Character Sheets: Quick Reference or "Kitchen Sink"?

[Irda Ranger]

We all know what the standard 4E character sheet looks like. I hate it.

For one thing, I do not like flipping pages during combat. Or fiddling with power cards. I want one page, face up, with everything. Sometimes I feel alone in this however, as there are no character sheets that I've found that do this. Am I just weird?

Here's a poll to find out! What sort of character sheet do you prefer?


Note: I always have a full worksheet so I can check my math, but only look at it between sessions, not during a session. But I have attached an example of a Quick Reference character sheet. If I wanted even more Notepad space I could shrink the portrait.

 

[Charwoman Gene]

I like a well organized quick reference sitting on top of the full math-heavy sheets

 

[Scribble]

Man the last time I saw a single page single sided Charsheet was in my basic days!

I thought the 4e sheets felt ike abreath of fresh air. (But they DO kind of cheat since power cards take a lot of burden off the actual sheet.)

I do agree, the less pages I need the better.

 

[Crothian]

We have always used a single page character sheet for every game we've played.

 

[Squizzle]

What I really, really want as a GM is a "contingency sheet", where I can have a list of everything that happens when someone spends an Action Point (including effects like the warlord granting some HP recovery), takes a Second Wind, spends a Healing Surge, etc. There are enough fiddly details for that hidden in class features, feats, and item powers that I tend to overlook at least one thing that should have been triggered per session.

 

[Cadfan]

I type my character sheets myself, and include only quick reference information. Anything I can remember on my own is not included.

 

[jmucchiello]

All my character sheets are Word documents. The first (few) page(s) is a summary page with just final numbers and stuff commonly used. If there are common buffs additional similiarly looking sheets exist with the common buffs. Subsequent pages are tables full of modifiers that all the final numbers are derived from. The final pages are SRD text of all magic items possessed/spells in spell book/commonly cast for ease of reference.

So I voted Kitchen Sink even though I use the quick reference most often. Best of both worlds.

I haven't played 4e but when/if I do (in a campaign), I'll probably print power cards so I can have the full write-up at my fingertips. Since you only have 5-8 powers available, why thumb through the PHB needlessly. The power cards would be setup with my normal values already set. IOW, I would take the time to include at the bottom of a 3(W) power an additional line of text detailing the 3d8+x typical of my d8 weapon (if that were typical).

 

[kitsune9]

We all know what the standard 4E character sheet looks like. I hate it.

For one thing, I do not like flipping pages during combat. Or fiddling with power cards. I want one page, face up, with everything. Sometimes I feel alone in this however, as there are no character sheets that I've found that do this. Am I just weird?

Here's a poll to find out! What sort of character sheet do you prefer?


Note: I always have a full worksheet so I can check my math, but only look at it between sessions, not during a session. But I have attached an example of a Quick Reference character sheet. If I wanted even more Notepad space I could shrink the portrait.

I prefer the small stat block but backed up by the intensive kitchen sink sheet. When I played in a couple of campaigns, I'd carry my full four page character but would have my character on a 4x6 card for quick reference.

 

[Abisashi]

In addition to my power cards (which I like, and if I played 3.5 again I would probably try to make power cards for my character), I put all of the information I use in-session on one side of an index card. I track HP/surges on separate piece of scratch paper. I have a full character sheet which I use as a reference to write out my index card, but I almost never need it in play, except to check which rituals I know (and I could write those on the back of my index card, I suppose).

I voted "Full Worksheet", because having separate power cards seems to fall under that from what you wrote, but I would have preferred to vote for both.

 

[w_earle_wheeler]

I want all the combat/game mechanic stuff on the front page in a layout that lends itself to easily find information. Color coding would be nice, as well as "icons" to reinforce location of information in memory.

All the other stuff can go on the back, and the worksheet can go in the notebook.