Cockatrice/doc/continuumatrice-card-fields.md

Continuumatrice CCG card fields and numeric sorting

This document covers static card-definition metadata loaded from Continuumatrice XML v4. It does not change mutable game resources, damage, armour degradation, campaign state or server match mechanics.

Source mapping

Continuumatrice field	Native XML v4 property	Field in existing Continuum MSE game	Legacy import fallback	Sorting
Identity	identity	alias	alias	Locale-aware text
Attack (ATK)	attack	strength	strength, or Attack side of pt	Numeric
Armour	armour	armor	armor	Numeric
Health (HP)	health	health	Health side of pt	Numeric
ATK/HP	Derived from Attack and Health	MSE strength + health	pt via the individual stat fallbacks	Attack numeric first, then Health numeric

Identity is the CCG's card alias. It must not be confused with essence (which is the distinct Essence resource/type identity). The Name column still contains the actual card name.

The XML importer already supports arbitrary text properties under <prop>, so adding these properties does not require a schema version change.

Example

<card>
  <name>Example Character</name>
  <text>Static card data demonstration only.</text>
  <prop>
    <type>Character</type>
    <identity>The Guardian</identity>
    <attack>10</attack>
    <armour>3</armour>
    <health>12</health>
    <essence>M</essence>
  </prop>
  <set>EXAMPLE</set>
  <tablerow>0</tablerow>
</card>

The table view displays ATK/HP as 10/12, with separate Attack, Armour, and Health columns. If a card has no authored stats, the combined display remains blank. When one stat is omitted, the missing side is shown as ?.

The database's sort dropdown discovers model columns dynamically, so the new fields are available for ascending/descending sorting. Numeric fields use numeric comparisons; the combined ATK/HP column sorts by Attack first and Health second. The former P/T column position is retained internally for compatibility with existing saved table views.

Exporter compatibility

The matching Magic Set Editor exporter change is in Continuum-Universes-MSE-Templates:

• card.alias → <identity>
• card.strength → <attack>
• card.armor → <armour>
• card.health → <health>

The MSE internal field identifiers are not renamed: that would otherwise risk breaking existing .mse-set files, render scripts and card styles.

Older XML exports with strength, armor, alias, or pt remain readable. Native properties take precedence whenever present; no automatic rewriting of existing files occurs.

Test checklist

cmake --build build --target continuumatrice carddatabase_test model_contract_test --parallel 16
ctest --test-dir build -R 'CardInfoTest.ContinuumIdentityAndStatsHaveNativeAndLegacyPropertyAccess|ModelContract.ContinuumCardStatsAreSortableAndLabeled' --output-on-failure

• Import an MSE-exported set and verify Identity, Attack, Armour, Health and ATK/HP columns.
• Check Attack 9 precedes 10 and Armour 2 precedes 10.
• Check ATK/HP sorts on Attack then Health.
• Verify legacy fields are still readable and an empty field is not assumed to mean zero.
• Verify the card details pane displays the new names, including Armour.
• Verify the existing Essence filter still operates independently of the Alias/Identity property.

Status: Source changes committed; native compilation, tests and MSE GUI export still need local runtime verification.