acdream/docs/research/2026-05-16-issue77-autowalk-handoff.md

# Issue #77 — close-range auto-walk + pickup overshoot — investigation handoff

**Filed:** 2026-05-16 (in `docs/ISSUES.md` as the active issue at the top)
**Severity:** MEDIUM (M1-deferred polish; visible during normal play, doesn't block any phase)
**Component:** physics / auto-walk / `PlayerMovementController.DriveServerAutoWalk`
**Branch state when handed off:** main at `f8829b3` (post-merge of `claude/hungry-tharp-b4a27b`)

---

## What you're chasing

Two related close-range bugs in the server-driven auto-walk path. Both are
**pre-existing** — not caused by the LiveSessionController extraction
(0b25df5) — they were surfaced during that refactor's visual verification.

### Bug A — NPC at walking range never auto-walks

- User clicks an NPC (e.g. Royal Guard at `0x7A9B46AE`) when the player
  is at "walking range" — far enough that retail would walk a short
  distance to reach the NPC's `useRadius`, not close enough to fire
  Use immediately.
- The client's `WorldPicker` returns `WithinUseRadius=false`, so
  `OnInputAction.UseSelected` defers the Use and would expect ACE's
  inbound `MoveToObject` motion update to drive the player to the NPC.
- **The local player does not visibly move.** Repeated clicks (the trace
  below shows seq 81 → 87 → 90 → 96 → 105 → 141 → 146 → 159 → 163 →
  169 → 173 → 177 against the same Royal Guard) produce the same
  response every time without any movement.

### Bug B — Pickup at walking range runs/overshoots/snaps back

- User presses F on a ground item while in "walking range" of it.
- Player **runs** (not walks) toward the target.
- Overshoots the item, then **blips back** to the correct position
  before the pickup actually fires.
- The pickup completes (item ends up in inventory), but the visual is
  jarring.

The "blips back" almost certainly means ACE's server-side position
correction snaps the player back after the client overshot. The
client's run-not-walk choice is the proximal cause.

---

## What we know already (don't re-discover this)

### Trace evidence captured during merge

From `launch.log` of the Step 2 verification run (task `b01zkw68w`,
2026-05-16, with `ACDREAM_DEVTOOLS=1` + my temporary
`OnLiveMotionUpdated` diagnostic):

```
[B.4b] use guid=0x7A9B46AE seq=159                                ← outbound Use packet sent
OnLiveMotionUpdated: guid=0x5000000A stance=61 cmd=0x speed=      ← player → NonCombat
OnLiveMotionUpdated: guid=0x7A9B46AE stance=61 cmd=0x0003 speed=  ← NPC turns to face
OnLiveMotionUpdated: guid=0x7A9B46AE stance=61 cmd=0x speed=
OnLiveMotionUpdated: guid=0x5000000A stance=0 cmd=0x0005 speed=-1.84   ← ACE sends MoveToObject for player
OnLiveMotionUpdated: guid=0x5000000A stance=0 cmd=0x speed=
```

The pattern repeats identically for every retry — ACE *is* sending the
auto-walk command, but the client isn't engaging it.

**The negative speed (-1.84) is suspicious.** Speed is parsed as a raw
IEEE 754 float by `UpdateMotion.cs:193`. Either retail encodes a sign
that we're misinterpreting, or this is a legitimate "move backward"
instruction (ACE sometimes positions the move-to point behind the
player). The auto-walk engagement condition may be filtering negative
speeds out without our intent.

### What was already established BEFORE this issue

`PlayerMovementController` got significant retail-faithful refactor work
in Phase B.6 (closed-issue #75 territory, commit `f035ea3`). That work
established:

- **Walk/run threshold = 1.0m** of remaining-distance-to-useRadius
  (not ACE's wire-supplied 15m default — that's overridden).
- **One-shot walk/run decision** at `BeginServerAutoWalk` time, held
  for the rest of the chain.
- **Direct body-velocity drive** — auto-walk does NOT synthesize
  `MovementInput`. It steps `Yaw`, sets `_body.set_local_velocity`
  from `runRate`, and calls `_motion.DoMotion(WalkForward, speed)`
  directly.

The auto-walk diagnostic infrastructure already exists:

```
PhysicsDiagnostics.ProbeAutoWalkEnabled   ← runtime-toggleable
ACDREAM_PROBE_AUTOWALK=1                  ← env-var enable

[autowalk-out]   on every SendUse / SendPickUp
[autowalk-mt]    on every inbound UpdateMotion for the local player
[autowalk-up]    on every inbound UpdatePosition for the local player
[autowalk-begin] when BeginServerAutoWalk fires
[autowalk-end]   when EndServerAutoWalk fires
```

**You should turn this on first.** The `[autowalk-begin]` line will tell
you whether `BeginServerAutoWalk` is even being invoked for the
walking-range case.

