[quote=@Inkarnate] My biggest issue with this site is the obsession with breaking down every incessant detail in a character sheet. I believe this detracts from the purpose that we apply in the first place: [i]role-playing.[/i] In my opinion, I find a reference sheet or sample post more definitive of if someone can fit your collaboration than if they can write seven paragraphs about their backstory. I understand the utility of having a sheet to reference for notes and the tiny details, but it is so exhausting writing a lot of information for it not to be utilized or even relevant in the scheme of things. [/quote] Honestly I think it all boils down to whose doing the GMing and what they prefer; it just so happens that a particular style is the most commonplace because a lot of people use it. That said, there are plenty of times where I have gotten really into a character or nation and wrote incessantly out of passion, making it all pretty with elevated language and such. And I know I'm not the first. One part of role playing people enjoy is making the roles in some cases. Personally in my experience as a GM, I've allowed people who've written a solid 3 page story for their character's history, I've accepted people who wrote one. As long as it gets a general enough idea of that character's history and can justify what they have and how they act, its enough for me.