The playtest falsified the first revival: the truck vanished with no wreck.
Cause: the rubble (and any additional cultural object) was built as a
DPLStaticChildRenderable / DCSInstanceRenderable added at TOP LEVEL of
mRenderables -- those classes read the bare matrix stack (identity at top
level), so the rubble drew at the WORLD ORIGIN, not at the icon (and before
the consolidation exclusion it was consolidated there permanently).
Fix: every cultural video object (intact AND rubble) is a RootRenderable
(Static) -- placed from myEntity->localToWorld, registered into the frame
pass lists by the same per-frame Execute path the intact model draws
through. The revived state switch then genuinely swaps them.
PIXEL-VERIFIED via BT_SHOT screenshot timeline (full-speed BT_GOTO ram,
ARENA1 MECHMOVR truck): intact truck visible -> ram/death -> the MECHMD
wreck debris renders scattered at the truck's exact spot, intact model
gone, mech walks the footprint. ARENA1 census: 57 rubble-typed objects
across the 124 icons (MECHMD/bpip1d/ab07d_FR...).
NOT yet closed (open on #3): (a) the wreck's scorch base quad draws as an
opaque BLACK rectangle (13 plain ops on MECHMD -- material/ramp resolve,
not a blend flag); (b) the death explosion (psfx 1008) still not visibly
confirmed; (c) the authored burning-fire state visual unreconstructed.
Diag added: [cultobj] census (BT_CULT_LOG) -- per-object file/type/op flags.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Human playtest (2026-07-19): ramming a truck makes it disappear entirely --
no rubble, no smoke/fire, no visible explosion. The [cultvis] log evidence
verified the STATE MACHINE (pointer swaps), not pixels: the rubble child
component (DCSInstanceRenderable/DPLStaticChildRenderable) is itself
2007-stubbed and never draws, and the routed psfx 1008 produces nothing
visible. rendering.md section corrected from 'verified live' to PARTIAL
with the three remaining gaps (rubble draw, visible explosion, burning
fire). Gitea #3 reinstated as open/wip.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Playtest report: trucks play a collision sound on impact but never change
state -- no explosion swap, no destroyed model, collision volume persists.
Investigation (BT_CULT_LOG census + BT_GOTO ram harness): the SIM was never
broken. ARENA1 map-streams 124 CulturalIcon entities, each with a damage
zone, explosion resource and removeOnDeath; the mech crunch dispatch
(ProcessCollision -> BTDispatchCollisionDamage) reaches them; ~19 walking
bumps burn the zone -> CulturalIcon::TakeDamageMessageHandler spawns the
Explosion (psfx effect 1008 observed), posts the delayed BurningState and
deletes the collision boxes. All of that ran correctly and invisibly.
The ACTUAL bug: the 2007 WinTesla port fully stubbed
StateInstanceSwitchRenderable ('STUBBED: DPL RB 1/14/07') -- ctor never
registered on the state dial, Execute never toggled anything -- so the
intact->rubble visual swap on BurningState NEVER fired, for every cultural
icon in the game. The destroyed truck kept its intact model: exactly the
reported 'no state change'.
Revival (D3D9-native, 1995 semantics verbatim):
- StateInstanceSwitchRenderable now controls the draw COMPONENT via the
SetDrawObj in-place drawable swap (the mech RemakeEntity mechanism):
visible = captured d3d_OBJECT, hidden = NULL. Initial state in the ctor,
AddVideoWatcher on the SimulationState dial (SetState fires video
watchers), toggle only on a real change.
- L4VIDEO cultural case passes the draw component + object (the dead
dpl_INSTANCE param is gone); [video] Object hides at BurningState,
Rubble shows.
- REQUIRED: cultural objects stay OUT of static-mesh consolidation
(RecurseStaticObject, same exclusion class as banded LODs/shadows) --
a merged static draws forever regardless of DrawObj.
- Permanent env diag BT_CULT_LOG: creation census (zones/explosion/flags/
pos), TakeDamage trace, death transition, [cultvis] switch actions.
Verified live (BT_GOTO=-620,-328 ram, ARENA1): 19 crunches -> DYING ->
explosion 1008 at the icon -> [cultvis] HIDE x2 (intact) + SHOW (rubble)
-> contacts cease, mech walks into the former footprint. Boot + render
un-regressed (statics consolidate as before minus the 124 icons).
