Experiences Your least liked and favourite part of a Character Sheet to do?

[Auda]

Nothing like making a Character Sheet for an RP and feeling a looming sense of dread as soon as you hit the 'post' button. Nothing like the sheer anxiety of waiting for approval and the thoughts of 'Your fucking character sucks' before going to bed to keep the blood pumping. Posting a character sheet for approval is literally that meme of the sad ant holding a bindle.

Moving on...

I was talking to some RP buddies and most of them said that they have the most trouble in writing either the personality or history/background of their character. It's understandable because it's quite literally the essence of your OC. While I do struggle sometimes on the personality of my characters, once I get in the groove everything else just falls into place, and it also makes writing the background of my character easier as well.

The bane of my existence however, the thing that keeps me awake at night, and the reason why I take so long in making a CS is the appearance section. I don't know why, but even if I have multiple high-resolution images of my OC my brain just short-circuits and it turns into criss cross applesauce. I can't transform the physical appearance of a character into writing and I don't think I've written an appearance for an OC that I've been satisfied with. I just make some shit up before moving on. A close second would be the miscellaneous parts of the CS. I'm talking likes and dislikes and headcanons. For likes and dislikes, I just feel like whatever I write is the most basic thing that most people enjoy or hate. Also there's a part of me that gets anxious because what if the thing I write is OOC for a character that I literally made. Make it make sense.

For my favourite part, it's definitely the powers/abilities section if the RP has it. It's the first thing I do and I base everything else about my character on it. I just love brainstorming and thinking of ways to either use an ability in an unconventional way than what It's supposed to do. I love thinking of ways to 'nerf' an ability and how to limit it so my character can only use it in a specific situation. Though sometimes I also do the most basic shit ever which I love. My favourite ability so far is definitely Telepathy or something similar.

With that out of the way, what are your favourite parts of a character sheet and your least favourite parts?

 

[Abyss]

Personality and History are the hardest for me, but once they *click* then they're also my favorites.

I think because both are influenced by eachother, it's hard to do them separately. I need to piece together who they are now, and what occurred in their past to shape them.

 

[Auda]

once they *click* then they're also my favorites.

Yes! Nothing more satisfying than when the Personality and History of a character complements each other.

 

[GojiBean]

Hoyo!

My least-liked section of a CS to fill out is... None of it.

I know, I know. That's kind of a cop out and sort of cheating. But it's true! I look forward to everything about creating a character sheet.

As for my favorite part, the bio. No question.

That's here I hide all the juiciest details about my characters under what usually appears to be generic jargon and "standard" backstory babbling. But if you really take a look at the bio sections I write there's always a little something or two in there which foreshadows something big that's going to happen to the character later on in the RP.

Cheers!

 

[GoldenKai4522]

The name.
I am cursed with wonderful creativity,
but when it comes to creating the perfect name,
to sum up the character in a fine bow,
I fall short. ;-;

 

[Jannah]

Everything tbh. I despise them and typically only do them if the RP or my partner requires them. It's always a chore. I'm the type of writer that has to write the character in the story to get a feel for them. I may then make notes of their traits in order to keep everything consistent as I'm writing.

 

[Idea]

Answer: Favorite part is coming up with it, least favorite part is actually typing it out.



Much more complex answer I was writing before the above came to mind:

This is a question that will very much depend on character to character and roleplay to roleplay. I make characters by building off a certain concept and many times it's the fact that it inspired me to that concept that draws me to a roleplay in the first place (which is also why having the character rejected at a core, and at times even the suggestion of such, especially if done because of a whim of the GM and not a better reason is one of the things that can most kill my motivation for an RP). Some concepts will lend themselves better to certain parts of the CS, like a personality-based concept will obviously make it easier to make the personality because it's what I came in for in the first place.

The CS template will also change RP to RP. Some RPs have special sections that can be very fun to write and some can have sections that have me rolling my eyes (mostly ones that contain details I generally think are an active detriment to bring up in the kinds of RPs I like).

There are two sections in the CS that can really jump up or down for me: Personality and coding. Personality can be quite interesting to write either when the character's selling point is a feature of their personality, or I'm envisioning the potential fun interactions of that personality with the other players in the future. Both of these are largely related to the kind of personality I'm going for, and partially related to what the other characters are like. On the other hand, characters that are exceedingly neutral or one-note in concept are a lot harder to write as they take a lot more effort to properly flesh out and give nuance.

