sadie's page

After years of openness, I'm willing to grant Paizo the benefit of the doubt and assume that this is a careless mistake, not deliberate malice (a level of trust I no longer extend to some other beach-based companies).

But mistake or not, the effect of these changes on third party creators is really bad, and needs to be fixed. If it's not fixed, creators will think twice about working with Paizo properties in the future, and the players will suffer.

Jared Thaler - Personal Opinion wrote:

So. As far as I am reading this, a third party character sheet could not use the Pathfinder logo, the class icons, or possibly even the action symbols without a separately negotiated license?

A custom character sheet layout falls under the "some exceptions" in the Fan Content Policy. Since it's primarily art (the custom layout), it's not an RPG product in the sense that it'd need to reference the OGL or ORC. If it's an automated character sheet that's actively crunching numbers and referencing rules, then that would need to be released under the OGL/ORC and Compatibility License.

It's not the 1970s any more. A character sheet isn't just some boxes on a piece of paper. People use a whole variety of tools and apps at their game table. Even those made primarily for print, like mine, have a strong digital component and plenty of specific rules references.

Where does this leave accessibility tools? I have a nearly-blind player at my table, who's constantly looking for audio-based tools to help. Do these license changes make that less likely?

MrVauxs wrote:

Thankfully Pathbuilder is not affected given it has already had to abide by being purely ORC-based and not using Golarion content. That's why it just has "Faction prerequisites" and such, as opposed to saying for ex. "Firebrand member."

...Is this true, though? Because it definitely uses "game rules" like classes and feats and leveling structure and such. The verbiage has all been sanitized but the underlying structure still relies on game rules that are a mixture of OGL and ORC content (at least for a complete product, as Jared noted above).

It's an example of an extraordinarily popular tool that I could easily see just...No longer existing after the licensing change.

So a tool like Pathbuilder or Dyslexic Character Sheets uses more than one license at once. We use the OGL / ORC for rules, the CUP for logos and stuff, and various other licenses for software, fonts, and everything else.

With this change, we'll still have access to the rules part with ORC, but everything else is gone. No logos, no iconic artwork, no class symbols, no Golarion setting IP, etc.

This becomes a problem when the boundary between rules and setting IP gets blurry. For example, the Red Mantis Assassin archetype clearly references the organisation from Golarion, right alongside the mechanical rules that the ORC grants.

This is where I'm most unclear. Do I need to throw out every Lost Omens sourcebook from my product, because every background and ancestry in them is potentially tainted by setting IP?

Jared Thaler - Personal Opinion wrote:

So. As far as I am reading this, a third party character sheet could not use the Pathfinder logo, the class icons, or possibly even the action symbols without a separately negotiated license?

A custom character sheet layout falls under the "some exceptions" in the Fan Content Policy. Since it's primarily art (the custom layout), it's not an RPG product in the sense that it'd need to reference the OGL or ORC. If it's an automated character sheet that's actively crunching numbers and referencing rules, then that would need to be released under the OGL/ORC and Compatibility License.

By that description, I'm certain that my character sheets, and many other tools like them, require ORC/OGL + Compatibility License. Only the most basic of tools would have no rules reference in them at all. Something as simple as "Select your ancestry from this list" would be enough to cross that very low threshold.

The gap between the old CUP and the new Compatibility License is what's jarring here.

The FCP doesn't apply to any character sheet, builder, tool, wiki or app that uses game rules, even if they're non-commercial. That means all the logos, artwork etc that used to be granted that way aren't.

The Compatibility License grants almost nothing in comparison - a single "compatible with" logo and a few words.

Would a compromise would be for the Compatibility License to grant a subset of what the CUP used to? Nothing specific to the Golarion setting, but a selection of iconics, logos, class symbols etc? Enough to make a useful tool.

Indeed, I'm left very confused by this update. If removing all the once-CUP artwork is the answer, I'll be disappointed but so be it; but more clarity would be appreciated.

Mark Moreland wrote:

A web-based database may still use the game rules released via the OGL and/or ORC but can not use any additional trademarks or copyrights of Paizo's such as logos, artwork, proper nouns, etc. that might have been previously allowed via the CUP. They can get access to limited trademarks via the Compatibility License, but that's really just the logo(s) and Pathfinder-icons font.

Well. This has been an extremely disheartening update for me. No more pf2easy, pf2etools, or any AoN alternative without editorializing the content to not include any Golarion IP, or getting a private license.

There does seem to be a massive gap in the licenses for web-based tools, since the Fan Content Policy excludes them and the Compatibility License doesn't grant any of the rights the Community Use Policy used to. I'm trying to work out exactly where this change leaves me.

