a327ex.com

Attack System Generalization 2

Summary

Second session of the attack-template build. Picked up from the session-1 scaffold (player + seekers + walls + edition shimmer) and shipped two carriers (projectile, area), a full engine-level runtime DSP system with a live tuning UI, an engine fix for mouse-button ordering, and the asset workflow pivot away from pre-baked _lightmed sound variants. By session end, attack-template demos: left-click fires a straight-line projectile with full caster juice + standard arrow fire sounds; right-click fires an area whose shape (circle/rect/polygon) × jagged × corner_brackets combo cycles live via T/G/B; F3 enters a per-sound bitcrush + SR-reduction tuning overlay that saves to sound_tuning.lua and auto-applies on next load.

Projectile carrier (projectile.lua — new):

Projectile debug cycle — three bugs found and fixed:

Projectile FX correctness pass against v1 source:

Enemy juice masking discussion (Invoker design parity, no code change):

Sound investigation — no generic projectile hit sound exists in v1:

Standard projectile fire sounds ported (originals, NOT _lightmed):

Engine DSP system (Anchor 2 engine — anchor.c additions):

sound_tuning.lua + sfx wrapper (project-side):

F3 sound_tuner UI module (sound_tuner.lua — new):

Typed-text queue drain fix:

Mouse button 2/3 swap (engine boundary):

Area carrier (area.lua — new, two iterations):

Area extensions (caster juice + polygon shape + flags):

Global CLAUDE.md rule changes:

Documentation updates at session end:

Files created/modified this session:

Let's continue with the Attack System Generalization. Read the previous log to get oriented as well as the code inside the attack-template folder. We already have player + seekers + walls working, all using the generalized edition system (edition-template).

Glob (/attack-template/)

attack-template\anchor\class.lua
attack-template\anchor\object.lua
attack-template\anchor\timer.lua
attack-template\anchor\math.lua
attack-template\anchor\spring.lua
attack-template\anchor\color.lua
attack-template\anchor\camera.lua
attack-template\anchor\shake.lua
attack-template\anchor\image.lua
attack-template\anchor\helpers.lua
attack-template\anchor\spritesheet.lua
attack-template\anchor\input.lua
attack-template\anchor\animation.lua
attack-template\anchor\init.lua
attack-template\anchor\layer.lua
attack-template\anchor\memory.lua
attack-template\anchor\physics.lua
attack-template\anchor\array.lua
attack-template\anchor\font.lua
attack-template\anchor.exe
attack-template\assets\draw_shader.frag
attack-template\edition.lua
attack-template\palette.lua
attack-template\gradient.lua
attack-template\geometry.lua
attack-template\symbols.lua
attack-template\run.bat
attack-template\fx.lua
attack-template\stats.lua
attack-template\wall.lua
... [71 more lines]

Glob (/edition-template/)

edition-template\anchor.exe
edition-template\anchor\class.lua
edition-template\anchor\object.lua
edition-template\anchor\timer.lua
edition-template\anchor\spring.lua
edition-template\anchor\color.lua
edition-template\anchor\math.lua
edition-template\anchor\shake.lua
edition-template\anchor\camera.lua
edition-template\anchor\image.lua
edition-template\anchor\helpers.lua
edition-template\anchor\spritesheet.lua
edition-template\anchor\input.lua
edition-template\anchor\animation.lua
edition-template\anchor\init.lua
edition-template\anchor\layer.lua
edition-template\anchor\physics.lua
edition-template\anchor\memory.lua
edition-template\anchor\collider.lua
edition-template\anchor\font.lua
edition-template\anchor\array.lua
edition-template\run.bat
edition-template\geometry.lua
edition-template\symbols.lua
edition-template\gradient.lua
edition-template\palette.lua
edition-template\assets\draw_shader.frag
edition-template\edition.lua
edition-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md
edition-template\main.lua
... [60 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

1    # attack-template — orientation for new instances
2   
3   ## What this is
4   
5   A starter Anchor 2 project for building **attacks** (projectiles, areas,
6   beams, polygonal projectiles, movement abilities, etc.) in the SNKRX /
7   Orblike / Invoker visual style. This is a sibling of `edition-template/`
8   — it bundles the same edition + gradient + palette + draw-shader stack,
9   plus the entities needed to test attacks against (player, seeker enemies,
10  wall obstacles), all glued together as a single self-contained directory
11  that a new project can fork.
12  
13  The eventual goal is the same shape as edition-template: copy this
14  directory, write `main.lua`, and start prototyping. By the end of the
15  work it should ship every attack carrier from Orblike v1 as a focused
16  reusable module (projectile, area, beam, dash, polygonal, railgun,
17  psylance, construct, etc.), each with the SNKRX-style juice (springs,
18  hit flashes, edition-tinted particles) and shape-correct hitboxes.
19  
20  **Read [findings.md](../findings.md) first.** It catalogs every attack
21  behavior in Orblike v1 with file/line references and is the canonical
22  inventory of what we plan to port.
23  
24  ---
25  
26  ## Read order
27  
28  1. **[findings.md](../findings.md)** — the v1 attack inventory: every
29     carrier, every effect primitive, every modifier, every shape. Your
30     menu of "what's left to port."
... [328 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\findings.md)

1    # attack-template — findings from Orblike v1
2   
3   Purpose of this doc: catalog every attack-shape, effect, sound, and parameter
4   the v1 codebase actually ships, so we can decide what to port into a
5   self-contained `attack-template/` project (mirroring what
6   `edition-template/` did for editions and gradients).
7   
8   All line references point at `Invoker/v1/main.lua` (13,268 lines, single
9   file). Sound asset names point at `Invoker/v1/assets/`. v1 is the more
10  complete and battle-tested codebase; the current `Invoker/main.lua` was
11  written after the redesign and intentionally has fewer abilities.
12  
13  **⚠️ The open questions at the bottom of this doc (section 13) were
14  resolved in session 1. See `.claude/CLAUDE.md` for the "Decisions made
15  this session" block — that's the authoritative answer to what we are
16  and aren't shipping. This doc remains the inventory; CLAUDE.md is the
17  plan.**
18  
19  ---
20  
21  ## 1. The carrier taxonomy
22  
23  A "carrier" is the type of in-world thing an ability spawns. v1 has 13
24  distinct carriers, each with its own activation path inside
25  `orb:activate` (lines 1267-4779) or via `fire_triggered_ability`
26  (line 7652). Every ability declares one via `def.carrier` (default falls
27  through to `projectile`).
28  
29  | Carrier | Where defined | What it spawns | Example abilities |
30  |---|---|---|---|
... [638 more lines]

Let me look for the previous session log and the current main.lua to get oriented on what's been done.

Glob (/logs//attack*)

a327ex-site\logs\attack-system-generalization-1.md

Glob (a327ex-site/logs/*.md)

a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-01-07-37.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-01-19-37.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-02-10-00.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-02-18-59.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-03-12-30.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-03-15-30.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-03-18-20.md
a327ex-site\logs\2026-01-04-12-15.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-app-design.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-app-phase-1-part-1.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-app-ui-discussion.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-arena-final-and-neovim-diff-tool.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-arena-test.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-1.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-1.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-10.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-11.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-2.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-3.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-4.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-5.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-6.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-7.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-8.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-10-part-9.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-2.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-3-part-1.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-3-part-2.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-3-part-3.md
a327ex-site\logs\anchor-phase-3-part-4.md
... [71 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

1    --[[
2     attack-template/main.lua
3   
4     Smoke test for the attack-template scaffold. Drops a player (WASD-driven,
5     ported from Invoker/player.lua) in the middle of a small arena with a
6     static interior wall (Invoker/v1/main.lua wall_object) and 5 seekers
7     (Invoker/seeker.lua) chasing the player. Edition shimmer on every entity
8     via the same draw shader the edition-template uses.
9   
10    KEY BINDINGS
11      W A S D / arrows   move player
12      0  / F1            cycle player edition forward / backward
13                         — prints the new mode's name to console
14  ]]
15  
16  require('anchor')({
17    width  = 480,
18    height = 270,
19    title  = 'attack-template — smoke test',
20    scale  = 3,
21    filter = 'rough',
22  })
23  
24  require('palette')
25  require('edition')
26  
27  edition_setup({ draw_shader = 'assets/draw_shader.frag' })
28  
29  require('geometry')
30  require('stats')
... [306 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\a327ex-site\logs\attack-system-generalization-1.md)

File content (104274 tokens) exceeds maximum allowed tokens (25000). Use offset and limit parameters to read specific portions of the file, or search for specific content instead of reading the whole file.

The previous log is large. Let me focus on the most relevant parts — start with the end to see where we left off, then sample beginnings.

Bash (wc -l E:/a327ex/a327ex-site/logs/attack-system-generalization-1.md)

5473 E:/a327ex/a327ex-site/logs/attack-system-generalization-1.md

Read (E:\a327ex\a327ex-site\logs\attack-system-generalization-1.md)

1    Title: Attack System Generalization 1
2   Date: 2026-05-17 13:59:02
3   
4   # Attack System Generalization 1
5   
6   ## Summary
7   
8   Started the second template-project in the series after `edition-template/`: a self-contained `E:/a327ex/attack-template/` scaffold that will eventually ship every attack carrier from Orblike v1 (projectile, area, beam, polygonal, movement, etc.) as a focused reusable visual-only module. Spent this session on the inventory, the baseline scene (player + seeker + wall + edition shimmer + sounds + debug overlay + streak-based wall response), and the documentation hand-off so the next instance can pick up cleanly.
9   
10  **Inventory pass (findings.md):**
11  - Read through `Invoker/v1/main.lua` (13,268 lines) end to end, cataloguing every carrier, effect primitive, modifier, and sound into `E:/a327ex/attack-template/findings.md` (~580 lines, 13 sections). Carrier taxonomy enumerates 13 distinct carriers with line refs into v1: projectile, self_area, aimed_area, melee, chain, beam, cyclone, toggle_area, big_rock, construct, asal, dash_strike, flicker, railgun, psylance, random.
12  - Full ability roster (28 abilities from v1's `abilities = {}` table at lines 704-1084) split into projectiles / areas / channeled / strikes / polygonal, each with element, visual, fire sound, hit sound, special-behavior notes.
13  - Deep-dive sections on projectile (movement modes incl. straight / homing / linear-return / arc-return; max-range; wall raycast; per-ability `on_hit` branches; visual variants incl. default rect, ball-lightning circle, wind_slash orbiting blades, arc crescent SDF), area (6 shapes: circle / rect / jagged_rect / cone / jagged_circle / polygon; instant + persistent modes; cascade; hostile-area variant), beam (path-walker, dashed leading-edge flash, tip circle, tick damage, drone-pitch-scaled-by-tick-rate), polygonal `big_rock_effect` (parabolic flight + jagged-rock shatter into Box2D rock_fragment pieces), movement (`dash_clone` shared by dash_strike / asal / flicker), and effect primitive library (18 named classes incl. hit_circle, hit_particle, hit_effect, fx_effect, lightning_line, beam_particle, slightly_jagged_line, railgun_flash, psylance_effect, big_rock_effect, rock_fragment, rock_debris, dash_clone, rotating_turret, explosive_fuse, trail system, shockwave).
14  - Modifier vocabulary section enumerated ~30 names (quantitative tiers `+/++/+++/-/--/---`, damage `pierce`/`chain`/`infinite_chain`, multi-shot `nova`/`spread`/`back`/`sides`/`parallel`, homing/return, area-specific, cascade/echo/copy, knockback, null_conversion, melee_splash, multistrike, etc.).
15  - Sound bank section mapped v1's ~190 ogg/wav assets per element (fire / earth / wind / ice / lightning / force / null / physical / melee / general) with file names.
16  - Concluded with a scope recommendation (which carriers to ship vs leave, what to consolidate, what stays gameplay-side) and 7 open questions for the user.
17  
18  **User decisions on scope:**
19  - Visual generalization only, NO modifier system — `mods` table / `pierce+1` / `homing` knobs are gameplay-side, not template-side.
20  - Light logic generalization IS OK — each carrier ships its movement / tick / hitbox boilerplate as overridable class fields.
21  - Sounds added per-carrier as we port (don't ship the full 30 MB bank).
22  - Cast log infrastructure NOT ported (gameplay debug, not visual).
23  - Element variants are sound + minor visual tweaks layered last on each carrier.
24  
25  **Bootstrapping the project (attack-template):**
26  - Created `E:/a327ex/attack-template/` directory.
27  - Copied edition-template's framework + Lua modules + draw shader: `anchor/`, `anchor.exe`, `assets/draw_shader.frag`, `edition.lua`, `palette.lua`, `gradient.lua`, `geometry.lua`, `symbols.lua`. Wrote a `run.bat` that calls `./anchor.exe attack-template`.
28  - Wrote initial `main.lua` smoke test: single rounded-rect player at center with a random `edition` from `edition_cycle` printed on boot.
29  - Added `0` / `F1` keys to cycle the player's edition forward/backward, matching the edition-template convention.
30  
... [70 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\a327ex-site\logs\attack-system-generalization-1.md)

5300 > Convert the transcript to markdown:
5301    > 
5302    > ```bash
5303    > python E:/a327ex/Anchor2/scripts/jsonl-to-markdown.py [SESSION_PATH] /tmp/session-log.md
5304    > # or: python E:/a327ex/Anchor/scripts/jsonl-to-markdown.py ...
5305    > ```
5306    > 
5307    > The same script **auto-detects** Claude Code JSONL vs Cursor/Composer agent JSONL (`~/.cursor/projects/.../agent-transcripts/...`) vs Codex rollouts (`~/.codex/sessions/...`). For Composer sessions, use `find-recent-session.py` (it merges all sources) and pick the `[cursor]` line for the current chat.
5308    > 
5309    > Replace the default header (`# Session YYYY-MM-DD...`) at the top of `/tmp/session-log.md` with the approved title and summary, AND prepend frontmatter. The final file shape:
5310    > 
5311    > ```markdown
5312    > Title: [Title]
5313    > Date: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
5314    > 
5315    > # [Title]
5316    > 
5317    > ## Summary
5318    > 
5319    > [approved summary text from step 2]
5320    > 
5321    > ---
5322    > 
5323    > [transcript content from jsonl-to-markdown script]
5324    > ```
5325    > 
5326    > **Frontmatter is non-negotiable.** Every log file MUST start with `Title:` and `Date:` lines. Without them, the site's sidebar shows the slug as the title and 0 (epoch) as the sort date. The backfill script in `a327ex-site/deploy/backfill_metadata.py` is a safety net, not a substitute — write it correctly the first time.
5327    > 
5328    > Then copy the final file to the log destination:
5329    > 
... [145 more lines]

I'm oriented. Let me also peek at fx.lua, seeker.lua's structure, and the v1 projectile so I can propose the first projectile port concretely.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\fx.lua)

1    --[[
2     fx.lua — one-shot visual effects.
3   
4     Two entity types ported from v1's hit_circle / hit_particle. They
5     exist for a brief duration, draw something, and auto-kill. Spawned
6     by gameplay code (projectile spawn, wall hit, area damage in the
7     future) via spawn_hit_circle / spawn_particle. Both live in the
8     global fxs[] array, updated and drawn from main.lua.
9   
10    fx_hit_circle — filled circle that SHRINKS from initial radius to
11      0 over `duration` (cubic_in_out). Starts white (the `text`
12      palette token); the optional :change_color(fraction, target)
13      chainable swaps it to the spell color at the given fraction of
14      duration, giving the v1 "flash white, then bleed into element
15      color" feel.
16  
17    fx_particle — rotated rounded rectangle that flies outward at
18      self.angle, with w/h/velocity tweening down to {2, 2, 0} over
19      `duration` (sine_in_out). Same white-then-color flash via
20      :change_color. Used for cast bursts, wall impact debris, and
21      (future) on-hit particles.
22  
23    Both kinds match v1 visuals byte-for-byte where possible —
24    ability_layer is replaced with the game_layer caller, the object
25    tree is replaced with explicit fxs[] iteration, an.random calls
26    become random_float / random_choice. Otherwise the math, easings,
27    defaults, and feel are unchanged.
28  ]]
29  
30  
... [196 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\seeker.lua)

1    --[[
2     seeker.lua — basic chase-the-player enemy.
3   
4     Faithful port of v1's seeker (~main.lua 9203-9514). Same silhouette
5     (14×6 rounded rect), same hp pool, same speed range, same steering
6     recipe (seek + wander + separate combined inside max_force=200),
7     same spawn/hit/death FX, same sounds. The bytepath-era pack /
8     rarity / modifiers system (yellow/blue specials, slow_aura,
9     explode_on_death) is intentionally NOT ported here — Invoker's
10    loot/modifier layer is going to live higher up the stack; the
11    seeker itself stays mechanical.
12  
13    Differences from v1 that aren't cosmetic:
14      • Procedural Anchor 2 patterns: plain field timer/spring/collider,
15        explicit update of each sub-module, `cached_enemies` is replaced
16        by iterating the seekers[] array for steering_separate.
17      • `cyclone_spin` death-spin parameter dropped (no cyclone ability
18        yet — spin defaults to 0, which matches v1's effective behavior
19        when nothing has tagged the seeker with cyclone). Re-add when
20        Cyclone lands.
21      • `damaged_by_area` tick-rate guard dropped — fireball is the only
22        area right now and it's instant, so re-hits per cast can't happen.
23        Bring back the guard when duration zones land.
24      • Push knockback timer-name bug fixed. v1 reuses the name 'push'
25        for both the 0.15s flash-off and the 0.5s pushed-state-off
26        timers, so the second registration cancels the first and the
27        seeker stays white-flashed forever after a push. We use
28        distinct names ('push_flash' / 'push_end') so both fire.
29  ]]
30  
... [70 more lines]

I'm fully oriented. Here's the situation:

Where we are: Session 1 built the baseline scaffold — player (mouse-aim, WASD), seekers (steering chase, wall-bump streak), wall, edition shimmer on all three, debug overlay (F2), debug damage keys (H/K), fx_hit_circle/fx_particle/fx_hit_effect already ported. No carriers yet.

Recommended next step (per attack-template/.claude/CLAUDE.md and findings.md §12): port projectile.lua first — it's the most foundational carrier, reused by chain/construct/arrow_barrage/tornado_shot secondaries, and it exercises the core attack pattern (spawn → move → wall raycast → enemy hit → die with FX) that subsequent carriers reuse.

Before I start writing code, a few scope questions for this first port — these set the template that subsequent carriers will follow, so worth pinning down:

AskUserQuestion 

User has answered your questions: "How wide should the first projectile.lua port be?"="Minimal straight-line first", "Where should projectiles fire from / how should they aim?"="Generic spawn API", "How should I expose firing in the demo scene?"="Left-click fires one", "Which sound to use for the first projectile's fire + hit?"="Skip sounds for now". You can now continue with the user's answers in mind.

Now let me read the v1 projectile class to understand the source I'm porting from. Per the working style, I'll show the design before writing.

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

7671 projectile = object:extend()
7672    function projectile:new(x, y, args)
7673      object.new(self)
7674      self:tag('projectile')
7675      self.x, self.y = x, y
7676      self.r = args.r or 0
7677      self.ability = args.ability
7678      self.color = args.color
7679      self.mods = args.mods or {}
7680      self.source_orb = args.source_orb
7681      self.al = ability_layer
7682      local def = abilities[self.ability]
7683      self.w = (def and def.projectile_height) or 10
7684      self.h = (def and def.projectile_width) or 4
7685      self.base_w = self.w
7686      self.base_h = self.h
7687      self.base_speed = (def and def.projectile_speed) or 190
7688      if args.speed_mult then self.base_speed = self.base_speed*args.speed_mult end
7689      self.speed = self.base_speed
7690      if self.mods['projectile_speed+'] then self.speed = self.speed*1.2 end
7691      if self.mods['projectile_speed++'] then self.speed = self.speed*1.5 end
7692      if self.mods['projectile_speed+++'] then self.speed = self.speed*2.0 end
7693      if self.mods['projectile_speed-'] then self.speed = self.speed*0.9 end
7694      if self.mods['projectile_speed--'] then self.speed = self.speed*0.75 end
7695      if self.mods['projectile_speed---'] then self.speed = self.speed*0.5 end
7696      self.arc_shape = def and def.projectile_shape == 'arc'
7697      self.wind_slash_shape = def and def.projectile_shape == 'wind_slash'
7698      if self.arc_shape or self.wind_slash_shape then
7699        self.arc_spin = 0
7700        local base_spin_speed = math.pi*6/(def.max_range and def.max_range/self.base_speed or 1)
... [170 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8030   if self.tornado_spin then
8031        self.tornado_spin = self.tornado_spin + self.tornado_spin_speed*dt
8032      end
8033    
8034      -- Range-based expiry (skip if returning — return handles its own death)
8035      if self.max_range then
8036        self.distance_traveled = self.distance_traveled + current_speed*dt
8037        if not self.returning_range and not self.mods.returning_arc and self.distance_traveled >= self.max_range then
8038          self:die()
8039          return
8040        end
8041      end
8042    
8043      -- Wall collision via raycast (sensors don't physically collide)
8044      do
8045        local vx, vy = self.collider:get_velocity()
8046        local speed = math.length(vx, vy)
8047        if speed > 1 then
8048          local look_ahead = math.max(speed*dt*2, 4)
8049          local nx, ny = vx/speed, vy/speed
8050          local hit = an:raycast(self.x, self.y, self.x + nx*look_ahead, self.y + ny*look_ahead, {'wall'})
8051          if hit then
8052            local impact_force = speed/200
8053            -- Edge wave impulse
8054            wall_edge_wave_impulse(hit.point_x, hit.point_y, 6*math.min(impact_force, 2), 60)
8055            -- Hit effects
8056            an:add(hit_circle(hit.point_x, hit.point_y, {radius = 6, duration = 0.15}))
8057            for i = 1, 2 do
8058              an:add(hit_particle(hit.point_x, hit.point_y, {velocity = an.random:float(50, 100), duration = an.random:float(0.1, 0.3)}):change_color(0.5, ability_particle_color((self.source_orb and self.source_orb.edition) or ability_edition_override or 0, self.color):clone()))
8059            end
... [250 more lines]

Let me quickly check the collider constructor signature and how sensors work in Anchor 2 — important for the projectile to pass through enemies visually while still firing hit events.

Grep (function collider:new|function collider:set_sensor|sensor)

35:function collider:new(owner, tag, body_type, shape_type, ...)
48:  -- Last arg can be an opts table (e.g. {sensor = true})

Grep (collision_entities_begin|collision_entities_end)

E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:11:  insensitive, so a query like `collision_entities_begin('player', 'enemy')`
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:18:    for _, ev in ipairs(collision_entities_begin('player', 'enemy')) do
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:132:  collision_entities_begin(tag_a, tag_b)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:137:function collision_entities_begin(tag_a, tag_b)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:161:  collision_entities_end(tag_a, tag_b)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:164:function collision_entities_end(tag_a, tag_b)

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\collider.lua)

35   function collider:new(owner, tag, body_type, shape_type, ...)
36    self.owner = owner
37    self.tag = tag
38    self.body_type = body_type
39    self.shape_type = shape_type
40    self.body = physics_create_body(body_type, 0, 0)
41  
42    -- Set user_data to the owner's ID so physics queries resolve via entities[id]
43    if owner and owner.id then
44      physics_set_user_data(self.body, owner.id)
45    end
46  
47    -- Add initial shape based on shape_type
48    -- Last arg can be an opts table (e.g. {sensor = true})
49    local shape_args = {...}
50    if shape_type == 'chain' then
51      self.chain = physics_add_chain(self.body, tag, shape_args[1], shape_args[2] or true)
52    else
53      local opts = {}
54      if type(shape_args[#shape_args]) == 'table' then
55        opts = table.remove(shape_args)
56      end
57      if shape_type == 'circle' then
58        self.shape = physics_add_circle(self.body, tag, shape_args[1], opts)
59      elseif shape_type == 'box' then
60        self.shape = physics_add_box(self.body, tag, shape_args[1], shape_args[2], opts)
61      elseif shape_type == 'capsule' then
62        self.shape = physics_add_capsule(self.body, tag, shape_args[1], shape_args[2], opts)
63      elseif shape_type == 'polygon' then
64        self.shape = physics_add_polygon(self.body, tag, shape_args[1], opts)
... [50 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua)

100      point_y = hit.point_y,
101     normal_x = hit.normal_x,
102     normal_y = hit.normal_y,
103     fraction = hit.fraction,
104   }
105 end
106 
107 --[[
108   raycast_entities_all(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)
109   Returns a table of all entities hit by a ray, each with hit info.
110 ]]
111 function raycast_entities_all(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)
112   local hits = physics_raycast_all(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)
113   local result = {}
114   for i = 1, #hits do
115     local hit = hits[i]
116     local e = body_to_entity(hit.body)
117     if e then
118       result[#result + 1] = {
119         entity = e,
120         point_x = hit.point_x,
121         point_y = hit.point_y,
122         normal_x = hit.normal_x,
123         normal_y = hit.normal_y,
124         fraction = hit.fraction,
125       }
126     end
127   end
128   return result
129 end
... [60 more lines]

There's a dedicated sensor_entities_begin for sensor events — that's what I'll use. Let me see the full signature and what queries exist for the sensor.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua)

182  --[[
183   sensor_entities_begin(tag_a, tag_b)
184   Returns a table of sensor-begin events with normalized ordering so `a`
185   corresponds to the first tag argument (typically the sensor) and `b`
186   to the second tag argument (typically the visitor).
187 ]]
188 function sensor_entities_begin(tag_a, tag_b)
189   local events = physics_get_sensor_begin(tag_a, tag_b)
190   local result = {}
191   for i = 1, #events do
192     local ev = events[i]
193     local body_a, body_b = ev.sensor_body, ev.visitor_body
194     -- Normalize: if sensor_tag is actually the second query tag, swap
195     if ev.sensor_tag == tag_b and ev.visitor_tag == tag_a then
196       body_a, body_b = body_b, body_a
197     end
198     local a = body_to_entity(body_a)
199     local b = body_to_entity(body_b)
200     if a and b then
201       result[#result + 1] = {a = a, b = b}
202     end
203   end
204   return result
205 end
206 
207 --[[
208   sensor_entities_end(tag_a, tag_b)
209 ]]
210 function sensor_entities_end(tag_a, tag_b)
211   local events = physics_get_sensor_end(tag_a, tag_b)
... [44 more lines]

Grep (physics_enable_collision|enable_sensor)

No matches found

Grep (physics_enable_collision)

Found 3 files
attack-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md
attack-template\main.lua
attack-template\anchor\init.lua

Grep (physics_enable_collision|physics_get_sensor_begin|physics_register_tag)

166:  --   physics_register_tag('player')
167:  --   physics_register_tag('enemy')
168:  --   physics_enable_collision('player', 'enemy')

Grep (^function (red|orange|yellow|blue|green|text|fg_color|white)()

No matches found

Grep (edition_base_color|fg_color|^red |^orange )

67:red           = color(210,  49,  56)
68:orange        = color(233, 108,  27)
78:fg_color      = text

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\palette.lua)

60   white         = color(200, 200, 200)
61  text          = color(240, 240, 235)
62  
63  -- Accents, roughly by hue. These 9 colors are deliberately matched to the
64  -- shader's palette_color() table for the palette-cycling polychrome edition
65  -- (mode 24). Keeping that lockstep is what makes mode 24 look like "the
66  -- whole accent palette flowing through the entity."
67  red           = color(210,  49,  56)
68  orange        = color(233, 108,  27)
69  yellow        = color(234, 171,  28)
70  lime          = color(148, 176,  41)
71  green         = color(106, 166,  52)
72  light_blue    = color( 35, 143, 194)
73  blue          = color( 39,  88, 180)
74  violet        = color(110,  63, 178)
75  pink          = color(208,  66, 120)
76  
77  -- Aliases that some Anchor 2 helpers expect (memory tracker etc.). Cheap.
78  fg_color      = text
79  bg_color      = bg
80  
81  -- =============================================================================
82  -- LEGACY SNKRX TOKENS — kept so editions 15..22 (the flat-color overrides
83  -- in the draw shader) resolve to nameable colors from Lua. Use sparingly in
84  -- new code; prefer the locked accents above. Mirrors the RGB values in
85  -- draw_shader.frag's apply_edition flat-override branch.
86  -- =============================================================================
87  snkrx_blue    = color( 82, 179, 203)
88  snkrx_purple  = color(178, 108, 161)
89  snkrx_red     = color(216,  70,  84)

Let me verify the spring_new and raycast signatures so the design is correct.

Grep (spring_new|spring_pull|^function spring)

5:    self.spring = spring_new()                       -- in constructor
7:    spring_pull(self.spring, 'scale', 0.3)           -- apply impulse
13:  A default 'main' spring at value 1 is created on spring_new() for convenience.
24:  spring_new()
27:function spring_new()
40:function spring_add(s, name, x, frequency, bounce)
59:  spring_pull(s, name, force, [frequency], [bounce])
63:function spring_pull(s, name, force, frequency, bounce)
77:function spring_set_target(s, name, value)
85:function spring_at_rest(s, name, threshold)
101:function spring_update(s, dt)

Grep (spring_new|spring_pull)

102:  self.spring = spring_new()
111:  spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.75, 3, 0.7)
146:  spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.3, 5, 0.5)
204:  spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.5, 5, 0.5)
225:  spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.75)

Grep (^function raycast|^raycast )

E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:92:function raycast_entity(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua:111:function raycast_entities_all(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua)

60   end
61  
62  --[[
63    query_entities_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
64  ]]
65  function query_entities_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
66    local bodies = physics_query_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
67    local result = {}
68    for i = 1, #bodies do
69      local e = body_to_entity(bodies[i])
70      if e then result[#result + 1] = e end
71    end
72    return result
73  end
74  
75  --[[
76    query_entities_point(x, y, tags)
77  ]]
78  function query_entities_point(x, y, tags)
79    local bodies = physics_query_point(x, y, tags)
80    local result = {}
81    for i = 1, #bodies do
82      local e = body_to_entity(bodies[i])
83      if e then result[#result + 1] = e end
84    end
85    return result
86  end
87  
88  --[[
89    raycast_entity(x1, y1, x2, y2, tags)
... [15 more lines]

Grep (edition_base_color)

29:    edition_base_color(ed) -> color or nil      representative color for particles/leaks
130:       local spark_color = edition_base_color(enemy.edition) or text
327:-- Used by edition_base_color() to synthesize a representative color
391:  edition_base_color(ed) -> color or nil
396:      local c = edition_base_color(ed) or fallback
405:function edition_base_color(ed)

I have everything I need. Here's the design for the minimal straight-line projectile.lua. Before I write the file, take a look — say the word and I'll commit it, or call out anything to adjust.

attack-template/projectile.lua (new file, ~115 lines)

--[[
  projectile.lua — straight-line attack carrier (minimal v1 port).

  Scope of this first pass (per session 2 decisions):
    • Default rounded-rect shape (w=10, h=4). No shape variants yet
      (ball_lightning circle, wind_slash blades, arc crescent come later).
    • Straight-line travel only. No homing / linear-return / arc-return.
    • Sensor box collider — projectiles pass through enemies/walls
      visually. Enemy hits are surfaced via sensor_entities_begin in
      main.lua. Walls are caught by a per-frame forward raycast (sensors
      don't physically collide).
    • Spawn juice: spring pull on 'main' + 0.2s white flash.
    • Wall hit:  6r/0.15s hit_circle + 2 particles, then die.
    • Enemy hit: full damage + hit_effect sprite burst, then die. No
      pierce/chain in this first pass — that's gameplay-side anyway.
    • Death:     8r/0.2s hit_circle + 2 particles, particle color =
                 edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color.

