Screen Effects

Full-screen visual effects that sit above all HA and LCARdS UI

Screen effects cover the entire viewport with composited overlays: blur, colour tints, TV static, pixelation, glitch artefacts, CRT scanlines, and more. They are designed for alert states, dramatic transitions, and automation-triggered feedback.

Quick Start

// Browser console - play for 2 seconds then auto-dismiss
window.lcards.screenEffect.play('static', { duration: 2000 })

// Apply slot effects persistently (stays until cleared)
window.lcards.screenEffect.applySlot('backdrop', 'blur', { amount: '12px' })
window.lcards.screenEffect.applySlot('color', 'color-tint', { color: 'rgba(180,0,0,0.35)' })
window.lcards.screenEffect.clear()

yaml

# HA automation
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: glitch
  duration: 1500

Preset Reference

Backdrop presets

These use the CSS backdrop-filter property; they filter the browser content visually without obscuring it with an opaque layer. Works best on content-rich dashboards.

`blur`

Applies a Gaussian blur to everything behind the overlay.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`amount`	string	`'8px'`	CSS blur radius, e.g. `'4px'`, `'20px'`

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    backdrop:
      preset: blur
      amount: "12px"
  duration: 3000

`saturate`

Boosts colour saturation of the screen behind the overlay.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`amount`	string	`'200%'`	CSS saturation, e.g. `'150%'`, `'400%'`

`grayscale`

Desaturates the screen behind the overlay.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`amount`	string	`'100%'`	CSS grayscale amount. `'100%'` = full B&W, `'50%'` = partial

`contrast`

Increases or decreases contrast.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`amount`	string	`'200%'`	CSS contrast amount, e.g. `'150%'`, `'300%'`

`hue-rotate`

Rotates all hues on screen.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`angle`	string	`'180deg'`	CSS hue rotation, e.g. `'90deg'`, `'-45deg'`

Color tint presets

These render a <div> with a CSS background above all screen content.

`color-tint`

Semi-transparent colour flood over the entire screen.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`color`	string	`'rgba(0,0,0,0.5)'`	Any CSS colour: hex, rgb, rgba, hsl

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    color:
      preset: color-tint
      color: "rgba(180, 0, 0, 0.4)"
  duration: 2000

`vignette`

Dark radial gradient at the screen edges, like a cinematic vignette.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`opacity`	number	`0.7`	Darkness of the edge fade (0–1)

Canvas presets

These draw directly above all content using a Canvas2D rAF loop. They blend with the underlying screen using CSS mix-blend-mode so content shows through.

Canvas and screen content

For browser security reasons, canvas effects cannot read the actual pixels of the HA dashboard; they generate synthetic overlays. The visual result is an obscuring or distorting texture layered over the real content.

`static`

TV static noise. Chunky random pixel noise scaled up with image-rendering: pixelated.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`opacity`	number	`0.55`	Overall canvas opacity (0–1)
`scale`	number	`4`	Down-sample factor. Higher = larger/chunkier pixels. `2` = fine grain, `8` = very coarse
`color`	string	`'#ffffff'`	Tint colour for noise pixels
`tintStrength`	number	`0`	0–1 blend toward `color`. `0` = pure noise, `1` = solid colour

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: static
      scale: 6
      opacity: 0.7
  duration: 800

`pixelate`

Mosaic of small dark blocks with subtle lightness variance. Simulates low-resolution signal degradation. Uses mix-blend-mode: multiply; blocks darken content proportionally.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`pixelSize`	number	`8`	Block size in px. Larger = chunkier mosaic
`opacity`	number	`0.75`	Overall canvas opacity (0–1)
`variance`	number	`0.35`	Lightness jitter per block (0–1). `0` = uniform, `1` = max contrast
`baseLight`	number	`80`	Base grey lightness (0–255). Lower = darker blocks
`color`	string	`'#8c9aa6'`	Tint colour blended into each mosaic block
`tintStrength`	number	`0`	0–1 blend toward `color`. `0` = neutral gray mosaic, `1` = solid colour blocks

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: pixelate
      pixelSize: 12
      opacity: 0.6
  duration: 2000

`glitch`

Sparse horizontal displacement bands with thin chroma-aberration edge lines. Uses mix-blend-mode: overlay. Keeps only a small fraction of rows active per frame for an authentic data-corruption look.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`intensity`	number	`0.08`	Fraction of row-bands glitched per frame (0–1). Keep low (0.05–0.15) for subtle effect
`maxShift`	number	`40`	Maximum horizontal offset in px
`bandHeight`	number	`4`	Height of each glitch band in px
`opacity`	number	`0.85`	Overall canvas opacity (0–1)
`fps`	number	`20`	Target frame rate

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: glitch
      intensity: 0.12
      maxShift: 60
  duration: 1000

`scanlines`

CRT-style horizontal line overlay. Optionally scrolls vertically.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`lineHeight`	number	`4`	Height of each line pair in px
`opacity`	number	`0.25`	Dark line opacity (0–1)
`scroll`	number	`0`	Scroll speed in px/s. `0` = static, positive = downward