### Where to start reading code

| File | Why |
|---|---|
| `src/AcDream.App/Input/PlayerMovementController.cs` | The auto-walk driver lives here. Key functions: `BeginServerAutoWalk` (line ~428), `DriveServerAutoWalk` (line ~550), `EndServerAutoWalk` (line ~478). |
| `src/AcDream.App/Rendering/GameWindow.cs` line ~3360 | The `OnLiveMotionUpdated` site that detects MoveToObject pattern and calls `BeginServerAutoWalk`. The `[autowalk-mt]` and `[autowalk-begin]` traces fire here. |
| `src/AcDream.Core.Net/Messages/UpdateMotion.cs` line ~193 | The inbound parser. `ForwardSpeed` is a raw float — investigate whether negative is legitimate or a sign-misinterpretation. |
| `docs/superpowers/specs/2026-05-14-phase-b6-design.md` | The Phase B.6 design spec. Read this first to understand the existing auto-walk contract. |
| `references/holtburger/crates/holtburger-core/src/client/simulation.rs` | The Rust client's equivalent — has `ServerControlledProjection` + `approximate_move_to_object_projection_target`. Holtburger handles this case correctly, so cross-checking is valuable. |
| `docs/research/named-retail/acclient_2013_pseudo_c.txt` | Grep for `MoveToManager::HandleMoveToPosition`, `MoveToManager::HandleAutonomyLevelChange`, `CMotionInterp::apply_interpreted_movement`. Retail's truth. |

### What was checked and ruled out during the Step 2 session

- The bugs exist on the **pre-Step-2 branch** (eda936d / 32423c2 / main).
  This was confirmed by diff scope: `PlayerMovementController.cs`,
  `PhysicsEngine.cs`, `UpdateMotion.cs` were not touched by Step 2.
- The Step 2 refactor (`0b25df5`) does not affect the auto-walk path.
- Subscriptions are wired correctly — `OnLiveMotionUpdated` IS firing
  for every motion update (verified via `[step2-diag]` traces that have
  since been stripped).

---

## Hypotheses to test, in order

### H1 (most likely) — `BeginServerAutoWalk` never fires for the walking-range MoveToObject

The walking-range MoveToObject from ACE may not match the pattern that
`OnLiveMotionUpdated` checks before calling `BeginServerAutoWalk`. The
condition probably checks for one of: `IsServerControlledMoveTo`,
non-zero ForwardSpeed magnitude, specific `MovementType`, or specific
`ForwardCommand` values. Walking-range UpdateMotion may differ from
running-range in one of those fields.

**Test:** Enable `ACDREAM_PROBE_AUTOWALK=1`, click the NPC at walking
range. Look for `[autowalk-mt]` (inbound parse) WITHOUT a following
`[autowalk-begin]`. That confirms H1 and points to GameWindow.cs:3360.

### H2 — `BeginServerAutoWalk` fires but `_autoWalkInitiallyRunning` decision misclassifies

The walk/run decision uses:
```csharp
remainingAtStart = initialDist - distanceToObject
_autoWalkInitiallyRunning = remainingAtStart >= 1.0m
```

If ACE sends a `distanceToObject` (useRadius) much smaller than the
NPC's actual useRadius — or if `initialDist` is computed against the
wrong target position — `remainingAtStart` could land just above 1m
even at user-perceived walking range, causing run-not-walk. That
matches **Bug B**'s "runs and overshoots" pattern.

**Test:** Compare `[autowalk-begin] dest=(...) minDist=... objDist=... walkRunThresh=...`
values between a walking-range click and a running-range click. The
`objDist` should be the wire-supplied useRadius. If it's wrong (too
small), retail's value disagrees and we have a parser bug elsewhere.

### H3 — Negative `ForwardSpeed` is filtered or misinterpreted

`speed=-1.84` is the literal IEEE 754 float on the wire. Retail's
`CMotionInterp::handle_action_walkforward` (or whichever code consumes
ForwardSpeed) may use it for direction relative to the auto-walk
heading; a sign-extension bug in our parse would matter.

**Test:** Grep `references/holtburger` and named-retail decomp for how
`ForwardSpeed` is consumed. If retail/holtburger interpret the sign
specially and we don't, that's the gap.

### H4 — Arrival predicate fires too early

`DriveServerAutoWalk` line ~601:
```csharp
withinArrival = dist <= arrivalThreshold
```
where `arrivalThreshold = _autoWalkDistanceToObject` (use-radius).