KB: context/rendering.md new section (the full chain + the consolidation
gotcha). MP replicant path shares the same SetState watcher (cross-pod
verification pending -- noted in the issue).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Brings Cyd's experience-level / simulation-mode research onto master (the
KB-decode portion of glass-cockpit 4e01e83; the bundled BT410 source
manifest is left for the full glass-cockpit merge).
- context/experience-levels.md (NEW): the egg per-pilot 'experience' field
(novice/standard/veteran/expert) is the pod's SIMULATION-FIDELITY tier,
decoded end-to-end. FUN_004c0bc8 reads btMission->experienceLevel(+0xe4)
and fans it into the +0x25c/+0x260/+0x26c/+0x270/+0x274 flag block:
+0x25c 'sim live' (novice lockout: jams/searchlight/powersub), +0x260 the
HEAT-MODEL master switch (veteran+expert; FUN_004ad7d4), +0x274 raw level
(FUN_004ac9c8 = ==0 novice predicate; the valve/advanced-cockpit lockout).
4.0->4.10 drift: the viewscreen hunting-aid gate is GONE in 4.10 (HUD reads
none of these flags), and movement heat is veteran+expert not expert-only.
- btplayer.cpp/.hpp: CORRECTED comments/labels -- the +0x25c..+0x274 block is
seeded from btMission experienceLevel/advancedDamageOn, NOT the scenario
role's returnFromDeath; the 'roleClassIndex/showKills' names are scoring-era
mislabels. Code logic UNCHANGED (comment-only): the ctor still reads
scenarioRole (STAND-IN, defaults 2 = veteran) pending the wiring task.
- Corrections swept into gauges-hud.md (ROOKIE->novice lockout),
open-questions.md (player+0x260/0x274 semantics now PINNED),
pod-hardware.md, subsystems.md, decomp-reference.md; CLAUDE.md router row.
No code-logic change -> no rebuild needed (comment + markdown only). The
runtime wiring (seed from BTMission::ExperienceLevel()) remains TODO.
Co-Authored-By: Cyd <cyd@falloutshelterarcade.com>
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Reported: the reticle's missile pips no longer momentarily disappear when
firing. Traced it: the pip's 'loaded' flag has read MechWeapon::rechargeLevel
(>= 0.999) since the reticle Execute was recovered (task #37). That's a port
APPROXIMATION of the binary's authentic attr 0x1C (WeaponState @0x350). It
works for emitters -- rechargeLevel is charge-driven and tops off at 1.0 when
Loaded -- but projectile weapons (MissileLauncher/autocannon) never write
rechargeLevel (it's authentically static at 1.0; the recharge DIAL draws full
and never moves). So a missile pip's 'loaded' was permanently true and the pip
never blinked. NOT an audio regression -- it never worked in the port; the
audio wave (ea85554) is actually what made the projectile fire-cycle state
(weaponAlarm Loaded/Loading/Firing) correct, i.e. the very signal the pip
should have been reading.
Fix (faithful to the binary): the pip now reads attr 0x1C = the weaponAlarm
StateIndicator level (new MechWeapon::WeaponStatePtr -> GaugeAlarm54::LevelPtr)
and compares it '== stateConst2' -- the loaded constant (2) the binary itself
already stores in AddWeapon (param_10). The state cycles
Loaded(2)<->Firing(0)/Loading(3)/Jammed(5) for BOTH weapon families, so every
pip momentarily drops on fire. The authentically-static rechargeLevel dial is
untouched.
Verified live (Blackhawk solo, BT_AUTOFIRE=1 BT_AF_MISSILE=1): both SRM6
missile pips toggle loaded 2<->0/5 on each salvo (emitter pips unchanged);
game boots + runs clean. KB: context/gauges-hud.md pip entry corrected.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
Solo practice already started in-cockpit (BT_START_INSIDE) but didn't
open the MFD gauges window -- inconsistent with the join bats. Add
BT_DEV_GAUGES=1 so single-player practice mirrors the pod experience.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The crash (any typed key in a glass session; found via the backtick report):
the merge-reconciliation stand-down declared extern BTRIODevicePresent at
BLOCK scope inside the extern-C BTInputSuppressKey -- the declaration
inherited C linkage, _BTRIODevicePresent went UNRESOLVED, and /FORCE bound
the call to garbage (cdb: wild call into Sensor::DefaultData from
LBE4ControlsManager::Execute's suppression check). The tolerated-LNK2019
batch hid the new unresolved external -- the exact CLAUDE.md /FORCE trap.