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: scanlines
      lineHeight: 3
      opacity: 0.35
      scroll: 40

`borg-assimilation`

Green tendrils grow across the screen from several injection sites, with nano-probe particles travelling along them. This is the effect behind Borg Assimilation, and it can be triggered on its own.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`siteCount`	number	`7`	Number of injection sites (1 to 20)
`tendrilsPerSite`	number	`8`	Tendrils grown from each site (1 to 24)
`tendrilLength`	number	`600`	Maximum tendril reach in px (100 to 1200)
`particleCount`	number	`2`	Particles travelling each tendril (0 to 6; `0` disables)
`color`	string	`'#00cc44'`	Tendril, branch and site colour (hex, CSS variable or computed token)
`glowColor`	string	`'#00ff66'`	Glow at each site and around particles

yaml

service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: borg-assimilation
      siteCount: 5
      color: var(--lcars-martian)

HA Service

`lcards.trigger_effect`

Fire one or more layered screen effects from an automation, script, or developer tools. Each of the three slots is configured independently; include only the slots you want.

yaml

# Full red alert - blur + red tint + TV static
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    backdrop:
      preset: blur
      amount: "12px"
    color:
      preset: color-tint
      color: "rgba(180, 0, 0, 0.35)"
    canvas:
      preset: static
      opacity: 0.3
  duration: 5000              # auto-clear after 5 s

yaml

# Canvas-only effect, broadcast to all browsers
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas:
      preset: glitch
      intensity: 0.15
  duration: 1200

yaml

# Persistent blur on a specific user - stays until lcards.clear_effect
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    backdrop:
      preset: blur
      amount: "16px"
  target_user_ids:
    - "a1b2c3d4e5f6"

yaml

# Target a specific browser device by UUID
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    color:
      preset: vignette
      opacity: 0.8
  duration: 3000
  target_device_ids:
    - "abc123def456"

Slots

Slot	Presets	Rendering
`backdrop`	`blur`, `grayscale`, `saturate`, `contrast`, `hue-rotate`	CSS `backdrop-filter`
`color`	`color-tint`, `vignette`	Transparent `<div>` overlay
`canvas`	`static`, `pixelate`, `glitch`, `scanlines`	Canvas2D rAF loop

Omit a slot to leave it unchanged. Set a slot to null to explicitly clear it:

yaml

# Clear only the canvas slot, leave blur alone
service: lcards.trigger_effect
data:
  layers:
    canvas: null

`lcards.clear_effect`

Clear one or all active screen effects.

yaml

# Clear everything on all browsers
service: lcards.clear_effect

# Clear only the canvas slot (leaves blur/tint active)
service: lcards.clear_effect
data:
  slot: canvas

# Clear on a specific device only
service: lcards.clear_effect
data:
  target_device_ids:
    - "abc123def456"

To find your browser's device ID and user ID:

window.lcards.targeting.getMyIds()
// → { deviceId: 'abc123...', userId: 'a1b2c3...' }

Console API

All methods are also available on window.lcards.screenEffect:

// Apply a single slot persistently (stays until clear)
window.lcards.screenEffect.applySlot('backdrop', 'blur', { amount: '12px' })
window.lcards.screenEffect.applySlot('color', 'color-tint', { color: 'rgba(180,0,0,0.35)' })
window.lcards.screenEffect.applySlot('canvas', 'static', { opacity: 0.3 })

// apply() is a shorthand for single-slot presets by name
window.lcards.screenEffect.apply('blur', { amount: '12px' })

// Transient single-slot effect - auto-dismisses after duration ms
window.lcards.screenEffect.play('static', { duration: 2000, scale: 6 })

// Remove effects
window.lcards.screenEffect.clearSlot('backdrop')   // one slot only
window.lcards.screenEffect.clear()                  // all slots

// List all registered preset names
window.lcards.screenEffect.list()

// Register a custom preset at runtime
window.lcards.screenEffect.registerPreset('my-green', {
  slot: 'color',
  defaults: { color: 'rgba(0,255,100,0.3)' },
  enter(el, params) {
    el.style.background = params.color;
    return () => { el.style.background = ''; };
  },
})

Background Animations: card-scoped canvas animations
Card Animations: anime.js per-element animations
Alert Overlay: full-screen alert card that uses screen effects for its backdrop

Screen Effects ​

Quick Start ​

Preset Reference ​

Backdrop presets ​

blur ​

saturate ​

grayscale ​

contrast ​

hue-rotate ​

Color tint presets ​

color-tint ​

vignette ​

Canvas presets ​

static ​

pixelate ​

glitch ​

scanlines ​

borg-assimilation ​

HA Service ​

lcards.trigger_effect ​

Slots ​

lcards.clear_effect ​

Console API ​

Related ​

Screen Effects

Quick Start

Preset Reference

Backdrop presets

`blur`

`saturate`

`grayscale`

`contrast`

`hue-rotate`

Color tint presets

`color-tint`

`vignette`

Canvas presets

`static`

`pixelate`

`glitch`

`scanlines`

`borg-assimilation`

HA Service

`lcards.trigger_effect`

Slots

`lcards.clear_effect`

Console API

Related