Weaker Gamer System

So, it's not really a secret that despite writing a gamer story, I'm not the biggest fan of the general systems used, like levelling up, skill creation and such. I'm trying to experiment with a different type of game system, that is just very basic and works more like a basic stat screen, showing basically their stats and general abilities. It's for something for my original novel, but I think I'll try it out first in a fanfic to get a feel for it a bit.

Do any of you know of any systems like this I could look at as an example, like in any fics?

 

I feel like the one from Unbound is a good one. Unbound is a fanfiction on webnovel that has a gamer system that gives stats to the gamer based of their performance. An example of this would be while at level 1 you mostly fought barehanded then when you level up you'd get predominantly strength, vitality, and dexterity. No extra stats just increases to the stats that you used. This system would make it hard to not be one trick pony, but only if you're not careful.

 

Honestly Shiro has been weakening his. Keeping away from levels and just focusing on perks. It seems to make it much more streamlined and easier to manage.

 

Hmm, this might fit my purposes pretty well if I re-purpose it a bit. Cheers.

 

Villain of the Void and the new works from Shiro, using the guild (like The Supervillain) have minimalistic game engines that don't take half of the fucking wordcount to be seen. They look more organic, IMO

 

I've always liked Arcanum's basic stat system. You have physical and cerebral sides to each stat.

	Physical	Cerebral
Power	Strength	Intelligence
Prowess	Dexterity	Perception
Resistance	Constitution	Willpower
Appearance	Beauty	Charisma

You can generate secondary stats from these, like hitpoints, speed, carry weight, etc.

 

If youre talking about the novel on royal road, thats not how it works. The people there, regular ones, human ones, get on efree stat per level, and they can raise their stats through training. They gain skills by doing something that the overarching system recognises, and when they level up the skills to certain level, 25/50/75etc, they get increased bonus stats that are used when using the skill. Theres also a skill number cap, or hamy skills you can have. Obviusoly, the unbound, mc of the novel, doesnt have that cap, and thus can get more and more powerfull....

 

Thats really clean and logical sounding.

 

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/a-bad-name-worm-oc-the-gamer.500626/

https://forums.sufficientvelocity.com/threads/mana-based-system-foz-gamer.22317/

The power interactions in their reality is unique to say at least, one of the fics I find well written in my opinion. Though I think its mostly because of their ignorance (the first one has live most of his life in the slums while the second one is base in a medieval fantasy) and the way they approach conflicts and etc.

Not S.I, they're locals.

 

A really good approach to a gamer power is disregarding the levelling part and focus of how it’s basically a shattered limiter kind of power where it basically allows you to grow infinitely (not necessarily easily) and allows you to learn multiple different types of powers that might have otherwise clashed.

Instead of having skill levels, having more like once the Player is proficient enough with a skill the skill is made they won’t ever forget it. So you don’t have to constantly worry about losing your skill if you don’t constantly practice. But that’s it.

Also magic energy should be it’s own start rather than be linked to int or wis.


If you want to you can make achievements for certain events (like learning 50 spells).

Also a good idea is for the MC to automatically know what is on any screen related to the game without needing to read it, unlike the readers.

You want the gamer power to act as a thing that boosts his power, not be the source of his power. Like magic looses it’s wonder when it gets distilled to saying/thinking the skill name and just repeating to get better rather than delving into the magic itself.

Being able to monitor your growth is an amazing motivator to keep improving, so if you had 50 mana and practicing your spells hard to a few days increased it to 51 mana it would motivate you to keep practicing, when usually it would take much longer to notice an increase in mana levels.

Gamer Neighbour is done in an interesting way and we see almost no game screens for a most of the fic.

Harry Potter the Mutant Obscurus Gamer, has a somewhat similar system to what you are asking for. It starts out as a really decent story but went down hill once the avengers plot started kind lost it’s energy.

 

I feel the same but more than that I prefer when the gamer system is barely shown beyond one or so every few chapter that shows stats or names and levels as it only creates unnecessary clutter on screen.

The one thing I wish was less popular is talkative or character lite gamer systems as I’ve only ever seen it done well once and that was by Stewart over on space battles. Every other times it only to make some generic waifu that luvs you and only ever says the same thing as the protagonist, the same go with asshole systems.

