Operator Brief · Orientation
Lab Primer
How signal cards work, what the readings mean, and how grid duels play out across the Helix sectors.
Hover for full card preview
- BandwidthTop-left cost
- SignalBottom-left power
- IntegrityBottom-right durability
- AtriumRealm affinity
The Four Labs
Aboard the Spire, four labs still keep a clean link. Atrium's living Hab, Reservoir's frost circuit, Core's warm engine, and Antenna's open relay are home to Frames, thoughtful decks, and players who compete without drowning in Static. Tour the labs before the last Signal dissolves into noise.
Atrium
The Living Hab
The Living Hab — hydroponic halls, root-cables, and soft canopy light under steel ribs.
Reservoir
The Frost Circuit
The Frost Circuit — cryo vaults, coolant rivers, and frost-glass terraces.
Core
The Warm Engine
The Warm Engine — reactor rings, plasma conduits, and amber instrument halls.
Antenna
The Open Link
The Open Link — observation spines, void radio dishes, and signal-mist galleries.
Stabilize the grid
You and a rival operator trade turns deploying frames and drones. Drop their health to zero before your integrity fails.
Reading a card
Each card is a deployable unit on the grid — frames, drones, and conduits with calibrated stats.
- BandwidthBandwidth cost — how much signal budget you spend to deploy this unit.
- SignalSignal strength — output when the unit engages in combat.
- IntegrityIntegrity — structural tolerance before the unit is purged from the grid.
- DomainSector affinity — Atrium, Reservoir, Core, or Antenna.
- AbilityProtocol text describing special behaviour when the unit enters or fights.
- KeywordsSystem tags that alter timing, targeting, or combat order.
The grid
Four deployment lanes. Occupy them to maintain pressure, absorb incoming signal, and line up finishers.
Turn structure
- Refresh bandwidth each turn — start at five, gain +1 max each round.
- Deploy affordable units from hand to open lanes.
- Initiate Battle so your units transmit first.
- End turn — opponent deploys, then combat resolves.
- Survivors hit the rival operator directly until one health pool hits zero.
Loadout design
Matches run on twenty-card loadouts. Mix low-bandwidth scouts with high-integrity anchors and burst finishers.