  Generic spawn API (per session 2 decision):
    spawn_projectile(x, y, r, {
      w, h, speed,       -- visual + movement knobs (defaults: 10, 4, 190)
      damage,            -- default 1
      color,             -- default red
      edition,           -- default 0 (no shimmer)
      max_range,         -- nil = unlimited (lives until wall/enemy)
    })
  No player coupling inside the carrier — main.lua wires the player-aim
  spawn in its mouse:1 input handler.
]]


projectiles = {}


projectile = class()


function projectile:new(x, y, args)
  args = args or {}
  self.x = x
  self.y = y
  self.r = args.r or 0
  self.w = args.w or 10
  self.h = args.h or 4
  self.base_speed = args.speed or 190
  self.speed      = self.base_speed
  self.damage     = args.damage or 1
  self.color      = args.color and color_clone(args.color) or color_clone(red)
  self.edition    = args.edition or 0
  self.max_range  = args.max_range
  self.distance_traveled = 0
  self.flashing   = false

  make_entity(self)

  -- Sensor collider — passes through everything physically; enemy
  -- contacts come back through sensor_entities_begin('projectile',
  -- 'enemy'), and walls are caught by the per-frame raycast below.
  -- Box matches the visual silhouette (rotated to self.r so the long
  -- axis lies along the direction of travel).
  self.collider = collider(self, 'projectile', 'dynamic', 'box',
                           self.w, self.h, {sensor = true})
  self.collider:set_gravity_scale(0)
  self.collider:set_fixed_rotation(true)
  self.collider:set_angle(self.r)
  self.collider:set_position(self.x, self.y)
  self.collider:set_velocity(self.speed*math.cos(self.r),
                             self.speed*math.sin(self.r))

  -- Spawn juice. spring_new() creates a default 'main' spring at value
  -- 1; pull(0.5) gives the v1 "pop into existence" feel. White flash
  -- decays on the timer after 0.2s.
  self.timer  = timer_new()
  self.spring = spring_new()
  spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.5)
  self.flashing = true
  timer_after(self.timer, 0.2, function() self.flashing = false end)
end


function projectile:update(dt)
  timer_update(self.timer, dt)
  spring_update(self.spring, dt)
  self.collider:sync()

  -- Max range expiry. Skip if not set (projectile lives forever until
  -- it hits something).
  if self.max_range then
    self.distance_traveled = self.distance_traveled + self.speed*dt
    if self.distance_traveled >= self.max_range then
      self:die()
      return
    end
  end

  -- Wall raycast forward. Sensors don't physically collide with the
  -- chain-shape wall colliders, so we ray-probe ahead by the distance
  -- this frame will cover (×2 for safety, min 4 units).
  local vx, vy = self.collider:get_velocity()
  local speed = math.length(vx, vy)
  if speed > 1 then
    local look_ahead = math.max(speed*dt*2, 4)
    local nx, ny = vx/speed, vy/speed
    local hit = raycast_entity(self.x, self.y,
                               self.x + nx*look_ahead,
                               self.y + ny*look_ahead, {'wall'})
    if hit then
      self:hit_wall(hit.point_x, hit.point_y)
      return
    end
  end
end


function projectile:hit_wall(hx, hy)
  local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
  spawn_hit_circle(hx, hy, {radius = 6, duration = 0.15}):change_color(0.5, pc)
  for i = 1, 2 do
    spawn_particle(hx, hy, {
      velocity = random_float(50, 100),
      duration = random_float(0.1, 0.3),
    }):change_color(0.5, pc)
  end
  self:die()
end


-- Called by main.lua's sensor_entities_begin('projectile','enemy')
-- loop. hx/hy are nil (sensor events carry no contact point), so we
-- spawn the hit-effect sprite at the projectile's own position.
function projectile:on_hit(e)
  if e and e.hit and not e._dead then e:hit(self.damage) end
  spawn_hit_effect(self.x, self.y)
  self:die()
end


function projectile:die()
  if self._dying then return end
  self._dying = true
  local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
  spawn_hit_circle(self.x, self.y, {radius = 8, duration = 0.2}):change_color(0.6, pc)
  for i = 1, 2 do
    spawn_particle(self.x, self.y, {
      velocity = random_float(50, 150),
      duration = random_float(0.1, 0.3),
    }):change_color(0.6, pc)
  end
  entity_kill(self)
end


function projectile:destroy()
  if self.collider then self.collider:destroy() end
end


function projectile:draw(layer)
  set_edition(layer, self.edition)
  local s = self.spring.main.x
  local c = self.flashing and fg_color() or self.color()
  layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, self.r, s, s)
  layer_rounded_rectangle(layer, -self.w/2, -self.h/2, self.w, self.h, 2, c)
  layer_pop(layer)
  set_edition(layer, 0)
end


function spawn_projectile(x, y, r, opts)
  opts = opts or {}
  local p_ = projectile(x, y, {
    r         = r,
    w         = opts.w, h = opts.h,
    speed     = opts.speed,
    damage    = opts.damage,
    color     = opts.color,
    edition   = opts.edition,
    max_range = opts.max_range,
  })
  projectiles[#projectiles + 1] = p_
  return p_
end

main.lua changes

  1. require('projectile') after require('wall').
  2. Register 'projectile' physics tag + enable collision with 'enemy' (sensor events fire through enabled tag pairs).
  3. Bind mouse:1 → fire_projectile.
  4. In update: on press, compute aim_r from player to camera mouse and call spawn_projectile(p.x, p.y, aim_r, {edition = p.edition, color = red, max_range = 220}).
  5. After the existing entity update loops, add a reverse-iter prune + update for projectiles[] (mirrors the seekers/fxs pattern).
  6. After existing collision loops, add a sensor_entities_begin('projectile', 'enemy') handler that calls proj:on_hit(enemy).
  7. In draw: draw projectiles on game_layer between seekers and fxs (so fxs sit on top of the projectile rect).
  8. In F2 debug overlay: walk projectiles[] too so sensor hitboxes draw yellow.

Two things worth flagging before I commit

Does this look right? Once you say go I'll write the file and edit main.lua in one pass.

This looks good. Before you continue, however, please change CLAUDE.md to ALWAYS show me the code you'll write, like you just did here. Make sure that this is a hard, explicit rule that should be valid for the entirety of the conversation.

Adding that as a hard rule to attack-template's CLAUDE.md right at the top so future sessions (and the rest of this one) can't miss it.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Also reinforcing in the Working Style section at the bottom so the rule shows up wherever someone scrolls.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Rule's in — both at the very top (a dedicated ⛔ HARD RULE block) and reinforced as the first bullet of the Working Style section.

Now, per that rule applied to the current task: you've green-lit the projectile.lua contents, but the main.lua changes I only described in prose — I should still show the actual diffs before applying them. Want me to:

  1. Post the four exact main.lua hunks (require + physics tag/enable + bind + update/draw additions) for your review, then write projectile.lua and apply main.lua edits in one pass once you approve, or
  2. Just write projectile.lua first (already approved), then come back with the main.lua hunks?

My preference is (1) — one approval, one write pass, no half-finished state between steps.

I meant in the global CLAUDE.md file.

Got it. Two edits to propose — revert the attack-template additions, then add the rule to E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md instead. Here's the plan:

Edit 1 — revert attack-template/.claude/CLAUDE.md

Remove both blocks I just added (the top ⛔ HARD RULE section and the new bullet in Working Style). File goes back to its pre-edit state.

Edit 2 — add hard rule to E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md

Replace the existing soft version in the "Code Changes" subsection of "Working Style":

Old: ```

Code Changes

New: ```

Code Changes

[Request interrupted by user]

You don't need to remove the edits to the local ones, just add it all to the global one.

Edit (E:\a327ex.claude\CLAUDE.md)

<tool_use_error>File has not been read yet. Read it first before writing to it.</tool_use_error>

Read (E:\a327ex.claude\CLAUDE.md)

1    # CLAUDE.md
2   
3   Guidelines for Claude Code instances working in this repository.
4   
5   ---
6   
7   ## Communication Style
8   
9   Be thorough. Write as much as the subject warrants — explain reasoning, include relevant context, surface adjacent considerations. Stay roughly on topic, but don't truncate for brevity's sake.
10  
11  Critique freely. Ideas, code, plans, artifacts — evaluate them honestly. Avoid sycophancy. Focus on what seems true rather than what's convenient or what you think I'd like to hear. I crave honest appraisal, including when it's uncomfortable.
12  
13  Embrace contradiction. Truth often contains multiple seemingly opposite ideas. Don't censor yourself to avoid inconsistency — multiple perspectives can be correct simultaneously. Present the tension rather than forcing artificial resolution.
14  
15  Express uncertainty. "I'm guessing," "I'm uncertain," "I might be wrong" — these are information, not weakness. False confidence is worse than acknowledged uncertainty.
16  
17  ---
18  
19  ## Working Style
20  
21  ### When to Ask
22  
23  Use the `AskUserQuestion` tool liberally. The developer prefers being asked over having Claude guess wrong.
24  
25  **Ask first:**
26  - Architecture decisions
27  - API design choices
28  - Design decisions (gameplay feel, mechanics, UI)
29  - Anything that could be done multiple valid ways
30  - When uncertain about intent or priorities
... [30 more lines]

Edit (E:\a327ex.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Rule added to global E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md (the "Code Changes" subsection of "Working Style"). Attack-template's local CLAUDE.md still has its emphatic version at the top and in its own Working Style — both intact.

Ready to continue with the projectile work when you are. Next step would be showing the four exact main.lua hunks for the projectile wiring before applying them.

Alright, go ahead with the projectile.

projectile.lua already approved. Per the rule, here are the four main.lua hunks before I write anything:

Hunk 1 — require (after wall)

require('wall')

+ require('projectile')

Hunk 2 — physics setup

physics_register_tag('enemy')

+ physics_register_tag('projectile')
physics_enable_collision('player', 'wall')
physics_enable_collision('player', 'enemy')
physics_enable_collision('enemy', 'wall')
physics_enable_collision('enemy', 'enemy')
+ physics_enable_collision('projectile', 'enemy')

Hunk 3 — fire binding (after the H/K binds, before floor_layer)

bind('hit_random_enemy',  'key:h')
bind('kill_random_enemy', 'key:k')

+ -- Primary fire. mouse:1 spawns a single projectile from the player's
+ -- position aimed at the cursor — canonical SNKRX/Invoker primary-attack
+ -- pattern. Edition is carried from the player so the shimmer reads as
+ -- "his" attack.
+ bind('fire_projectile', 'mouse:1')

Hunk 4 — update insertions (3 spots)

4a — fire handler. Placed AFTER camera_update(main_camera, dt) (it depends on the just-refreshed mouse position) and BEFORE p:update(dt):

  camera_update(main_camera, dt)

+ -- Primary fire. Aim is computed off the just-refreshed camera mouse.
+ -- max_range 220 lets a shot from center reach a bit past the wall
+ -- without flying off forever on a miss.
+ if is_pressed('fire_projectile') and not p._dead then
+   local aim_r = math.angle_to_point(p.x, p.y,
+                                     main_camera.mouse.x,
+                                     main_camera.mouse.y)
+   spawn_projectile(p.x, p.y, aim_r, {
+     edition   = p.edition,
+     color     = red,
+     max_range = 220,
+   })
+ end
+
  p:update(dt)

4b — projectiles update loop. Right after the fxs reverse-iter prune:

  for i = #fxs, 1, -1 do
    local f = fxs[i]
    if f._dead then table.remove(fxs, i)
    else f:update(dt) end
  end

+ for i = #projectiles, 1, -1 do
+   local pr = projectiles[i]
+   if pr._dead then table.remove(projectiles, i)
+   else pr:update(dt) end
+ end

4c — sensor handler. After the enemy↔wall collision loop, before process_destroy_queue():

  for _, ev in ipairs(collision_entities_begin('enemy', 'wall')) do
    -- ... existing wall_bump handler ...
  end

+ -- Projectile ↔ enemy: sensor events fire when the projectile's sensor
+ -- box enters an enemy collider. Carrier handles damage + hit FX + death;
+ -- we just forward the event.
+ for _, ev in ipairs(sensor_entities_begin('projectile', 'enemy')) do
+   local pr, e = ev.a, ev.b
+   if pr and pr.on_hit and not pr._dead and e and not e._dead then
+     pr:on_hit(e)
+   end
+ end

  process_destroy_queue()

Hunk 5 — draw insertions (2 spots)

5a — render projectiles on game_layer between seekers and fxs. This puts the rect under hit-circles/particles so the FX read on top.

  p:draw(game_layer)

- for _, sk in ipairs(seekers) do sk:draw(game_layer) end
- for _, f  in ipairs(fxs)     do f:draw(game_layer)  end
+ for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do sk:draw(game_layer) end
+ for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do pr:draw(game_layer) end
+ for _, f  in ipairs(fxs)         do f:draw(game_layer)  end

5b — F2 collider overlay walks projectiles too. Sensor box draws yellow (per the existing solid_c / sensor_c switch in draw_collider_shapes).

    draw_collider_shapes(p)

-   for _, sk in ipairs(seekers) do draw_collider_shapes(sk) end
-   for _, w  in ipairs(walls)   do draw_collider_shapes(w)  end
+   for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do draw_collider_shapes(sk) end
+   for _, w  in ipairs(walls)       do draw_collider_shapes(w)  end
+   for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do draw_collider_shapes(pr) end

That's the full set. Six insertions across main.lua, no deletions of existing logic. Want me to write projectile.lua and apply all five hunks now?

Only change needed, projectile spawning should be offset by half player's width towards the direction instead of directly on the player. Actually, do a double check on how Orblike/Invoker do this, I believe it's half the width but I may be wrong. Remember to also copy any shooting effects, juice on player/projectile, etc, all the same.

Let me dig into how v1 spawns projectiles and what juice the act of firing produces. The "half player width" guess is probably right but I want to ground it.

Grep (projectile(.x.y.{|projectile(.?,.?,.?{)

2016:          last_proj = projectile(shot.x, shot.y, {ability = ability_name, color = def.color, r = shot.r, mods = mods, source_orb = self, speed_mult = shot.speed_mult, cast_log = log})
8250:      local sec = projectile(sx, sy, {
10238:      local p = projectile(shot.x, shot.y, {ability = self.ability, color = self.color, r = shot.r, mods = mods, source_orb = self.source_orb, return_target = self, cast_log = self.cast_log})

Grep (function orb:activate|orb:fire_projectile|spawn_projectile|fire_projectile)

1267:function orb:activate(override_ability, override_pos)

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

1950         p1.spring:pull('shoot', 0.25)
1951            p1.flashing = true
1952            p1.timer:after(0.15, 'flash', function() p1.flashing = false end)
1953          end
1954    
1955        elseif def.carrier == 'random' then
1956          local pool = def.pool or {}
1957          if #pool > 0 then
1958            local chosen = an.random:choice(pool)
1959            self:activate(chosen, override_pos)
1960          end
1961        else
1962          -- Build shot angles (projectile_ specific or general fallback)
1963          local angles = {}
1964          local p_nova = mods.projectile_nova or mods.nova
1965          local p_spread = mods.projectile_spread or mods.spread
1966          local p_back = mods.projectile_back or mods.back
1967          local p_sides = mods.projectile_sides or mods.sides
1968          if p_nova then
1969            for i = 0, 7 do
1970              table.insert(angles, r + i*math.pi/4)
1971            end
1972          else
1973            if p_spread and p_spread >= 2 then
1974              local n = p_spread
1975              local spread = math.pi/6 + (n - 2)*math.pi/12
1976              for i = 1, n do
1977                local t = (i - 1)/(n - 1)
1978                table.insert(angles, r + spread*(t - 0.5))
1979              end
... [50 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

2027         an.camera.shake:push(r, 3)
2028            if is_null then
2029              self.spring:pull('main', 0.5)
2030            else
2031              p1.spring:pull('shoot', 0.25)
2032              p1.flashing = true
2033              p1.timer:after(0.15, 'flash', function() p1.flashing = false end)
2034            end
2035            for _, shot in ipairs(fire_shots_list) do
2036              an:add(hit_circle(shot.x, shot.y, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2}))
2037              for i = 1, 2 do
2038                an:add(hit_particle(shot.x, shot.y, {
2039                  angle = shot.r + an.random:float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4),
2040                  velocity = an.random:float(40, 200),
2041                  duration = an.random:float(0.3, 0.6),
2042                  w = an.random:choice({6, 8}),
2043                }):change_color(0.5, pc:clone()))
2044              end
2045              if def.projectile_shape == 'arc' and last_proj then
2046                local cast_spin_dir = last_proj.arc_spin_speed and math.sign(last_proj.arc_spin_speed) or 1
2047                for i = 1, an.random:int(4, 6) do
2048                  an:add(hit_particle(shot.x, shot.y, {
2049                    velocity = an.random:float(100, 250),
2050                    duration = an.random:float(0.4, 0.7),
2051                    w = an.random:float(8, 11),
2052                    spin = cast_spin_dir*9,
2053                  }):change_color(0.5, pc:clone()))
2054                end
2055              end
2056            end
... [70 more lines]

Found the juice. Let me find where fire_x, fire_y come from — that's the spawn origin computation.

Grep (fire_x|fire_y)

1309:    local fire_x, fire_y
1312:      fire_x, fire_y = override_pos.x, override_pos.y
1315:      fire_x, fire_y = self.x, self.y
1318:      fire_x, fire_y = p1.x, p1.y
1351:      local px, py = fire_x, fire_y
1422:      local spawn_x = fire_x + 8*math.cos(base_r)
1423:      local spawn_y = fire_y + 8*math.sin(base_r)
1443:        an:add(area(fire_x, fire_y, {ability = ability_name, color = def.color, mods = area_mods, follow = follow_target, edition = orb_ed, cast_log = self_area_log}))
1455:            an:add(area(fire_x + dist*math.cos(aim_r), fire_y + dist*math.sin(aim_r), {
1482:          an:add(area(fire_x, fire_y, {ability = ability_name, color = def.color, mods = area_mods, follow = follow_target, damage = def.aftershock_damage or 0, edition = orb_ed, cast_log = self_area_log}))
1499:      an:add(hit_circle(fire_x, fire_y, {radius = 10, duration = 0.2}))
1502:        an:add(hit_particle(fire_x, fire_y, {
1517:        local aim_r = math.atan(my - fire_y, mx - fire_x)
1518:        local dx, dy = mx - fire_x, my - fire_y
1519:        local dist = math.distance(fire_x, fire_y, mx, my)

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 15]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

1305     end
1306      end
1307    
1308      local function fire()
1309        local fire_x, fire_y
1310        local r
1311        if override_pos then
1312          fire_x, fire_y = override_pos.x, override_pos.y
1313          r = override_pos.r or p1.r
1314        elseif is_null then
1315          fire_x, fire_y = self.x, self.y
1316          r = math.angle_to_point(self.x, self.y, an.camera.mouse.x, an.camera.mouse.y)
1317        else
1318          fire_x, fire_y = p1.x, p1.y
1319          r = p1.r
1320        end
1321        local mods
1322        if override_pos and override_pos.child_mods then
1323          mods = override_pos.child_mods
1324        else
1325          mods = p1:get_mods()
1326          for _, slot in ipairs(self.slots) do
1327            if slot.type == 'modifier' then
1328              mods[slot.name] = slot.value
1329            end

Let me check our attack-template player to verify width and confirm what's already wired for shoot juice.

Grep (self.w |self.h |spring_add|spring_pull|self.flashing|self.timer)

5:  self.w, self.h = 10, 10
14:  self.flashing = false
41:  self.timer = timer_new()
43:  spring_add(self.spring, 'hit', 1)
44:  spring_add(self.spring, 'shoot', 1)
45:  spring_add(self.spring, 'move', 1)
63:  timer_update(self.timer, dt)
84:    timer_tween(self.timer, 0.2, 'visual_r_move', self, {visual_r = self.visual_r + math.pi}, math.linear)
87:    timer_tween(self.timer, 0.2, 'visual_r_move', self, {visual_r = self.visual_r - math.pi}, math.linear)
91:    timer_tween(self.timer, 0.05, 'scale_move_1', self, {sx = 0.8, sy = 0.8}, math.linear, function()
92:      timer_tween(self.timer, 0.4, 'scale_move_2', self, {sx = 1, sy = 1}, math.linear)
97:    spring_pull(self.spring, 'move', 0.35)
146:  spring_pull(self.spring, 'hit', 0.2)
147:  self.flashing = true
148:  timer_after(self.timer, 0.1, 'hit_flash', function() self.flashing = false end)
176:  local edition = self.flashing and 0 or self.edition
180:  local c = self.flashing and fg_color() or snkrx_blue()

Grep (^function shake|^function camera_shake|shake_push|^function .*shake)

E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\camera.lua:26:    shake_push(main_camera.shake, angle, amount)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:11:    shake_push(camera.shake, angle, amount)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:23:function shake_new()
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:66:function shake_trauma(s, amount, duration, amplitude)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:79:function shake_set_trauma_parameters(s, amplitude)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:91:function shake_shake(s, amplitude, duration, frequency)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:105:  shake_push(s, angle, amount, [frequency], [bounce])
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:109:function shake_push(s, angle, amount, frequency, bounce)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:125:function shake_sine(s, angle, amplitude, frequency, duration)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:139:function shake_square(s, angle, amplitude, frequency, duration)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:153:function shake_handcam(s, enabled, amplitude, frequency)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:169:function shake_get_effects(s)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua:232:function shake_update(s, dt)

Grep (camera_shake|shake_)

25:  Use the shake_* functions on it:
26:    shake_push(main_camera.shake, angle, amount)
27:    shake_shake(main_camera.shake, 10, 0.3)
28:    shake_trauma(main_camera.shake, 0.5, 0.3)
61:    shake = shake_new(),
106:  return shake_get_effects(c.shake)
213:  shake_update(c.shake, dt)

Grep (ability_particle_color|particle_color)

No matches found

Grep (self.w |self.h )

7247:  self.w, self.h = 10, 10
7683:  self.w = (def and def.projectile_height) or 10
7684:  self.h = (def and def.projectile_width) or 4
9209:  self.w, self.h = 14, 6
10109:  self.w = 6
10433:  self.w, self.h = 10, 4
10501:  self.w = args.w or math.remap(self.velocity, 100, 250, 7, 10)
10502:  self.h = args.h or self.w/2
11950:  self.w = args.w or 6
11951:  self.h = args.h or 2

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 10]

Grep (Invoker\player.lua)

No files found

Settled. Here's what v1 actually does, with the new hunk plan.

Findings from Invoker/v1/main.lua

  1. Spawn offset is a hardcoded +8 units along the firing angle (lines 1994-1995), NOT half-width. Your memory was close but off — v1's player is also 10×10 (line 7247, same as our attack-template player), and 8 puts the projectile center 3 units past the player's edge so the muzzle puff doesn't overlap the body. Half-width (5) would spawn the projectile half-inside the player.

  2. Full firing juice (lines 2027-2056), per shot:

    • an.camera.shake:push(r, 3) — directional shake of magnitude 3 along the fire angle.
    • p1.spring:pull('shoot', 0.25) — player recoil spring. ✅ Already registered on our player (player.lua line 44: spring_add(self.spring, 'shoot', 1)).
    • p1.flashing = true; timer:after(0.15, 'flash', ...) — player flashes white for 0.15s.
    • hit_circle(sx, sy, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2}) — small white muzzle puff at spawn point. Stays white in v1 (no :change_color).
    • 2× hit_particle(sx, sy, {angle = aim_r ± π/4, velocity = float(40,200), duration = float(0.3,0.6), w = choice({6,8})}):change_color(0.5, pc) — two muzzle particles in a forward cone, bleeding white → particle color.

  3. pc (particle color) in v1 is ability_particle_color(orb_edition, ability_color). We don't have that helper in attack-template. The established pattern from fx.lua callers is edition_base_color(ed) or fallback. I'll use edition_base_color(p.edition) or red so a polychrome / blue / green edition player throws colored muzzle sparks.

Revised Hunk 4a — fire handler with full juice

Replaces my prior single-line spawn_projectile call.

  camera_update(main_camera, dt)

+ -- Primary fire. v1 fires from p.x,p.y but offsets the spawn by +8
+ -- units along the aim direction so the muzzle puff doesn't overlap
+ -- the player body (v1 line 1994; player is 10×10 in both v1 and
+ -- here, so this carries verbatim). max_range 220 keeps stray shots
+ -- from flying off-screen forever. Full firing juice (v1 lines
+ -- 2027-2056):
+ --   • directional camera shake in the fire angle
+ --   • 'shoot' spring pull on the player (already registered as one
+ --     of the named springs in player.lua)
+ --   • 0.15s white flash on the player ('shoot_flash' timer name
+ --     keeps it distinct from :hit's 'hit_flash' so a hit + shoot in
+ --     the same frame doesn't clobber each other)
+ --   • muzzle puff hit_circle (stays white per v1 — no change_color)
+ --   • 2 muzzle particles in a ±π/4 forward cone, bleeding white →
+ --     edition particle color halfway through life
+ if is_pressed('fire_projectile') and not p._dead then
+   local aim_r = math.angle_to_point(p.x, p.y,
+                                     main_camera.mouse.x,
+                                     main_camera.mouse.y)
+   local sx = p.x + 8*math.cos(aim_r)
+   local sy = p.y + 8*math.sin(aim_r)
+   spawn_projectile(sx, sy, aim_r, {
+     edition   = p.edition,
+     color     = red,
+     max_range = 220,
+   })
+
+   shake_push(main_camera.shake, aim_r, 3)
+   spring_pull(p.spring, 'shoot', 0.25)
+   p.flashing = true
+   timer_after(p.timer, 0.15, 'shoot_flash',
+               function() p.flashing = false end)
+
+   local pc = edition_base_color(p.edition) or red
+   spawn_hit_circle(sx, sy, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2})
+   for i = 1, 2 do
+     spawn_particle(sx, sy, {
+       angle    = aim_r + random_float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4),
+       velocity = random_float(40, 200),
+       duration = random_float(0.3, 0.6),
+       w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
+     }):change_color(0.5, pc)
+   end
+ end
+
  p:update(dt)

Other hunks (1, 2, 3, 4b, 4c, 5a, 5b) are unchanged from the prior message.

Note on flash collision: player's :hit uses timer_after(... 'hit_flash', ...) for 0.1s. My fire handler uses 'shoot_flash' for 0.15s. They share self.flashing though, so if both fire in the same frame, whichever's timer fires LAST will leave flashing in its final state. In practice harmless — both want flashing=true then false a fraction later — but worth knowing.

One open knob: should random_choice exist in our framework? Let me verify before I lock this in.

Grep (^function random_choice|^random_choice =)

No matches found

Grep (random_choice)

E:\a327ex\attack-template\fx.lua:26:  become random_float / random_choice. Otherwise the math, easings,

Grep (^function random|^random)

No matches found

Grep (^function array.|^function table.choice|array.random)

E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:50:function array.all(t, f)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:72:function array.any(t, f)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:92:function array.average(t)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:118:function array.count(t, v)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:149:function array.delete(t, v)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:179:function array.flatten(t, level)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:225:function array.get(t, i, j)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:254:function array.get_circular_buffer_index(t, i)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:274:function array.has(t, v)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:302:function array.index(t, v)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:329:function array.join(t, separator)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:353:function array.max(t, f)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:386:function array.print(t)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:397:    array.random({1, 2, 3})        -- random element
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\array.lua:398:    array.random({1, 2, 3}, 2)     -- {random, random} (2 unique elements)

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 15]

Correction — random_choice doesn't exist in this framework; it's array.random (same pattern seeker.lua uses for the death sound). One swap in 4a:


-       w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
+       w        = array.random({6, 8}),

Full revised hunk 4a holds — only the w = line changes.

All hunks now correct. Plan recap: - projectile.lua (new, as previously approved — no changes) - main.lua edits: hunks 1, 2, 3, 4a (with array.random fix above), 4b, 4c, 5a, 5b

Ready to write everything in one pass on your go-ahead.

For ease of usage, everything should be in spawn_projectile, except the caster itself (player) which is passed in, and then everything else is derived in there. This will make it so next instances can just call that function by itself. Also, random_choice should be available in Anchor2, unless I'm mistaken.

Checking Anchor2 for random_choice first.

Grep (^function random_choice|^random_choice =)

No matches found

Grep (random_choice)

Found 5 files limit: 5
Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c
Anchor2\docs\FRAMEWORK_API.md
Anchor2\reference\anchor2_plan.md
Anchor2\docs\FRAMEWORK_API_QUICK.md
Anchor2\docs\ENGINE_API.md

Grep (random_choice)

739:random_choice(array, rng?) -> element
740:random_choices(array, n, rng?) -> [element, ...]

Grep (random_choice)

7816:// random_choice(array, rng?) - Pick one random element from array
7817:static int l_random_choice(lua_State* L) {
7836:// random_choices(array, n, rng?) - Pick n random elements (unique indexes)
7837:static int l_random_choices(lua_State* L) {
9372:    lua_register(L, "random_choice", l_random_choice);
9373:    lua_register(L, "random_choices", l_random_choices);

You're right on both counts:

  1. random_choice IS an Anchor2 engine global (registered in anchor.c:9372 as lua_register(L, "random_choice", l_random_choice)). My grep against the Lua anchor/ folder missed it because it's a C-side global. So the original random_choice({6, 8}) was correct — array.random was an unnecessary detour. Reverting that line.

  2. Folding the firing logic into spawn_projectile is the right shape — much cleaner caller, future projects (or AI-fired projectiles) just say spawn_projectile(caster, opts) and get everything for free.

Revised spawn_projectile (replaces the wrapper at the bottom of projectile.lua)

Everything above this in projectile.lua stays the same as previously approved (the projectile class itself). Only the spawn wrapper changes:

--[[
  spawn_projectile(caster, opts)

  High-level fire helper. Takes a caster (anything with
  x/y/edition/spring/timer/flashing — player or seeker both qualify)
  and spawns a projectile in front of it, applying the full firing
  juice package. Future callers should use this rather than
  constructing `projectile(...)` directly.

  Spawn placement:
    • aim_r = opts.aim_r, OR caster → main_camera.mouse (default).
      Pass aim_r explicitly when an AI caster aims at the player or
      some other target instead of the human mouse cursor.
    • position = caster.{x,y} + (opts.spawn_offset or 8) along aim_r.
      v1 hardcodes +8 from a 10×10 player so the muzzle puff doesn't
      overlap the body. Tunable per-caller via spawn_offset.

  Carrier knobs (forwarded to projectile):
    color (default red), edition (defaults to caster.edition),
    max_range, damage, speed, w, h.

  Caster-side juice (always applied — these are part of "fire a
  projectile"; for a silent shot, call projectile() directly):
    • shake_push(main_camera.shake, aim_r, 3) — directional kick
    • spring_pull(caster.spring, 'shoot', 0.25) — recoil
    • caster.flashing = true + timer 'shoot_flash' (0.15s)
      — distinct timer name from :hit's 'hit_flash' so a hit + fire
      in the same frame don't clobber each other's restoration.
    The spring / timer pulls are nil-guarded so a caster without
    those fields still fires (it just gets no body juice).

  Muzzle FX at the spawn position (always — same reasoning):
    • spawn_hit_circle(sx, sy, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2}) — white
      puff (v1 leaves this white; no :change_color).
    • 2× spawn_particle in a ±π/4 forward cone with v1 defaults
      (velocity 40-200, duration 0.3-0.6, w random of {6,8}),
      bleeding white → edition_base_color(caster.edition) or color
      at 0.5 of duration.

  Returns the projectile instance for callers that want a reference.
]]
function spawn_projectile(caster, opts)
  opts = opts or {}
  local aim_r = opts.aim_r or math.angle_to_point(caster.x, caster.y,
                                                  main_camera.mouse.x,
                                                  main_camera.mouse.y)
  local off   = opts.spawn_offset or 8
  local sx    = caster.x + off*math.cos(aim_r)
  local sy    = caster.y + off*math.sin(aim_r)
  local color = opts.color or red

  local p_ = projectile(sx, sy, {
    r         = aim_r,
    w         = opts.w, h = opts.h,
    speed     = opts.speed,
    damage    = opts.damage,
    color     = color,
    edition   = opts.edition or caster.edition,
    max_range = opts.max_range,
  })
  projectiles[#projectiles + 1] = p_

  -- Caster-side juice. Nil-guarded so an AI caster without a 'shoot'
  -- spring / timer still fires; it just gets no body juice.
  shake_push(main_camera.shake, aim_r, 3)
  if caster.spring then spring_pull(caster.spring, 'shoot', 0.25) end
  if caster.timer then
    caster.flashing = true
    timer_after(caster.timer, 0.15, 'shoot_flash',
                function() caster.flashing = false end)
  end

  -- Muzzle FX
  local pc = edition_base_color(caster.edition) or color
  spawn_hit_circle(sx, sy, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2})
  for i = 1, 2 do
    spawn_particle(sx, sy, {
      angle    = aim_r + random_float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4),
      velocity = random_float(40, 200),
      duration = random_float(0.3, 0.6),
      w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
    }):change_color(0.5, pc)
  end

  return p_
end

Revised Hunk 4a (main.lua fire handler — collapses to 3 lines)

  camera_update(main_camera, dt)

+ -- Primary fire. spawn_projectile(caster, opts) handles aim, spawn
+ -- offset, projectile creation, camera shake, recoil spring, white
+ -- flash, and muzzle FX. We just pass the player + the demo knobs.
+ if is_pressed('fire_projectile') and not p._dead then
+   spawn_projectile(p, {max_range = 220})
+ end
+
  p:update(dt)

color = red is the default inside spawn_projectile, so the call doesn't need to specify it.

Recap of full apply plan

Good to write?

Yep.

Writing projectile.lua first.

Write (E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua)

File created successfully at: E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Now applying the main.lua hunks.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

All edits applied. Syntax-checking both files now.

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

Both files parse cleanly. Here's what to test:

Run: ./run.bat from attack-template/.

Primary fire — left-click anywhere: - A red rounded-rect projectile spawns ~8 units in front of the player, flies toward the cursor at speed 190, dies after 220 units of travel. - Player juice: brief recoil (springs the body), white flash for 0.15s. - Camera juice: small directional shake along the fire angle. - Muzzle FX: white hit_circle puff + 2 particles in a forward cone, particles bleed from white into the player's edition tint at mid-life.

Enemy hit: projectile entering a seeker's box surfaces a sensor event → seeker takes 1 damage (white flash + HP bar reveals + hit-effect sprite at projectile position) → projectile dies with hit_circle + 2 particles.

Wall hit: raycast catches the wall before the sensor body crosses it → hit_circle + 2 particles at the hit point → projectile dies. Confirms walls block.

Other things to verify still work: - F2 collider overlay should now show projectile sensor boxes in yellow (vs lime for solids). - Edition cycling on the player (0/F1) should change the muzzle-particle late-color on subsequent shots. - H/K debug damage still works. - Player ↔ enemy contact, enemy ↔ wall bump still work as before.

