Blog (A5E) Let’s Look At The Level Up Character Sheet

A character sheet is your portal into the game world. As a player, it’s your primary interface, and it’s important that a character sheet be clear and useful. Here’s a look at what Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition’s character sheet looks like.

The first thing you’ll notice is that it’s four pages. Well, this is ‘advanced’ 5th Edition, and we have new stuff to include — an entire exploration pillar, and a combat maneuver system, for starters! But that’s not all, and eagle-eyed readers will spot other things, for sure!

This sheet is close to final. It might change a little, but not much.

Let’s Look At The Level Up Character Sheet — Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition (A5E)

A character sheet is your portal into the game world. As a player, it’s your primary interface, and it’s important that a character sheet be clear and useful. Here’s a look at what Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition’s character sheet looks like.

www.levelup5e.com

 

[Faolyn]

My one area of concern is the Skills, is there anywhere to just write down what your skill number is?

Apparently you don't have a skill number anymore. Skills aren't tied directly to stats anymore. So it looks like you have to calculate it each time you use a skill.

 

[tetrasodium]

Apparently you don't have a skill number anymore. Skills aren't tied directly to stats anymore. So it looks like you have to calculate it each time you use a skill.

PHB174 actually makes that the default in o5e too before it goes on to describe actually doing that a second time as a variant option along with the skills chapter & sheet layout being setup to practically hard code old style skill checks. I've tried making use of it in a few campaigns & got such pushback from "how do i do that in ddb" and "isn't it normally $other skill" that it's often not worth it. Having a system designed to use it from the start will be a godsend

 

[lorbog]

So since the skills no longer have the ability scores attached, it seems there are still some redundant skills that only really work with a single stat that should be folded into some of the others. ie
Acrobatics should be folded into Athletics (Dex)
Investigation should be folded into Perception (Int)
Sleight of hand should probably be folded into Deception (Dex)
History and Culture feel like basically the same skill and should be combined into a skill called Society

 

[tetrasodium]

Sleight of hand should probably be folded into Deception (Dex)

hoooooooolyyyy heck not a good idea to make anyone able to spin a lie, engage in social engineering, or just do a good job bluffing in cards to also be a skilled pickpocket. I'd love to see some more emphasis on the wisdom & int based uses of deception though. Want to sneak in dressed like he beneath notice folks in broad daylight with a smile?.... deception(wis) got caught where they don't belong & want to naughty word your presence convincingly enough to make the guards help you move the heavy stuff while you fix the bbeg's wards?...Just like making someone's eyes glaze over talking technogibberish that's deception(int) just like when you explain that you & your guys need to do the same job in the wine cellar by talking at length about the importance of checking the oak in the racks for rusted nails & dry rot that could damage the bbeg's 270 platinum bottles of prewar aundairan brandy & imported zil absinth. "Hell bob... you said your name was bob right? I'm fine billing the bbeg & going home but gonna need a signature, do you want to sign off that I was not allowed to complete the job we were paid in advance to do? I can write it up real quick & be gone as soon as you sign off captain of the guard bob"

 

[Faolyn]

So since the skills no longer have the ability scores attached, it seems there are still some redundant skills that only really work with a single stat that should be folded into some of the others. ie
Acrobatics should be folded into Athletics (Dex)
Investigation should be folded into Perception (Int)
Sleight of hand should probably be folded into Deception (Dex)
History and Culture feel like basically the same skill and should be combined into a skill called Society

Acrobatics is about agility and Athletics is about might.

I've always seen Investigation as more of a research-type skill, whereas Perception is looking around.

I agree with @tetrasodium; Sleight of Hand is very different than Deception. Deception is straight-out lying and with it, keeping a poker face. SoH is pure fine motor skills.

History is more "what has happened before" while Culture is likely going to be "what things are like now."

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Count me in for a vote for a simple stream-lined character sheet that's only two pages, tops (one is even better) I want only stuff that is important at the table right now to keep the number of pages as low as possible. On the other hand, I like to have what my class abilities actually DO, and not just their names, so we need decent space for that sort of thing. You can ALMOST do that here by just using the first two pages, but I'd like to see the equipment lists on page one or two. I don't mind 4 page sheets being available, but I don't want to use them myself.

 

[Faolyn]

On the other hand, I like to have what my class abilities actually DO, and not just their names, so we need decent space for that sort of thing.

"Unfortunately," there's so much stuff that LU characters can do that even if you're good at condensing the text, it's going to take up a lot of room. Especially for fogeys like me who squint at 12-point type.

 

[Morrus]

Count me in for a vote for a simple stream-lined character sheet that's only two pages, tops (one is even better) I want only stuff that is important at the table right now to keep the number of pages as low as possible. On the other hand, I like to have what my class abilities actually DO, and not just their names, so we need decent space for that sort of thing. You can ALMOST do that here by just using the first two pages, but I'd like to see the equipment lists on page one or two. I don't mind 4 page sheets being available, but I don't want to use them myself.

We tried! But that request is beyond our best efforts. As it is, folks will be squeezing stuff in. We shrunk it as much as was realistically possible.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

We tried! But that request is beyond our best efforts. As it is, folks will be squeezing stuff in. We shrunk it as much as was realistically possible.

Well, I appreciate the effort!

One idea I've always had was to make pages in the character sheet for multiple purposes (so that as many pages as possible can stay off the table). One that "shows your work" that you can give to the DM/Narrator - and also helps you speed up in making the character; one that shows all your most-used stuff (pretty much like LUp's current page one, though I'd put equipment on it if I could), one that has lots of space for putting the feats and features that you need extra text to recall exactly how they work, (organized not by their type or how the character got them, but by when you use them - triggers and the like); and one for spells.

This LUp one is pretty close to that. Pretty close.

 

[tetrasodium]

Well, I appreciate the effort!

One idea I've always had was to make pages in the character sheet for multiple purposes (so that as many pages as possible can stay off the table). One that "shows your work" that you can give to the DM/Narrator - and also helps you speed up in making the character; one that shows all your most-used stuff (pretty much like LUp's current page one, though I'd put equipment on it if I could), one that has lots of space for putting the feats and features that you need extra text to recall exactly how they work, (organized not by their type or how the character got them, but by when you use them - triggers and the like); and one for spells.

This LUp one is pretty close to that. Pretty close.

Agreed on the secondary sheets. I've had players use this sheet before & it's maybe a little more specialized than I'd like but for the times that it matters the likelyhood of needing any details from other sheets is probably quite low & vice versa. With modern editable pdfs & digital tools it's even possible for form fields to replicate across pages