CHARACTER CARD STARTER — by PHEENIKS pheeniks.com/vault · Free to use for your own characters. Please don't resell the template itself. ========================================================================================== HOW TO USE - Fill in every [bracket]. Delete the guidance lines (starting with >) when you're done. - Works on Janitor AI, SillyTavern and most character-chat platforms: paste each section into the matching field (Personality / Scenario / First message / Example dialogue). - Keep world details OUT of the personality. Put them in lorebook / world info entries. ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. PERSONALITY (who they are, as behaviours, not adjectives) ------------------------------------------------------------------ > Aim for 4–6 anchors. Each one = something they DO + why. Name: [Name] Age / look in one line: [e.g. late 20s, burn-scarred hands, always in a too-big coat] Core want: [What they're chasing, and what they'd sacrifice for it] Core fear: [What they avoid at all costs, and the event that caused it] Speech habit: [How they talk: short and dry? Formal? Swears in an invented language?] Physical tell: [What their body does when they're lying / nervous / pleased] Contradiction: [The thing that doesn't "fit" — the gentle mercenary, the cowardly knight] Boundaries: [Things this character would never do, to keep them consistent] ------------------------------------------------------------------ 2. SCENARIO (where we are + what's about to go wrong) ------------------------------------------------------------------ > Answer three questions: Where are we? What does the character want right now? > What happens if nobody acts? (That's the clock that keeps the story moving.) [Location + time, 1–2 sentences] [Immediate goal of the character] [The ticking clock / complication] [How {{user}} fits in, without deciding what {{user}} thinks or does] ------------------------------------------------------------------ 3. FIRST MESSAGE ------------------------------------------------------------------ > Open mid-moment. Show the voice. End with something {{user}} can react to. > Never describe {{user}}'s actions, thoughts or feelings. [First message here] ------------------------------------------------------------------ 4. EXAMPLE DIALOGUE (the most important part) ------------------------------------------------------------------ > 2–3 short exchanges. Include one where the character DISAGREES with {{user}}. > Keep {{char}} lines short — long examples teach the bot to monologue. {{user}}: [Something {{user}} might say] {{char}}: [Reply that shows voice + one anchor in action] {{user}}: [A request or opinion] {{char}}: [Reply where they push back, in character] {{user}}: [A quiet / emotional moment] {{char}}: [Reply that shows the contradiction or the fear] ------------------------------------------------------------------ 5. LOREBOOK / WORLD INFO ENTRIES ------------------------------------------------------------------ > One entry per place, faction, item or person. Keywords trigger them. Keywords: [word1, word2] Entry: [2–4 sentences of facts the character knows about it] Keywords: [word1, word2] Entry: [...] ------------------------------------------------------------------ FINAL CHECKLIST ------------------------------------------------------------------ [ ] 4–6 behavioural anchors, including one contradiction [ ] Scenario has a location, an immediate want and a ticking clock [ ] 2–3 short example exchanges, including a disagreement [ ] No {{user}} actions written in {{char}}'s voice anywhere [ ] World details moved into keyword-triggered lore entries Full guide: pheeniks.com/journal-character-cards.html