence to be is not the same as what a low Intelligence means in DnD.

For example, someone talented in Wisdom is capable of understanding complex emotions, applying medicine, and knowing how to make and read a map. Most spellcasters in DnD utilize Charisma, and they're often classes well associated with being at home amongst educated and civilized folk (Paladins, Bards, Swashbuckler Rogues who know 6+ skills/languages). Bards, with having a Lore subclass, capable of learning a ludicrous number of skills, graduates from their "college" with an 8 Intelligence at the top of their class and being one of the best adventurers in the game.

So while a 5 Intelligence in our standards would mean that they couldn't read or write well, or that they couldn't understand complex thoughts, it doesn't really seem to imply that they don't know how to talk properly, or there'd be some kind of limiting system in place to have it follow that narrative. For example, making it so that one intellectual stat cannot be more than 3x more than either of the other two, and then do the same for the physical stats, or something along those lines. But they don't.

As an Intelligence 5 character, I'd honestly say that character would be punished enough as it is. Trying to justify being a high wisdom but mentally crippled adventurer just doesn't sound like someone's idea of a good time. Trying to figure out how to use your Expertise + 10 Insight when you can't talk isn't the kind of puzzle most people look forward to.

[GlenSmash!]

That's valid, but it's important to note that there's a separation from Intelligence to Charisma and Wisdom, where many real people might often associate those things with one another, but DnD actually incentivizes not utilizing these stats together. To me, that implies that what "we" define normal Intelligence to be is not the same as what a low Intelligence means in DnD.

For example, someone talented in Wisdom is capable of understanding complex emotions, applying medicine, and knowing how to make and read a map. Most spellcasters in DnD utilize Wisdom, and they're often classes well associated with being at home amongst educated and civilized folk (Paladins, Bards, Swashbuckler Rogues who know 6+ skills/languages).

So while a 5 Intelligence in our standards would mean that they couldn't read or write well, or that they couldn't understand complex thoughts, it doesn't really seem to imply that they don't know how to talk properly, or there'd be some kind of limiting system in place to have it follow that narrative. For example, making it so that one intellectual stat cannot be more than 3x more than either of the other two, and the same for the physical stats, or something along those lines. But they don't.

As an Intelligence 5 character, I'd honestly say that character would be punished enough as it is. Trying to justify being a high wisdom but mentally crippled adventurer just doesn't sound like someone's idea of a good time. Trying to figure out how to use your Expertise + 10 Insight when you can't talk isn't the kind of puzzle most people look forward to.

Indeed.

As far as I know there is no rule in 5e that would stop a 5 Intelligence character from being able to speak, read, and write in all the languages granted by its race and background.

A DM might rule differently of course.

[Eurus]

The Discworld witches, like Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax are a decent way to think about this, I think.

No no, hear me out. Granny's "intelligent", yes, but the real-world definition and the D&D definition of that don't necessarily click. The witches are a great example of people who are extremely insightful and mentally resilient, but aren't necessarily quick learners (in part because they just don't care to be!). Intelligence 5 is pretty extreme on the low end, but keep in mind what intelligence is and isn't. An intelligence 5 character is still fluent in one language, even if they can't read or write. They might have a very poor memory, or an extreme lack of education.

...That's what I'd normally say, anyway. For a bear that's been cursed to be human (the poor thing), you could probably have some mangled language skills if you think that'd be fun. There's less of a question floating about "how did this guy survive to adulthood" because, well, he didn't. :smallbiggrin:

[strangebloke]

Indeed.

As far as I know there is no rule in 5e that would stop a 5 Intelligence character from being able to speak, read, and write in all the languages granted by its race and background.

A DM might rule differently of course.

Yeah, I use the INT stat more as a 'analytical reasoning' stat. Animals have low int, but they also lack important features like reading and writing common, etc. If you talk to an animal, they sound a lot like a dim person... but they're actually a lot dumber than that since they've never learned anything.

Like, a guy might be as dumb as his horse, but the horse has never studied anything and doesn't even care to know super basic facts of life, like, where does the hay come from?

Features = acquired skills (animals have almost nothing here)

Wisdom = awareness of self, others, and world around you (animals are pretty good here.)

Intelligence = memory and ability to work with complex abstract concepts (assuming they can be communicated, animals can actually think about things like death, colors, and abstract shapes.)

