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A GUIDED TOUR OF THE 5E CHARACTER SHEET

A step-by-step manual and walkthrough on creating your first Fifth Edition character

By David Foxfire

For Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition By Wizards of the Coast.

Trigger Warning: While David Foxfire has taken steps to make sure that this document is not intentionally offensive, he cannot account for every reader, especially when he’s the type that just plain doesn’t give a fsk. It is safe to assume that Mr. Foxfire is an effective tool in offending the easily offended, so if you’re one of them, do us all a favor and shut down your computer, go outside, and reconsider your life decisions. Thank you and God Bless.

Also, even though he has proofread it several times, there has bound to be an error or two. If you find one and let him know about it, it would be greatly appreciated. You can find contact information near the end of the document.

Visit Foxfire Studios of Saint Louis at foxfirestudios.net

This document is © 2021 David “David Foxfire” Gonterman and is released under the Open Game License by Wizards of the Coast, as listed at https://tinyurl.com/sttwp43.

This document is published Free of Charge. The Pay What You Want feature on DriveThruRPG is used as a tip jar. David Foxfire thanks and appreciates all who put some coin in that. Anyone who has found any errors or has any comments or feedback are invited to contact David through various means at the back of this document.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast.

SampleDungeons & Dragons © Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emilefile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK INTRODUCTION Creating your first character in any Role-Playing Game, including Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition, can be daunting, especially when you get the traditional ‘trial by fire’ introduction in creating a character: That’s when someone who has more plastic minatures than dates just plops the Player’s Handbook and a just-printed-out copy of the character sheet in front of you and goes “Here you go.”

Yeah, we’ve all been there.

Let’s get you something more than just that hefty tome someone who seen more campaigns than dates just plopped into your lap. There are plenty of ways one can be walked through creating a character in D&D. Allow me to tell you mine. I’ll show you a step-by-step process on how I create my characters, in what I hope would be a very intuitive and friendly way. Along the way, I’ll also give you a tour of the character sheet itself, showing you which section is for what and what you’re supposed to write in there.

Before we start with the tour though, we need to get a couple things first.

First off, do you have that character sheet printed on Card Stock? If not, I’d strongly suggest you do so. Any big box store or office supply store sells Card Stock that can be run through any printer. You will thank me later. You’re going to be erasing and writing over stuff on this sheet a lot, and you’re going to need your sheet on paper with a little heft to handle all that.

Oh, and before you ask, use pencil. Again, you will thank me.

And while you’re in that store, snatch a cheap spiral notebook, or a small stack of loose-leaf paper with something to keep everything together; a folder of some kind, those prong covers you have during your school years, a binder clip, a whole loose-leaf binder, whatever works.

While you’re getting all that, let me start you off with Step One in creating a character:

STEP ONE: THINK OF WHAT CHARACTER YOU WANT TO PLAY. Think long and hard about the character you want to play. I think different, and that is a good thing. Whatever you’re a heroic swordsman, a cunning rogue, a

I fear that I might lose some of you in some parts bookworm wizard, a crack shot with a bow with his loyal animal because I touch topics that some find sensitive. No companion, a divine healer or crusader, or anything else in offense is intended. I just think in a way that is my between. If you know what the other players are going to be own and I’m an unapologetic nonconformist. That playing as, that’s good too, because then you can tailor your means I go outside of what some call the norm, especially those who consider Twitter as the real character to fill a role missing in your party. A good party consists world. While I do take steps not to offend, I cannot of a Tank, that provides defense, a Striker, for offense, a Healer for account for everybody. obvious reasons, a Caster for the big spells, and a Utility to deal

Oh yeah, I cuss too. English can be like a brick wall with everything else, the traps, the locks, the skills, the at times, and sometimes I need a wrecking ball to schmoosing, I can go on. break through. An F-Strike works just fine. I’ll give yourself plenty of thought about all this while we’re taking It is my hope that you would find my thoughts to be the tour, so you can decide on the three basic parts of your at least tolerable to you, and I encourage you to have an open mind. Maybe you’ll realize something character that we’ll be looking up later: Your characters’ Race, that you might not have come around to earlier. A Class, and Background. Don’t worry about looking into any books little broadening of your perspectives will do you yet, just write it down on scratch paper. We’ll be digging into that some good, and make you act less of an @$$hole. Player’s Handbook in due time. But now, let’s turn to the Samplecharacter sheet. file

PAGE 1 The first page has most of the number crunching and is the one you’ll be working on the most. Let’s break this page into different sections and discuss each piece in turn. We’ll start with the top bar: THE TOP BAR

Put your character name in the big ribbon space (and on the cover to the notebook if you’ve got one,) your own name at the Player Name space. Those should be automatic. The rest of this bar has spaces for what I’ve just talked about, where you write down what character’s Race, Class, and Background is.

I really don’t know why I should be saying this, but we live in the current year. If you’ve already paged through the Player’s Handbook, you’ll find that the concept of Race is different then what you know in real life. When we think of ‘Race’ in our world, we think of White, Black, Brown, Asian, Latino, and so on. To someone in a D&D world, that person sees ‘Race’ as Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes, and so on. You can see that this is an apples to oranges comparison; We don’t have Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes and so on here in our world. We just have different kinds of humans here. In fact, if someone from a D&D realm find themselves, say, in Seattle, all our talk about race would just go over their head, because in their point of view, we’re all Humans.

That leads up to something I want you to be aware of when playing this game. Any Dungeons & Dragons campaign is set in a fantastic world fill of magic and wonder, where dragons and elves and wizards exist. It is, by its very nature, vastly and radically different from our own. Different beyond comprehension. Different environment, different cultures, different people, and a different perspective on race, sex, gender, body types, and all the other topics that rear their collective ugly head on social media. This world will have a different social dynamic then what you’re used to, and what is ‘woke’ here will not be the same as what is ‘woke’ there.

Keep this in mind when you’re creating your character, because this character will be living in their world, not yours. Keep this in mind and adjust your mindset accordingly, and you’ll find your experience to be much more enjoyable.

There’s a phrase that I want to keep in your head at all times. It’ll probably be on my tombstone:

The D&D World is Not Earth.

Experience Points (known as XP) is like a running score for your character. As you reach certain milestones of Experience Points, your character will gain levels where your character grows stronger. Go ahead and put down a zero for now. (In pencil if you please!)

With the Class & Level field it is customary to list the class, archetype, and number of levels your character has in that class. An example would be ‘Champion Fighter 1’ or ‘Arcane Trickster Rogue 3’. This will be more useful when you’re multiclassing—Chapter 6 of the Player’s Handbook will tell you more about that—but since you’re making your first character, let’s not think of multiclassing right now. Let’s just settle for a single class right now. You Sampledon’t need to have it any more complicated than it already is. file The Alignment field is where you can put down your character’s moral compass, showing that character’s moral and ethical stand on good vs evil, or order vs chaos. I call it the Biaxial Alignment, the standard block of nine that you often see in meme form on the internet. Page 122 on the Player’s Handbook will tell you more about it.

If you’re drawing blanks on what to put here, or for that matter, in other places on the sheet, don’t worry about it. It’s perfectly fine to have some blank spaces here right now. You don’t need to fill in every part of the sheet to have a workable character at this time. You might find yourself just having the important stuff on the sheet and very little else. That’s perfectly fine.

If you just don’t know that much more about your player character, that is perfectly normal. You’re using your imagination here, and sometimes your mind’s eye doesn’t see every little detail about your character yet. Sometimes you need to have some time in finding out what your player character is all about, what their tastes and likes and dislikes are, especially the bits that differ from who you are in real life. The best way to find all that out is to take that character through an adventure or two, and that’s exactly what you’re about to do with the schlub you’re filling this sheet for. If you must leave some parts of this blank for now, go ahead and do so, you can always fill those parts up later. THE ABILITY SECTION The next area is the group of boxes and little fields to the left of the page. A head’s up here: This is where most of the number crunching will happen. This is where the six ability scores, their modifiers, their related saving throws, and skill checks are kept. I assure you; you won’t need a calculator for all this math. Just a little time and patience.

