Homemade Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Character Sheets from the 1980s
The Dungeons & Dragons (DnD) character sheet held an intriguing status within my circle of friends – a scarce and coveted commodity. Our attempts to copy sheets from the local library proved futile, as we consistently ran out of them. Consequently, we often resorted to the timeless practice of penning down our characters' details on plain paper.
Somewhere in the late 1980s – though the precise date eludes me – a golden opportunity presented itself. I gained access to a computer with a printer, nestled within the confines of an office where my sister worked. Excitement bubbled as I embarked on creating character sheets of my own, with primitive graphics and formatting that was, in hindsight, quite crude. Memories suggest that only a handful of sheets were printed before the revelation that printer ink came with a price tag, accompanied by a gentle reprimand urging me to cease this ink-draining endeavor.
A valuable lesson was learned.
Looking back at those sheets now, their modest appearance is quite evident, perhaps explaining why they never saw much use. Their layout leaves much to be desired, rife with inexplicably empty spaces and awkward formatting. Intriguingly, this particular batch of sheets coincided with a phase of the game where our focus revolved around pets and hirelings, as reflected by the additional pages dedicated to these facets.
And do take note of the use of Comeliness as an attribute – a distinctive touch in our games. The dynamic between Comeliness and Charisma yielded engaging roleplaying opportunities, enhancing the depth and complexity of our characters' interactions. Though these sheets might not hold up to today's standards, they symbolize a time when imagination, creativity, and camaraderie were our primary guides through the realms of DnD.