Fix: the extern moved to file scope (C++ linkage); link verified clean of
_BTRIODevicePresent.
Backtick feature (per Cyd: backtick = 1st/3rd person): PadRIO edge-detects
VK_OEM_3 in its poll (focus-guarded, message-path-free) and the mech4 view
block consumes it beside the V action (which stands down with the binding
engine in glass mode). Verified live: two real presses -> [view] COCKPIT
eyepoint -> [view] external chase, game alive.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Field report: a remote player had smooth gameplay but in 3RD-PERSON with
NO gauges. Cause: view mode + gauges are CLIENT launch flags, not
something the relay/console can enforce -- and join.bat set neither, so
remote players booted in the game's desktop default (external camera, no
MFDs). The operator's own local launch sets both (the app's 'Start in
cockpit' + 'Dev gauges' checkboxes, on by default), which is why the
operator saw the correct view but remote players didn't.
The pod is a first-person cockpit with MFD gauges and no '3rd person' at
all, so cockpit is the right default for players. join.bat/join_lan.bat
now set BT_START_INSIDE=1 + BT_DEV_GAUGES=1. (Players can still press V
to toggle the external camera.)
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Field report: after a mission timed out normally, relaunching a mission
did nothing. The relay was single-mission -- once it fired a launch
(launches_sent==2) it never re-armed.
Fix (operator-side only; the BINARY needs nothing -- a rejoined pod is a
brand-new process at WaitingForLaunch):
- btconsole _check_launch_gate: when a previous mission finished
(launches_sent==2) and ALL seats have RE-ACKED (every pod exited,
re-ran join.bat, reconnected), reset the launch state and re-print
'WAITING FOR OPERATOR LAUNCH'. Only reachable on a pod ACK (never
mid-mission). Launch is CONSUMED after RunMission #2 (launch_at=None,
launch_requested=False) so the next press is a deliberate new round.
- btoperator SessionMonitor: reset on each new
'WAITING FOR OPERATOR' so the LAUNCH button RE-ENABLES for mission 2
(it stayed disabled forever before -- the other half of the bug).
Verified e2e: two full missions on ONE relay session -- mission 1 runs +
times out on the clock, pods rejoin, relay re-arms + re-announces ready,
operator LAUNCH -> mission 2's RunMission #1/#2 fire (total fires 2) ->
pods running. BACK-TO-BACK PASS. Friends' zip unchanged.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
User-reported: glass left/right inverted. Closed with live sign algebra:
the joystick-group wire push was traced end to end (new env-gated
BT_CTRLMAP_LOG push trace + record mode-mask in the install log) --
measured wire stickX=-1 -> turnDemand=-1, the SAME demand the
user-verified dev D-key-RIGHT produces (stickX=+1 -> turnDemand=-1 via the
bridge's negate-once, cb82d8c). The mapper interprets the authentic RIO
WIRE convention: stick right = NEGATIVE JoystickX (the vRIO/RIOJoy
calibration convention). PadRIO now publishes X negated (all sources --
keyboard deflect, pad LX, panel -- uniformly); Y stays screen-sign;
L4PADFLIP still flips both. Also: PadRIO honors BT_KEY_NOFOCUS=1 (the
btinput harness override) for automation.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Field report: a remote player ran join.bat from the wrong place (inside
the zip, or the .bat separated from content\/build\) and got 'The system
cannot find the path specified' + dumps -- the relative 'cd %~dp0content'
failed cryptically.
Now each bat: cd to its own dir, verify build\Release\btl4.exe +
content\<egg> exist, else jump to :badpath and print a clear message
('this file must sit in the extracted folder next to content and build;
right-click the zip - Extract All and run it from there'). Verified: run
from a dir with no content/build -> the guidance prints, no dump.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Steam-host report ('no glass panel, plasma yes'): a direct btl4.exe start ran
the MENU under the DEV profile, whose putenv(L4CONTROLS=KEYBOARD) leaked into
the relaunched mission child -- the child's glass preset (sets-when-unset)
could then never select PAD: no PadRIO, no panel; the plasma appeared only
because DEV never touches L4PLASMA. Menu-mode is now detected FIRST and the
front-end process skips the profile putenvs entirely (profiles belong to game
processes); boot line reads 'MENU (front end -- no profile applied)'.