Coding is incredibly satisfying in results, especially for some concepts, but by God can it be frustrating to hit my head on a wall over and over trying to figure out some tiny thing I mistyped or some nuance of the code that's making everything slightly off, or trying to figure out how something new works because I need it for some small thing here or there. Coding can be incredibly hard but there are times when I think they can really make a character sheet stand out in a fun way that's thematic to a character, even accidentally at times. Two of the top of my head among my favorites were one for a character in an Otome Game RP in which I coded an opening screen which you could click a coin gif to switch from the "main menu" onto viewing the character (and I later used this template for the IC posts which also had all dialogue coming in dialogue boxes with a cropped image of my character above them), another one in which I had a this waitress character and I made the character sheet into a tour of the inn, even doing things like changing the container shapes to represent tables or beds, and there was also one in which I had a ghost character and it used to be (before that coding got disabled) that the sheet was semi-transparent and it became visible as you hovered over it, but also the sepia pictures of the character before her death were also semi-transparent an revealed upon hovering.


But, trying to give an answer in more general terms....

If had to pick one, probably likes & dislikes. Which is weird, because I'm someone who insists on having them, but functionality and importance =/= pleasantness. It's a frustrating for me because it takes me a lot longer to come up with them than they have any right to take from me, as for some reason even if I have the character fully formed and written out I still end up stuck with a block on my own standards for good likes & dislikes to a character, as I need them to not just be a repeat of what I put in the personality nor be anything so common or abstract as to apply to literally everyone (as in stuff like "dislikes: People who murder puppies without any reason", "People who hate them").

As for a favorite, that would without question be the backstory. I do think sometimes the powers do end up coming along well and are a really exciting thing about the character, but the backstory is that part of the character sheet that really flows for me and ends up connecting and giving depth to everything about them. I'm very much the kind of writer who writes for the end product: The process of writing can sometimes be hard and even at times unpleasant, but it's being able to make something worthwhile and that I can look at the finished product and enjoy that I made it that makes me want to continue. Backstory to me is exactly like that: It can take a while to click and come up with all the pieces and how they connect, but once I'm done I'm holding this whole tapestry.

 

[nerdy tangents]

When it comes to creating characters I tend to do a modified elevator pitch. Each pitch covers :
Basics (name, age, pronouns, visual)
Personality
Backstory
(Optional) Powers

I think the part of the pitch I enjoy filling out the most is the backstory. I find it’s a fun way to flesh out the world and plot in my head.

My least favorite part is visuals. They’re a nightmare to find and they never line up perfectly with the picture I have in my head.

 

[Chained Echoes]

I find myself disliking putting in my character's history. I don't like doing it unless it's a character I've been working on for years then it's fine, I have had time to really establish them. But if I'm just starting out creating a character, I would rather discover their history over the course of what roleplay I put them in.

 

[Auda]

My least-liked section of a CS to fill out is... None of it.

I know, I know. That's kind of a cop out and sort of cheating. But it's true! I look forward to everything about creating a character sheet.

As for my favorite part, the bio. No question.

I wish I could be the same LMAO. I just recently started experimenting with how I do my character's bios and I learned that there's a lot more to do than just list down the basics or the 'standard backstory babbling' you've said. For example, I'm currently trying a new thing where I insert comments/short dialogues from the character itself and I'm trying to make it seem like they're the one who's actually telling the reader what happened etc,. It's still a work in progress but I like what I'm doing so far!

The name.
I am cursed with wonderful creativity,
but when it comes to creating the perfect name,
to sum up the character in a fine bow,
I fall short. ;-;

The way I was actually supposed to put this on my original post as well ashdkjasf. I swear I suck at making up names and I just use a random name generator most of the time and just settle with what sounds okay. @-@

Everything tbh. I despise them and typically only do them if the RP or my partner requires them. It's always a chore. I'm the type of writer that has to write the character in the story to get a feel for them. I may then make notes of their traits in order to keep everything consistent as I'm writing.

Yes! I definitely get that. I can see the appeal of slowly building up the character as the story progresses. I can also see how making up a character sheet with a background, personality, etc,. can limit how you express your characters because it's somewhat confining them in a specific 'box' of what you wrote in the CS. (Though of course it's not like the character has to only follow the CS because that'll lead to no development, but in the early stages of the RP is what I'm saying.)

Favorite part is coming up with it, least favorite part is actually typing it out.

I can relate so bad. Like after reading the interest check and the available roles (If any) I get so excited that I already have a set character in mind to make. Then comes the hard part of actually sitting down and doing the work LMAO.

Coding is incredibly satisfying in results, especially for some concepts, but by God can it be frustrating to hit my head on a wall over and over trying to figure out some tiny thing I mistyped or some nuance of the code that's making everything slightly off, or trying to figure out how something new works because I need it for some small thing here or there.

