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Game Card Editor

Guide

Manage Card, Deck, Player, Enemy, Status, and Encounter content in one window while checking fields, previews, references, and validation results together

Open Game Card Editor from this menu:

Tools > TinyGiants > GCS > Game Card Editor

The window uses a fixed three-column layout. Switch content types at the top. Use List on the left to select a database and entry, Inspector in the center to edit the current content, and Preview on the right to inspect static results and references. All three regions stay synchronized around the same entry.

After system initialization, you can also open the window from the Editor & Monitor card in Game Card System dashboard.

tip

The dashboard enables its button only after initialization checks pass. The direct menu entry does not use that gate.

Select a content type and database​

The six modes at the top correspond to the six GCS content types. Switching modes changes List, Inspector, and Preview to the matching type together.

Card mode edits Cost, Target, Keywords, Upgrade, the card face, and Behavior on a GameCard. Preview shows a data summary, rendered card face, main behavior path, and direct references.

Card mode in Game Card Editor, with the card list, fields, and card-face preview

See Card authoring for the complete workflow from creating a card through Play Mode verification.

The Database dropdown at the top of each mode lists only Active databases of that type on the current GameCardManager. If the target database is missing, register and activate it on the Manager first. See Database management for the exact operations.

Manage content with List​

List displays content according to the current mode, database, search, filter, and sort settings. Selecting a row switches Inspector and Preview to the same entry immediately.

OperationMethod and result
CreateClick + to create a sub-asset of the current type in the current database
CopyUse the inline copy button, or press Ctrl/Cmd + C followed by Ctrl/Cmd + V
DeleteClick −, or press Delete / Backspace, then confirm to delete the selected content
Move selectionPress ↑ / ↓ to cycle through the current visible list
Switch modePress ← / → to cycle through the six modes
Undo and RedoUse Unity's global Undo/Redo. The window refreshes from the resulting asset state

Each mode always supports its built-in base type. A runtime assembly included in player builds can also define top-level public concrete types derived from GameCard, GameDeck, GamePlayerUnit, GameEnemyUnit, GameStatus, or GameEncounter.

When a mode has more than one creatable type, + opens a type picker before creating the selected sub-asset. Existing base assets keep their original concrete type; creating new content does not migrate them. See Inspector extensions for the complete schema and creation contract.

Shift-click selects a continuous range in the current visible list. Ctrl-click, or Cmd-click on macOS, adds or removes individual entries. The multi-selection bar can copy, add or remove existing Tags, or delete all selected content.

Duplication and paste preserve the source object's concrete type and serialized fields, then assign the new sub-asset a unique name and GCS identity. Ctrl/Cmd + C only stores the source reference in the internal Workbench clipboard; that clipboard lasts for the current Unity Editor domain, cannot cross a session or Domain Reload, and does not convert a base asset into a derived type.

warning

Delete removes the content sub-asset from the database instead of hiding it from the list. Used By checks only the references in its documented scope. Before deleting an asset, also confirm that no other scene, Prefab, or project code still uses it.

Edit content with Inspector​

Inspector groups fields for the current content type. Changes write directly to the sub-asset in the database and enter Unity's Undo history. Field references connect content: Player references a Starting Deck, while Encounter references its Player, Enemy Units, and Reward Deck. Moving an asset into a similarly named folder does not create those references.

The Inspector schema follows the selected object's visible Unity-serialized fields in declaration order. Runtime attributes can route later fields into existing or new foldouts and select GCS controls; an Editor-only registry can replace one field control or add project validation. The same schema is used by the normal Unity Inspector for derived content. See Inspector extensions and Inspector controls.

tip

List summaries and Preview refresh after edits.

Open Behavior​

The concrete effects of Cards, Enemies, and Statuses are stored in their Behaviors. Click Edit FlowGraph to open the graph embedded in the current asset.

The Edit FlowGraph button and entry summary in the Behavior section of Game Card Editor

The entry summary above comes from static analysis of the current Behavior. It confirms which trigger entries exist but cannot prove that every branch reaches an Action. Inspect the complete connections in FlowGraph Editor.

GCSFlowGraphAttribute can add the same editing surface to a direct graph field on a derived Card, Enemy, or Status type. It does not make that additional graph execute or enter built-in validation automatically; project runtime code must decide when to execute the graph, and a project validator must report its configuration errors.

Inspect static results with Preview​

The exact Preview tabs change with the content type. They cover four main checks.

Check typeWhat it confirms
AppearanceStatic display for a card, character, enemy, status, or encounter
CompositionDeck distributions, Encounter lineup, and Battle Rules summary
BehaviorEntry summary, enemy Intent categories, and main paths
ReferencesDirect references to the current asset from Active content

Preview does not run a real battle. Dynamic cost, current HP, live stacks, actual targets, random Intents, and phase state still require Play Mode and Game Card Monitor.

Project-owned derived fields do not automatically change List rows, Preview summaries, Used By results, or card-face layouts. Those surfaces continue to use their documented built-in GCS fields until a separate project integration reads the derived data.

Used By scope​

Used By locates saved direct references between GCS content assets. Clicking a result switches to the corresponding mode and entry. It does not scan every scene, Prefab, project script, or indirect runtime reference, and it does not protect a referenced asset from deletion.

Handle the Issue Badge​

The Issue Badge at the top of the window counts validation problems across the current selected database, not only the entry being viewed. Click an issue to locate the matching asset or field.

  • Error means that a required name, reference, range, or FlowGraph structure is missing.

  • Warning means that descriptive text, presentation assets, or recommended configuration is incomplete.

  • Issues do not repair assets automatically or prevent saving, deletion, or entering Play Mode.

Each content-authoring page documents the exact conditions for its type. See Content authoring errors for cross-type problems and repair paths.

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