As a low int character you cannot read crucial books, even introductory chemistry probably. You have to stumble through your practical experiments, wasting tons of time and hard-to-get ingredients in failed attempts. I think this checks out from both gamist and simulationist perspectives. I mean, even someone really really stupid can learn to accomplish physical tasks (eventually) and we have specifically "applied science" in the game, not abstract theories.

Sorely tempted to ask you to create an Int 4 character and report back to us with you accomplishments, once you do reach the point of cooking up mutagen 😀