HERO character sheets, especially for supers and other character types with many Powers, have always tended to be more detailed and "busy" than those for many other games. To a large extent that's a function of the modular, customizable nature of the game, and most of us HEROphiles eat that stuff up with a spoon. We love having all the pertinent information we could need during a game right there on the sheet.
However, as of Fifth Edition the policy has been for every Modifier to be fully written out for every Power entry it applies to, even if that includes a large number of Powers with the identical Modifier, e.g. a powered armor design with everything bought as the same type of Focus. In earlier editions such common Modifiers, particularly Limitations, were often designated by a symbol like an asterisk leading to a footnote-like listing of the Limitation.
While the Fifth Edition character sheet notation certainly leaves no room for ambiguities, I have to admit that I've found their appearance more cluttered, repetitive, and tedious to read than those from earlier editions. More to the point, I've lost count of the number of potential new HERO players who panic when they see those sheets for the first time, and refuse to try out the game. I've encountered this reaction more often over the run of Fifth Edition than previously.
I respectfully suggest that DOJ consider reviving this earlier character sheet notation convention for Sixth Edition, at least where substantial repetition occurs. I believe this would make the sheets more comfortable to read, esthetically more pleasing, and less intimidating to newcomers.
I recognize and accept that Steve Long et al may have what they consider good and sufficient reason to keep doing things as they have been, and will not protest if they continue. I want to be constructive, not controversial.
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