Packmaster Expansion Packs

This mod is there to keep the load of Packmaster somewhat in check. People have been having more issues with not being able to play the mod due to the increased load from all the extra packs contributors have created, so the main mod will be reduced down to a more manageable size and the rest will be put into here.

Contribution

There's a few rules in place to make this character great despite the minds working on it at the same time. The full rules, examples and explanations are in this google doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Gs004Gur4DfZ8vly8rFDjcnRojt6Ptsk6rH_GyZx_XY
The sheet for maintaining information on your booster pack can be found here:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MoLN5qyNtclCqOPgAW9_poDS4HPhTGOmahWSIA1FgCg

The cut-off point for PRs that will be included in the first release will be 18th of January 2023. Although, PRs made after that point will still be merged and maintained, so don't be discouraged if you're late.

To make a contribution, you must have a GitHub account. For the specifics of how to fork this repo and then make a pull request, please look at this guide: https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/quickstart/contributing-to-projects

I recommend using the GitHub desktop client for this if you have no experience with Github
https://desktop.github.com/

Technical

How to make a Pack

First, navigate to the project on your system and copy the example-pom.txt and rename the copy to pom.xml. Adjust it to the correct steam path if necessary. Change the version from 1.0.0 to the current version number from the Steam workshop or higher; otherwise, ModTheSpire will prioritize the Steam workshop build over any new builds you create (if new versions get released, you'll need to update this). Do this before you load the project in intellij to ward off some issues.
DO NOT DELETE THE EXAMPLE POM!

Once you've got the project up and running, navigate to the packs package.
Create a new class that extends from AbstractCardPack. You can copy the basic structure from an existing pack like the DownfallPack. Simply change the ID line to use the ID you want to use for you pack, example:
public static final String ID = SpireAnniversary5Mod.makeID("ExamplePack"); and define the cards your pack has in getCards() once you've made them.
Strings are done in a per-pack basis. So create a directory with the same name as your pack's ID with no capitalization in resources/localization/eng. Everything other than the Cardstrings.json and UIstrings.json is optional.
In your UIstrings.json the first entry should be the strings for your card pack preview card.

"${ModID}:ExamplePack": {  
  "TEXT": [  
    "Example Name",  
    "Example Description",  
    "Pack Author Name"  
  ]  
}  

Then it's time make your cards!
To create a relic for your pack, simply create a class that extends AbstractPackmasterRelic and give the pack it can show up for with the second constructor (the longer one). Example:

   public ExampleRelic() {
      super(ID, RelicTier.COMMON, LandingSound.FLAT, ExamplePack.ID);
   }  

To test your cards simply use the Custom Draft toggle in the character select screen and make sure your pack is selected.

Notes

• A Secondary magic number is already defined in case you need it.
• If you make patches/powers/actions/or similar often-used classes, please do so in your own sub-folder/package.
• We have a utility class called Wiz, you can make use of it to get access to general utility methods (like accessing the player quicker than using AbstractDungeon.player)
• We have our own AbstractCard Class, AbstractPackmasterCard please make use of it for your cards
• To get a card's Pack, you can call getParent on a PackmasterCard or use the method in the Wiz class getPackByCard
• We have some lists and maps to get card packs, these are allPacks, packsByID, cardParentMap
• If you want to add your own CardBack for your Pack preview card, you can do so by adding it to the images/512 and 1024 with the png file having the same name as your pack
• Additional Credits can be added to a pack where assets or inspiration have been taken from elsewhere. This can simply be done by passing a credits string to the super method of the pack's constructor
• AbstractPackMasterOrb exists to manage pack orbs with non standard effect timing for interaction purposes.
• Additionally this file contains getPackLimitedOrb(boolean useCardRng) to pull a random orb from what would be available in your packs.

Reminders and veto ruling

Please look at the Google Docs to get a full refresher of the rules for your contribution. Specifically the complexity cap is important. Here is a TL;DR:

• 10 cards per pack, token cards are allowed but please be reasonable (3 token cards max, no exceptions other than the few made already)
• No duplicate cards, if a card exists in another pack, it may not be in another.
• No additional UI, please use powers/orbs/stances if you need them
• Most of your cards should have less than 6 lines of text.
• Don't outsource complexity to single-use Keywords
• See the section on pack design guidance below for more
• Artwork needs to be included for all cards in the pack
• You may add relics that only spawn if your pack is selected, however these must interact with the pack's mechanic, they should not be generic effects

And finally, as the person merging all PRs other reviewers or I (Gk/erasels) may ask you to make changes to your Pack in case some cards lie outside the power curve or skirt the rules too much. Please don't be discouraged if your Pack isn't instantly merged.

