The Living Codex

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The Living Codex is a local-first tabletop character companion designed for real play at the table, not just data entry. v2 is now the active release line, and legacy v1 has been archived under archive/v1/.

Quick Start

Run a local server from the project root:

cd The-Living-Codex
python3 -m http.server 8000

Then open http://localhost:8000/.

That root entry is the canonical v2 experience. If you open the app directly via file://, browser module restrictions can prevent loading, so always use local HTTP.

What You Get in v2

v2 gives you a fast Play Mode and a full Edit Mode, with local save/import/export flows, subclass and spell lookup, multiclass-aware visuals, and species/class identity elements (including default portraits and class badges). It runs fully local-first, with no backend and no cloud dependency.

Screenshots

Create Character Empty-state onboarding with species/class preview guidance.	Create Character (Populated) Live portrait and class badge preview before creation.
Edit Mode: Core Identity, ability scores, species, and class foundations.	Edit Mode: Spellcraft Prepared/known spell management and spellcasting setup.
Edit Mode: Combat & Mechanics Saves, skills, attacks, and derived combat values.	Edit Mode: Gear Inventory, quantities, notes, and tracker/log entry points.
Edit Mode: Chronicle Portrait, background, story details, and coin tracking.	Play Mode: Tactical Board At-table HUD with quick actions, logs, and turn workflow.

Typical Flow

Create or import a character, refine identity and mechanics in Edit Mode, then switch to Play Mode for turn-by-turn decisions, tracking, and logging. When you want a backup or to move devices, export a ZIP character pack.

Project Layout

The main implementation lives in js/v2/ with styling in css/v2.css, while 2014 rules data is in data/dnd5e_2014/. If you need implementation and pack-format details, docs/v2-spec.md is the source of truth. Legacy code remains available in archive/v1/ for reference only.

Troubleshooting

If the app fails to load, confirm you are opening http://localhost:8000/ and not a file URL. If import/export behaves unexpectedly, verify vendor scripts are present in vendor/. If the UI looks stale after updates, do a hard refresh to clear cached assets.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome through issues and pull requests. The most useful bug reports include reproduction steps, expected vs actual behavior, and any console errors.

Legal, Copyright, and Trademarks

This repository contains original software, UI, and project-authored content owned by this project and its contributors.

Dungeons & Dragons, Wizards of the Coast, and related names or marks are trademarks and/or copyrighted property of their respective owners. The Living Codex does not claim ownership of third-party intellectual property.

No warranty. Use at your own risk; you’re responsible for outcomes and any errors.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE.

The MIT license applies to original code and project-authored content in this repository. It does not grant rights to third-party IP, trademarks, or copyrighted material.