 

https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/16946/azarinth-healer

If you want to move away from an emphasis on leveling then you could make stats largely background information and just focus on milestones and skills/perks. Azarinth Healer made classes the focus while levels only gives unassigned stat points and after a while the only important stat information was stuff like being mana or martial focused. Levels just became an indicator or combat level and the accomplishment based classes were where all the growth was. Basically less freedom for the MC but growth is more straightforward and easier to plan.

 

Dragonball: Surpassing my Limits on Webnovel might be what you're looking for.

 

Don't let the MC increase INT/WIS because you've deleted your protagonist are now forced to make a walking Spacebattles Competent avatar that isn't allowed to not win everything they put their mind to because they're twenty gorillion IQ. Same thing with Gamer's Mind. If it exists it should just be an in-universe handwave for a Main Character's ability to face death and think on their feet that 99% of fiction protags already have anyway, not turning it up to it's theoretical maximum that deletes the protagonist from existence and replaces them with an AGI.

Not that mental skills can't exist at all, there's all sorts of mental/int stuff you can do that isn't just the lazy "He has fifty bazillion IQ and is more better-est at being smart therefore he does everything right because he's a supergenius"

 

I have thought about this subject several times and even thought about starting a similar thread.
Thus, please allow me to share my ruminations (i hope).

Gamer body.
Generally means a body that shares characteristics with a video game character in their physicality.
HP/Life points pool that depletes without any real consequences, maybe if you want with a cosmetic decal indicating 'damage', or if you want to grant a factor of tension in the system, granting de-buffs when they deplete significantly. Usually with increased healing, sometimes things like complete healing, including regeneration of lost limbs after a period of sleep.
Other times just absurd passive regeneration without any need for sleep or rest at all.

Granting the gamer 'gamer body' must mean they are no longer able to get stronger outside of the system.
I have seen several stories where the gamer has the ability to get stronger both from the system, and they can then do normal stuff, like weight lifting for stats.
Personally those consequences while minor always stand out to me.
Whatever you decide, describe it in detail, the system needs consistency if not transparency.

Stats.
Some stats generally usable in RPG make no sense in a narrative story.
In my opinion mainly Intelligence and Charisma, through Luck can also be iffy.

Using intelligence, from DnD as an example.
10 points being the average (around 100 IQ).
20 points being the absolute maximum for a human, I know there are templates and other modifiers, but just for an example's sake. (let us go into super genius, superhuman territory, and say 200 IQ).
Writing a 200IQ character would be extremely difficult. But what if the system is generous and our character gets points for noticing that Earth is round and calculating change from groceries in his head. How would a character with 45 INT even express themselves? I know this is only fanfiction, but assuming we want some sort of relatability in our stories, how do we write a 450IQ person. How could we even imagine that? That would be existence so different to us, we could as well write them as an alien. Those of us that remember the difference between high and low INT run in fallout/fallout2 will know what I mean. Ok, rant over.

Similar problem with charisma, while it might be a dump stat for some, in a general gamer story, soon conflicts would become unresolvable because all animosity ends with one MC smile. You are effectively turning your character into a mary sue, so likable even their enemies cannot help and be charmed by them.

Luck can be a fun thing to play around with, especially when it's low. However, in a setting overflowing with stats soon you will end with a xianxia protagonist tripping over charms, legendary herbs, and secret scrolls.

Of course, if you use a system that is sparser in stats, like dnd, where even 5 gained stats are not that big of a deal this might not be a problem.

In place of Intelligence, I would propose to use something simpler, like 'ENERGY'. Instead of determining their intellectual capacity it would simply inform of their potential output, be it mana, chi, stamina, or whatever your story needs.

Another good mechanic would be perception or insight. Instead of just being smarter, or spamming observe onto everything, plot-relevant, interesting things either 'get highlighted' which is a very 'gamey' thing to write, albeit transparent in its introduction, or simply are 'pulled into attention' of the mc.

Intelligence, Charisma, and Luck should generally be either excluded, locked as stats, or possibly hidden.
For example, doing something actually mentally taxing grants our MC the ground +1 Int, even though they do not have it on their sheet.


