I have been using a basic template to flesh out characters for roleplay and story writing for a

decade or more. It’s evolved a few times and had extra categories added, and some removed,
and sometimes gets modded a bit on a per-character basis.

This is meant as a guide or aid to get ideas flowing—it might not work for everyone. There are
certainly a ton of ways a character can be developed. Some people prefer not to fill out or
brainstorm about characters at all, and just let absolutely everything happen through
roleplay.

As long as everything meshes with the type of roleplay and nothing goes way over the top that
would ruin things for other characters there is no wrong way to come up with a roleplaying
character.

Remember nothing is set in stone. Okay some things are. A lot of things are. If something bugs
you about the character two months into RP then change it and possibly explain things OOC
(out of character) to anyone who has been roleplaying with you. Most of the time people will
understand the need to fine tune a character.

If you can’t figure out what to write for one spot then skip it and come back to it later. I fill
these in as I think of things, and not necessarily in any particular order. Once you have a good
amount of info it might be easier to come up with ideas for the tougher sections—for instance, I
always seem to have difficulty with habits and quirks.

General Info
Name: This should be obvious.
Nickname: This should be as well.
Gender: Easy enough.
Race: If applicable.
Age: Either an estimate, date of birth, or exact.
Other categories show up here for me depending on the RP: species, home planet, etc.

Appearance
Height: Either an estimate, description, or measurement. Be nice to everyone and try to
list both feet/inches as well as meters if you’d like
Weight: The same as height. If numbers are given then kilos and pounds could be listed
to make things easier.
Hair: Color, length, description.
Skin: Color, freckles, moles, etc.
Distinguishing marks: Anything that would make someone extremely recognizable.
Birthmarks, scars, disfigurements, etc.
 Eyes: Color, shape, sometimes eyelash description, and pupil description if non-human.
Clothing: What styles does the character usually wear? Add a list of favorite outfits if
desired.

Personality
Temperament: Is the character impulsive, pleasure-seeking? Sociable? Charismatic or
ambitions? Introverted or extroverted? Reference What is their Myers Briggs type?
Moral/ethical beliefs: Even the toughest badass might think twice when faced with
certain situations. What moral or ethical limits does the character have, and how do they impact
his or her thought processes and actions?
Religious beliefs: This sort of ties into the previous category, but since sometimes
characters adhere to religious ideas that conflict with their actions it ought to be listed
separately.
Political stance: Sometimes I leave this bit blank if politics don’t really impact the RP
at all, or fill it in at a later point.
Hobbies: Does the character do anything in particular for fun? Reading, hunting,
horseback riding, underwater sex toy crafting, etc.
Habits: Habits would include anything from particular body movements when feeling a
certain way, to smoking/drinking habits, to nail-biting, thumb sucking, nose picking, bulimia,
and whatever else.
Quirks/eccentricities: Anything “out of the ordinary” that the character does, like
carrying a lucky rabbit’s foot, always rubbing an ear for good luck, gets nervous around people of
the opposite gender, blinks rapidly when lying, will only eat soup if it has an even number of
beans in it, malapropisms, spoonerisms, etc.
Likes: This can end up being a rather lengthy list even if it starts short. This can be
anything from foods, sex, activities, events, types of pets, fabrics, etc.
Dislikes: This would be a list of anything the character dislikes.
Fears: Fears can usually tie into dislikes or even likes sometimes depending on what it
is exactly, and how the character reacts to it in the long run—phobias, nightmares, etc.
Strengths: What does the character excel at doing? This does not refer to only physical
strengths, but emotional and mental as well.
Weaknesses: The opposite of strengths—a well-rounded character has plenty of flaws
and weaknesses even if they are not fatal weaknesses.
Short term goals: Does the character have a plan for the near future? A crush? A
dream of a promotion? Think in the span of weeks to months.
Long term goals: Does the character have long term goals like assembling an army
and taking over the kingdom? Finding a wonderful girl and marrying her to live an idyllic life?
Think in the span of years.
Hopes and desires: Oftentimes hopes and desires tie into short and long term goals. If
necessary, describe here why the character hopes for certain things. Any dream, wish, fantasy,
etc. should fit well here.
Occupation: List the character’s job or occupation, and if necessary describe how it
affects the character in general.
Skills: List skills the character has such as archery, logical thinking, knitting, musical
composition, dancing, etc., and go into detail for each if necessary.
Secrets:
○ These are secrets others would have to find out through RP.
○ If you come up with something here then consider removing it in whatever
version share publicly unless people need a hint to RP towards finding out
whatever secrets your character has.

Gear
Always has:
○ List items the character is likely to have at all times, or close at hand.
Sometimes has:
○ List items the character might have occasionally.
○ These can be items that are stored in their house, rooms, lockers, etc.

Events and History

Recent notable events
○ If something has happened in RP or previous to RP that has a serious effect on
story then list it. Even if it’s easy to remember it’s nice to see it on paper.

Bad events in the past

○ What happened in the past that the character does not like to think about?
○ How has it affected them?
○ Do other people know?

Good events in the past

○ List events from the character’s past that could be considered good.
○ Any good memory can work here even if it seems like a trivial one.

History and background details

○ Extra info about the character’s past if things need to be fleshed out.