...and I'm being shipped the soft cover version.

Paizo, if you're going to do this in the future, you need a better way for subscribers to select it.

Exactly. I want the hardcover instead of the soft cover edition, not as well as.

I emailed CS and haven't heard back.

I like the idea of special omnibus hardcover editions, but there needs to be a reliable way for subscribers to pick them.

The Kineticist from Rage of Elements is on Dyslexic Character Sheets now, along with the usual haul of fixes and little improvements.

https://www.dyslexic-charactersheets.com/build/pathfinder2

I'm glad I got that done before starting on the Remaster...

I'm sure this was done for what seemed like solid legal reasons, but I see it as a serious mis-step.

The promise of the ORC License was the create a big, open landscape of gaming content where nobody would get sued because everything you might use is ORC somewhere. A mutual pact between every ORC publisher large and small that game mechanics lawsuits are off the table.

Forbidding Infinite products from also being ORC creates a rift in that open landscape. An ORC publisher could sue an Infinite publisher, or visa versa, because there's no such protection between the two.

I've just added a big pile of extra Backgrounds.

Dyslexic Character Sheets now has character sheets for the Pathfinder 2e version of Kingmaker, with pages for kingdoms, settlements and armies.

https://www.dyslexic-charactersheets.com/

This release also has some bug fixes and additions, such as the Pine Leshy heritage from the Quest for the Frozen Flame adventure path.

I've just added a whole lot of ancestries, heritages and backgrounds to the character sheet builder.

There isn't as much third-party material for PF2e as there was for PF1e, but we're starting to see some good things.

What are your favourite ancestries and heritages; classes and subclasses; archetypes?

I do still have a sizeable generous vast collection of PF1. And Starfinder. And some 3/4/5e. And Planet Mercenary, Maid RPG etc...

No, I will not free up shelf space.

I allocated a nice big shelf to Pathfinder 2e rule books and adventure paths, and it's now full. You can stop publishing new stuff now, Paizo.

Character sheets for the two new classes from Secrets of Magic -- the Summoner and the Magus -- are now available.

https://www.dyslexic-charactersheets.com/build/pathfinder2

Includes all the Magus's Hybrid Studies and the Summoner's Eidolons, on top of the many options available from Dyslexic Character Sheets.

While there are lots of things I'd like them to improve in a 5.5, I don't expect them to do any of them.

The classes in 5e feel quite bare, and subclasses alone aren't enough to stop them feeling identical. Every barbarian the same, every bard the same, etc. You can roleplay very different characters, but the game rules doesn't support you in it. A 5.5 player's handbook could come with new, rebalanced versions of the core classes, that have more customisation and are still fully compatible with the 5e engine.

Races could also be improved. They could stop using the word "race", they could use heritages the way Pathfinder 2 does, and they could incorporate the flexible stat rules from Tasha's Cauldron into the core rules.

But they won't.

I expect the anniversary edition will mostly just be a shiny repackaging. It might incorporate a couple of subclasses from other books, and fix the odd little mistake, but it won't change much of anything.

The list of firearms in the playtest is pretty short, and they all fit an era where guns were clunky, unique, and unreliable. Something I'm hoping to see in the final book is guidance on firearms from different eras.

Paizo's primary focus is, of course, the Lost Omens setting. That's entirely understandable, but it's not the only setting people play. Adventure Paths and homebrew settings often involve eras of firearms that are quite distinct from the culture of Golarion. For example...

In my own games, I'd like to be able to run adventures in something like a musketeers era, or a Napoleonic era.

I understand that there need to be barriers to stop players taking an AK-47 into a medieval setting. But I hope that doesn't mean uncommon firearms are left out of the book entirely.

APG is live!

The Advanced Players Guide content is now live on dyslexic-charactersheets.com.

You can now play the dhampir tengu swashbuckler you've been dreaming of.

I don't expect this to appear for quite some time, but...

Lost Omens Inner Worlds
A book exploring the inner solar system, particularly the worlds of Aballon, Castrovel, Akiton and Verces. Includes ancestries and archetypes for each world.

Ancestries:
- Efreet (Sun)
- Construct (Aballon)
- Lashunta (Castrovel)
- Ysoki (Akiton)
- Shobhad (Akiton)
- Vercite (Verces)

Archetypes:
- Tinkerer: a mechanic capable of making and improving automata and constructs, as well as self-modification (Aballon)
- Rider: a warrior that specialises in riding wild beasts into battle (Castrovel)
- Slider: a spellcaster able to teleport long distances, and create portals (Akiton)
- Solarian: a mystic who balances the forces of light and darkness (Verces)

...to be followed a year later by Lost Omens Outer Worlds, detailing the Diaspora, Eox, Triaxus, Liavara, Bretheda, Apostae and Arcturn.

