From the very beginning we designed Shroudfall in a way that everybody can learn the core rules of the game quite quickly. The complexity of the game comes from the units you can field on the battlefield, their abilities and the way they can impact the gameflow if their abilities are strategically used. All these abilities are listed on each unit's respective unit card.
In this blog post we'll take you on a journey through the evolution of these unit cards, from the early days of rule-writing in Microsoft Word to the polished designs we can present you today.
Learning to walk
Like any game, ours began with a vision and a set of rules. The initial rules were drafted in Word, providing a basic framework for gameplay mechanics, unit abilities, and victory conditions. This stage was all about finding the right direction for the game, ensuring that it would work smoothly before delving into the details that would bring it to life. Let's skip the picture for this once, because, well, it would be a picture of a word file ...
Let's make it look pretty or the biggest mistake in early development
Doesn't it look nice? Well, kinda ... unfortunately the unit card rules and even core rules still were quite fluid at this point and updating this format at this stage of the game quickly became a real pain. Which leads us to ...
Efficiency is king
As the number of units, and with it the amount of unit cards, grew, we realized the need for a more organized system to manage the vast array of information associated with each unit. Drumroll .... enter Excel, the spreadsheet software that became the backbone of our unit cards. Excel allowed us to create comprehensive databases for units, detailing statistics, abilities, and other essential data in a structured format. Over time this unit card excel developed, integrating more features and even developing a nice automated unit card output. Still, even our latest version of it pales when compared with the unit cards in their final design.
The Shroudfall unit cards
Designed together with Tomas Mennes and his agency Wit communicatie the Shroudfall unit cards are truly a sight to behold - Guardian Defiant ready to go. On the left side of the card you find all stats for the relevant unit, needed during the game. On the right side all active and reactive essence abilities as well as passive abilities. Information that you don't necessarily need during a game, like points cost or base size, are intentionally placed outside of focus areas, so you can concentrate on what's relevant throughout the game.
In future, the backside of each unit card will be filled with short stories and lore about the world of Shroudfall. Each unit card and each new release will provide you with another glimpse of the world of Shroudfall.
Stay tuned for more information on everything regarding Shroudfall and check out the Shroudfall Discord Server to discuss everything you want to know about Shroudfall with us!
There is also still the launch discount running throughout February in the shop. Just use the code #welaunched! at checkout and get -10% off your entire order.
And as always … break the game!
Bernhard & Daniel