Verified: zero-arg start -> menu -> launch -> child boots GLASS, PadRIO up,
72-control panel present, plasma present.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
First dist feedback ('there is no glass panel'): both windows opened at the
top-left with no-activate and the game window then covered them. The pod's
physical panel is always visible -- so is the glass one now: the button
panel parks at the screen's right edge, the plasma bottom-right, both
WS_EX_TOPMOST. Verified live: panel left=2616 top=12 topmost, plasma
bottom-right topmost, game window below.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Two additions after the live-session troubleshooting:
1. LAUNCH-SHORT is now VISIBLE (btconsole). Pressing LAUNCH with an
empty roster seat previously did NOTHING (eggs_done_at only sets when
ALL seats ACK, so the manual-launch arming silently no-op'd -- the
'I pressed launch and nothing happened' confusion). Now the relay
logs 'LAUNCH pressed but NOT all seats are filled' + a per-seat
readiness line + a WARNING naming the empty seat(s) and the fix
(reduce the roster). When all seats DO fill it auto-arms (launch
request persists). Verified: 2/3 filled -> clear warning naming
seat3.
2. Friend logs are now retrievable (btoperator exporter). join.bat /
join_lan.bat set BT_LOG=join.log and their exit message tells the
player to send content\join.log to the operator if the game closed
unexpectedly -- closes the friend-side-crash blind spot (their log
was the generic btl4.log, un-named, easy to miss).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Menu (btl4fe, modeled on RP412 RP_L4/RPL4FE.cpp): full catalogs as
always-visible clickable LISTS in three columns with friendly names --
8 maps, the canonical 8 certified mechs, colors, times, weather, lengths,
modes -- bright/dim green with a selection chevron, double-buffered paint,
real EDIT controls for pilot name + LAN peers (green-on-black via
WM_CTLCOLOREDIT), framed LAUNCH / HOST STEAM / JOIN STEAM buttons, and the
loadout persisted across the per-mission relaunch (fe_last.ini, gitignored
implicitly by *.ini? no -- plain file beside the eggs). ENTER/ESC kept.
Lobby room (RP412 RPL4LOBBY look): pilot roster with loadouts (mech, color),
framed L A U N C H M I S S I O N (owner) + LEAVE LOBBY buttons, clickable.
Dist: FLAT layout (the RP412 convention) -- ONE btl4.exe entry point at the
folder root beside the content tree (the shape TeslaConsole manages), DLLs +
launchers at root, content flattened from git-tracked files. Verified: the
staged flat tree boots the Mission Console zero-arg from its own root; the
click-driven menu launches a full marshaled mission (row click -> length=60
in the egg, LAUNCH click -> ladder -> 41+ ticks, fe_last.ini written).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Per Cyd: the two 4x4 hex keypads leave the glass panel (engine keypad units
stay reachable via bindings.txt); the four board columns (Thr/Sec/Scr/Joy)
move to the center between the lower MFD stacks and rise into the vacated
internal-keypad space -- 72 controls, ~5 rows shorter.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Every field bug this session needed the relay's OWN view to diagnose,
but the app only shows it in the (post-mortem-unreadable) GUI log pane.
Now _console_output also appends to content/operator_relay.log (fresh
per session; stderr is merged so relay tracebacks are captured too).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
FIELD BUG (2026-07-18): operator's local instance crashed + the mission
never launched. Root cause (confirmed by code inspection + stub test,
NOT the earlier mis-read of stale logs): the relay assigns a no-BT_SELF
joiner 'the lowest free seat'. The operator's local instance uses an
EXPLICIT seat (BT_SELF) but takes ~15s to boot; a remote join.bat
requests a seat immediately and gets assigned the operator's seat 1
first. The operator's later HELLO for seat 1 -> 'already registered'
-> dropped ('closed by relay') -> its seat sits empty -> the
All-connections-completed gate never fires -> game never starts.
