- 01Read current resources
- 02Choose the next effect
- 03Resolve and inspect change
- 04Schedule the final spend
Effect order and combinations
The same effects produce different outcomes in different orders. Addition, multiplication, consumption and triggers act on current state, not a sum of card labels.
Play the lab
An original teaching experiment. Parameters explain a tradeoff and do not reproduce the referenced games.
The player's decision
Add resources before doubling or double the current stock first, and when should it be spent?
Original scenario
Original lab: charge adds 2, double multiplies by 2, strike converts charge to triple damage. Starting at zero, add/double/strike deals 12; double/add/strike deals 6.
Start with this prototype
Build three single-use cards: charge, double and strike. Start at zero or one; show before/after values. Deal twelve damage within three cards. Use no draw randomness and allow reset to compare orders.
Change one variable
Change initial charge to show when a weaker order also passes; optimal and viable differ.
What to observe in a playtest
Do all six orders have deterministic results, and are used cards protected from repeated clicks?
Take the full design card
Includes rules, scope, tuning questions and sources for further planning. It does not create a project automatically.
Original analysis · version 1
Common pitfall
Reading shared state after animations can use later values. Resolve each effect into an unambiguous state snapshot.
Observations and sources
Cases refer to public documentation. Developers and community wikis are credited separately; document review is not a claim of hands-on testing.
- Dominion
Throne Room repeats an action, with rules clarifying repetition and trashing interactions.
- Slay the Spire
Card and relic interactions reward combinations; this lab reduces the idea to original arithmetic.
Brief for the studio
Opens the AI studio with the brief below in the input. You can edit it. Nothing starts automatically.
Build three single-use cards: charge, double and strike. Start at zero or one; show before/after values. Deal twelve damage within three cards. Use no draw randomness and allow reset to compare orders.
Covers are original AI-generated style illustrations. Game names reference publicly visible design choices and remain the property of their owners. This atlas does not supply screenshots or assets from those games. Prompts and combinations are original drafts for new games.