Charisma = force of personality and skill at representing oneself to the world. (animals are pretty bad here too. Humans are comparatively quite good at communcating what they're feeling to an animal.)

[Tanarii]

Avoid doing things that result in Int checks, but do things that result in Wis checks often.

[Vorpalchicken]

You should RP it by using a quarterstaff and shield with Shillelagh and Polearm mastery to maximize your AC and DPR!

[kamap]

With high intelligence you know tomato is a fruit but high wisdom tells you it doesn't belong in a fruit salad.

[Skylivedk]

High wis: instinctive understanding the the bad guys are up to no good.

Low int: not capable of connecting the missing Princess' necklace with the shiny necklace around BBEG's neck as being proof of a crime-> no/low level of deduction

[vonBoomslang]

Mongo only pawn in game of life.

[ChildofLuthic]

Avoid doing things that result in Int checks, but do things that result in Wis checks often.

IDK how serious this answer was but it's pretty much the right one. A character with high WIS would make perception checks not investigation checks. (I perceive the floor is a bit wet but I can't figure out that it flooded recently.) They would try to make friends with animals (Animal handling) but not try to figure out what kind of animal they are (nature.) They would be able to figure out that the elven king doesn't like that dwarf (insight) but not know that it's because the elves have a long history with dwarves (history).

[Tanarii]

IDK how serious this answer was but it's pretty much the right one. A character with high WIS would make perception checks not investigation checks. (I perceive the floor is a bit wet but I can't figure out that it flooded recently.) They would try to make friends with animals (Animal handling) but not try to figure out what kind of animal they are (nature.) They would be able to figure out that the elven king doesn't like that dwarf (insight) but not know that it's because the elves have a long history with dwarves (history).
It was serious. Roleplaying is making decisions for what your character does. An easy way to roleplaying a high ability score is to try to use it. And to roleplaying a low ability score is to try not to use it.

Of course, if you're intentionally roleplaying someone unaware of their weaknesses, you might intentionally (try to) do things the PC isn't very good at. Even if they're aware, it might be necessary to try those things anyway.

[GlenSmash!]

It was serious. Roleplaying is making decisions for what your character does. An easy way to roleplaying a high ability score is to try to use it. And to roleplaying a low ability score is to try not to use it.

Of course, if you're intentionally roleplaying someone unaware of their weaknesses, you might intentionally (try to) do things the PC isn't very good at. Even if they're aware, it might be necessary to try those things anyway.

It does work very well.

I mean I know my Zealot has a 9 Int and 14 Wis and I know what skills he has proficiency in. When presented with a scenario I naturally lean into my strengths. Perception, Insight, etc.

The result is a character who never really tries to recall past information about past stuff but just lives in the moment.

[Arcangel4774]

Plus his awareness is all over the board. In some ways, Forrest Gump maps real life better than what the D&D Int/Wis system has evolved into.

Makes me think of my girlfriends 1sr character. A little gnome ranger who was, like her, very trusting of everybody. Of course we took the dnd character and ratcheted it up to 11 so our dm basically had her insight count as negative. With high wisdom she believed everybody no matter how bold the lie.

[Crushgrip]

Long story short, my Druid is a Bear that’s been cursed to be a Humanoid, and Wild Shape is the only way he can have his normal form again. When he’s not a Bear, he’s a Gold Dragonborn.

My Intelligence is 5
My Wisdom is 18

I can’t read, but I can speak and can recognize certain symbols. So if someone points to a sign on the road that states a town name, I can recognize that same jumble of letters as I enter the town on a sign that states “Welcome to Town Name”

How can I pull this off?

I would just use their own form of proverbs. Kinda like the forrest gump suggestion. Some examples:

Never trust someone that smells bad.
There is always danger in cold, dark caves.
Someone wearing a bear-skin cloak is probably evil...or at least not trustworthy.
Always keep your enemy's in front of you!
Best uses of a tree: Scratch your back, escape from enemies, good sleeping spot.
Anything that does not exist in nature is unnatural! ;)

[N810]

I would RP it like a Buddhist monk that just left his temple for the first time,
Very wise but he know little of the world outside his element.

[darknite]

Low Int, High Wis? The typical archetype is the somewhat dim but battle-savy veteran.

