Character Sheets
Shadowdark Extras extends player and NPC sheets without changing the underlying Shadowdark actor types. Most enhancements are world-controlled; Dark Mode is per client.
With Enable Enhanced Header on, a Player sheet shows an interactive summary of:
- current/max HP with a health bar;
- AC;
- ability modifiers;
- Luck;
- XP progress and level;
- actor portrait and header background.
Actors can use their own image/video background. The GM can also enable one world default for every actor that has no custom header.
Clicking supported values opens the normal SDX/Shadowdark adjustment workflow; the header is not merely decorative.
Current HP controls accept direct edits and quick relative changes. NPC sheets also receive the compatible quick-control behavior. Changes still require actor permission, and combat automation may update the same value through damage cards.
The HP wave is a portrait overlay whose height follows the actor's remaining health. Open Configure HP Waves to:
- enable or disable the effect;
- choose the default color;
- add ancestry-specific colors.
The shipped default is enabled with a red wave. Use a solid, high-contrast color if the portrait art is visually busy.
The GM-only editor controls the shared visual system:
- outer sheet frame;
- panels and stat boxes;
- border slices/width/repeat;
- header, title bar, tabs, navigation, labels, and value colors;
- actor-name shadow and weight;
- tab gradients;
- a live preview.
These values are stored as hidden settings because the editor owns them as one coherent theme. Dark Mode loads a client theme without erasing the GM's saved custom settings.
Match NPC Sheet Theme to Player Sheets applies the same frame/header/panel language to NPC sheets while retaining the system's NPC layout.
Player and NPC sheets receive condition toggles. The Conditions theme setting chooses:
- Shadowdark;
- 5e;
- Parchment;
- Stone Tablet;
- Leather Bound;
- Iron & Rust;
- Moss & Decay;
- Blood & Shadow.
Changing the theme re-renders open Player sheets. The condition documents remain the same; only the control presentation changes.
Player sheets include a Renown value for faction reputation, fame, or another campaign-scale standing. Current carousing outcomes can also apply a configured Renown delta. Decide at the table what the number means; SDX stores and displays it but does not impose a faction model.
With Enable Journal Notes on, the simple Notes tab becomes a multi-page journal:
- page sidebar;
- create, select, rename, and remove pages;
- rich-text editing;
- quick inserts for information, warnings, quests, loot, and NPC notes.
See Journal Tools & Pins.
The sheet padlock protects configured fields from player edits. Configure Sheet Locks chooses what the locked state covers:
- XP, coins, gems, HP, abilities, and Luck;
- equipped state;
- inventory add/remove;
- spells and talents;
- class, ancestry, background, deity, alignment, and languages;
- Active Effects.
The configuration is global; the lock state is per sheet/actor. GMs retain authority. A locked field gives a warning instead of silently discarding the player's edit.
The Medkit icon is available to actor owners when Show Medkit Icon is on. It checks owned Spells, Scrolls, and Wands against registered source packs.
| Item | Update behavior |
|---|---|
| Spell | Compared to and replaced from the matching source document |
| Scroll | Keeps the physical item; refreshes SDX enhancement flags from its referenced spell |
| Wand | Keeps the physical item/use data; refreshes enhancement flags from referenced spells |
Review the preview before applying. The GM can run the same logic over the entire world with Medkit: Scan All Actors.
With Enable Add Coins Button on, the Coins area receives a quick adjustment control. Positive values add and negative values subtract. Transfers are a separate workflow covered in Inventory & Trading.
The Shadowdark Spell Book dialog receives a compendium selector. It scans installed Item packs containing Spells and lets the user show one source or all sources. This changes the browser list, not the actor's existing spellbook.
SDX registers default sheets for several Shadowdark item types:
| Item type | Tabs/features |
|---|---|
| Potion | Details, Activity, Description, Macro; damage/healing/effects |
| Background | Description and Advancement; grant configured items immediately or at a level |
| Class Ability | Details, Description, Macro |
| NPC Attack | Attack details, typed damage, ranges, Description, Source |
| NPC Feature / NPC Spell | Activity, Description, Macro |
| NPC Special Attack | Activity, Description, Macro |
These are data editors as well as presentation sheets. See Spell Automation for Activity configuration.
When a ranged weapon can use more than one owned ammunition item, SDX can prompt for the ammunition to consume and remember the preferred choice.
Staff weapons can open Staff Spells Configuration to manage attached spells and restore their uses. The stored spell UUIDs must remain valid.
SDX's Party actor has its own Members, Inventory, Travel, and Description tabs. It is documented with the tray because it coordinates the same roster: The SDX Tray & Party Tools.
Header or layout did not change. Reload after changing the enhanced-header setting. Hard-refresh if art or CSS still looks stale.
Player cannot edit a field. Check the sheet's padlock state and the global Sheet Lock configuration.
Medkit cannot match a Scroll/Wand. Repair its referenced Spell UUID.
An ancestry color is ignored. Confirm the stored ancestry name matches the override and that HP Waves are enabled.
Potion/NPC item opens the system sheet instead. Check the sheet selection in the item window and reload after enabling/updating SDX.
Related: Inventory & Trading · Spell Automation · The SDX Tray & Party Tools