Oh god don't get me started on coding. I can't believe I didn't include it in my original post. Literally every RP I joined since I came back had some sort of coding, some more complicated than the others. It's another reason why it takes so long for me to make a CS because of the constant crashes and mistakes, as well as actually finding a CS that fits your character. There's this one Character Sheet that I dreaded to do because of the amount of coding put into it. I literally didn't know that there was an entire new page of information because I didn't click a certain icon or something LMAO. Still, I probably won't stop using it because it can elevate a CS even though it's at the cost of my sanity.

When it comes to creating characters I tend to do a modified elevator pitch. Each pitch covers :
Basics (name, age, pronouns, visual)
Personality
Backstory
(Optional) Powers

I find that doing it that way makes the process easier definitely. It makes you focus on a specific part first and you can slowly go down the line. I have an entire google doc with just my Character Sheets and all of them are in this format LMAO.

I find myself disliking putting in my character's history. I don't like doing it unless it's a character I've been working on for years then it's fine, I have had time to really establish them. But if I'm just starting out creating a character, I would rather discover their history over the course of what roleplay I put them in.

Like what I've said earlier, I can definitely see the appeal in this type of writing. Expanding on your character as the story progresses sounds cool and I might try to do something similar someday!

 

[nerdy tangents]

So my little hack for names is treat it like picking real baby names.

Most people don’t have names that fit their specific personality or whatever, they have names their parents picked that fit some kind of theme.

Ex. My sister wanted all of her kids to have short names that don’t have abbreviated versions (she has a weird thing about nicknames).

My mum named all of her kids after Bible characters (pretty common in the year and place I was born admittedly but names don’t necessarily have to be unique).

For myself I usually go for letter themes. Ex. Everyone in this family has a name starting with R.

It isn’t necessarily always a perfect but it at least gives me a jumping off point for names.

 

[saniachan]

Personality and History are the hardest for me, but once they *click* then they're also my favorites.

I think because both are influenced by eachother, it's hard to do them separately. I need to piece together who they are now, and what occurred in their past to shape them.

Agreed. I suck at writing a character's standalone personality to the point of considering an RP with merged personality-history section in its CS as a blessing in itself.

My favorite part? Appearance. I love to play with Picrew and the like for character's appearance. However, this is also why I avoid real life faceclaims like a plague (which can be quite a hassle if I'm in the mood to RP, say, Harry Potter or something).

 

[Idea]

Oh god don't get me started on coding. I can't believe I didn't include it in my original post. Literally every RP I joined since I came back had some sort of coding, some more complicated than the others. It's another reason why it takes so long for me to make a CS because of the constant crashes and mistakes, as well as actually finding a CS that fits your character. There's this one Character Sheet that I dreaded to do because of the amount of coding put into it. I literally didn't know that there was an entire new page of information because I didn't click a certain icon or something LMAO. Still, I probably won't stop using it because it can elevate a CS even though it's at the cost of my sanity.

Small fact, and you may already be aware of this, but just in case you're not, if you turn off the rich editor (as in the mode in posts with all the buttons above) that can really help with the code, as the rich editor has a much bigger tendency to try to correct/complete code where it's not supposed to.

 

[Ski-Taichou]

I hate figuring out appearances for my characters. Like I know roughly what they look like but I also don't. It's why I like established characters and only have to add in other things for the rp.

 

[StrixDesmodus]

I can't often stand having to do a generalized description of a character's personality. Doesn't matter if they want a list of adjectives or full-sentenced paragraphs. I can't conjure verbal details of a character's personality all that easily, nor figure out which ones are relevant. Plus, sometimes the initial idea of a character's personality expires sooner than one might think. So when it takes so much more effort for me to describe a character's personality than I think is the norm, it just makes even less sense to commit to what I may write in the character profile.
However, there's something of an exception to this: In-character interview style character profiles. I love them, because they give me the opportunity to portray the character's personality in a less abstract way. I can also portray what's most important to the character, as opposed to being nervous that what I'm typing may be irrelevant. It also gives me the opportunity to show their manner of speaking from the get-go.
In ordinary, form style character profiles, I think my favorite part is picking out a name if it's a new character. I love names a lot.

 

[Steve Jobs]

I hate describing my character's appearance in paragraph format, especially if I already have an image thrown up. Doesn't a picture already say a thousand words? I'm often caught between making the description flow naturally and listing each trait in plain language. I often find myself dissatisfied with both options, though if a sheet is only asking for one word answers for each trait, then I can make due.

Coming up with likes, dislikes, quirks, and other "fun facts" is very tedious to me since they are rarely more than a footnote or bit of flavor once I get into the meat and bones of a roleplay. Unless I am just that in love with a character, I'll stick to the bare minimum and let more specific bits come up as I write in the main thread.

