From Plain Paper to a Magnetic RPG Character Sheet Board
When we spoke to tabletop gamers and asked how they kept track of their characters, the answer was often surprisingly simple: an A4 sheet of paper, with everything written directly onto it.
There is nothing wrong with that. Paper does the job. But it also gave us a small problem worth exploring. Could we make something reusable and practical that held the sheet securely, while turning it into an object people would actually enjoy placing on the table?
That question became our magnetic RPG character sheet board.
Looking at what already existed
As we explain in Welcome to the Bee Kind Reimagined Workshop, our projects usually begin with a basic idea rather than a finished plan. We decide what we want to make, look at what other makers and businesses are doing, and then ask how we can produce a more distinctive Bee Kind Reimagined version.
For this board, the practical requirement came first. It needed to hold a plain A4 sheet of paper. The wooden face provides its own fixed field layout; it is not intended as a universal frame for every printed A4 RPG character-sheet design. It also needed to remain usable: the paper could not simply be trapped beneath a decorative layer that stopped the player from writing on it.
The answer was a two-part board. A solid plywood backing supports the paper, while a removable engraved front panel sits over it. Cut-outs in the front expose the paper at the positions defined by the board, allowing the player to write and update the corresponding information while the surrounding wooden panel keeps the layout clear.
When the character changes, the paper can be removed and replaced. The wooden board remains.
Making the layout work
Once the basic idea was clear, we developed the layout and prepared both panels for laser cutting and engraving. Each board uses two layers of 3.6mm plywood and is sized to hold a plain A4 sheet.
That sounds fairly straightforward. It was not.
The front contains a mixture of larger openings, small boxes, lettering and decorative engraving. All of those elements have to remain readable, work together as a usable layout on the paper underneath and fit properly against the backing board.
We went through about four different front panels before reaching the version we needed. On some attempts the engraving was not dark enough. On another, the laser moved too quickly for the smallest text to remain readable. We also had cut parts that simply did not fit together as intended.
None of those panels was wasted as a lesson. Together they showed us what needed to change.
The magnetic front was its own challenge
The removable face is secured at the corners by strong magnets fitted to the back of the front panel and the facing side of the backing panel. They hold the inserted paper securely so that the layers do not shift or come loose during use.
Fitting them became another learning curve.
We knew the magnets were 10mm in diameter, so creating the circular spaces was the easy part. Their thickness was 2mm, while the plywood was 3.6mm. Finding a neat and reliable way to accommodate that difference took testing and adjustment.
Through that testing, we developed a reliable method that gives us secure magnets, properly aligned panels and a front that can still be removed when the paper needs changing. We are keeping that particular workshop technique private.
Adding colour without hiding the wood
After cutting and engraving, the main areas are coloured by brushing on acrylic inks. The ink gives us strong colour while allowing the material and engraved details to remain part of the finished appearance.
The smaller details are painted with acrylic paint and a very fine brush. Once everything has dried, we apply polyurethane varnish to protect the finish.
The green and yellow boards use the same underlying construction, but they do not feel identical. One combines a green front with a colourful dragon on the reverse. The other brings together yellow and red with a red-and-orange dragon. They are examples of how a repeatable design can still carry the individual colour and finish that comes from being made by hand.
A dragon on the reverse
We did not want the back to feel like the forgotten side of the product, so each board carries a raised HueForge dragon image printed in PLA.
The dragon artwork is not our original illustration. We purchased the design with permission to use it, then produced the physical prints in our workshop on a Creality K2 Plus. Each print uses a 0.08mm layer height and takes approximately two hours to complete before being attached to the reverse of the board.
Combining laser-cut plywood, brushed colour, fine painted details, magnets and a layered 3D print is exactly the kind of mixed process we enjoy. The front has a clear practical job; the back gives the board its statement-piece character.
The part people do not normally see
Finished product photographs can make a design look as though it appeared fully formed. Our workshop floor tells a different story.
The rejected panels show changes in engraving, cutting and fit that had to happen before the finished boards existed. They are not evidence that something went wrong once. They are evidence of how the product was developed.
That process is normal for us: think, design, try, test and improve. Sometimes the first idea works quickly. Sometimes it takes four front panels, a change of laser settings and a problem with magnets that needs a new solution.
The important part is not pretending every attempt is perfect. It is learning enough from each attempt to make the next one better.
Practical, unusual and recognisably ours
The finished green and yellow boards began with a simple observation about a piece of paper. The result combines a replaceable A4 paper insert with a reusable wooden surround, secure magnetic construction, hand-applied colour and a detailed dragon reverse.
That balance matters to us. We want to make practical items, statement pieces and distinctive work, but whatever we produce should still feel recognisably Bee Kind Reimagined.
These boards do—not because the first attempt was good enough, but because we kept working until it was.
Made Memorable. Not mass made.
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