This is a simple alphabetized list of reference terms attached to progressive card games in general, usually explained as they relate to Chaos Fractal.

This is not an exhaustive list and is primarily intended only for reference, mostly by new players.

Players of other games or players from different communities may know these concepts by different terminology.

Archetype

A particular form of deck mechanic, usually based on the same core. All decks of a particular Archetype can usually do approximately the same thing, with only timing and stamina tending to change.

Beatstick

A simple term used to describe a creature with high attacking power for its cost in some way. Not necessarily a Finisher but many Finishers fit this description.

Creature Revival

The ability to take a creature out of the graveyard/discard pile and put it back into the player's hand. This ability is most helpful in decks where the player wants to focus their efforts into the use of a few specific creatures in a combination, re-use the summon effects of key destroyed creatures, or use smaller creatures for their defenses. Since one of the things the opponent 'must' do to win, especially if the player has defense cards, is remove them, the ability to revive one's creatures can greatly extend their deck's stamina. It is not as useful when one's win condition involves getting to a final large effect or creature, and simple card drawing or searching will serve better here in most cases if that is what the player needs. Without much creature revival in a card game, decks are more likely to be similar, because the player has more trouble focusing their efforts into one strategy.

Deck Search

The ability to take a creature or spell (at this time, only Suriya, Talisman Pixie gives the option of either) from the player's deck and put it into their hand. This ability is very useful for players who focus around a specific effect and need to have it at a certain moment. Since the methods used for this are usually either limited to one card at a time, or slow, taking up a whole turn earlier in the game, decks that tend to move forward quickly have much less use for this, though 'combo' decks can usually benefit from having a little, even if just to fill out their plan on 'bad days'.

Delusion (Bias)

This is the belief that two very similar cards have a clear victor in all situations. The reason this is normally a delusion (because obviously it is occasionally true) is that the synergy of the deck factors in more heavily than the capacity of the card in nearly all decks. In Chaos Fractal one could take the example of Balamar, Ruler of the Skies, Romulus, Hyperion Weapon, and Zerova, Siege Engine. These three cards all perform very similar functions, but it would take a very large amount of metagame development to make one absolutely better than the other two. This sort of delusion should be avoided in card games as it causes community arguments with no substance.

Delusion (Consistency)

This term can be taken in two ways. The first is the thought process of some players in their deckbuilding, that cards which have the least possible number of conditions on their effectiveness (that is, they always do the same thing and can't be stopped or don't rely on other cards) are objectively the best. This mindset is true for beginners but loses its accuracy quickly as players become more skilled and the metagame matures. In this case, the player is deluding themselves with the belief that the card consistently helps, because they end up more focused on the times the card fails, even if it does not fail often. The second way to understand this is the thought process of players who leave a card in their deck because it has helped them win at times, without paying attention to the fact that it got them out of a situation that they might never have been in, if they had chosen a different card. In this case, the player is deluding themselves with the belief that the card consistently helps, because only the times when it has an effect on the opponent are visible.

Delusion (Winrate)

This is the belief that a good deck should win almost all of its games. Card games are based on luck of the draw in many cases, though, and though the two other forms of delusion above tend to contribute a lot to the mentality that a deck can 'always win', it's unlikely. Furthermore, a decktype that did 'always win' would automatically be the most popular. A win rate of 66% or more against similarly skilled opponents is a sign of a good deck in most cases. If a deck surpasses this by too much, you may be looking at a situation where your opponents are not skilled enough, or simply poor game balance (most notable if other people with less skill have similarly high winrates with the deck).

Discard (Choice)

The name of this ability is a bit misleading, but it means the ability to cause your opponent to put a card from their hand into their discard pile/graveyard but the card chosen is up to the opponent. This is useful for reducing their options and is often used in large amounts in order to be effective since the opponent will generally choose the least useful of their cards. Since it still reduces their resources, this may be useful regardless, but it is very difficult to use small amounts of this ability in most decks effectively, even if it has a low cost. At this time, no such cards are available in Chaos Fractal.

Discard (Random)

The ability to choose a card randomly from your opponent's hand and put it into their discard pile/graveyard. This ability is most helpful in decks where the player needs to disrupt the opponent from forming multi-card combinations or complex plans. It is also extremely useful for disposing of powerful creatures that are difficult to remove from play, before they can get into play, and for protection from spells. If the player has enough ways to either punch straight through or handle whatever comes, this ability is not always efficient, depending on the cost of it as compared to the cost of destructive effects. Of course, it is weaker than its counterpart below due to the randomness.

