# THRONE DUEL — King vs King

**ChessGods design doc v0.1 · 2026-09-13 · status: SHIPPED in-app v1 (local ladder) — see §11**

One King per player. Born of a **random roll** — 20 stat points whose *distribution*
is decided by a rarity tier, an element that actually fights, and a melt-and-reforge
loop for those who dare. It fights other players' Kings in hands-off autobattles,
staged like a fighting game: VS splash → live duel → K.O.
Power grows by collecting relics — 100 in the pool (60 actives / 30 passives / 10
legendary weapons) — redeemed 1 per 3 days, on login, banking up to 3.

Working title **Throne Duel** (shorthand **KvK**). Naming is an open decision (§13.1).

---

## 1 · The King

A player owns exactly **one King** (multi-King rosters are a future decision, §13.6).
The King is *not* a chess piece here — it is a character: a name, an element badge
(cosmetic in v1), a stat spread, a loadout, a rank.

### 1.1 Birth — the Crucible (random only, decided 2026-09-13)

Players **never pick base stats**. Pressing **FORGE** rolls everything at once:

1. **Rarity tier** (table below) — decides how many points arrive *unallocated*.
2. **Stat spread** — 20 points, **floor 1 per stat** (6 pre-committed), cap 10,
   dice-placed beyond the floors.
3. **Element** — uniform 1/5 (§1.5).

Unallocated points are placed by the *player* — at birth or any time later from the
Throne Hall — and are the entire point of the tier system. A live preview (derived
HP / DEF / attack / tempo / crit + radar) reads the roll as it lands; the King then
takes a name.

**Birth rarity — rarity buys agency, not power.** Every King is born with exactly
20 points; the tier only decides who aims them:

| Tier | Odds | Unallocated (player places) | Dice-placed |
|------|------|------------------------------|-------------|
| **Mythic** | **0.1%** | **14** — you aim everything | 0 (floors only) |
| **Legendary** | 1% | 4 | 10 |
| **Epic** | 2% | 3 | 11 |
| **Rare** | 3% | 2 | 12 |
| **Common** | 93.9% | 0 | 14 |

A Common and a Mythic carry identical total power — the Mythic just gets to *aim*
it. The capped-power house rule survives intact, and the gacha gets a white whale.

**Melt & Reforge.** A King can be deleted and forged again at any time; the forge
then cools down for **24 hours** (server clock). The roll is always fresh — tier,
spread and element all reroll. Reforging **keeps** the relic collection and loadout
(relics are account-bound) and resets Throne Points to base — a new King climbs its
own ladder (§13.9). Melting a Mythic or Legendary demands an explicit second
confirmation; nobody loses a 0.1% King to a misclick.

**Skipping the cooldown** costs **25💎 or 50★** (placeholder — economy pass owns the
final number, §13.8). Note what money does *not* buy: stats. Payment only turns the
crank on the same dice everyone rolls — it can never touch a number directly.

### 1.2 The six stats — one job each

| Stat | Primary job (user spec) | Formula | Micro-job (texture, tunable) |
|------|------------------------|---------|------------------------------|
| **ATT** | damage | attack power | — |
| **DEX** | amplifies attack | ×(1 + 0.08·DEX) | — |
| **VIT** | HP and DEF | HP, DEF | — |
| **AGI** | speed / attack frequency | tempo fill rate | — |
| **INT** | **negates speed** | −⌈INT_opp/2⌉ from enemy AGI | +3% mend/boon potency per point |
| **LUC** | **negates VIT** | −1.5·LUC from enemy DEF | +1% crit chance per point |

Counters are asymmetric on purpose: INT defends against speed, LUC pierces armor —
you bring them in your build, they act against *whichever* enemy you face.