By now you’ve probably heard something from your nerdy friend who nearly broke your hip with that Player’s Handbook about rolling four six-sided dice, dropping the lowest roll and adding the other three, doing this six times, and plug them into the six abilities (those six big boxes here with the ovals on bottom.) Tell them to hold their horses. We’ll get to the dice rolling and math eventually.

The basic mechanic in Dungeons & Dragons consists of rolling a twenty- sided die (known as the d20; it’s that big ball-like die in whatever dice set you buy or found in either the Starter Set or Essentials Kit.) and adding (or subtracting, on occasion) a number related to a particular ability, save, or skill; the number is known as a modifier. The result is then compared to a Difficulty Class (or DC) that the Game Master has. If you roll at or above this target number, your character succeeds, if you roll below that, they fail.

Before I go on, I must let you know that ‘Game Master’ is another way of saying ‘Dungeon Master.’ Some also call themselves ‘Storyteller,’ ‘Lore Master,’ ‘The Master of Ceremonies,’ ‘The lunatic behind the screen,’ ‘That Player Character killing insert appropriate obscenity here,’ and so on.

Oh, you did get a dice set, did you? You can get them in any game store, go get some. Even if you already have a set, go buy another. Not only will you be supporting that store, you’re going to need more dice. SampleYou will always need more dice. file The lion’s share of what all the dice rolling is for concerns the six abilities listed on the far left column here. During play, you’ll be asked to make a check based on one of them, or one a skill related to it, or to make a saving throw based on a certain ability. You’ll find the right number to add to the d20 roll in this part of the character sheet.

When making an ability check, you need to add the ability’s modifier instead of dealing with the ability’s score. The modifier is formulated by taking the score, subtract 10 from that and divide by 2, rounding down. I have a convention to clarify the difference between Ability Scores, which are referred to their full name, and Ability Modifiers which are called by their abbreviation, which I’ll be using from here on out. For example, a Dexterity score of 15 would have a DEX modifier of +2. (15 – 10 is 5, divide by two is 2.5, rounding down to end up with 2). That’s the worst you’ll get when it comes to the math, I assure you. (Oh, in case you’re wondering, the scores go into that little oval and the modifiers in the big box above them. I’ll remind you on that later.)

The six abilities measure six different physical and mental characteristics. Strength measures physical power, how much your character can lift or carry. Dexterity measures agility and swiftness, and how skilled they are with their hands. Constitution measures their endurance and survivability, how much grit they have. Intelligence measures reasoning and memory, your character’s book knowledge, while Wisdom measures how bright they are, their wits and ability to apply logic. (Remember that dude who plopped that Player’s Handbook on your lap? That’s a perfect example why there’s different numbers for ‘knowing things,’ Intelligence, and ‘being smart,’ Wisdom.) And finally, Charisma measures the force of your character’s personality, not just by how well—or not—their social skills are, but also on how unflappable, headstrong, or just plain stubborn they can be. This might be affected by your character’s appearance, but it’s not the only factor. You could be so ugly that you break mirrors and cameras, but everybody gets on board with you after you give that passionate speech; that is as much of a high Charisma as being able to make prospective loves swoon at the glint of your eye.

These six modifiers are used with Checks, where you are actively doing something, and with Saves, which is rolled when something dangerous comes up and you need to withstand, dodge, or mentally force your way through. In many instances, the Check will involve a specialization that deals with a practical use of an Ability. You could use Dexterity to leap and bound as well as sneak around and pick a pocket, but they are different uses of the same Ability, and they each might have a different modifier. These different specializations are known as Skills.

The individual skills as listed in the Skills Box will show which ability they are based on. You’ll notice that CON doesn’t have a skill; that modifier effects something else on the sheet, which will be shown in the Hit Point section.

You’ll notice that I write the skills differently here. I write “Make an Acrobatics (DEX) check,’ while the Player’s Handbook would go “Make a Dexterity (Acrobatics) check.” It means the same thing, so use your preference.

• Acrobatics (DEX) show how nimble you are, not just in performing stunts or balancing, but also with wiggling out of tight spots and landing on your feet after a jump or fall. • Animal Handling (WIS) shows how well you can handle the many animals you will encounter, such as calming down a wild animal to prove that you’re not a threat, to getting a draft horse or a mule to giddy the eff up. • Arcana (INT) is knowledge of the magical arts, how well you know spells work and what they can do, and also can figure out how to work a magical item. • Athletics (STR) tells how much brute force you can make, such as attempting to shove or grapple something, kicking down a door, or to find out how far or high you can jump. • In some cases, honesty really isn’t the best policy, which is where Deception (CHA) comes in, which shows how successful you could be in fooling people. It can also be used to appear keeping your cool when things start getting crazy. • History (INT) shows how much knowledge of what happened before, be it in a country, an item, a particular Sampleperson or place, or where that strange culture got that weird quirk. Weird to you , thatfile is. To the one who has the quirk, it’s perfectly normal. • Insight (WIS) measures how much you can notice and tell what is happening under the surface; how much, or how little, you could be fooled, and to figure out that whoever your character is talking to is just full of bovine crap. • Intimidation (CHA) shows how much you could force someone to do something, either by threats, or by more gentle coercion. You could either taunt someone into a fight or to make someone think twice of attacking you. • Investigation (INT) is used when the Game Master interrupts the drudgery of adventuring and dragon slaying to bring you a good old whodunnit, and you need to search for clues. It is also used when you’re scrounging around a library for an important piece of lore or to find the truth about a certain rumor. • Medicine (WIS) is used when you try to tend to a wound or to stabilize someone who fell unconscious in combat. This skill is also used to identify poisons and diseases and to use natural healing items such as a Healer’s Kit. • Perception (WIS) is where you take stock of your senses, mostly what you see and hear. It’s what you use to try to look for hidden threats or to find out where that sound came from. It can also be used passively and there is a part of this section labeled Passive Wisdom (Perception). When the Game Master says that you just caught something out of the corner of your eye and you didn’t roll any dice for that, it’s because of Passive Perception. In case you’re wondering, you add 10 to your Perception (WIS) modifier to get Passive Perception. More on that when we get to it. • It’s not just bards who can sing and dance, any character can use the Performance (CHA) skill. This skill can also be used by anyone who wishes to tell a story to draw in a crowd, belt out a song to touch someone’s heart, or give a stirring speech to lift a crowd’s morale. • What Performance can do for a crowd, Persuasion (CHA) can do for an individual, such as convincing someone that your part of a plan is worth trying, buttering up someone to get him to spill an important clue or item, or even knowing what to do in a certain social setting. How else would a common travelling adventurer get an audience with a local noble? • Religion (INT) is knowledge of the various religions in the world around you, what kind of deities being worshipped, what rites and rituals are in practice, and in general knowing what not to do that would offend someone. You’ll find out that people in a D&D world aren’t as easily triggered as someone from, say, Twitter, but it does happen. • Sleight of Hand (DEX) is more than just pickpocketing. It is used for doing anything that you don’t want seen, from concealing something on your person, or making a hand signal to an ally, to even plucking something out of the air that happened to be within reach. • Stealth (DEX) is for sneaking around, hiding from enemies, mingling with a crowd, or tailing someone. It’s not just for rogues, just about everyone has to do this at least once in an adventure…and some are not very good at it, especially ones clinking around in heavy armor. • Survival (WIS) is for more than just enduring the elements, it’s also used for tracking prey, foraging food, finding water (and boiling it), building a decent campsite, and making sure that you won’t get yourself lost in the field.

