NPC Character Sheets for GMs - download
I started being GM for the first time. The amount of things to prepare was frightening, lol. After making my Mystery notes it occurred to me that I need a better way to organize myself.
Coming from Pathfinde/D&D I missed NPC stats in TftL. So, I made Character Sheets for NPCs which you can find in my github repo.
It sure is unnerving: The Kids encounter (accidentally or not) one ore more NPCs. Will you flip the Core Rule Book and read all the walls of text while the players bore to death?
Well, I won't neither!
Instead the GM flips through his bunch of NPC sheets and knows how NPC will act - just by viewing! Four sheets fit on a (european/rest of world) A4 sheet of paper. If you desperately want it in legal letter format, hit reply and let me know :D
While some fields are strongly related to those from the player characters most bear a slightly different interpretation or are not comparabable at all. But keep in mind it the sheet serves the GM to quickly act.
Education and Age show how NPC's way of speech, how he selects word and how broad his psychological horizon is. Stereotypically, an engineer speaks differently than a brick layer (unless the brick layer is well-read), and has way different interests. A younger NPC may have a more brisk voice than that nextdoor-granny.
Attributes are imaginary numbers to show how the NPC performs in different actions when the Kids deal with him. While the attributes look strongly like those from the PCs, they work differently than the PCs. They serve solely to characterize how the NPC should react when confronted with PCs.
As it can be any number, I suggest 13 because it's a prime (so the GM is forced to put weight into the NPCs).
- F. i. Granny has a low value in body but a high value in heart, that Mad Scientist has good Tech and Mind values but low heart and body values
Alignment determines the NPC's default relation to the Kids. Of course it can be modified by the Kid's behavior, you get the idea. Alignment is borrowed from D&D and shows wether the NPC is benevolent or evil, trustworthy or unconventional. It's not as strong as in D&D though, just a reaction pointer.
When the Kids ask the an evil NPC a question he may:
- (good) help the kids
- (neutral) ignore the kids for reasons
- (evil) do not help or even attack the kids
More "forte" can be added on the Law vs. Chaos rail:
- (lawful) the NPC is accountable to what he says
- (neutral) the NPC is generally indifferent
- (chaotic) the NPC has his own view on things and may act proactively without thinking of consequences.
Drive affects the things he does. No character is pure good or pure evil. Usually they have reasons and world views that led them to this.
Pride breaks down the one thing what the NPC thinks why he should be praised by others or what he gloriously achived.
Problem points to the conflicts in the NPCs past. The GM can use this if the PCs touch this soft spot to go either rampaging or breaking down
Description can be used by the GM to describe how other people see this NPC.
Special Attribute: Often NPCs come with special attributes when they interact with the Kids in order to make their rolls tougher. Have it handy.
Hideout allows to enter a pointer to the location where the NPC usually stays.
Detail is any characteristing thing that helps the Kids (and the GM) to identify that single NPC. The Detail stands out compared to other PCs and NPCs. F. i. the NPC is always wearing a red cap, or lisps, or hobbles because he misses a leg.