Let me know what reads off — especially whether the muzzle puff sits naturally outside the player (the 8-unit offset feels right with a 10-wide body) or if the spawn position needs nudging.

Perfect, now let's make the projectile actually die on max range, wall hit and enemy hit, and also deal damage to enemies. Double check that the particles being spawned for it as well as general juice behavior in those instances are the same as in Orblike/Invoker.

Let me investigate why the projectile isn't dying. First — how does entity_kill actually set _dead?

Grep (function entity_kill|function make_entity|function process_destroy_queue|_dead)

74:function make_entity(e)
87:function entity_kill(e)
97:function process_destroy_queue()
105:      e._dead = true

Grep (entity_kill|_dead|process_destroy_queue)

E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:32:    process_destroy_queue()
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:41:      at end-of-frame via process_destroy_queue. This means dead-marked
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:54:-- Pending destruction queue, drained by process_destroy_queue
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:83:  entity_kill(e)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:87:function entity_kill(e)
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:92:  process_destroy_queue()
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:97:function process_destroy_queue()
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua:105:      e._dead = true
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\init.lua:26:      process_destroy_queue()        -- drain deferred destruction
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\init.lua:45:    - class(), make_entity(), process_destroy_queue()
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\helpers.lua:5:  Reverse iteration over a plain array of entities: removes entries with ._dead
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\helpers.lua:6:  (set by process_destroy_queue after kill), otherwise calls :update(dt) or the
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\helpers.lua:14:    if e._dead then
E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\input.lua:50:function input_deadzone(d) input_set_deadzone(d) end

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua)

74   function make_entity(e)
75    e.id = next_id
76    next_id = next_id + 1
77    entities[e.id] = e
78    if not e.kill then e.kill = default_kill end
79    return e
80  end
81  
82  --[[
83    entity_kill(e)
84    Free function equivalent to e:kill(). Useful if you have a plain
85    entity table and don't want to use method syntax.
86  ]]
87  function entity_kill(e)
88    default_kill(e)
89  end
90  
91  --[[
92    process_destroy_queue()
93    Called once at the end of every frame in the game's main update.
94    Drains the destroy queue until stable (entity destruction may cause
95    more kills via polling in other entities' destroy methods).
96  ]]
97  function process_destroy_queue()
98    while #destroy_queue > 0 do
99      local q = destroy_queue
100     destroy_queue = {}
101     for i = 1, #q do
102       local e = q[i]
103       if e.destroy then e:destroy() end
... [6 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\object.lua)

50   
51  -- Auto-incrementing ID counter (never reused)
52  local next_id = 1
53  
54  -- Pending destruction queue, drained by process_destroy_queue
55  local destroy_queue = {}
56  
57  --[[
58    Default kill method installed on every entity at make_entity time.
59    If a class defines its own kill method before calling make_entity,
60    that takes precedence.
61  ]]
62  local function default_kill(self)
63    if self._dying then return end
64    self._dying = true
65    destroy_queue[#destroy_queue + 1] = self
66  end
67  
68  --[[
69    make_entity(e)
70    Assigns e.id and registers e in the global entities table.
71    Also installs a default kill method if none exists.
72    Returns e for chaining.
73  ]]
74  function make_entity(e)

Two things to check — let me read v1's projectile:on_hit branches fully and confirm exactly what FX each carrier kind spawns, plus check the bug I suspect in my :die().

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8290 function projectile:on_hit(e, hx, hy)
8291      -- Ball lightning deals no contact damage, zone tick handles it
8292      if self.is_ball_lightning then return end
8293      local proj_pc = ability_particle_color((self.source_orb and self.source_orb.edition) or ability_edition_override or 0, self.color)
8294    
8295      local def = abilities[self.ability]
8296      local log = self.cast_log
8297      if self.ability == 'fireball' then
8298        local r = e:take_damage(damage_components(self))
8299        if log then log:add_hit(r, e, 'projectile') end
8300        an:add(hit_effect(hx, hy))
8301        an:add(area(self.x, self.y, {ability = 'fireball', color = self.color, mods = self.mods, cascade_r = self.r, edition = (self.source_orb and self.source_orb.edition) or ability_edition_override or 0, cast_log = log}))
8302      elseif self.ability == 'null_arrow' then
8303        local r = e:take_damage(damage_components(self))
8304        if log then log:add_hit(r, e, 'projectile') end
8305        an:add(hit_effect(hx, hy))
8306        for i = 1, an.random:int(1, 2) do
8307          an:add(hit_particle(hx, hy, {velocity = an.random:float(50, 150)}):change_color(0.5, proj_pc:clone()))
8308        end
8309        an:add(area(self.x, self.y, {ability = 'null_arrow', color = self.color, mods = self.mods, cascade_r = self.r, edition = (self.source_orb and self.source_orb.edition) or ability_edition_override or 0, cast_log = log}))
8310      elseif self.ability == 'explosive_arrow' then
8311        -- Stick into enemy, add fuse + contact damage (contact result stored on fuse for detonation log)
8312        local stick_result = e:take_damage(damage_components(self), 0.3)
8313        explosive_fuse_add(e, e.x, e.y, {
8314          r = self.r, mods = self.mods, color = self.color,
8315          source_orb = self.source_orb,
8316          edition = (self.source_orb and self.source_orb.edition) or ability_edition_override or 0,
8317          stick_result = stick_result, stick_enemy = e,
8318        })
8319        an:add(hit_effect(hx, hy))
... [85 more lines]

Grep (function apply_knockback_mod)

682:function apply_knockback_mod(mods, enemy, from_x, from_y)
683-  if enemy.dead or not enemy.push then return end
684-  local force, duration = 0, 0
685-  if mods['knockback+'] then force, duration = 6, 0.2
686-  elseif mods['knockback++'] then force, duration = 10, 0.35
687-  elseif mods['knockback+++'] then force, duration = 15, 0.5 end
688-  if force > 0 then
689-    local r = math.angle_to_point(from_x, from_y, enemy.x, enemy.y)
690-    enemy:push(r, force, duration)
691-  end
692-end
693-
694--- Abilities
695-function ability_has_tag(ability_name, tag)
696-  local def = abilities[ability_name]
697-  if not def or not def.tags then return false end
698-  for _, t in ipairs(def.tags) do
699-    if t == tag then return true end
700-  end
701-  return false
702-end

Grep (random_int)

7721:// random_int(min, max, rng?) - Random integer [min, max] inclusive
7722:static int l_random_int(lua_State* L) {
9367:    lua_register(L, "random_int", l_random_int);

Found the bug + two FX mismatches. Let me show all three diffs before applying.

Diff A — fix :die() (the actual bug)

default_kill (anchor/object.lua:62) checks self._dying and bails if true. My :die() sets self._dying = true BEFORE calling entity_kill, which locks the framework out of ever queueing the projectile. Result: FX spawn, but the entity never goes away — flies forever through walls and enemies. The early-return guard against double-FX is correct; the manual flag set is wrong.

 function projectile:die()

-  if self._dying then return end
-  self._dying = true
+  if self._dying then return end  -- framework sets _dying via entity_kill below; guard prevents double-FX if :die() is called twice in one frame
   local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
   spawn_hit_circle(self.x, self.y, {radius = 8, duration = 0.2}):change_color(0.6, pc)
   ...
   entity_kill(self)
 end

This single fix should cure all three "doesn't die" symptoms (max range, wall, enemy) AND make the on_hit damage path actually visible — damage was already being applied, just the projectile kept going past the enemy.

Diff B — wall hit_circle stays WHITE in v1 (no change_color)

I have :change_color(0.5, pc) on the wall hit_circle. v1 line 8056 leaves it white (no chain call). Particles still bleed to pc, but the circle itself is a pure white puff — same visual hierarchy as the muzzle hit_circle. Subtle but correct.

 function projectile:hit_wall(hx, hy)
   local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color

-  spawn_hit_circle(hx, hy, {radius = 6, duration = 0.15}):change_color(0.5, pc)
+  spawn_hit_circle(hx, hy, {radius = 6, duration = 0.15})
   for i = 1, 2 do
     spawn_particle(hx, hy, {
       velocity = random_float(50, 100),
       duration = random_float(0.1, 0.3),
     }):change_color(0.5, pc)
   end
   self:die()
 end

Diff C — enemy hit is missing the 1-2 forward particles

v1's piercing_arrow / arrow_barrage / rotating_turret / tornado_shot branches (lines 8331-8338, the most "default rect" behavior) all spawn random_int(1, 2) hit_particle(hx, hy, {velocity = float(50, 150)}):change_color(0.5, pc) alongside the hit_effect. My on_hit has the hit_effect but not these particles — port is missing the burst.

 function projectile:on_hit(e)
   if e and e.hit and not e._dead then e:hit(self.damage) end

+  local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
   spawn_hit_effect(self.x, self.y)
+  for i = 1, random_int(1, 2) do
+    spawn_particle(self.x, self.y, {
+      velocity = random_float(50, 150),
+    }):change_color(0.5, pc)
+  end
   self:die()
 end

Notes on v1 things I'm INTENTIONALLY leaving out for now

Apply all three?

Yes.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All three fixes applied; parses clean. Test:

If anything else feels off vs. Invoker, easy to dial in from here.

Great, max range and wall hit work, but the projectiles are still not hitting enemies.

Let me debug what's missing on the sensor side. Probably need a different enable call or the events have a different signature.

Grep (physics_get_sensor_begin|physics_enable_sensor|sensor_begin|l_physics_get_sensor)

630:static PhysicsSensorBeginEvent sensor_begin_events[MAX_PHYSICS_EVENTS];
631:static int sensor_begin_count = 0;
676:    sensor_begin_count = 0;
784:    for (int i = 0; i < sensor_events.beginCount && sensor_begin_count < MAX_PHYSICS_EVENTS; i++) {
792:        PhysicsSensorBeginEvent* ev = &sensor_begin_events[sensor_begin_count++];
5864:static int l_physics_enable_sensor(lua_State* L) {
6873:           sensor_begin_count, sensor_end_count);
7070:// physics_get_sensor_begin(tag_a, tag_b) -> array of {sensor_body, visitor_body, sensor_shape, visitor_shape, sensor_tag, visitor_tag}
7071:static int l_physics_get_sensor_begin(lua_State* L) {
7083:    for (int i = 0; i < sensor_begin_count; i++) {
7084:        PhysicsSensorBeginEvent* e = &sensor_begin_events[i];
7123:static int l_physics_get_sensor_end(lua_State* L) {
9292:    lua_register(L, "physics_enable_sensor", l_physics_enable_sensor);
9350:    lua_register(L, "physics_get_sensor_begin", l_physics_get_sensor_begin);
9351:    lua_register(L, "physics_get_sensor_end", l_physics_get_sensor_end);

Found the missing piece. Let me confirm physics_enable_sensor signature.

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

5864 static int l_physics_enable_sensor(lua_State* L) {
5865        const char* name_a = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
5866        const char* name_b = luaL_checkstring(L, 2);
5867    
5868        PhysicsTag* tag_a = physics_tag_get_by_name(name_a);
5869        PhysicsTag* tag_b = physics_tag_get_by_name(name_b);
5870    
5871        if (!tag_a) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown physics tag: %s", name_a);
5872        if (!tag_b) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown physics tag: %s", name_b);
5873    
5874        // Enable sensor events both ways
5875        tag_a->sensor_mask |= tag_b->category_bit;
5876        tag_b->sensor_mask |= tag_a->category_bit;
5877        return 0;
5878    }
5879    
5880    static int l_physics_enable_hit(lua_State* L) {
5881        const char* name_a = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
5882        const char* name_b = luaL_checkstring(L, 2);
5883    
5884        PhysicsTag* tag_a = physics_tag_get_by_name(name_a);
5885        PhysicsTag* tag_b = physics_tag_get_by_name(name_b);
5886    
5887        if (!tag_a) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown physics tag: %s", name_a);
5888        if (!tag_b) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown physics tag: %s", name_b);

There it is. Two distinct masks in the engine: physics_enable_collision only enables blocking collisions; sensors need physics_enable_sensor (anchor.c:5864). Since the projectile collider is a sensor fixture, the blocking-collision enable I added is doing nothing useful — needs to be replaced with the sensor enable.

Diff — main.lua physics setup

 physics_enable_collision('enemy', 'wall')
 physics_enable_collision('enemy', 'enemy')
-physics_enable_collision('projectile', 'enemy')
+-- Projectile uses a SENSOR fixture (passes through enemies visually).
+-- Sensors have a separate event mask from blocking collisions — must
+-- enable via physics_enable_sensor, not physics_enable_collision. The
+-- latter only matters for fixtures that physically block, which a
+-- sensor never does (anchor.c: tag->sensor_mask vs tag->collision_mask).
+physics_enable_sensor('projectile', 'enemy')

Apply?

Yes, you can remove the comments.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

Done. Fire at a seeker — should land damage + hit-effect sprite + 1-2 colored particles, then the projectile pops with its own death FX.

Lua draw() error: anchor/layer.lua:185: attempt to index a nil value (field 'spritesheet')

I believe you need to port the hit effect animation.

The 'hit1' spritesheet isn't loaded. Let me find how Invoker registers it and what asset is needed.

Grep (hit1|spritesheet.*hit)

E:\a327ex\Invoker\projectile.lua:228:  -- spritesheet animation, not a hit_circle). Match here so the
E:\a327ex\Invoker\fx.lua:172:-- fx_hit_effect — 5-frame "hit1" spritesheet burst (v1 hit_effect)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\fx.lua:197:  self.anim = animation_new('hit1', 0.06, 'once', {
E:\a327ex\Invoker\main.lua:205:-- v1's hit_effect sprite (assets/hit1.png) — 5-frame 96x48 white
E:\a327ex\Invoker\main.lua:207:spritesheet_register('hit1', 'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\anchor\spritesheet.lua:5:    spritesheets.hit = spritesheet_register('hit', 'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\anchor\spritesheet.lua:6:    layer_spritesheet(game_layer, spritesheets.hit, 1, 100, 100)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\anchor\animation.lua:5:    self.anim = animation_new('hit1', 0.03, 'once', {
E:\a327ex\Invoker\tools\mov_to_spritesheet.py:41:      assets/fx_energy_hit1.png --threshold 0.4 --size 96
E:\a327ex\Invoker\tools\mov_to_spritesheet.py:45:    an:spritesheet('fx_test', 'assets/fx_energy_hit1.png', 96, 96)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\anchor\animation.lua:11:    self:add(animation('anim', an.spritesheets.hit, 0.03, 'once', {
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\anchor\init.lua:151:      an:spritesheet('hit', 'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\anchor\init.lua:164:      - Subsequent access via an.spritesheets.hit, etc.
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua:6988:an:spritesheet('hit1', 'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua:10583:  self:add(animation('hit1', 0.06, 'once', {
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua:10589:  self.hit1:update(dt)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua:10593:  effects:animation(self.hit1, 0, 0)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua:10610:  self.fx_name = args.name or 'hit1'
E:\a327ex\Invoker\reference\004\main.yue:18:  frames.hit1 = animation_frames(love.graphics.newImage'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)
E:\a327ex\Invoker\reference\004\main.yue:388:    @animation = animation 0.04, frames.hit1, 'once', {[0]: -> @dead = true}

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 20]

Bash (ls -la E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/hit1.png)

-rw-r--r-- 1 adn 197121 572 Feb 26 08:51 E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/hit1.png

Asset exists. Two changes needed — one binary copy, one main.lua edit. Showing the code edit first.

File copy (binary, no review needed)

Invoker/assets/hit1.png → attack-template/assets/hit1.png (572 bytes, 5×96×48 white burst).

Diff — main.lua add spritesheet register after the sound loads

 sounds.enemy_die_variants = {
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3_lightmed.ogg'),
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7_lightmed.ogg'),
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10_lightmed.ogg'),
 }

+-- 5-frame 96×48 white burst sprite used by fx_hit_effect (the
+-- enemy-hit sprite-burst, distinct from the geometric fx_hit_circle).
+-- Mirrors Invoker/main.lua line 207.
+spritesheet_register('hit1', 'assets/hit1.png', 96, 48)

Apply both?

Yes. Also, is there a general projectile hit sound that isn't specific to an attack? Check Orblike v1 for that. If there is, port it over and apply it here when enemies get hit by a projectile. If the sound is different based on different attacks i.e. fireball has one projectile hit sound and other abilities have other sounds then don't port.

Bash (cp E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/hit1.png E:/a327ex/attack-template/assets/hit1.png &...)

-rw-r--r-- 1 adn 197121 572 May 17 18:51 E:/a327ex/attack-template/assets/hit1.png

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Now investigating the projectile-hit sound question across v1.

Grep (hit_sound|projectile_hit_sound|on_hit.*sfx|hit_sounds)

740:    hit_sound = 'fireball_hit',
993:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1006:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1024:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1046:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1061:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1081:    hit_sounds = {'rf_hit_3'},
8062:        if wall_def and wall_def.wall_hit_sounds then
8063:          local snd = an.random:choice(wall_def.wall_hit_sounds)
8685:            local hit_vol = is_cyclone and 0.5 or (def and def.hit_sounds and 0.45 or 0)
8709:          if def and def.hit_sounds then
8710:            local snd = an.random:choice(def.hit_sounds)
8914:        if hit_any and def and def.hit_sound then
8915:          sfx(def.hit_sound, volumes[def.hit_sound])

Investigated. No generic projectile-hit sound exists in v1 — it's per-ability:

Ability Hit sound
fireball, null_arrow None on projectile itself — they spawn an area on hit, and the area plays its own hit_sound (e.g. fireball_hit)
wind_slash wind_slash_hit (ability-specific)
piercing_arrow, arrow_barrage, tornado_shot, rotating_turret, explosive_arrow No sound on projectile-enemy hit at all (lines 8331-8338 just damage + knockback + hit_effect + particles)
righteous_fire (area only) hit_sounds = {'rf_hit_3'} per-tick

Per your rule — "if the sound is different based on different attacks ... don't port" — that fits. No general projectile hit sfx to add. (Note that the seeker itself already plays the enemy_hit "headshot" sample inside seeker:hit, so you're already hearing the body-impact sound on every projectile landing — that's the enemy-side feedback, not a projectile-side feedback.)

Recap of what just shipped this turn: - assets/hit1.png copied over. - spritesheet_register('hit1', ...) added to main.lua after the sound loads.

Fire at a seeker again — the hit-effect sprite burst should play cleanly with no draw error.

Hit effect animation looks a bit too slow, check against original. Also, it doesn't seem like the enemy is having its juice applied when its being hit (not flashing nor having spring pulled), check against original too. Make sure that all juice is the same. I'm also not feeling the camera move when the projectile is fired.

Let me dig into all three. Reading v1 sources first.

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

10577    hit_effect = object:extend()
10578   function hit_effect:new(x, y, s)
10579     object.new(self)
10580     self.x, self.y = x, y
10581     self.s = s or 1
10582     self.r = an.random:float(0, 2*math.pi)
10583     self:add(animation('hit1', 0.06, 'once', {
10584       [0] = function() self:kill() end,
10585     }))
10586   end
10587   
10588   function hit_effect:update(dt)
10589     self.hit1:update(dt)
10590     local x = self.follow and self.follow.x or self.x
10591     local y = self.follow and self.follow.y or self.y
10592     effects:push(x, y, self.r, self.s, self.s)
10593     effects:animation(self.hit1, 0, 0)
10594     effects:pop()
10595   end
10596   
10597   
10598   
10599   -- Effect: fx_effect (general spritesheet animation effect)
10600   -- Usage: an:add(fx_effect(x, y, {name = 'fx_energy_017', r = angle, s = 0.5, speed = 0.04, color = blue}))
10601   fx_effect = object:extend()
10602   function fx_effect:new(x, y, args)
10603     object.new(self)
10604     self.x, self.y = x, y
10605     args = args or {}
10606     self.s = args.s or 1
... [5 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

9370   if since_damage < 2 then return true end
9371      return false
9372    end
9373    
9374    -- Draw HP bar above an entity (player or enemy).
9375    function draw_health_ui(entity)
9376      if not should_show_health_ui(entity) then return end
9377      local bar_y = entity.y - entity.h - 2
9378      local bar_w = entity.w
9379      local bar_h = 2
9380      local bg_c = color(30, 30, 30)()
9381      local hp_fill = math.remap(math.max(0, entity.hp), 0, entity.max_hp, 0, bar_w)
9382      ui:rounded_rectangle(entity.x - bar_w*0.5, bar_y, bar_w, bar_h, 1, bg_c)
9383      if hp_fill > 0 then
9384        ui:rounded_rectangle(entity.x - bar_w*0.5, bar_y, hp_fill, bar_h, 1, red())
9385      end
9386    end
9387    
9388    -- Apply a flat damage amount to an entity. No defense subtraction.
9389    -- damage: {damage = N, element = 'fire'}
9390    function apply_damage(entity, damage)
9391      if entity.dead then return nil end
9392      local dmg = math.max(0, damage.damage or 0)
9393    
9394      local prev_hp = entity.hp
9395      entity.hp = entity.hp - dmg
9396      entity.last_damage_time = an.time
9397    
9398      local overkill = 0
9399      if entity.hp <= 0 then
... [30 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

9429   sfx('enemy_hit', (hit_vol or 1)*volumes.enemy_hit)
9430      -- Hit feedback: spring pull + flash
9431      self.spring:pull('main', 0.5, 5, 0.5)
9432      self.flashing = true
9433      self.timer:after(0.15, 'flash', function() self.flashing = false end)
9434    
9435      if self.hp <= 0 then
9436        self:die()
9437      end
9438      return result
9439    end
9440    
9441    function seeker:die()
9442      sfx('enemy_die_' .. an.random:int(1, 3), volumes.enemy_die)
9443      -- Death effect (dark variant): larger circle, more particles, white -> entity color
9444      self.spring:pull('main', 0.75)
9445      an:add(hit_circle(self.x, self.y, {radius = 14, duration = 0.4}):change_color(0.6, red:clone()))
9446      local death_spin = self.cyclone_spin or 0
9447      for i = 1, an.random:int(4, 6) do
9448        an:add(hit_particle(self.x, self.y, {velocity = an.random:float(100, 300), duration = an.random:float(0.2, 0.5), spin = death_spin}):change_color(0.6, red:clone()))
9449      end
9450      if self.modifiers and array.has(self.modifiers, 'explode_on_death') then
9451        pack_explode_on_death(self)
9452      end
9453      -- Kill any attached aura follow-area so it doesn't linger past the seeker.
9454      if self.aura_area and not self.aura_area.dead then
9455        self.aura_area:kill()
9456        self.aura_area = nil
9457      end
9458      if self.pack then pack_member_died(self.pack, self) end
... [25 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\seeker.lua)

100  
101   self.timer  = timer_new()
102   self.spring = spring_new()
103   spring_add(self.spring, 'main', 1)
104 
105   -- v1 spawn juice (~9241-9249): spring pop, white flash, hit_circle
106   -- + particle burst tinted to the enemy color. The spawn sound
107   -- ('Buff 13' = enemy_spawn) sells the "thing materialized here"
108   -- feel — important because seekers can spawn off-screen and the
109   -- player's first cue is auditory.
110   sfx(sounds and sounds.enemy_spawn, volumes and volumes.enemy_spawn)
111   spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.75, 3, 0.7)
112   self.flashing = true
113   timer_after(self.timer, 0.15, 'spawn_flash', function() self.flashing = false end)
114   -- Spawn FX target color: the seeker's edition base color when set
115   -- (ruby -> red-ish, emerald -> green-ish, etc.) so the particles read
116   -- as "this enemy" instead of "generic red enemy" under non-default
117   -- editions. edition_base_color returns nil for edition 0 / dynamic
118   -- (23) / palette_cycle (24); we fall back to raw red in those cases.
119   local spawn_c = edition_base_color(self.edition) or red
120   spawn_hit_circle(self.x, self.y, {radius = 10, duration = 0.3}):change_color(0.5, spawn_c)
121   for i = 1, 4 do
122     spawn_particle(self.x, self.y, {
123       velocity = random_float(100, 200),
124       duration = random_float(0.2, 0.4),
125     }):change_color(0.6, spawn_c)
126   end
127 end
128 
129 
... [50 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\seeker.lua)

195    v1 pass 0 here so the zone's tick doesn't stack a "headshot"
196   thud per enemy on top of the ambient hum. Fireball (instant
197   area) doesn't pass it → full volume.
198 ]]
199 function seeker:hit(damage, hit_vol)
200   if self._dead or self._dying then return end
201   self.hp = self.hp - (damage or 0)
202   self.last_damage_time = time
203   sfx(sounds and sounds.enemy_hit, (hit_vol or 1)*(volumes and volumes.enemy_hit or 1))
204   spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.5, 5, 0.5)
205   self.flashing = true
206   timer_after(self.timer, 0.15, 'hit_flash', function() self.flashing = false end)
207   if self.hp <= 0 then self:die() end
208 end
209 
210 
211 --[[
212   seeker:die()
213 
214   Death FX + cleanup. Mirrors v1 lines 9441-9460: pick one of 3
215   bloody-punch death sounds, pull main spring, spawn a larger
216   hit_circle (r=14, d=0.4, color-bleed at 0.6), 4-6 particles
217   (vel 100-300, dur 0.2-0.5). Then entity_kill so main.lua's prune
218   pass cleans up.
219 ]]
220 function seeker:die()
221   if self._dead or self._dying then return end
222   if sounds and sounds.enemy_die_variants then
223     sfx(array.random(sounds.enemy_die_variants), volumes and volumes.enemy_die)
224   end
... [45 more lines]

Let me check the seeker's draw to see how flashing/spring are rendered.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\seeker.lua)

290    -- hit / death) stay raw red because v1 hardcodes them that way
291   -- (lines 9246-9248, 9445-9448).
292   set_edition(layer, self.edition)
293   layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, self.r, s, s)
294   layer_rounded_rectangle(layer, -self.w/2, -self.h/2, self.w, self.h, 3, c())
295   layer_pop(layer)
296   set_edition(layer, 0)
297 
298   -- Floating HP bar above the seeker. Drawn after the silhouette
299   -- so it overlays cleanly; gated on last_damage_time so it only
300   -- appears for 2s after the most recent hit (v1 behavior).
301   draw_health_ui(self, layer)
302 end
303 
304 
305 --[[
306   should_show_health_ui(entity) -> bool
307 
308   v1 line 9367-9372. The floating HP bar fades out 2 seconds after
309   the most recent damage event. entity.last_damage_time is the
310   engine `time` at the last :hit; -math.huge keeps it hidden until
311   the seeker takes its first hit.
312 ]]
313 function should_show_health_ui(entity)
314   if not entity then return false end
315   local since_damage = time - (entity.last_damage_time or -math.huge)
316   return since_damage < 2
317 end
318 
319 
... [30 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\seeker.lua)

270    else
271     self.r = self.r + self.spin*dt
272   end
273 
274   -- Sync the collider's angle to self.r so the box rotates with the
275   -- silhouette (long axis pointing along velocity in normal motion, and
276   -- spinning along with the knockback spin while pushed).
277   -- set_angular_velocity(0) cancels any contact-imparted spin so the body
278   -- doesn't drift between physics steps.
279   self.collider:set_angle(self.r)
280   self.collider:set_angular_velocity(0)
281 end
282 
283 
284 function seeker:draw(layer)
285   if self._dead or self._dying then return end
286   local s = self.spring.main.x
287   local c = self.flashing and text or red
288   -- v1 lines 9504-9511: set edition, draw, reset. The recolor
289   -- applies to the seeker silhouette ONLY — particles (spawn /
290   -- hit / death) stay raw red because v1 hardcodes them that way
291   -- (lines 9246-9248, 9445-9448).
292   set_edition(layer, self.edition)
293   layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, self.r, s, s)
294   layer_rounded_rectangle(layer, -self.w/2, -self.h/2, self.w, self.h, 3, c())
295   layer_pop(layer)
296   set_edition(layer, 0)
297 
298   -- Floating HP bar above the seeker. Drawn after the silhouette
299   -- so it overlays cleanly; gated on last_damage_time so it only

Let me check spring_new — there might be a redundant spring_add('main') issue.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\spring.lua)

20       bounce=0.5 is moderate overshoot, common for hit reactions.
21  ]]
22  
23  --[[
24    spring_new()
25    Creates a new spring container with a default 'main' spring at value 1.
26  ]]
27  function spring_new()
28    local s = {
29      _names = {},
30    }
31    spring_add(s, 'main', 1)
32    return s
33  end
34  
35  --[[
36    spring_add(s, name, [x], [frequency], [bounce])
37    Creates a new named spring with initial value x (default 0), frequency
38    (default 5 Hz), and bounce (default 0.5).
39  ]]
40  function spring_add(s, name, x, frequency, bounce)
41    x = x or 0
42    frequency = frequency or 5
43    bounce = bounce or 0.5
44    if not s[name] then
45      s._names[#s._names + 1] = name
46    end
47    local k = (2*math.pi*frequency)^2
48    local d = 4*math.pi*(1 - bounce)*frequency
49    s[name] = {
... [60 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\shake.lua)

100      last_change = 0,
101   }
102 end
103 
104 --[[
105   shake_push(s, angle, amount, [frequency], [bounce])
106   Directional spring-based impulse. Multiple pushes combine additively.
107   If push_cap is set, per-frame push accumulation is capped.
108 ]]
109 function shake_push(s, angle, amount, frequency, bounce)
110   ensure_spring(s)
111   if s.push_cap then
112     local remaining = s.push_cap - s.push_used
113     if remaining <= 0 then return end
114     if amount > remaining then amount = remaining end
115     s.push_used = s.push_used + amount
116   end
117   spring_pull(s.spring, 'x', math.cos(angle)*amount, frequency, bounce)
118   spring_pull(s.spring, 'y', math.sin(angle)*amount, frequency, bounce)
119 end
120 
121 --[[
122   shake_sine(s, angle, amplitude, frequency, duration)
123   Sinusoidal oscillation along angle.
124 ]]
125 function shake_sine(s, angle, amplitude, frequency, duration)
126   s.sine_instances[#s.sine_instances + 1] = {
127     angle = angle,
128     amplitude = amplitude,
129     frequency = frequency,
... [10 more lines]

Grep (camera.shake:push|shake:push)

1563:      an.camera.shake:push(r, 4)
1866:      an.camera.shake:push(r, 3)
1946:      an.camera.shake:push(r, 3)
2027:        an.camera.shake:push(r, 3)
2429:                an.camera.shake:push(hit_r, 4)
2513:        an.camera.shake:push(self.dash_strike_r, 6)
3008:              an.camera.shake:push(chain_r, 3)
3013:        an.camera.shake:push(base_r, 8 + charge_t*4)
3111:              an.camera.shake:push(base_r, 6)
3148:                an.camera.shake:push(base_r, 4)
3240:          an.camera.shake:push(self.asal_r, 8)
3278:          an.camera.shake:push(self.asal_r, 30, 8, 0.6)
3319:              an.camera.shake:push(self.asal_r, 6)
3541:          an.camera.shake:push(self.asal_r, 6)
4130:          an.camera.shake:push(wobble_r, 0.15)

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 15]

Grep (ensure_spring|function shake_new|function shake_update)

23:function shake_new()
24-  return {
25-    -- Trauma (Perlin noise shake)
26-    trauma_instances = {},
27-    trauma_amplitude = {x = 24, y = 24, rotation = 0.2, zoom = 0.2},
28-    trauma_time = 0,
29-
30-    -- Spring-based push (directional impulses)
31-    spring = nil,  -- set below
32-    push_cap = nil,
33-    push_used = 0,
34-
35-    -- Random shake instances
36-    shake_instances = {},
37-
38-    -- Sine / square wave shakes
39-    sine_instances = {},
40-    square_instances = {},
41-
42-    -- Handcam (continuous subtle motion)
43-    handcam_enabled = false,
--
52:local function ensure_spring(s)
53-  if not s.spring then
54-    s.spring = spring_new()
55-    spring_add(s.spring, 'x', 0, 3, 0.5)
56-    spring_add(s.spring, 'y', 0, 3, 0.5)
57-  end
58-end
59-
... [52 more lines]

Grep (shake_get_effects|camera_attach|camera_get_offset)

11:    camera_attach(main_camera, game_layer)
12-    layer_circle(game_layer, 100, 100, 20, red())
13-    -- ... more draws to game_layer
14-    camera_detach(main_camera, game_layer)
15-
16-    -- Follow a target:
17-    camera_follow(main_camera, p1)
18-    camera_follow(main_camera, p1, 0.9, 0.3)   -- 90% distance in 0.3s
19-    camera_follow(main_camera, nil)             -- stop following
20-
21-    -- Bounds:
22-    camera_set_bounds(main_camera, 0, map_w, 0, map_h)
23-
24-  Shake is an integrated sub-structure accessible as camera.shake.
25-  Use the shake_* functions on it:
26-    shake_push(main_camera.shake, angle, amount)
--
31:    - Camera is not attached to layers automatically. Use camera_attach/detach
32-      to push/pop transforms onto a layer's stack before/after drawing.
33-    - follow_target_id is an entity ID (not a direct reference), resolved via
34-      the entities table each frame. If the target dies, follow stops automatically.
35-    - For non-entity follow targets (e.g., a raw {x, y} table), follow with a
36-      direct reference by setting camera.follow_target directly.
37-]]
38-
39---[[
40-  camera_new([w], [h])
41-  Creates a new camera. Defaults width and height to global `width`/`height`
42-  if set (e.g. at framework init time), otherwise to 480x270.
43-]]
... [42 more lines]

Let me check if our sensor events DO have contact coords, even unused.

