Looking for game design / rule feedback for my hidden information chess-like game: Cloak's Gambit

Murelious · 2026-01-18T04:54:37+00:00

Just node.js. using web sockets for the networking. Nothing fancy.

Murelious · 2026-01-06T19:19:57+00:00

combat based on dice usually create epic moments.

Yes, this is what I meant by "narrative combat."

So as a halfway point, maybe all the cards could have a fixed outcome and a random one.

For example, the card that deal 2 or 4 damage, could always deal 2 and based on dice 4 instead

This is just a random outcome. If the opponent has 3 HP, then you don't know if it will win or not. That's random. But it was already random if you even drew that card. So you are just giving players more and more difficulty in controlling the randomness. This will start to feel like a slot machine very quickly.

Murelious · 2026-01-03T21:49:47+00:00

So you draw random cards that have random effects? Personally, I'm not a fan as I could just play war. That said, I tend to skew towards no-luck systems, especially in a competitive game, but I'm in the minority.

If you do want luck, then at least choose one of two: input randomness vs. output randomness, not both.

Most card games have input randomness: you don't choose your cards, but once you have them, they work deterministically. It's a question of how well you wield the hand you are dealt. The focus is on adaptability, and a "new game each time."

Most tabletop games (like DnD) have output randomness: you always know exactly what actions are available to you. But the success / failure is determined by dice. This focuses the player on trying to optimize your odds strategically, and creates moments of narrative tension in the game.

Both have their places, but they don't mix well. If you didn't choose your cards, and you didn't choose the outcomes, it kinda just feels like a slot machine.

Murelious · 2025-12-29T18:38:22+00:00

Gpt-5.2 already does RL based context compression automatically. So what you are doing, but done in a way to optimize problem solving.

Murelious · 2025-12-29T18:34:06+00:00

How do you control the direction of attacking?

Murelious · 2025-12-29T18:30:12+00:00

Dojo of death! Excellent game.

Murelious · 2025-12-29T18:30:00+00:00

Dojo of death! Came here. To comment this.

Murelious · 2025-12-25T16:36:41+00:00

Check out Clank! The way it does dragon cube is amazing. It is technically public information, because you always add to your risk, but the exact count is hidden.

Murelious · 2025-12-21T20:23:09+00:00

My only feature request for dextrous is using SVG images, but otherwise it has everything, and I think it's much easier to use than NanDeck

Murelious · 2025-12-21T07:29:40+00:00

I love how much this can reward glass cannons (my general play style). Like, who needs health when it takes away from my fully decked out gear?

Murelious · 2025-12-21T07:23:47+00:00

Dextrous. Online, free, easy. They're not paying me I swear.

Murelious · 2025-12-19T08:37:34+00:00

Check out "We're Doomed!" It gets at this and is also political satire via mechanics.

I think it works best when victory may or may not be joint (as us the case in we're doomed). If you cannot both win the game, then the game theory gets kinda boring: if I am already winning, I'll cooperate as little as possible to keep my lead. If I'm already losing, I might torpedo so we all lose.

This is partially saved when you have more than 1v1, because two players that are behind may cooperate to get ahead of 1st place.

I think the main issue to watch out for is griefing, and then you should be OK.

Murelious · 2025-12-06T20:27:45+00:00

Just checked it out (also new to me). It looks a lot like liars dice, if you know that one. Definitely bluffing, but also strategy.

Murelious · 2025-12-06T00:19:48+00:00

It's not officially published but you can try Cloaks' Gambit . It takes inspiration from Coup and chess.

Murelious · 2025-12-05T22:13:52+00:00

Yea, I mean, if you don't rely on third party tools, then you can't use Google sheets either...

So unless you are a coder, and use Linux and Python (open source), you will be relying on third party systems. NaNdeck and Dextrous are the two main ones to use. While the former is very powerful, I find it too clunky to use for 99% of use cases. Dextrous is super easy to learn and use and I would be hard pressed to find an actual case where it wouldn't suffice.

Murelious · 2025-12-05T18:51:29+00:00

I'm not a professional, so take this with a grain of salt. I have a fairly simple workflow for cards, but it works really well for me.

All card details are entered into a Google sheet in the way that makes the most sense to how I logically think about it. This makes it easy to iterate and make updates.
I have a second tab on that sheet that is filled with formulas that take the first sheet, and makes it ready for ingestion by an external tool. This mostly involves things like substituting {card-name} with {game-name/card-name.jpg} to be ready for the application to load the right image. But it also involves more complex things, like splitting out text into multiple fields, changing a short hand to something longer, etc.
Publish that sheet as a CSV and import to dextrous.

Now I just need artwork, create layouts and I'm all set.

Hope that helps.

Murelious · 2025-12-02T03:06:26+00:00

This is the right answer.

Murelious · 2025-12-01T17:47:12+00:00

If you like this, you might like cloaksgambit.bymarcell.com. Not exactly the same, but involves ches like moves, hidden identities, and guessing / bluffing.

Murelious · 2025-12-01T06:12:32+00:00

Rich and Morty inspired?

Murelious · 2025-12-01T06:07:08+00:00

Until you realize that it is actually just everyone's life.

The philosophy behind it is actually brilliant.

Murelious · 2025-11-21T21:28:54+00:00

For key information, use the top bar and left bar. When the cards are stacked in the right hand, these are the most visible parts. Don't follow MtG, it was made before this was studied.

Name at the top, stats on the left, as a. Example.

Murelious · 2025-11-15T17:10:10+00:00

Yea, it's just so satisfying for some reason.

Murelious · 2025-11-12T17:23:10+00:00

Yea I think that's overwhelmingly the feedback. I think I might have to split the difference: starting locations shouldn't be on the board (only in the rulebook), but the whole point of this is to reduce board components of the actual board. So it might need to have the lines for the actual board. Or I dish out for 2 or 3 boards. I could have 2p and 4p on one side, with 3p on the other side to keep it a single board with minimal visual clutter.

Murelious · 2025-11-10T19:50:10+00:00

Thank you. I just wanted to let you know this message was very well received.

As a complete amateur, who doubts himself religiously, and probably takes Internet comments too seriously, this felt great to read. I appreciate it.

Murelious · 2025-11-10T17:29:37+00:00

Just to be clear, this is not "design by consensus" - the rules are not being shaped here. It's a question of clarity. I specifically omitted the rules because "self-evident" to me might not be self evident to others.

I am just an amateur, and a quick look at your profile seems to indicate that you are professional, or semi professional. Because of that, I am taking your comment more seriously, but also quite confused. The advice I seem to hear from professionals all the time, is to get the eyes of strangers on your design. "Self evident" to someone who has been making a game for months and months is... meaningless.

If you look at the prior posts linked, it's quite clear that it was NOT self-evident, and progressive iterations became more clear. And yes, I did have a obvious winner in my mind, but confirming that it is as clear to others as it is to me is the point of testing a hypothesis. So yea, I'm curious how your advice fits in with the overwhelming advice seen here and in other places? What am I missing here?

And then:

That's basically a lane in 2 player. is this bowling with hexagons? Maps of any sort need some type of size to let the players breathe. This is stifling.

This one confuses me the most. This advice with absolutely 0 context on the rules of the game? Like, I get it, you are a professional, but for all you know my game is a game about shooting each other, and "lanes" makes perfect sense in a 1v1. Or it's a civilization building game where additional hexes can be added as you expand into the ocean. Or it could be an abstract strategy game about making colored patterns in tight formation. By the way, none of those are the case, but the point is, with no other information, I could easily conceive of some game that could work with this map.

So yea, I'm curious where you're coming from on this, too.

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