Thinking Back On The Idea That Sprites Represent The Platonic “geists” Of Their Associated Heroes,

I got inspired by a theory I found from this post however I disagreed with some of their choices...so I made my own version of an aspect breakdown.

Space is divided into Start and Place, which is further divided into Stir and Flux for the former and Scope and Vast for the latter. Stir was inspired by the primordial soup from which all life began and flux was honestly due to my playing overwatch too much but also has to do with gravity itself. Scope and Vast kind of go hand in hand and deal with spatial dimensions.

Time is split into Stream, for the flow of time itself. The MSPA reader saying that "time is like a river" gave me this idea. Eon is the other half of time. Stream breaks down into Hint to represent how any moment can cause an entire timeline to diverge into an offshoot, and into Trend which signifies how once a timeline becomes doomed things just get worse and worse. Eon goes into Bide since we've always had moments where we've had to bide our time, and Stop because once a timeline is over, it's done.

Light is divided into Bright and Lot. Bright is then divided into Flash and Warm which are really self explanatory. Lot (as in "casting lots") is broken into Grasp (as in grasping information) and Odds (they can be good or bad)

Void is broken down into Still (like the still puddle in the image) and Dark. Still then turns into Depth and Hide. Dark turns into Fog and Shade. I feel these are self explanatory, but if anyone wants me to go into them, I'm open to any questions.

Life is Grow and Romp. Grow becomes Sprout (who hasn't noticed tiny little green shoots out of the ground when spring comes?) and Pluck (for who but the young are so full of energy and Life?) Also good for a reference to the webcomic itself (lad/lass scamper, pluck). Romp (a word for playing or being at play) turns into Wild and Vim. Animals play all the time and life keeps going even after we try and tear it down.

Doom becomes Curb and Grind. Curb (think like how the curb keeps a car from crashing into innocent pedestrians) turns into Rule (for rules and laws keep us from running Wild-get it?) and Yield (for we all must submit to things we don't want to do for the greater good). Chose the picture of the stigmata because well tbh I am still a Christian and because it fits. Grind (like how gamers grind to get better at what they do) goes down into Sift (sifting the good from the bad) and Trim (as in trimming overgrown leaves and branches).

Breath is Move and Sound. Move then is Rush (running so fast you can feel the wind on your face) and Lift (because then you can fly). Sound becomes Din (the noise, noise, noise) and Tell (because sound and thus voices carry through air).

Blood is diluted (get it? cause it's liquid?) into Yoke ("we are equally yoked") and Trust (in order to accomplish bigger things). Yoke turns into Serve and Vow. I know that marriage vows aren't the only kind of vow, but I thought the picture fit best. Trust turns into Touch and Lead.

Heart (my own aspect!) is Pith and Whim. Pith is the core of something (for example, the pith of a fruit) and whim-because who hasn't ever done something on a whim? Pith is then divided into Self and Groove. (We all have our own self and groove) Whim becomes sway and mood, because moods can sway us to act one way or another.

With Mind I agreed with @wakraya in that it was Will and Thought. However for me, Will then becomes Seek and Delve. Thought becomes Plan and Mull. If you notice, I left a tiny reference to Terezi in way of the icons-none of them have open eyes.

Hope, to me, is Yearn and Dare. We all yearn for better things, but only some of us dare to take that first step. Yearn turns into Dream (not dreams like the space aspect pushed too far) but to dream at night and during the day when we want more, and into Grace. This is where I think the whole "physical attraction" part of Hope players comes in. Dare breaks down into Fun and Wish. Yes, this means I believe that Hope is inherently magical, or that magic itself is a part of the Hope aspect. That, or (if you believe that magic is fake like Eridan does) that advanced enough science/technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Rage is broken down into Fume and Shun. Fume (to be angry in silence) turns into Spur and Force. Since Rage is doing the opposite of just Hoping, I feel these subcategories are accurate. Shun turns into Warn (of danger) and Fear (think of the fight or flight or freeze or fawn response in nature. To fawn is when one tries to please in order to mitigate danger.)

This took me about a day to make but I had a bunch of fun doing it and figuring out how to break down each Aspect. Hit me up if you have any questions or comments! (I also want to credit the person behind the original theory, but they aren't on tumblr anymore.)

Absolutely this. An aspect’s opposite/adjacent aspects are all related to it on a deep level.

Mind’s rationality + Breath’s heroism = Hope’s focus on justice in the test description, because justice is based on principles.