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

7070 // physics_get_sensor_begin(tag_a, tag_b) -> array of {sensor_body, visitor_body, sensor_shape, visitor_shape, sensor_tag, visitor_tag}
7071    static int l_physics_get_sensor_begin(lua_State* L) {
7072        const char* tag_a_name = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
7073        const char* tag_b_name = luaL_checkstring(L, 2);
7074    
7075        int tag_a = physics_tag_find(tag_a_name);
7076        int tag_b = physics_tag_find(tag_b_name);
7077        if (tag_a < 0) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown tag: %s", tag_a_name);
7078        if (tag_b < 0) return luaL_error(L, "Unknown tag: %s", tag_b_name);
7079    
7080        lua_newtable(L);
7081        int result_index = 1;
7082    
7083        for (int i = 0; i < sensor_begin_count; i++) {
7084            PhysicsSensorBeginEvent* e = &sensor_begin_events[i];
7085            if (tags_match(e->sensor_tag, e->visitor_tag, tag_a, tag_b)) {
7086                lua_newtable(L);
7087    
7088                // sensor_body
7089                b2BodyId* sensor_body_ud = (b2BodyId*)lua_newuserdata(L, sizeof(b2BodyId));
7090                *sensor_body_ud = e->sensor_body;
7091                lua_setfield(L, -2, "sensor_body");
7092    
7093                // visitor_body
7094                b2BodyId* visitor_body_ud = (b2BodyId*)lua_newuserdata(L, sizeof(b2BodyId));
7095                *visitor_body_ud = e->visitor_body;
7096                lua_setfield(L, -2, "visitor_body");
7097    
7098                // sensor_shape
7099                b2ShapeId* sensor_shape_ud = (b2ShapeId*)lua_newuserdata(L, sizeof(b2ShapeId));
... [30 more lines]

Let me actually see the hit1.png to understand whether it's opaque or transparent.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\assets\hit1.png)

[
  {
    "type": "image",
    "source": {
      "type": "base64",
      "data": "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",
      "media_type": "image/png"
    }
  }
]

Let me check how v1 layers hit_effect vs enemies — there may be a draw-order detail that hides the masking issue there.

Grep (^effects = layer|effects_layer = |layer_new(.effects)

No matches found

Grep (effects =|effects:draw)

4304:          self.psylance_effects = {}
4984:effects = an:layer('effects')
6671:    edition_affects_effects = not edition_affects_effects
6977:edition_affects_effects = false
7174:    local cam_effects = an.camera:get_effects()
7225:  effects:draw()

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

7220   ground:draw()
7221      ground_2:draw()
7222      enemy_layer:draw()
7223      ability_layer:draw()
7224      game:draw()
7225      effects:draw()
7226      ui:draw()
7227      hud:draw()
7228      if recording then
7229        -- Capture enough frames to match game time (2 steps = 1 frame at 60fps)
7230        local steps_elapsed = an.step - recording_last_step
7231        local frames_to_capture = math.max(1, math.floor(steps_elapsed/2))
7232        for i = 1, frames_to_capture do
7233          engine_record_frame()
7234          recording_frame = recording_frame + 1
7235        end
7236        recording_last_step = recording_last_step + frames_to_capture*2
7237      end
7238    end
7239    
7240    
7241    -- Player
7242    player = object:extend()
7243    function player:new(x, y)
7244      object.new(self, 'player')

Investigated all three. The diagnoses are sharper now:

1. Hit effect timing — matches v1

v1/main.lua:10583 uses animation('hit1', 0.06, ...) → 0.06s × 5 frames = 0.3s total. Invoker/fx.lua:197 is also 0.06. We're identical to source. If it feels too slow to you, it's slow in v1 too — propose dropping to 0.04 (0.2s total, the value the early v1 reference at Invoker/reference/004/main.yue:388 used) or 0.03 (0.15s total). Pure feel call.

2. Enemy juice — is being applied; the sprite is hiding it

Seeker:hit IS being called (the hit_effect spawning is downstream of it). The juice mechanics match v1 line-for-line (spring pull 0.5 freq 5 bounce 0.5; flash 0.15s; same sounds). H key already proves the code works.

What's actually happening: the hit_effect spritesheet is an opaque 96×48 white burst (confirmed by reading the PNG). Your seeker is 14×6. The sprite renders on top of the seeker for 0.3s, fully covering both the flash and the spring scale change. The seeker IS reacting — you just can't see it.

v1 has the exact same draw order (enemy_layer:draw() at line 7222, then effects:draw() at 7225 = sprite ON TOP of enemies). So this is accepted v1 behavior — the white burst dominates at the moment of impact and the seeker's own reaction is mostly post-burst. Options: - a) Accept (v1 behavior). - b) Shrink the sprite, e.g. s = 0.5 → 48×24 burst (still covers the seeker but enemies along edges show through). - c) Shorten the hit_effect (drops back to issue #1). - d) Make seeker's flash longer than the sprite (0.4s instead of 0.15s) so the flash visibly persists after the burst clears.

3. Camera shake — real bug, missing camera_attach

shake_push IS being called and the shake spring IS updating (camera_update runs each frame). But draw() never calls camera_attach(main_camera, layer), so the camera transform — including shake offsets — is never applied to anything. The shake is computed and discarded.

Diff to fix:

init (after main_camera = camera_new(...)): ```lua

draw — wrap each layer's world content with camera_attach/detach. The bg rect stays screen-space (drawn before attach) so the background doesn't shake along with the world:

 function draw()
   layer_rectangle(floor_layer, 0, 0, width, height, bg())

+  camera_attach(main_camera, floor_layer)
   for _, w in ipairs(walls) do w:draw(floor_layer) end
+  camera_detach(main_camera, floor_layer)
   layer_render(floor_layer)
   layer_draw(floor_layer)

+  camera_attach(main_camera, game_layer)
   p:draw(game_layer)
   for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do sk:draw(game_layer) end
   for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do pr:draw(game_layer) end
   for _, f  in ipairs(fxs)         do f:draw(game_layer)  end
+  camera_detach(main_camera, game_layer)
   layer_render(game_layer)
   layer_draw(game_layer)

   if debug_draw_enabled then

+    camera_attach(main_camera, debug_layer)
     ...existing debug draw code...
+    camera_detach(main_camera, debug_layer)
     layer_render(debug_layer)
     layer_draw(debug_layer)
   end
 end

Questions to lock in before I apply

For #3 the fix is unambiguous — go ahead.

For #1 and #2, I need a call from you:

AskUserQuestion 

User has answered your questions: "How fast should the hit-effect animation play?"="0.04 — 0.2s total (Recommended)", "How should we handle the hit-effect sprite hiding the seeker's flash?"="Accept v1 behavior (do nothing) (Recommended)". You can now continue with the user's answers in mind.

Two changes — fx.lua animation speed + main.lua camera_attach. Showing both diffs.

Diff A — fx.lua hit_effect speed

   -- 0.06s/frame * 5 frames = ~0.3s total (matches v1's 0.06 delay
   -- with 'once' mode). The [0] action fires at the end of the
   -- animation; we use it to mark the fx dead for the prune pass.

-  self.anim = animation_new('hit1', 0.06, 'once', {
+  -- Speed bumped from v1's 0.06 -> 0.04 (0.2s total). v1 felt sluggish
+  -- in attack-template context; 0.04 matches the value used in the
+  -- early v1 reference (Invoker/reference/004/main.yue:388) and snaps
+  -- closer to the seeker hit-flash (0.15s).
+  self.anim = animation_new('hit1', 0.04, 'once', {
     [0] = function() self._dead_anim = true end,
   })

Diff B — main.lua camera_attach (3 spots) + camera init

B1 — init: place camera at scene center. Right after main_camera = camera_new(...):

 main_camera = camera_new(width, height)

+ -- Place camera at scene center so world (0..width, 0..height) maps
+ -- 1:1 to screen with camera_attach. Without this, the camera's
+ -- default (0,0) origin would shift the world off-screen on attach.
+ main_camera.x = width/2
+ main_camera.y = height/2

B2 — floor_layer draw: attach for walls (bg stays screen-space).

 function draw()
   layer_rectangle(floor_layer, 0, 0, width, height, bg())

+  camera_attach(main_camera, floor_layer)
   for _, w in ipairs(walls) do w:draw(floor_layer) end
+  camera_detach(main_camera, floor_layer)

   layer_render(floor_layer)
   layer_draw(floor_layer)

B3 — game_layer draw: attach for entities.


+  camera_attach(main_camera, game_layer)
   p:draw(game_layer)
   for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do sk:draw(game_layer) end
   for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do pr:draw(game_layer) end
   for _, f  in ipairs(fxs)         do f:draw(game_layer)  end
+  camera_detach(main_camera, game_layer)

   layer_render(game_layer)
   layer_draw(game_layer)

B4 — debug_layer draw: attach for the F2 collider overlay.

   if debug_draw_enabled then
     local solid_c  = lime()
     local sensor_c = yellow()
     local function draw_collider_shapes(e)
       ...
     end

+    camera_attach(main_camera, debug_layer)
     draw_collider_shapes(p)
     for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do draw_collider_shapes(sk) end
     for _, w  in ipairs(walls)       do draw_collider_shapes(w)  end
     for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do draw_collider_shapes(pr) end
+    camera_detach(main_camera, debug_layer)
     layer_render(debug_layer)
     layer_draw(debug_layer)
   end

Apply both diffs?

Yes, you can remove the comments.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\fx.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\fx.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

Both files parse clean. Test: - Fire: camera should now visibly jolt in the fire direction on every shot. - Hit effect: sprite burst plays faster (0.2s vs prior 0.3s). - Enemy juice: still hidden under the sprite burst at impact, but the seeker reaction (flash + scale pulse) should be slightly more visible after the burst clears since the sprite now fades 0.1s sooner.

Let me know how it reads.

Perfect, I believe projectiles are done, unless I forgot to add/check any interaction.

Quick audit of what shipped vs what's deferred — flag anything in the second list that should actually be in the first.

Shipped (working)

Intentionally deferred (per session 2 decisions or per-carrier scope)

Worth flagging (not gaps per se, but design choices to be aware of)

If none of the deferred items should actually be in scope right now, projectiles are done. Otherwise call them out and I'll loop back.

What are the sounds used for various projectile attacks in Orblike v1?

Let me extract the full set of projectile sound mappings from v1 by reading the ability definitions and any relevant sound usage.

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

704  abilities = {
705   fireball = {
706     activation = 'manual',
707     tags = {'area', 'fire', 'projectile'},
708     cooldown = 0.5,
709     color = blue,
710     damage = 4,
711     area_damage = 4,
712     element = 'fire',
713     fire_sound = 'fireball_fire',
714     area_sound = 'fireball_hit',
715     area_radius = 25,
716   },
717   null_arrow = {
718     activation = 'manual',
719     tags = {'area', 'duration', 'null', 'projectile'},
720     cooldown = 0.5,
721     color = purple,
722     damage = 1,
723     area_damage = 1,
724     element = 'null',
725     fire_sound = 'caustic_arrow_fire',
726     area_sound = 'fireball_hit',
727     area_radius = 33,
728     area_duration = 4,
729     area_tick_rate = 0.5,
730   },
731   fissure = {
732     activation = 'manual',
733     tags = {'area', 'earth', 'melee'},
... [355 more lines]

Compiled from v1's abilities = {...} table (lines 704-1084) plus the inline sound calls in projectile:on_hit. There are 9 projectile-carrier abilities in v1. Here's the full mapping:

Fire sounds (on cast)

Ability Element Fire sound(s) Notes
fireball fire fireball_fire Single warm "fwoosh"
null_arrow null caustic_arrow_fire Single muffled hiss (the "null arrow" purple variant)
ball_lightning lightning arc_cast Cracking lightning cast
wind_slash wind wind_slash_cast Distinctive whip-slash whoosh
piercing_arrow physical arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot (both played simultaneously) Two-layer arrow shot
arrow_barrage physical arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot Same as piercing — fires 6× with barrage_delay = 0.06
rotating_turret (turret-fired) physical arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot Same arrow stack
explosive_arrow fire/physical explosive_arrow_fire Hisses → explodes later
tornado_shot wind/physical wind_proj_3 @ vol 0.45 One of three wind_proj_1/2/3 samples; tornado picks 3 specifically. The burst_sound (when the projectile dies and spawns secondaries) is windfield_cast

Enemy hit sounds (on projectile→enemy)

There is no generic "projectile hit enemy" sound. v1's projectile:on_hit branches per ability:

Ability Hit sound Source
fireball None on projectile — area it spawns plays fireball_hit def.area_sound
null_arrow None on projectile — area it spawns plays fireball_hit def.area_sound
wind_slash wind_slash_hit Hardcoded in projectile:on_hit line 8342
tornado_shot, piercing_arrow, arrow_barrage, rotating_turret, explosive_arrow None Pure visual feedback (hit_effect + particles)

The only audio feedback the player hears on most projectile→enemy hits comes from the enemy itself (the seeker's enemy_hit "headshot" sample inside seeker:hit) — which you already have wired in attack-template.

Wall hit sounds (per-ability wall_hit_sounds)

Played via array.random of the list, volume scaled by distance to player (max(1 - dist/500, 0.15)):

Ability Wall hit sounds
piercing_arrow, arrow_barrage, rotating_turret, explosive_arrow, tornado_shot {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'} — random of two arrow-thunk samples
fireball, null_arrow, ball_lightning, wind_slash No wall_hit_sounds — silent wall hit (visual FX only)

The wall_hit_sounds are tightly arrow-themed. v1 doesn't have a "generic projectile thuds against wall" sound for non-arrow projectiles.

Patterns to take away

  1. Arrow-stack (arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot) is the v1 "physical bow shot" preset — 5 abilities reuse it (piercing_arrow, arrow_barrage, rotating_turret, explosive_arrow's fire is slightly different, tornado_shot uses wind_proj instead).
  2. Wall sound is per-element — arrow types get arrow_hit_wall_*; spell types get silence (visuals only). No generic wall thud.
  3. Enemy-hit sound is rare on projectiles — only wind_slash plays one directly; most rely on the enemy's own enemy_hit sample or the area's area_sound when one is spawned.
  4. Pitch jitter is engine default — sfx(name, vol, pitch) defaults pitch to random_float(0.95, 1.05) so repeated shots don't sound mechanical.
  5. _lightmed suffix is appended automatically (10-bit bitcrush, 3× SR reduction) — the global default sound_mode.

Where to find the files

All in Invoker/v1/assets/ (mirrored in Invoker/assets/ for the current project). Most have a _lightmed variant suffix — that's the version sfx() actually loads by default.

This is useful context for whenever a per-carrier element flavor lands. For attack-template's current minimal projectile, the takeaway is: no global hit_sound or wall_hit_sound to port. They're all per-ability and arrow-themed. The carrier itself should stay sound-agnostic; sounds get attached when a specific ability is implemented on top of it.

Question, we won't do this this session, but can we implement the bitcrush + SR reduction effect in-engine?

Short answer: yes, easily. The math is trivial (handful of ops per sample), and replacing the _lightmed pre-baked workflow with runtime DSP is a clean win. Let me check the engine's audio backend so the answer is grounded.

Grep (sound_load|sound_play|miniaudio|SDL_audio|SDL_mixer|ma_decoder|stb_vorbis|audio_callback)

58:#include <stb_vorbis.c>
65:#include <miniaudio.h>
127:// occur). Same for ma_decoder_init/uninit on Sound/Music structs. After a
490:// Audio: miniaudio engine, sound pool
1303:static Sound* sound_load(const char* path) {
1327:        ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
1328:        ma_decoder decoder;
1329:        ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(sound->data, sound->data_size, &decoder_config, &decoder);
1336:        ma_decoder_uninit(&decoder);
1363:    ma_decoder decoder;  // Decoder for memory-based sounds
1396:                ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].decoder);
1409:            ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].decoder);
1421:static int sound_play(Sound* sound, float volume, float pitch) {
1450:    ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
1451:    ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(sound->data, sound->data_size, &decoder_config, &playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
1461:        ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
1503:    ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
1517:    ma_decoder decoder;     // Decoder for memory-based music
1554:    ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
1555:    ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(music->data, music->data_size, &decoder_config, &music->decoder);
1567:        ma_decoder_uninit(&music->decoder);
1584:        ma_decoder_uninit(&music->decoder);
5302:static int l_sound_load(lua_State* L) {
5304:    Sound* sound = sound_load(path);
5312:static int l_sound_play(lua_State* L) {

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 25]

Grep (ma_decoder_read_pcm_frames|data_callback|audio_callback|playing_sounds[|mixing|pCMD|process_audio)

123:// Playing-sound slot count is read by iterating playing_sounds[].in_use.
1370:static PlayingSound playing_sounds[MAX_PLAYING_SOUNDS];
1382:    if (!playing_sounds[slot].in_use) return false;
1383:    if ((playing_sounds[slot].generation & 0x7FFFFF) != expected_gen) return false;
1393:        if (playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1394:            if (!ma_sound_is_playing(&playing_sounds[i].sound)) {
1395:                ma_sound_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].sound);
1396:                ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].decoder);
1397:                playing_sounds[i].in_use = false;
1406:        if (playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1407:            ma_sound_stop(&playing_sounds[i].sound);
1408:            ma_sound_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].sound);
1409:            ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].decoder);
1410:            playing_sounds[i].in_use = false;
1427:        if (!playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1437:            if (!playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1451:    ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(sound->data, sound->data_size, &decoder_config, &playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
1458:    result = ma_sound_init_from_data_source(&audio_engine, &playing_sounds[slot].decoder, 0, NULL, &playing_sounds[slot].sound);
1461:        ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
1466:    playing_sounds[slot].user_pitch = pitch;
1467:    playing_sounds[slot].user_volume = volume;
1470:    ma_sound_set_volume(&playing_sounds[slot].sound, linear_to_perceptual(volume * sound_master_volume));
1473:    ma_sound_set_pitch(&playing_sounds[slot].sound, pitch * audio_master_pitch);
1475:    playing_sounds[slot].generation++;
1476:    playing_sounds[slot].in_use = true;

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 25]

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

1421 static int sound_play(Sound* sound, float volume, float pitch) {
1422        if (!audio_initialized || !sound || headless_mode) return -1;
1423    
1424        // Find a free slot
1425        int slot = -1;
1426        for (int i = 0; i < MAX_PLAYING_SOUNDS; i++) {
1427            if (!playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1428                slot = i;
1429                break;
1430            }
1431        }
1432    
1433        if (slot == -1) {
1434            // No free slots - try to reclaim finished sounds
1435            sound_cleanup_finished();
1436            for (int i = 0; i < MAX_PLAYING_SOUNDS; i++) {
1437                if (!playing_sounds[i].in_use) {
1438                    slot = i;
1439                    break;
1440                }
1441            }
1442        }
1443    
1444        if (slot == -1) {
1445            fprintf(stderr, "No free sound slots available\n");
1446            return -1;
1447        }
1448    
1449        // Initialize decoder from memory
1450        ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
... [60 more lines]

Yes — trivial in the engine. Here's the lay of the land for whenever you pick it up:

Backend confirmed

Anchor 2 uses miniaudio with f32 float samples at the engine's sample rate, stereo (anchor.c:1450). Every voice goes through an ma_decoder → ma_sound chain into the master audio_engine. miniaudio is a friendly host for DSP — three insertion points available:

  1. Custom ma_data_source wrapper — wrap each voice's decoder so the read callback applies DSP before returning samples. Standard per-voice effect pattern. Cleanest fit here — per-voice state, isolates SFX from music trivially.
  2. ma_node effect node — miniaudio's node graph lets you stitch effects between voices and master, per-bus. More flexible (good if you ever want bus-level routing) but more setup overhead.
  3. Engine-level dataCallback post-process — post-process the final mix buffer. Simplest code but applies to literally everything including music. Don't want this.

The DSP math

// Bitcrush: quantize to N effective bits. ~3 flops/sample.
static inline float bitcrush(float s, int bits) {
    float steps = (float)(1 << (bits - 1));
    return roundf(s * steps) / steps;
}

// Sample-rate reduction: hold-and-repeat for K samples. ~2 flops + 1 cmp.
// Per-channel state: float held, int counter.
static inline float sr_reduce(float s, int div, float* held, int* counter) {
    if ((*counter)++ >= div) {
        *counter = 0;
        *held = s;
    }
    return *held;
}

For "_lightmed" exact match: bits = 10, div = 3 (at 48 kHz engine SR, that's ~16 kHz effective). Per-voice state is 2 floats + 1 int per channel — ~16 bytes total. CPU is rounding errors compared to the decode work miniaudio already does.

Asset savings

Invoker/v1's assets/ has ~190 sounds × 2 variants = ~380 files (every sound has a _lightmed baked twin). Runtime DSP eliminates the entire baked layer — ~half the audio asset weight (~15 MB), much simpler asset pipeline for future projects.

API design questions to settle when you implement

  1. Apply how? Three options, increasing power:
    • Global toggle: sfx_lightmed(true) — one switch, all sounds get it. Simple but no per-sound control.
    • Per-sound at load: sound_load('foo.ogg', {bitcrush = 10, sr_div = 3}) — flexible, explicit.
    • Default-on with per-sound opt-out: defaults applied at load, opt out with {lightmed = false}. Best of both — matches Invoker's "everything is lightmed unless told otherwise" implicit convention.
  2. Music bypass. Almost certainly yes — only SFX wants the lo-fi treatment. Per-voice flag handles this naturally; just don't set it on the music decoder.
  3. Author-time A/B. Worth exposing live toggle so you can compare with/without while tuning a sound — set_sfx_dsp_enabled(true/false) from Lua.

What this costs

Recommendation when you tackle it

Per-voice data source wrapper (option 1), default-on with lightmed values, exposed as a {lightmed = true/false} flag at sound_load time. Music gets {lightmed = false}. One global toggle for A/B during development. New projects can drop _lightmed.ogg files entirely; the API stays clean.

Want me to remember this in a memory file so it surfaces next time you open an Anchor 2 session?

Hmm, this seems good, actually do this now. I'd like a system where, whenever we add new sounds, I can select the sound and then play with the bitcrush + sr div values until I find the specific values needed for that sound, and then they are loaded with those values. Is that possible too?

Yes, fully possible — and a great design. Let me lay out the architecture, then ask which scope you want this session.

The engine + tuning workflow, end to end

Engine side (C, anchor.c — ~70-90 lines added)

Per-voice DSP state lives in each playing_sounds[] slot. The DSP itself is the trivial math I sketched earlier, applied in a ma_data_source wrapper inserted between the decoder and the mixer. New Lua API:

-- Load with default-no-DSP. Existing call signature unchanged.
sound_load(path)

-- Play with optional per-voice DSP. bits=0 or sr_div=1 = pass-through.
sound_play(sound, vol, pitch, bits, sr_div)

-- Live retune a playing voice (the tuner uses this in a tight loop).
sound_handle_set_dsp(handle, bits, sr_div)

Lua side (project — sfx wrapper consults a tuning table)

A flat per-sound tuning table the project owns, e.g. in attack-template/sound_tuning.lua:

return {
  ['enemy_hit']    = {bits = 10, sr_div = 3},
  ['player_hit']   = {bits = 10, sr_div = 3},
  ['fireball_fire'] = {bits = 8,  sr_div = 4},
  -- entries you haven't tuned: pass-through (bits = 0)
}

A wrapper in main.lua looks up the entry on every sfx() call and passes the values to sound_play. New sounds with no entry play clean. Replaces _lightmed suffix dependence entirely.

Tuning scene (debug-time UI in main.lua, gated behind a key)

Press something like F3 to enter tuning mode. The UI overlay shows:

TUNING: enemy_hit                  [12/14]
  bits:   10  (1..16, [ / ] adjust)
  sr_div:  3  (1..8,  - / = adjust)
  Up/Down: switch sound
  Space:   replay
  S:       save sound_tuning.lua  →  written, restart to apply

Live mechanics: - Up/Down cycles through every sound_load'd sound (engine exposes a sound_list()). - [ / ] decrement/increment bits; - / = for sr_div. - Space plays the sound with current DSP. Or auto-replay every N seconds so you hear changes immediately. - S writes the in-memory table to sound_tuning.lua (the engine gets a file_write_string(path, str) helper if it doesn't already have one — quick check). - On project boot, sound_tuning.lua is required and feeds the sfx wrapper.

That's the full loop. Concrete, minimal, works without authoring tools outside the game.

What I want to confirm before writing

AskUserQuestion 

User has answered your questions: "How big a bite this session?"="Everything: engine + sfx wrapper + live tuning UI", "How should the sound_tuning.lua table be saved?"="Engine file_write_string helper (Recommended)", "Replay during tuning — auto or manual?"="Auto-replay every 0.5s while editing (Recommended)". You can now continue with the user's answers in mind.

Big bite. Let me read the relevant engine code in full before designing the C diff — I need exact struct layouts and the existing Lua binding shape.

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

1300     size_t data_size;           // Size of audio data
1301    } Sound;
1302    
1303    static Sound* sound_load(const char* path) {
1304        Sound* sound = (Sound*)malloc(sizeof(Sound));
1305        if (!sound) return NULL;
1306    
1307        strncpy(sound->path, path, MAX_SOUND_PATH - 1);
1308        sound->path[MAX_SOUND_PATH - 1] = '\0';
1309    
1310        if (headless_mode) {
1311            // Headless: return valid pointer but skip audio data loading
1312            sound->data = NULL;
1313            sound->data_size = 0;
1314            return sound;
1315        }
1316    
1317        // Load audio data from zip or disk
1318        sound->data = zip_read_file(path, &sound->data_size);
1319        if (!sound->data) {
1320            fprintf(stderr, "Failed to load sound file: %s\n", path);
1321            free(sound);
1322            return NULL;
1323        }
1324    
1325        // Verify the file can be decoded by attempting to init a sound
1326        if (audio_initialized) {
1327            ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
1328            ma_decoder decoder;
1329            ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(sound->data, sound->data_size, &decoder_config, &decoder);
... [145 more lines]

Grep (l_sound_load|l_sound_play|l_sound_handle_set)

5302:static int l_sound_load(lua_State* L) {
5312:static int l_sound_play(lua_State* L) {
5320:static int l_sound_play_handle(lua_State* L) {
5333:static int l_sound_handle_set_pitch(lua_State* L) {
5340:static int l_sound_handle_set_volume(lua_State* L) {
5353:static int l_sound_handle_set_looping(lua_State* L) {
9240:    lua_register(L, "sound_load", l_sound_load);
9241:    lua_register(L, "sound_play", l_sound_play);
9242:    lua_register(L, "sound_play_handle", l_sound_play_handle);
9243:    lua_register(L, "sound_handle_set_pitch", l_sound_handle_set_pitch);
9244:    lua_register(L, "sound_handle_set_volume", l_sound_handle_set_volume);
9246:    lua_register(L, "sound_handle_set_looping", l_sound_handle_set_looping);

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

5300 
5301    // Audio Lua bindings
5302    static int l_sound_load(lua_State* L) {
5303        const char* path = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
5304        Sound* sound = sound_load(path);
5305        if (!sound) {
5306            return luaL_error(L, "Failed to load sound: %s", path);
5307        }
5308        lua_pushlightuserdata(L, sound);
5309        return 1;
5310    }
5311    
5312    static int l_sound_play(lua_State* L) {
5313        Sound* sound = (Sound*)lua_touserdata(L, 1);
5314        float volume = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 2, 1.0);
5315        float pitch = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 3, 1.0);
5316        sound_play(sound, volume, pitch);
5317        return 0;
5318    }
5319    
5320    static int l_sound_play_handle(lua_State* L) {
5321        Sound* sound = (Sound*)lua_touserdata(L, 1);
5322        float volume = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 2, 1.0);
5323        float pitch = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 3, 1.0);
5324        int slot = sound_play(sound, volume, pitch);
5325        if (slot == -1) {
5326            lua_pushinteger(L, -1);
5327        } else {
5328            lua_pushinteger(L, sound_handle_encode(slot, playing_sounds[slot].generation));
5329        }
... [50 more lines]

Grep (file_write|fs_write|l_file_write|"file_write"|"fs_)

No matches found

Grep (ma_data_source_init|ma_data_source_vtable|ma_data_source_base)

No matches found

Bash (ls E:/a327ex/Anchor2/framework/anchor/ 2>&1 | head -30 && echo --- && ls E:/a327...)

animation.lua
array.lua
camera.lua
class.lua
collider.lua
color.lua
font.lua
helpers.lua
image.lua
init.lua
input.lua
layer.lua
math.lua
memory.lua
object.lua
physics.lua
shake.lua
spring.lua
spritesheet.lua
timer.lua
---
animation.lua
array.lua
camera.lua
class.lua
collider.lua
color.lua
font.lua
helpers.lua
image.lua
... [11 more lines]

I have the full plan. Going to show it in three review-and-write cycles since this is substantial: (A) engine C, (B) sound_tuning.lua + sfx wrapper, (C) tuning UI. Showing Phase A first; after you approve and I build, we move to B and C.

Phase A — Anchor2/engine/src/anchor.c changes

Design summary

The C diff

Insert after the Sound block / sound_destroy (~line 1355), before MAX_PLAYING_SOUNDS:

// =====================================================================
// DSP data source — wraps a decoder, applies per-sound bitcrush + SR
// reduction inline before samples reach the mixer. Always inserted in
// the per-voice chain; pass-through when bits >= 16 and sr_div == 1.
// SR reduce → bitcrush (sample then quantize), per-channel state.
// =====================================================================
typedef struct {
    ma_data_source_base base;
    ma_decoder* decoder;
    int bits;          // 1..16; >=16 = no bitcrush
    int sr_div;        // 1..N;  1   = no SR reduction
    int sr_counter[2]; // per-channel
    float held[2];     // per-channel last-emitted sample
} DSPDataSource;

static ma_result dsp_ds_on_read(ma_data_source* ds, void* frames_out,
                                ma_uint64 frame_count, ma_uint64* frames_read) {
    DSPDataSource* d = (DSPDataSource*)ds;
    ma_result r = ma_decoder_read_pcm_frames(d->decoder, frames_out,
                                             frame_count, frames_read);
    if (r != MA_SUCCESS) return r;

    bool do_bitcrush = (d->bits >= 1 && d->bits < 16);
    bool do_sr       = (d->sr_div > 1);
    if (!do_bitcrush && !do_sr) return MA_SUCCESS;

    float* f = (float*)frames_out;
    ma_uint64 n = *frames_read;
    float steps = do_bitcrush ? (float)(1 << (d->bits - 1)) : 0.0f;
    for (ma_uint64 i = 0; i < n; i++) {
        for (int c = 0; c < 2; c++) {
            float s = f[i * 2 + c];
            if (do_sr) {
                if (++d->sr_counter[c] >= d->sr_div) {
                    d->sr_counter[c] = 0;
                    d->held[c] = s;
                }
                s = d->held[c];
            }
            if (do_bitcrush) {
                s = roundf(s * steps)/steps;
            }
            f[i * 2 + c] = s;
        }
    }
    return MA_SUCCESS;
}

static ma_result dsp_ds_on_seek(ma_data_source* ds, ma_uint64 frame_index) {
    DSPDataSource* d = (DSPDataSource*)ds;
    return ma_decoder_seek_to_pcm_frame(d->decoder, frame_index);
}

static ma_result dsp_ds_on_get_data_format(ma_data_source* ds,
                                           ma_format* format, ma_uint32* channels,
                                           ma_uint32* sample_rate, ma_channel* channel_map,
                                           size_t channel_map_cap) {
    DSPDataSource* d = (DSPDataSource*)ds;
    return ma_data_source_get_data_format(d->decoder, format, channels,
                                          sample_rate, channel_map, channel_map_cap);
}

static ma_result dsp_ds_on_get_cursor(ma_data_source* ds, ma_uint64* cursor) {
    DSPDataSource* d = (DSPDataSource*)ds;
    return ma_decoder_get_cursor_in_pcm_frames(d->decoder, cursor);
}

static ma_result dsp_ds_on_get_length(ma_data_source* ds, ma_uint64* length) {
    DSPDataSource* d = (DSPDataSource*)ds;
    return ma_decoder_get_length_in_pcm_frames(d->decoder, length);
}

static ma_data_source_vtable dsp_ds_vtable = {
    dsp_ds_on_read,
    dsp_ds_on_seek,
    dsp_ds_on_get_data_format,
    dsp_ds_on_get_cursor,
    dsp_ds_on_get_length,
    NULL,
    0
};

static ma_result dsp_ds_init(DSPDataSource* ds, ma_decoder* decoder,
                             int bits, int sr_div) {
    ma_data_source_config config = ma_data_source_config_init();
    config.vtable = &dsp_ds_vtable;
    ma_result r = ma_data_source_init(&config, &ds->base);
    if (r != MA_SUCCESS) return r;
    ds->decoder = decoder;
    ds->bits = bits;
    ds->sr_div = sr_div;
    ds->sr_counter[0] = ds->sr_counter[1] = 0;
    ds->held[0] = ds->held[1] = 0.0f;
    return MA_SUCCESS;
}

// Loaded-sound registry for sound_list() enumeration.
\#define MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS 1024
static Sound* loaded_sounds[MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS];
static int loaded_sounds_count = 0;

Modify sound_load to append to the registry (insert after the existing mem_sound_count++ line, before the final return):

     printf("Loaded sound: %s (%zu bytes)\n", path, sound->data_size);
     mem_sound_count++;
     mem_sound_bytes += sound->data_size;

+    if (loaded_sounds_count < MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS) {
+        loaded_sounds[loaded_sounds_count++] = sound;
+    }
     return sound;
 }

Modify PlayingSound struct to add DSP wrapper:

 typedef struct {
     ma_sound sound;
     ma_decoder decoder;

+    DSPDataSource dsp;   // always-inserted DSP wrapper (pass-through by default)
     bool in_use;
     uint32_t generation;
     float user_pitch;
     float user_volume;
 } PlayingSound;

Modify sound_play signature and body to wire DSP:

-static int sound_play(Sound* sound, float volume, float pitch) {
+static int sound_play(Sound* sound, float volume, float pitch, int bits, int sr_div) {
     if (!audio_initialized || !sound || headless_mode) return -1;

+    if (bits   <= 0) bits   = 16;
+    if (sr_div <= 0) sr_div = 1;

     // ... slot finding (unchanged) ...

     ma_decoder_config decoder_config = ma_decoder_config_init(ma_format_f32, 2, audio_engine.sampleRate);
     ma_result result = ma_decoder_init_memory(sound->data, sound->data_size, &decoder_config, &playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
     if (result != MA_SUCCESS) {
         fprintf(stderr, "Failed to decode sound: %s (error %d)\n", sound->path, result);
         return -1;
     }

-    result = ma_sound_init_from_data_source(&audio_engine, &playing_sounds[slot].decoder, 0, NULL, &playing_sounds[slot].sound);
+    // Always init DSP wrapper — pass-through cost is one branch per
+    // block when bits>=16 and sr_div==1. Lets sound_handle_set_dsp
+    // tune any voice live without rebuild.
+    result = dsp_ds_init(&playing_sounds[slot].dsp,
+                         &playing_sounds[slot].decoder, bits, sr_div);
+    if (result != MA_SUCCESS) {
+        fprintf(stderr, "Failed to init DSP wrapper: %s (error %d)\n", sound->path, result);
+        ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
+        return -1;
+    }
+
+    result = ma_sound_init_from_data_source(&audio_engine,
+                                            &playing_sounds[slot].dsp, 0, NULL,
+                                            &playing_sounds[slot].sound);
     if (result != MA_SUCCESS) {
         fprintf(stderr, "Failed to play sound: %s (error %d)\n", sound->path, result);
+        ma_data_source_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].dsp.base);
         ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[slot].decoder);
         return -1;
     }
     // ... rest unchanged ...