### 1.3 Derived numbers (v0.1 tunables — all in §12)

```
maxHP   = 40 + 10·VIT                 DEF   = 2·VIT
AP      = ATT · (1 + 0.08·DEX)        crit  = 3% + 1%·LUC (×1.6 dmg)
tempo   = 25 + 12·EffAGI  (fill/sec, gauge 100 → one action)
EffAGI  = max(1, AGI − ⌈INT_enemy/2⌉)
DEF_eff = max(0, DEF − 1.5·LUC_attacker)
dmg     = max(1, round( raw · raw / (raw + DEF_eff) ))   raw = AP · skillMult
```

Shape checks (with the floor-1/20-point budget):

- **Wall vs twig**: VIT 8 (HP 120, DEF 16) vs ATT 1 — the twig chips for ~1. Walls
  *should* beat weak attackers; that's the build RPS.
- **Glass cannon vs wall**: ATT 8 / DEX 4 (AP ≈ 10.6, raw ×1.6 ≈ 17) vs DEF 16,
  LUC 1 → DEF_eff 14.5 → ~9.7/hit → ~12 hits to kill the 120-HP wall, while the wall
  needs ~90. Glass wins. Correct.
- **Speed decide**: AGI 8 vs INT 1 → EffAGI 7 → fills at 109/s (act every 0.92s);
  AGI 2 → 49/s (2.0s). The fast King acts ~2.2× as often; at a ≥2× ratio it
  **naturally attacks twice per the opponent's action** — the user's spec, no extra rule.
- **INT counter**: INT 8 vs AGI 8 → EffAGI 4 → 1.5× slower. Hurts, doesn't erase.
- **LUC counter**: LUC 8 vs VIT 8 (DEF 16) → DEF_eff 4. Armor is *gone*.
- **TTK**: mid vs mid ≈ 20–40s at 1× with skills in the mix; heavy vs heavy drags to
  the Decree (§2.4), as intended.

### 1.4 Example spreads (what a roll produces — or free points steer toward)

| Build | ATT | AGI | VIT | INT | DEX | LUC | Fantasy |
|-------|----|----|----|----|----|----|---------|
| **Warbringer** | 8 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | Slow, colossal hits, sustains with lifesteal |
| **Nightblade** | 4 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | Outspeeds everything, chip + poison, wins the race |
| **Bastion** | 2 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | Untouchable armor, wins by Decree timeout |
| **Fool-King** | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | Crits, pierce, chaos — hates armor, dodges fate |

### 1.5 Elements — jack-en-poy with teeth (decided 2026-09-13)

Elements are rolled at birth (uniform 1/5) and are combat-relevant from day one.
Matchups use the normal ChessGods wheel: **Fire → Grass → Water → Fire**, attacker's
advantage **×1.5 damage**; **Dark beats all three** triangle elements; **Light beats
Dark**. On top of the wheel, every element carries an always-on birth buff:

| Element | Birth buff | Wheel position |
|---------|-----------|----------------|
| 🔥 Fire | **+10% ATT** | beats Grass, fears Water |
| 💧 Water | **+10% VIT** (HP & DEF both scale) | beats Fire, fears Grass |
| 🌿 Grass | **+10% LUC** (pierce *and* crit) | beats Water, fears Fire |
| ✨ Light | **+2% all six stats** | beats Dark only; neutral vs the triangle |
| 🌑 Dark | **−1% all six stats** | beats all three triangle elements; loses to Light |

The balance lives in wheel position, not buff size: triangle elements get a fat
themed stat but narrow matchups; **Dark trades a sliver of stats for the widest
coverage in the game**; Light pays matchup coverage for a small universal boost.
Grass is the sleeper — LUC is double-duty (armor pierce + crit), making it the
jack-en-poy pick for glass cannons. Buffs apply inside `derive()` so every number
in §1.3 already includes them.

---

## 2 · Combat — the duel

Autobattle. No inputs during the fight — player agency lives in the **build** (stats,
relics) and the **tactic** (§2.5). Matches are **to the death** (§2.4) — no time-out draws.