But at the same time, Blood = Organized religion (The Sufferer as a Jesus figure) and Heart’s romance are also related to Hope.

Space’s creation + Hope’s imagination = Mind’s emphasis on creativity in the test description.

And on the other hand, branching timelines are driven by Mind, and Mind’s rationality is linked to Rage’s hatred of false beliefs to produce a hatred of lies.

Hmmmst (Aspect Synthesis Theory)

Sorry, I had to get one in.  I’m considering that maybe the aspects are literally built out of each other. And so they are reducible/irreducible at the same time (which in hindsight sounds very homestuck).

Some examples would be: Light would be split into the aspects of space and doom as they are the two complimentary aspects on the aspect wheel. Which would make logical sense, since Light players are defined as “rule-breakers” and “resourceful” (being able to draw from their environment.) Light’s closeness to time on the aspect wheel positions it as an aspect of disparity, and thus allows them to navigate both space and the limits contained in those spaces, finding gaps in the rules. In contrast, Void would be a synthesis of Life and Time. It would make sense to be these two since time is connotated with the father and thus paternalism (which Equius is in alignment with, but also to an extent Roxy in her adoption of gendered norms as Mom Lalonde). Life would be the imposition of will onto others/force. Void is more aligned to the aspect of space, which is in opposition to time (disparity). And so, Void must be seen as having a perspective of homogeneity. The implication would be that void players don’t see disparities of time (how things change) which fits with their general rigid attitudes towards things, such as Roxy’s insistence on Dirk being gay despite gayness no longer being a relevant concept, or Equius’ insistence on the hemospectrum still being relevant. It’s my suspicion that all aspects are synthesized out of other aspects in this way, though the complimentary pairs of an aspect are the most prominent characteristics in a character. Whether or not an aspect is aligned with time or space (is it on the left or right side of the wheel) determines how an individual perceives reality (is reality fresh or new, or is it the same as it’s always been).   Lunar sway seemingly aligns with this view as Prospit dreamers (spatially oriented) are associated with the present and conformity to current norms, whereas Derse dreamers (musically/time oriented) are associated with the future and past. Difference/perception of reality as fluid may fuel their rebellion, even if their will is fixed. it’s ideas all the way down.

Breath and Blood

Breath and blood are equidistant from Time and Space because their power is as related to creation, and posibilities as to destruction, action and completion.

This is a curious thing to take into account: All aspects have a passive or active nature except for these two.

Breath represents liberation, renovation, inspiration, individuation and especially change. The relationship between the wind and the soul is incredibly strong. In fact, two greek words for wind are amenos and pneuma, which both are refered to soul. From this two words we get pneumatic, animated and other words that imply movement.

Breath is the aspect between Hope and Life

-Hope means change through creation of ideas. Hope comes with the posibility to change. Here we can se how hope is both linked to space and breath.

-Life means change through action. Acting according to one's ideas, bringing them to completion. It is the union of breath and time.

So we can agree that breath doesn't only mean change, it also has to do with ideas. These ideas are pure and simple, as Tavros's and John's minds, but they are also independent, as these two kids end up being. The problem of being too independent is that you can get isolated from the rest of the world.

(When I talk about ideas, I'm referring to the usual term, but also to the "Ideas" in Plato's Theory of Forms. We'll get to that later.)

Blood is what we all have in common, it appears when we are wounded, when we make mistakes and suffer. Blood is present at birth, all along our lives and until we ultimately die. We cannot avoid blood, although we'd love to. Blood is common to all human beings, and so it represents restriction and society, pain and absence of change. Another curious thing to say about blood is how it means heritage. We do not choose our bodies, our families or our crushes.

If breath represents autonomy, blood represents dependence. We need many things to survive, but specially others. The bonds we make with the people around us, the ability to connect with them and to see that we are all the same, that's what makes us human beings.

Blood is between Doom and Rage

-Doom represents the general restrictions that rule the world, the inmutable laws that are necessary for a thing to exist. This aspect is very tricky and will require further explanation. It has to do with the restriction (blood) of posibilities (space).

-Rage is the power to act (time) in response to our restrictions (blood)

At this point we have to understand the so disputed duality of nature and spirit, body and soul. Are we authors of our life or are we determined by our genetic and society? Is society even something natural? Could we live by our own? Are we different to the rest of animals because of our conscience?

Lots of questions can be derived from our dual nature, but let's leave it here for now.

