Character Creation Tools, Sheets, & Questionaires

Extended Character Details

Name:
Date of birth:
Age:
Height:
Weight:
Ethnic heritage:
Color of hair:
Color of eyes:
Physical description:
Style of dressing:
Sense of humor:
Personality type:
Religion:
Political party:
Hobbies:
Favorite music:
Favorite books:
Favorite movies:
Favorite colors:
Contents of purse or wallet:
Description of home:
Educational background:
Work experience:
Family:
Best friend:
Male friends:
Female friends:
Enemies:
Best childhood memory:
Worst childhood memory:
One-line characterization:
Strongest character trait:
Weakest character trait:
Character's paradox:
Greatest hope:
Deepest fear:
Philosophy of life:
How character sees self:
How others see character:
Values:
Ambition:
Story-goal:
Conflict:
Epiphany:
How character will change:
One sentence summary:
One paragraph summary:

Part 1: The Basics


1. What is your full name?


2. Where and when were you born?


3. Who are/were your parents? (Know their names, occupations, personalities, etc.)


4. Do you have any siblings? What are/were they like?


5. Where do you live now, and with whom? Describe the place and the person/people.


6. What is your occupation?


7. Write a full physical description of yourself. You might want to consider factors such as: height, weight, race, hair and eye color, style of dress, and any tattoos, scars, or distinguishing marks.


8. To which social class do you belong?


9. Do you have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses?


10. Are you right- or left-handed?


11. What does your voice sound like?


12. What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently?


13. What do you have in your pockets?


14. Do you have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics?


Part 2: Growing Up

15. How would you describe your childhood in general?


16. What is your earliest memory?


17. How much schooling have you had?


18. Did you enjoy school?


19. Where did you learn most of your skills and other abilities?


20. While growing up, did you have any role models? If so, describe them.


21. While growing up, how did you get along with the other members of your family?


22. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?


23. As a child, what were your favorite activities?


24. As a child, what kinds of personality traits did you display?


25. As a child, were you popular? Who were your friends, and what were they like?


26. When and with whom was your first kiss?


27. Are you a virgin? If not, when and with whom did you lose your virginity?


28. If you are a supernatural being (i.e. mage, werewolf, vampire), tell the story of how you became what you are or first learned of your own abilities. If you are just a normal human, describe any influences in your past that led you to do the things you do today.



Part 3: Past Influences


29. What do you consider the most important event of your life so far?


30. Who has had the most influence on you?


31. What do you consider your greatest achievement?


32. What is your greatest regret?


33. What is the most evil thing you have ever done?


34. Do you have a criminal record of any kind?


35. When was the time you were the most frightened?


36. What is the most embarrassing thing ever to happen to you?


37. If you could change one thing from your past, what would it be, and why?


38. What is your best memory?


39. What is your worst memory?


Part 4: Beliefs And Opinions


40. Are you basically optimistic or pessimistic?


41. What is your greatest fear?


42. What are your religious views?


43. What are your political views?


44. What are your views on sex?


45. Are you able to kill? Under what circumstances do you find killing to be acceptable or unacceptable?


46. In your opinion, what is the most evil thing any human being could do?


47. Do you believe in the existence of soul mates and/or true love?


48. What do you believe makes a successful life?


49. How honest are you about your thoughts and feelings (i.e. do you hide your true self from others, and in what way)?


50. Do you have any biases or prejudices?


51. Is there anything you absolutely refuse to do under any circumstances? Why do you refuse to do it?


52. Who or what, if anything, would you die for (or otherwise go to extremes for)?



Part 5: Relationships With Others


53. In general, how do you treat others (politely, rudely, by keeping them at a distance, etc.)? Does your treatment of them change depending on how well you know them, and if so, how?


54. Who is the most important person in your life, and why?


55. Who is the person you respect the most, and why?


56. Who are your friends? Do you have a best friend? Describe these people.


57. Do you have a spouse or significant other? If so, describe this person.


58. Have you ever been in love? If so, describe what happened.


59. What do you look for in a potential lover?


60. How close are you to your family?


61. Have you started your own family? If so, describe them. If not, do you want to? Why or why not?


62. Who would you turn to if you were in desperate need of help?


63. Do you trust anyone to protect you? Who, and why?


64. If you died or went missing, who would miss you?


65. Who is the person you despise the most, and why?


66. Do you tend to argue with people, or avoid conflict?


67. Do you tend to take on leadership roles in social situations?


68. Do you like interacting with large groups of people? Why or why not?


69. Do you care what others think of you?



Part 6: Likes And Dislikes

70. What is/are your favorite hobbies and pastimes?


71. What is your most treasured possession?


72. What is your favorite color?


73. What is your favorite food?


74. What, if anything, do you like to


75. What is your idea of good entertainment (consider music, movies, art, etc.)?


Part 7: Self Images And Etc.

76. Do you smoke, drink, or use drugs? If so, why? Do you want to quit?


77. How do you spend a typical Saturday night?


78. What makes you laugh?


79. What, if anything, shocks or offends you?


80. What would you do if you had insomnia and had to find something to do to amuse yourself?


81. How do you deal with stress?


82. Are you spontaneous, or do you always need to have a plan?


83. What are your pet peeves?



Part 7: Self Images And Etc.


84. Describe the routine of a normal day for you. How do you feel when this routine is disrupted?


85. What is your greatest strength as a person?


86. What is your greatest weakness?


87. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?


88. Are you generally introverted or extroverted?


89. Are you generally organized or messy?


90. Name three things you consider yourself to be very good at, and three things you consider yourself to be very bad at.


91. Do you like yourself?


92. What are your reasons for being an adventurer (or doing the strange and heroic things that RPG characters do)? Are your real reasons for doing this different than the ones you tell people in public? (If so, detail both sets of reasons…)


93. What goal do you most want to accomplish in your lifetime?


94. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?


