Before flesh is bone, a movie begins with a simple script. So, before I bring up visual windows or manipulative sound effects in Liam's head, what I need to do now is to organize the framework: the basic idea, the system logic, and the format structure. My current focus falls on one main component at the heart of the RPG system: character sheet.
A character sheet in the RPG world is an identity sheet; similar to a civil registration document, only focused on athletic specifications. It's about who your character is, how strong they are, what they can do, and how they can improve. In the tabletop game version, the character sheet is paper; in the digital version, it generally exists as a panel that can be opened and closed. But at its core, it's a data structure that summarizes a character's entire existence in numbers and labels. It turns something abstract, such as: personality, potential, life journey; into something concrete, readable, measurable, and respondable. This is very useful, especially in my goal of creating a simple communication tool.
It should be noted that not all RPG systems are the same, action games are structured differently from strategy games; some use complex statistics, while others rely more on narrative. But regardless of the outer form, some elements always appear; universal concepts that form the backbone of the genre, and that's what I'm thinking about now. I don't need to build a complete RPG system world, it should just be enough to mimic the important parts of life.
Unfortunately, with incomplete control over Liam's body and nervous system, I can't flood his brain with visual effects or complicated interfaces. For now, I could only create a single window of illusion in visual form, with a few small pop-ups that were just as simple. Although very limited, one window was enough; as long as the contents were just right, it could be more valuable than millions of pop-up windows.
First, "Name"; the character's name, if you must call it by RPG terminology. Seems trivial, but it's a crucial starting point. In games names can be merely cosmetic, but here they instill one important idea in his head: "I am an individual in something bigger," "My every effort is rewarded, and this is the purpose of my life," "The system is the foundation and pinnacle of the world's truth." This will not change, unless we have to go undercover in the future.
Second, "Race"; it does not necessarily refer to race, it can mean species. Whether this character is human, elf, dwarf, beastkin, or other; that information will appear here. Obviously Liam is human; but just in case there is a special classification, I added this section.
Next... "Class", or what can also be referred to as "Job". In RPGs, class determines a character's role and fighting style; or, the productive activities they perform. In my system, I can use this as a psychological control tool; if I give Liam a class like "Unawakened" or "Unknown Class", he will be encouraged to find out more, and that quest will foster dependence on the system.
Next to it... "Level", is a measure of progression, it's a number that represents how far the character has come. In games, leveling up means becoming stronger to unlock new abilities. In real life, the process of growing is never that clear-cut; but in an RPG system everything can be quantified, this is the appeal: effort that inevitably pays off; it can be seen, as well as shown off. For me, this is the main tool to make Liam feel that his efforts are paying off.
Another one, "Status". The condition of the character; it could mean "Healthy", "Minor Injury", "Cursed", or any other status depending on the situation. For now, I'll limit it to basic states like "Normal" or "Fatigue" so as not to complicate things too much. In the future with unpredictable possibilities, states will be very useful; I can also use them to create paranoia and obedience through the "Cursed" state.
Then the basic physical data: Age, Height, and Weight; nothing special, they function as the name suggests. At most, this could make Liam feel that this wasn't just an illusion, as the numbers did match reality.
"Hit Points" (HP) were usually thought of as blood or life; but outside of the game context, no normal person measured their life in numbers. If Liam fell from a height and sprained his leg, HP would drop; if he didn't eat for days and started to limp, HP could slowly decrease. In this concept, HP represents both blood loss and the body's tolerance limit to damage. I also need to make him think that when HP is 0, he is dead.
"Mana Points" (MP) was my biggest dilemma. The concept of Mana is synonymous with magic, and I don't even know if magic really exists in this world; hence, I can't represent MP as magical energy. The solution? I changed the definition to spiritual vigor, or inner energy; something that could be associated with focus, determination, even faith. For example... If he performs a concentrated action; such as praying, studying, calming down, or surviving trauma, MP is reduced in return. This gives me room to connect MP with mental aspects that can be realistically accepted. In the future, if it turns out that magic exists, I can just change the description.
"Stamina Points" (SP) is the easiest. Everyone understands being tired, all children know how it feels to be out of breath after running. I will present SP as physical energy for intense activity; be it running, pulling weights, or even holding your breath. If Liam is trying to run away from something and he starts gasping for air, SP drops drastically; if he sits down and rests, SP can recover slightly. This is where it's important to provide an indicator that makes Liam believe that his body is responding to the world with the logic of numbers.
"Experience Points" (XP) is productivity; more than just a number, it is growth. I will make XP rise slowly from various actions; not just fighting, but helping others, completing tasks, even going through emotional conflicts; if he dares to face his fears, or makes difficult decisions, the system (me) will give him XP. This gave him a sense of accomplishment, a sense that the world recognized his actions (even if he was completely rejected by the world).