### 2.1 Tempo (who strikes when)

Each King has a **tempo gauge** (0–100) filling at `25 + 12·EffAGI` per second.
Full gauge → the King takes one action (skill or basic strike), gauge resets.
Overflow carries. Consequences fall out for free:

- Higher speed strikes **more often** and **first**.
- A ≥2× effective-speed advantage attacks **twice per the opponent's single action**.
- The SF-style UI maps the **super meter to the tempo gauge** — you can always read
  who acts next.

### 2.2 The action

When a King acts, its battle-brain picks a ready active skill (cooldowns tick in real
seconds, independent of tempo) or falls back to the innate **Royal Strike**
(×1.6, free, always available). Choice policy in §2.5.

Damage per §1.3. Crit (chance = 3% + LUC, ×1.6) rolls on every hit. On-hit
effects resolve in order: evade → damage → lifesteal/thorns → on-hit riders
(burn/poison/stun/slow) → death check.

### 2.3 Status effects

| Kind | Examples | Rules |
|------|----------|-------|
| Shield (Ward) | Aegis of Ages | Absorbs damage before HP; decays on expiry |
| HoT / DoT | Sanctified Renewal, burn, poison | Tick 1/s; poison stacks (max 2) |
| Stat buffs/debuffs | Roar of Kings, Weaken | Modify the derived stat; recalc on apply/expire |
| Tempo mods | Zephyr Step, Torpor | Multiply fill rate |
| Control | Ironknock stun, Seal Relic, Sanctuary | Stun pauses fill; Seal locks a skill's ready state |
| Caps | Guardian's Oath | Per-hit damage capped |

All durations in seconds, all stack rules fixed (no same-id refresh beyond refresh).

### 2.4 To the death — and the Decree

- A King at 0 HP **dies**. Fight ends. No rounds, no draws.
- **60s — DECREE**: the arena ignites (SF2 ring-of-fire homage), *all healing halved*
  (anti-stall: two walls can't outheal forever).
- **90s — SUDDEN DEATH**: the Decree executes — **lower current-HP% dies**.
  This keeps "battle to death" literal (someone always dies) while bounding match
  length at 90s.

### 2.5 Tactics — agency without inputs

Each King carries a **Tactic** that reweights the battle-brain's priority list:

1. **Brawler** — damage first: strike skills > hexes > wards. Wins the race.
2. **Warden** — survival first: wards/mends early, hexes mid. Wins the drag to Decree.
3. **Trickster** — control first: hexes/seals early, strikes into the vulnerability.
4. **Player order** — drag your 4 equipped actives into a priority list; the brain
   uses ready skills top-down, else Royal Strike.

Priority skeleton (all tactics): `lethal available → survival rule (HP < 35% and a
mend/ward ready) → tactic-weighted ready skill → Royal Strike`.

---

## 3 · Active skills — 60

Equipped slots: **4 actives** (empty slots auto-fill with the innate Royal Strike).
Cooldowns in seconds. `×n` = skill damage multiplier on AP. School color coding matches
skill chips in UI: Strikes red · Wards steel · Boons gold · Hexes violet · Mends green.

### Strikes ×20

| # | Skill | CD | × | Effect |
|---|-------|----|---|--------|
| 1 | Royal Cleave | 6 | 1.9 | — |
| 2 | Sunder | 8 | 2.1 | enemy DEF −20%, 5s |
| 3 | Seven Cuts | 10 | 2.8 | 7 hits of ×0.4 |
| 4 | Kingsbane | 12 | 2.2 | ×2 vs enemy <25% HP |
| 5 | Blooddrain | 9 | 1.8 | heal 60% of dmg |
| 6 | Ember Lash | 7 | 1.6 | burn 3/s, 4s |
| 7 | Viper Jab | 5 | 1.4 | poison 2/s, 5s (stacks ×2) |
| 8 | Frost Palm | 8 | 1.5 | enemy tempo −25%, 3s |
| 9 | Thunder Split | 9 | 2.0 | 40% chance: second hit ×1.0 |
| 10 | Lion's Pounce | 7 | 1.9 | ignores evasion |
| 11 | Grave Toll | 11 | 1.5+ | +1 per 20% own missing HP |
| 12 | Void Piercer | 14 | 2.4 | true dmg (ignores DEF) |
| 13 | Gilded Comet | 16 | 3.4 | — |
| 14 | Widow's Kiss | 10 | 2.0 | heal 50% of dmg |
| 15 | Rending Roar | 8 | 1.7 | enemy ATT −20%, 5s |
| 16 | Twin Blades | 6 | 1.5 | ×2 hits |
| 17 | Rising Sun | 12 | 2.6 | +25% crit this hit |
| 18 | Sovereign's Wrath | 13 | 2.3 | self ATT +15%, 6s |
| 19 | Last Light | 10 | 1.6+ | +1.4 per 10% own missing HP |
| 20 | Meteor Oath | 18 | 3.0 | burn 4/s, 3s |