Pack design guidance

Packmaster has many packs, and we want each additional pack to contribute something new and interesting to the mod. The advice below should help with achieving that and creating a well-designed pack, especially for anyone new to making packs. Beyond this advice, people in #modding-technical are always happy to offer feedback.

Have a clear mechanical theme

Typically this means one or two central mechanics, with one or two supporting mechanics or subthemes. (Packs that are grab bags of unrelated effects or that rely entirely on references to other content don't work out well.) Deciding on good mechanical themes is the foundation of a pack, so don't be afraid to devote time to brainstorming and iterating on ideas.

Enable synergies

Think about what synergies enable your mechanic and what synergies it enables. Mechanics that don't do either (or where the synergies are very limited) may not be a good fit for a pack since interactions between packs are a huge part of Packmaster. If cards from your pack are the only thing that enable your mechanics, it puts too much pressure on your pack to do everything itself.

Don't go overboard

Avoid having every card use your mechanics. Even with a solid mechanical focus, a pack's gameplay is more interesting if there are some cards that fill a supporting role, connect the pack to broader synergies, or simply provide good value.

Have some variety

Packs with too many similar cards are less interesting to play. The same goes for packs filled with cards that are just a basic effect (damage/block/draw) plus your mechanic (or synergy for your mechanic). There's a place for cards like that, but mixing together a broader range of effects results in a more interesting pack. If you're looking for ideas, think about buffs (strength/dexterity/etc.), discard, exhaust, token/status creation, or card manipulation. Or study existing packs.

Consider common design pitfalls

Almost all the same pitfalls that apply to general card and character design apply to packs as well. See the Character Design Pitfalls Discord thread for a good list. There are also a few thing to avoid specific to Packmaster packs, such as stances (creators of stance-focused packs have typically been dissatisfied with the result), stun (it's a mechanic we wish we hadn't allowed), and autoplay (it has too many janky interactions).

Ratings and tags

After you've finished your pack, please add ratings and tags for it to the files ratings.txt and tags.txt (both in the folder resources/anniv5resources/summaries).

Ratings:

• Intended to give a rough sense of what a pack is and isn't good at
• Five categories: offense, defense, support (including things like card draw and energy generation), frontload (how good the pack is at quickly having an impact in combat), and scaling.
• On a scale of 1-5, where the ratings describe how the pack compares in that category:
  • 1: One of the weakest (the bottom 5-10%)
  • 2: Below average
  • 3: Average (the middle 30-40%)
  • 4: Above average
  • 5: One of the strongest (the top 5-10%)
• Don't worry too much about the exact values, these are easy to change later based on play experience and feedback
• Each entry in the file is the ID of the pack followed by ratings in the five categories, in the order listed, separated by tabs

Tags:

• Intended to give a rough sense of what synergies a pack might have
• Used for specific mechanics that are used across many packs; the description for your pack should cover anything unique to your pack
• Available tags and when to add them:
  • Strength: multiple cards that gain Strength (more than just one strength rare or uncommon)
  • Exhaust: multiple cards that benefit from exhausting or most of the pack enabling exhaust
  • Discard: multiple cards that benefit from discard or most of the pack enabling discard
  • Debuff: substantial number of cards that add debuffs or having a debuff that's core to the pack
  • Orbs: any amount of orb generating cards
  • Stances: any amount of stance entering cards
  • Attacks: the design of the pack is focused on attacks and attack synergy
  • Tokens: substantial number of cards that create temporary cards or interact with them
  • None: if no other tags apply
• Each entry in the file is the ID of the pack, followed by a tab, followed by a comma-separated list of tags

HATS

Packmaster can equip different cosmetic hats, one for every pack. Each one is locked until you've won a run with its respective pack in your pool.

This does not add any mandatory work for packs. There are three ways to get a hat added to your pack:

1. Art it yourself, using the new Hat template PSD (PackmasterHatTemplate.psd, included in this repo). Add a png export of your hat into the resources/hats folder, with the naming convention of Hat.png, and it will automatically be detected and used.

2. Write up a simple description to AlexMdle of your requested hat.

3. Do nothing, in which case a hat will be generated for your pack by AlexMdle.

Hats also come with a display name and flavor text, which are plucked from the UIStrings.json of your respective pack, with the ID "Hat". See the DownfallPack UIStrings for examples.

Optionally, hats can hide the character's hair, for cases like Helmets. This is done by adding "hatHidesHair = true" to your pack initialization. See the Bellord pack initialization file for an example.

Rippable Cards

To make a card rippable by default, add the Rippable Cardmodifier to your card's constructor: CardModifierManager.addModifier(this, new RippableModifier());

If you want to make a card rippable via an effect, use new RippableModifier(false).

To give your card an onRip effect, implement OnRipInterface and fill in the required method.

Cards can be automatically ripped, skipping the the modifier requirement by using RipCardsInHandAction and passing in a list of the cards you want ripped.