What would be included on the ideal NPC sheet?

As some of you may recall, I've been toying with the idea of creating a series of stat sheets for a variety of NPCs at different advancement levels.

I don't like the format of NPCs as seen in the FOTR SB and the TTTSB, mainly because they require the Narrator to do all the addition of attribute modifiers, skill ranks, edge modifiers, etc. ahead of time. I want to create a series of sheets that have all the work done already.

How much information do you want on such a sheet? I'd like to keep each one to a single page, probably just stats but maybe a little room for flavour text or something of the sort.

Maybe something akin to a 'baby' character sheet, with the space for the basic information (name, race and all that) along with a space for reactions, and skills and the rest. The skills section would likely be the biggest burden in NPC creation (I should know, having created several for my previously played First Age campaign). For my own part, I used the Decipher style for write-up, with relevant modifiers already applied to skills, and then, for specific skill tests (like a character with a special weapon), I noted (in the weapon's description) the skill total when using the weapon, along with its damage, parry modifier, and the rest.

Looking back, having a smaller skill section with notes for skills that I think I would actually have the character make checks for during the course of the chronicle would have saved both space and time, with a general note about non-critical skill levels and scores...perhaps something along the line of the following:

Armed Combat: Blades (Longsword) +8, Ranged Combat: Bows (Longbow) +6, Social Skills +4 to +6, Physical Skills +3 to +5, and so on (with a range used to vary tests, and to make the character seem a bit more flexible). This would work for the start, and then, as tests are made, the Narrator could note (perhaps somewhere on the sheet), what modifier he or she used, so that it could be applied more consistantly in the future, fleshing out the NPC as the chronicle progresses.

Really, so long as the character isn't a spellcaster (or, if a spellcaster, spell elements like range, duration and so on are left off) then fitting it all onto one page shouldn't be too difficult.

I might try (if time permits) to try and sketch something out to see if I can put my idea to paper for presentation.



Greg

Maybe this will be useful to you.

That's a good looking character sheet, but I was thinking about something more along the lines of a stat block that could contain stats for, say, a low advancement orc, only with all the stats already set up.

That way, a Narrator pitting 10 orcs against his party has just one sheet to look at and doesn't have to do any special math or prep.

I'll have to dink around with it and see what I come up with. I'm thinking what I may find useful may not be so for another Narrator...

How about this Jim...

It is an excel sheet, it is what I use to make a basic orc for large numers and maybe a leader or other extras.

It calculates for you.

(This is actually a sheet I altered that I got from Olorwe... I think... but it might be what you are looking for.)