### Wards ×12

| # | Skill | CD | Effect |
|---|-------|----|--------|
| 21 | Aegis of Ages | 12 | shield 12% maxHP, 8s |
| 22 | Parry Stance | 9 | evade next hit (4s window) |
| 23 | Thornskin | 14 | reflect 30%, 6s |
| 24 | Iron Verdict | 10 | DEF +40%, 6s |
| 25 | Veil of Stars | 11 | evasion +25%, 5s |
| 26 | Bulwark Hymn | 16 | shield 10% + heal 8% |
| 27 | Repose | 8 | cleanse all debuffs, heal 4% |
| 28 | Sanctuary | 20 | immune, 1.5s |
| 29 | Mirror Mantle | 15 | next hex on you reflects (6s) |
| 30 | Stone Vigil | 12 | DEF +25% + shield 6%, 8s |
| 31 | Second Wind | 18 | heal 12% over 8s |
| 32 | Guardian's Oath | 22 | per-hit dmg capped at 6% maxHP, 5s |

### Boons ×12

| # | Skill | CD | Effect |
|---|-------|----|--------|
| 33 | Roar of Kings | 10 | ATT +30%, 6s |
| 34 | Zephyr Step | 12 | tempo fill +25%, 6s |
| 35 | Bloodrage | 14 | ATT +45%, 8s; self bleed 3% maxHP over 8s |
| 36 | Gilded Frame | 12 | DEX +4, 8s |
| 37 | Titan's Vigor | 14 | +DEF +heal 6% (VIT +4, 8s) |
| 38 | Foresight | 12 | INT +4, 8s |
| 39 | Fortune's Smile | 14 | LUC +4, 8s |
| 40 | Overlord's Cadence | 16 | tempo fill +35%, 5s |
| 41 | Steelsong | 12 | crit +20%, 6s |
| 42 | Living Armor | 16 | DEF +30%, debuff durations −50%, 8s |
| 43 | Momentum | 10 | +8% dmg per strike, stacks ×5, 8s |
| 44 | Ascendance | 30 | all stats +2, 5s |

### Hexes ×8

| # | Skill | CD | Effect |
|---|-------|----|--------|
| 45 | Weaken | 9 | enemy ATT −25%, 6s |
| 46 | Torpor | 11 | enemy tempo −25%, 5s |
| 47 | Sunder Armor | 10 | enemy DEF −35%, 6s |
| 48 | Cloudmind | 12 | enemy INT −4, 8s |
| 49 | Jinx | 12 | enemy LUC −4, 8s |
| 50 | Heavy Crown | 10 | enemy DEX −4, 8s |
| 51 | Seal Relic | 15 | lock enemy's lowest-CD ready skill, 5s |
| 52 | Terror Gaze | 16 | enemy dmg −25%, 5s |

