Made my own character sheets; What are your favorite styles?

[DreadArchon]

I'm pretty picky, so I made my own character sheets. (Linky. (http://www.rpgsheets.com/cgi-bin/arcdb.cgi?action=dl&id=3963)) I keep an eye out for features to improve them, though, so I was wondering:

What character sheet designs do you use? Links would be nice.

[Arbitrarity]

Paper. Lots of lined paper.

Really.

:smalleek:

[Lòkki Gallansbayne]

That's a pretty sweet character sheet; I like the way it's organised. The first page is the most important stuff for combat, there's another page for inventory, another page for fluff and even a minisheet for familiars/animal companions (maybe V should started using these? :smalltongue:). Feels a fair bit less cluttered than the standard sheets, at any rate. Would be especially handy for caster types, I should image.

That said, I'm perfectly happy to use just about any style of sheet that lets me write down all the info I need in a vaguely ordered fashion, so I've never felt the need to make my own sheets.

[BlueWizard]

That's incredible! May we use it?

[Neon Knight]

Nice layout. I'd also like to use yours.

[vanyell]

the only way I could think of making this better, is to include some extra space for spells known. you have a line or two for each spell level, but even a bard will learn enough spells to over fill it.

and by the way, don't worry. yours is not the only one, I've never found one with enough space

[TheOOB]

I've always found the Mad Irishmans character sheets to be well made.

http://www.rpgsheets.com/data/MI_DnDCharSheet23.pdf

One of the best D&D char sheets you'll find.

[DreadArchon]

That's incredible! May we use it?
Thanks, glad you like it! And yes, certainly, you may use it. It took me hours to set up, I'd hate for it to go to waste! (Though, naturally, my own three players are likely to use it. I designed it specifically because my players needed lots of versatility but I didn't want to use more than two pieces of paper per character in my binder.)

:smile:


TheOOB: That sheet always comes highly recommended, but it always loads weird for me. There's a bunch of fields overlapping each other on each page. Are there settings that I need to change for Acrobat Reader to get it to display right? Do I need a different program version or something?

Edit: Vanyell, you're correct about the spell space, but when trying to make room for lots of spells, it's hard to make a character sheet that (1) covers all classes and (2) fits on 4 or less pages. (The PHB sheets have incredibly little room, as I'm sure you're aware, and the official updated WotC version is four pages long with no room for spells at all!)

[TempusCCK]

Right now I'm working on a system of... 'Here's paper everyone, yep, now, at the top write your characters name, then 1st level whatever your class is..." and so on and so forth using a very rough design. This way, they get to order things the way they like and I don't have to deal with the ugly black blocks that the standard sheet uses. Seriously, that's a graphical nightmare.

Maybe I'll make something I feel is a little more visually pleasing and put it online for all my favorites here at GiTP to tell me how much it sucks or something.

[Maxymiuk]

Nice...

One nitpick I'd make is that there's insufficient space for spells. But that may just be me, since I like to jot down a quick reference for what the spell does next to its name (for example, Cure Light - 1d8+lvl).

[de-trick]

if i have the sheet and not multiclassing i ussally get a class sheet so you dont have to have an blank spots on the character sheet

[Matthew]

Good stuff.


TheOOB: That sheet always comes highly recommended, but it always loads weird for me. There's a bunch of fields overlapping each other on each page. Are there settings that I need to change for Acrobat Reader to get it to display right? Do I need a different program version or something?

Odd. Looks fine on my computer. Four pages, no overlap.

[Gralamin]

Great automated sheets can be grapped here. (http://www.ssa-x2.com/)
Here's a sample of their work (http://www.ssa-x2.com/cgi-bin/load.cgi?products/X2/charsheet/files/SSA-X2_D&D_CharSheet_v252-ReaderSave.pdf)

[Tyger]

Looks really great. One of these days I have to learn how to use the Adobe program I paid so much for. Really want one (character sheet) that allows me to actually type my information into the various fields. I loathe handwriting on the sheet... just really anal-retentive I guess.