Discard (Targeted)

The ability to look at the opponent's hand and select a card, then put that card into their discard pile/graveyard. This ability is most helpful in decks where the player needs time to build up their own strategy without being disrupted. It is usually not used for stopping opposing plans though it is quite powerful for that if it has a low enough cost. Generally games balance this very powerful ability with quite a high cost, though, and so it is difficult to disrupt a serious early plan using this alone. Chaos Fractal's sole present option for this, Psychic Incite, is instead limited by the total amount of Tempo the opponent has. For protective purposes, and for preventing larger, difficult to remove creatures, however, this effect type is almost always stronger than Discard (Random).

Finisher

A card intended to be the hardest to get rid of, somehow, the one that will carry the game through to its end, or consume so much of the opponent's resources that the game ends soon afterward. They are usually high in both cost and power, but some are mostly played for some form of devastating and relatively instant effect. Due to the large opposing capacity to remove any creature, by the time the game is in the later stages, it's usually very important that these creatures have their main effects very quickly.

Game Pace

This refers to the number of cards, particularly creatures that can normally be played effectively in a turn, due to some constraint. Games with slow paces tend to favor disruptive methods, because combos are much harder to build. Games with faster paces tend to favor creature battles and tactics related to creature battles, as well as emphasizing more combos, interactions, and the actual power ratings of cards. Chaos Fractal is very fast-paced overall, and therefore the majority of its options focus on the creatures currently available for battle, or the act of preparing for such.

Mass Destruction

The ability to use one card, usually a spell, to destroy multiple opposing creatures, (usually due to their power rating). This gives high card advantage and the cards that perform this function are often therefore very popular. It also pushes players toward using creatures with higher power when they can to minimize the effect of it. Card games normally have a high cost on these cards, but even then, stalling until they can be used is often very effective. Some games lessen the effect by making the user pay some other cost to offset the card advantage they gain, but these cards always remain useful to decks that do not have easy ways of handling swarms of creatures with low cost and power (they often have enough of whatever resource they are required to sacrifice). When these cards have no other cost, they are almost always useful to disruption decks and in fact card games can be ruined if the designers do not limit the overall number of these cards available. Chaos Fractal is currently not near this limit, and its options for this effect are generally limited by conditions other than high cost, as well.

Mirror Match

A simple game between cards of the same Archetype. The decks do not need to be exactly the same, it mostly matters if they flow the same way because it means that optimally, both will play the same sorts of cards in the same order. Contrary to what games like chess might indicate, a Mirror Match in a card game is seldom decided by skill on the part of the players except at very high levels with large differences in psychological ability. Normally, the player with the better progression (according to what they draw) simply dominates, which is partly why games with low variety (where everyone plays the same Archetype) become less fun rather than more fun. Still, it is important for players to always understand their own advantages, since this is occasionally the deciding factor in a Mirror Match where neither player draws a good progression.

Spell Recursion

The ability to take a spell out of the graveyard/discard pile and put it back into the player's hand. This ability is most helpful in decks where the player needs to use an ability connected to a spell more times than the game allows copies of the spell in the deck. It also increases consistency, since the player may only need one copy to use the spell's effect multiple times, and hopefully will draw another if they do not draw another spell recursion card. Overall, best for repeating low to mid-cost high utility spells. In Chaos Fractal, one can also recover a Responcer that was used on a prior turn. Decks that use this capacity can often use less copies of their less vital spells as well, if the issue is about 'repeated use' rather than 'drawing it in time'.

Tempo Consumption

The ability to remove one's own Tempo to activate a card effect. Unlike the temporary depletion of Tempo for playing a card or using an effect, Consume effects permanently remove the Tempo in question. As a result, these effects are quite powerful or provide high utility relative to the amount of Tempo consumed, and tend to be additional optional effects that can be applied to a spell when cast, or an ability used by a creature during the Deploy phase. Aside from this, players may return a destroyed Rune to their hand instead of sending it to the graveyard if they Consume Tempo equal to its written cost, after an attack is made on it. While they tend to provide high power or key effects in a short amount of time or with less actual cards played, Consumption effects must be used carefully lest the player burn through their Tempo reserves very quickly.