Of course, you would still need the paperdoll.
Question: does the encumbrance bar show all the time (part of the basic HUD) or just when looking at certain interfaces?
The basic bag, is that something that the player starts out equipped with or is it like Minecraft or most other games where you just have that innate inventory space to carry a whole forest?
I think it would be interesting to have the massively limited inventory. You would need carts and wheelbarrows or other freight vehicles to move bulk items, as in real life. I think it would be a good incentive to prevent players from doing lots of manual labor, and also to encourage development in freight transportation and supply lines. If there is no inventory so to speak, you are also spared the necessity of making ItemIcons.