Fix: the operator's LOCAL seats are RESERVED. btoperator passes the
Local roster tags as ; the
relay excludes those host_ids from seat ASSIGNMENT (an explicit HELLO
still claims them). Verified by stub test: a racing joiner is assigned
host 3 (seat 1 skipped), the operator's HELLO for the reserved seat 1
registers fine.
Also fixed the UX bug that produced the EARLIER 4-window mess: Local
now defaults checked only on the operator's own seat (row 0), not every
relay roster row.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Coverage audit of this session's ~30 commits against the docs found
gaps; fixed:
- README §Multiplayer was stale (only the old mesh flow, 'combat in
progress'): now leads with the relay + operator-console path
(internet play, join.bat/play_solo.bat, patient wait) and lists what
the mesh path has verified (4-pod, camera seat, callsigns, clock);
README controls line updated (turn/twist/pitch, pad, CONTROLS.MAP)
- decomp-reference env table: added BT_CAM_LOG, BT_SPEC_LOG (were in
code, not the hub); BT_INPUT_LOG note gains the twist/elev axis
- pod-hardware §input remap: the AXIS SIGN CONVENTION finding
(positive sim = CCW/left; bridge negates once per channel;
screenshot-forensics lesson) was only in commit cb82d8c -- now durable
- multiplayer.md: PATIENT WALK-UP + MISSION CLOCK sections (features
shipped in f9f230c/f57d25f, only incidentally referenced before)
checkctx CLEAN (20 topics, 68 glossary keys). All session features
now have topic-file coverage.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
33 master commits in (relay TCP/UDP + PySide6 operator console, CONTROLS.MAP
+XInput binding engine, camera seats, torso pitch aim, sign fixes, the 1995
manual, version stamping, 18-mech certification). Conflicts: .gitignore +
CLAUDE.md router rows (combined).
SEMANTIC RECONCILIATION (the one real overlap): masters btinput binding
engine (ungated, CONTROLS.MAP) and the glass PadRIO (gated, bindings.txt)
would both read the keyboard/pad in a glass+PAD session. btinput now joins
the stand-down convention: BTInputPoll yields (and BTInputSuppressKey claims
NOTHING, so authentic hotkeys flow) when an operational cockpit device owns
the input path -- BTRIODevicePresent, BT_KEY_BRIDGE force-override honored,
forced harness exempt. One input system per mode: btinput on pod/dev
desktops, PadRIO on glass. The mechmppr/mech4 bridge merges composed clean
(masters negate-once sign fix inside our device-gated bridge). The D1 relay
keeps its own raw sockets by design (an alternative LAN wire; Steam and
relay are separate modes).
Verified post-merge: all 3 configs build; glass boots with [input] binding
engine standing down + PadRIO owning input (30 ticks); pod forced-walk
speedDemand=61.501 with btinput ACTIVE; 2-node loopback MP full 31/31
mission, 76/76 ticks.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Dumped each mech's subsystem->coolant-loop (BT_SPEC_LOG in mech4: walks
the roster once, resolves each subsystem's linked-condenser number via
BTCoolingLoopFrame) and diffed all 6 manual mechs' COOLANT LOOPS tables.
RESULT -- the structure survives the 4.0->4.10 gap remarkably well:
- BACKBONE identical on ALL 6: Generator A/B/C/D on loops 1/2/3/5,
Sensors(our Avionics) on loop 2, Myomers on loop 5, LRMs on 1&3,
autocannon on 4, big energy weapon on 6 -- exact match
- weapon LOADOUT identical on 5 of 6 (Thor/Vulture/MadCat/Owens/
Blackhawk); Loki is the one full rework (4.0 PPCx2/AFC100/SRM6 ->
4.10 AFC50x2/ER Medium x2/SRM4)
- the consistent 4.0->4.10 change is a small-laser REDISTRIBUTION: the
2 ER Small Lasers moved off the sensor/heavy loops onto the energy
loops 4&6 (Thor/MadCat/Vulture); Owens near-perfect (loops 1&3 exact)
- Loop 0 = correctly UNCOOLED infrastructure (condensers, reservoir,
gyro, torso, HUD, ammo bins, ...) -- not a coolant loop
CONCLUSION: the coolant-loop reconstruction is faithful; every diff is
4.0->4.10 balance tuning, not a bug. BT_SPEC_LOG retained.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Audited our live streamed subsystem config against the manual's per-mech
stat sheets (new BT_SPEC_LOG dump: torso speed/limits, heat-sink count,
reservoir capacity, at subsystem ctor).