Boom, there, final classpect take, forever, final word, this is the 4th time I say this but this is IT.

Clownhood is masculine -> rage aspect is respresented by clowns -> rage aspect is masculine -> rage aspect is contrasted to hope aspect -> hope is feminine as rage is masculine -> hope is represented by cherub/angel wings -> cherubhood is feminine -> Caliborn overcoming cherub nature and transitioning to clownhood can be taken as a transition from feminine/female to masculine/male

it feels counterproductive to label cherubs as one particular gender, and counterintuitive to say that transitioning is overcoming cherub nature when it is in fact the very core of their nature... I'm also hesitant to say any aspect has a sexual sway outside of the fundamentally feminine space and masculine time, though I can concede that clowns being men in Caliborn's paradigm would lend itself toward Caliborn associating rage with masculinity (the same way Calliope genders certain classes based on her preconceptions?), and therefore making attempts to feminise the hope bloodline?

Not an Enigma, and Certainly Not a Curse: the "Ultimate Self" in Hussie's Own Words

I've found myself, lately, in several conversations in a row where the other guy and myself weren't on the same page about what the Ultimate Self meant; and though I welcome the opportunity for discussion, explaining my position over and over again has cost me minutes of my screen life that I simply won't win back. So this post is a departure from my usual fare in that it's more for my own benefit than that of anybody else.

I've been over Davepeta's "superceding bodyless and timeless persona that crosses the boundaries of paradox space" enough already, so if you're interested in the Ultimate Self as it is in Homestuck, I recommend you read "Homestuck's Gnosticism: The Conflict", and then, if that piques your attention, you continue with the follow-up "The World/The Wheel". For the purposes of this post, though, I want to keep analysis, interpretation and hypothesising to a minimum. As the title indicates, this is the Ultimate Self not as I describe it, or as characters describe it, but - so to speak - straight from the horse's mouth.

In Andrew Hussie's commentary on Homestuck: Book 6, p. 312:

Oftentimes, when characters lose certain qualities that came to define them, there's this sense of liberation they seem to experience. They become a happier, more relieved, easier-going version of themselves. When Aradia ditches a defining quality we came to know her by (being dead), she becomes a much happier and self-actualized Aradia. Sollux also seems to be chilling out now that his defining properties (bifurcation, etc.) have been KO'd. He had a mouth full of gnarly teeth that gave him a wicked lisp (gone), eyes full of nasty laser beams (gone, along with his eyesight), and a brain full of doomsday visions and bipolar disorder (also gone—well, maybe not the bipolar thing, because that's probably not how that works, but whatever). You get more of this kind of thing in even higher degrees with some of the fusion stuff that happens later (Arquius, Davepeta), where characters become almost euphoric versions of themselves for having been completely liberated from certain self-limitations which previously defined them. The concept of an "ultimate self," which appears much later, probably has its roots way back to stuff like this, which got the ball rolling on the idea that a more complete or fulfilled self is one that becomes free from mortal limitations, or the idiosyncrasies which comprise a specific instance of one version of yourself. Hence an ultimate self is an aggregate of someone's full potential. It's not just doing away with negative traits, but summing up all iterations of yourself, including ones without those traits, allowing you to move beyond them. Or maybe more accurately, to view them as insignificant in the grand totality of what a person really is.

Importantly, what Hussie does here is draw the conceptual line from the themes of Acts 1-5 to what are often interpreted by some as radically different, even left-field themes through Act 6. Think of this as an extension of one of Homestuck's meta-themes, where the comic undergoes a series of escalations that take simple conflicts to their logical extremes: we start the story worried about a Reckoning which might destroy the Earth, then end up with the more pressing concern that a Rapture is about to end reality as we know it. The Ultimate Self is the end result of the exact same kind of escalation; where the God Tiers are a method of becoming a better version of oneself by merging with one's "ideal" dream body, the Ultimate Self is the logical conclusion that one can become the best version by unifying with every body.

To draw my own conceptual line back to Homestuck: Book 5, page 409:

This connects to the basic question of whether to embrace the regimentation of a heroic path conveniently laid out for you (the expectation), or to reject it as the shallow and rigid confinement of personal destiny (the deviation). These issues are expressed through the fundamental language of platonic idealism: perfect ideas of things, and then specific, imperfect instances of those ideas, or varied permutations, evolutions, or hacks of those ideas through alchemy. The way Sburb "should" go is an ideal (expectation), but the disastrous, chaotic way it actually goes is an imperfect instance (deviation). An "idea" of a person, such as Rose, along with her regimented heroic quest for growth, and all the great things she might imagine herself to become if she followed it, is an ideal (expectation). The messy, flawed, yet more genuinely human individual she does become resulting from her errant choices and rejection of formalism, is an imperfect instance of an ideal (deviation). What's the bottom line here? This is a lot. I know it's a lot. Homestuck is, in fact, a lot.

