With Arcana, I felt there was a place for a grid tactics game that finds a middle ground for complexity between Fire Emblem, which has a very small set of actions per unit, and XCOM, which sees a significant increase in complexity per unit over time. Each unit is defined by their Stance, Action, and Stance-Swap Ability. Their Stance determines their passive state, and basic statistics like movement and attack range. Their Action is based on which Stance they are currently in, and their Stance-Swap Ability carries out a secondary Action and then swaps the character to their other Stance.

Characters have 4 total abilities, but only two to consider in any one turn. The Stance system also allows for flavorful hybrid archetype characters, like a longbow sniper who can swap to a shorter-range ranger Stance, or a mace-wielding cleric who can swap to a massive shield.