1  # VII Legio
  2  
  3  A digital rebuild of *VII Legio* — the 1981 bilingual (French / English) sci-fi
  4  board game in which the Republica Solaris dispatches legionary vessels into the
  5  outer galactic sectors to explore, ally, fight, and expand the Republic's
  6  dominion.
  7  
  8  > Year **1781 P.S.** (Post Solaris). Take command of a legionary vessel, rig her
  9  > for the void, and write your name into the rank ladder of the Army of Space.
 10  
 11  ## Status
 12  
 13  **Planning phase.** No application code lives in this repository yet. The work
 14  in progress is documentation: rules reconstruction, product requirements, and
 15  architecture decisions. Implementation begins once the planning documents
 16  converge.
 17  
 18  The previous Expo prototype (a 2,400-line monolith, web-only) has been archived
 19  under `legacy/` as a reference implementation.
 20  
 21  ## Repository layout
 22  
 23  ```
 24  .
 25  ├── doc/      # Diataxis-structured user-facing documentation (org-mode + HTML)
 26  ├── Docs/     # Internal planning docs and rules reference (markdown)
 27  └── legacy/   # Archived Expo prototype, kept for reference only
 28  ```
 29  
 30  ### `doc/` — published documentation
 31  
 32  Organised along the [Diataxis](https://diataxis.fr/) framework. Open
 33  `doc/index.html` in a browser, or read the org sources directly.
 34  
 35  | Quadrant | Audience need | Where |
 36  |----------|---------------|-------|
 37  | Tutorials | Learning by doing | `doc/tutorials/` |
 38  | How-to guides | Solving a specific task | `doc/howto/` |
 39  | Reference | Looking something up mid-play | `doc/reference/` (and `Docs/Rules/`) |
 40  | Explanation | Understanding the design | `doc/explanation/` |
 41  | Teaching | Deep dives with exercises | `doc/teaching/` |
 42  
 43  ### `Docs/Rules/` — game rules reference
 44  
 45  Eleven markdown files reconstructing the original 1981 rulebook from rulebook
 46  photography:
 47  
 48  | File | Topic |
 49  |------|-------|
 50  | `01-overview.md` | Setting, core loop, win/lose conditions |
 51  | `02-ships.md` | Vessel classes (FROMBOLA, GLADIUM, SPATHA, HASTA), slot ranges, container costs |
 52  | `03-weapons.md` | Weapon types and Force de Combat (F.C.) formulas |
 53  | `04-modules-and-specialists.md` | Module effects and specialist officers |
 54  | `05-galaxy-and-planets.md` | Planet types, terrain, aliens, travel |
 55  | `06-missions.md` | Mission types, attitudes, resolution, points |
 56  | `07-operative-tables.md` | All operative tables (A through S) |
 57  | `08-damage-and-repair.md` | HP tiers, damage sources, repair mechanics |
 58  | `09-ranks-and-progression.md` | Rank ladder and promotion |
 59  | `10-persistence.md` | Save system and slots |
 60  | `11-game-flow.md` | Screen transitions and game states |
 61  
 62  ### `Docs/PLAN.md` — planning roadmap
 63  
 64  Tracks the documents to produce *before* writing any code:
 65  
 66  1. **PRD** — what the game is, who it's for, success criteria
 67  2. **ADR-001** — stack choice
 68  3. **ADR-002** — architecture / module boundaries
 69  4. **ADR-003** — state management
 70  5. **ADR-004** — navigation
 71  6. **ADR-005** — persistence
 72  
 73  ## Game in one screen
 74  
 75  - **Setup** — name a commander, pick a vessel class
 76  - **Ship rigging** — allocate containers across crew, weapons, systems, modules,
 77    and specialist officers
 78  - **Galaxy exploration** — travel between procedurally generated planets, paying
 79    fuel each jump
 80  - **Planet approach** — choose a landing attitude (aggressive, cautious, peaceful)
 81  - **Mission** — combat, capture, alliance, elimination, commerce, or exploration
 82  - **Resolution** — dice cross-referenced against the operative tables (A–S)
 83  - **Win** at rank Fabius (80+ points). **Lose** when all crew are dead.
 84  
 85  ## Key concepts
 86  
 87  - **F.C. (Force de Combat)** — combat power, computed from crew, weapons,
 88    modules, and specialists
 89  - **Containers** — finite cargo capacity; every installed unit consumes some
 90  - **Operative Tables** — cross-reference tables (A through S) that resolve
 91    every game action
 92  - **Component HP** — each installed unit has individual HP with tiered
 93    degradation (no monolithic "ship HP")
 94  
 95  ## Legacy prototype
 96  
 97  `legacy/vii-legio-expo/` contains the original Expo + React Native prototype
 98  (`VIILegio.jsx`, ~2,400 lines, single file). It is **not** maintained; it
 99  exists as a reference for behaviour, edge cases, and the table data that the
100  rebuild will consume. See `legacy/vii-legio-expo/NATIVE_MIGRATION.md` for the
101  notes that motivated the rebuild.
102  
103  ## Source
104  
105  Based on *VII Legio* (1981), bilingual French / English sci-fi board game.
106  Rules reconstructed from original rulebook photography.