[u][b]Faceclaims? Real life? Anime? Digital? Hand drawn? None?[/b][/u]

I'm really 50/50 on images. On one end they're a hella easy way to estimate someone's appearance, but on the other hand, if you don't draw them yourself you're often constrained by another person's ideas. If you can draw yourself, use them by all means, but if you can't, think about how 'worth it' it is. If you have a pretty creative and out-there idea for your character's appearance, written might be better. On the other hand, if you're going for something a lot more simple, an image could work.

I dislike the use of fan- or official art of already established characters from franchises, though. I can't disconnect that character from their story, and it always feels out of place. Others are free to do as they wish, but if I ever use an image, I'll make sure it's an 'original' image; i.e. a one-off or series of drawings without a story attached to them.

Real people is fucking [i]creepy[/i] though. I don't see the appeal.

[u][b]Color codes?[/b][/u]

I only use color for dialogue when everyone else uses color for dialogue. Other than that, I think only the titles and subtitles in your CS should have color, as that's prolly the best way to organize and not make your CS look like rainbow vomit.

[u][b]What's the 'right amount' of images?[/b][/u]

Not often I see people use more than the 1 for their appearance. Don't really see the need for any more either, unless it's a fancy custom-made header, which is always nice to see. Definitely feel like putting in more than 3 is going a bit far and bloats the thing, though, but there's examples of it done well out there. I think.

[u][b]Freeform or GM provided code?[/b][/u]

That's up to the GM to decide. A GM should always provide a baseline, but if people want to go outside the norm, they should be allowed as long as it's readable imo. Not much of an opinion here.

[u][b]Things that should be be included/excluded?[/b][/u]

I once saw a person use the word biography as a synonym for appearance. That's some vomit-inducing stuff right there for me.

I think you can list most non-basic stuff in an 'Extra' or 'Other' section, and it shouldn't be a list of things imo. I don't really care what your character's favorite food is, unless we're playing like a restaurant RP or smth. It's mostly harmless, so as long as it doesn't feel like you're cluttering things, I'm aight with anything.

Essentials are what Amalthea mentioned pree much, tho. Appearance, History and Personality are the core, but a name would be good too -w-. I'm also a fan of listing ages, but this is a preference thing. It gets you some good insight. Other than all that though, I don't really see what else there's really worth writing about.

[u][b]What is your character creation process? Is character creation just all together overrated?[/b][/u]

Character creation being overrated? If you're roleplaying you better present the role you're playing, lol. I think CSes are pretty essential, not only for presenting said role, but also to gauge how good of a writer someone is from a cursory glance.

My personal way is just thinking on every detail of my character beforehand, then jotting it all down in one go. I probably should revise my stuff more, but I'm a pree lazy individual.