### Mends ×8

| # | Skill | CD | Effect |
|---|-------|----|--------|
| 53 | Mender's Touch | 6 | heal 7% maxHP |
| 54 | Royal Salve | 9 | heal 12% |
| 55 | Sanctified Renewal | 14 | regen 3%/s, 6s |
| 56 | Lifegift | 20 | heal 25% |
| 57 | Crimson Communion | 16 | convert 50% of your shield into HP |
| 58 | Dawnbreak | 12 | heal 10% + cleanse |
| 59 | Feast of Crows | 13 | steal 8% of enemy *current* HP |
| 60 | Miracle of the First King | 45 | once per battle: heal 60% |

---

## 4 · Passive skills — 30

Equipped slots: **2 passives**. Always on from the start of the duel. DOTA-flavored
mechanics, renamed — the nods are internal lineage notes only.

| # | Passive | Effect | Lineage |
|---|---------|--------|---------|
| 1 | Titanblood | +15% maxHP | Heart of Tarrasque / Vitality Booster |
| 2 | Barkbound | +12% DEF | armor-stacking items |
| 3 | Whetstone Oath | +10% AP | flat damage items |
| 4 | Zephyrborn | +10% tempo fill | attack-speed / movespeed items |
| 5 | Falcon's Discipline | +3 DEX | attributes |
| 6 | Fortune-Touched | +3 LUC | attributes |
| 7 | Archivist | +3 INT | attributes |
| 8 | Regicide | +30% crit dmg | Coup de Grace |
| 9 | Duelist's Instinct | +12% crit chance | Crystalys line |
| 10 | Mothwing Veil | +12% evasion | Butterfly / Blur |
| 11 | Crimson Tithe | 12% lifesteal | Morbid Mask |
| 12 | Soul Ledger | heal 15% of all dmg dealt | spell-lifesteal line |
| 13 | Thorn Covenant | reflect 18% | Blade Mail |
| 14 | Everheart | regen 1.2% maxHP /s | Heart regen |
| 15 | Wardwoven | −12% all dmg taken | Hood / Vanguard block |
| 16 | Unerring Eye | never miss; +8% dmg vs evasive | True Strike |
| 17 | Unbowed | debuff durations −30% | Status Resistance |
| 18 | Fate's Echo | 10% chance to ignore a hit | Backtrack |
| 19 | Ironknock | 12% chance to stun 0.7s on hit | Bash / MKB |
| 20 | Sweeping Edge | every 3rd strike +40% | Cleave / Battle Fury |
| 21 | Warmonger | +4% dmg per 10% own missing HP | rage-scaling line |
| 22 | Last Bastion | +35% DEF below 30% HP | Bristleback-ish |
| 23 | Relentless March | tempo fill +8% | Assault-line |
| 24 | Coronation | +15% dmg while holding any boon | aura line |
| 25 | Giantbane | +18% dmg vs enemy >60% HP | anti-tank line |
| 26 | Heirseeker | +25% dmg vs enemy <25% HP | execute line |
| 27 | Spellguard | 25% chance enemy hexes fail | Lotus / dispel line |
| 28 | Blood Pact | +15% AP, −10% maxHP | blood magic line |
| 29 | Ninth Life | cheat death once: survive at 1 HP, 1.5s immune | Aegis — echoes ChessGods' AEGIS aura |
| 30 | Hemoedge | basic strikes heal 20% | Satanic-lite |

---

## 5 · Legendary weapons — 10

Equipped slots: **1 weapon**. Each is a build-defining identity piece.

| # | Weapon | Epithet | Effect |
|---|--------|---------|--------|
| 1 | Excalibur | Dawn's Verdict | your first strike each battle auto-crits; +1 ATT |
| 2 | Muramasa | Cursed Edge | +15% crit; wielder bleeds 1 per own strike |
| 3 | Masamune | Pure Blade | +10% AP; cleanse 1 debuff every 8s |
| 4 | Durandal | Undying Guard | +6 DEF; your shields +40% |
| 5 | Zulfiqar | Twin Verdict | basic strikes hit twice at 55% each |
| 6 | Tyrfing | Doomcounter | every 4th strike ×2.5; −1 VIT while wielded |
| 7 | Kusanagi | Serpent's Coil | strikes poison 2/s, 4s (refresh) |
| 8 | Mjolnir | Skyhammer | 15%: strikes chain a bolt (60% dmg) + enemy tempo −20%, 2s |
| 9 | Dáinsleif | Blood Price | +25% AP; all healing on you halved |
| 10 | Tizona | Scales of Spite | +AP equal to 8% of enemy DEF; enemy tempo −5% |