As you create your character, you will gain Proficiency in two Saving Throws and a number of Skills. The character sheet has small circles to fill up to signify where your character is proficient at. Yes, yes, fill it in like a standardized test, I’m sure you know how to do that. When you are proficient in a Save or Skill, as we’ll see later, you get to add that Proficiency Bonus to the number beside that filled circle. Right now, that bonus is +2, but will go up as you gain certain levels. Therefore, put a ‘+2’ in the box labeled ‘Proficiency’ on the sheet, just to get that out of the way. (Aren’t you glad that you chose pencil?)

There is one more space to mention: The box with the Inspiration label. This is a mechanic Wizards (short for Sample‘Wizards of the Coast,’ just so you’ll know) created to encourage role playing and not roll playingfile. The Game Master can reward players who roleplay the character instead of just rolling dice on a skill, if they did something creative on the table, or anything that made everyone else to just sit up and take notice, with an Inspiration Point. Officially there can be a maximum of one point of Inspiration, but that depends on the Game Master. Some GM’s let you accumulate more, so be sure to find out. You can spend this point of Inspiration to gain Advantage on any d20 roll, be it a Skill or Attribute check, a Saving Throw, or an Attack roll. Use strategy on whatever or not you use it. You don’t want to blow it on some simple check and not have it for that life-critical moment, but you don’t want to have it sitting around while your character’s getting used as a cosmic chew toy.

Oh, yeah, Advantage. You want to get as many Advantage rolls as you can, because you get to roll that d20 twice and take the higher result. It doubles the chances that you would make a successful roll or even that Natural 20. As you could expect, you can have Disadvantage on a roll where you take the lower of the two d20s. The Game Master will let you know when you have Advantage, Disadvantage, or just a normal roll.

Below this whole section is an area labeled Other Proficiencies and Languages. Each class and background have their own items that an adventurer in each class knows how to use. Not just the type of weapons and armor, but also various tool kits and equipment, as well as the character’s known languages. Most characters know a couple languages, their native tongue (usually a tongue used by a certain group, race, or culture) and a Common language. Because of the vast assortment of peoples out there in a D&D setting, there rose a need for a language that everybody can use. That’s Common. And there’s nobody in the D&D world having a qualm over having a language that every person uses, unlike the occasional drama over people demanding that English being an official language in America. Remember: The D&D World is not Earth. THE HIT POINT SECTION During combat, the d20 roll is also used for attack rolls which you make when your character attacks with a weapons or certain spells that need a specific target, such as a scorching ray. The attack is compared to the target’s Armor Class or AC. It works like a normal check’s Difficulty Class, but it’s predominately used in combat. Armor Class is designated by, as you might have guessed, the type of armor you are wearing, although there are some spells or even features in certain classes, that can affect Armor Class.

The most famous words in all Role-Playing Games will always be ‘Gentlemen, Roll for Initiative.’ (We do add ‘Ladies and’ in front of that when a woman is at the table. Yeah, some D&D players do have girlfriends. Some are even married. Of course, if you have to account for someone who’s nonbinary, by all means add something appropriate. I wouldn’t know. I’d rather visit Barovia than Twitter. I hear it’s lovely this time of year.) The bonus for Initiative is made with your DEX modifier but some features from your class, some magic items, or any other boon or bane, can adjust this number. For example, Lore Mastery Wizards (You need to dig into some Unearthed Arcana articles for that archetype.) use INT instead of DEX for their Initiative bonus, and some classes even add bonuses there. That’s why it has its own special place on the page.

Speed is the total distance in feet (D&D doesn’t use the metric system. Yet.) a person can move in each turn; a turn being 6 seconds of time to the character. (Remember that’s six seconds for your character, a turn takes considerably longer to you on the table.) Unless noted otherwise, the most common number for speed is 30’, but like with Initiative, this can be influenced by your choice of race or class, sometimes your choice of armor, and Sampleeven some magic items. So, don’t write anything in here yet. file This number is also involved when figuring out how much a character can walk during a day, during chases, and many other things that contend with movement. This also includes combat. One of the more thrilling parts of D&D is when the Game Master plops down a map and puts miniatures of the party’s characters, all the monsters, the objects, the traps, and just about everything else imaginable on it, is placed as miniatures on it. Normally, the map set up like a grid, measured by inches. In this case, one square relates to a five-foot square area according to your character, so the number of squares you can move can be found by dividing your speed by five. Fortunately, speed is often measured in units of five. Makes the math easy.

Hit Points or HP is like your life bar in this game. It dictates how much damage your character can take before getting knocked out. There is a generous space to keep track of your Current Hit Points, but I recommend you just list your Maximum Hit Points here and use a scrap of paper, or a couple spare d10s, or that cute little cryptex- looking thing included in the Waterdeep: Dragon Heist dice set—they can be found in recent Magic: The Gathering Commander decks as well—to track your HP. It’s good practice and keeps you from putting an eraser to your character sheet any more than you have to. (Aren’t you glad you’re using pencil on a sheet printed on Card Stock yet?)

There are some instances where you might have a buffer of HP above your normal number of Hit Points. These are known as Temporary Hit Points or THP and there is a space for them there. Whenever your character takes damage, the damage is taken from your THP first, then the rest is taken from your normal HP. It’s important to note that you cannot get more THP than the largest amount given; in other words, they don’t ‘stack.’ Say your character has 2 THP and later they gain 7 THP. That means they only have 7 THP, not 9. Also, keep in mind that THP only last until your character takes a rest. Once they do, whatever remaining THP goes away.

Now that it’s mentioned, let’s discuss Resting. There are some features that your character will have that only has a set number of uses, and they need to take a rest to recharge them. There are two kinds of rests in this game, Short and Long. A Short Rest is roughly between 30 minutes to an hour, and it’s where some characters pause and catch their breath from all this excitement, some features can recharge with just a short pause for your character to catch your breath. A Long Rest is at least eight hours and it’s there where your character sleeps for the night. Or tries to. Sometimes when your character is camping in the woods or in a dungeon somewhere, there’s a chance that some rude monster, a rival adventuring party, or some other idiot looking for low hanging fruit comes and disturb your character’s sleep and piss you off. But once the Long Rest is done, everything resets (with some exceptions, you’ll be told when that’s the case,) including Hit Points, your ability to cast spells, features that recharge each day, and so on, and so on. Each ability that your character will have will tell you how much uses they have, and whatever they recharge with a Short Rest or a Long one.

One important thing to do with a Short Rest is to bind whatever wounds you get. Sure, you can always have a cleric handy which can tap into some healing magic, and you can always drink a healing potion at any time. (A protip here, get a couple Potions of Healing as soon as you can. They will be a godsend.) But anyone can use Hit Dice to bind your wounds. The number of Hit Dice you have will be in its proper box in this section. To patch yourself up in a Short Rest, you take one of these Hit Dice, roll it, and add your CON modifier to the roll. That’s how much HP your character recovers with the Hit Die you expended. Of course, you start with just one Hit Dice, and you gain another Hit Dice with each level you gain. Also, keep in mind that Hit Dice recharge differently than anything else. Only half of your total Hit Dice rounded down or at least 1 (whichever is higher) recharge with each Long Rest. If you have eight Hit Dice, then you recharge four Hit Dice. If you’re starting off in 1st to 3rd Level, that would be one Hit Dice. It goes up to 2 when you get at 4th Level, and then one more each other level.

Now then, just because some attack or trap reduced your character to zero Hit Points (you cannot go into negative Hit Points, just so you’ll know) that doesn’t mean that your character is dead. That only happens when your Samplecharacter is reduced to zero hit points and the remaining damage is greater than your character’sfile maximum HP. Considering what would have happened to generate that much damage on a single person, you could imagine what would be left of your character. Even Ed Boon and John Tobias would go ‘Dude! That’s fucked up.’ If that is not the case, your character is just knocked unconscious when he reaches 0 HP. They’re not dead yet. Sometimes the attacker doesn’t want you dead, just out of commission for a while (awfully considerate of the fellow,) and some Game Masters are kind enough to say that the bad guys only knock you out and don’t want you dead—whatever that reason is, it might not be good—but normally when your character is downed, they are considered dying. Not quite dead…but getting there.

