I will simply state that hoping for any sort of affirmation on expectations is the epitome of naivety with players and Game Masters alike and that goes for everyone, myself included. Players will avoid asking the most simple questions regularly and Game Masters will do anything they can to avoid putting more weight on themselves; engaging in constant question and answer sessions is exceptionally time consuming. Worse still, I would say Game Masters have it worse as people only have so much patience for things to be hashed out or mulled over. Games that do not near instantly start, at least on the Roleplayer Guild experience what might be exponential odds of failure unless the genre is so popular people will rush to play it. No amount of one player being dedicated and attempting to be proactive will make up for the three to four other people who are not.

I simultaneously agree and disagree otherwise that length and detail do not pertain. By this I mean that if a player submits a brief essay about how important their second childhood dog was and that dog has no bearing or relevance to the character, it is absolutely a waste of time to even have read it. Yet contrarily, if that character gives me an idea of why they are the way they are and give me, the Game Master or even a fellow player, a psychological explanation for that frame of mind, that is essential. I expect that, through and through, especially in the realm of potential cliche which is, in this example, people playing mental illnesses they know nothing about and could never, with their skill level, play out in writing; we all know such a character. But without a character sheet, how is this to be known? A literary perspective would only serve to make matters worse in the context of a roleplay because the author is not trying to lure anyone in, they are effectively trying to pass an examination.

I would state that the barest, truest sheet, not that the content itself should be short, contrary to that instead, but still consist of a name, a physical description, an address to personality, and a sample of who that character is in a scene. The first is obvious, the second equally so but crucially not to be neglected as other players should write and describe back observations about the other's person; they have a need to know features, but the scar on the sole of the right foot shouldn't be a detail unless for some reason people will not be wearing anything on their feet. The third and fourth? The third is again, essential, although mostly reserved for the Game Master although shrewd players should try to pick up on things to keep in mind... of course if their character is observant and watchful for these things. The last of course? Well, it goes without saying that is the examination of the person to see if they will pass the mark or not, although it should not be limited to just these; if a game involves any sort of conflict it should probably be noted what their talents are there, among other obvious modifications.

Speaking but only for myself, I would shelve the idea of a roleplay without character sheets and instead refine the most perfect examples of minimalism, in actual length, and maximized content. It does not say, take five paragraphs to explain that the mage character can cast a ball of fire, it takes but a handful to say what it is and what it does. Likewise, a character does not need to list their favorite food or theme song or so on and if they do, for whatever plot reason, an example as this probably does not require more than the same amount, three to five, sentences if there is a very particular reason it is relevant.

Frankly, part of my issue with even wanting to dispel character sheets in concept is that I just do not trust players or even Game Masters that much in regular terms to get away with that.