Fighter Advancements

The fighter advancement system allows players to spend experience points (XP) to improve their fighters in campaign mode. This document describes the implementation and usage of the advancement system.

Overview

Advancements are improvements that fighters can purchase using XP earned during campaigns. The system uses a multi-step wizard interface that guides players through:

1. Dice Rolling Choice - Choose between random rolling (cheaper) or manual selection (more expensive)

2. Advancement Selection - Pick a specific advancement based on dice roll or manual choice

3. Confirmation - Review and confirm the advancement purchase

There are two main types of advancements:

• Characteristic Increases - Improve fighter stats like Movement, Weapon Skill, etc.

• New Skills - Learn skills from Primary, Secondary, or other skill categories

Model Structure

ListFighterAdvancement

The ListFighterAdvancement model tracks all advancements purchased by a fighter:

class ListFighterAdvancement(AppBase):
    fighter = models.ForeignKey(ListFighter, ...)
    advancement_type = models.CharField(...)  # "stat" or "skill"
    stat_increased = models.CharField(...)    # For stat advancements
    skill = models.ForeignKey(ContentSkill, ...)  # For skill advancements
    xp_cost = models.PositiveIntegerField(...)
    cost_increase = models.IntegerField(...)
    campaign_action = models.OneToOneField("CampaignAction", ...)

Key features:

• Tracks which fighter purchased the advancement

• Records the type of advancement (stat or skill)

• For stat advances: which characteristic was improved

• For skill advances: which skill was gained

• Tracks XP cost and any increase to the fighter's credit value

• Links to campaign action if dice were rolled

XP Tracking

Fighters track their XP using two fields:

• xp_total - Total XP earned throughout the campaign

• xp_current - Available XP that can be spent

When an advancement is purchased, the XP cost is deducted from xp_current.

Form Flow

The advancement system uses a wizard-style interface with these steps:

Step 1: Start (list_fighter_advancement_start)

Initiates the advancement process and redirects to dice choice.

Step 2: Dice Choice (list_fighter_advancement_dice_choice)

AdvancementDiceChoiceForm - Player chooses:

• Roll 2D6 - Cheaper option, limits choices based on dice result

• Manual Selection - More expensive, allows any advancement

Step 3: Type Selection (list_fighter_advancement_type)

AdvancementTypeForm - Based on dice roll (or manual choice), shows available advancements:

• Stat improvements (Movement, Weapon Skill, etc.)

• Skill options (Primary/Secondary, Random/Chosen)

• Special options (Promote to Specialist, Any Random Skill)

Each option shows its XP cost based on the roll-to-cost mapping.

Step 4: Skill Selection (list_fighter_advancement_select)

If a skill advancement was chosen:

• SkillSelectionForm - Pick specific skill from available categories

• RandomSkillForm - Accept randomly rolled skill

Step 5: Confirmation (list_fighter_advancement_confirm)

Reviews the selected advancement showing:

• What was selected

• XP cost

• Credit increase

• Option to confirm or cancel

Views

The advancement system uses these views:

• list_fighter_advancements - Lists all advancements for a fighter

• list_fighter_advancement_start - Initiates the advancement wizard

• list_fighter_advancement_dice_choice - Handles dice vs manual selection

• list_fighter_advancement_type - Shows available advancement options

• list_fighter_advancement_select - Skill selection for skill advancements

• list_fighter_advancement_confirm - Final confirmation and purchase

• list_fighter_xp_edit - Modify fighter's XP directly

Business Rules

XP Costs

The system uses a dice roll to XP cost mapping:

• Rolling 2-4, 12: 20 XP (includes special advancements)

• Rolling 5-6: 30 XP (high-value stat increases)

• Rolling 7, 10-11: 10 XP (moderate improvements)

• Rolling 8-9: 5 XP (cheapest options)

• Manual selection: Additional cost on top of base costs

Default advancement for each roll:

• 2, 12: Promote to Specialist

• 3: Weapon Skill, 4: Ballistic Skill, 5: Strength

• 6: Toughness, 7: Movement, 8: Willpower

• 9: Intelligence, 10: Leadership, 11: Cool

Stat Improvements

• Stats with "+" values (like WS 4+) improve by reducing the number

• Other stats increase numerically

• Applied via fighter stat overrides

Skill Restrictions

• Can only learn skills from Primary or Secondary categories

• Cannot learn the same skill twice

• Some skills may have prerequisites

Campaign Mode Only

• Advancements can only be purchased in campaign mode

• Requires active campaign participation

Templates

Key templates:

• list_fighter_advancements.html - Shows all advancements for a fighter

• list_fighter_advancement_dice_choice.html - Dice vs manual selection

• list_fighter_advancement_type.html - Advancement options based on roll

• list_fighter_advancement_select.html - Skill selection interface

• list_fighter_advancement_confirm.html - Final confirmation screen

Integration Points

Campaign Actions

When dice are rolled for an advancement, it creates a CampaignAction record to track:

• Who rolled

• What was rolled (2d6, 2d6+2)

• Results

• Links back to the advancement

Fighter Cost

Each advancement increases the fighter's cost:

• Stat increases: typically +5 credits per stat point

• Skills: varies by skill value

History Tracking

All advancement records use django-simple-history for audit trails.

Example Usage

# Check if fighter can purchase advancements
if fighter.list.status == List.CAMPAIGN_MODE and fighter.xp_current > 0:
    # Fighter can buy advancements

# Apply an advancement
advancement = ListFighterAdvancement.objects.create(
    fighter=fighter,
    advancement_type=ListFighterAdvancement.ADVANCEMENT_STAT,
    stat_increased="weapon_skill",
    xp_cost=6,
    cost_increase=5
)
advancement.apply_advancement()  # Applies the stat increase

Frontend Behavior

• Uses a multi-page wizard flow (not modals)

• Session storage tracks advancement state between steps

• Shows dice rolls and available options dynamically

• Validates selections at each step

• Allows going back to previous steps

Error Handling

Common validation errors:

• Insufficient XP

• Invalid stat/skill selection

• Attempting advancement outside campaign mode

• Duplicate skill selection

All errors display user-friendly messages guiding correct usage.