The Community Use Package still has very little for 2nd edition in it.

One of the most definitive logos for PF2e is the one in the top-right corner of every book cover that says "Second Edition". It's important to avoid confusion between editions and clearly state what system a given book or product is compatible with.

So are we allowed to use that logo, or something like it, as part of a product under the community use policy?

Adventurers (or at least my characters) are pack rats. They have a tendency to pick up everything that isn't nailed down, and if I can pry it loose they weren't really serious about nailing...

• Book of Irriseni pornography
  
• Cake with a potion of gaseous form baked into it
  
• Fork I found in the road
  
• A hundred swords
  
• Caged rat that's actually a transmuted minotaur possessed by a very angry little demon
  
• Goblin (live) shoved into a bag of holding with his head poking out the top
  

Dyslexic Character Sheets for Pathfinder Second edition are here:

Build A Character

Features:

- Different pages for each class (I was doing it before it was cool)
- Space for your ancestry, background, feats etc
- Your character portrait, chosen from a long list or upload your own
- Extra pages for spellbooks, formulas, animal companions, etc
- Minis to cut out and play
- Translated into Italian (more translations on the way)
- Accessibility modes: Large print, high contrast, and dyslexic font option
- 100% free and open source
- Available as a JavaScript library to integrate into your own projects

It's finally time for the public beta of my custom character sheets for Pathfinder 2nd Edition. Build your character here:

Build A Character

This is a public beta, meaning it's not patrons-only any more: anyone can get to the dev site now. I want your feedback on the beta, so go and make some character sheets, and tell me what needs to be fixed.

Features:

• - Different pages for each class (I was doing it before it was cool)
  
• - Space for your ancestry, background, feats etc
  
• - Your character portrait, chosen from a long list or upload your own
  
• - Extra pages for spellbooks, formulas, animal companions, etc
  
• - Minis to cut out and play
  
• - Translated into Italian
  
• - Accessibility modes: Large print, high contrast, and dyslexic font option
  
• - 100% free and open source
  
• - Available as a JavaScript library to integrate into your own projects
  

There are some things on my list to add in the future:

• - Archetypes, including those from other books like the Lost Omens Character Guide
  
• - More ancestries, heritages, backgrounds and classes - including the APG when it comes out
  
• - GM pages: NPCs, maps, timelines etc.
  
• - Pathfinder Society chronicle tracking
  
• - More translations (drop me a line if you'd like to help with that)
  
• - Automatic calculations
  

Alpha

After 18 months of work, Dyslexic Character Sheets for Pathfinder Second Edition have reached a state I'm happy to call Alpha!

I now want your help finding things to fix. As a preview, here are character sheets for Paizo's 12 pregenerated characters.

• Fumbus, Goblin Alchemist
  
• Amiri, Human Barbarian
  
• Lem, Halfling Bard
  
• Seelah, Human Champion
  
• Kyra, Human Cleric
  
• Lini, Gnome Druid
  
• Valeros, Human Fighter
  
• Sajan, Human Monk
  
• Harsk, Dwarf Ranger
  
• Merisiel, Elf Rogue
  
• Seoni, Human Sorcerer
  
• Ezren, Human Wizard
  

Patrons get to build any character they like, but this is the final patrons-only release. The next release will be a public beta, which everyone gets to try.

Interesting. It gives me ideas for how to add something like this as part of my character sheets project.

Saedar is correct, check out Paizo's Community Use Policy and make sure you're using it legally. You're probably fine, Paizo are pretty generous and tolerant, but it's best to make sure.

The next preview:

Alchemist
(and in Italian)

The design of these is getting better and better. It's taking a long time, but I really think they're going to be amazing.

The Starfinder Psionics kickstarter has been over for more than a year and no updates in months. Others have posted that the founder is not responding to any messages thru social media. I've asked for my pledge back. I feel for him if he ran into issues but he can't just keep our money.

Kickstarter isn't a purchase. It's an investment in something you'd like to see happen, but which isn't yet certain. Sometimes this means they fail. But even when they do, the money has often been spent on real things, in an effort to try and achieve it. Refunding that money would mean a sudden, punishing debt to the creators.

It would be a different situation if a bad guy took your money and ran away with it, but that's not what happened here.

The next preview:

Bard

I realise it's been three months since I last posted an update here. That's because I've been hard at work putting in ALL the data. Patrons now have access to all the classes, all the subclasses, all the ancestries and heritages, everything from the core rulebook.