Archetypes covered: crit (Muramasa), purity/sustain (Masamune), defense (Durandal),
multihit (Zulfiqar), execute (Tyrfing), DoT (Kusanagi), burst control (Mjolnir),
anti-heal (Dáinsleif), anti-wall (Tizona), crown (Excalibur).

---

## 6 · The Hall of Relics — redemption economy

The 100 relics = **60 actives + 30 passives + 10 weapons**. One pool, one draw.

### 6.1 The three candles

- The Hall shows **3 relic candles**. Each candle burns down over **72h of real time**
  (server clock — burns while offline). Burnt candle = **1 Redeem charge**.
- Charges cap at **3** (the 9-day bank). Timers hold at *"FULL — return to redeem"*
  so absent players feel time accruing, and returning players feel the debt.
- **Redeeming is manual**: press REDEEM on login to spend a charge. No auto-grant —
  the ritual is the retention hook.

### 6.2 The draw

- REDEEM → cinematic draw: the 100-relic wheel shuffles, settles on one, reveals an
  MTG-v3-styled relic card (same card renderer as pieces). Weapons get a gold splash
  + sting. Skippable after first view.
- **Odds are uniform** across all 100 — the pool's composition *is* the rarity:
  60% active / 30% passive / **10% weapon**. No hidden tiers, no pity counter.
  (If a weapon ever feels too common, reweight to 70/25/5 — flagged, not built.)

### 6.3 Duplicates → Relic Dust

- A duplicate converts to **30 Relic Dust**.
- **150 Dust = "Decree a Relic"**: your *next* redeem becomes a **choose-any-unowned**
  instead of a random draw. One sink, one chase-closer — keeps the pool honest.
- Relics are **non-tradeable** (account-bound). Trading is a future economy decision.

### 6.4 Cadence math

1 draw / 3 days → full pool takes ~10 months of daily-ish play. Duplicates accelerate
the tail via Dust. A returning player after 9 days gets 3 draws *immediately* — the
"welcome back" burst is the emotional payoff of the whole loop.

---

## 7 · Ladder — matchmaking, ranks, death

- **Matchmaking**: queue by Throne Points (TP), band ±120. v1 is **async snapshot
  PvP**: you fight a sealed snapshot of the opponent's King (stats + loadout + tactic);
  the duel is a deterministic seeded simulation, so both players watch the identical
  fight. No server tick needed per duel — the server validates seeds + snapshots.
- **TP**: ELO-style ±12–24 by spread.
- **Ranks** (chess-piece ladder, III → I within each):
  Pawn → Knight → Bishop → Rook → Queen → **Sovereign** (top 100 TP per season).
- **Death**: a fallen King is *slain*, not destroyed — Standard League respawns it in
  the infirmary (20 min, or instant for 1⚡). A **Requiem League** (hardcore: death is
  permanent for the season, rewards ×2) is proposed, not built (§13.3).
- **Seasons**: 4 weeks; TP soft-reset to 50%; rewards = cosmetics only (crown skins,
  arena themes, cape colors for the glyph effigy) — no power for money/points,
  consistent with the capped-power house rule.

---

## 8 · UX — the five screens

All screens obey the **fixed-frame rule** (no resizing dialogs; in-place region
updates). Walnut/brass War Table theme, Pantheon header, serif display type.
Mode enters the app as a **THRONE ♛** nav emblem next to Play.