Which brings us to Death Saving Throws. If you are in a smart party, they’ll be a timely healing spell from a cleric, or someone would rush up to your character and stabilize them. Some Game Masters will allow someone to pour a potion of healing down your character’s throat, which works too. But if that didn’t happen when your next turn comes up, you roll a straight up d20 roll, no modifiers. A roll of 10 or above is a success, and a 9 or below is a failure. Keep track of successes and failures—there is a spot for them in the Hit Points section. If three successes are made then your character is stabilized; they’re going to live, but they’re still knocked out, and I hope no klutz trips over your character before they wake up with the next short rest. If you crit with a Natural 20, your character is not just stabilized, they regain consciousness with 1 Hit Point. (Standing up at this moment is not recommended. It would be a good time to play possum.) A roll of a 1 count as two failures.

Only when you roll your third failure is your character officially dead.

If your character is healed in anyway; be it from a spell, ability, or cramming a potion down the hatch; your character’s hit points is set at the number of hit points they’re healed for. If they were healed for 6 points, they are at 6 points. They’re also stabilized, regain consciousness, and in a better condition to get up and get back into the fight. This is regardless of how many Successes or Failures they have at that time. In fact, under the standard rules, they are reset back to zero-zero. Your Game Master might have something different, so be sure to find out what that is. THE ATTACKS & SPELLCASTING SECTION This space is for the character’s basic attacks. The top three rows are for weapon attacks. Usually a character has two, a melee weapon for hand-to- hand combat, and a ranged weapon to attack from a distance. Each row can list the weapon, the attack bonus (based on either the character’s STR or DEX depending on the weapon plus his Proficiency Bonus,) and the damage roll which consists of the given die (or dice) that is rolled, with the same related modifier, and the depiction of the type of weapon involved. Of course, there may be more to a weapon than just the attack and damage rolls, which can be put in the space below. You are using pencil, yes?

You might think this is too small a space to list them all. Not just in number of attacks but also what your own handwriting—or what counts as your handwriting—needs to be legible. I don’t blame you; those nine boxes aren’t the biggest real estate on the sheet. That’s where the spiral notebook I told you to buy comes in.

Take that notebook you bought and number the first twenty to thirty pages. Those pages will serve as an expansion of the character sheet. You can just put down “See Page Such and Such” and move it to the notebook so you can expand on these spaces. You might also get away with using the back of the sheet if you printed the sheet single sided, which also works, but regardless of how you do it, finding room for expansion is always a good idea. I’ve learned from experience that it’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

If your character can cast spells, this block also has a space for the basic info of your character’s spellcasting ability. Samplethere are several ways your character gains, prepares, and casts spells, as well as whatever theyfile use INT, WIS, or CHA to cast them. (The Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma modifiers, respectfully.) This is usually dependent on the class you chose, but there are other sources, such as the Magic Initiate feat.

The ability used for spellcasting is used for the spellcasting bonus, which is the modifier plus the proficiency bonus, and the Spell Save DC, which is that spellcasting bonus plus 8. Some spells are attack spells which can be rolled like a weapon attack, while others create an area of effect where those in it must make a saving throw against that DC to avoid damage or some other effect. Each spell will tell you whatever it’s an Attack Spell or a Save Spell.

You can also list whatever spellcasting implements are used, how many spells you can prepare, whatever or not a Spellbook is involved, and where that is listed, if you can cast spells as Rituals, and other things.

A good example of what should be in this section would be something like:

3rd Level Wizard Spellcasting Ability is INT +6 Attack – Save DC 14 7 Max Spells – 14 Spell Points Spellbook on Page 2 on the Notebook.

Of course, spellcasting and preparation will be dealt with on a later page, and there is a good chance that your character might not be able to cast spells at all. Just leave this block blank for now. THE EQUIPMENT SECTION This space is where you list whatever equipment you have on hand. While you start off with a short enough list (Adventuring Kit, starter weapon, starter armor, whatever else your class and background gives you) this list is bound to increase, especially when you start collecting magic items and stocking up on potions and scrolls. You will need to expand on this sooner or later. Another reason why you got that spiral notebook or keep space on the back of the sheets.

This is also the place where you can show the coin your character has. Unless notified elsewhere, all D&D campaign settings use a uniform set of coins, and they are made constant via treaties, alliances, gentleman’s agreements by nobles, or threats of pain. A Gold Dragon from Waterdeep is the same as a Gold Lion in Cormyr as is a Bicenta over at Calimshan. You can assume any other D&D campaign setting to be the same way or in some variant thereof.

Coins get exchanged in the following fashion. Think of Pennies, Dimes, and Dollars.

• 10 Copper Pieces (CP) to a Silver Piece (SP) • 10 Silver Pieces to a Gold Piece (GP) • 2 Electrum Pieces (EP) to a Gold Piece. (Don’t ask me why.) • 10 Gold Pieces to a Platinum Piece (PP)

If your character gets a good pile of coin and other treasure, it’s best to find a place to to safekeep it all. Most major cities have at least one bank, as do some temples and city halls. Keeping that small pile safe and out of sight of any would be cutpurses or pickpockets is a good idea. Be sure to consult your Game Master to see if they Samplethought up something to stash your cash for later. file THE PERSONALITY SECTION Remember the idea that you don’t have to fill in every space in your character sheet in order to have a working character? Where it’s perfectly fine for a character to be discovered as you play? It holds center stage in this corner of the first page, the Personality Section or TIBF section. That stands for ‘Traits, Ideals, Bonds, and Flaws.”

This section allows for a brief depiction of what makes the character tick. What are their most visual traits, what is the ideals they value the most, what kind of bond they have with the world around him—it need not be with the party, it could be with a family member or best friend, or mentor or someone else—and what sort of flaw do they have. It need not be campaignr breaking or anything serious, this flaw could be something as simple as an addiction for a certain candy or a tendency to smoke pipeweed, anything that would keep a character from being too perfect. Even with factor of using dice to determine success or failure, nobody likes a Mary Sue.

No, seriously. D&D players don’t mind self-insertions, but they flat out detest characters who are too perfect, have zero flaws, and thinks that the world bends over for them. A character like Rey or Carol Danvers, they just don’t last long in D&D, even with their powers. It won’t be if they get chunkied, but when, where, and how. Good money is always on ‘being eaten by a dragon,’ or ‘wacked out of the blue by their own party members.’ Or in the case of Wizards of the Coast-sponsored settings, a good way to see some Wesley Crusher clone get snuffed is by ‘sudden ceremorphosis.’ If you don’t know…trust me…don’t…ask.

This is on the character sheet because it relates to the Inspiration mechanic. Following along with what’s in this section is the easiest way for a player to earn Inspiration. Of course, there are other means of getting Inspiration. From roleplaying an epic scene, wowing the other party members, or even channeling your inner Patrick Rofthuss. Really, do a Youtube search on “Patrick Rofthuss Bullshit.” You’d be convinced that he blackmailed Chris Perkins. Small wonder he tagged in Jeremy Crawford for the Game Master slot.

When you look up your background in the Player’s Handbook, you will find a series of tables that has a list of suggestions to put in here. You can roll on them, pick one you like, or just leave them blank and fill them in as you go. FEATURES & TRAITS If there is any reason why you should have a notebook alongside your character sheet or print it all single sided, it’s this block. While it has just enough space for all the features of your race, class, and background at 1st level, you’ll run out of space here eventually.

