acdream/docs/README.md

# acdream documentation map

This page is the entry point for project documentation. It distinguishes
current sources of truth from implementation history so an old plan or issue
banner cannot silently override the current program state.

## Current snapshot — 2026-07-20

- **Active milestone:** M3, “Cast a spell.” The automated implementation and
  connected single-client magic/portal presentation gates are complete.
- **Next visual gates:** the R6 locomotion/collision/projectile/teleport retail
  comparison, then the final two-client portal-out/materialization observer
  comparison (`#218`).
- **Separate visual verification:** the shared-alpha lifestone/particle result
  in `#225`; its connected resource-lifetime and performance routes pass.
- **Carried behavior debt:** `#153` (far teleport onto an unstreamed edge),
  `#116` (two narrowed slide-response cases), and divergence rows TS-50/TS-51.
- **Deferred engineering tracks:** Modern Pipeline MP1b+ and Linux/headless
  automation (Track LH). Neither is part of the active M3 gate.
- **Divergence audit:** 178 active rows — IA 17, AD 37, AP 85, TS 34,
  and UN 5 — plus the retained retired TS-37 history note.
- **Latest automated baseline:** Release build succeeds with 17 known
  test-project warnings (`#228`); 6,452 tests passed and 5 intentionally
  skipped. The unattended connected R6 route
  completed seven portal materializations, production input exercises, and a
  graceful close. See
  [`research/2026-07-20-connected-r6-soak.md`](research/2026-07-20-connected-r6-soak.md).

## Sources of truth

Read these in this order when deciding what to do next:

1. [`plans/2026-05-12-milestones.md`](plans/2026-05-12-milestones.md) — the
   active playable outcome, freeze boundaries, and visual gates.
2. [`plans/2026-04-11-roadmap.md`](plans/2026-04-11-roadmap.md) — strategic
   phase ledger: shipped, active, deferred, and future work.
3. [`ISSUES.md`](ISSUES.md) — tactical defects and small follow-ups. The status
   inside an issue is authoritative; physical order is not.
4. [`architecture/retail-divergence-register.md`](architecture/retail-divergence-register.md)
   — every known place runtime behavior can differ from retail.
5. [`architecture/acdream-architecture.md`](architecture/acdream-architecture.md)
   and [`architecture/code-structure.md`](architecture/code-structure.md) —
   ownership, dependency, update-thread, and extraction rules.
6. [`architecture/worldbuilder-inventory.md`](architecture/worldbuilder-inventory.md)
   — rendering/DAT code already owned in-tree versus mechanisms still ours to
   port.

If these disagree, milestones control the current outcome, the roadmap controls
work ordering, the issue status controls the individual defect, and the
architecture documents control implementation shape. Reconcile the stale
document in the same change; do not leave both claims standing.

## Research and implementation records

- [`research/named-retail/`](research/named-retail/) is the primary retail
  oracle: named pseudo-C, headers, symbols, and types from the Sept 2013 build.
- [`research/decompiled/`](research/decompiled/) is the older Ghidra fallback.
- [`research/`](research/) contains focused pseudocode, traces, fixtures, and
  gate reports. A dated research note records evidence; it does not become a
  new roadmap.
- [`superpowers/specs/`](superpowers/specs/) and
  [`superpowers/plans/`](superpowers/plans/) are per-slice design and execution
  records. Completed plans remain historical.
- [`audit/`](audit/) contains completion and conformance audits.

## Durable memory

- [`../claude-memory/MEMORY.md`](../claude-memory/MEMORY.md) indexes the live
  subsystem memories and the render/physics digests. Read a domain digest
  before changing that subsystem, especially its DO-NOT-RETRY table.
- [`../memory/`](../memory/) contains stable engineering references such as the
  modern rendering pipeline, two-tier streaming, and toolchain notes.

Memory accelerates recall; it does not outrank the canonical documents above.
When current truth changes, update the relevant canonical document and distill
only the durable lesson into memory.

## Historical and deprecated documents

- [`bugs.md`](bugs.md) is the April 2026 bug snapshot. It is preserved for
  archaeology and is not an active ledger.
- Dated plans and specs describe the decision at that time. Their completion
  wording is historical unless the current milestone/roadmap explicitly links
  the item as active.
- Old `R1→R8` architecture sequencing is superseded. Current execution comes
  from the milestones and strategic roadmap.

## Documentation maintenance rules

- Update milestone, roadmap, issue, divergence, architecture, and memory claims
  in the same commit when a shipped change affects them.
- Keep one issue ID per defect. Narrow an issue in place; do not reuse another
  issue's number as a shorthand.
- Mark automated, connected, and visual gates separately. An automated pass is
  not a visual acceptance, and an RDP throughput sample is not a local-display
  visual comparison.
- Preserve research history, but remove stale “current/next” claims from living
  documents once the state advances.