With no layout skills and an abstract imagination, I can envision the perfect character sheet with no ability to see it in my head and absolutely zero chance of recreating it on a page or in a program. This is a shame as I love a good character sheet. Fortunately, people more talented at layout than me have been churning out character sheets for the Pathfinder RPG since the game came out. So many fans and companies have released their versions of characters sheets in fact that I already have enough for a second round of reviews.

      Much like my concept for the perfect character sheet, the criteria is vague. Ideally a character sheet has space for at least a short hand note for every option my character could have without wasting too much space on class-specific options. The notorious example is how few character sheets have a space dedicated to Dodge bonuses to Armour Class, even though it is one of the fundamental AC bonuses. A character sheet should also be easy to use. The less I need to reference rule books, the better. For example, all it takes is an asterix and a footnote to let a player know which skills armour check penalties apply to. Finally, the less tangible of all qualifications: aesthetics. I want a character sheet that flows, that is pleasant to look at. A series of lines and boxes may be the core of all character sheets, but the same is true of cubism.

     Unlike last time, some of this round’s character sheets are interactive across media. No longer just for gamers with access to pens or pencils, players can type directly into these character sheets. Some even do the math for you. However, in a world with character generation programs, is there a need for interactive character sheets? The interactive features of these character sheets do not merit a better or worse score on their own. Just like any other character sheet I review, if something about it makes managing my character easier, it ranks higher for me.

     Here are the character sheets we will be reviewing today: