Tutorial 6

Tutorial 6: The "Bloodied" Condition (Attribute Triggers)

Goal: Let's make the game react to the players. We are going to create a "Bloodied" Overlay that automatically applies itself whenever a token drops to 50% of its maximum hit points, and automatically removes itself when they are healed. This tutorial introduces the powerful Automation Engine and the Attribute Picker.

Prerequisites

• Role: Game Master (We are making this a Global rule for all tokens)
• Required Modules: Visage

Concepts Covered

• Enabling Visage automation via the Automation Tab
• Creating an automation condition
• Using the Attribute Picker to find data paths
• Understanding the difference between "Base" and "Derived" attributes
• Setting percentage conditions and understanding denominators

Step-by-Step Guide

Phase 1: Creating the "Bloodied" Visuals

1. Create a New Visage: Open the Global Library and create a new Visage.
2. Set the Metadata: Name it "Bloodied", set the Mode to Overlay and sharing to Private.
3. Set the Appearance: We want a subtle visual cue. Switch to the Effects tab, toggle on the Dynamic Ring, and open its Inspector. Set the Ring Colour to a deep red. Set the Pulse checkbox under Ring Effects. (Alternatively, you could add a red tint via the Light Source, or add a blood splatter visual effect under the token.)

Phase 2: The Automation Condition

Now we tell Visage when to apply this overlay.

1. Open the Automation Tab: In the Visage Editor, click the Automation tab.
2. Enable Automation: Click the Enable Automation toggle at the top. This tells Visage to actively monitor the game for this specific Visage.
3. Add a Condition: Click the Add Attribute button. A new condition card will appear. Click it to open the Inspector.
4. Set the Math: We want this to trigger when HP is at or below 50%.
   • Data Type: Set this to Number.
   • Operator: Change this to <= (Less than or equal).
   • Value: Type 50.
   • Mode: Ensure this is set to Percentage (Calculates vs Max).

Phase 3: The Attribute Picker & Denominators

Visage needs to know what data it is checking. We need to point it to the token's Hit Points.

1. Open the Attribute Picker: Next to the Actor Data Path field at the top of the Inspector, click the List icon. This opens the Attribute Picker, which displays a searchable list of the data stored on the token's actor.

2. Find the HP: Type "hp" into the search bar. You should see a path that looks something like system.attributes.hp.value (this varies slightly depending on your game system). Click it to select it.

   Tip: Base vs. Derived Attributes. The Attribute Picker is incredibly smart, but it only displays "Base" attributes (data permanently saved to the actor database, like your core HP or Strength score). It does not show "Derived" attributes (temporary numbers the system calculates on the fly, like your current AC after casting a spell). However, Visage can still read derived attributes. If you know the exact data path for a derived attribute, you can type it manually into the Actor Data Path box. We will cover how to find these hidden paths in a later tutorial.

3. The Denominator Path: Because we set our Mode to %, Visage needs to know what the "Maximum" is to calculate 50%.

   • Implicit (Let Visage Guess): If you leave the Denominator Path blank, Visage is usually smart enough to guess. If your Path is system.attributes.hp.value, it will automatically look for system.attributes.hp.max.
   • Explicit (Tell Visage Exactly): If your game system uses unusual naming (like hp.current and hp.total), you should use the Attribute Picker or manually type the maximum path into the Denominator Path box to ensure the math works perfectly.

4. Save: Click the Save Global Layer button.

Testing It Out

1. Check the Canvas: Make sure you have a token on the canvas that has full HP. Notice that the Bloodied ring is not active.

   Tip: Automated Visages do not need to be manually applied to tokens. So long as their Enable Automation toggle is on, they will apply and remove themselves.

   Tip: You can toggle the Enable Automation inside the Visage Library. If a Visage has an automation condition, it will show a "power on" icon in the Visage's card. Click it to toggle it on (green) or off (grey).

   Tip: You can quickly filter the Visage Library to show only Visages with automations by clicking the "power on" icon in the filter row above the grid of cards. This lets you see all automated Visages and which ones are active.

2. Take Damage: Double-click the token to open its character sheet, or use your system's damage tools, and reduce its HP to 50% or below.

3. Watch the Magic: The moment the HP drops, the token's Dynamic Ring will instantly turn red!

4. Heal Up: Increase the token's HP back above 50%. The red ring will automatically disappear. You have just built a fully automated Visage.

Pro-Tips & Creative Ideas

• Multiple Conditions: You aren't limited to just one condition. You could click "Add Condition" again to make a Visage that only applies if a token is below 50% HP AND has 0 temporary hit points.
• Selective Conditions: Global Visages will usually be universal. You can use conditions to limit them to only certain tokens. For example, you could add a condition that the token's name includes "goblin" or the creature type is "monster", etc.
• The "Priority" Setting: At the top of the Automation tab, there is a Priority number. If a token triggers two different automated Visages at the same time:
  • if the Visages are Identities, the one with the higher Priority number will be applied (the "Highlander" rule).
  • if the Visages are Overlays, the one with the higher Priority number will be placed higher in the active stack.