Seminar: What's the Point? The Importance of Character Sheets

Seminar: What's the Point? A Discussion the the Importance of Character Sheets
Hosted by Blackfox of Chiaroscuro

January 28th, 2008

"Hi all and thanks for coming! Tonight's seminar is a discussion about the importance of how you build a character sheet and how it affects roleplaying. This chat doesn't just concern Chia or even just MUSHes but pretty much any RPG where there is a sheet and numbers involved."

"To begin with, I'm Blackfox here on Chia where I've been playing for a little less than a year and Ace over on Otherspace where I've been hangin' for a little over five years. I've been playing tabletop games and LARPs for about 32 years now, and at one time I used to be peripherally involved with the RPG industry. For seven years I was the online representative for Hero Games (back when 'online' was 'CompuServe' ;) ), and I was a columnist for their in-house magazine, co-author and co-editor of an obscure Hero Games module and contributor and playtester for 4th edition Hero System. I've also been a playtester for TSR, White Wolf, Iron Crown Enterprises and XID Creative. I tell you this just so you know I've had a bit of experience with different game systems over the years ;)"

"So I'm going to open with a sample pose, and for those of you who know Blackfox, I want you to tell me just what's wrong with it."

''Blackfox crouches down by a small pile of wood set in the center of her tiny camp in the Verdigris and pauses, cocking her head as if listening to something. Her brow knits in concentration before looking over at the Syladris, "Taran is currently at the Golden Dragon," she tells Aeseyri before looking back to the gathered twigs and logs, waving her hand over it and summoning the fire from the wood to get a merry little blaze going.''

Meian ooh oohs, me, me ;)

"Meian? :)"

Meian says, "Foxie's not a mage, and you've got to be to do those things."

"Exactly. Blackfox isn't touched or kissed and has no magical abilities, and this is a very obvious case of playing outside of the sheet. There is nothing that actually stops me from posing something like that, though, especially since nobody but staff knows what's on my sheet. Most of the time, though, when this sort of thing happens, it's not intentional and not nearly so blatant. But the point is, what I just posed is no different than when someone poses for any skill that they do not have, or, even less obvious, when someone poses automatic successes with their skills, especially when those skills are below fair or impact another player."

"A lot of times, it may seem perfectly harmless to pose your noblewoman sitting by the fire sewing, or to have your Wildlander crouch down in the forest to check out some tracks, or to have your adventurer expound on the history of Fastheld and its legendary artifacts. But skills like tailor, hunter and lore are no different than shadow touched spells or combat skills when it comes to the fact that players spent their hard earned xp on them."

"That's why there are character sheets, xp, numbers and skills. Where there are systemless games out there, both online and off, and games that employ vague systems and settle disputes with a game of paper, rock and scissors, most RPGs employ some sort of system. Most of the time that system is invisible until a combat occurs, but the point of any system is pretty much the same - to create guidelines for roleplaying. A system gives characters not only bonuses and abilities, but limits and drawbacks, and a lot of times those limits get lost in the heat of the moment."

"There are basically two places where confusion and conflicts occur - during character generation, and then, once the game is underway, as a consequence of RP."

"The first is a very common mistake a lot of folks make, be they experienced RPers or someone new to a game. You get caught up in writing a background and a bio for submission, going into the details of where you were born, where you were raised, what your parents did for a living, where you used to work, what you're doing now, etc."

"And then you get to the numbers and find you don't have enough points to match what you wrote. You didn't realize you needed a skill to wear armor or you didn't know that leatherworking required tanning first, so when your character sheet is finished, it doesn't meet your expectations or match your concept. So now you have this awesome, fleshed out story about a leatherworkers son who went off to war after learning the trade, who made his own armor and he can't stitch two pieces of leather together to save his life. And those herbal remedies your mother taught you? No room for those, either."

"But here's the problem. That other character who can't wear armor, can't swing a sword and can't find his way through the wilderness? She did have the points to spend to be a tailor and a leatherworker. So for you to go running around telling everyone you made that armor you're wearing when you don't have the skills to do so? That's the same as that tailor/leatherworker posing that she beats two brigands in a sword fight when she doesn't have any skill with it."

"It's all about balance and planning and what's fair to those players who did buy the skills you couldn't afford. You have skills they don't and you had to prioritize. And there is nothing wrong with having your character /trying/ to pick up his father's trade, of posing him trying to work some leather and failing as you get your xp and add it to that skill. But in the meantime? Claiming expertise in a skill you don't actually have is unfair to the people who do have it."

"This isn't to say you can't /lie/ and claim you did something you didn't. That's a different kettle of fish altogether. What I'm saying is that you shouldn't pose your character actually making his own leather jerkin without the skill to back it up."

"The second issue gets more complicated and it deals with what you learn during the course of your roleplaying versus what you spend your experience on as you go along. For example, lets say you have no skill in Wilderness Survival but go out on a long expedition into the Wildlands with someone who does. During the course of roleplay, they point out the hazards of the swamps, show you how to spot the wildling camps and explain how to tell the good berries from the bad berries."

"So now a few months later, you're out on your own with someone else and you start posing that you know what berries to eat, know how to spot those wildlings and can easily navigate through the swamp. Problem is? You didn't put any experience points into it. You still don't have any Wilderness Survival skill on your sheet. So what does that mean? It means you don't remember exactly which berry it was, or what you thought was wildling sign is really just where a badger has been digging and damn, but you could have sworn that that wasn't a bog there ahead of you."

"Unless you put points into the skill during the course of your roleplaying, you haven't learned the skill enough to be of any use no matter how much your friend has RP'd teaching you that skill. That's what the xp is for - to put into those skills someone has been teaching you or that you have been studying on your own. That person who is teaching you that skill has spent the points for that knowledge, so it's only fair that you do the same."

"The same concept goes for posing beyond your skills, especially when it comes to assuming you succeed against another player. If someone poses they're hiding? Don't automatically assume that your 'good' perception or even your 'great' in Auspex means you know where they are. Either roleplay that you do not see the person hiding or, if you want to make it fair, have them roll their stealth while you roll the counter skill."

"Don't just pose that your awesome magical heightened senses lead you straight to them - for all you know, you might fail and mage block or they might have made a legendary stealth roll."

Muri raises her hand.

You say, "Perfect timing - that's all I have for my prepared comments, so now it's time to open it up to questions and discussions. Muri?"

Muri asks "Do RP points increase somehow?

Muri continues. "Or should we bank some for later?"

"There are three different points you earn on Chia - experience points that you spend on skills that you get from votes from players and from mudquests, RP Points that you get from spending time on the grid, and Craft Minutes that you earn over time."

Gefrey Seamel says, "Experience points? There are ways to get more, yes, but I'd still portion 'em out wisely. ;)"

"You gain points to spend on your skills when the votes cycle every month. If you enjoy RPing with someone, you vote for them and that gives them xp."

"So you can save some if you'd like, but you will get more as you go along :)"

"Any other questions or comments? Or was I so brilliant that I covered all the points fairly and completely? :)"

Gefrey Seamel says, "I'm fine myself."

Ziavri thinks. "It was fairly thorough. . ."

"Well damn...next time I'm gonna have to leave more room for discussion!"

Ziavri is still thinking! Maybe I'll come up with something.

Muri nods. "I think I've got it. I'll save this session for reference later. Thanks!"

"Guess that's it then! Hope it was helpful!"

Gefrey Seamel waves. "Take care then!"

Ziavri grins. "Yep. Very. :)"