Modify the three cleanup paths to also uninit the DSP wrapper. Each of sound_cleanup_finished, sound_cleanup_all, and sound_handle_stop has the pattern:

     ma_sound_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].sound);

+    ma_data_source_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].dsp.base);
     ma_decoder_uninit(&playing_sounds[i].decoder);
     playing_sounds[i].in_use = false;

Add sound_handle_set_dsp (near the other sound_handle_* setters, ~line 1487):

static void sound_handle_set_dsp(int handle, int bits, int sr_div) {
    int slot;
    if (!sound_handle_decode(handle, &slot)) return;
    if (bits   < 1) bits   = 1;
    if (bits   > 16) bits  = 16;
    if (sr_div < 1) sr_div = 1;
    playing_sounds[slot].dsp.bits = bits;
    playing_sounds[slot].dsp.sr_div = sr_div;
    playing_sounds[slot].dsp.sr_counter[0] = 0;
    playing_sounds[slot].dsp.sr_counter[1] = 0;
}

Add file_write_string (place near other utility helpers):

static bool file_write_string(const char* path, const char* content, size_t len) {
    FILE* f = fopen(path, "wb");
    if (!f) return false;
    size_t wrote = fwrite(content, 1, len, f);
    fclose(f);
    return wrote == len;
}

Update existing l_sound_play and l_sound_play_handle to accept bits/sr_div, and add four new Lua bindings (near the other sound bindings ~line 5300):

 static int l_sound_play(lua_State* L) {
     Sound* sound = (Sound*)lua_touserdata(L, 1);
     float volume = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 2, 1.0);
     float pitch = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 3, 1.0);

-    sound_play(sound, volume, pitch);
+    int bits   = (int)luaL_optinteger(L, 4, 16);
+    int sr_div = (int)luaL_optinteger(L, 5, 1);
+    sound_play(sound, volume, pitch, bits, sr_div);
     return 0;
 }

 static int l_sound_play_handle(lua_State* L) {
     Sound* sound = (Sound*)lua_touserdata(L, 1);
     float volume = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 2, 1.0);
     float pitch = (float)luaL_optnumber(L, 3, 1.0);

-    int slot = sound_play(sound, volume, pitch);
+    int bits   = (int)luaL_optinteger(L, 4, 16);
+    int sr_div = (int)luaL_optinteger(L, 5, 1);
+    int slot = sound_play(sound, volume, pitch, bits, sr_div);
     if (slot == -1) {
         lua_pushinteger(L, -1);
     } else {
         lua_pushinteger(L, sound_handle_encode(slot, playing_sounds[slot].generation));
     }
     return 1;
 }

static int l_sound_handle_set_dsp(lua_State* L) {
    int handle = (int)luaL_checkinteger(L, 1);
    int bits   = (int)luaL_checkinteger(L, 2);
    int sr_div = (int)luaL_checkinteger(L, 3);
    sound_handle_set_dsp(handle, bits, sr_div);
    return 0;
}

static int l_sound_get_path(lua_State* L) {
    Sound* sound = (Sound*)lua_touserdata(L, 1);
    lua_pushstring(L, sound ? sound->path : "");
    return 1;
}

static int l_sound_list(lua_State* L) {
    lua_newtable(L);
    for (int i = 0; i < loaded_sounds_count; i++) {
        lua_newtable(L);
        lua_pushlightuserdata(L, loaded_sounds[i]);
        lua_setfield(L, -2, "sound");
        lua_pushstring(L, loaded_sounds[i]->path);
        lua_setfield(L, -2, "path");
        lua_rawseti(L, -2, i + 1);
    }
    return 1;
}

static int l_file_write_string(lua_State* L) {
    const char* path = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
    size_t len;
    const char* content = luaL_checklstring(L, 2, &len);
    lua_pushboolean(L, file_write_string(path, content, len));
    return 1;
}

Register the four new Lua functions (near line 9246, after sound_handle_set_looping):

lua_register(L, "sound_handle_set_dsp", l_sound_handle_set_dsp);
lua_register(L, "sound_get_path",       l_sound_get_path);
lua_register(L, "sound_list",           l_sound_list);
lua_register(L, "file_write_string",    l_file_write_string);

Phase A risk notes

If Phase A looks right, say go and I'll write, build the engine, copy anchor.exe to attack-template/, and surface any build errors. Then we move to Phase B (sound_tuning.lua + sfx wrapper) and C (tuning UI) on your next confirmation.

Go ahead.

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Now add sound_handle_set_dsp, update the two Lua play bindings, add the four new Lua bindings, and register them.

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

All edits applied. Building the engine.

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/Anchor2/engine && ./build.bat 2>&1 | tail -40)

src/anchor.c(290): warning C4996: 'strcpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(1095): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(1307): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(1342): error C2065: 'loaded_sounds_count': undeclared identifier
src/anchor.c(1342): error C2065: 'MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS': undeclared identifier
src/anchor.c(1343): error C2065: 'loaded_sounds': undeclared identifier
src/anchor.c(1343): error C2065: 'loaded_sounds_count': undeclared identifier
src/anchor.c(1343): error C2109: subscript requires array or pointer type
src/anchor.c(2749): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(2743): warning C4267: 'initializing': conversion from 'size_t' to 'int', possible loss of data
src/anchor.c(3140): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3418): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3424): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3534): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3543): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3637): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(3639): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(4884): warning C4996: 'strdup': The POSIX name for this item is deprecated. Instead, use the ISO C and C++ conformant name: _strdup. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(6003): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(6888): warning C4244: 'initializing': conversion from 'lua_Number' to 'float', possible loss of data
src/anchor.c(6889): warning C4244: 'initializing': conversion from 'lua_Number' to 'float', possible loss of data
src/anchor.c(8662): warning C4244: '=': conversion from 'lua_Integer' to 'int', possible loss of data
src/anchor.c(8663): warning C4244: '=': conversion from 'lua_Integer' to 'int', possible loss of data
src/anchor.c(8669): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(8783): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10121): warning C4996: 'strcpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10125): warning C4996: 'strcat': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcat_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10130): warning C4996: 'strcpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10134): warning C4996: 'strcat': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcat_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10140): warning C4996: 'strcpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
... [10 more lines]

Build error — the registry globals are declared AFTER sound_load references them. Need to forward-declare. Showing the fix:

 typedef struct {
     ...
 } Sound;

+// Loaded-sound registry (forward declarations; populated by sound_load).
+#define MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS 1024
+static Sound* loaded_sounds[MAX_LOADED_SOUNDS];
+static int loaded_sounds_count = 0;
+
 static Sound* sound_load(const char* path) {

And remove the same block from inside the DSPDataSource section (where it currently lives, after sound_destroy). Apply the fix:

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/Anchor2/engine && ./build.bat 2>&1 | tail -10)

src/anchor.c(10150): warning C4996: 'strcpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10154): warning C4996: 'strcat': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strcat_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10693): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10695): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10698): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
src/anchor.c(10701): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
gl.c
Generating Code...
LINK : warning LNK4098: defaultlib 'MSVCRT' conflicts with use of other libs; use /NODEFAULTLIB:library
Build successful: build/anchor.exe

Build succeeded. Copying the new anchor.exe to attack-template.

Bash (cp E:/a327ex/Anchor2/engine/build/anchor.exe E:/a327ex/attack-template/anchor.ex...)

-rwxr-xr-x 1 adn 197121 4185088 May 17 20:00 E:/a327ex/attack-template/anchor.exe*

Phase A complete — engine built, anchor.exe copied. Now Phase B.

Phase B — sound_tuning.lua + sfx wrapper

New file: attack-template/sound_tuning.lua

--[[
  Per-sound DSP tuning. Keys are file paths (the engine's Sound.path).
  Entries: {bits = 1..16, sr_div = 1..N}. Sounds without an entry play
  clean (bits = 16, sr_div = 1). Edit via the F3 tuning UI (press S to
  save), or by hand.
]]
return {
}

Diff for attack-template/main.lua — add the require, update the sfx wrapper

 require('projectile')
+sound_tuning = require('sound_tuning')

 ...

 function sfx(handle, volume, pitch)
   if not handle then return end

-  sound_play(handle, volume or 1, pitch or random_float(0.95, 1.05))
+  local tune = sound_tuning[sound_get_path(handle)]
+  local bits   = tune and tune.bits   or 16
+  local sr_div = tune and tune.sr_div or 1
+  sound_play(handle, volume or 1, pitch or random_float(0.95, 1.05), bits, sr_div)
 end

No caching needed — sound_get_path is a one-instruction C call (returns sound->path from the Sound struct). Negligible overhead per sfx call. Sound_tuning is a flat table; lookups by string key are O(1).

After Phase B you can already tune sounds by hand by editing sound_tuning.lua. Phase C adds the live UI on top. Apply Phase B?

What does phase B look like code-wise?

[Request interrupted by user]

Nevermind, you can apply it.

Write (E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuning.lua)

File created successfully at: E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuning.lua (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

Let me check engine key naming conventions so the new bindings work — especially -, =, [, ], space.

Grep (SDLK_|"key:|key_name|input_key_name|sdl_key_to|key_to_name)

2699:static char captured_control[64] = {0};  // Stores captured control string like "key:space"
2775:static SDL_Scancode key_name_to_scancode(const char* name) {
2869:// Convert scancode to key name string (reverse of key_name_to_scancode)
2871:static const char* scancode_to_key_name(SDL_Scancode sc) {
3171:        ctrl->code = key_name_to_scancode(value);
3764:        snprintf(control_str, sizeof(control_str), "key:%c", c);
3772:        snprintf(control_str, sizeof(control_str), "key:%c", c);
3787:        snprintf(control_str, sizeof(control_str), "key:%s", named_keys[i]);
8152:    const char* key_name = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
8153:    SDL_Scancode scancode = key_name_to_scancode(key_name);
8163:    const char* key_name = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
8164:    SDL_Scancode scancode = key_name_to_scancode(key_name);
8174:    const char* key_name = luaL_checkstring(L, 1);
8175:    SDL_Scancode scancode = key_name_to_scancode(key_name);
10340:                const char* key_name = scancode_to_key_name(sc);

[Showing results with pagination = limit: 15]

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

2775 static SDL_Scancode key_name_to_scancode(const char* name) {
2776        if (!name) return SDL_SCANCODE_UNKNOWN;
2777    
2778        // Single character keys (a-z, 0-9)
2779        if (strlen(name) == 1) {
2780            char c = name[0];
2781            if (c >= 'a' && c <= 'z') return SDL_SCANCODE_A + (c - 'a');
2782            if (c >= 'A' && c <= 'Z') return SDL_SCANCODE_A + (c - 'A');
2783            // SDL scancodes: 1-9 are sequential, then 0 (keyboard layout order)
2784            if (c == '0') return SDL_SCANCODE_0;
2785            if (c >= '1' && c <= '9') return SDL_SCANCODE_1 + (c - '1');
2786        }
2787    
2788        // Named keys
2789        if (strcmp(name, "space") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_SPACE;
2790        if (strcmp(name, "enter") == 0 || strcmp(name, "return") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_RETURN;
2791        if (strcmp(name, "escape") == 0 || strcmp(name, "esc") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_ESCAPE;
2792        if (strcmp(name, "backspace") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_BACKSPACE;
2793        if (strcmp(name, "tab") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_TAB;
2794        if (strcmp(name, "capslock") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_CAPSLOCK;
2795    
2796        // Arrow keys
2797        if (strcmp(name, "left") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_LEFT;
2798        if (strcmp(name, "right") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_RIGHT;
2799        if (strcmp(name, "up") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_UP;
2800        if (strcmp(name, "down") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_DOWN;
2801    
2802        // Modifier keys
2803        if (strcmp(name, "lshift") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_LSHIFT;
2804        if (strcmp(name, "rshift") == 0) return SDL_SCANCODE_RSHIFT;
... [70 more lines]

Grep (^function is_pressed|^function is_down|^function is_released|key_repeat)

No matches found

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\input.lua)

1    --[[
2     input — thin wrapper layer over the engine's built-in action binding system.
3   
4     The C engine provides input_bind/is_down/is_pressed/is_released/etc.
5     This module provides function wrappers that forward to those. Function
6     wrappers (instead of direct aliases) are used so that the engine C
7     functions are resolved at *call* time, not at module *load* time.
8     (The engine registers its functions during engine_init(), which runs
9     AFTER this module is loaded.)
10  
11    Usage:
12      bind('left', 'key:a')
13      bind('left', 'key:left')
14      bind('shoot', 'mouse:1')
15  
16      if input_down('left') then ... end
17      if input_pressed('shoot') then ... end
18  
19    Bind string format (parsed by the engine):
20      'key:<name>'    -- keyboard key (e.g., 'key:a', 'key:space', 'key:left')
21      'mouse:<num>'   -- mouse button (e.g., 'mouse:1' for left, 'mouse:2' for right)
22  ]]
23  
24  -- Registration
25  function bind(action, control) input_bind(action, control) end
26  function unbind(action, control) input_unbind(action, control) end
27  function unbind_all(action) input_unbind_all(action) end
28  function bind_chord(name, actions) input_bind_chord(name, actions) end
29  function bind_sequence(name, sequence) input_bind_sequence(name, sequence) end
30  function bind_hold(name, duration, source) input_bind_hold(name, duration, source) end
... [21 more lines]

Grep (^function layer_text|^function font|^function layer_print|font_new|font_load)

18:function font:new(name, path, size, filter)
22:  font_load(name, path, size, filter)
26:function font:text_width(text)
30:function font:char_width(codepoint)
34:function font:glyph_metrics(codepoint)
39:function font_register(name, path, size, filter)

Grep (^function layer_text|^function layer_print)

174:function layer_texture(lyr, tex, x, y, color)
193:function layer_text(lyr, text, f, x, y, color)

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\layer.lua)

186      animation_object.frame,
187     x, y,
188     color or 0xFFFFFFFF,
189     flash or 0
190   )
191 end
192 
193 function layer_text(lyr, text, f, x, y, color)
194   local font_name = type(f) == 'string' and f or f.name
195   eng.draw_text(lyr_handle(lyr), text, font_name, x, y, color)
196 end
197 
198 function layer_push(lyr, x, y, r, sx, sy)
199   eng.push(lyr_handle(lyr), x, y, r, sx, sy)
200 end
201 
202 function layer_pop(lyr)
203   eng.pop(lyr_handle(lyr))
204 end
205 
206 function layer_set_blend_mode(lyr, mode)
207   eng.set_blend_mode(lyr_handle(lyr), mode)
208 end
209 
210 --- Queue this layer for compositing to the screen (after layer_render).
211 function layer_draw(lyr, x, y)
212   eng.draw(lyr_handle(lyr), x or 0, y or 0)
213 end
214 
215 function layer_apply_shader(lyr, shader)

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\font.lua)

1    --[[
2     font — thin wrapper over C font functions.
3   
4     Usage:
5       fonts.main = font_register('main', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 11)
6       layer_text(game_layer, "Hello", fonts.main, 100, 50, color)
7   
8     A font is a plain table with .name, .size, .height plus query methods.
9     Stays as a simple class/struct pattern for consistent access.
10  ]]
11  
12  font = class()
13  
14  --- `filter` is optional: 'smooth' (grayscale atlas + linear sampling) or
15  --- 'rough' (1-bit mono atlas + nearest sampling). Defaults to the engine's
16  --- current global filter mode. The filter is baked into the atlas at load time
17  --- and cannot be changed afterward — load two copies if you need both.
18  function font:new(name, path, size, filter)
19    self.name = name
20    self.size = size
21    self.filter = filter
22    font_load(name, path, size, filter)
23    self.height = font_get_height(name)
24  end
25  
26  function font:text_width(text)
27    return font_get_text_width(self.name, text)
28  end
29  
30  function font:char_width(codepoint)
... [14 more lines]

Bash (ls E:/a327ex/attack-template/assets/ && echo --- && ls E:/a327ex/Anchor2/arena/a...)

Bloody punches 10_lightmed.ogg
Bloody punches 3_lightmed.ogg
Bloody punches 7_lightmed.ogg
Body Fall 2_lightmed.ogg
Body Head (Headshot) 1_lightmed.ogg
draw_shader.frag
hit1.png
---
E:/a327ex/Anchor2/arena/assets/monogram.ttf
---
E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/Awesome 9.ttf
E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/FatPixelFont.ttf
E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/LanaPixel.ttf
E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets/fusion-pixel-10px-monospaced-latin.ttf

Phase C — tuning UI

Asset copy: Anchor2/arena/assets/monogram.ttf → attack-template/assets/monogram.ttf (the canonical small pixel font for Anchor 2 projects).

main.lua additions — 4 diffs.

Diff 1 — new bindings (after the existing H/K/fire binds)

 bind('fire_projectile', 'mouse:1')
+-- F3 enters per-sound DSP tuning mode. Up/Down picks a sound,
+-- [/] tunes bits, -/= tunes sr_div, Space force-replays, S writes
+-- sound_tuning.lua. Game updates pause while in tune mode.
+bind('tune_toggle',     'key:f3')
+bind('tune_prev_sound', 'key:up')
+bind('tune_next_sound', 'key:down')
+bind('tune_bits_down',  'key:[')
+bind('tune_bits_up',    'key:]')
+bind('tune_sr_down',    'key:-')
+bind('tune_sr_up',      'key:=')
+bind('tune_replay',     'key:space')
+bind('tune_save',       'key:s')

Diff 2 — font + layer + tune state + serializer (after debug_draw_enabled = false)

 debug_draw_enabled = false

+-- ============== TUNING UI (F3) ==============
+fonts = {}
+fonts.main = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 11)
+tune_layer = layer_new('tune')
+tune_bg_color = color(0, 0, 0, 220)
+tune_mode = false
+tune_index = 1
+tune_list = {}
+tune_replay_timer = 0
+tune_last_handle = -1
+TUNE_REPLAY_INTERVAL = 0.5
+
+function serialize_sound_tuning()

+  local lines = {
+    '--[[',
+    '  Per-sound DSP tuning. Auto-generated by F3 tuning UI; safe to edit by hand.',
+    '  Keys are file paths; entries are {bits, sr_div}. Default bits=16, sr_div=1.',
+    ']]',
+    'return {',
+  }
+  local paths = {}
+  for path, e in pairs(sound_tuning) do
+    if e.bits ~= 16 or e.sr_div ~= 1 then paths[#paths + 1] = path end
+  end
+  table.sort(paths)
+  for _, path in ipairs(paths) do
+    local e = sound_tuning[path]
+    table.insert(lines, string.format('  [%q] = {bits = %d, sr_div = %d},', path, e.bits, e.sr_div))
+  end
+  table.insert(lines, '}')
+  return table.concat(lines, '\n') .. '\n'
+end

Diff 3 — tune handler in update() (right after sync_engine_globals())

The handler returns early to pause the game while in tune mode.

 function update(dt)
   sync_engine_globals()

+  if is_pressed('tune_toggle') then
+    if not tune_mode then
+      tune_list = sound_list()
+      tune_index = 1
+      tune_replay_timer = 0
+      tune_last_handle = -1
+      print('tune mode ON (' .. #tune_list .. ' sounds)')
+    else
+      print('tune mode OFF')
+    end
+    tune_mode = not tune_mode
+  end
+
+  if tune_mode then
+    if #tune_list > 0 then
+      if is_pressed('tune_prev_sound') then
+        tune_index = ((tune_index - 2) % #tune_list) + 1
+        tune_replay_timer = 0
+      end
+      if is_pressed('tune_next_sound') then
+        tune_index = (tune_index % #tune_list) + 1
+        tune_replay_timer = 0
+      end
+
+      local cur = tune_list[tune_index]
+      local entry = sound_tuning[cur.path]
+      local bits   = entry and entry.bits   or 16
+      local sr_div = entry and entry.sr_div or 1
+
+      local changed = false
+      if is_pressed('tune_bits_down') then bits   = math.max(1, bits - 1); changed = true end
+      if is_pressed('tune_bits_up')   then bits   = math.min(16, bits + 1); changed = true end
+      if is_pressed('tune_sr_down')   then sr_div = math.max(1, sr_div - 1); changed = true end
+      if is_pressed('tune_sr_up')     then sr_div = sr_div + 1; changed = true end
+
+      if changed then
+        if not entry then
+          entry = {bits = bits, sr_div = sr_div}
+          sound_tuning[cur.path] = entry
+        else
+          entry.bits   = bits
+          entry.sr_div = sr_div
+        end
+        if tune_last_handle >= 0 then
+          sound_handle_set_dsp(tune_last_handle, bits, sr_div)
+        end
+      end
+
+      tune_replay_timer = tune_replay_timer - dt
+      if tune_replay_timer <= 0 or is_pressed('tune_replay') then
+        tune_last_handle = sound_play_handle(cur.sound, 1, 1, bits, sr_div)
+        tune_replay_timer = TUNE_REPLAY_INTERVAL
+      end
+
+      if is_pressed('tune_save') then
+        local ok = file_write_string('sound_tuning.lua', serialize_sound_tuning())
+        print(ok and 'saved sound_tuning.lua' or 'FAILED to save sound_tuning.lua')
+      end
+    end
+    return
+  end
+
   if is_pressed('cycle_player_edition_next') then
     ...existing handlers...

Diff 4 — tune overlay in draw() (after the F2 debug overlay)

     layer_render(debug_layer)
     layer_draw(debug_layer)
   end

+  if tune_mode then
+    layer_rectangle(tune_layer, 0, 0, width, height, tune_bg_color())
+    if #tune_list > 0 then
+      local cur = tune_list[tune_index]
+      local entry = sound_tuning[cur.path]
+      local bits   = entry and entry.bits   or 16
+      local sr_div = entry and entry.sr_div or 1
+
+      local x, y = 8, 8
+      local line_h = 12
+      layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('F3 TUNE MODE  [%d/%d]', tune_index, #tune_list), fonts.main, x, y, text())
+      y = y + line_h*2
+      layer_text(tune_layer, cur.path, fonts.main, x, y, fg_color())
+      y = y + line_h*2
+      layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('bits:   %2d   ([/])', bits), fonts.main, x, y, text())
+      y = y + line_h
+      layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('sr_div: %2d   (-/=)', sr_div), fonts.main, x, y, text())
+      y = y + line_h*2
+      layer_text(tune_layer, 'up/down: switch sound', fonts.main, x, y, text())
+      y = y + line_h
+      layer_text(tune_layer, 'space: replay', fonts.main, x, y, text())
+      y = y + line_h
+      layer_text(tune_layer, 's: save sound_tuning.lua', fonts.main, x, y, text())
+    end
+    layer_render(tune_layer)
+    layer_draw(tune_layer)
+  end
 end

Notes / risk

Apply all four diffs + the asset copy?

Add the tuning code to its own file instead of directly in main.lua.

Cleaner. Refactoring to a self-contained sound_tuner.lua module that owns its bindings, state, layer, font, serializer, and lifecycle hooks. main.lua just requires it and calls the two hooks.

Asset copy: Anchor2/arena/assets/monogram.ttf → attack-template/assets/monogram.ttf.

New file — attack-template/sound_tuner.lua

--[[
  sound_tuner.lua — F3 tuning overlay for per-sound DSP values.

  Self-contained. Loading this module registers its bindings, font,
  layer, and state. The host project calls these two hooks:

    sound_tuner_update(dt) -> bool   true while tune mode active
                                     (host should skip its game logic
                                     when this returns true — game
                                     pauses while tuning)
    sound_tuner_draw()               draws the overlay; no-op when
                                     inactive. Call at the end of
                                     the host's draw().

  Depends on globals:
    sound_tuning   (data table from sound_tuning.lua)
    sound_list, sound_play_handle, sound_handle_set_dsp, file_write_string
    text, fg_color, color, width, height, fonts, layer_new, layer_*

  Keybindings:
    F3       toggle tune mode
    up/down  switch selected sound
    [ / ]    decrease / increase bits   (1..16)
    - / =    decrease / increase sr_div (1..)
    space    force replay now
    s        save sound_tuning.lua
]]

bind('tune_toggle',     'key:f3')
bind('tune_prev_sound', 'key:up')
bind('tune_next_sound', 'key:down')
bind('tune_bits_down',  'key:[')
bind('tune_bits_up',    'key:]')
bind('tune_sr_down',    'key:-')
bind('tune_sr_up',      'key:=')
bind('tune_replay',     'key:space')
bind('tune_save',       'key:s')

if not fonts then fonts = {} end
fonts.tune = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 11)

local tune_layer = layer_new('tune')
local tune_bg = color(0, 0, 0, 220)
local tune_mode = false
local tune_index = 1
local tune_list = {}
local tune_replay_timer = 0
local tune_last_handle = -1
local REPLAY_INTERVAL = 0.5

local function serialize()
  local lines = {
    '--[[',
    '  Per-sound DSP tuning. Auto-generated by F3 tuning UI; safe to edit by hand.',
    '  Keys are file paths; entries are {bits, sr_div}. Default bits=16, sr_div=1.',
    ']]',
    'return {',
  }
  local paths = {}
  for path, e in pairs(sound_tuning) do
    if e.bits ~= 16 or e.sr_div ~= 1 then paths[#paths + 1] = path end
  end
  table.sort(paths)
  for _, path in ipairs(paths) do
    local e = sound_tuning[path]
    table.insert(lines, string.format('  [%q] = {bits = %d, sr_div = %d},', path, e.bits, e.sr_div))
  end
  table.insert(lines, '}')
  return table.concat(lines, '\n') .. '\n'
end

function sound_tuner_update(dt)
  if is_pressed('tune_toggle') then
    if not tune_mode then
      tune_list = sound_list()
      tune_index = 1
      tune_replay_timer = 0
      tune_last_handle = -1
      print('tune mode ON (' .. #tune_list .. ' sounds)')
    else
      print('tune mode OFF')
    end
    tune_mode = not tune_mode
  end

  if not tune_mode then return false end
  if #tune_list == 0 then return true end

  if is_pressed('tune_prev_sound') then
    tune_index = ((tune_index - 2) % #tune_list) + 1
    tune_replay_timer = 0
  end
  if is_pressed('tune_next_sound') then
    tune_index = (tune_index % #tune_list) + 1
    tune_replay_timer = 0
  end

  local cur = tune_list[tune_index]
  local entry = sound_tuning[cur.path]
  local bits   = entry and entry.bits   or 16
  local sr_div = entry and entry.sr_div or 1

  local changed = false
  if is_pressed('tune_bits_down') then bits   = math.max(1, bits - 1); changed = true end
  if is_pressed('tune_bits_up')   then bits   = math.min(16, bits + 1); changed = true end
  if is_pressed('tune_sr_down')   then sr_div = math.max(1, sr_div - 1); changed = true end
  if is_pressed('tune_sr_up')     then sr_div = sr_div + 1; changed = true end

  if changed then
    if not entry then
      entry = {bits = bits, sr_div = sr_div}
      sound_tuning[cur.path] = entry
    else
      entry.bits   = bits
      entry.sr_div = sr_div
    end
    if tune_last_handle >= 0 then
      sound_handle_set_dsp(tune_last_handle, bits, sr_div)
    end
  end

  tune_replay_timer = tune_replay_timer - dt
  if tune_replay_timer <= 0 or is_pressed('tune_replay') then
    tune_last_handle = sound_play_handle(cur.sound, 1, 1, bits, sr_div)
    tune_replay_timer = REPLAY_INTERVAL
  end

  if is_pressed('tune_save') then
    local ok = file_write_string('sound_tuning.lua', serialize())
    print(ok and 'saved sound_tuning.lua' or 'FAILED to save sound_tuning.lua')
  end

  return true
end

function sound_tuner_draw()
  if not tune_mode then return end
  layer_rectangle(tune_layer, 0, 0, width, height, tune_bg())
  if #tune_list > 0 then
    local cur = tune_list[tune_index]
    local entry = sound_tuning[cur.path]
    local bits   = entry and entry.bits   or 16
    local sr_div = entry and entry.sr_div or 1
    local x, y = 8, 8
    local line_h = 12
    layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('F3 TUNE MODE  [%d/%d]', tune_index, #tune_list),
               fonts.tune, x, y, text())
    y = y + line_h*2
    layer_text(tune_layer, cur.path, fonts.tune, x, y, fg_color())
    y = y + line_h*2
    layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('bits:   %2d   ([/])', bits),   fonts.tune, x, y, text())
    y = y + line_h
    layer_text(tune_layer, string.format('sr_div: %2d   (-/=)', sr_div), fonts.tune, x, y, text())
    y = y + line_h*2
    layer_text(tune_layer, 'up/down: switch sound',        fonts.tune, x, y, text())
    y = y + line_h
    layer_text(tune_layer, 'space: replay',                fonts.tune, x, y, text())
    y = y + line_h
    layer_text(tune_layer, 's: save sound_tuning.lua',     fonts.tune, x, y, text())
  end
  layer_render(tune_layer)
  layer_draw(tune_layer)
end

main.lua diffs — much smaller now

Diff 1 — require after sound_tuning:

 sound_tuning = require('sound_tuning')
+require('sound_tuner')

Diff 2 — call update hook at top of update(), pause game if active:

 function update(dt)
   sync_engine_globals()

+  if sound_tuner_update(dt) then return end
+
   if is_pressed('cycle_player_edition_next') then

Diff 3 — call draw hook at the end of draw():

     layer_render(debug_layer)
     layer_draw(debug_layer)
   end

+  sound_tuner_draw()
 end

Apply asset copy + new file + three main.lua diffs?

Go ahead.

Bash (cp E:/a327ex/Anchor2/arena/assets/monogram.ttf E:/a327ex/attack-template/assets/...)

-rw-r--r-- 1 adn 197121 10468 May 17 20:14 E:/a327ex/attack-template/assets/monogram.ttf

Write (E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuner.lua)

File created successfully at: E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuner.lua (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All applied, parses clean. Test:

  1. Sanity check first — fire some projectiles, hit a seeker, get hit by a seeker. Audio should still work exactly like before (all sounds play with bits=16, sr_div=1 = pass-through DSP wrapper). If anything sounds different vs. before this session, the pass-through has a bug.

  2. Enter tune mode — press F3. Console should print tune mode ON (5 sounds) (the 5 you have loaded: player_hit, enemy_hit, and the 3 die_variants). Overlay appears with the first sound's path.

  3. Navigate — up/down cycles through sounds. Sound auto-replays every 0.5s.

  4. Tune — [ / ] adjusts bits, - / = adjusts sr_div. The currently-playing voice should retune live (you hear the change before the next replay). Watch the on-screen numbers update.

