Design document · Arcane Grid Clash
Rules and balance sheet
Made in October 2026 from the game's code, as there was no written design doc: the rules, card values, shop prices and what the numbers do.
Arcane Grid Clash: rules and balance sheet
There was no written design document for this game, so this sheet was made in October 2026 from the game's own code (its Unity scripts and scene values). It records the rules and numbers exactly as the game plays them.
The match
| Players | 2, online: one creates a room and sends the code |
| Board | 8 × 8 squares |
| Gold rune squares | 4, placed at the start of each match. A trap that touches one scores double, and the rune is used up |
| Each player starts with | 10 cards: 3 Warriors, 3 Wizards, 3 Dragons and 1 Goblin |
| Win | First to 20 points. If both reach 20 in the same round, the higher score wins; equal scores are a draw |
| Lose | A player with no cards left and not enough points to buy one can never move again, and loses. If both are stuck, the higher score wins |
Who beats who
- Warrior beats Wizard.
- Wizard beats Dragon.
- Dragon beats Warrior.
- The Goblin copies whichever card next to it would score best, so it can finish a trap.
A round
- Both players pick a card and an empty square at the same time.
- If both pick the same square, the cards clash. The card that beats the other takes the square and its player gets 1 point. Two of the same card, or two Goblins, leave a dead square that nobody can use. A Goblin loses a clash to any other card, and that card's player gets the point.
- A trap scores: an enemy card in a straight line, across or down, between two of your cards of the same kind that beat it. Each line scores once.
Points
Warriors, Wizards and Dragons are worth 2, a Goblin 5. A trap scores the cards that make it:
| Trap | Points | On a gold rune |
|---|---|---|
| Two of your cards around an enemy card | 2 + 2 + 2 = 6 | 12 |
| One of your cards and your Goblin around an enemy card | 2 + 5 + 2 = 9 | 18 |
| Two of your cards around an enemy Goblin (the Goblin itself adds nothing) | 2 + 2 = 4 | 8 |
The shop
| Card | Price | How many |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior, Wizard or Dragon | 2 points | No limit |
| Goblin | 5 points | 4 in the shop, shared by both players |
Points spent in the shop come off your score, so every card you buy moves you further from 20.
What the numbers do
- 20 points takes four ordinary traps, or three if one of them uses a Goblin or a gold rune, so a match can't drag on.
- One ordinary trap (6 points) pays for three new cards. A player who keeps trapping never runs out; a player who never scores has 10 moves, which is what makes running out of cards the second way a match ends.
- Goblins are the scarce prize: worth the most in a trap, the most expensive, and only four in the shop for both players.