Retro Sci-Fi Newspaper Front Page
Goal: Create a monochrome retro sci-fi broadsheet newspaper front page for a fictional space game, titled {argument name="newspaper name" default="The Gradient News & Observer"}, with dense editorial layout, distressed ink texture, engraved line art, and mock classified-news typography.
Canvas: Tall vertical newspaper page, approximately 2:3 aspect ratio, off-white paper background, black ink only, slightly aged print texture, thin decorative borders, tiny registration marks, halftone dots, honeycomb grid motifs, technical diagram ornaments, and vintage newspaper engraving style.
Masthead: At the very top, a large ornate banner with the title “THE GRADIENT NEWS & OBSERVER” in bold decorative serif lettering. Under it, a ribbon slogan reads “ALL THE NEWS THE VOID ALLOWS.” Add small sci-fi ornaments: a planet landscape vignette on the left, a satellite dish on the right, star-map nodes, filigree curls, and rules. Beneath the masthead, include an edition strip reading “FRONT-PAGE EDITION — TWELVE HOURS ENDING 2026-05-15 19:17 UTC.”
Layout: Use exactly 10 bordered article panels beneath the masthead. Arrange them as: 2 large lead stories across the upper half, 5 narrow vertical story cards in the middle row, and 3 wider panels in the bottom row. Every panel should have its own small category tag, bold condensed all-caps headline, columns of tiny readable-looking body text, decorative dividers, and one or more black-and-white sci-fi illustrations.
Article count and visible content:
1. Large upper-left lead article, category “COMBAT WIRE,” headline: “IZMIR YBEL STACKS OFFENSIVE GARRISONS IN CONTESTED BORDERLANDS; DOGTOWN PROBE LOST IN TWIN SKIRMISHES.” Include a huge hovering fortress or orbital platform above an industrial city gate, with roads receding toward it.
2. Large upper-right lead article, category “OPEN CHANNEL,” headline: “DISTRESS CALL FROM DEEP SECTOR DRAWS VOLUNTEER RESCUE OFFER.” Include a deep-space station, a rescue ship, asteroid debris, and a bright explosion or distress flare.
3. Middle-row first narrow card, category “FRONTIER JUSTICE,” headline: “THE CONSPICUOUS PILOT JOE CHRISTMAS HOLDS THE OPEN CHANNEL.” Include a skull-and-wings emblem, a small spacecraft, a planetary horizon, and a tiny monitor graphic.
4. Middle-row second narrow card, category “SHIPYARD,” headline: “EIGHT KESTRELS OFF THE LOT IN A SINGLE HALF-DAY.” Include a crashed or parked angular ship on rocky ground.
5. Middle-row third narrow card, category “CARTOGRAPHY,” headline: “P-1 LOGS 703 SECTOR HOPS ACROSS THE HALF-DAY.” Include a small explorer craft flying above a hex-map planet surface.
6. Middle-row fourth narrow card, category “PUBLIC AFFAIRS,” headline: “PILOT FILES OPEN-CHANNEL BUG REPORT ON MOBILE CLIENT.” Include exactly 3 stacked numbered ship/profile rows labeled “1 AZURE HAULER,” “2 CHARTREUSE HAULER,” and “3 JADE HAULER.”
7. Middle-row fifth narrow card, category “CORPORATE AFFAIRS,” headline: “EIGHT NEW CORPORATIONS CHARTERED IN TWELVE HOURS.” Include small spacecraft thumbnails and industrial silhouettes.
8. Bottom-left wide panel, category “MARKET UPDATE,” headline: “MARKET UPDATE — TWELVE-HOUR GALACTIC INDEX.” Include a table with columns such as “MEASURE,” “VALUE,” “TOP OF THE BOARDS,” “PILOT,” and “SCORE,” plus a small bar/line chart and a long cargo ship illustration.
9. Bottom-middle panel, category “OPEN-CHANNEL CONFIDENTIAL,” headline: “TWO NAMES, ONE ENDORSEMENT, ELEVEN SECONDS APART.” Include a badge-like pilot emblem and a round capsule or pod drifting in space.
10. Bottom-right panel, category “THE MEGA-PORT SET,” headline: “THE MEGA-PORT SET FILES AN RSVP.” Include a uniformed captain portrait in the upper right, a star-network diagram, and a sleek landed spacecraft.
Visual style: 19th-century newspaper meets dieselpunk space opera; dense black ink crosshatching, stipple shading, halftone screens, fine technical linework, distressed letterpress, narrow gutters, ornate corner brackets, and bold condensed headline fonts. Make the page feel authentic, busy, collectible, and slightly humorous, like an in-universe gazette.
Constraints: Use only black, gray, and off-white. Keep all 10 panels visible and separated. No modern glossy color, no photorealism, no watermark, no extra panels. Body text may be tiny pseudo-newspaper copy but headlines and main masthead must be legible. Maintain the fictional sci-fi newspaper theme and the exact masthead slogan.
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