  5. Save — press s. Console prints saved sound_tuning.lua. Open the file — it should now contain entries for any sound you tuned (defaults skipped).

  6. Exit / re-enter — F3 again exits. Press F3 once more, navigate to a saved sound — it should show your saved values.

  7. Restart project, fire a projectile — the seeker hit sound should now play with your tuned values automatically (the sfx wrapper looks them up by path).

Known constraints worth knowing: - Tune mode pauses the game so the auto-replay doesn't fight any in-flight game sounds. - The 5 sounds are listed in load order (registration order in main.lua). - Sounds tuned to the default {bits=16, sr_div=1} are skipped on save — keeps the file clean.

Let me know how it reads.

Port over the standard projectile fire sounds, the one used by most projectile attacks (non-elemental). The original .ogg files, not lightmed.

Let me check what versions of the arrow sounds exist in the source assets.

Bash (ls E:/a327ex/Invoker/v1/assets/ 2>&1 | grep -iE "arrow_(hit|shoot|wall)" | head ...)

ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo.wav
ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo_lightmed.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.wav
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo_lightmed.ogg
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.wav
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01_lightmed.ogg
---
ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo.wav
ARROW_Hit_Body_stereo_lightmed.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.wav
ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo_lightmed.ogg
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.wav
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01_lightmed.ogg

The ability defs use friendly names like arrow_hit_wood / arrow_shoot / arrow_hit_wall_1/2. Let me find where v1 maps those to actual files.

Grep (arrow_hit_wood|arrow_shoot|arrow_hit_wall_1|RPG3_GenericArrow)

64:  arrow_hit_wood = 0.73,
65:  arrow_shoot = 0.46,
66:  arrow_hit_wall_1 = 0.42,
119:--   arrow_hit_wood (ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo): -27.6 dB -> 0.76 (fire volume set to 0.73)
123:--   arrow_shoot (RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01): -23.2 dB -> 0.46
124:--   arrow_hit_wall_1 (Arrow Impact wood 1): -22.4 dB -> 0.42
204:an:sound('arrow_hit_wood', 'assets/ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg')
205:an:sound('arrow_shoot', 'assets/RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg')
206:an:sound('arrow_hit_wall_1', 'assets/Arrow Impact wood 1.ogg')
562:  {'arrow_hit_wood', 'assets/ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo'},
563:  {'arrow_shoot', 'assets/RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01'},
564:  {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'assets/Arrow Impact wood 1'},
991:    fire_sound = 'arrow_hit_wood',
992:    fire_sound_2 = 'arrow_shoot',
993:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1006:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1024:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1044:    fire_sound = 'arrow_hit_wood',
1045:    fire_sound_2 = 'arrow_shoot',
1046:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1059:    fire_sound = 'arrow_hit_wood',
1060:    fire_sound_2 = 'arrow_shoot',
1061:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},

Bash (ls "E:/a327ex/Invoker/v1/assets/" 2>&1 | grep -iE "^Arrow Impact wood" | head -5)

Arrow Impact wood 1.ogg
Arrow Impact wood 1.wav
Arrow Impact wood 1_lightmed.ogg
Arrow Impact wood 3.ogg
Arrow Impact wood 3.wav

Grep (arrow_hit_wall_2|arrow_hit_wall_3)

67:  arrow_hit_wall_2 = 0.49,
125:--   arrow_hit_wall_2 (Arrow Impact wood 3): -23.8 dB -> 0.49
207:an:sound('arrow_hit_wall_2', 'assets/Arrow Impact wood 3.ogg')
565:  {'arrow_hit_wall_2', 'assets/Arrow Impact wood 3'},
993:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1006:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1024:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1046:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},
1061:    wall_hit_sounds = {'arrow_hit_wall_1', 'arrow_hit_wall_2'},

Standard arrow stack confirmed. Plan:

  1. Copy 2 originals (not _lightmed) to attack-template/assets/:
    • ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg (v1 alias: arrow_hit_wood, vol 0.73 — the "thump")
    • RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg (v1 alias: arrow_shoot, vol 0.46 — the "whoosh")
  2. Register them in main.lua's sounds + volumes tables.
  3. Add fire_sounds opt to spawn_projectile — a list of {sound, vol} pairs played simultaneously at fire time. Optional; nil/missing = silent fire (preserves existing behavior for callers that don't want sounds).
  4. Pass the arrow stack from main.lua's fire handler so left-click plays both layered.

projectile.lua diff — add fire_sounds handling in spawn_projectile

   -- Muzzle FX
   local pc = edition_base_color(caster.edition) or color
   spawn_hit_circle(sx, sy, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2})
   for i = 1, 2 do
     spawn_particle(sx, sy, {
       angle    = aim_r + random_float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4),
       velocity = random_float(40, 200),
       duration = random_float(0.3, 0.6),
       w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
     }):change_color(0.5, pc)
   end
+

+  -- Fire sounds — list of {sound, vol} pairs played simultaneously.
+  -- v1's "standard projectile" stack is the arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot
+  -- two-layer thud-whoosh; callers can pass whatever stack they want
+  -- (or nil for silent).
+  if opts.fire_sounds then
+    for _, fs in ipairs(opts.fire_sounds) do
+      sfx(fs.sound, fs.vol)
+    end
+  end

   return p_
 end

Also update the docblock — add a fire_sounds = {...} line under the carrier knobs.

main.lua diff 1 — load the two sounds + volumes (after the existing sound block)

 sounds.enemy_die_variants = {
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3_lightmed.ogg'),
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7_lightmed.ogg'),
   sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10_lightmed.ogg'),
 }
+-- Standard projectile fire stack (non-elemental). v1 layers these two
+-- on every arrow-type ability (piercing_arrow / arrow_barrage /
+-- rotating_turret) and they form the default "physical projectile shot"
+-- audio language. Volumes from Invoker/v1/main.lua lines 64-65. Loaded
+-- as the original .ogg (not _lightmed) — runtime DSP via sound_tuner
+-- handles any per-sound bitcrush/SR-reduce we want.
+sounds.arrow_hit_wood  = sound_load('assets/ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg')
+sounds.arrow_shoot     = sound_load('assets/RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg')
+volumes.arrow_hit_wood = 0.73
+volumes.arrow_shoot    = 0.46

main.lua diff 2 — pass fire_sounds from the fire handler

   if is_pressed('fire_projectile') and not p._dead then

-    spawn_projectile(p, {max_range = 220})
+    spawn_projectile(p, {
+      max_range   = 220,
+      fire_sounds = {
+        {sound = sounds.arrow_hit_wood, vol = volumes.arrow_hit_wood},
+        {sound = sounds.arrow_shoot,    vol = volumes.arrow_shoot},
+      },
+    })
   end

Notes

Apply all three (the 2 file copies + projectile.lua diff + 2 main.lua diffs)?

Yes, also port over the current sounds Bloody punches, etc with their non-lightmed versions and delete the lightmed ones in the assets folder now.

Let me verify the non-lightmed originals exist for the current sounds.

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets && ls "Bloody punches 3.ogg" "Bloody punches 7.ogg" ...)

Bloody punches 10.ogg
Bloody punches 3.ogg
Bloody punches 7.ogg
Body Fall 2.ogg
Body Head (Headshot) 1.ogg

All five exist. Adding to the plan:

Additional ops

  1. Copy 5 non-lightmed originals to attack-template/assets/: Bloody punches 3.ogg, Bloody punches 7.ogg, Bloody punches 10.ogg, Body Fall 2.ogg, Body Head (Headshot) 1.ogg.
  2. Delete 5 _lightmed files from attack-template/assets/.
  3. Update main.lua sound_load paths to point to the originals (strip _lightmed).

main.lua diff 3 — strip _lightmed from existing sound_load paths

-sounds.player_hit = sound_load('assets/Body Fall 2_lightmed.ogg')
-sounds.enemy_hit  = sound_load('assets/Body Head (Headshot) 1_lightmed.ogg')
+sounds.player_hit = sound_load('assets/Body Fall 2.ogg')
+sounds.enemy_hit  = sound_load('assets/Body Head (Headshot) 1.ogg')
 sounds.enemy_die_variants = {

-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3_lightmed.ogg'),
-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7_lightmed.ogg'),
-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10_lightmed.ogg'),
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3.ogg'),
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7.ogg'),
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10.ogg'),
 }

Updated comment in main.lua

The existing comment on the sound block mentions "_lightmed bitcrushed variants" — should update to reflect the new runtime-DSP workflow:

-sounds  = {}
-volumes = {

-  player_hit = 0.39,
-  enemy_hit  = 0.85,
-  enemy_die  = 0.80,
-}
-sounds.player_hit = sound_load('assets/Body Fall 2_lightmed.ogg')
-sounds.enemy_hit  = sound_load('assets/Body Head (Headshot) 1_lightmed.ogg')
-sounds.enemy_die_variants = {
-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3_lightmed.ogg'),
-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7_lightmed.ogg'),
-  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10_lightmed.ogg'),
-}
+-- Sounds load as the originals (not _lightmed). Bitcrush + SR-reduce
+-- are applied at runtime per-sound via sound_tuner (F3 to tune, S to
+-- save sound_tuning.lua). Volumes are the v1 baseline-normalized values.
+sounds  = {}
+volumes = {
+  player_hit = 0.39,
+  enemy_hit  = 0.85,
+  enemy_die  = 0.80,
+}
+sounds.player_hit = sound_load('assets/Body Fall 2.ogg')
+sounds.enemy_hit  = sound_load('assets/Body Head (Headshot) 1.ogg')
+sounds.enemy_die_variants = {
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 3.ogg'),
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 7.ogg'),
+  sound_load('assets/Bloody punches 10.ogg'),
+}

(Above I'm also stripping the older comment about _lightmed bitcrushed variants by default since it no longer applies.)

Full operation list to apply:

  1. Copy 2 arrow sounds + 5 non-lightmed originals (7 files)
  2. Delete 5 _lightmed files from attack-template/assets
  3. projectile.lua: add fire_sounds handling
  4. main.lua: update sound block (paths + comment + arrow sounds + volumes)
  5. main.lua: pass fire_sounds from fire handler

Apply?

Yes.

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/Invoker/assets && cp "ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg" "RPG3_Gener...)

ARROW_Hit_Wood_Shield_stereo.ogg
Bloody punches 10.ogg
Bloody punches 3.ogg
Bloody punches 7.ogg
Body Fall 2.ogg
Body Head (Headshot) 1.ogg
RPG3_GenericArrow_Shoot01.ogg
draw_shader.frag
hit1.png
monogram.ttf

Assets in order. Now applying the code edits.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\projectile.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All applied, parses clean. Test:

If anything sounds off vs. the v1 baseline (likely too bright/clean given v1's lo-fi character), that's exactly what the F3 tuner is for now. Start with bits=10, sr_div=3 for an authentic "_lightmed" baseline, then tweak per sound.

Monogram 12px instead of 11px

Diff — sound_tuner.lua

-fonts.tune = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 11)
+fonts.tune = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 12)

Apply?

Change CLAUDE.md such that for small changes like this you don't need to ask for permission, show me the diff but do it anyway.

Two diffs to apply this turn — the rule update (no ask needed, user specified the change in prose) AND the font size change (no longer needs asking under the new rule).

Diff 1 — E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md: add small-change carve-out

 ### Code Changes

-- **⛔ ALWAYS show code before writing it. HARD RULE — NO EXCEPTIONS.**

-  Before calling `Write` or `Edit` on any code file in any project,
-  post the full code (or the exact old → new diff for `Edit`) in a
-  normal chat message and explicitly ask "does this look right?" /
-  "should I commit this?" / equivalent. Wait for the user's go-ahead.
-  Then write. This applies to:
-  - New files (show the entire file contents)
-  - Edits to existing files (show old → new with enough surrounding context)
-  - Even one-line edits. Even "obvious" fixes. Even when the broader
-    design has already been approved — each individual file operation
-    is its own checkpoint.
-
-  Narrow exceptions: pure typo / docstring fixes the user explicitly
-  asks for inline; edits to CLAUDE.md / plan.md / design.md type doc
-  files when the user has already specified the change in prose.
-
-  Why: the user wants to review every code change before it lands.
-  Writing first and explaining after — even with a clean diff —
-  defeats the review loop. Showing first lets the user catch design
-  issues, taste mismatches, or wrong-file errors before the file is
-  touched.
+- **⛔ ALWAYS show code before writing it.** Before calling `Write` or
+  `Edit` on any code file, post the full code (or exact old → new diff
+  for `Edit`) in chat. This applies to every file operation — new
+  files, existing files, even one-line edits.
+
+  **Non-trivial changes**: ask "does this look right?" / "should I
+  commit this?" and wait for the user's go-ahead before writing.
+
+  **Trivial changes**: show the diff and apply it in the same turn —
+  no ask. Trivial means:
+  - Single-line value tweaks (number, string, flag, font size, color hex)
+  - Variable renames within one file
+  - Single-line typo fixes
+  - User-specified imperatives ("change X to Y", "rename foo to bar")
+
+  If unsure whether something counts as trivial, treat it as
+  non-trivial and ask.
+
+  Narrow exceptions (write without showing the diff at all): pure
+  typo / docstring fixes the user explicitly asks for inline; edits
+  to CLAUDE.md / plan.md / design.md type files when the user has
+  already specified the change in prose.
+
+  Why: the user wants to review every code change before it lands.
+  For non-trivial work, show-then-ask catches design issues before
+  the file is touched. For trivial changes, show-then-do keeps flow
+  moving without unnecessary pingpong.

Diff 2 — sound_tuner.lua: font size 11 → 12

-fonts.tune = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 11)
+fonts.tune = font_register('monogram', 'assets/monogram.ttf', 12)

Applying both now.

Edit (E:\a327ex.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuner.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\sound_tuner.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Both applied. Tuning UI text should render slightly larger next run.

What does sr_div do exactly again?

sr_div is the sample-rate reduction divisor. It controls how coarsely the playback samples the source waveform — a "downsampling" effect that gives the lo-fi, chip-tune, "old hardware" character.

Mechanically

The DSP wrapper reads samples from the decoder at the engine's native rate (e.g. 48 kHz). For each sample, it does this (from anchor.c):

if (++sr_counter[c] >= sr_div) {
    sr_counter[c] = 0;
    held[c] = current_sample;   // grab a fresh sample
}
output[c] = held[c];            // emit the held sample

It only takes a new sample every sr_div ticks. In between, it just repeats the last value it grabbed. The effect is a sample-and-hold staircase: the waveform looks like blocky steps instead of a smooth curve.

Effective sample rate

If the engine runs at 48 kHz and sr_div = 3, the audio behaves as if it's being played at 48000 / 3 ≈ 16 kHz. That's the math behind v1's _lightmed preset being "3× SR reduction".

What it sounds like

Compared to bits

Both together = a classic lo-fi sound. v1's _lightmed was bits=10, sr_div=3 — moderate quantization plus moderate sample-rate reduction. That's the starting point I'd recommend when tuning a new sound.

Practical tuning tip

Start with bits=10, sr_div=3. Then: - If it sounds too sharp / brittle on transients → bump bits down to 8–9 (more quantization smooths transients into noise). - If it sounds too "muffled" or you want it crisper → bump sr_div down to 2. - If you want it to feel smaller / more crushed → bump sr_div up to 4–5. - If you want pure pass-through (clean original) → bits=16, sr_div=1.

The two parameters interact: heavy sr_div makes the staircase shape itself an audible artifact, which the bits quantization can further accentuate or hide.

Warning: typed-text queue full (32). Dropping: w

This is printing to the console very frame.

Let me find where that warning fires and what enables text input.

Grep (typed-text queue full|typed_text|SDL_StartTextInput|SDL_StopTextInput|text_input)

2642:// for the final glyph). Lua drains this via engine_get_typed_text() and
2647:static char typed_text[MAX_TYPED_EVENTS][MAX_TYPED_LEN];
2650:static void enqueue_typed_text(const char* text) {
2652:        snprintf(typed_text[typed_count], MAX_TYPED_LEN, "%s", text);
2655:        fprintf(stderr, "Warning: typed-text queue full (%d). Dropping: %s\n",
9032:// engine_get_typed_text: returns all SDL_TEXTINPUT events received since
9035://   local t = engine_get_typed_text()
9041:static int l_engine_get_typed_text(lua_State* L) {
9045:        luaL_addstring(&b, typed_text[i]);
9107:    SDL_StartTextInput();
9639:    lua_register(L, "engine_get_typed_text", l_engine_get_typed_text);
10427:            enqueue_typed_text(event.text.text);

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

2640 // SDL_TEXTINPUT events arrive as null-terminated UTF-8 strings, one event
2641    // per logical character (with composed input from IMEs producing one event
2642    // for the final glyph). Lua drains this via engine_get_typed_text() and
2643    // inserts at the active text-element's caret. Capacity is generous for a
2644    // single frame's worth of fast typing (32 events * 32 bytes each).
2645    #define MAX_TYPED_EVENTS 32
2646    #define MAX_TYPED_LEN 32
2647    static char typed_text[MAX_TYPED_EVENTS][MAX_TYPED_LEN];
2648    static int typed_count = 0;
2649    
2650    static void enqueue_typed_text(const char* text) {
2651        if (typed_count < MAX_TYPED_EVENTS) {
2652            snprintf(typed_text[typed_count], MAX_TYPED_LEN, "%s", text);
2653            typed_count++;
2654        } else {
2655            fprintf(stderr, "Warning: typed-text queue full (%d). Dropping: %s\n",
2656                    MAX_TYPED_EVENTS, text);
2657        }
2658    }
2659    
2660    // Input state - Global Hotkeys (Windows only)
2661    #ifdef _WIN32
2662    #define MAX_GLOBAL_HOTKEYS 16
2663    static struct {
2664        int id;
2665        bool fired;       // Set when WM_HOTKEY received, cleared in input_post_update
2666        bool registered;
2667    } global_hotkeys[MAX_GLOBAL_HOTKEYS];
2668    static int global_hotkey_count = 0;
2669    #endif
... [5 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

9100     }
9101    
9102        // Enable SDL_TEXTINPUT events. On desktop this is a no-op flag flip;
9103        // on mobile/web it can summon the on-screen keyboard. We leave it on
9104        // for the lifetime of the process — text-element editing is the only
9105        // consumer for now, and an always-on stream is cheaper than scoping
9106        // start/stop around focus changes for a single text-element use case.
9107        SDL_StartTextInput();
9108    
9109        SDL_GL_SetSwapInterval((vsync_enabled && !render_mode) ? 1 : 0);
9110    
9111        #ifndef __EMSCRIPTEN__
9112        // Load OpenGL functions (desktop only - Emscripten provides them)
9113        int version = gladLoadGL((GLADloadfunc)SDL_GL_GetProcAddress);
9114        if (version == 0) {
9115            return luaL_error(L, "gladLoadGL failed");
9116        }
9117        printf("OpenGL %d.%d loaded\n", GLAD_VERSION_MAJOR(version), GLAD_VERSION_MINOR(version));
9118        #else
9119        printf("WebGL 2.0 (OpenGL ES 3.0) context created\n");

Engine bug. SDL's text-input queue is on permanently (anchor.c:9107) and only drains when Lua calls engine_get_typed_text(). Our project never calls it, so the queue fills up after ~32 keypresses and warns per-press forever.

One-line fix on the project side — drain at the top of update().

Diff — attack-template/main.lua

 function update(dt)
   sync_engine_globals()

+  engine_get_typed_text()

Applying.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Applied. Warning should stop.

(Worth noting for later: the engine could fix this more cleanly — either auto-drain when nobody's consuming, or FIFO-drop silently instead of warning. A project that doesn't have a text-input widget should never have to know this queue exists. Worth a future Anchor 2 cleanup but not urgent. Your tuned values from sound_tuning.lua look reasonable, by the way — solid _lightmed-class starting point with the headshot taken further down to 6 bits for crunch.)

Great, I think this finishes everything from projectiles. What should we work on next?

You're at a clean checkpoint. A few directions worth flagging — pick one or steer:

Option A — Next carrier: area.lua

Per the port plan in attack-template/.claude/CLAUDE.md, area is the second most-reused carrier after projectile. v1 has 6 shapes (circle, rect, jagged_rect, cone, jagged_circle, polygon) with both instant + persistent modes, tick damage, blink-out, and the cyclone/righteous-fire variants. Two natural sub-options:

Option B — Round out projectile

A couple of loose ends from the projectile work that we explicitly deferred: - Wall hit sounds — port the arrow_hit_wall_1/2 stack the same way we did fire sounds. ~15 minutes, completes the audio loop. - wall_edge_wave_impulse — wall outline ripples on impact. Needs adding per-vertex offsets to wall.lua, then projectile + future areas can trigger ripples. Nice-to-have polish, not blocking.

Option C — Engine fix-up

The typed-text queue warning (engine_get_typed_text) is a real engine wart — every Anchor 2 project that doesn't have a text widget will hit it. Two small engine fixes: - Auto-drain when nobody's consuming, OR - FIFO-drop silently when full (just discard oldest, no warning).

Same cd Anchor2/engine && ./build.bat + cp anchor.exe cycle. ~10 lines of C. Benefits every project, not just attack-template.

Option D — Switch projects entirely

Per MEMORY.md, your main focuses are Invoker and the Anchor App. attack-template is a tooling investment — useful but not the destination. If you've spent enough on it for one session, switching to either of those (or somewhere else) is also legitimate.

My recommendation

If you want to keep moving on attack-template, A (minimal area) is the highest-leverage next step — area is the foundation for most of the remaining work (beam reuses area-tick semantics, polygonal reuses area-shape for landing zones, etc.). The minimal version mirrors what we did for projectile and stays under an hour.

If your energy is more "polish what we have", B (wall sounds + ripples) ties up the projectile arc cleanly.

If you'd rather pay down the engine debt that bit us today, C is small and broadly useful.

Your call.

Let's do area next.

Let me refresh on what v1's area looks like in code before pitching scope.

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8395 -- Area carrier (instant explosion or persistent DoT)
8396    area = object:extend()
8397    function area:new(x, y, args)
8398      object.new(self)
8399      self.x, self.y = x, y
8400      self.ability = args.ability
8401      self.color = args.color
8402      self.mods = args.mods or {}
8403      local def = abilities[self.ability]
8404      self.radius = args.radius or (def and def.area_radius) or 25
8405      if self.mods['area+'] then self.radius = self.radius*1.25 end
8406      if self.mods['area++'] then self.radius = self.radius*1.5 end
8407      if self.mods['area+++'] then self.radius = self.radius*2.0 end
8408      if self.mods['area-'] then self.radius = self.radius*0.85 end
8409      if self.mods['area--'] then self.radius = self.radius*0.7 end
8410      if self.mods['area---'] then self.radius = self.radius*0.5 end
8411    
8412      -- Cascade: spawn additional copies
8413      if self.mods.cascade and self.mods.cascade >= 2 and args.cascade_r then
8414        local n = self.mods.cascade
8415        local child_mods = {}
8416        for k, v in pairs(self.mods) do child_mods[k] = v end
8417        child_mods.cascade = nil
8418        local is_cone = (args.shape or (def and def.area_shape)) == 'cone'
8419        if is_cone then
8420          -- Cone cascade: widen the cone angle instead of spawning extras
8421          local cone_a = args.cone_angle or (def and def.cone_angle) or math.pi/2
8422          args.cone_angle = cone_a + (n - 1)*cone_a*0.8
8423        else
8424          -- Normal cascade: spawn in a line along cascade_r
... [100 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8800 
8801            local enemies_in_range
8802            if self.shape == 'jagged_rect' and self.jagged_rect_verts then
8803              -- Build rotated flat vertex array for polygon query
8804              local cos_r, sin_r = math.cos(self.r), math.sin(self.r)
8805              local flat = {}
8806              for _, v in ipairs(self.jagged_rect_verts) do
8807                flat[#flat + 1] = v.x*cos_r - v.y*sin_r
8808                flat[#flat + 1] = v.x*sin_r + v.y*cos_r
8809              end
8810              enemies_in_range = an:query_polygon(self.x, self.y, flat, {'enemy'})
8811            elseif self.shape == 'rect' then
8812              local box_h = self.rect_h and self.rect_h*2 or self.radius*2
8813              enemies_in_range = an:query_box(self.x, self.y, self.radius*2, box_h, self.r, {'enemy'})
8814            elseif self.shape == 'cone' then
8815              local half_angle = self.cone_angle/2
8816              enemies_in_range = {}
8817              for _, e in ipairs(cached_enemies) do
8818                if not e.dead then
8819                  local d = math.distance(self.x, self.y, e.x, e.y)
8820                  local a = math.atan(e.y - self.y, e.x - self.x)
8821                  local diff = math.abs(math.atan(math.sin(a - self.r), math.cos(a - self.r)))
8822                  if d < self.radius and diff < half_angle then
8823                    table.insert(enemies_in_range, e)
8824                  end
8825                end
8826              end
8827            elseif self.shape == 'polygon' and self.polygon_verts then
8828              -- Polygon: query outer radius, separate into inner (polygon) and outer (falloff ring)
8829              local outer_r = self.outer_radius or self.radius*2
... [140 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8740     end
8741    
8742        -- After duration, blink out and die
8743        self.timer:after(self.duration, function()
8744          self.timer:cancel('tick')
8745          self.timer:every(0.05, 'blink', function() self.hidden = not self.hidden end, 7, function() self:kill() end)
8746          self.timer:trigger('blink')
8747        end)
8748      else
8749        -- Instant area setup
8750        self.arc_base_speed = an.random:choice({-1, 1})*an.random:float(3, 5)*math.pi
8751        self.elapsed = 0
8752    
8753        local pull_delay = 0
8754        if self.mods.magnetic_area then
8755          pull_delay = 0.15
8756          local pull_radius = self.radius*2
8757          local mag_scale = self.radius/25
8758          local pull_mult = (def and def.magnetic_pull_mult) or 1
8759          add_shockwave(x, y, false, mag_scale)
8760          for _, e in ipairs(cached_enemies) do
8761            if not e.dead then
8762              local d = math.distance(x, y, e.x, e.y)
8763              if d < pull_radius and d > 1 then
8764                local strength = 4*pull_mult*(1 - d/pull_radius)
8765                local r = math.angle_to_point(e.x, e.y, x, y)
8766                e:push(r, strength)
8767              end
8768            end
8769          end
... [30 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

8954 function area:update(dt)
8955      if self.hidden then return end
8956    
8957      if self.follow then
8958        self.x = self.follow.x + self.follow_ox
8959        self.y = self.follow.y + self.follow_oy
8960      end
8961    
8962      if self.duration then
8963        -- Movement
8964        if self.move_vx then
8965          self.x = self.x + self.move_vx*dt
8966          self.y = self.y + self.move_vy*dt
8967        end
8968        if self.mods.homing_zone and self.homing_active then
8969          self.homing_elapsed = self.homing_elapsed + dt
8970    
8971          if self.mods['homing_force>+'] and self.homing_elapsed > 0.5 then
8972            self.homing_steer_rate = math.min(self.homing_steer_rate + self.homing_base_steer_rate*0.3*dt, 6)
8973          elseif self.mods['homing_force>-'] and self.homing_elapsed > 0.5 then
8974            self.homing_steer_rate = math.max(self.homing_steer_rate - self.homing_base_steer_rate*0.3*dt, 0.5)
8975          end
8976    
8977          local closest, closest_d = nil, math.huge
8978          for _, e in ipairs(cached_enemies) do
8979            if not e.dead then
8980              local d = math.distance(self.x, self.y, e.x, e.y)
8981              if d < closest_d then closest, closest_d = e, d end
8982            end
8983          end
... [70 more lines]

Grep (elseif self.shape == 'circle'|^ -- Default circle|self.cached_num_arcs)

9148:    if not self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
9149:    if num_arcs > self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
9152:    for i = 0, self.cached_num_arcs - 1 do
9153:      local base = self.arc_r + i*2*math.pi/self.cached_num_arcs

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

9130     -- Outline
9131        local verts = self.jagged_verts
9132        for i = 1, #verts do
9133          local v1 = verts[i]
9134          local v2 = verts[i % #verts + 1]
9135          local x1 = self.x + r*v1.d*math.cos(v1.a)
9136          local y1 = self.y + r*v1.d*math.sin(v1.a)
9137          local x2 = self.x + r*v2.d*math.cos(v2.a)
9138          local y2 = self.y + r*v2.d*math.sin(v2.a)
9139          ability_layer:line(x1, y1, x2, y2, 2, c)
9140        end
9141      else
9142        local r = self.visual_radius*s
9143    
9144        ability_layer:circle(self.x, self.y, r, self.fill_color())
9145    
9146        local arc_world = math.min(50, math.pi*r/6)
9147        local num_arcs = math.max(2, math.floor(2*math.pi*r / (arc_world*3)))
9148        if not self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
9149        if num_arcs > self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
9150        local arc_angular = arc_world / math.max(r, 1)
9151        local segments = 6
9152        for i = 0, self.cached_num_arcs - 1 do
9153          local base = self.arc_r + i*2*math.pi/self.cached_num_arcs
9154          for j = 0, segments - 1 do
9155            local a1 = base + j*arc_angular/segments
9156            local a2 = base + (j + 1)*arc_angular/segments
9157            ability_layer:line(
9158              self.x + r*math.cos(a1), self.y + r*math.sin(a1),
9159              self.x + r*math.cos(a2), self.y + r*math.sin(a2),
... [10 more lines]

I have the v1 area pattern fully in head. Before designing, four scope calls — same shape as the projectile kickoff:

AskUserQuestion 

User has answered your questions: "How wide should the first area.lua port be on shapes?"="Circle + rect", "Mode scope?"="Instant only (Recommended)", "How should I expose firing in the demo?"="Right-click at cursor position (Recommended)", "Area sound for this first pass?"="Skip sounds (Recommended)". You can now continue with the user's answers in mind.

Let me verify what query functions are available — area needs a circle query.

Grep (query_entities_|query_circle|physics_query)

4:  The C engine's physics_query_* and physics_get_*_begin/end functions return
36:  query_entities_circle(x, y, r, tags)
39:function query_entities_circle(x, y, r, tags)
40:  local bodies = physics_query_circle(x, y, r, tags)
50:  query_entities_box(x, y, w, h, angle, tags)
52:function query_entities_box(x, y, w, h, angle, tags)
53:  local bodies = physics_query_box(x, y, w, h, angle, tags)
63:  query_entities_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
65:function query_entities_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
66:  local bodies = physics_query_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)
76:  query_entities_point(x, y, tags)
78:function query_entities_point(x, y, tags)
79:  local bodies = physics_query_point(x, y, tags)

Grep (^function timer_every|^function timer_after|^function timer_tween)

80:function timer_after(t, delay, name_or_callback, callback_function)
95:function timer_every(t, delay, name_or_callback, callback_or_times, times_or_after, after_function)
125:function timer_tween(t, duration, name_or_target, target_or_values, values_or_easing, easing_or_after, after_function)
191:function timer_every_step(t, start_delay, end_delay, times, name_or_callback, callback_or_step, step_or_after, after_function)

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\timer.lua)

85       name, callback = uid(t), name_or_callback
86    end
87    insert_entry(t, {name = name, mode = 'after', time = 0, delay = delay, callback = callback})
88  end
89  
90  --[[
91    timer_every(t, delay, [name,] callback, [times,] [after])
92    Fires callback repeatedly every delay seconds. If times is specified,
93    stops after that many fires and calls the `after` callback.
94  ]]
95  function timer_every(t, delay, name_or_callback, callback_or_times, times_or_after, after_function)
96    local name, callback, times, after
97    if type(name_or_callback) == 'string' then
98      name, callback, times, after = name_or_callback, callback_or_times, times_or_after, after_function
99    else
100     name, callback, times, after = uid(t), name_or_callback, callback_or_times, times_or_after
101   end
102   insert_entry(t, {name = name, mode = 'every', time = 0, delay = delay, callback = callback, times = times, after = after, count = 0})
103 end
104 
105 --[[
106   timer_during(t, duration, [name,] callback, [after])
107   Fires callback(dt, progress) every frame for duration seconds.
108   Progress is 0 to 1 and reaches exactly 1 on the final frame.
109 ]]
110 function timer_during(t, duration, name_or_callback, callback_or_after, after_function)
111   local name, callback, after
112   if type(name_or_callback) == 'string' then
113     name, callback, after = name_or_callback, callback_or_after, after_function
114   else
... [20 more lines]

Have everything. Here's the design.

New file — attack-template/area.lua (~145 lines)

--[[
  area.lua — area-of-effect attack carrier (minimal v1 port).

  Scope of this first pass (per session 3 decisions):
    • Two shapes: 'circle' (default) with orbiting arc visuals, and
      'rect' with bracket-corner draw + rotated box query.
    • Instant mode only. No persistent (DoT) zones, no follow/moving/
      homing/growing, no hostile-area variant, no cascade/echo/pull.
    • Lifecycle: tween radius 0 → target over 0.05s → damage pass →
      0.2s hold → blink (every 0.05s × 7 ticks) → kill.
    • Spawn juice: spring pull 0.25 on 'main' + 0.15s white flash on
      tween completion.
    • Per-enemy hit FX: hit_effect sprite + 2-3 colored particles
      (matches v1 area damage pass).
    • Single damage tick at full damage; no per-enemy cooldown since
      instant mode hits once anyway.