If `distanceToObject` is 0 or near-zero (a parser bug, see H2), the
arrival predicate fires on the first frame and `EndServerAutoWalk("arrived")`
is called immediately, so the player never visibly moves. That matches
**Bug A** exactly.

**Test:** Look for `[autowalk-end] reason=arrived` immediately after
`[autowalk-begin]` with zero or one frame between. That confirms H4.

---

## Reproduction recipe (~3 minutes)

1. **Launch with autowalk probe enabled:**
   ```powershell
   $env:ACDREAM_DAT_DIR    = "$env:USERPROFILE\Documents\Asheron's Call"
   $env:ACDREAM_LIVE       = "1"
   $env:ACDREAM_TEST_HOST  = "127.0.0.1"
   $env:ACDREAM_TEST_PORT  = "9000"
   $env:ACDREAM_TEST_USER  = "testaccount"
   $env:ACDREAM_TEST_PASS  = "testpassword"
   $env:ACDREAM_DEVTOOLS   = "1"
   $env:ACDREAM_PROBE_AUTOWALK = "1"
   dotnet run --project src\AcDream.App\AcDream.App.csproj --no-build -c Debug | Tee-Object -FilePath launch.log
   ```

2. **Reproduce Bug A:**
   - Walk toward the inn area in Holtburg until you're ~3-5 meters from
     an NPC (e.g. Royal Guard near the inn). Estimate by eye — the goal
     is "you can see the NPC clearly but you'd need to take a few steps
     to reach them."
   - Double-click the NPC.
   - Observe: player doesn't move. Click again — same result.

3. **Reproduce Bug B:**
   - Find a ground item (Holtburg has scattered spell components — the
     coloured Tapers are obvious). Stand ~3-5 meters away.
   - Press F (or whatever your `SelectionPickUp` key is bound to).
   - Observe: player runs, overshoots, snaps back, item picked up.

4. **Stop the client gracefully** (window close, not Stop-Process — see
   CLAUDE.md "Logout-before-reconnect"). ACE clears stale sessions in
   3–5 seconds on graceful close.

5. **Grep the log:**
   ```bash
   tr -d '\000' < launch.log | grep -E "\[autowalk-(out|mt|begin|up|end)\]"
   ```

   This should give you a complete frame-by-frame trace of every
   auto-walk decision the client made.

---

## Acceptance criteria

When the fix lands:

- ✅ Click NPC at walking range → player **walks** (not runs) directly to NPC,
  Use fires on arrival, NPC dialogue appears.
- ✅ Press F on ground item at walking range → player **walks** the short
  distance, no overshoot, no blip-back, item enters inventory.
- ✅ Far-range click still **runs** to target (don't regress the working case).
- ✅ Out-of-walking-but-very-close-range case (right at the edge of useRadius)
  still arrives without infinite spin or stuttering.
- ✅ All existing tests pass (8 pre-existing Core failures are baseline,
  do NOT count against the fix).
- ✅ Visual verification at Holtburg, all three M1 demo targets still work
  (door, NPC, pickup).

---

## What NOT to do

- **Don't add a workaround**, per CLAUDE.md's "no workarounds" rule.
  No grace-period band-aid, no "if speed is negative, force walk" hack,
  no "always walk when within 5m" override. Fix the root cause.
- **Don't rewrite the auto-walk path** — Phase B.6 was a heavy retail
  decomp port. The fix is almost certainly a one-condition or one-formula
  adjustment, not a new design.
- **Don't change `Step 2`'s extracted code**. `LiveSessionController` and
  the wireup are clean — `OnLiveMotionUpdated` is wired and firing per
  the previous session's verification traces.

---

## Time estimate

- 30 min: read the spec + reproduce + capture trace
- 30 min: identify root-cause hypothesis from the trace
- 30 min – 2 hr: implement the fix (depends on which hypothesis lands)
- 30 min: visual verification + write commit message
- **Total:** 2–3 hours focused work

---

## When done

1. Commit message format: `fix(physics): close #77 — <root cause summary>`
2. Move `#77` to the "Recently closed" section of `docs/ISSUES.md`
   with closed-date + commit SHA (matches the project convention).
3. If the fix uncovered a durable lesson (e.g. "ACE sends negative
   ForwardSpeed for MoveToObject; we were filtering"), add a
   `feedback_*.md` memory entry per `memory/MEMORY.md` conventions.
4. The next pre-M2 cleanup items in queue: root `.editorconfig` + Step 3
   (`LiveEntityRuntime`). See `docs/architecture/code-structure.md` §4.