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Synergy Explorer: one center card, one case file, one primary action

2026-07-19 | 2 min read

Synergy Explorer: one center card, one case file, one primary action

Synergy Explorer maps mechanical partners around a card you choose. The hybrid engine is unchanged: archetype classification plus Gemma embeddings (mode=synergy). What changed is the information architecture—so the page asks for one clear job instead of several competing ones.

The job

  1. Center a card (search, seed, trail jump, or double-click a node).
  2. Inspect a partner in the case-file panel.
  3. Act with one primary CTA: buy on TCGplayer, or log to collection when buy isn’t available.

Everything else is secondary.

Case-file hierarchy

When you select a node, the detail panel now follows a fixed order:

  1. Identity — name, type, set, art, price pill.
  2. Verdict — synergy score first, then a short relationship line (strong partner / solid fit / theme-related).
  3. Deeper on demand — oracle text stays behind a disclosure so the score isn’t buried.
  4. One primary CTA — Buy on TCGplayer (with price when known). Track/log, re-center, and full card details live under More.

Owned cards still show an In collection status without turning the panel into a button farm.

Trail stays quiet

The exploration breadcrumb remains so you can jump back through centers. It is styled as a quiet trail (not a second action bar) so it never competes with the case-file primary CTA.

Shopping list is a dock

Partners still accumulate into a shopping list as you explore, but the list is no longer a full-width peer of the graph. It collapses into a Reveal / Hide dock: count and estimated total on the bar; missing-only filter, clear, and mass TCGplayer entry only after you open it.

Studio canvas

The page uses the shared navy/teal studio shell (same language as Deck Studio and Scan): brand-first tool hero, teal/sky accents, no indigo glass HUD, no emoji chrome.

Unchanged under the hood

  • /api/cards/search?mode=synergy hybrid scoring
  • Client-side mechanical edges between outer nodes
  • Affiliate subId1=synergy-explorer / shopping-list tracking
  • Collection logging analytics source synergy-explorer

Try it: open Synergy Explorer, center a commander or staple, click a partner, and take one action from the case file.

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