  Caller API:
    spawn_area(x, y, {
      radius,    -- default 24 (matches v1 fireball area_radius=25)
      rect_h,    -- for shape='rect'; default = radius
      damage,    -- default 1
      color,     -- default red
      edition,   -- default 0 (inherits from caster.edition if passed)
      shape,     -- 'circle' (default) or 'rect'
      r,         -- rotation for rect orientation (default 0)
      caster,    -- optional; carries edition for particle tinting
    })
  Position is caller-provided — caller picks where the area lands
  (mouse position for aimed, player position for self-area, etc.).
  Areas are NOT physics objects; they query existing colliders by tag.

  Visual variants:
    • circle: filled disc (alpha 20) + orbiting arc segments at the
      perimeter. arc_r spins via arc_base_speed, decaying to 0 via
      sigmoid by t=0.25s (v1 instant-area pattern).
    • rect: filled rect (alpha 20) + 4 bracket corners (10% of min
      dim) at full alpha. Rotated by self.r.
]]


areas = {}


area = class()


function area:new(x, y, args)
  args = args or {}
  self.x = x
  self.y = y
  self.radius  = args.radius or 24
  self.rect_h  = args.rect_h
  self.damage  = args.damage or 1
  self.color   = args.color and color_clone(args.color) or color_clone(red)
  self.edition = args.edition or (args.caster and args.caster.edition) or 0
  self.shape   = args.shape or 'circle'
  self.r       = args.r or 0

  self.visual_radius = 0
  self.fill_color = color_clone(self.color)
  self.fill_color.a = 20
  self.flashing = false
  self.hidden   = false
  self.arc_r    = 0
  -- Random initial spin direction + speed for the orbiting arcs.
  -- Decays to 0 via sigmoid mult in update() over ~0.25s.
  self.arc_base_speed = random_choice({-1, 1})*random_float(3, 5)*math.pi
  self.elapsed = 0

  make_entity(self)

  self.timer  = timer_new()
  self.spring = spring_new()

  -- Lifecycle scheduled at construction. Update() just advances timers
  -- + spring + arc decay.
  timer_tween(self.timer, 0.05, self, {visual_radius = self.radius}, math.cubic_in_out, function()
    spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.25)
    self.flashing = true
    timer_after(self.timer, 0.15, 'flash', function() self.flashing = false end)

    self:apply_damage()

    timer_after(self.timer, 0.2, function()
      timer_every(self.timer, 0.05, 'blink', function() self.hidden = not self.hidden end, 7, function()
        entity_kill(self)
      end)
    end)
  end)
end


function area:apply_damage()
  local enemies
  if self.shape == 'rect' then
    local box_h = self.rect_h and self.rect_h*2 or self.radius*2
    enemies = query_entities_box(self.x, self.y, self.radius*2, box_h, self.r, {'enemy'})
  else
    enemies = query_entities_circle(self.x, self.y, self.radius, {'enemy'})
  end

  local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
  for _, e in ipairs(enemies or {}) do
    if e.hit and not e._dead then
      e:hit(self.damage)
      spawn_hit_effect(e.x, e.y)
      for i = 1, random_int(2, 3) do
        spawn_particle(e.x, e.y, {
          velocity = random_float(50, 150),
        }):change_color(0.5, pc)
      end
    end
  end
end


function area:update(dt)
  timer_update(self.timer, dt)
  spring_update(self.spring, dt)
  -- Arc spin decay (instant-area pattern from v1 area:update). After
  -- ~0.25s the arcs hold still — the dramatic spin is at the moment
  -- of impact.
  self.elapsed = self.elapsed + dt
  local mult = 1/(1 + math.exp(20*(self.elapsed - 0.25)))
  self.arc_r = self.arc_r + self.arc_base_speed*mult*dt
end


function area:destroy() end


function area:draw(layer)
  if self.hidden then return end
  set_edition(layer, self.edition)

  local s = self.spring.main.x
  local c = self.flashing and fg_color() or self.color()
  local r = self.visual_radius*s

  if self.shape == 'rect' then
    local w = r*2
    local h = (self.rect_h or self.visual_radius)*2*s
    local hw, hh = w/2, h/2
    local bracket = math.min(w, h)*0.1

    layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, self.r, 1, 1)
    layer_rectangle(layer, -hw, -hh, w, h, self.fill_color())
    layer_line(layer, -hw, -hh, -hw + bracket, -hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw, -hh, -hw, -hh + bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw, -hh,  hw - bracket, -hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw, -hh,  hw, -hh + bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw,  hh, -hw + bracket,  hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw,  hh, -hw,  hh - bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw,  hh,  hw - bracket,  hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw,  hh,  hw,  hh - bracket, 2, c)
    layer_pop(layer)
  else
    layer_circle(layer, self.x, self.y, r, self.fill_color())

    local arc_world = math.min(50, math.pi*r/6)
    local num_arcs = math.max(2, math.floor(2*math.pi*r/(arc_world*3)))
    if not self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
    if num_arcs > self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
    local arc_angular = arc_world/math.max(r, 1)
    local segments = 6
    for i = 0, self.cached_num_arcs - 1 do
      local base = self.arc_r + i*2*math.pi/self.cached_num_arcs
      for j = 0, segments - 1 do
        local a1 = base + j*arc_angular/segments
        local a2 = base + (j + 1)*arc_angular/segments
        layer_line(layer,
          self.x + r*math.cos(a1), self.y + r*math.sin(a1),
          self.x + r*math.cos(a2), self.y + r*math.sin(a2),
          2, c)
      end
    end
  end

  set_edition(layer, 0)
end


function spawn_area(x, y, opts)
  opts = opts or {}
  local a = area(x, y, opts)
  areas[#areas + 1] = a
  return a
end

main.lua — 4 diffs

Diff 1 — require:

 require('projectile')
+require('area')
 sound_tuning = require('sound_tuning')

Diff 2 — bind right-click:

 bind('fire_projectile', 'mouse:1')
+bind('fire_area',       'mouse:2')

Diff 3 — fire handler in update (after the projectile fire handler):

   if is_pressed('fire_projectile') and not p._dead then
     spawn_projectile(p, {
       max_range   = 220,
       fire_sounds = {
         {sound = sounds.arrow_hit_wood, vol = volumes.arrow_hit_wood},
         {sound = sounds.arrow_shoot,    vol = volumes.arrow_shoot},
       },
     })
   end
+

+  -- Aimed area at the cursor — radius 30, deals 2 damage. The caster
+  -- is the player so the per-enemy particle bursts inherit player
+  -- edition tint. Shape defaults to 'circle'; pass shape='rect' (and
+  -- optional rect_h, r) for a rectangle area.
+  if is_pressed('fire_area') and not p._dead then
+    spawn_area(main_camera.mouse.x, main_camera.mouse.y, {
+      radius = 30,
+      damage = 2,
+      caster = p,
+    })
+  end

Diff 4 — update + draw loops (parallel to projectiles):

   for i = #projectiles, 1, -1 do
     local pr = projectiles[i]
     if pr._dead then table.remove(projectiles, i)
     else pr:update(dt) end
   end

+  for i = #areas, 1, -1 do
+    local a = areas[i]
+    if a._dead then table.remove(areas, i)
+    else a:update(dt) end
+  end

   camera_attach(main_camera, game_layer)
   p:draw(game_layer)
   for _, sk in ipairs(seekers)     do sk:draw(game_layer) end
   for _, pr in ipairs(projectiles) do pr:draw(game_layer) end

+  for _, a  in ipairs(areas)       do a:draw(game_layer)  end
   for _, f  in ipairs(fxs)         do f:draw(game_layer)  end
   camera_detach(main_camera, game_layer)

Notes

Apply?

Go ahead.

Write (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

File created successfully at: E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All five edits applied, parses clean. Test:

If anything feels off (arc spin too fast/slow, fill alpha too transparent, blink too slow, radius wrong), easy tuning knobs in area.lua constructor.

Right click is not doing anything. Change this in the engine, it's a common mistake. You always swap out 2 for 3 and 3 for 2, but it should be changed at the engine level.

Let me find where mouse buttons are parsed in the engine to swap the 2↔3 mapping.

Grep ("mouse:|SDL_BUTTON_|mouse_button|mouse_is_pressed)

2610:static bool mouse_buttons_current[MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS] = {0};
2611:static bool mouse_buttons_previous[MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS] = {0};
2963:    memcpy(mouse_buttons_previous, mouse_buttons_current, sizeof(mouse_buttons_previous));
3246:                return mouse_buttons_current[ctrl->code - 1];
3278:                return mouse_buttons_current[idx] && !mouse_buttons_previous[idx];
3301:                return !mouse_buttons_current[idx] && mouse_buttons_previous[idx];
3796:        snprintf(control_str, sizeof(control_str), "mouse:%d", i);
8224:        lua_pushboolean(L, mouse_buttons_current[button - 1]);
8229:static int l_mouse_is_pressed(lua_State* L) {
8234:        lua_pushboolean(L, mouse_buttons_current[button - 1] && !mouse_buttons_previous[button - 1]);
8244:        lua_pushboolean(L, !mouse_buttons_current[button - 1] && mouse_buttons_previous[button - 1]);
9572:    lua_register(L, "mouse_is_pressed", l_mouse_is_pressed);
10381:                mouse_buttons_current[btn] = true;
10385:                snprintf(captured_control, sizeof(captured_control), "mouse:%d", event.button.button);
10391:                mouse_buttons_current[btn] = false;

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

10375                last_input_type = INPUT_TYPE_MOUSE;
10376               #ifdef __EMSCRIPTEN__
10377               audio_try_unlock();
10378               #endif
10379               int btn = event.button.button - 1;  // SDL buttons are 1-indexed
10380               if (btn >= 0 && btn < MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS) {
10381                   mouse_buttons_current[btn] = true;
10382               }
10383               // Capture mode: capture the mouse button
10384               if (capture_mode && captured_control[0] == '\0') {
10385                   snprintf(captured_control, sizeof(captured_control), "mouse:%d", event.button.button);
10386               }
10387           }
10388           if (event.type == SDL_MOUSEBUTTONUP) {
10389               int btn = event.button.button - 1;
10390               if (btn >= 0 && btn < MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS) {
10391                   mouse_buttons_current[btn] = false;
10392               }
10393           }
10394           // Track mouse wheel
10395           if (event.type == SDL_MOUSEWHEEL) {
10396               mouse_wheel_x += event.wheel.x;
10397               mouse_wheel_y += event.wheel.y;
10398           }
10399           // Touch events (for web/mobile audio unlock)

Let me check the memory note that captures the old SDL ordering so I update both.

Read (C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\reference_anchor2_mouse_buttons.md)

Found it. The fix is one helper function + two call sites + one snprintf. SDL ingestion is the only place that knows about SDL's ordering — everything downstream sees the Anchor convention.

Diff — Anchor2/engine/src/anchor.c

Add helper near the mouse state declarations (~line 2610):

// Map raw SDL button index to Anchor convention:
//   SDL: 1=L, 2=M, 3=R   →   Anchor: 1=L, 2=R, 3=M
// (LÖVE2D-style; matches the intuitive mouse:2 = right-click expectation.)
// Buttons 4+ (X1, X2) pass through unchanged.
static int sdl_to_anchor_mouse_button(int sdl_btn) {
    if (sdl_btn == 2) return 3;
    if (sdl_btn == 3) return 2;
    return sdl_btn;
}

Apply at the SDL event boundary (~line 10379):

 if (event.type == SDL_MOUSEBUTTONDOWN) {
     last_input_type = INPUT_TYPE_MOUSE;
     #ifdef __EMSCRIPTEN__
     audio_try_unlock();
     #endif

-    int btn = event.button.button - 1;  // SDL buttons are 1-indexed
+    int anchor_btn = sdl_to_anchor_mouse_button(event.button.button);
+    int btn = anchor_btn - 1;
     if (btn >= 0 && btn < MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS) {
         mouse_buttons_current[btn] = true;
     }
-    // Capture mode: capture the mouse button
     if (capture_mode && captured_control[0] == '\0') {
-        snprintf(captured_control, sizeof(captured_control), "mouse:%d", event.button.button);
+        snprintf(captured_control, sizeof(captured_control), "mouse:%d", anchor_btn);
     }
 }
 if (event.type == SDL_MOUSEBUTTONUP) {
-    int btn = event.button.button - 1;
+    int btn = sdl_to_anchor_mouse_button(event.button.button) - 1;
     if (btn >= 0 && btn < MAX_MOUSE_BUTTONS) {
         mouse_buttons_current[btn] = false;
     }
 }

Applying, building, copying, then updating the obsolete memory note.

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

The file E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/Anchor2/engine && ./build.bat 2>&1 | tail -5 && cp build/anchor.exe...)

src/anchor.c(10711): warning C4996: 'strncpy': This function or variable may be unsafe. Consider using strncpy_s instead. To disable deprecation, use _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS. See online help for details.
gl.c
Generating Code...
LINK : warning LNK4098: defaultlib 'MSVCRT' conflicts with use of other libs; use /NODEFAULTLIB:library
Build successful: build/anchor.exe
COPIED

Build succeeded, exe copied. Now updating the memory note since the prior rule is obsolete.

Write (C:\Users\adn.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\reference_anchor2_mouse_buttons.md)

The file C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\reference_anchor2_mouse_buttons.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Read (C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\MEMORY.md)

Edit (C:\Users\adn.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\MEMORY.md)

The file C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\memory\MEMORY.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

All done. Right-click should now actually fire the area. Test:

Memory note rewritten to capture the new convention and the swap-at-boundary implementation detail; the MEMORY.md index entry updated to match. Anything else that ships with attack-template, edition-template, or future projects can now write mouse:2 for right-click without the mental remap.

Area itself seems to be good, I believe the original must also have had visual effects on the caster for casting the area, as well as camera shake, try to copy those if they did indeed exist. Then implement the other types of areas. We want a general polygonal area, and then rock-like versions of each circle, rect and polygon with the jagged variations. Perhaps the jagged variations don't need to be their own versions, just a setting we can pass to the area to the polygon branch, while rect and circle remain the simplest ones.

Two things to dig into. Let me check v1 first.

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

1433     elseif def.carrier == 'self_area' then
1434          local area_mods = {}
1435          for k, v in pairs(mods) do area_mods[k] = v end
1436          area_mods.cascade = nil
1437          area_mods.area_echo = nil
1438    
1439          local self_area_log = (override_pos and override_pos.cast_log) or damage_cast_log.new(ability_name, def.element)
1440          local follow_target = override_pos and nil or p1
1441          local function spawn_self_area_formation()
1442            local aim_r = r
1443            an:add(area(fire_x, fire_y, {ability = ability_name, color = def.color, mods = area_mods, follow = follow_target, edition = orb_ed, cast_log = self_area_log}))
1444    
1445            if mods.cascade and mods.cascade >= 2 then
1446              local n = mods.cascade
1447              local base_radius = (def and def.area_radius) or 25
1448              if mods['area+'] then base_radius = base_radius*1.25 end
1449              if mods['area++'] then base_radius = base_radius*1.5 end
1450              if mods['area+++'] then base_radius = base_radius*2.0 end
1451              local outer_edge = base_radius
1452              for i = 1, n - 1 do
1453                local child_radius = base_radius*(n - i)/n
1454                local dist = outer_edge + child_radius
1455                an:add(area(fire_x + dist*math.cos(aim_r), fire_y + dist*math.sin(aim_r), {
1456                  ability = ability_name, color = def.color, mods = area_mods,
1457                  radius = child_radius, follow = follow_target,
1458                  follow_ox = dist*math.cos(aim_r), follow_oy = dist*math.sin(aim_r),
1459                  edition = orb_ed, cast_log = self_area_log,
1460                }))
1461                outer_edge = dist + child_radius
1462              end
... [100 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

1562 
1563          an.camera.shake:push(r, 4)
1564          if not override_pos then
1565            p1.spring:pull('shoot', 0.25)
1566            p1.flashing = true
1567            p1.timer:after(0.15, 'flash', function() p1.flashing = false end)
1568          end
1569          an:add(hit_circle(fire_x, fire_y, {radius = 7, duration = 0.2}))
1570          for i = 1, 2 do
1571            an:add(hit_particle(fire_x, fire_y, {
1572              angle = r + an.random:float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4),
1573              velocity = an.random:float(40, 200),
1574              duration = an.random:float(0.3, 0.6),
1575              w = an.random:choice({6, 8}),
1576            }):change_color(0.5, pc:clone()))
1577          end
1578        elseif def.carrier == 'chain' then
1579          local count = def.chain_count or 3
1580          if mods.chain then count = count + mods.chain end
1581          local chain_range = def.chain_range or 80
1582          if mods['chain_range+'] then chain_range = chain_range*1.2 end
1583          if mods['chain_range++'] then chain_range = chain_range*1.5 end
1584          if mods['chain_range+++'] then chain_range = chain_range*2.0 end
1585          if mods['area+'] then chain_range = chain_range*1.25 end
1586          if mods['area++'] then chain_range = chain_range*1.5 end
1587          if mods['area+++'] then chain_range = chain_range*2.0 end
1588          if mods['area-'] then chain_range = chain_range*0.85 end
1589          if mods['area--'] then chain_range = chain_range*0.7 end
1590          if mods['area---'] then chain_range = chain_range*0.5 end
1591          local global_hit = {}
... [10 more lines]

Grep (query_entities_polygon|physics_query_polygon)

No matches found

Grep (physics_query_polygon|l_physics_query_polygon|"physics_query_polygon")

7609:// physics_query_polygon(x, y, vertices, tags) -> array of bodies
7611:static int l_physics_query_polygon(lua_State* L) {
9554:    lua_register(L, "physics_query_polygon", l_physics_query_polygon);

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

7609 // physics_query_polygon(x, y, vertices, tags) -> array of bodies
7610    // vertices is a flat array: {x1, y1, x2, y2, ...}
7611    static int l_physics_query_polygon(lua_State* L) {
7612        float x = (float)luaL_checknumber(L, 1) / pixels_per_meter;
7613        float y = (float)luaL_checknumber(L, 2) / pixels_per_meter;
7614        luaL_checktype(L, 3, LUA_TTABLE);
7615        luaL_checktype(L, 4, LUA_TTABLE);
7616    
7617        // Get vertices from flat array {x1, y1, x2, y2, ...}
7618        int len = (int)lua_rawlen(L, 3);
7619        if (len < 6 || len % 2 != 0) {
7620            return luaL_error(L, "Polygon needs at least 3 vertices (6 numbers)");
7621        }
7622    
7623        int vertex_count = len / 2;
7624        if (vertex_count > B2_MAX_POLYGON_VERTICES) {
7625            return luaL_error(L, "Too many vertices (max %d)", B2_MAX_POLYGON_VERTICES);
7626        }
7627    
7628        b2Vec2 points[B2_MAX_POLYGON_VERTICES];
7629        for (int i = 0; i < vertex_count; i++) {
7630            lua_rawgeti(L, 3, i * 2 + 1);
7631            lua_rawgeti(L, 3, i * 2 + 2);
7632            points[i].x = (float)lua_tonumber(L, -2) / pixels_per_meter;
7633            points[i].y = (float)lua_tonumber(L, -1) / pixels_per_meter;
7634            lua_pop(L, 2);
7635        }
7636    
7637        uint64_t mask = build_query_mask_from_table(L, 4);
7638        if (mask == 0) {

Found everything. Let me lay out the design.

Part 1 — Caster juice (mirroring v1's self_area + aimed_area patterns)

v1 applies this on every area cast: - Camera shake — directional shake_push(angle, 4) for aimed_area, omnidirectional trauma for self_area - Spring pull on 'shoot' (0.25) — same as projectile recoil - White flash for 0.15s — same as projectile fire - Cast hit_circle at caster position (radius 10, duration 0.2, stays white) - 4 cast particles at caster position — omnidirectional for self, ±π/4 cone toward target for aimed

I'll auto-detect: if caster position ≈ area position (within 4 px), omnidirectional; else directional cone toward area.

Part 2 — Polygon shape + jagged flag

Three base shapes, jagged as orthogonal flag:

spawn_area(x, y, {
  shape = 'circle',     -- 'circle' | 'rect' | 'polygon'
  jagged = false,       -- visual roughening (and for polygon: actually changes hit area)
  radius = 24,
  rect_h,               -- rect only
  polygon_verts,        -- polygon only; list of {a, d} (angle, distance fraction of radius). If nil, auto-generate 6 evenly-spaced verts at d=1.
  polygon_r,            -- polygon rotation
  r,                    -- rect rotation
  damage, color, edition, caster,
})

Shape × jagged behavior matrix:

shape jagged hit query draw
circle false circle filled disc + orbiting arcs (current)
circle true circle filled disc (no arcs) + jittered perimeter outline (8-12 verts, ±0.15 rad / 0.85-1.1 r jitter)
rect false box filled rect + bracket corners (current)
rect true box filled triangle fan + jittered perimeter outline (5-7 verts)
polygon false polygon filled triangle fan + polygon outline (clean)
polygon true polygon filled triangle fan + jittered polygon outline (jitter applied at construction; query uses jittered verts)

Key design call: for circle and rect, jagged is purely visual — hit query stays clean (query_circle / query_box). For polygon, jagged actually mutates the polygon_verts (and therefore the query). This matches v1's behavior and the user's intuition: jagged circle still hits in a circle, jagged polygon hits in a jagged polygon.

Engine wrapper needed

physics_query_polygon exists in the C engine (anchor.c:7611) but isn't wrapped in attack-template/anchor/physics.lua. Need to add a query_entities_polygon(x, y, verts_flat, tags) wrapper alongside the existing query_entities_circle/box/aabb/point.

Demo controls

This gives 6 combinations testable from a single demo session.

The diff is meaty — three files

  1. attack-template/anchor/physics.lua — add query_entities_polygon wrapper (~12 lines)
  2. attack-template/area.lua — substantial: add caster juice, refactor to support 3 shapes × jagged, new jagged-vert generation logic, polygon construction (~80 lines added/restructured)
  3. attack-template/main.lua — add cycle bindings + state + cycle handlers (~25 lines)

I'll write the full diffs in the next message. Want me to:

AskUserQuestion 

User has answered your questions: "How should I present the area.lua changes?"="Full file rewrite (Recommended)", "Hex demo: T cycles shape, G toggles jagged, fire on right-click. Anything off?"="Looks good". You can now continue with the user's answers in mind.

Quick check on physics_query_polygon semantics — are points local or world?

Read (E:\a327ex\Anchor2\engine\src\anchor.c)

7635     }
7636    
7637        uint64_t mask = build_query_mask_from_table(L, 4);
7638        if (mask == 0) {
7639            lua_newtable(L);
7640            return 1;
7641        }
7642    
7643        QueryContext ctx = {0};
7644        ctx.tag_mask = mask;
7645    
7646        b2Vec2 position = {x, y};
7647        b2Rot rotation = b2Rot_identity;
7648        b2ShapeProxy proxy = b2MakeOffsetProxy(points, vertex_count, 0.0f, position, rotation);
7649    
7650        b2QueryFilter filter = b2DefaultQueryFilter();
7651        filter.categoryBits = UINT64_MAX;
7652        filter.maskBits = mask;
7653    
7654        b2World_OverlapShape(physics_world, &proxy, filter, query_overlap_callback, &ctx);
7655    
7656        lua_newtable(L);
7657        for (int i = 0; i < ctx.count; i++) {
7658            b2BodyId* ud = (b2BodyId*)lua_newuserdata(L, sizeof(b2BodyId));
7659            *ud = ctx.bodies[i];
7660            lua_rawseti(L, -2, i + 1);
7661        }
7662        return 1;
7663    }
7664    
... [10 more lines]

Grep (^function layer_polygon|^function layer_triangle)

136:function layer_triangle(lyr, x1, y1, x2, y2, x3, y3, color)
140:function layer_triangle_line(lyr, x1, y1, x2, y2, x3, y3, color, line_width)
144:function layer_polygon(lyr, vertices, color)
148:function layer_polygon_line(lyr, vertices, color, line_width)

Read (E:\a327ex\Invoker\v1\main.lua)

9090     -- Bracket corners at outer left edge
9091        local arc_step = bracket/r
9092        local lx = self.x + r*math.cos(edge_l)
9093        local ly = self.y + r*math.sin(edge_l)
9094        ability_layer:line(lx, ly, self.x + r*math.cos(edge_l + arc_step), self.y + r*math.sin(edge_l + arc_step), 2, c)
9095        ability_layer:line(lx, ly, self.x + (r - bracket)*math.cos(edge_l), self.y + (r - bracket)*math.sin(edge_l), 2, c)
9096    
9097        -- Bracket corners at outer right edge
9098        local rx = self.x + r*math.cos(edge_r)
9099        local ry = self.y + r*math.sin(edge_r)
9100        ability_layer:line(rx, ry, self.x + r*math.cos(edge_r - arc_step), self.y + r*math.sin(edge_r - arc_step), 2, c)
9101        ability_layer:line(rx, ry, self.x + (r - bracket)*math.cos(edge_r), self.y + (r - bracket)*math.sin(edge_r), 2, c)
9102      elseif self.shape == 'polygon' and self.polygon_verts then
9103        local r = self.visual_radius*s
9104        local scale = r/math.max(self.radius, 1)
9105        -- Fill
9106        ability_layer:circle(self.x, self.y, r*0.85, self.fill_color())
9107        -- Outline
9108        local pverts = self.polygon_verts
9109        for i = 1, #pverts do
9110          local v1 = pverts[i]
9111          local v2 = pverts[i % #pverts + 1]
9112          ability_layer:line(self.x + v1.wx*scale, self.y + v1.wy*scale,
9113                             self.x + v2.wx*scale, self.y + v2.wy*scale, 2, c)
9114        end
9115      elseif self.shape == 'jagged_circle' then
9116        local r = self.visual_radius*s
9117        if not self.jagged_verts then
9118          -- Generate irregular polygon vertices once
9119          local n = an.random:int(8, 12)
... [20 more lines]

Have everything. Showing the three diffs now.

Diff 1 — attack-template/anchor/physics.lua add wrapper (after query_entities_box)

 function query_entities_box(x, y, w, h, angle, tags)
   local bodies = physics_query_box(x, y, w, h, angle, tags)
   local result = {}
   for i = 1, #bodies do
     local e = body_to_entity(bodies[i])
     if e then result[#result + 1] = e end
   end
   return result
 end

+--[[

+  query_entities_polygon(x, y, verts_flat, tags)
+  Queries entities inside a polygon. verts_flat is {x1, y1, x2, y2, ...}
+  in LOCAL space relative to (x, y); the engine offsets by (x, y).
+  Box2D requires convex polygons up to 8 vertices.
+]]
+function query_entities_polygon(x, y, verts_flat, tags)
+  local bodies = physics_query_polygon(x, y, verts_flat, tags)
+  local result = {}
+  for i = 1, #bodies do
+    local e = body_to_entity(bodies[i])
+    if e then result[#result + 1] = e end
+  end
+  return result
+end
+
 function query_entities_aabb(x, y, w, h, tags)

Diff 2 — attack-template/area.lua full rewrite

--[[
  area.lua — area-of-effect attack carrier.

  Three base shapes with an orthogonal `jagged` flag:
    'circle'  + jagged=false:  filled disc + orbiting arc segments
    'circle'  + jagged=true:   filled disc + jittered perimeter polygon outline
    'rect'    + jagged=false:  filled rect + bracket corners
    'rect'    + jagged=true:   filled triangle fan + jittered perimeter polygon outline
    'polygon' + jagged=false:  filled disc + clean polygon outline
    'polygon' + jagged=true:   filled disc + jittered polygon outline (jitter mutates hit area)

  Damage queries match base shape (not jagged):
    circle  → query_entities_circle   (jagged is visual-only)
    rect    → query_entities_box      (jagged is visual-only)
    polygon → query_entities_polygon  (jagged actually changes hit area, since verts are the shape)

  Instant mode only this pass — no persistent/DoT, no follow/moving/homing,
  no hostile, no cascade/echo, no magnetic pull. Lifecycle: tween radius
  0 → target over 0.05s → damage pass + spring pop + 0.15s flash → 0.2s
  hold → blink (every 0.05s × 7 ticks) → kill.

  Caller API:
    spawn_area(x, y, {
      shape,           -- 'circle' (default) | 'rect' | 'polygon'
      jagged,          -- bool, default false
      radius,          -- default 24 (matches v1 fireball area_radius=25)
      rect_h,          -- rect only; default = radius (square)
      r,               -- rect rotation; default 0
      polygon_verts,   -- polygon only; list of {a, d} (angle in rad, distance as
                       -- fraction of radius). Auto-generates 6 evenly-spaced
                       -- verts at d=1 if nil. Capped at 8 verts (Box2D limit).
      polygon_r,       -- polygon rotation baked into verts at construction; default 0
      damage,          -- default 1
      color,           -- default red
      edition,         -- default 0 (inherits from caster.edition if passed)
      caster,          -- optional; carries edition for tinting AND triggers
                       -- caster-side juice: camera shake (directional toward
                       -- area, omnidirectional if caster≈area), 'shoot' spring
                       -- pull, 0.15s white flash, cast hit_circle + 4 particles
                       -- at caster position.
    })
]]


areas = {}


local POLYGON_MAX_VERTS = 8  -- Box2D B2_MAX_POLYGON_VERTICES


-- 8-12 perimeter verts around a circle with ±0.15 rad angle jitter and
-- 0.85-1.1 radius jitter. v1 jagged_circle pattern (~line 9119).
local function build_jagged_circle_verts(radius)
  local n = random_int(8, 12)
  local verts = {}
  for i = 1, n do
    local a = (i - 1)*2*math.pi/n + random_float(-0.15, 0.15)
    local d = random_float(0.85, 1.1)
    verts[#verts + 1] = {wx = radius*d*math.cos(a), wy = radius*d*math.sin(a)}
  end
  return verts
end


-- 5-7 perimeter verts approximating a rect's bounds with jitter. v1
-- jagged_rect pattern (~line 8470).
local function build_jagged_rect_verts(hw, hh)
  local n = random_int(5, 7)
  local verts = {}
  for i = 1, n do
    local a = (i - 1)*2*math.pi/n + random_float(-0.2, 0.2)
    local ca, sa = math.cos(a), math.sin(a)
    local rx = hw*math.abs(ca) + hh*math.abs(sa)  -- max distance to box edge at angle a
    local d = random_float(0.75, 1.1)*rx
    verts[#verts + 1] = {wx = d*ca, wy = d*sa}
  end
  return verts
end


-- Build polygon verts in local space. Input is optional list of {a, d}
-- pairs (auto-generated as a 6-vert regular hexagon if nil). polygon_r
-- is folded into each angle. If jagged, apply per-vert angle + radius
-- jitter. Capped at POLYGON_MAX_VERTS for the Box2D polygon query.
local function build_polygon_verts(input, radius, poly_r, jagged)
  poly_r = poly_r or 0
  if not input or #input == 0 then
    input = {}
    for i = 1, 6 do
      input[#input + 1] = {a = (i - 1)*2*math.pi/6, d = 1.0}
    end
  end
  local verts = {}
  local n = math.min(#input, POLYGON_MAX_VERTS)
  for i = 1, n do
    local v = input[i]
    local a = v.a + poly_r
    local d = v.d
    if jagged then
      a = a + random_float(-0.15, 0.15)
      d = d*random_float(0.75, 1.1)
    end
    verts[#verts + 1] = {wx = radius*d*math.cos(a), wy = radius*d*math.sin(a)}
  end
  return verts
end


-- Convert {wx,wy} verts to a flat {x1,y1,x2,y2,...} array for the
-- engine query (and for layer_polygon_line if we used it).
local function verts_to_flat(verts)
  local flat = {}
  for _, v in ipairs(verts) do
    flat[#flat + 1] = v.wx
    flat[#flat + 1] = v.wy
  end
  return flat
end


area = class()


function area:new(x, y, args)
  args = args or {}
  self.x = x
  self.y = y
  self.radius  = args.radius or 24
  self.rect_h  = args.rect_h
  self.damage  = args.damage or 1
  self.color   = args.color and color_clone(args.color) or color_clone(red)
  self.edition = args.edition or (args.caster and args.caster.edition) or 0
  self.shape   = args.shape or 'circle'
  self.jagged  = args.jagged or false
  self.r       = args.r or 0

  self.visual_radius = 0
  self.fill_color = color_clone(self.color)
  self.fill_color.a = 20
  self.flashing = false
  self.hidden   = false
  self.arc_r    = 0
  self.arc_base_speed = random_choice({-1, 1})*random_float(3, 5)*math.pi
  self.elapsed = 0

  -- Shape-specific vertex construction (jagged variants + polygon).
  -- Smooth circle and smooth rect don't need verts; they draw primitively.
  if self.shape == 'polygon' then
    self.verts = build_polygon_verts(args.polygon_verts, self.radius, args.polygon_r or 0, self.jagged)
  elseif self.shape == 'circle' and self.jagged then
    self.verts = build_jagged_circle_verts(self.radius)
  elseif self.shape == 'rect' and self.jagged then
    self.verts = build_jagged_rect_verts(self.radius, self.rect_h or self.radius)
  end

  make_entity(self)

  self.timer  = timer_new()
  self.spring = spring_new()

