No spellbook visible to the player during gameplay #44

New issue

Closed

opened 2026-06-03 01:09:20 +00:00 by Mark · 0 comments

Mark commented

2026-06-03 01:09:20 +00:00

Owner

Summary

There is no spellbook or spell reference accessible during gameplay. Players cannot see a complete list of all spells, their patterns, or their effects. The only in-game spell-related UI is the SpellHorizon component, which only shows spells that are already reachable from the current chain state.

Problem

During a duel, a player sees:

Their current chain state (symbols played)
The SpellHorizon (shows 1-step reachable spells only)
No way to browse all available spells

This means:

Players don't know what spells exist
Players don't know what patterns to build toward
Players must memorize all spell patterns from the tutorial (which only shows 6 of 19 spells)
Players cannot strategize without external reference

Evidence

SpellHorizon (src/components/SpellHorizon.tsx) only shows reachable spells based on current chain. If a player has not yet started building toward a spell, they cannot see it.
Tutorial SpellsStep (Tutorial.tsx:488) only displays the first 6 spells from SPELLS.slice(0, 6) — less than half the spell catalog (19 total spells).
There is no dedicated spellbook page, no settings tab for spell reference, no accessible spell list during gameplay.
The README mentions spell names ("Turned Knife", "Blind Witness", etc.) but players cannot see this information in-game.

Suggested Fixes

Add a spellbook accessible during gameplay — A button/modal that shows all spells with:
- Spell name, pattern (symbols visualized), and effect description
- Filter by tags (execution, protection, etc.)
- Single-hand vs simultaneous-pair classification
Show "unreachable" spells with "X turns away" — Expand SpellHorizon concept to show all spells and how many turns away they are, not just immediately reachable ones.
Allow spell lookup during opening selection — Show spell reference alongside opening suggestions.
Create a dedicated Spellbook page (like Stats or Profile) that players can access from the main menu, even during a match via a pause/menu.

Labels

priority:p1, UX, game-design

## Summary There is no spellbook or spell reference accessible during gameplay. Players cannot see a complete list of all spells, their patterns, or their effects. The only in-game spell-related UI is the SpellHorizon component, which only shows spells that are *already reachable* from the current chain state. ## Problem During a duel, a player sees: - Their current chain state (symbols played) - The SpellHorizon (shows 1-step reachable spells only) - No way to browse all available spells This means: - Players don't know what spells exist - Players don't know what patterns to build toward - Players must memorize all spell patterns from the tutorial (which only shows 6 of 19 spells) - Players cannot strategize without external reference ## Evidence 1. `SpellHorizon` (src/components/SpellHorizon.tsx) only shows reachable spells based on current chain. If a player has not yet started building toward a spell, they cannot see it. 2. Tutorial SpellsStep (Tutorial.tsx:488) only displays the first 6 spells from `SPELLS.slice(0, 6)` — less than half the spell catalog (19 total spells). 3. There is no dedicated spellbook page, no settings tab for spell reference, no accessible spell list during gameplay. 4. The README mentions spell names ("Turned Knife", "Blind Witness", etc.) but players cannot see this information in-game. ## Suggested Fixes 1. **Add a spellbook accessible during gameplay** — A button/modal that shows all spells with: - Spell name, pattern (symbols visualized), and effect description - Filter by tags (execution, protection, etc.) - Single-hand vs simultaneous-pair classification 2. **Show "unreachable" spells with "X turns away"** — Expand SpellHorizon concept to show all spells and how many turns away they are, not just immediately reachable ones. 3. **Allow spell lookup during opening selection** — Show spell reference alongside opening suggestions. 4. **Create a dedicated Spellbook page** (like Stats or Profile) that players can access from the main menu, even during a match via a pause/menu. ## Labels priority:p1, UX, game-design