If you’re just going to keep this character in the lower levels, you can list everything here. Or maybe eventually need to write a “Turn Over” at the bottom so that you can continue on the back, (provided the sheet is printed single-sided.) Eventually you’re going to have to put down something like this:

Race: Halfling. See Page 2 Class 1: Rogue-Arcane Trickster. See Page 3 Class 2: Bard-College of Valor. See Page 4 Background: Charlatan. See Page 5 Spell List on Page 6. SampleThis will happen eventually as your character gains boons, feats, some magic items, story -basedfile awards, and everything else your character gets. Like I said, better to have extra space and don’t need it than need it and don’t have it. And it’s not like you’re hoarding anything. Well, it’s a good idea to have a small hoard of spiral notebooks. You can get them for a quarter in some stores in late July.

PAGE 2 By far the first page you just gotten through is the most complex. The rest are easier to deal with.

TOP BAR The character’s name goes into the proper slot, and in the box beside that you can put in your character’s physical stats, his age, height, weight, eyes, skin, and hair color. This part is voluntary, of course, you don’t have to fill in parts that you find too sensitive to discuss.

Do you have to discuss your character’s sexuality or gender on the sheet? (Whatever that means bimodal sex or the spectrum of genders.) Or for that matter, anything else that some call a Checkbox? Don’t be shocked, but if you don’t want to, you don’t have to. You’ll be relieved to know that on average, not only is the campaign setting pretty chill when it comes to your character’s type but the other players on the table as well.

By ‘Character Type,’ I mean the character’s race, sex, gender, ethnicity, or any other of those aforementioned checkboxes. I named it after the second line in Stat Blocks in the Monster Manual. I use this term because nobody would find it offensive and rewrite it on websters.com in the middle of the conversation.

Think about the world your character is in and its social environment. Think about the people in that world and what they care about. Consider the threats these people face or will face. Do you think that they would be concerned about the same social justice issues that you do? Do you think they give a whit about what boxes your character checks? Or would they just go, “Oh, so your pronouns are Ze/Zir. Big Whoop De Do. How good are you with that crossbow mounted on that wheelchair of yours? We’ve got a gang of Orc brigands pounding down our door, and they sound pissed off over being referred to as black people.” Priorities, folks. Priorities. Nobody cares about microaggressions when you’re staring down all of Avernus. (And nothing would insult an orc more than being regarded as a dark-skinned human. Trust me on this.)

Say it with me now: The D&D World is Not Earth.

In this game, it’s not what the character is on the surface that matters, but who they are inside. It is who the character is as a person, the skills and talents they possess, their own individual quirks and actions, and the deeds they have done that define a person. You need to look at your character as an individual, as a fleshed-out person with a life of their own, complete with cares, beliefs, mannerisms, and a lot of other things, even if you don’t know everything yet. That person is more than just the sum of the parts I hope you are deciding on as you’re reading this. As long as you keep this in mind and keep the real-world current year politics at the table, you’ll find the game to be a lot more pleasurable. And you’ll won’t come off to be such an ass. People play Dungeons & Dragons to get away from what goes on in social media sites, after all. CHARACTER APPEARANCE SECTION SampleThere is a spot in this page to apply any artistic talent if you have it. The Character Appearance file Section is a place to draw an image of your character. If you don’t have the visual image of your character down pat, or if you can’t draw anything beyond stick figures, you can write the description instead. You don’t have to be a renaissance painter or a BA degree from college here, any ballpark sketch would do. You can even use a stock image if you must. Nobody’s going to sic the Copyright Police on you over a game you’re playing in the privacy of someone’s home. ALLIES & ORGANIZATIONS SECTION The Allies & Organizations Section has a space to list all of your character’s friends and allies—and possible rivals and enemies—that do not necessary include the party he’s in. This can be an academy where they learned a trade or how they learned magic, some spiritual order or monastery, a guild of any kind, or even family members.

There is also a space reserved for what is called a Faction. A faction is a major group that operates within a setting, as part of the major players in the politics of the realm. You’ve probably heard of groups like the Lord’s Alliance, the Emerald Enclave, and the Zhentarim. Those are Factions. Once you find yourself a part of a faction, you can put the name here, and have a space to place in the symbol of that faction.

In recent supplements, a variant showed up that can easily fit in here: The Group Patron. The Group Patron is an individual or organization that brought your characters together and provided the reason you are a team, as they give out quests in exchange for their support. You can put the Group Patron here in place of a Faction and it’ll be perfectly fine by everyone.

And then there’s Adventuring Corporations that add even more wrinkles, but you need to look up the Acquisitions Incorporated supplement for that. CHARACTER BACKSTORY The last three blocks are large and straightforward. If you need to use an extra sheet of paper on these blocks, or if you move it to a page on that spiral notebook, you have an excellent imagination. You’re going to go far in this game. We might even become friends. I’m sure that, when you’re looking at Page 2, you can easily find these blocks.

This block is where you can write a little bit about your character and where they come from. You don’t need to write a NaNoWriMo-length novella about your character’s life story—although some would find that fun—just a paragraph or two will do for here. Think of it as an introduction of your character. You can list some of your character’s hobbies and likes, what school subjects they excel in, what sport teams they follow, whatever they fold or scrunch their toilet paper when they go to the john, those sorts of things. Some might not even bother with a background because there’s a good chance that they’d die before they reach 2nd Level and they just don’t want to get attached to their character at first. Some could actually do this ultra-rare psychological feat. Most just can’t. ADDITIONAL FEATURES & TRAITS This block can be used either as an overflow from the Features & Traits box on Page 1, or it can be used for extra features that go beyond what goes there, like when your character picks up an over-powered artifact or acquires a long-time boon. Those things can have its own place here. TREASURE Of course, you acquire more than just coin and gems. Your character might find a magic item, or important trinket Samplefor a future quest, or what other bright shiny objects or key items that they pick up. Such as thatfile book that has that important lore, a password written down on a napkin or a key to a certain chest, and so on. The Treasure box is there to list these trinkets and baubles, so that you’ll keep track of them.

You can also list the magic items your character acquired but not equipped in this game. Keep a list of your tools and the contents of their backpack here and leave the Equipment box on Page 1 for what your character equipped. Just keep in mind two things. One, there are understandable limits to the number of magic items your character can equip. They can’t wear two sets of boots or layer on armor, for example.

The other thing to keep in mind that some magic items have what’s known as Attunement, where while on a Short Rest, your character can figure out, activate, and have the item work for them. You’ll be told which of these items require you to attune to the item. A character can only attune up to three magic items that require attunement at any one time, they can’t attune to a fourth item without breaking the attunement of an item they already has.

PAGE 3 Now we come to the third page of the character sheet, the Spell List page. This page might not even be used for some characters you’d make. We’ll just look this page over for now, no need to write anything.

This page’s Top Bar has a field for the Spellcasting Class, the related Ability, the Spell Save DC, and the Spell Attack Bonus. As mentioned before, the Ability depends on the Class your character is in. The Spell Attack Bonus is that ability’s modifier plus the proficiency bonus, and the Spell Save DC is that bonus plus eight.

The rest of the page is the list of all the spells your character can cast. The list starts with Cantrips, which are spells that can be cast all the time. “At Will,” as we call it. What follows is a series of list with a header separating each list by Spell Level, which ranks how powerful a spell is. The Spell Level also deals with what kind of Spell Slots your character has. There’s a space for how many spell slots you have on this page by each level, and you’ll find out how many Spell Slots you’ll get (and how many of which level) with your class.

Your character spends one of these spell slots while casting the spell and they recharge with each long rest. Keep in mind that the level of the spell your character casts depends on the Slot he uses, not the spell itself. It is possible to cast a 1st Level spell with a 2nd or higher spell slot, and some spells can account for this. Cure Wounds for example can be cast with a 1st Level spell slot to heal for 1d8 plus the caster’s spellcasting modifier. If the caster uses a 2nd Level spell slot, he can add another 1d8, making the roll 2d8 plus that modifier. And it goes up with each additional level of spell slot.

There is an alternative to using the traditional Spell Slots if you find Spell Slots too complicated. Page 288 of the Game Master’s Guide describe Spell Points which work like Magic Points in an RPG game you play on consoles. For the life of me, I don’t know why this isn’t in the Player’s Handbook, but it should. I use Spell Points all the time.