In my belief (even though I abhor the idea of an INT build mc acting with 1000 points the same way they did when they had 50) in the end, everything can be made to work, as long as you plan for the development from the beginning. Do not write yourself into a corner by turning your MC into a god-smacking superbeing in 5 chapters or you will lose all tension. CHR or LCK build mc can be a fun crack story if done properly. In the end, even Kishimoto needed several retcons and somehow ended with Madara getting merc'd by a deus-ex-machina because he wrote himself into a corner.


Now my idea of a sensible system:
- the character needs to eat, sleep, shit etc, albeit as they progress those needs lessen
- since obtaining the system gamer no longer can get stats outside of the system
- damage is regenerating constantly, while resting, getting medical help it can be accelerated
- potions for battle situations exist but are rare
- permanent damage (burns, amputations) also regenerate but slower (25hp of severe burns regenerates as 75hp; amputate hand is worth permanent 50hp, and will regrow, but is worth 500hp)
-no quests, or very rare quests. I believe that the window appearing instead of an everyday chore should be something huge.

Example of stats:

Strength - physical strength, lift, carry capacity
Dexterity - skills in performing tasks, nimbleness
Constitution - overall physical build and durability
Perception - the ability to notice things
Energy - overall energetic output of the character

With possible INT, LCK and CHR or attractiveness as hidden or locked stats.

Here we come to the question of secondary stats.
Speed could he STR + DEX, or (STR+DEX)/2; or if you want to use Chi/Chakra, add Energy to the equation. For example for your Naruto gamer, Speed could be (STR+DEX)/2+ENR/5
The idea is for secondary stats to be the effect of 2 or more main stats. Like coming back to Naruto Chakra should be derived from CON and ENR.
Other possible secondary stats:
hand-eye coordination, durability, throwing, insight, etc just look at a dnd or a fallout character and pick what you need for your story.

Instead of leveling via character levels, everything would be conducted via skills.
Skills have x (depending on what meaning you want to give stats just pick a number between 10 and 100)lvls and come in 5 grades.
☆☆☆☆ - (D) skills - always grant +1 stat and proficiency - common skills,
★☆☆☆ - (C) skills - always grant +2 stats and profficiency - slightly more complicated skills
★★☆☆ - (B) skills - always grant +3 stats and proficiency - generally intermediate things, stuff like punching, playing an instrument come here
★★★☆ - (A) skills - always grant +4 stats and proficiency - advanced stuff comes here, things in this bracket should have prerequisite skills.
★★★★ - (S) skills - always grant +5 stats and proficiency - expert stuff, skills here are either evolved or need several prerequisite skills.

✪✪✪✪ - (EX) skills - you will probably want to go wild, 'named' skills come here. The absolute apex of a skill.

Obviously more advanced skills are harder to level, but also grant more feats, compared to less advanced ones.
Feats should be either activated or narrative things instead of statistics.

Some skills have no advanced levels. Cooking would end at a C grade for example.
Some skills could be self-taught, others would require a teacher.
Punching, kicking, dodging, and blocking would start at D and scale up to B, having all of those mastered D, would allow picking a general martial art that starts at C and scales to S.
Boxing requires a teacher or a manual and punching, dodging, and blocking at minimal C, but it starts at B and has better skill gain than 'self-made' martial art. But Boxing ends at S, and with a great personal cost, you can 'evolve' your personal martial art into EX, either picking something from a game, anime, or designing something completely new.

I know this probably makes little sense, but it's just a general outline of something super flexible that was bouncing in my brain for some time without actually codifying it.

 

i really like the Danmachi take on when leveling up/Improving yourself, that you need to go to an external in order to do it (like a god like in Danmachi) or maybe some kind of Statue that gets guarded by a Guild and you need to pay for you to use it or some kind of expensive Stone not everyone can afford and you can use it only once, so you need to wager if its worth it to update your status now even if it barely changed because its expensive.