I've added some of my own emphasis there again, but that whole extract is worth reading. The reason I bolded that part is because this "Platonic idealism" is something Hussie talks about a lot in his commentary, and I think that commentary is essential reading for anyone who wants to even get their foot in the door on this topic. Again, this is something I've blogged about extensively already, so there's more than just Hussie's word to take for it if you're really interested; but for the sake of this post, I'll finish off with, again, what Hussie himself has to say on the matter, all the way back in Homestuck: Book 1, page 123:

With things like Athenums and Perfectly Generic Objects locked and loaded, Sburb architecture seems to be circling widely around a game abstraction-based systemization of Platonic idealism. Homestuck deals with what I am going to roughly characterize as THEMES.

Classpects as Real-Life Magick: Aspect Archetypes

So, here we are again, discussing the absolutely bonkers idea that Homestuck's Classpect system could be used to form a coherent, real-life magickal system. I've talked briefly about the various Forces and Wills that affect the Homestuck universe, and how those directly translate to our modern understanding of magick, but I'd like to touch on Aspects and how one could use them in a system loosely constructed from the mythology of Paradox Space. Each Aspect can be treated as having its own Domain, which includes both concrete and abstract symbols, as well as what the Aspect itself represents in the Universe. The Aspects as they're represented in the form of universal Forces are also represented in the human form, and in following this system one can "tap into" those Forces, whether for personal development or for directing those energies outward. (I definitely draw inspiration from the idea of panpsychism for this.)

I'll begin the discussion of the Aspects by delving into their Archetypes, and will expand more upon their Domains for another post. While the Classes have obvious inspiration from Jung's primary archetypes, the Aspects can also be represented similarly. If you were to personify each Aspect, they would look a bit like the following:

Space: The Creator. Infinitely patient, Space is generally calm and collected, if a bit cold at times. Yet, it's also responsible for the creation of the universe, over which it watches with a protective gaze. If its propagation is threatened, Space is capable of an incredible fury, evoking the unforgiving chaos of a star gone supernova, or the inevitable terror of a black hole.

Time: The Destroyer. Controlling, steady, and ever-present describe Time quite well. Despite its generally destructive nature, it's quite capable of incredible works of creation, most notably in the realm of music. Synchronicities are the calling card of Time; when meaningful events happen simultaneously, take notice. Time contains endless passion and drive, its fires unquenchable.

Mind: The Actor. This Aspect embodies cognitive dissonance and the ability to completely disappear into a role. Mind appears differently to anyone who comes across it, which can make signs of its influence difficult to track down. Epiphany and synthesis are the children of Mind, sought by creatives and intellectuals alike. A deep understanding of abstract reality comes with understanding Mind.

Heart: The Romantic. When dealing in matters of the soul, Heart embraces that identity which remains stable and encourages genuine connection between people. It holds the mirror to nature and exposes virtue and flaw alike. Clear self-awareness and a complicated relationship with that self are hallmarks of Heart, as well as a tendency toward melodrama, with or without an audience.

Hope: The Storyteller. Intense euphoria, unbound by pragmatism, heralds the influence of Hope. It painstakingly crafts a story for its chosen ones, who are encouraged to submit and live fully in that truth. This Aspect lends itself to to the miraculous and fantastical, opening minds to a myriad of possibilities, and those who embody Hope can get utterly lost in its labyrinth of the theoretical.

Rage: The Satirist. Contempt and a vindictive nature are part and parcel of Rage's nature, as an Aspect that inspires doubt and insanity, as well as a refusal to engage with frivolity. It stirs melancholy in dark hearts and is manifest through gallows humor and rejection of fantasy. It is the hammer to which everything else appears as a nail, though its steadfast determination is invaluable.

Breath: The Trickster. Those under Breath's influence share its nature of playfulness and constant motion. At times, this manifests as immaturity through a lack of groundedness. Breath is prone to distraction, constantly shifting its own path upon encountering any sort of resistance or responsibility. The Aspect is self-driven and individualistic, disconnected from others of its kind.

