Statistic (role-playing games)

In role-playing games, a statistic (also known as stat) refers to a characters' individual progress in certain aspects of their abilities. In most games, statistics are written in shorthand; where health points could be referred to as HP, mana points as MP, and attack power as ATK. Some statistics may only be used for certain character archetypes.

Common statistics include: Health points (HP), Magic points/Mana points (MP), Attack (ATK), Defense (DEF), Magic (MAG), Magic Defense (MDEF), Speed (SPD).

Statistics usually increase when a character levels up and can either be selected by the player, or automatically distributed based on preset parameters. Other ways statistics may be increased is through the use of special gear or items. In some games, players can do a stat barter, which allows them to lower a statistic in order to raise another.