[EntilZha]

You really put a lot of effort into that sheet. Well done! :smallsmile:

[Generic PC]

I like the Diablo/ II word style. Very good, but maybe add an extension that is one page for Bard spells 1-6, Paladin/Ranger 1-4, and two pages for each of the other classes. just get a rough estimate of how many spells will be known (Arcane) or prepared, for each class, then implement that many lines for it.i originally thought of doing something like listing all the spells, then checking off ones you had prepared...but then realized that would be torture for you... god, imagine Cleric spells only, and then imagine Wizard/Druid

[tensen01]

Not bad... A little plain for my tastes, I like sheets that conjure up the feeling of the setting/game.

But I tend to use official sheets unless they're completely awful(aGoT d20!), in which case I make my own... with style ;)

[Human Paragon 3]

What the heck is magic rating? Is that anything like caster level?

[ocato]

Spells, unfortunately, are a filthy pain in regular old paper sheets. It's just a sad fact of the world, they are obnoxious. Pretty much, what I suggest is a sort of chart that has a spot for the save DC, whether it requires Somatic, Material, Focus, Divine Focus, etc etc, and then a little 'note line where you can write it in. Fantastic for Bards/Sorcerers, terrible for divine casters/prepared casters in general. If I can get away with it, I like laptop sheets for that reason. Yeah, they aren't as much fun, but just keeping it open and paged down to the spell list part is nice as a combination with your real sheet. Then you can click the question mark next to the spell name and get instant SRD info on it.

[DreadArchon]

What the heck is magic rating? Is that anything like caster level?
Ah, right. Yes, Magic Rating basically is caster level, but it advances like BAB. The rules are here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/magic/magicRating.htm).

I put that on because my game uses it, and I didn't think it would be too in the way for other people. Just one little field...

[Conjurer]

I'm a big fan of Emma's Character Sheets (http://www.emass-web.com/). I've used them almost exclusively for years now.

[Jimp]

Nice sheet, I like it :smallbiggrin:
Personally I prefer to write my sheets out on a sheet though.

[JellyPooga]

The character sheets I use (designed by myself) have 'optional pages'.

The 1st sheet is standard for everyone: Name, Race, etc. Ability Scores (Str, Dex, etc.), Speed, Basic physical/mental description (Eye colour, Alignment, etc.), Several 'boxes' for weapons, armour and other equipment used on a daily basis (like Ring of Protection or whatever), HP, AC...that kind of stuff.

2nd sheet is more or less devoted to Skills and subsidiary stuff like Encumbrance levels and the like. Again a sheet for everyone.

3rd sheet is equipment. That's it. (I tend to play rogue/spellcasters with lots of magical (and non-magical) nick-knacks and doo-dahs, so need a lot of space for 'stuff').

4th and 5th sheets is spells, so is optional for non-spellcasters. 4th sheet has spells/day and spells prepared for the day. 5th sheet is spellbook/spells known. Can extend to 6th sheet too at higher levels (wizards especially). Divine casters tend not to use sheet 5 ('cos they know all the spells on their list anyway).

6th and subsequent sheets, as standard, are blank and used for listing stats of minions, familiars and animal companions, making general notes, extra space for equipment, etc. I have a 'buddy' sheet pre-prepared for if you do have minions, familiars or animal companions, but it's not G.I. Alternatively, by printing 1-sided, the back of all previous sheets is devoted to this purpose.

[Citizen Joe]

I gotta agree with Jelly. 'Optional' sheets are good for spells. Have a small description of each known (castable) spell. Then have some check boxes to indicate how many are memorized. For some classes, this may literally become a spell BOOK given the number of spells possible.

In some cases, a separate sheet for equipment/possessions/stock portfolio may be necesary too.

Ideally, the DM should be able to fit critical information for 4-6 characters on one side of one sheet of paper.

[Whiplord]

Nice sheet! Very clean looking.

Personally, I'm a big fan of the character sheets over at www.sunrainstudios.com.

[Ethdred]

Paper. Lots of lined paper.

Really.

:smalleek:


Amen brother! I've always done a sheet for each character I have, so I can tailor it to what they need. The only addition I've made for 3.x is to have a standard skills sheet, 'cos that is a pain to write out each time. OK, I now do the on the PC rather than by hand, but my writing was always poor anyway. Most of the people I've gamed with who use templated sheets find there's not enough room or variation for something, and the sheets get very manky with all the rubbing out.

Actually, I've always found the sheet writing to be part of the character experience, but maybe I'm wierd.

[Overlord]

Spell lists are for lined paper paper clipped to the back/off to the side of your main sheet. Putting spells on your main sheet is just asking for trouble.

