Using playing cards as more than just a generator?
#1
Lightbulb 
I'm looking at a solo game called Escape from Demon Castle Dracula that seems like it'll be a ton of fun, but one element of it has me stumped.  You see, I do everything for these games virtually, from rolling dice to pulling Jenga blocks, but this particular game uses playing cards not only as randomizers, but laid out on a table in an arrangement meant to represent the twisting corridors of the eponymous castle.

Sure, I could always sketch it on a piece of paper, but that runs into the sharing problem, because I won't be able to show the reader what's going on.  In most cases that might not be a big deal, but this is a large part of the game.  Any thoughts on how to incorporate that aspect virtually in such a way that can be easily shared?
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#2
Try the button that is a capital letter C.
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#3
That’ll generate the cards, which is good, but maybe I’m missing a way to reposition them? As it works in the game, the cards are arranged like dominos to form a procedurally generated map.
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#4
Ah, sorry. It doesn't do that.
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#5
(04-17-2021, 04:34 PM)mark Wrote: Ah, sorry.  It doesn't do that.

Yeah, that's okay.  It's a pretty esoteric feature.  But I'll figure something out.   Big Grin
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#6
I think you have drawing the cards all figured out. You just need a way to digitally place them and I have three ideas. One is very simple but plain. The other two are fancier, but a bit more involved.

Method 1: Just use a spreadsheet program. I assume you will be laying cards out in a grid pattern. (If not, this could probably still work.)  Make a spreadsheet with the cells sized to be uniform squares. When you place a card, just type the card's name in the appropriate box. For example, 4D would be four of diamonds, 7C would be seven of clubs, and QH would be the queen of hearts. You might be able to use symbols for the suits, but that would be a bit more cumbersome.

Method 2: Download a set of playing card image files (1 file per card) and use a Photoshop-type program to place the cards on a blank canvas. If you don't own Photoshop, there are free options like GIMP or Paint.net. Anything that has a layer system.

Method 3: Similar to Method 2, but use an online tabletop such as Roll 20. It would be really easy to create a game and import the cards and place them on the table as needed.

As far as sharing goes, I suspect you will have to take screenshots and upload the images in your posts.
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#7
You could use Tabletop Simulator on Steam and position the cards as you want them on the virtual table. TTS is pretty powerful and has the tools to mimic any board game with its physics engine. Then you could just take a screen capture and share that with your viewers.

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