Version 0.5.2 is a refinement-focused release.

Rather than introducing one single headline feature, this update strengthens how cards are created, connected, styled, adjusted, and exported. It's about making the workflow feel more deliberate, more stable, and more capable --- especially when you're building structured decks or double-sided cards.

There's a lot here. Some changes are visible immediately. Others quietly make the app feel more reliable and predictable.

🔁 Proper Front & Back Card Pairing

You can now formally pair two card faces together.

Instead of manually keeping track of which front belongs to which back, the app now understands that relationship.

This means:

• fronts and backs are intentionally linked
• exports recognise paired cards and handle them correctly
• deleting one side won't silently leave the other in a broken state
• you can still edit each face independently

If you're creating equipment with backs, artefacts, spells, NPCs, location decks, or any custom system that relies on two-sided cards, this removes friction and uncertainty.

It turns pairing into a feature --- not a manual habit.

✍️ A Clearer Draft Workflow

Creating new cards now behaves more like working on a draft.

When you start a new card, it isn't immediately treated as something permanent. You can experiment, adjust artwork, change titles, and explore layout ideas before explicitly saving.

This makes it easier to:

• try ideas without committing too early
• avoid accidental partial saves
• explore layout options safely

It's a subtle shift, but it makes the creative process calmer and more intentional.

🎨 Smart Border Colour Suggestions

Custom border colours have become a popular way to visually group decks.

In 0.5.2, the app can now analyse your artwork and suggest border colours pulled directly from the image itself.

That means:

• borders that naturally complement your artwork=
• more cohesive-looking decks
• less guesswork when choosing colours

You can still pick colours manually, but now you have intelligent suggestions as a starting point.

🔄 More Precise Artwork Controls

Artwork adjustments have been expanded and stabilised.

You can now rotate your main image, alongside scaling and positioning. Transform behaviour has also been refined to feel more predictable and consistent.

This helps when:

• portrait art needs slight correction
• compositions are slightly angled
• you're working with cropped or unconventional artwork

There's also improved reset behaviour, so returning to a clean default state is simple and reliable.

🧠 Smarter Text Handling

Text behaviour has been carefully refined across titles and stats.

The app is now better at:

• shrinking long titles to stay within their ribbons
• handling extreme values without breaking layout
• keeping stat blocks visually balanced
• maintaining alignment even with unusual inputs

These improvements reduce edge cases and make layout behaviour more predictable --- especially when experimenting with longer names or custom rule systems.

👁️ Better Control Over Title Visibility

You can now explicitly toggle whether a title is shown, without deleting its value.

This allows you to:

• temporarily hide titles for design purposes
• experiment with minimal layouts
• keep stored information without forcing it to render

It adds flexibility without compromising structure.

🧱 Continued Layout Refinement

A significant amount of quiet visual tuning has taken place.

Font relationships, stat alignment, icon positioning, and spacing have all been refined to bring cards closer to official HeroQuest proportions.

Individually these changes are subtle. Together, they make cards feel more polished and cohesive --- particularly when printed or viewed alongside official components.

📦 More Reliable Export Behaviour

Export logic has been strengthened to better understand paired cards.

When exporting:

• paired cards are grouped correctly
• ordering remains stable and predictable
• no manual reorganisation is required afterward

You can focus on design, not post-export housekeeping.

🧭 Inspector Improvements

The inspector has also been refined to feel smoother and more stable:

• reduced layout shifting when sections expand
• improved grouping for clarity
• more consistent preview behaviour during editing

These are small usability improvements, but they make longer editing sessions feel calmer.

🧭 Optional 3D Preview Improvements

The experimental 3D preview has been refined:

• smoother rotation
• improved interaction stability
• reset control for orientation

The 2D view remains the authoritative preview, but the 3D view is now more polished for those who enjoy using it.

🛡️ Increased Stability & Data Safety

Behind the scenes, additional safeguards have been added to prevent:

• broken front/back links
• inconsistent artwork transform states
• accidental structural inconsistencies

You won't necessarily notice these changes directly --- and that's the point. The app is simply harder to break accidentally.

🌱 A Stronger Foundation

Version 0.5.2 strengthens the structure introduced in earlier blueprint-based updates.

It improves:

• how cards relate to one another
• how layout decisions are handled
• how artwork behaves
• how exports are organised

All without introducing breaking changes.

❤️ Thank You

This release reflects continued feedback around pairing, layout precision, colour workflows, and editing stability.

If you're building structured decks, experimenting with custom systems, or refining the visual identity of your cards, 0.5.2 should make that process smoother and more deliberate.

As always, I'd love to see what you create.