If you’re using Spell Points, deal with them like you do with Hit Points, keep the Maximum Spell Points on your character sheet, preferably in the spellcasting section of Page 1, and keep track of your current spell points Sampleelsewhere, such as a scrap of paper, a different pair of dice, another one of those cryptixes, whateverfile works. In some cases, your character might have more spells than what he can cast. This holds especially true with a Wizard, who uses a Spellbook, as well as Clerics who are granted a big list of spells to choose from each time they finish a Long Rest. Each class will include a number of spells that a character is able to prepare, and a list of spells that he can prepare. For Wizards, you start with six spells in their Spellbook, which can be added to not just by leveling up but as you adventure, where you can find more spells to add to that book. While other spellcasters lock in their spells with each level up and can’t change them on the fly. It’s different for each class and you’ll find out the details when you look your class up. Another reason why I suggested expansion space, because the spellbooks of some high level spellcasters are too large for this sheet.

No matter what kind of Spellcaster they are, they can only cast spells that they have earlier prepared. Normally, this preparation occurs with each Long Rest, and the number of spells you prepare depend on your character’s class and/or the level in that class. In some cases, the number of spells is listed in the progression chart of each class in the Player’s Handbook, while other classes add your character’s level in that class and the related spellcasting ability modifier together. All of this should be noted in the Attacks & Spellcasting section in Page 1.

Whew, deep breath. We’ve finished the tour.

Now then, if you need more time to decide what kind of character you want to play, I’ll wait for you. You’re reading something I wrote a couple months back, after all. Once you decided on your character, let’s move on.

STEP TWO: GATHER THE PARTS By now you’ve thought about—and hopefully decided—on the three parts of your character: The Race, the Class, and the Background. Time to look them up in the source books if you haven’t done so already. Be sure to mark the pages where everything is at so you can easily get to them. (Use slips of paper for bookmarks, if you please. Folding page corners is frowned upon. Just because they’re nerds, geeks, and the occasional otaku or furry, doesn’t mean they’re completely lacking in decency and consideration.)

For the Race, you need to look for the race’s Traits. Be sure that you include your choice of subrace here as well. You might run across a book or document that discussed a new option known as a Custom Lineages, where you can tweak the Race part to suit your character. If you want to try it, feel free, but otherwise, let’s just stick to what’s in the Player’s Handbook. Just remember what I said earlier about the topic. The D&D world is Not Earth.

Some Races has a section on what names are proper. You can pick one of them make your own, use a random generator, or get creative or silly. This isn’t Twitter, nobody’s gonna judge ya.

For the Class, take note on the first part of the Class Features; the sections on Hit Points, Proficiencies, and the Equipment. There should be a table on which features you’ll have available at each level, and you only need to be concerned with 1st level now. You’ll find a section called Quick Build that would give you suggestions to make a quick character or that class. And keep adding features, proficiencies, and abilities until you have everything for both your base class and, if applicable, your archetype. The Archetype is a specialization of a particular class and every class has at least three of them. They could have different names, such as ‘domain,’ ‘circle,’ ‘school,’ ‘conclave,’ or anything else, but officially they’re all Archetypes. Some are available at 1st Level, while others need Sampleto be chosen later, again depending on the base class. file For the Background, there should be a list of Skill Proficiencies, Tool Proficiencies, and additional Equipment. Take note on the other abilities that should be included here, as well as some specializations. Most backgrounds have tables that you can roll on to fill in the TIBF section on Page 1. You can do that, make your own, or leave them blank so you can fill them later.

If you can’t decide, you can always freestyle it: Select two skills, a toolset, and a language to be proficient in; throw in some small social feature that might come in handy, such as bring in a group that allows free room or board, or an extensive family that will loan your party a wagon; and 15 Gold Pieces to spend on some equipment.

On very rare occasions, such as if you’re creating a Variant Human (Look for a small box at the corner of Page 31 of the Player’s Handbook) or if the Game Master is a nice guy, you are entitled to pick up a Feat. If that’s the case, look one up and put a bookmark on it. You’ll be adding that to the other pieces you accumulated.

STEP THREE: FILL IN THE ABILITY SECTION Start off step three by putting the Racial Traits on the sheet. These will include any additions to the abilities scores which will come into play in a minute. Make a note on the margins on which ones get added (in pencil, so you can erase them) to remind you.

After that, go to your class and find out which of the six abilities are important to that character. Make a note on that in the margins as well.

If you haven’t rolled your stats yet, now’s the time to do so. Whatever the Game Master allows you to do works. There is the standard of rolling four six-siders and take out the lowest result, something listed in some books as 4d6kh3 (Roll four d6s—that’s the standard six-sided dice you’re accustomed to—and tally up the highest three numbers you roll.) although there are different ways to roll. (If you don’t know what dice notation is, feel free to look it up online, you’ll find it very useful.) Don’t worry about the order right now, you’ll be moving the numbers around. If you prefer, you can also use a standard array instead, which is this: [15,14,13,12,10,8]

Now that you got your array, decide on which number goes to where. The Quick Build section on your class should give you a clue on where to put the higher numbers, usually the ability your character will be using the most. Those who are more combat based put their highest numbers in Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution; while those more into spellcasting use Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. High scores in the abilities whose saving throws they’re proficient in is a good idea. If the class contains a spellcasting feature, but it doesn’t become available until the 2nd or 3rd Level, make a note on the particular ability so that you’ll remember. Choose the ability with the lowest score carefully, you want it to bite your character in the arse as few times as possible. Look for all the skills and saves that your character is proficient in. You might need to decide on one or more from a list given in the Class or Background. Go down the list shown in the Ability Section and blacken each of the related circles on each skill or save.

Once you put the scores in the right abilities (place them in the smaller ovals underneath the larger square,) make the right adjustments from the reminders you put in earlier, and locked in the skills and saves your character is proficient in, take a deep breath. It’s time for the math.

For each of the six Abilities, take the Score, subtract 10, halve it, and round down. That is the ability’s Modifier. Write that in the larger square. (Are you using pencil?) Once you have all six done, go through each of the Saves and Skills and start filling that in. Each of the Skill should have the abbreviation of which modifier to plug in. If a save or a skill has that circle marked, add 2 to that number. That’s the proficiency bonus you filled in earlier. SampleThis is by far the most tedious part of character creation, and there’s no way around trudging file through it. I’ll be waiting here until you are done. Welcome back. Not then, take the modifier assigned to the Perception (INT) skill, add 10 to it, and plug that into the Passive Wisdom (Perception) block.

Whew! Take a break. The worst part’s over with.

STEP FOUR: FILL IN THE REST OF THE FEATURES Go through all three pieces you’ve gathered from the book (four if you have a feat) and fill them in the Features & Traits section. It’s here where you might need to put down a ‘Continued on page Such and Such’ if you have too much info already or your handwriting can’t get small enough. Take a note on whatever limits your character has on some of these abilities, especially the ones that contend with one of their ability modifiers, and show whether these uses recharge with a Long Rest or Any Rest.

Find the designated Hit Die for the class and write it in the appropriate box in the Hit Points Section. They’ll accumulate with each level, and so they usually are shown in dice notation. (A 7th Level Paladin would have 7d10 as their hit dice.) Take the hit die you have and add its largest result (the ‘10’ for a d10) with the CON modifier. That will be the starting Maximum Hit Points. Put down what you’re given for the Speed and if you are not proficient in any armor but have a special formula for designating Armor Class (Barbarians and Monks are a noted example of this), calculate that AC and put it in there.

If your character is a spellcaster, you can fill in the Attacks & Spellcasting section, listing the spellcasting bonus, the spell save DC, the number of spells you can prepare, whatever or not you’re using Spell Points or Spell Slots, and any other important information. Put that in the Spellcasting section. Then get to the third page and fill that in, including all the spells you chosen to prepare or what you can prepare. If you need it, there’s a circle to fill in if you need to swap prepared spells around.