  -- Caster-side juice (immediate, at fire-time). Mirrors v1 self_area
  -- and aimed_area cast effects. Skipped entirely when no caster passed.
  if args.caster then
    local caster = args.caster
    local cdx, cdy = self.x - caster.x, self.y - caster.y
    local cdist = math.length(cdx, cdy)
    -- Aimed cast (area not on caster) → directional shake + cone particles
    -- Self cast (area at caster)        → omnidirectional trauma + spread particles
    local cast_dir = (cdist > 4) and math.atan(cdy, cdx) or nil

    if cast_dir then
      shake_push(main_camera.shake, cast_dir, 4)
    else
      shake_trauma(main_camera.shake, 0.3, 0.15)
    end

    if caster.spring then spring_pull(caster.spring, 'shoot', 0.25) end
    if caster.timer then
      caster.flashing = true
      timer_after(caster.timer, 0.15, 'shoot_flash', function() caster.flashing = false end)
    end

    -- Cast puff (stays white per v1) + 4 tinted cast particles.
    local pc = edition_base_color(caster.edition) or self.color
    spawn_hit_circle(caster.x, caster.y, {radius = 10, duration = 0.2})
    for i = 1, 4 do
      local angle = cast_dir
        and (cast_dir + random_float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4))
        or random_float(0, 2*math.pi)
      spawn_particle(caster.x, caster.y, {
        angle    = angle,
        velocity = random_float(40, 200),
        duration = random_float(0.3, 0.6),
        w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
      }):change_color(0.5, pc)
    end
  end

  -- Lifecycle: tween radius → damage + spring pop + flash → hold → blink → kill.
  timer_tween(self.timer, 0.05, self, {visual_radius = self.radius}, math.cubic_in_out, function()
    spring_pull(self.spring, 'main', 0.25)
    self.flashing = true
    timer_after(self.timer, 0.15, 'flash', function() self.flashing = false end)

    self:apply_damage()

    timer_after(self.timer, 0.2, function()
      timer_every(self.timer, 0.05, 'blink', function() self.hidden = not self.hidden end, 7, function()
        entity_kill(self)
      end)
    end)
  end)
end


function area:apply_damage()
  local enemies
  if self.shape == 'rect' then
    local box_h = self.rect_h and self.rect_h*2 or self.radius*2
    enemies = query_entities_box(self.x, self.y, self.radius*2, box_h, self.r, {'enemy'})
  elseif self.shape == 'polygon' then
    enemies = query_entities_polygon(self.x, self.y, verts_to_flat(self.verts), {'enemy'})
  else  -- 'circle' (smooth or jagged)
    enemies = query_entities_circle(self.x, self.y, self.radius, {'enemy'})
  end

  local pc = edition_base_color(self.edition) or self.color
  for _, e in ipairs(enemies or {}) do
    if e.hit and not e._dead then
      e:hit(self.damage)
      spawn_hit_effect(e.x, e.y)
      for i = 1, random_int(2, 3) do
        spawn_particle(e.x, e.y, {
          velocity = random_float(50, 150),
        }):change_color(0.5, pc)
      end
    end
  end
end


function area:update(dt)
  timer_update(self.timer, dt)
  spring_update(self.spring, dt)
  -- Arc spin decay (instant-area pattern from v1). After ~0.25s the
  -- arcs hold still — the dramatic spin is at the moment of impact.
  -- Only used by smooth circle; cheap to compute regardless.
  self.elapsed = self.elapsed + dt
  local mult = 1/(1 + math.exp(20*(self.elapsed - 0.25)))
  self.arc_r = self.arc_r + self.arc_base_speed*mult*dt
end


function area:destroy() end


function area:draw(layer)
  if self.hidden then return end
  set_edition(layer, self.edition)

  local s = self.spring.main.x
  local c = self.flashing and fg_color() or self.color()
  local r = self.visual_radius*s

  if self.shape == 'circle' and not self.jagged then
    -- Smooth circle: filled disc + orbiting arc segments.
    layer_circle(layer, self.x, self.y, r, self.fill_color())

    local arc_world = math.min(50, math.pi*r/6)
    local num_arcs = math.max(2, math.floor(2*math.pi*r/(arc_world*3)))
    if not self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
    if num_arcs > self.cached_num_arcs then self.cached_num_arcs = num_arcs end
    local arc_angular = arc_world/math.max(r, 1)
    local segments = 6
    for i = 0, self.cached_num_arcs - 1 do
      local base = self.arc_r + i*2*math.pi/self.cached_num_arcs
      for j = 0, segments - 1 do
        local a1 = base + j*arc_angular/segments
        local a2 = base + (j + 1)*arc_angular/segments
        layer_line(layer,
          self.x + r*math.cos(a1), self.y + r*math.sin(a1),
          self.x + r*math.cos(a2), self.y + r*math.sin(a2),
          2, c)
      end
    end

  elseif self.shape == 'rect' and not self.jagged then
    -- Smooth rect: filled rect + bracket corners.
    local w = r*2
    local h = (self.rect_h or self.visual_radius)*2*s
    local hw, hh = w/2, h/2
    local bracket = math.min(w, h)*0.1

    layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, self.r, 1, 1)
    layer_rectangle(layer, -hw, -hh, w, h, self.fill_color())
    layer_line(layer, -hw, -hh, -hw + bracket, -hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw, -hh, -hw, -hh + bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw, -hh,  hw - bracket, -hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw, -hh,  hw, -hh + bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw,  hh, -hw + bracket,  hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer, -hw,  hh, -hw,  hh - bracket, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw,  hh,  hw - bracket,  hh, 2, c)
    layer_line(layer,  hw,  hh,  hw,  hh - bracket, 2, c)
    layer_pop(layer)

  else
    -- Vertex-driven shapes: jagged circle, jagged rect, polygon (smooth or jagged).
    -- All draw a fill + polygon outline. Rect is non-radial so it uses
    -- triangle fan from center; circle and polygon use a cheap radial
    -- disc fill at 0.85r (matches v1).
    local scale = r/math.max(self.radius, 1)
    local push_r = (self.shape == 'rect') and self.r or 0
    layer_push(layer, self.x, self.y, push_r, 1, 1)

    if self.shape == 'rect' then
      for i = 1, #self.verts do
        local v1 = self.verts[i]
        local v2 = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
        layer_triangle(layer, 0, 0, v1.wx*scale, v1.wy*scale, v2.wx*scale, v2.wy*scale, self.fill_color())
      end
    else
      layer_circle(layer, 0, 0, r*0.85, self.fill_color())
    end

    for i = 1, #self.verts do
      local v1 = self.verts[i]
      local v2 = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
      layer_line(layer, v1.wx*scale, v1.wy*scale, v2.wx*scale, v2.wy*scale, 2, c)
    end

    layer_pop(layer)
  end

  set_edition(layer, 0)
end


function spawn_area(x, y, opts)
  opts = opts or {}
  local a = area(x, y, opts)
  areas[#areas + 1] = a
  return a
end

Diff 3 — attack-template/main.lua

Hunk 3a — bindings (after bind('fire_area', ...)):

 bind('fire_area',       'mouse:2')
+-- Cycle the area shape used by right-click. T → circle → rect → polygon → loop.
+-- G toggles jagged on the current shape. State printed on change.
+bind('cycle_area_shape',   'key:t')
+bind('toggle_area_jagged', 'key:g')

Hunk 3b — current-shape state (after debug_draw_enabled = false):

 debug_draw_enabled = false
+
+-- Right-click area shape state. Cycled with T, jagged toggled with G.
+current_area_shape  = 'circle'
+current_area_jagged = false
+area_shape_cycle    = {'circle', 'rect', 'polygon'}

Hunk 3c — cycle handlers in update (after the wall edition cycle block):

   if is_pressed('cycle_wall_edition_prev') then
     for _, w in ipairs(walls) do w.edition = prev_edition(w.edition) end
     print('wall_edition: ' .. edition_name(walls[1].edition) .. ' (' .. tostring(walls[1].edition) .. ')')
   end

+  if is_pressed('cycle_area_shape') then
+    for i, s in ipairs(area_shape_cycle) do
+      if s == current_area_shape then
+        current_area_shape = area_shape_cycle[(i % #area_shape_cycle) + 1]
+        break
+      end
+    end
+    print('area_shape: ' .. current_area_shape .. (current_area_jagged and ' (jagged)' or ''))
+  end
+  if is_pressed('toggle_area_jagged') then
+    current_area_jagged = not current_area_jagged
+    print('area_shape: ' .. current_area_shape .. (current_area_jagged and ' (jagged)' or ''))
+  end

Hunk 3d — pass shape + jagged in fire handler:

   if is_pressed('fire_area') and not p._dead then
     spawn_area(main_camera.mouse.x, main_camera.mouse.y, {
       radius = 30,
       damage = 2,
       caster = p,

+      shape  = current_area_shape,
+      jagged = current_area_jagged,
     })
   end

Notes

Apply all three?

Go ahead.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\anchor\physics.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Write (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All applied, parse clean. Test:

Right-click anywhere (defaults to smooth circle): - Camera kicks toward the cursor direction - Player springs + flashes (recoil) - White puff + 4 colored particles at the player (cast moment) - Circle area pops in at the cursor with orbiting arcs

Right-click on the player itself — should switch to omnidirectional trauma shake + spread particles (no kick direction).

Cycle shapes with T: console prints area_shape: rect / polygon / circle. Right-click after each cycle to see: - rect: filled box with bracket corners (default rect_h = radius, so square). - polygon: hexagon — filled disc + clean 6-edge outline.

Toggle jagged with G: console prints area_shape: <shape> (jagged). Then: - jagged circle: filled disc + bumpy 8-12-vert outline polygon (no spinning arcs in this mode). - jagged rect: triangle-fan filled rough polygon, rotated by self.r. - jagged polygon: same hexagon but verts are jittered at construction — and importantly the hit area changes too (enemies just outside the jittered edge won't get hit; enemies just inside an outward jagged spike will).

Spam right-click to verify the 6 combinations all read distinctly. Each cast applies the full caster juice package every time.

If anything reads off (cast particles too sparse for self-cast, jagged outline too tight, etc.), easy tuning knobs in area.lua constructor + helpers.

Angle of shapes should follow the aim angle from the player. Make sure that the size of the corners is in all cases 2.

[Request interrupted by user]

By corners I mean the lines that make up the edges of the shapes.

Two things:

(2) Line widths — verified, all outlines/edges in area.lua are already width 2 (smooth circle arcs, smooth rect brackets, vertex-driven shape outlines). No change needed.

(1) Aim-aligned rotation — small change in spawn_area. Compute caster→area angle and default r / polygon_r to it when the caller didn't pass them explicitly:

Diff — area.lua spawn_area

 function spawn_area(x, y, opts)
   opts = opts or {}

+  -- Auto-derive aim angle from caster → area direction so rect / polygon
+  -- shapes orient along the cast. Only applied when caster is present
+  -- and the caller hasn't passed an explicit rotation. Self-casts
+  -- (distance ≤ 4 px) skip — the direction is degenerate. Circle is
+  -- radially symmetric so rotation is unused.
+  if opts.caster then
+    local dx, dy = x - opts.caster.x, y - opts.caster.y
+    if math.length(dx, dy) > 4 then
+      local aim_r = math.atan(dy, dx)
+      if opts.r         == nil then opts.r         = aim_r end
+      if opts.polygon_r == nil then opts.polygon_r = aim_r end
+    end
+  end
   local a = area(x, y, opts)
   areas[#areas + 1] = a
   return a
 end

Applying.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Applied. Test:

The hit circle and particles from area spawn are centered on the player, like the projectile they should be in front of it.

Same +8 unit muzzle offset as projectile, applied to the cast FX. Self-casts (no cast direction) still spawn on the caster body.

Diff — area.lua caster juice block


-    -- Cast puff (stays white per v1) + 4 tinted cast particles.
+    -- Cast puff (stays white per v1) + 4 tinted cast particles.
+    -- Offset 8 units forward along the cast direction so the FX sit
+    -- at the player's muzzle, not on their body — matches projectile
+    -- spawn pattern. Self-casts (no cast_dir) spawn on the caster body
+    -- since there's no "forward".
     local pc = edition_base_color(caster.edition) or self.color
-    spawn_hit_circle(caster.x, caster.y, {radius = 10, duration = 0.2})
+    local cast_off = 8
+    local mx = caster.x + (cast_dir and cast_off*math.cos(cast_dir) or 0)
+    local my = caster.y + (cast_dir and cast_off*math.sin(cast_dir) or 0)
+    spawn_hit_circle(mx, my, {radius = 10, duration = 0.2})
     for i = 1, 4 do
       local angle = cast_dir
         and (cast_dir + random_float(-math.pi/4, math.pi/4))
         or random_float(0, 2*math.pi)
-      spawn_particle(caster.x, caster.y, {
+      spawn_particle(mx, my, {
         angle    = angle,
         velocity = random_float(40, 200),
         duration = random_float(0.3, 0.6),
         w        = random_choice({6, 8}),
       }):change_color(0.5, pc)
     end

Applying.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Applied. Right-click should now spawn the cast puff + particles slightly outside the player edge in the aim direction, matching how projectiles' muzzle FX sit.

Can we try a variation of polygons where, like the rectangle, we only have the edge lines on the corners?

Add corner_brackets as a third orthogonal flag (alongside shape and jagged). When true, the polygon outline becomes per-vertex bracket marks instead of full edges — 10% of each adjacent edge, matching the rect's bracket style.

The flag is generic to all vert-driven shapes (polygon, jagged_circle, jagged_rect) since the implementation is identical. Demo-wise, B toggles it alongside T (shape) and G (jagged).

Diff 1 — area.lua add flag + branch in draw

   self.shape   = args.shape or 'circle'
   self.jagged  = args.jagged or false

+  self.corner_brackets = args.corner_brackets or false
   self.r       = args.r or 0

     if self.shape == 'rect' then
       for i = 1, #self.verts do
         local v1 = self.verts[i]
         local v2 = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
         layer_triangle(layer, 0, 0, v1.wx*scale, v1.wy*scale, v2.wx*scale, v2.wy*scale, self.fill_color())
       end
     else
       layer_circle(layer, 0, 0, r*0.85, self.fill_color())
     end

-    for i = 1, #self.verts do
-      local v1 = self.verts[i]
-      local v2 = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
-      layer_line(layer, v1.wx*scale, v1.wy*scale, v2.wx*scale, v2.wy*scale, 2, c)
-    end
+    if self.corner_brackets then
+      -- Per-vertex bracket marks: two short line segments at each
+      -- vertex along the two adjacent edges (10% of each edge length).
+      -- Mirrors the smooth-rect bracket style applied to N-gons.
+      for i = 1, #self.verts do
+        local v_prev = self.verts[((i - 2) % #self.verts) + 1]
+        local v_curr = self.verts[i]
+        local v_next = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
+        for _, neighbor in ipairs({v_prev, v_next}) do
+          local dx, dy = neighbor.wx - v_curr.wx, neighbor.wy - v_curr.wy
+          local d_len = math.length(dx, dy)
+          if d_len > 0.001 then
+            local ux, uy = dx/d_len, dy/d_len
+            local bl = d_len*0.1
+            layer_line(layer,
+              v_curr.wx*scale, v_curr.wy*scale,
+              (v_curr.wx + ux*bl)*scale, (v_curr.wy + uy*bl)*scale,
+              2, c)
+          end
+        end
+      end
+    else
+      -- Full polygon outline.
+      for i = 1, #self.verts do
+        local v1 = self.verts[i]
+        local v2 = self.verts[(i % #self.verts) + 1]
+        layer_line(layer, v1.wx*scale, v1.wy*scale, v2.wx*scale, v2.wy*scale, 2, c)
+      end
+    end

Also update the docblock to mention the new flag (will fold into the args list).

Diff 2 — main.lua add toggle + pass to spawn_area

 bind('cycle_area_shape',   'key:t')
 bind('toggle_area_jagged', 'key:g')
+bind('toggle_area_brackets', 'key:b')

 current_area_shape  = 'circle'
 current_area_jagged = false
+current_area_brackets = false
 area_shape_cycle    = {'circle', 'rect', 'polygon'}

   if is_pressed('toggle_area_jagged') then
     current_area_jagged = not current_area_jagged
     print('area_shape: ' .. current_area_shape .. (current_area_jagged and ' (jagged)' or ''))
   end

+  if is_pressed('toggle_area_brackets') then
+    current_area_brackets = not current_area_brackets
+    print('area_shape: ' .. current_area_shape
+      .. (current_area_jagged and ' (jagged)' or '')
+      .. (current_area_brackets and ' (brackets)' or ''))
+  end

   if is_pressed('fire_area') and not p._dead then
     spawn_area(main_camera.mouse.x, main_camera.mouse.y, {
       radius = 30,
       damage = 2,
       caster = p,
       shape  = current_area_shape,
       jagged = current_area_jagged,

+      corner_brackets = current_area_brackets,
     })
   end

Apply?

Yes.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\main.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Bash (cd E:/a327ex/attack-template && /e/a327ex/Anchor/reference/love-compare/tools/lu...)

SYNTAX_OK

All applied, parses clean. Test:

Toggle order doesn't matter — flags are independent.

OK. This is enough for now. I imagine there's no standard area sound for area attacks like there was for projectiles, or is there?

Closer to "half-standard" than a clean default. Here's what v1 actually does:

area_sound / hit_sound (played when the area lands)

Sound Used by
fireball_hit (RPG3_FireMagic_FireballImpact01) fireball, null_arrow, fissure, frost_nova — 4 abilities across fire / null / earth / ice elements
windmagic_epic_impact windfield
fissure_cast_2 earthquake (aftershock-like)
rf_hit_3 righteous_fire (tick)

fireball_hit is the de-facto default — 4 of the 6 area-spawning abilities use it despite being different elements. It's a generic "magic explosion" pop, not really "fire-specific" sound-wise. The audio isn't branded fire even though the asset name is.

cast_sound (played at fire-time, before the area lands)

All element-specific — no shared default:

Sound Used by
frost_nova_cast frost_nova
fissure_cast_1 fissure (cast_sounds list), earthquake
windfield_cast windfield

How this compares to projectile

Role Projectile Area
Fire / cast Standard: arrow_hit_wood + arrow_shoot stack used by 5 abilities None — all element-specific
Hit / land None (per-ability or none) Half-standard: fireball_hit used by 4 abilities; the other 2 override

So — to port or not?

By your earlier rule ("if sounds differ across abilities, don't port"): - fireball_hit as a default area-land sound is borderline. 4-of-6 majority is "mostly standard" but 2 abilities meaningfully override. If you treat it as the default and override per element, that matches v1 usage cleanly. - No cast sound to port — every ability has its own. Would only port when individual abilities land.

My take: fireball_hit IS worth porting as the default hit_sound for spawn_area — it's the most universal area-impact sound in v1, the asset doesn't sound element-branded despite its name, and the few abilities that need to differ (windfield, earthquake) can pass an explicit hit_sound opt to override. Same pattern as fire_sounds on projectile.

But that's a judgment call — happy to skip if you'd rather wait until specific abilities land and port their sounds per-element instead.

It's fine to skip it. Update any comments/documentation, then let's end the session. Name it "Attack System Generalization 2"

Two doc files to update before ending the session. Brief plan:

  1. attack-template/.claude/CLAUDE.md — substantial refresh:

    • "What's wired up so far (session 1 baseline)" → expand to cover session 2 (projectile, area, engine DSP, tuning UI, mouse swap, etc.)
    • Keybindings table — add the new keys (mouse:1, mouse:2, F3, T, G, B)
    • "Decisions made this session" → rename to evergreen "Design decisions" (still hold)
    • "What's next" — mark projectile + area done, point to beam as next
    • File map — add the new files
    • Add brief "Runtime DSP + tuning workflow" subsection

  2. area.lua — typo fix: "session 3 decisions" → "session 2 decisions" (docblock).

Let me read CLAUDE.md fresh so the edits are surgical.

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

82   ---
83  
84  ## What's wired up so far (session 1 baseline)
85  
86  ### Visual / edition stack (from edition-template)
87  - `assets/draw_shader.frag` replaces the engine's default fragment
88    shader. Every `layer_*` draw routes through it and respects
89    `u_edition`, `u_field_scale`, `u_dither_mode`, `u_time`.
90  - `edition.lua`, `palette.lua`, `gradient.lua`, `geometry.lua`,
91    `symbols.lua` — same shape as edition-template.
92  - A **`set_edition(layer, mode)` shim** in `main.lua` adapts the v1 /
93    Invoker 2-arg API (which all the ported entity files were written
94    against) to edition-template's 4-arg `edition_set(layer, mode,
95    field_scale, dither)`. Scene-wide defaults: `default_field_scale =
96    0.5`, `default_dither = 0`. **If you port a new entity that calls
97    `set_edition(layer, mode)`, it just works** — no further wiring.
98  
99  ### Entities
100 - **`player.lua`** (verbatim from `Invoker/player.lua`): WASD / arrows
101   movement, mouse-aim rotation, scale + visual_r juice on
102   left/right press, edition shimmer, `:hit(damage, hit_x, hit_y,
103   source)` for taking contact damage. Stats-driven HP/MP (`stats.lua`).
104 - **`seeker.lua`** (verbatim from `Invoker/seeker.lua`): chase-the-
105   player enemy. Steering = seek + wander + separate
106   (`steering_seek/wander/separate`). `:push(angle, force, duration)`
107   knockback. `:hit(damage, hit_vol)` damage application. `:die` death
108   FX. **`:wall_bump(angle)` is local to attack-template** — see below.
109   Floating HP bar via `draw_health_ui` (`should_show_health_ui` gates
110   by `time - last_damage_time < 2`).
111 - **`fx.lua`** (verbatim from `Invoker/fx.lua`): `fx_hit_circle`,
... [200 more lines]

Read (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

309  1. **`projectile.lua`** — most foundational. Many other carriers spawn
310    projectiles (chain / construct / arrow_barrage / tornado_shot
311    secondaries). Includes wall raycast + sensor collider + hit/wall/
312    death FX + shape variants (default rect, ball-lightning circle,
313    wind_slash orbiting blades, arc crescent). See `findings.md` section 3.
314 2. **`area.lua`** — next most reused. 6 shapes (circle, rect, jagged_rect,
315    cone, jagged_circle, polygon), instant + persistent modes,
316    tick-damage, blink-out. See `findings.md` section 4.
317 3. **`beam.lua`** — channeled. Path-walker, dashed draw with leading
318    white flash, tip circle, tick damage. Uses `build_homing_path` +
319    `draw_dashed_path` helpers (port these too). See `findings.md` section 5.
320 4. **`dash.lua`** — `dash_clone` shared between dash_strike / asal /
321    flicker_strike. Trail system + delayed anime hit + bezier hopping.
322    See `findings.md` section 7.
323 5. **`polygonal.lua`** — `big_rock_effect` + `rock_fragment` shatter.
324    See `findings.md` section 6.
325 6. **`railgun.lua`, `psylance.lua`, `construct.lua`** — bespoke
326    single-purpose carriers. Last because they're less foundational.
327 
328 For each carrier, the workflow is roughly:
329 1. Read the corresponding `findings.md` section.
330 2. Read the original v1 source (line refs in findings.md).
331 3. Write the carrier class in attack-template, adapting `object:extend()` / `self:add(collider)` / `self:action(draw)` v1 patterns to Anchor 2's `class()` / plain-field / explicit-method style.
332 4. Drop the carrier's hit/fire/etc sounds into `assets/`, register them in `main.lua`'s `sounds`/`volumes` tables.
333 5. Wire a debug spawn key (e.g. `Q` fires a projectile, `E` spawns an area) into `main.lua`.
334 6. Add a `currently_spawning_carrier` index + cycle key so the user can switch through carriers from a single key.
335 
336 ---
337 
338 ## Common gotchas
... [59 more lines]

Starting with the area.lua typo, then CLAUDE.md.

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\area.lua has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

The file E:\a327ex\attack-template\.claude\CLAUDE.md has been updated successfully. (file state is current in your context — no need to Read it back)

Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

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Edit (E:\a327ex\attack-template.claude\CLAUDE.md)

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Docs updated. Ending the session now.

Skill 

Launching skill: end-session

Base directory for this skill: E:\a327ex.claude\skills\end-session

End Session Workflow

This skill is invoked from the same conversation where the work was done. You already have the full session context in memory — you do NOT need to read the transcript.

Step 1: Get Session Info

Ask the user for the session title (max 30 characters). Examples: "Anchor Phase 10 Part 5", "Physics Arena Setup", "Timer System Fix", "Thalien Lune Design".

Determine the project yourself from your session context — you know which repo(s) were worked on, which files were created/modified, and where they live. No need to ask. See Step 5 for the list of known project roots; if the session touched something outside the list, infer the root from the paths you actually edited.

Step 2: Write Summary

Write the summary from your conversation memory. You have the full session context — no need to read any files.

The summary should be thorough and detailed. Each major topic deserves its own section with multiple specific bullet points. Don't compress — expand.

Purpose: These summaries serve as searchable records. Future Claude instances will grep through past logs to find how specific topics were handled. The more detail you include, the more useful the summary becomes for finding relevant context later.

Format (this is just an example structure — adapt sections to match what actually happened):

# [Title]

## Summary

[1-2 sentence overview of the session's main focus]

**[Topic 1 - e.g., "Spring Module Implementation"]:**
- First specific detail about what was done
- Second detail - include file names, function names
- User correction or feedback (quote if notable)
- Technical decisions and why

**[Topic 2 - e.g., "Camera Research"]:**
- What was researched
- Key findings
- How it influenced implementation

**[Topic 3 - e.g., "Errors and Fixes"]:**
- Specific error message encountered
- Root cause identified
- How it was fixed

[Continue for each major topic...]

---

[Rest of transcript follows]

Rules: - Be thorough — If in doubt, include more detail, not less. Each topic should be as detailed as possible while still being a summary. - Think searchability — Future instances will search these logs. Include keywords, function names, error messages that someone might grep for. - One section per major topic — Don't combine unrelated work into one section - Chronological order — Sections should match conversation flow - Specific details — Error messages, file names, function names, parameter values - Include user quotes — When user gave notable feedback, quote it (e.g., "k/d variables are not intuitive at all") - Weight planning equally — Research, proposals, alternatives considered, user feedback on approach are as important as implementation - Weight problems solved — Errors, root causes, fixes, user corrections all matter - Technical specifics — Include formulas, API signatures, parameter changes when relevant

Step 3: Proceed Without Approval

Do NOT show the summary to the user for approval. Write it directly. The user can review the committed log after the fact and request a follow-up edit if anything is off.

Step 4: Convert Transcript and Write the Log File

# Find recent sessions (Claude + Cursor + Codex). Same script lives in Anchor2:
python E:/a327ex/Anchor2/scripts/find-recent-session.py --limit 5
# or: python E:/a327ex/Anchor/scripts/find-recent-session.py --limit 5

The script shows sessions sorted by when they ended. The first result is the current conversation (since end-session was invoked here). Use it.

Use a lowercase hyphenated slug derived from the title (e.g., "anchor-primitives-hitstop-animation").

Get the end timestamp for the Date frontmatter — this is the wall-clock time when end-session was invoked, NOT the time the JSONL started. Sessions often span multiple days, and the log should be filed under the day the work was wrapped up:

date "+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"

Use this output verbatim. Do not substitute the JSONL start timestamp; the log appears in the sidebar sorted by Date, and a multi-day session with a Date pinned to day 1 will sort below sessions that ended later but started later, hiding the most recent work.

Convert the transcript to markdown:

python E:/a327ex/Anchor2/scripts/jsonl-to-markdown.py [SESSION_PATH] /tmp/session-log.md
# or: python E:/a327ex/Anchor/scripts/jsonl-to-markdown.py ...

The same script auto-detects Claude Code JSONL vs Cursor/Composer agent JSONL (~/.cursor/projects/.../agent-transcripts/...) vs Codex rollouts (~/.codex/sessions/...). For Composer sessions, use find-recent-session.py (it merges all sources) and pick the [cursor] line for the current chat.

Replace the default header (# Session YYYY-MM-DD...) at the top of /tmp/session-log.md with the approved title and summary, AND prepend frontmatter. The final file shape:

Title: [Title]
Date: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS

# [Title]

## Summary

[approved summary text from step 2]

---

[transcript content from jsonl-to-markdown script]

Frontmatter is non-negotiable. Every log file MUST start with Title: and Date: lines. Without them, the site's sidebar shows the slug as the title and 0 (epoch) as the sort date. The backfill script in a327ex-site/deploy/backfill_metadata.py is a safety net, not a substitute — write it correctly the first time.

Then copy the final file to the log destination:

cp /tmp/session-log.md E:/a327ex/a327ex-site/logs/[slug].md

Step 5: Commit Project Repo

Identify the project repo(s) worked on this session from your own context — you already know which repos were touched and which files changed. For the common projects:

Project Root Stage command
Anchor E:/a327ex/Anchor git add docs/ framework/ engine/ scripts/ reference/
Anchor2 E:/a327ex/Anchor2 git add framework/ engine/ arena/ reference/ scripts/ docs/ .claude/
emoji-ball-battles E:/a327ex/emoji-ball-battles git add -A
invoker E:/a327ex/Invoker git add -A
thalien-lune E:/a327ex/thalien-lune git add -A
a327ex-site E:/a327ex/a327ex-site git add -A (this IS one of the web repos — the log file added in Step 4 is staged here automatically)

For a project not listed, infer the root from the files you actually created or modified this session and stage those. If multiple candidate roots look valid, ask the user which files to stage.

cd into the project root, stage, run git status to verify before committing.

IMPORTANT — FULL SUMMARY IN COMMIT: The commit message MUST include the FULL summary from the log file. Read the summary back from the log file to ensure nothing is missing.

IMPORTANT — COMMIT METHOD: The summary contains backticks, special characters, and markdown that WILL break heredocs and git commit -m. ALWAYS use the file-based method below. NEVER try a heredoc first — it will fail and produce a malformed commit that needs amending.

# Skip until we hit the line "## Summary", then take everything after the next
# blank line until the --- separator that precedes the transcript.
awk '/^## Summary$/{found=1; next} found && NR>1 && /^---$/{exit} found' \
    E:/a327ex/a327ex-site/logs/[slug].md > /tmp/commit_msg.txt

# Prepend the title (plain text, no #) and append attribution
sed -i "1i [Title]\n" /tmp/commit_msg.txt
printf "\nGenerated with [Claude Code](https://claude.com/claude-code)\n\nCo-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>\n" >> /tmp/commit_msg.txt

git commit -F /tmp/commit_msg.txt

Step 6: Push the Repos

Two pushes — project (to GitHub) and a327ex-site (to the VPS):

# Project repo to GitHub. Skip this push if the project IS a327ex-site
# (handled by the second push below — don't duplicate).
git push origin main

# a327ex-site to the VPS (post-receive hook restarts the Lua server).
cd E:/a327ex/a327ex-site
git add -A
git commit -m "[Title]"
git push prod main 2>&1 | tail -3

Failure handling: if either push fails, the other still happens. Local commits stay intact, so the user can re-push manually once they've fixed whatever blocked it. Don't roll back; the committed state on disk is the source of truth.

Step 7: Confirm

Tell the user: - Project commit hash + GitHub push result - a327ex-site commit hash + VPS push result

Format:

Logged — "[Title]".
  project (Anchor2):  abc1234  pushed to GitHub
  a327ex-site:        ghi9012  pushed to a327ex.com (post-receive deployed)

If a push failed, surface that explicitly with the error.

Notes

  • Frontmatter is non-negotiable. Every log file MUST have Title: and Date: at the top. Enforced at write time in step 4. The backfill script is a safety net, not a substitute.
  • If the project IS a327ex-site (e.g., you spent the session writing the renderer or fixing the theme), there's no separate "project repo to GitHub" push — the a327ex-site push at the end IS the project push. Don't duplicate.
  • Legacy note: this skill used to also dual-write to anchor.blot.im/logs/ and anchor.blot.im/context/. Post-cutover (May 2026), anchor.blot.im is a JS redirect to a327ex.com and no longer receives content. Drop those steps if you find any older docs that still reference them.

ARGUMENTS: Attack System Generalization 2

Bash (python E:/a327ex/Anchor2/scripts/find-recent-session.py --limit 5)

2026-05-18T01:46:10.401Z 7bbe9aa0-e29a-4a29-b06d-af47579ddcc9 [claude] <-- MOST RECENT
   C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\7bbe9aa0-e29a-4a29-b06d-af47579ddcc9.jsonl

2026-05-18T00:37:51.220Z 971d9e15-717d-4333-a3b7-b590c9e2a105 [claude]
   C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\971d9e15-717d-4333-a3b7-b590c9e2a105.jsonl

2026-05-17T17:15:21.723Z 2c74dcf0-ff09-4c77-b74f-f572e833a034 [claude]
   C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\2c74dcf0-ff09-4c77-b74f-f572e833a034.jsonl

2026-05-17T16:33:10.966Z 4f9cdde1-1a80-414f-b8e8-982b457d5c4e [claude]
   C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\4f9cdde1-1a80-414f-b8e8-982b457d5c4e.jsonl

2026-05-17T11:15:50.009Z 1606f701-db00-4cd0-8ed2-21eb96355c4d [claude]
   C:\Users\adn\.claude\projects\E--a327ex\1606f701-db00-4cd0-8ed2-21eb96355c4d.jsonl

Bash (date "+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S")

2026-05-17 22:46:41