[Keravath]

Here is how the players handbook defines the mental stats in terms of how they should be interpreted.

Intelligence: Intelligence measures mental acuity, accuracy of recall, and the ability to reason.

Wisdom: Wisdom reflects how attuned you are to the world around you and represents perceptiveness and intuition.

Charisma: Charisma measures your ability to interact effectively with others. It includes such factors as confidence and eloquence, and it can represent a charming or commanding personality.

These descriptions would appear to be intended to offer some guidelines for role-playing characters with particularly high or low stats in these areas.

Of course, players are free to completely ignore them ... they can play a genius character that comes up with brilliant tactics, strategic ideas, logically works out what the opponents are doing and comes up with a counter plan, notices that the party is spaced too closely together and warns them that they are vulnerable to an opponents fireball ... however, this is the PLAYER just paying attention to the mechanics. As long as the character isn't asked to roll an int based ability check then the PLAYER figures the character can do whatever they like.

I personally disagree with that approach since it is entirely mechanistic and role playing (again in my opinion) is not based on mechanics but on taking the traits that make up the character and role playing them. In some cases, this means that I would tend to play a very low int character as being less capable at "mental acuity, accuracy of recall, and the ability to reason.". So they would not be the one suggesting logical battle plans or figuring out logic puzzles even if I (as the PLAYER) might happen to be very good at these things.

This is actually one reason why I tend to never play a character with an int less than 10 ... I just don't find the constraints from a role-playing perspective to be much fun usually. However, that is just my approach, others are free to play a genius with a 5 int as long as they avoid int checks and try to avoid intellect devourers. :)

As far as having low stats in one area and high stats in another ...

low int, high wis - the character is not logical but is very perceptive and insightful. They are not good at medicine because they can figure out what is wrong, they are good at medicine because they can instinctively see what the patient needs. Their medical technique might be atrocious but they are more likely to do something that will help the patient rather than harm them. The same would apply for the other wisdom based skills. They can see and instinctively interpret the situation without needing logical reasoning to do so.

low int, high cha - this can simply be force of personality. There are prominent real world examples of people who could qualify as low int and high cha. They don't need to be eloquent or have a fancy vocabulary but people do listen to what they say. Their appeal is not based on logic or reasoning or on what they say but more on how they say it.

Since all of the D&D mental stats cover a wide range of possible applications ... having a high stat doesn't mean they are automatically good at all aspects described and similarly, having a low stat may also not mean that they are necessarily bad at all of them ... but they are certainly very bad at some of them in that case.

Anyway, from a role-playing perspective, my take would be to read the descriptions of the behaviours and characteristics described by each of the stats in the players hand book and then decide which ones your character would be better or worse at based on your stats and then use the picture you develop of the characters capabilities as the basis for deciding how to role play them.

If the character you want to play can't be played with the stats you have assigned then you might want to consider just changing up the stats to something a bit less mechanically beneficial but more in line with the character as you envisage them.

[Misterwhisper]

To put it short and simple:

"I don't know exactly how this works but it seems like a bad idea."

[BMF]

I think you can play up different aspects of 'Intelligence' by creating deep weaknesses for your character without making them a drooling moron.

I created an Ancients Paladin that I had rolled extremely low INT and reasonably high WIS for. I created a backstory where my char was kidnapped as a child and raised in the Feywilds, then found his way back to the material plane as a teenager. The result was a character with passable cognitive capacity/reasoning skills, but basically no cultural or historical knowledge.

He wasn't some savant, but if there was a puzzle in front of him that you wouldn't need context for, he would have an OK shot at dealing with it. If there was a History check or some other kind of thinking exercise where he would need to understand how the world worked, I would often just declare my check a failure without rolling.

Seemed to be a fair way to do things without having to grunt and drool your way through social situations.

[Tanarii]

As long as the character isn't asked to roll an int based ability check then the PLAYER figures the character can do whatever they like.

I personally disagree with that approach since it is entirely mechanistic and role playing (again in my opinion) is not based on mechanics but on taking the traits that make up the character and role playing them. If the DM doesn't call for a check, then they have determined that either resolving the action isn't dependent on that ability score, or anyone can do it regardless of the score in the ability in question. Either way, resolving the declared action is not dependent on your score in an ability.