STEP FIVE: FILL IN THE EQUIPMENT This is where you put in your character’s armor, weapons, and whatever additional items they have when they enter that tavern. The Class and Background has information on what to fill in there. Do feel free to use whatever money you’re allowed (or if the Game Master lets you have some extra coin) to buy some things from Page 150 of the Player’s Handbook. The Game Master might be generous to let you have a Potion of Healing or two, so don’t be afraid to ask. There are some YouTube videos that would tell you what additional mundane items from that chart would be good to have, things that don’t cost any more than a silver piece or even copper piece, but you’ll find out that you’ll miss not having them when you’re playing. If you don’t know what to get, don’t worry, you’ll pick that up as you play. A little trial and error is in order here.

STEP SIX: COMPLETE THE FIRST PAGE With everything put in the character sheet thus far, you can now fill in the rest of this sheet. Put in the DEX modifier (with any possible additions, or whatever alternate you’re told to use) into the Initiative box, look up the AC of your character’s armor if they have it, making a note if this armor let you add some or all of your DEX modifier to the AC, and put that in there. (There are some cases where this was taken care of in Step Four, so keep that in mind.) Fill in the basic weapon attacks in their place and, if you’ve chosen what should be in the Personality Section already, fill that in as well.

Take another breath, go get a drink, pause a moment. You’re almost done. Or you’re are done if you just want to Samplehave the important stuff in there. For some people, this is all they need for a character. If that’sfile the case, congratulations, you’ve created your first character sheet. You can skip ahead to Step Eight. If you want to do some more with your character, by all means, move on.

STEP SEVEN: FILL OUT PAGE 2 You’ve trudged yourself through the mechanics of your character. Now it is time to work on the flavor and fluff of your character. Fluff is the descriptions and characteristics of a character, item, ability, or some other feature that gives it a unique style or visual aesthetics that makes it different and unique. Fluff does not affect the mechanics, or Crunch, of the game, but adds to the imagery or environment of the campaign setting your character is in.

Take any elaborate details of your character, some bits of their appearance, where they came from, some useful backstory, what groups they are in, and everything else that you can do to make your character stand out from the nameless, faceless, featureless Non-Player Characters out there. We’re not talking about the drones on Facebook who talk, think, act, and even hashtag so identical that you’d question whatever or not they’re people. We’re talking about the characters the Game Master has on them. All the storekeepers, the quest givers, the acquaintances, the people on the street, and oh yeah, anyone your characters will probably be ending up fighting. The main difference between an NPC in a role-playing game and an NPC in social media is that the ones in the game, at least in theory, have their own lives, personality, and place in the world. In other words, they’re the main character in their own story, just like your Player Character is in their’s. Go think up the life of an owner of an item chop, or if you’re so inclined play Ratcheteer, and see for yourself.

I go back to what I talked about during the tour of the character sheet. While you can consider diversity in your characters, it really isn’t a requirement. In fact, all the talk and effort taken making this game inclusive and diverse isn’t really necessary at all. In my mindset, Role Playing Games are, by their very nature, innately diverse and inclusive already. I could say that it’s been this way when Gary Gyrax made Chainmail (The Prototype of D&D.)

I say this because of what I believe is the most important part of an RPG. It is not the rules, the module, the materials involved or even the publishers who provide them. The most important part of Dungeons & Dragons is the people on the table. The Game Master and the Players. That’s you. That’s me. That’s us. The people on the table can be anyone from any walk of life, and the characters they create and the world it is in, can be anything or anyone from any walk of life. This includes your Type. Your character can be of any race, culture, sexuality, gender, skin color, or anything else. They can even be a cishet dudebro Alpha if you’re so inclined. And before you ask, no, you do not have to be an Elf to play an Elf. And if you’re in a wheelchair, your character need not be in one as well. Nothing is out of bounds here. There are no Gatekeepers in D&D. And nobody on Facebook should care about what you’re doing right now. Just keep repeating after me: The D&D World is Not Earth.

Think of the world your character is in as a character itself, with its own unique environments, its own unique cultures, its own unique peoples, and its own unique social issues. And as I said before, these bits may, and can, be different from what you are used to. Have an open mind to this and adjust accordingly. Keep your character grounded in their world, not yours. It will make for a more believable and even likable character, and you will find the game much more enjoyable.

Go beyond just putting out whatever skin color, religion, sex, gender, or any other boxes you’d like to check. Go beneath the surface and find out what your character truly is like. Really get to know your character; if you can’t do that now, you will as you play them. Find out what’s important to your little hero. What snack food does your character like, what sports do they play or watch, what music they listen to, what they like to read, if they can. Show the people and places they’ve been in, who was a favorite teacher, or mentor, did they have a good family or was they in some orphanage from hell. Do they fold or scrunch? SampleWhat makes your character unique? A one of a kind. That’s the ultimate goal of creating a characfileter, to make them memorable and interesting. Maybe even likable. You’re going to have to do more than just check off boxes to do that. In fact, this might require just as much work as the math you had to do in Step Three. I assure you. It will be time well spent.

STEP EIGHT: GET READY TO PLAY You now have your character sheet filled out, at least filled out to the best of your ability and to the satisfaction of the other people on the table. You made your own person in this setting and fleshed them out as much as you can and have them fill a vital role in a party. You only need to get some things before you start playing.

The first thing you need is dice. You need dice. You need more dice. You always need more dice. You will always need one more die. I have a whole pencil box full of dice in every rank available. I even have dice that are not normally used in Dungeons & Dragons. Like my giant thirty-sided (you heard that correctly) die I nicknamed Tom. This is the die I roll when I’m behind the screen and someone on the table just pissed me off.

You’d think I have enough dice. No. I do not.

You’d think you’d have enough dice. No, you do not.

By now you would—or should—have a notebook for expanded space for your character sheet. (And a pencil to write on it.) You might have by now numbered the first 20 to 30 pages, as I suggested so that you’ll have some expansion room with page references. Flip to a page beyond this section, and from there start a journal of the character, so that you can record what your character does, what quests they completed, what treasure they gained, whatever they bought, bad guys they take out, rivals they gain, and of course, whatever Experience Points they earned. It doesn’t have to be elaborate. You can just do a bullet journal and get it to work. That’s a form of journal that works like an outline. You can search for ‘Bullet Journal’ for more on what they’re all about, but here’s an example:

• Session Zero o Experience Points: 0 o Gold: 20 gp, 5 sp, 2 cp o Tried character out with a bar-room brawl ▪ 10 XP gained ▪ Experience Points: 10 • Session 1 o Got quest: Help Sildar investigate some missing dwarven friends of his while in Phandalin. o Followed Sildar to the region first thing in the morning. o Found Ambush Site with Sildar’s broken wagon. o Followed goblin trail to cave. o 200 XP Gained o Experience Points: 210

You can also use some space in that book to think up some notes on what you found out about your character, some developments that make them more three dimensional, and little story bits that flesh out their background. Don’t be afraid to write more about them, it’s not like you’re going to put this into the publisher or anything…well, maybe you’ll use this notebook to write a NaNoWriMo-style novel about your character. Something to do in November instead of not thinking of nuts. Some of us can sleep for 30 days and still hammer down 50,000 words.

