Lore
Developing Lore for Cards of War
Early on (working with just Cards of War) we knew that each card suit should have a unique personality and attributes that would contribute to its game play. It was useful to imagine special abilities, values and even stories that would become core to defining each house. Before we could expand on those things however, we had to start somewhere. So wanted a simple word to describe the essence of each house. So we began with the quick Diamonds, brutal Clubs, vigilant Hearts and cunning Spades…
These simple words were our starting points for exploring each unique card suit.
Why Build Lore?
This primary reason for exploring lore for a simple card game is to help develop each suit's unique attributes and game play. Secondly, we though this effort might assist an artist in visualizing custom images for each card.
As we worked on this process together, we considered that the people, land, politics, economy and history of each community surrounding a house. We established that each culture might value unique attributes or traits that could provide distinctness in appearance and behavior. We spent time just exploring each house like this, and that helped build the game mechanics. Our reasons for developing lore for a simple game like this are summarized below:
- Help define a unique play style for each suit
- Help an artist visualize custom art for each card
- Give players something to imagine during play and hopefully make it more fun?
- Provide a creative outlet and make this game more ours.
Planning
Though we have completed an initial release of the game. We have only rough concepts of the uniqueness between each card suit or house in the game. There is no reason why the game cannot have different revisions or flavors over time. The core attributes of the Spades suit for example may be re-imagined as something else. It is possible that totally different suits (card symbols) might be introduced into the game. Aside from new game play angles, this would potentially bring new unique cultures and ideas to the lore of the game as well. The options are limitless. However, for the current version of the game, we have considered the following core attributes for each house. These attributes were used to develop game play and abilities.
--Diamonds--
- Fast/Quick or Impulsive
- Charismatic
- Athletic
- Sharp witted, jokers
- Dominance of auburn hair
--Clubs--
- Powerful
- Brutal / Bullies
- Sloppy and disheveled
- Forceful politicians and leaders
- Skillful warriors (berserker)
- Reckless
--Hearts--
- Duty and honor bound
- Solemn
- Protective
- Selfless or self sacrificial by nature
- Conscious of the lives of others
- Prideful
--Spades--
- Very serious and stern
- Sharp dressed, clean
- Professionals
- Persuasive
- Clever / Stealthy
- Tactical
Translating to Game Play
From the collection of unique attributes for each house we developed the individual abilities of each card. It was a bit of a joke at first, but we knew that the action of each house’s Jack card would result in their immediate demise. We wanted this to be a sudden play in the game that might catch an opponent off guard. We also felt that the Queen cards would only remain in battle for a single round and the King would remain in play until it could be defeated. We were also looking for a combination of leadership and magical skills between the houses. This process really helped us develop a focused and thematically dynamic game. Though much of the following has changed since this early revision of the game, here is a summary of what we originally came up with for each house.
The "Quick" Diamonds
| Card | Initial Plan | Actual Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Soldier | strike quickly | receive no damage as attacker |
| Ace | surprise assassination | take action on any turn |
| Jack | die, reckless | interrupt opponent’s turn |
| Queen | magic, slow time | take an additional turn |
| King | magic, speed advantage | deploy without exhaustion |
The "Brutal" Clubs
| Card | Initial Plan | Actual Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Soldier | dominating attack | deal additional damage |
| Ace | destroy enemies | kill multiple units / cards |
| Jack | die, intimidation | force player to discard a card |
| Queen | leadership, persuasion | remove opponents from the field |
| King | leadership, fierce fighter | deals 13 damage to any opponent |
The "Vigilant" Hearts
| Card | Initial Plan | Actual Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Soldier | steady blocker | not exhausted after attacking |
| Ace | defensive maneuver | returns as a blocker after attack |
| Jack | die, sacrifice | prevent damage to ally |
| Queen | magic, resurrection | returns card to game |
| King | magic, protective | absorbs 13 damage to an ally |
The "Cunning" Spades
| Card | Initial Plan | Actual Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Soldier | strike twice | second attack, after first kill |
| Ace | sneaky assassination | remove two adjacent opponents |
| Jack | die, trickery | turns opponent to player’s side |
| Queen | leadership, persuasion | affect opponent’s available allies |
| King | leadership, distraction | pulls attention from allied army |
As we imagined each of these moves or special actions that each card might take, we started to consider how each individual card or house would have gained access these abilities. We believe there may be an interesting story behind each situation. Especially in the case of the rare and powerful cards, the red and black Jokers. These cards can dramatically affect the outcome of a battle and are optional for including in the game. Their corresponding personalities may further explain their optional and impactful involvement in each battle.
| Card | Initial Plan | Actual Ability |
|---|---|---|
| Joker | magic affect on battlefield | remove opponent’s traits |
| Joker | allow access to any ability | transform into card of choice |
The World
One idea that we have been kicking around in our heads, is that the war upon the land, involving each family/house…occurs every time someone (in our world) begins playing the card game. So in their little microcosm, the people (or cards) in the game have peace while the deck of playing cards is sitting unused. Time passes differently for them. When we begin playing the game, something happens (perhaps a cataclysmic event) in their world that begins the struggle and conflict over again. I don’t know what that would be. Maybe the sun gets brighter as the card box is opened, and that triggers the events leading up to the war? In fact the “ancient ruler” I envisioned in the Hearts backstory, was a player who previously won the game. That player was the victor who defeated their opponents and brought stability back to the broken land. They brought everyone together and placed them back into the card box, beginning a time of peace. To the people of this world, it may feel like eternity between game sessions. These concepts might be a little dark or necessary, but also offers some interesting plot points for story development? It certainly does makes exploring the game more fun!
The Characters
It may be that the people of this world live normal life spans, with the exception of possibly two individuals. For example the “7 of Hearts” card may currently be one person in the game you play today, but in previous games (the past) they were someone else with a completely different backstory that lead them to that conflict? When you consider that each card has a unique life, purpose, story or potential, the game gains a new layer.
However, it seems obvious to me that the only individuals who are immortal and have not changed over time are the two Jokers. The powerful sorcerer (identity unknown) and the Doppelganger are aware of the “game” and the time difference between our worlds. They typically do not interact with the people in their world, and have no choice when compelled to participate unwillingly in the war if they are pulled from the deck. They may or may not be enemies, I don’t know. It may also be their actions (upon noticing the opening of the card box and shuffling of the deck) that triggers the beginning of each war, or contest between players?