[lotofsnow]

Someone linked this above, but I like Ema's Charsheets (http://www.emass-web.com/) for the dynamic spell lists. Essentially, it lists abridged details for every spell from books you have access to for the class you choose, all organized by level. Saves a lot of work, in my opinion. I guess it could be kind of annoying to have every spell listed, even ones you don't/will never know, but I haven't found it to be troubling at all.

[LotharBot]

I like it. It's kind of the opposite philosophy from my Single-Page Character Sheet (MS Word format) (http://tomandcatherine.com/forumpics/charsheet31.doc). Solid and complete with sections for just about everything.

Suggestions:
1) in the AC section, you should note which parts of the AC apply to touch and flatfooted.
2) for my weapons, I like to have enough space to write out where my total attack bonus comes from. My current character has contributions from BAB, DEX, size, weapon enhancement, a feat, competence (ioun stone), and a spell (heroes feast). If all I have is a box for the total, it's hard to remember whether I've accounted for everything.
3) I really like your single attacks / full attacks section. But if you marked the weapons "A B C D" instead of "1 2 3 4" you could simplify that even more. Full attacks could read "+21 A +21 B +16 A +16 B +11 A" or whatever. My party rogue with his speed weapons would really appreciate something like that.
4) As others have mentioned, your spellcasting section is pretty small. You've got nearly a third of a page right above it dedicated to wands, staves, and cash-equivalents that seem unnecessary to me. Also, the whole section on animal companions etc. seems like the sort of thing that fits better on a notecard or separate sheet... a change to either of those sections could open up some space for a larger spellcasting area.

Overall, it's pretty neat. Not my style, but definitely nifty.

[I_Got_This_Name]

I used to have an MSword style that spread over 10 pages or so at its peak. I then slimmed it down to 1, in part by throwing out a whole bunch of overcomplicated house rules and only including what I needed on it (there was no need for a Spells section and a Psionics section, for example) and writing my spells in pencil on the back (I only used that format for a non-caster and a druid, though; book-casters and sorcs would have more permanent spells, and hence another page).

When I saw LotharBot's style, I knew it was simple brilliance immediately, and now use it for everything (and am in the process of switching my game group to it); I like it because there's no shuffling around, and it's self-auditing. The only complaint that I have is that character details have to be hand-filled, and I like typed character sheets (for reasonably static things, like max HP) which I can then update on the computer, so that I always have a digital backup (at most, they're a level or two behind). Also, spellbooks have to go on the back, or on a second page, but I don't particularly care about that; there's no way to fit them on the front anyway.

[UserClone]

I would have entirely cannibalized the seemingly useless "notes" section for spells/powers space(After all, that seems to be the most predominant complaint about character sheetses in general, and if your players want to take notes, have them use a notebook). Also, if you include the weight for worn items, and total carried weight, there should be a weight entry for shield+armor(I didn't notice whether there was one), and general, non-worn equipment(there definitely wasn't) as well.

[LotharBot]

When I saw LotharBot's style, I knew it was simple brilliance immediately, and now use it for everything (and am in the process of switching my game group to it); I like it because there's no shuffling around, and it's self-auditing. The only complaint that I have is that character details have to be hand-filled...

Hey, thanks, man... glad to hear someone liked it. For your benefit, here's a sample character sheet with text boxes you can fill out (http://tomandcatherine.com/forumpics/charsheet31sample.doc). It's not a perfectly elegant solution, but it works. (If you don't like the blue text, your printer should have a "print black and white" mode. I used blue to make it stand out.)

The self-auditing thing, I think, really helps new players. I have a campaign that's gone from level 1 to level 19, and I still have characters using other sheets who aren't sure if their attack bonus is calculated right, or where certain numbers come from. I think a key for any character sheet is, if you have a number that's going to change over time, leave a little space so people can calculate where the number comes from. This is especially true for AC, attack bonus, and certain key skills.

[DreadArchon]

When I saw LotharBot's style, I knew it was simple brilliance immediately...
Wow, yeah. Not sure I'll use it, but that's nice.


I would have entirely cannibalized the seemingly useless "notes" section for spells/powers space
I considered it. Some of my players want room for at least a few notes on the sheet, as they're used to having the backs of their sheets open and this is intended for double-sided printing, so I left it like this. There's nothing stopping someone from writing his spell notes in that space as it is, after all.