If you managed to fill up the whole notebook with all the excess information during your campaign, then you’re must’ve been doing something right, number one. Also, you might need to expand to something that would corral all these pages. You could use a folder with prongs on it, a binder clip, some manila envelope, or even go all out Sampleand get a binder. Whatever works; just keep everything in once place. Just because everyone file uses OneNote to keep track of their notes nowadays doesn’t make Five Star products obsolete. And finally, you’ll need something that will represent you in any map or grids. While you can use a 3-D printer or printing site like Hero Forge or go from game store to game store looking for the right token, it’s really not necessary. When the game was just starting on the 70s and 80s, when it’s more likely that you’ll be burned at the stake than finding a proper game store for your D&D hobby, they used whatever they could find: Chess Pieces, Bottlecaps, molded Play-Doh, a thimble. Anything that will mean your character on the table will do. Back then, the players weren’t interested in getting everything just right, and Matthew Mercer was just a nerdy kid back then. They weren’t even interested in this new thing called the ‘internet’ at that time. They were just interested in having fun.

And that’s basically what you should be doing in this game, after all. Having fun. Otherwise, why do you even bother playing? Do you think Gary Gyrax and Dave Arneson created the game for any other reason? Something had to cause pre-teens in the Regan era even consider playing something that would get their ass excommunicated from an Assemblies of God church. Why else did Wizards of the Coast bought the game from a failing TSR Hobbies and guided the game into a time where the game is actually accepted, even beloved?

A couple years back, I was busy worldbuilding for a D&D campaign, I was no doubt fleshing out parts of the Forgotten Relams for Storm King’s Thunder. I stepped back and had this thought come into my mind: Is this how God created the Heavens and the Earth? I mean, sure, there are differences. I’m using OneNote while He used atoms. But are we doing the exact same thing? The same game that was the target of the moral panic which caused me to renounce Christianity has also brought me closer to the Creator God of the Bible. Who’da thunk it? If I didn’t enjoy what I was doing, would I ever have epiphany. D&D is my Pearl of Great Price, and this is part of my showing appreciation for this game.

I hope these little step-by-step instructions prove useful to you, at least more useful than having some shlub drop that Player’s Handbook on your lap with little more than a ‘Here you go.’ Just remember that, even though you filled out the character sheet doesn’t mean that you know everything about the character. There is so much more about your buddy here that your imagination has yet to be filled, and the best way to get to know them is to play the game and see what they do. I’m sure that your character will surprise you with what they’re capable of doing, especially the things you would never consider doing yourself.

I can’t say where this will take you. Your character could get reduced to a red mist by the first swipe from the first bandit, goblin, or rodent of unusual size they run across, of your character would end up a ruler of their own kingdom, with a loving wife, kids that respect them, beloved by the people and will life well and in peace until they die a happy and old person.

Either way, I assure you, it would be a time you won’t soon forget. Here’s to some good times and I’ll see you in the Realms. Sample file FOR ONLINE GAMES HOW TO CONTACT DAVID FOXFIRE What you should do here is different if you’re going to have this session online. You might not need any real Web Page: foxfirestudios.net life dice if the forum you’re using has a dice roller. Even some popular online chat programs, such as E-Mail: [email protected] Discord, has dice-rolling bots to install and learn. If the game takes place in a virtual tabletop such as Discord: David Foxfire#7694 Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, or Tabletop Stimulator, even better. Those programs already have a dice roller. The Swifttail Discord Server: Familiarize yourself with it. https://discord.gg/csqqfMCdD8

Each virtual tabletop will have their own procedure on The Swifttail MeWe Group: setting up your token. It’s basically a picture file that https://mewe.com/group/5fc48f16098c80318adb6f59 you can crop from whatever picture you made-slash-

borrow-ze’d (It’s just a home game, nobody cares.) Means of Support, Snail Mail Address, and a means to You might like to spruce up the picture with a token discuss any discrepancies with compliance of the Open border by using TokenTool (https://tinyurl.com Game License: Please contact David at the above /y2k3yoyh). The Game Master should, by now, know means. how to import that picture into the game.

Hmmm, perhaps I should make a follow-up document Special thanks to: with a guide to the many Virtual Tables out there. • Tiny URL for link length management.

ABOUT SWIFTTAIL Fonts used are: Swifttail D&D is my personalized, setting-agnostic, • Calibri, Cambria, and Lucida Handwriting, all homebrewed as F, OSR friendly, variant of Dungeons from Microsoft. & Dragons Fifth Edition. It is completely overhauled with the focus on reducing the time spent referencing the rulebooks to the bare minimum. With a writing style meant to be scanned, copious use of bold, italicized, and underlined text to draw the eye, and everything compiled into Microsoft OneNote to take advantage of the program’s organization and searchability features.

I am sharing Swifttail free of charge on my web site in accordance with Wizards of the Coast’s Fan Content Policy, with the hopes that my open use will improve on it. It is part of me giving back to the game system that means so much for me.

Sample file OPEN GAME License Version 1.0a The following text is the property 6.Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT of Wizards of the Coast, LLC. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact text of the Coast, Inc ("Wizards"). All Rights Reserved. COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any Open Game Content You are copying, modifying or distributing, and You must add the title, the copyright 1. Definitions: (a)"Contributors" means the copyright and/or date, and the copyright holder's name to the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; any original Open Game Content you Distribute. (b)"Derivative Material" means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer 7. Use of Product Identity: You agree not to Use any Product languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility, except as upgrade, improvement, compilation, abridgment or other form in expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) owner of each element of that Product Identity. You agree not to "Distribute" means to reproduce, License, rent, lease, sell, indicate compatibility or co-adaptability with any Trademark or broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; Registered Trademark in conjunction with a work containing Open (d)"Open Game Content" means the game mechanic and includes Game Content except as expressly licensed in another, independent the methods, procedures, processes and routines to the extent such Agreement with the owner of such Trademark or Registered content does not embody the Product Identity and is an Trademark. The use of any Product Identity in Open Game Content enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly does not constitute a Challenge to the ownership of that Product identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means Identity. The owner of any Product Identity used in Open Game any work covered by this License, including translations and Content shall retain all rights, title and interest in and to that derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product Identity. Product Identity. (e) "Product Identity" means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; 8. Identification: If you distribute Open Game Content You must artifacts; creatures characters; stories, storylines, plots, thematic clearly indicate which portions of the work that you are distributing elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, are Open Game Content. depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual or audio representations; 9. Updating the License: Wizards or its designated Agents may names and descriptions of characters, Spells, enchantments, publish updated versions of this License. You may use any personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and Special abilities; authorized version of this License to copy, modify and distribute any places, locations, environments, creatures, Equipment, magical or Open Game Content originally distributed under any version of this supernatural Abilities or Effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; License. and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which 10. Copy of this License: You MUST include a copy of this License specifically excludes the OPEN Game Content; (f) "Trademark" with every copy of the Open Game Content You Distribute. means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to Identify itself or its products or the associated 11. Use of Contributor Credits: You may not market or advertise the products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor Open Game Content using the name of any Contributor unless You (g) "Use", "Used" or "Using" means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, have written permission from the Contributor to do so. format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open Game Content. (h) "You" or "Your" means the licensee in 12. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any terms of this agreement. of the terms of this License with respect to some or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental 2. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content that regulation then You may not Use any Open Game Material so contains a notice indicating that the Open Game Content may only affected. be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such a notice to any Open Game Content that you Use. No terms may be 13. Termination: This License will terminate automatically if You fail added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the to comply with all terms herein and fail to cure such breach within License itself. No other terms or Conditions may be applied to any 30 days of becoming aware of the breach. All sublicenses shall Open Game Content distributed using this License. survive the termination of this License.

3.Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You 14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License. unenforceable, such provision shall be reformed only to the extent necessary to make it enforceable. 4. Grant and Consideration: In consideration for agreeing to use this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual, worldwide, royalty- 15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright 2000, free, nonexclusive License with the exact terms of this License to Wizards of the Coast, LLC. System Reference Document 5.1 Use, the Open Game Content. Copyright 2016, Wizards of the Coast, LLC.; Authors Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee, 5.Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contributing James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R. Cordell, Chris Sims, and original material as Open Game Content, You represent that Your Steve Townshend, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and Contributions are Your original Creation and/or You have sufficient Dave Arneson. rights to grant the rights conveyed by this License.

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