Oddly, I don't think I have a "favorite" part of filling out a character sheet per se. My favorite part of character creation has always been the brainstorming phase. Coming up with a concept, regardless of whether or not I follow through on it, has always been a way to pass the time if I am on the fence or cannot commit to a specific roleplay. It gives me the fun of trying to create something of my own without necessarily the commitment of writing everything out. Anything not mentioned above, I'm neutral to.

 

[Jet]

I have to write my characters to understand them. I don't require personality sections for that reason, and my backstories are quite sparse.

Often my NPCs became personal favorites because they form naturally without a template, though I understand the necessity of CSs as a GM.

When I do have a character sheet I usually ignore it while writing, and edit the CS when I contradict it. I only write them because it's a requirement. With that said, it should come at no surprise that I hate the entire process of a CS

 

[Jannah]

I have to write my characters to understand them. I don't require personality sections for that reason, and my backstories are quite sparse.

Often my NPCs became personal favorites because they form naturally without a template, though I understand the necessity of CSs as a GM.

When I do have a character sheet I usually ignore it while writing, and edit the CS when I contradict it. I only write them because it's a requirement. With that said, it should come at no surprise that I hate the entire process of a CS

Yay I'm not alone on this whole "having to write characters to understand them" thing. I thought I was alone in the RP world.

 

[Jet]

Yay I'm not alone on this whole "having to write characters to understand them" thing. I thought I was alone in the RP world.

Two of us now, basically an army

 

[Pokeking]

I'll start off with my least favorite: Face Claims. I don't like them primarily because no depiction fits what I have in mind. If I encountered a genie, I'd make art one of my wishes so I could create drawings on par with comic books. Second least favorite is the personality.

Favorite part? I would say name. Years ago, I got a name book to use to help me and I use it from time to time. My second favorite is the bio section. Some of my characters are established and just need minor tweaking. Others needed more thought to incorporate into the storyline which I enjoyed.

 

[Spoiled Bread]

My least favorite part is the personality/history section. I have a hard time describing personality even when I'm playing a character that have been used several times, but the biggest reason is that I prefer disclosing the juicy details in the roleplay rather than laid it out in the sheet. It just took away the mystery out of the character. If possible I want to just write one sentence for the personality and bio so other players at least can prepare an impression for my character but most GM would ask me for something meatier, which usually just result in me padding the section with random things that I would forget and never use.

If the RP has good power system then the power/ability section would be my favorite. As creating those moves help tremendously in me getting into the head of my character. A shy character who likes to help from the sideline would have and prioritize building different skills compared to a brash loud character who wants to fight head on, even if they have the exact same class/job.

If the power system isn't good, or when I'm playing a certain non-combatant character, then the misc/others section is my favorite. I can just drop whatever I want there.

 

[A Sparkling Zombie]

In general I like character sheets, but my least favorite aspect would be powers/abilities, simply because, until the past year-ish, I was only a slice-of-lifer, so being presented with a blank space sometimes makes me feel like a rowboat without a paddle, I guess.

My favorite would be a questionnaire section in lieu of the personality and bio fields. I enjoy the standard format, but I think a questionnaire can do well at capturing relevant, noteworthy info while perhaps being less daunting than fleshing out a whole personality or life story. That and it's more creative and flavorful.

 

[GrumpySwallow]

My least favorite thing in filling out a CS is writing down the personality because new characters usually end up with a different personality than the one I wrote on the CS. As some have already said, I have to write the character to get an understanding of them. I always have an awkward beginning in RP because of this, especially when RPing in MMORPGs.

In regards to Fandom RPs, I think a Personality space in a CS is pointless because folks should already be familiar with what the canon characters are like. People typically do not join a Fandom RP for a franchise they're unfamiliar with.

 

[Kylesar1]

Least favorite: Personality and Bio

This defines how you'll go about a character. Since I make a character before I join an RP, I'm creating a character's personality and/or backstory before I know how the RP is going to be. In other words, my character is based on a list of assumptions made about the RP. If the vibe is entirely different, my character's personality and backstory are going to feel very off.

For the CS's in my RPs, personality isn't even an entry, and bio is optional.

I'd say my favorite is the fluff section. The quirks, likes/dislikes, hobbies, music theme. I only ever do fantasy stuff, so of course the magic and abilities are important given that I as GM want to prevent OP stuff as well as make sure that weaknesses in characters are actually exploitable. However, the fluff section is the most relaxed, least pressured part of it.

 

[Walliver]

favorite: Appearance
least favorite: History