95. If you could choose, how would you want to die?


96. If you knew you were going to die in 24 hours, name three things you would do in the time you had left.


97. What is the one thing for which you would most like to be remembered after your death?


98. What three words best describe your personality?


99. What three words would others probably use to describe you?


100. If you could, what advice would you, the player, give to your character? (You might even want to speak as if he or she were sitting right here in front of you, and use proper tone so he or she might heed your advice…)

Character Development Exercises

DEAR AUTHOR:
Your character writes you (the author) a letter, instructing you quite specifically in how s/he wants to be portrayed in the book. Make your character's personality come through loud and clear in this letter. Try to set yourself aside as you write it.


THE MONOLOGUE:
Write a monologue (1 page) that accurately portrays your character. What is he/she feeling at that moment? What is his/her hopes? His/her fears? What does he/she love? Hate? Remember: The character is speaking to him/herself.

Hints: Use the character’s speech patterns and vocabulary - their voice.


THE SPEECH
Use exposition to learn a character’s past experiences.

Write a speech (1 page) in which your character describes, explains, tells, or preaches about a specific event, experience, or idea. Here are some suggestions:

- Explain his/her FIRST LOVE AFFAIR.

- Recall his/her experience of DISCOVERING A DEAD BODY.

- Describe the BIRTH OF HIS/HER FIRST CHILD.

- Lecture on a situation of INTERNATIONAL MILITARY CONFLICT.

- Preach about the PRACTICAL VALUE OF ATHEISM.

Remember: The character is speaking to someone or even to a group of people. Decide who your character is addressing. The specifics of your character’s audience will affect word choice and presentation.

Hints: Use the character’s speech patterns and vocabulary - their voice.


CHARACTER ENVIRONMENT (ROOMMATES)
Explore the things people surround themselves with that define character.

Describe a bedroom where two people live. They can be college roommates, siblings, lovers, husband/wife - it's up to you. You are to describe the room three times in script form (NO DIALOGUE - TWO PAGES MAXIMUM):

1) The first time the two people live in harmony.

2) The second, there has been a fight between the two roommates.

3) The third, one of the roommates has moved out.

Remember: The tricky part is you are to describe only the room. There are no people in any of these scenes. Use objects, furniture, clothes, etc… to differentiate between the two roommates. Don't just list objects. Write with a sense of discovery. The way in which you reveal information is important. It affects our understanding as well as our emotions.

Hints: Subtle, but clear, changes should occur to the room as their relationship dissolves. We should know from the descriptions who these people are, what happened, which one started the fight, what the fight was about and who moved out.


Questions that should be answered: Who are these two people? What are their ages? What do they look like? How long have they lived together? What was the argument about? Who started it? How did they deal with it? Who moved out?

CHARACTER BIO: UNABLE TO LOVE

Dig deep with a character, discovering background history, personality, psychology, and current goals.

Write a character biography (1 page) of a person who is unable to love. Base this on someone you know. Know everything about this character: looks, family, religion, childhood, etc. Use the details of real life - the life you know. Then select from what you know, and describe the character in dramatic, cinematic terms - that is, in ways that are of use to a screenwriter.

Remember: Most of all, you must know and articulate the reason why this character is unable to love. What is holding him/her back? What does he or she fear will happen if he/she fear will happen if he/she falls in love? Rejection? Certain disappointment, e.g., was there once someone he loved that no one can ever live up to?Finally, how does he imagine himself at moments when he has a chance to love someone but doesn't? Fragile? Tired? Protective? Noble? Wise?

Schedule: Use the character seven-day schedule to help you fully develop this character.


CHARACTER INTRODUCTION
Make your character stand out.

Write a scene (1-3 pages) that introduces your character. Use description, props, wardrobe and dialogue that give your character a unique voice.

Remember: Introduction scenes are often scenes of the “status quo” - the character living his or her everyday life before the inciting incident propels the character into a new conflict.

Hints: Action speak louder than words. If your character is in a group, have them do something specific and unique that makes them memorable and interesting.

This is the code I used when I made Gnarlus' Character Sheet. It makes it not look like a wall of text when you post it. Here's how it SHOULD when you complete it EXAMPLE, with the exception of the the Gnarlus background of course


[columns]
[size=5][b]Name:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Date of Birth:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Age:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Height:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Weight:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Ethnic Heritage:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Hair Color:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size]
[b]Eye Color:[/b] [size=3]Text Here[/size][/size]
[nextcol]

[nextcol]

(Credit here)
[/columns]

[size=5][color=#dd2423][b]Looks[/b][/color][/size]
[spoiler=Physical Description]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Style of Dressing]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]


[rule]

[size=5][color=#dd2423][b]Personality[/b][/color][/size]
[spoiler=Sense of Humor]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Personality]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Religion]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]


[rule]

[size=5][color=#dd2423][b]<<Name>> Activities[/b][/color][/size]
[spoiler=Political Party]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Hobbies]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Favourite Music]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Favourite Book]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Favourite Movie]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Favourite Colour]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Contents of Coin Purse]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]


[rule]

[size=5][b][color=#dd2423]Background[/color][/b][/size]
[spoiler=Description of Home]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Educational Background]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Work Experience]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Family] <<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Best Friend]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Other Friends]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Childhood Memories] <<Text Here>>[/spoiler]


[rule]

[size=5][color=#dd2423][b]Gnarlus versus The World[/b][/color][/size]
[spoiler=One Line Characterization]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Strengths]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Character's Paradox]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Greatest Hope]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Worst Fear]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Philosophy of Life]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=How Gnarlus sees Himself]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]
[spoiler=How Others See Gnarlus]<<Text Here>>[/spoiler]