NPC Manager

[Holz]

Hi there fellow travellers!

Well, once agian I ask your help. I am elaborating a NPC sheet manager.

Just for you guys to see my issues, I had 14 sessions of my campaign (we play once a moth due RL).
And I made the PC´s travel all the way from Ishtakhr to Grail, stoping at Byzantium (or B2).
I have 30 + NPC´s to manage... and just wrting names on a piece of paper ain´t cutting for me.

And players forget about the NPC's. (Why I don´t know, I always remember them )

Anyways, I was thinking on making a sheet based for NPC's per planet and in two parts. One part is acessable to players, with information of were and how the NPC looks (in simple words) and a more complex one for the GM. Using some ideas from this post ( - second section on bullet points on People).

Also and more important, I need any good ideas to put on it. Especially from the FS community. I need your help.
Once I have some time I´ll create it.

Here is what I have on my mind:

PC Sheet
PLANET X
- # (number of the NPC)
- Name
- Faction / Allegiance
- When / Why / How met?
- Location
- Status (Dead, alive, zombi, lost in space...)
- Relation towards PC / Party / Entourage

* if NPC is on a ship or in several planets there will be an Interplanetary sheet

GM Sheet

Planet X
- # (number of the NPC)
- Name
- Faction / Allegiance
- Remainder
- Appearance & Behavior
- Background
- Motivation and Goals
- Schemes and plots

Ideas and feedback, welcome always!

[Angelman]

I've attempted things like this in my own games, but I find it surprisingly difficult to get right. A general advice is to keep the information as short and memorable as possible. Players don't want to read several pages of information when they play, and they certainly do not want to do 'homework' before the game (or, most don't anyway).

The best way to get players to remember stuff is to force them to take their own notes. That has always worked great in my campaigns, and the effort the players put into the game makes it that much more real for them. Also, it helps to give each NPC a memorable trait (a peculiar smell, left-handed swordsman, one-eyed princess, etc.).

As for GM notes, that's a matter of taste. I always make pages upon pages of notes, but it quickly becomes hard to use it efficiently later in the campaign, especially if you need to reference something on-the-spot.

[Holz]

Hum... that is true.
I might have to talk to them to make their own notes.

In the other hand, intending to help my fellow GM's, here is a sample of what I did last night.

[Angelman]

Your fill-in lists look good, and I'm sure many groups will find them useful. Talk to your group about them making notes - if you can manage to convince them to do this, it will (in my experience) be the single most signifficant invenstment into the campaign that they can do. A great way to entice them to start making notes is to, a) buy each of them a blank notebook to take notes in, and b) give them LOTS of handouts, maps, and images to glue into those books, and they will be hooked (but remember to have scissors and glue available when you play).

[Holz]

That´s a pretty good idea!
I handout lots of stuff... might do it and make them use it! =D