Blood: The Wounded Healer. Much as its name suggests, Blood is fully grounded in the struggle and suffering inherent to life. However, it also embodies a profound empathy for others and an unmatched dedication to those bonds, as well as an understanding of what personal sacrifices must be made to accomplish a given goal. It is relentless and deeply dedicated to building vast networks of allies.

Life: The Alchemist. Even in the deepest cracks in the sidewalk of the Furthest Ring, Life finds a way. It flourishes in the bountiful harvest and transmutation of energy, wealth, and influence. Those blessed by its influence are durable and ever-present, making decisions that utterly transform the world around them. This constant cycling of energy is necessary to keep the universe balanced and in motion.

Doom: The Martyr. Limits and restrictions are just as important to the universe as negative space in a piece of artwork. Doom generally festers like a slow-growing mold, but the telltale sign of Doom's influence is a massive, unsustainable release of energy that usually results in burnout. The Aspect also has a deep connection to inorganic systems and constructs, many centered around death.

Light: The Teacher. Knowledge itself lies in the realm of Light, which is made manifest through instruction and understanding of important information. Omniscient beings receive their enviable sight through Light, which ultimately seeks to scour the universe, leaving no stone unturned in its hunger to learn and teach. It promises great fortune to those who assist in its declared purpose.

Void: The Occultist. Endless hunger and inescapable darkness are the left and right hands of Void, which offers gifts of arcane knowledge and long-hidden power in exchange for the fame and fortune many would seek with such gifts. It twists the mind and forces their student to acknowledge their Shadow. Its power is addictive and all-consuming, but well-worth the price...to the insane.

Can we get a cross aspect master post?

The dualspects have been completed! Here’s a list, along with the still in-progress Trispects and quadrispects!

Breath + Mind = Thought

Doom + Heart = Fate

Void + Light = Chance

Void + Life = Death

Hope + Heart = Dreams

Rage + Heart = Zeal (monochromerose)

Heart + Blood = Bond

Time + Space = All

Rage + Breath = Storm

Life + Time = Growth

Mind + Heart = Will

Hope + Void = Faith

Time + Heart = Love

Blood + Doom = Strife (thanks quarktrinity!)

Space + Heart = Core

Breath + Time = Sand

Time + Doom = Chains

Hope + Doom = Fear

Void + Heart = Drive

Time + Mind = Past

Blood + Space = Links

Breath + Light = Cloud

Light + Space = Star (megaderpypotato)

Breath + Space = Force

Space + Void = Hole (megaderpypotato)

Rage + Doom = End

Void + Mind = Hush

Life + Doom = Rot (megaderpypotato)

Breath + Hope = Flight (megaderpypotato)

Breath + Blood = Point

Rage + Mind = Angst

Rage + Blood = War

Hope + Life = Joy

Rage + Life = Pain

Void + Blood = Loss

Life + Breath = Peace

Life + Space = World

Light + Doom = Dark

Rage + Time = Cold

Heart + Life = Cheer

Hope + Time = Soon

Light + Blood = Chrome

Rage + Space = Art

Heart + Breath = Air

Heart + Light = Blithe (megaderpypotato)

Life + Blood = Root

Mind + Light = Truth (megaderpypotato)

Mind + Blood = Trust (megaderpypotato)

Mind + Hope = Creed (megaderpypotato)

Mind + Doom = Bane (monochromerose)

Void + Time = Warp

Void + Breath = Choke (megaderpypotato)

Void + Rage = Calm (megaderpypotato)

Doom + Breath = Rale

Doom + Void = Rift

Mind + Space = Search

Time + Blood = Plan

Life + Mind = Soul

Hope + Space = Forge

Light + Hope = Sun

Rage + Hope = Cult

Rage + Light = Burn (megaderpypotato)

Blood + Hope = Pact (anon)

Life + Light = Ra (monochromerose)

Doom + Space = Work (caelholdt)

Time + Light = Lore (anon)

Some Trispects too!