 

Not reallý a weaker one but a modified one i though about

You cant gain stats through training, only level up and whatever the author want (like possible dungeons rewards)
What training do is actually give a multiplicator to the stat you training on
Note it possible to lost the multiplicator by lack of training and even get a negative multiplicator

So yeah, not really a weaker version, but a modified one because training stats is just a thing you see in the beginning of gamers fic and i wanted to correct it to something that can still be used in end game

 

I’m a big proponent for Stamina existing as a resource, like Mana. I’ve seen it in Cinnamon Bun (Royal Road) used to great effect. Attempting to leap between two walls in order to ascend takes a variable amount of Stamina;
1) the more stamina you spend, the less exhausting it will be.
2) When leaping between gaps, you should spend stamina precisely. Focus on your legs, your core, etc. You don’t need to steadily drain your stamina while soaring through the air.
3) Try to think through what physical processes can benefit from stamina usage. Can you expend stamina to go beyond your normal limit, perhaps when attempting to shout super loudly? Can you spend it while sneaking to control your weight distribution on creaky floors? Can you spend stamina to enhance how quickly you activate or disengage a Skill?
4) How does Stamina recharge? Food, rest, healing magic, emotional comfort/inspiration…? Could there be multiple stamina bars, akin to health bars in fighting games? Like: 76-100%, 51-75%, 26-40%, 1-25%? And you get a debuff for each bar you drain? Do stamina points exist or it is merely a percentage, with efficiency varying between people?


If I might make a suggestion? Limit your character to using one Skill at a time. As a law of the setting. The skill Block, for example, cannot be used in tandem with the Mana Consumption skill to reduce the damage of an incoming attack AND refill your mana by draining said effect. To be clear, you can still attempt to block an attack normally while your Mana Consumption skill is still active, it is just that your block won’t be as effective as it could have been if you’d been engaging the Block skill.

Character Perks, if you use them, could be enhancements tied to one or more Skills. Maybe they aid your growth rate in said skills by reducing your chance of hurting yourself? Maybe they reduce stamina expended? Lots of options.


The trick of this rule, is that divine boons, magic equipment, and temporary magic buffs/effects allow you to FAKE simultaneously using multiple skills.

What else can I advise for your simplified system… do not use skill points. Do not introduce a Skill List as part of your Game Menu, from which skills are purchased. Rather, consider taking a very, very general skill like Sports and having it undergo meiosis thereby splitting into multiple categories once sufficient training is put into. Tool Use -> Weapon Proficiency -> Swordsmanship/[X Class Skill] -> Fencing. I’m also against thee inclusion of skills like “Fire Resistance,” “Acid Resistance” and such, but you may see merit in them. I have not see attempts to train them (Azarinth Healer nor the spider girl story) as worth the time spent writing them.

That’s not a bad idea. Cinnamon Bun uses skill tiers (F, E, D, C, B, A, S) which start costing points at D(?) and cost more points with each tier you upgrade. Then again, you can explicitly use mana with skills C or higher for simple spell-like effects. With an approach like Danmachi, perhaps you have to fall asleep while touching some precious object (gem, ingredient, consecrated location…) in order to improve a stat or skill. What about… your Class determines what you must use/do to upgrade your skills/ability scores? Or your Class determines which skills can gain Perks when you level them up? Obviously the quality of the material can affect things.

 

If I remember right Warlock of the Magus World has a simple system that worked close to that. An AI would track improvement and techniques. It's been years since I read it though.

 

Have you ever heard about ability from Bungo Stray Dogs ?
One that requires money to buy enhancements.
Maybe you can use that as inspiration?

Great Fitzgerald (華麗なるフィッツジェラルド,,Kareinaru Fittsujerarudo<span;>?) is the ability of Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald.[2]

Description

The Great Fitzgerald grants a boost to Fitzgerald's physical prowess that is directly proportional to the amount of money he spends. This allows him to have greater strength, speed, agility, and endurance beyond the normal human level.[1] Notably, Fitzgerald throws off his cheques and states the amount of money he spends to activate his ability, though he can still "spend" some money for his ability by merely verbalizing his spent money. Moreover, distinguishing green markings appear throughout Fitzgerald's skin and garments, which signal that his ability is activated.

Activation of the ability is not restricted to Fitzgerald's own wealth, as he can use others' wealth, provided they "offer" it to him for his ability. Besides his money and cheques, the ability can also consume other items with corresponding worth to activate. For example, Fitzgerald's wedding ring worth $500,000 was spent for his ability that allowed him to survive falling from the Moby Dick<span[3]