1. **Throne Hall (hub)** — your King as a large glyph effigy on a dais (element badge,
   name plate, rank seal, record). Right: the three relic candles + REDEEM + Dust
   meter. Bottom: TACTIC selector + gold **FIGHT** seal (shows TP band). Leaderboard peek.
2. **Birth Altar / Crucible** — first-run and every reforge: one FORGE press rolls
   tier → stat spread → element (§1.1); free points allocated in-place; melt panel
   with the 24h cooldown + 💎/★ skip. **← built as a mockup**
3. **VS splash** — diagonal split, both effigies facing off, name plates, rank seals,
   6-axis stat radars, "BATTLES TO THE DEATH" kicker, READY… FIGHT stinger. 2.5s,
   skippable. **← built as a mockup**
4. **Arena** — fighting-game stage, fixed 960×540: double HP bar with drain-ghost,
   **tempo gauges under the HP bars** (the SF super-meter slot), status chips with
   timers, floating damage numbers (gold = crit), skill callout banners, battle log
   drawer. Controls: 1× / 2× / 4×, SKIP, mute. 60s Decree ignites the ring; 90s
   Sudden Death; K.O. slow-mo → verdict strip (TP delta, timeline highlights, rematch).
   **← built as a mockup (live simulation using §1.3 math)**
5. **Reliquary** — collection: fixed grid of all 100 relics (filter chips: school /
   owned / unowned), king-sheet column with the 4+2+1 loadout slots (click slot →
   click relic → in-place equip), relic detail pane, Dust meter + Decree-a-Relic
   progress. **← built as a mockup**

### Sound (existing kit)

VS sting (bowed-brass synth) on splash; deep clack on hits (existing modal-synth
wood bank), sharper crack on crits; choir pad on heals; glass shatter on shield break;
K.O. = low boom + silence beat before the verdict. All behind the existing 🔊 mute.

---

## 9 · Integration with ChessGods

- **No engine overlap**: KvK never touches engine.js/ui.js battle code — separate
  `app/kvk/` module (own state, own loop), sharing only style.css vars, elemBadgeHTML,
  cardFaceHTML, and the sound kit. Nav gains one emblem; localStorage gains one
  profile key (`p.kvk`).
- **Economy feeds**: wins grant 1–3★ (existing star→pack loop) so KvK feeds the main
  gacha without a second currency. Gems: no KvK spend in v1.
- **Energy**: duels cost 0⚡ (autobattler time-gate is the 3-day relic cadence, not
  energy). Flagged for economy pass (§13.4).
- **Anti-farm**: rating-band matchmaking already makes self-play useless; bot-driven
  KvK never awards ★.
- **Server-authoritative**: opponent snapshots are sealed server-side (same rule as
  hidden piece stats); client only ever receives what it may see.

---

## 10 · Why this loop works (design rationale)

- **Daily**: log in → check candles → (maybe) redeem → set tactic → queue a duel.
  60–90 seconds of attention.
- **Weekly**: collection grows → loadout identity shifts → ladder climbs.
- **Seasonal**: rank reset + cosmetics chase.
- **The 9-day bank** converts absence into a reunion gift instead of a punishment —
  the strongest single retention idea in the spec.
- **Birth is a roll, not a form.** No allocation screen intimidates a new player;
  the rarity ladder (0.1% full-control Mythic) gives the forge its own gacha heartbeat,
  and the melt cooldown gives it a cost money can skip but never override.
- **Autobattle = watchable**: SF presentation + tempo gauges + callouts make a
  hands-off fight feel like a sport, and deterministic seeds make every fight
  shareable (future: replay codes).

## 11 · Build order (proposed)

STATUS 2026-09-13: **steps 1–4 SHIPPED** in the app as `app/kvk/` (`kvk-core.js` logic
+ `kvk-ui.js` screens + `kvk.css`), nav emblem THRONE ♛, state at `p.kvk` in the main
profile, `Econ.reportKvkResult`/`spendGems` added, arena sim deterministic per seed,
ladder = 16 seeded house kings (local; online async PvP = step 5, needs a server).
Tests: `app/test-kvk.js` (46 checks, `node test-kvk.js`). Deep links for tests:
`index.html?kvk=birth|hub|arena|rel` + `&forge=1 &demo=1 &t=SEC`.