Life + Time + Mind = Birth

Void + Rage + Doom = Null

Heart + Hope + Life = Bliss

Breath + Time + Light = Tide

Time + Space + Heart = Need

Rage + Time + Breath = Hail

Rage + Mind + Void = Crux

Void + Rage + Doom = Threat (megaderpypotato)

Time + Space + Breath = Path

Hope + Rage + Heart = Flame

Void + Rage + Light = Nyx (monochromerose)

Doom + Mind + Rage = Poine (monochromerose)

Life + Rage + Time = Shirk

Life + Void + Doom = Dry

Light + Space + Void = Moon

Space + Time + Life = Bang

Time + Doom + Breath = Rack

Space + Doom + Rage = Pit

Time + Void + Mind = Mad

Breath + Doom + Rage = Scream

Breath + Rage + Mind = Pent

Blood + Time + Mind = Fade

Heart + Rage + Blood = Hate

Void + Time + Heart = Scorn

Heart + Blood + Hope = Care (asrielmememurr413)

Life + Hope + Light = Ray (asrielmemeurr413)

Time + Doom + Life = Wear (asrielmemeurr413)

Blood + Heart + Space = Wed

Void + Heart + Rage = Blank

Mind + Rage + Hope = Pun

Rage + Time + Heart = String

Light + Life + Rage = Spark

Space + Time + Mind = Have

Mind + Heart + Life = Ghost

Heart + Rage + Doom = Blind (possessed-keyboard)

Hope + Mind + Life = Myth (possessed-keyboard)

Light + Space + Hope = Wish

Rage + Heart + Time = Knell

Void + Blood + Mind = Grief

Mind + Blood + Doom = Court

Light + Mind + Blood = Eye

Life + Breath + Rage = Strength

Void + Blood + Heart = Numb (monochromerose… sorta)

Breath + Hope + Light = Rise

And the Quadrispects!

Breath + Light + Rage + Time = Fog (possessed-keyboard)

Rage + Life + Void + Blood = Woe (monochromerose)

Light + Breath + Rage + Void = Blot (monochromerose)

Void + Life + Doom + Space = Styx (megaderpypotato)

Void + Mind + Rage + Doom = Lethe (monochromerose)

Breath + Light + Time + Space = Rapt (megaderpypotato)

Blood + Life + Space + Doom = Mars

Mind + Light + Blood + Doom = Wyrd

Hope + Light + Void + Rage = Song

Hope + Void + Heart + Life = Drain

Blood + Void + Space + Mind = Flay

Void + Life + Space + Light = Dust

Light + Blood + Space + Doom = Couatl

Heart + Hope + Time + Breath = Pluck

Rage + Mind + Light + Time = Brain

Void + Blood + Space + Heart = Sex

Light + Void + Heart + Mind = Being

Blood + Mind + Doom + Rage = Tron

Blood + Space + Time + Void = Loom

Light + Breath + Space + Void = Sky

Mind + Heart + Breath + Blood = Self

Breath + Time + Blood + Doom = Free (megaderpypotato)

Void + Rage + Mind + Doom = Blues (megaderpypotato)

Breath + Light + Blood + Time = Rules

Breath + Void + Heart + Life = Drone

Void + Doom + Space + Rage = Yamm

Light + Time + Heart + Life = Care

Either I need more sleep, or "patching your transhuman RPG’s mechanics by positing the existence of an immortal soul is rather missing the point" is some Zen koan shit, because it gave me a goddamn brainblast: of course a tabletop RPG is going to posit an immortal soul, it's in your hands at the table, it's the goddamn character sheet.

It's an object that the (metatextual) gods can mold and rewrite, but there's guaranteed continuity of "the character I play as is the one written on this particular piece of paper." It's only natural that porting that concept back into the universe it's used to describe fixes at least some of the ludonarrative dissonance.

I don't know if any of that's news to you, but if you want to totally deny the concept of soul in your erstwhile magical girl RPG, I think you need to throw out the character sheet, or at least transform it beyond what could be recognized as such. Which would be t h e m a t i c.

(With reference to this post here.)

If you've been following my recent projects, it shouldn't surprise you to learn that considering the character sheet as a form of user interface for the underlying mechanics is a particular area of interest of mine. Useful points of reference for this particular design conundrum might include Danger Patrol's two-part character sheets, Ironsworn's asset cards, Fireborn's stats-as-resource-pools conceit, and whatever the fuck Mythender thinks it's doing.

(I'd also like to make a small but significant correction to your wording there: "denying the concept of [the] soul" is not identical with merely avoiding game mechanics which explicitly posit the existence of an immutable foundation of identity that's separate from a player character's body and mind. You'd make very different game design decisions if your goal was the former rather than the latter!)

I drew these in 2020 and completely forgot to post them. They were gonna be for a little infographic thingie around my thoughts on Classpects, but I never found a way to host it somewhere lol. They’re not really fankids or anything, just random designs to represent their Classes.