It didn't go well.
I had a really tough time teaching my playtester how to play the game. We ran into language issues, unclear rules, complex steps, and unintuitive mechanics.
We didn't even finish the match. We got an hour in and I had lost patience.
I was so discouraged after the playtest that I shelved the project for a while. I felt that the project was so large already, I had spent so many hours transcribing the cards and researching, and now the rules proved to be a foundation of sand.
In my distress the project felt impossible.
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Fast forward a few weeks, and I chat with a friend about my issues. I start translating the rule mechanics from their unclear thematic language to more common terms.
That's where I had my breakthrough: The rules weren't air-tight or clear. One term (Deploy) refers to two completely different operations (Playing a card from your hand, and turning a card from face-down to face-up). The rules for tactics cards aren't clear on what order to resolve them in. Etc.
That gave me a way to continue the project - I was having trouble teaching the rules because the rules are unclear, and don't make sense, and are incomplete.
If I fix the rules, and fill in the gaps, I should be able to teach the game more easily and get to grips with the gameplay faster.
I'm now taking the rules apart at the atomic level, and using Magic: The Gathering Rules to fill in the gaps and extrapolate solutions from 30 years of their rulebook development.