I've added a couple of extra links to this.

The next preview:

Paladin

Are these actually for people with dyslexia? Or is that just the name?

It's just a name, but I have looked into what people with dyslexia need, and I continue to try and improve.

For example, I've looked at both the practice and the evidence for dyslexic fonts, and found both lacking. Experiments find that, even when users stated a preference for dyslexic fonts, they didn't show a notable improved reading ability.

The most important thing you can do to make life easier for dyslexic readers is simply to reduce the amount they have to read. This lines up with the approach I've taken all along. Long sections of text are broken down into punchy statements using the minimum number of words. That's good for everyone, not just for dyslexic users.

The new version of the character sheets is planned to offer two accessible modes: High Contrast, which uses strong black on white rather than subtler colours; and Large Print, which makes everything bigger (adjusting layouts and skipping elements if necessary). I may also add a Dyslexic version that turn off the all-caps styles and inverts the header colours to make them easier to read.

Also, if I could make a suggestion? The current sheet is extremely wide to the point it doesn't even fit on my screen, and it would be easier to read/use if it was narrower. I'd personally resize many of the columns to be just enough for the text they contain (Design, Fillable, & Status all have consistent entry lengths and unused space), make the Name column have text wrapping so it can be less wide while still displaying all info with no cut-off, and either replacing the URLs with text that just says "Link" while being clickable with a hyperlink or making the columns have text wrapping set to "clip" instead of the default "overflow" and making the columns shorter that way.

Good point. I've made some of these changes, and I'll do more later.

Somebody else had the same idea, and has been compiling a list of resources here:

Resources Guide on r/Pathfinder2e.

I'll incorporate those into this list either tonight, or soon.

Here's the link to my dedicated thread for mine.

Updated.

Please keep this thread polite, positive and on topic.

I've started compiling a list of all the different character sheets that are out there. It's not complete yet, but it's a good start.

Link to the full list

It divides the character sheets into three styles: Original ones with their own layout, Classic with a retro D&D 3e / Pathfinder 1e style layout, and Variant based on the official Paizo character sheet.

It notes whether the character sheet is fillable, what format it uses, and whether it's actually ready. I've also tried to include a discussion link where possible.

If you spot an error or would like to suggest an addition, either comment directly on the spreadsheet directly, post below, or PM me.

Okay, I'm going to start putting together a list of all the custom character sheets. I'll try to find all the ones I can, on this forum and elsewhere, but it would help if you drop me a PM letting me know about any I may miss.

Can somebody post an example of the print character sheets that HLO generates?

I always felt, in PF1 and D&D3.5, that the first couple of levels were sacrificial. Not just in power level, but character. Any reasonable backstory for somebody who's voluntarily setting out on an adventure inevitably describes somebody who's at least level 3, in order for their skills, feats etc to line up with what the character should have. The new heritage and background setup does a lot to fix that.

It seems like PF2 characters just start at a more sensible level.

I've put out another preview of Dyslexic Character Sheets here:

Fizzlepop, Gnome Rogue / Bard.

Here's the next preview:

Fizzlepop, Gnome Rogue Bard

I'm still rearranging things every few days, so nothing's set in stone yet. Feedback is appreciated, though.

Is there any chance of a dark mode?

Very nice.

The velociraptor picture in the bestiary has feathers. This is both scientifically correct and awesome. It's great to see somebody get it right.

Here's the second public preview:

Silver Tooth Flynn, Human Monk Pirate

In this case, we have a pirate monk with the dragon stance. The Pirate archetype isn't in the final book, so this is based off the playtest version combined with the official monk.

Q: When will this be available?
There's still a lot of work still to do - I only just got the book, after all. My rough goal is to get it ready by the end of 2019, but that's not a fixed deadline.

Q: Will it cost anything?
No. This is free and open source.

Q: Where can I follow progress on the project?
On Facebook, Patreon or GitHub Patrons get regular previews and behind the scenes access.

Q: Are you still supporting Pathfinder First Edition?
The existing character sheets for 1st Edition aren't going away, but I'm not going to be adding anything new to them either. I just don't have the time to do everything.

I'm pretty much a Paizo Stan these days, but...

I think I'll just wait for Sadie to make new sheets.

I'm flattered. It'll be a while, though - I only just got the book, so there's a lot of work still to do before my character sheets are ready.

Half-human
(Heritage)

Because it is a truth universally acknowledged that a human adventurer with a pocket full of plundered gold and a belly full of ale will shag pretty much anything.