[@The Elvenqueen] I agree with you on development.  Likewise, I tend to describe general style and favored colors, but not specific clothing unless it's relevant, or a person wears it 90% of the time.  Nikki's bracelets that are actually spelled to let her summon her clawed gauntlets, the locket Rhia wears with the picture of her dead wife, the knife adult!Amune is never without.  ...Though these tend to be sentimental or functional more often than just articles of clothing.  *considers*  However, such things, if mentioned, will also be noted in the rare instance they are /not/ present -- this will be a significant detail, and there will be a reason for it that may very well be relevant to current moods or goings-on.  For example, Rhia stopped wearing her locket when she was finally ready to try entering a new relationship (differences in lifespan can be /painful/, man!)

[@NuttsnBolts] I have seen running in heels being a problem come up in some show or other.  <3

[@BrokenPromise] I agree; char sheets are mostly references and applications, and in fact I didn't use them at all for the majority of my rp career, outside of D&D-type games where your sheet was  quite literally a bunch of necessary numbers and formulae.  I've told Shoryu this before, but I actually create as I go, a lot of the time, and once I have the basics I need to see a character in action to get a better feel for them, an idea you touched upon at least concept-wise.  I just found out one of my characters had a time when she flirted with being suicidal, but in fact is frightened of the idea now, and worried she might be sliding in that direction.  Then again, she was mostly insane at the time, so that played into it.  But I didn't know that specific detail until this week or the last.   Plus any char sheet will always be an initial version of the char for that specific rp, unless you keep it updated as you go.  This makes it fun when age is listed but the rp started like ten years ago IC and now the eight-year-old is a teenager.  <3


I know that, as a writer, I have started to notice (and find it frustrating to have) a description infodump.  I don't need to know every minute detail about the character's appearance the moment they step onto the scene.  Give me a quick sketch, and keep the story going.  Say she is "tattooed" but maybe consider leaving out the paragraph description of her various designs; say he has "various piercings" but don't count them all.  Don't tell me about her ring until she fidgets with it nervously.  I don't necessarily need to know that he's wearing a hat until the wind blows it off.  The messenger bag she carries, it's not an issue until it's left behind.

It's a very delicate balance and in the end all I can advise in general is to be aware of how long you spend on appearance details without anything else, and to go with what feels right.  One thing I like to do kinda shows above -- I'll add to the story as well as the image by having a description piece accompany an action.  Max will run his hand through his short, swept-up hair, which is why it always looks a bit disheveled.  That way you can convey emotion and action as well as description.

In terms of weaponry, I never assume the ones carried are the only ones able to be used.  However, it is /usually/ true that a listed weapon is one the character has used, and is likely to have some skill with, the extreme exceptions aside.  If a particular skill or talent is listed, it is probably a notable one, and may play a significant role in that person's life.  It is reasonable to expect that similar abilities can be used or at least fudged when necessary, and if not that will be apparent when the issue arises.

The shiny chrome casing on the grenade is only a relevant detail if someone happens to notice it as time stretches out when it's thrown at them, or if you want to draw attention to the grenade for some reason.  Details request the reader's attention, and so indicate significance; use them accordingly.  [@Shoryu Magami] (oh look who I found!  =P), I agree with foreshadowing, though I hope the pocketwatch is significant, otherwise why foreshadow?  Although I should note that misdirection is fair play.  There might be a good reason the attacker left that beggar a bloody mess, but you won't find out it was a demon in disguise until /much/ later on, and for now the culprit is portrayed as a bad person.

For personality, yes, there are always exceptions and specifics, but a person will tend to have general mannerisms and characteristics.  Someone who is utterly miserable a certain day of the year that marks the anniversary of some significant event can still be listed as bubbly if that's their general mood the majority of the time.  Even the gloomiest of characters might have a person or two that knows how to make them smile.  Sheets are guides, not absolutes.  Restricting a character's ability to grow, develop, and change because of the submitted sheet is...I'm cringing.  >.<  Please no.