Character Record & Player Reference: Science Fiction

Welcome to The Simple Approach to Science Fiction

Character sheets weren’t made for storytelling. They were made for standardization. For efficiency. For lining everyone up in the same format and calling that balance.

But you’re not playing a spreadsheet. You’re playing a person.

That’s the problem. Character sheets have become the default in tabletop roleplaying, but they rarely support what makes roleplaying meaningful. They reduce personality to bullet points. They flatten memory into numbers. And worst of all, they suggest that everyone’s character can be described in the same boxes, on the same lines, using the same categories, in the same order.

I think that’s a terrible idea.

I’ve argued for years that journaling is a better alternative. Let characters unfold. Let records evolve. Let people play like people, not like profiles in a database. But I also know how this hobby works. If I don’t give you something to use, you’ll grab the nearest generic form and try to make it fit. You’ll spend more time fixing your tools than playing your character.

So I made this.

This is a full-featured character record and player reference. It’s built to support The Simple Approach, but you don’t need to memorize rules to use it. Everything here is designed to help you track, reflect, and grow.

You’ll find a complete character record, with guidance on how to fill it in with intention. Not just what goes in each box, but why it matters. There’s a summary of character creation so you can refer to it quickly during sessions or prep. You’ll also find support for play itself, how to log adventures in a way that builds narrative memory, how to handle table talk without killing immersion, how to use blue booking to deepen your character between sessions, and how to plan advancement as a story, not a math problem.

This book is flexible on purpose. Use what you need. Ignore what you don’t. It’s here to hold your character’s arc, not prescribe it. Think of it as a living record, a personal story kit, and a quiet invitation to stay curious about the person you’re playing.

It won’t tell you who your character is. It’ll help you figure that out as you go.