DocsPlaying games

Handling pieces & cards

Every physical thing on the table — a card, a piece, a die, a token — responds to the same handful of gestures. Because taybl never enforces rules, these are just manipulations: you decide when each is legal.

The core gestures

GestureWhat it does
DragMove the component to wherever you drop it — another zone, a board cell, an open play area, your hand
Click a cardFlip it face-up / face-down
Right-click (or long-press)Open the context menu of verbs for that component
Drop a marker onto a pieceAttach the small token to that piece so they move together (drag it away to detach)

On an open surface where pieces overlap, drag reorders them naturally; the menu’s Bring to front / Send to back (and the ] / [ keys) set the stacking order explicitly.

The right-click verb menu

Right-clicking a component builds a menu from what that component is and where it sits. A few lead the menu; the rest tuck behind a More… disclosure so the common actions stay short. Not every verb shows on every component — the menu only lists what applies:

VerbAppears onEffect
FlipAnything with two facesTurn it face-up / face-down
RotateRotatable componentsTurn it 90° (or to the next allowed angle)
RollDiceReroll to a random face
PeekA face-down componentPrivately look at its hidden face
Tap / UntapCards and piecesExhaust or ready it (a 90° tap)
Lock / UnlockAnythingPin it so it can’t be dragged by accident
InspectCards and piecesEnlarge it in an overlay to read it (see below)
DuplicateAnythingDrop a copy on the table
ClaimAnythingMark it as yours
Select / DeselectCards and tokensAdd it to a batch for a zone-level move
Counter ±stepComponents with a numeric statNudge that stat up or down
Add stat…Anything (un-curated menus)Pin an ad-hoc counter like crit: 2 onto this one piece
Switch stateMulti-state componentsCycle to the next authored state
TintAnythingMark it with a colour (teams, ownership); clear it again
Move to… / Give to…CardsSend it to a named zone, or into another player’s hand
Remove from tableAnythingTake it off the table for this session (setup re-places it next time)

Designers can curate which of these a particular zone offers, so a tightly themed game may show a shorter list on purpose. The same verbs are reachable from the keyboard while hovering a component — F flip, E rotate, R roll, Z peek, T tap, L lock, C duplicate, = / to nudge the first counter — all rebindable in Account → Keyboard shortcuts.

The inspect / enlarge overlay

To read fine print, use Inspect from the menu (or hold V over the component). This opens a large, centred view of the component — purely a closer look, with no change to the table and nothing broadcast to other players. It respects hidden faces: a card you aren’t allowed to see stays a generic back even when enlarged. Close it with Escape or a click away.

A note on stacked contents

A component sitting inside a deck, a pile, or a hand is handled through that container’s inspector rather than a floating menu — right-clicking there opens the container inspector, whose per-row drawers carry these same verbs. Loose components out on the felt use the pop-up menu above.

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