Friendship is Dragons
Updates Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays
Page 1304 - Them's Dicin' Words, Part 3
Author Notes:
(Pop-out)
12 Comments:
I have slightly mixed feelings about players looking at my sheet. It's usually alright, but some players might forget to separate the meta knowledge. On the other hoof, if it's a system I'm new at, I don't mind going to an experienced player and ask for build advice, which means going over my sheet.
Now what would definitely bug me is a GM that doesn't look over my sheet. I've had too many instances where the GM has a houserule or doesn't like certain build picks and it isn't until session 3 that it comes up and we have an argument. :P
Now what would definitely bug me is a GM that doesn't look over my sheet. I've had too many instances where the GM has a houserule or doesn't like certain build picks and it isn't until session 3 that it comes up and we have an argument. :P
What always gets me is when my DM (who has CONSTANT access to all our sheets, due to us playing online) specifically asks/tells me to make sure I have backstory, and I write it down <i>in the backstory section of my character sheet</i> and then he's like, "Hey, I've just gone ahead and invented this thing about your character's backstory 'cause I never heard back from you".
Introducing yourself with your character sheet?
It's like introducing yourself with your driver's license.
The DM should definitely see it.
The others, probably not.
It's like introducing yourself with your driver's license.
The DM should definitely see it.
The others, probably not.
The best response to these sort of questions is "Sure, as long as I see yours as well." Most nosy Nellies shut up at that point, as they don't want you to see their character sheet and it's Suuuper Seeecret stuff.
To that I'd say 'sure here!' I lie being able to tell who would be the best to take on different skill challenges.
I was at a convention and had someone do this whole 'lemme see your sheet' shtick on me. However, I had known going into the game what it was about, and in my ever indecisive self, had made three more. I knew the GM (buddy of mine to be), and had talked with him prior to the game, and he had given me access to pick whichever one I wanted.
So, as the story goes, he began to peruse the sheet, listing off things like, "okay, cleric, that's kind of neat," and so on. Handing it back to me, I placed it in my binder where I keep all of my characters. When it came time to introduce me, however, I had flipped the page, and suddenly, i was no longer the party cleric, but rather a Baron Samedi influenced wizard.
It's not really the greatest of stories, but it tickles my fancy how that player never quite got how rude it was.
So, as the story goes, he began to peruse the sheet, listing off things like, "okay, cleric, that's kind of neat," and so on. Handing it back to me, I placed it in my binder where I keep all of my characters. When it came time to introduce me, however, I had flipped the page, and suddenly, i was no longer the party cleric, but rather a Baron Samedi influenced wizard.
It's not really the greatest of stories, but it tickles my fancy how that player never quite got how rude it was.
Even aside from the meta-knowledge question:
* Which faction of the game world are you working with/for? (Depending on game system, this may be listed, but most systems' sheets don't have a space for this.)
* What does your character want to do? (Even if the sheet has a space to list goals, this is usually left blank unless there are game mechanics directly tied to them - and sometimes even then.)
* Have our characters met before? (A very few systems have this on the sheet - and even then, barring major mechanical aspects tied into this, it is often left blank, at least until after the characters have met during the campaign - after which, reading the sheet is no longer an introduction.)
This is where simpler games without stats come in handy. Here's a sample character sheet for one of my regular games, in its entirety:
Name: Sir Nap
Role: Knight of the Realm
Skills: Jousting, Swordfighting, Questing, Chivalry
Gear: Warhorse (named Bony), barding, armour, sword, lance, shield, garter
That's it. No numbers, no skill levels, no damage listings. Just have the DM judge the possibilities and toss the dice.
Name: Sir Nap
Role: Knight of the Realm
Skills: Jousting, Swordfighting, Questing, Chivalry
Gear: Warhorse (named Bony), barding, armour, sword, lance, shield, garter
That's it. No numbers, no skill levels, no damage listings. Just have the DM judge the possibilities and toss the dice.
Guest Author's Note:
"Why ask players about their characters, or even asking the character themselves, when you can go directly to the source?"
Newbiespud's Note: This weekend's episode of Spudventures turned out to be really interesting! We reached Skullport and... learned some things.
The Forgotten Ones, Session 11: Podcast | Video