1. ~~Core sim + Arena~~ ✅
2. ~~Birth Crucible + persistence~~ ✅
3. ~~Throne Hall + candle clock + draw ceremony~~ ✅
4. ~~Reliquary + loadout/tactics; house-bot ladder~~ ✅
5. Async snapshot PvP + TP/ranks/seasons on a server. Requiem League last (if ever).

## 12 · Tunables table (v0.1)

| Constant | Value |
|----------|-------|
| Stat budget / floor / cap | 20 / 1 / 10 |
| maxHP | 40 + 10·VIT |
| DEF | 2·VIT |
| AP | ATT · (1 + 0.08·DEX) |
| Tempo fill | 25 + 12·EffAGI per sec (gauge 100) |
| EffAGI | max(1, AGI − ⌈INT_enemy/2⌉) |
| DEF pierce | −1.5·LUC (min DEF_eff 0) |
| Crit | 3% + 1%·LUC chance, ×1.6 dmg |
| INT potency | +3% mend/boon per point |
| Innate Royal Strike | ×1.6, no CD |
| Decree (healing halved) | t = 60s |
| Sudden death | t = 90s, lower HP% dies |
| Candle burn | 72h, 3 charges max |
| Dupe → Dust | 30; Decree-a-Relic costs 150 |
| Draw odds | uniform 1/100 each |
| TP win/loss | +12…24 / −12…24 by band |
| Respawn (Standard) | 20 min or 1⚡ |
| Loadout | 4 actives + 2 passives + 1 weapon |
| Birth tier odds | Mythic 0.1% · Legendary 1% · Epic 2% · Rare 3% · Common 93.9% |
| Tier split (14 post-floor pts) | Mythic 14 free / Legendary 4+10 / Epic 3+11 / Rare 2+12 / Common 0+14 |
| Element roll | uniform 1/5 |
| Element buffs | Fire +10% ATT · Water +10% VIT · Grass +10% LUC · Light +2% all · Dark −1% all |
| Wheel in duels | ×1.5 damage (normal wheel) |
| Reforge cooldown | 24h; melt keeps relics/loadout, resets TP |
| Skip cooldown | 25💎 or 50★ (placeholder) |

## 13 · Open decisions

1. **Mode name** — "Throne Duel" recommended; alternatives: Regicide, Kingsmarch,
   Crownfall.
2. **Requiem League** (permadeath ladder) — build later only if the mode sticks;
   do not launch without it.
3. **Weapon odds** — keep uniform 10% per draw, or reweight 70/25/5? (Recommend:
   keep uniform; it makes the whole pool legible.)
4. **Energy/★ tap** — confirm wins pay 1–3★ and 0⚡ cost; needs the pending economy
   pass.
5. **Element tuning** — buffs + wheel are IN as of the birth rework (§1.5). Open bit:
   is full ×1.5 too swingy in duels? If yes, ×1.25 duels-only. (Recommend: keep 1.5
   for cross-mode legibility — "normal jack-en-poy".)
6. **Multiple Kings per account** — natural future monetization (second King slot),
   but changes matchmaking + collection scope. Defer.
7. **Spectate/share** — replay codes from deterministic seeds; phase 2.
8. **Reforge-skip pricing** — 25💎 / 50★ is a placeholder; the pending economy pass
   sets the real number (and whether stars are accepted at all).
9. **TP on reforge** — reset-to-base recommended (new King climbs its own ladder,
   no reroll-scumming a high rank); alternative is TP persistence with a
   one-band demotion.

---

*Mockups: `design/mockups/king-vs-king.html` (`?screen=birth|hub|vs|arena|reliquary`),
previews in `design/mockups/shots/kvk-*.png`. The Birth Altar mockup implements the
random Crucible roll (tier odds, element buffs, melt + 24h cooldown + skip).*