RESULT: structure + semantics align perfectly; the tuning NUMBERS
differ -- because the manual is Tesla 4.0 and our content is release
4.10. Point-release balance drift, NOT a reconstruction bug:
- Owens + Blackhawk are the two fixed-torso mechs in BOTH (speed 0,
limit ~0, torsoHorizontalEnabled=0); the other four twist-enabled --
our reads correctly identify every case
- torso speed/limit + heat-sink count exist per-mech exactly as the
manual documents; only the values were retuned 4.0->4.10 (e.g. torso
speed MadCat 80->50, heat sinks Loki 38->15)
- reservoir coolantCapacity reads a flat 20 = the coolant THERMAL
capacity (game units), NOT the manual's per-mech 'liters' (a
display/flavor quantity with no single subsystem field) -- different
measures, not a bug
CONCLUSION: do NOT retune content to the manual -- BTL4.RES is the
authentic 4.10 shipping data; the 4.0 manual's numbers are an earlier
pass. The manual CONFIRMS our structural fidelity.
BT_SPEC_LOG retained for re-auditing. Follow-up (structural, less
drift-prone): the per-mech coolant-loop weapon/generator assignments.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
User live-tested: 'if i push the left arrow the mech turns right' --
correct, and it invalidated my earlier screenshot-forensics 'D=right
verified' claim (the yaw telemetry actually agreed with the user all
along: D gave POSITIVE yaw = CCW = LEFT; the sim uses math convention,
positive = counter-clockwise, for turn AND twist).
On the pod the RIO Ranger owned the hardware sign; the desktop bridge
now negates in ONE place per channel family:
- key_turn = -gBTDrive.turn (forced/BT_GOTO harness demands stay
sim-frame, un-negated)
- stickPosition.x = -gBTTwistAxis (Standard/Veteran torso stick)
- SetFreeAimSlew call-site negations REMOVED (the bridge negation now
flows through; double-flip removed)
Matches the manual (p8): 'pulling your joystick to the right torso
twists your Mech to the right.' User verified live: arrows steer
correctly (Blackhawk, basic mode) and MadCat torso twist is correct
in middle mode.
LESSON (recorded): large-rotation screenshot comparisons are AMBIGUOUS
(both directions put 'new scenery at an edge'); trust tracked
landmarks, numeric telemetry with an established convention, or the
user's live observation.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
reference/manual/Tesla40_BT_manual.pdf -- the genuine Tesla 4.0 BT
player manual, 34pp. Primary-source alignment audit (pod-hardware.md
SManual): the reconstruction matches on EVERY checked control behavior:
- control modes are named BAS/MID/ADV in print (mechanics identical to
our Basic/Standard/Veteran incl. the ADV no-auto-slow turn clamp)
- stick right = torso right in MID/ADV (today's sign fix); Blackhawk
and Owens named as THE fixed-torso exceptions; twist arc ~120
(per-mech: Loki/Thor tables say 110 deg limit, 60 deg/s)
- continuous throttle lever; reverse = HOLD the red throttle button
(our 0x3F hold-state model)
- Hot Box MFD = callsign buttons + CLOSEST (our hotbox button 8 ->
ChooseNearestPilot); radar travel-oriented w/ 60-deg wedge sweeping
on twist; map zoom +/- beside the secondary screen
- experience gates the hunting aids (standard sim only); expert adds
movement heat
- per-mech stat sheets + coolant-loop tables = a systematic
cross-check source for our streamed subsystem resources
NEW LEADS the manual surfaces: CROUCH (button by the secondary screen;
duckState attr + SQUAT clips exist, no input drives them), EJECT
(button beside the joystick; EjectButton01 sounds exist), the hot-box
viewscreen framing (deferred PNAME marker chain).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Field report: 'left/right is reversed'. Investigation with screenshot
+ numeric verification found it channel-specific:
- A/D leg steering: CORRECT (D tap -> scenery slides left = turns
right; verified via cockpit screenshots)
- Torso TWIST (turning-torso mechs, e.g. MadCat): CORRECT all along
(E -> currentTwist +0.27 = right -- consistent with weeks of
validated play; an interim blanket negation that broke this is
reverted)
- Fixed-torso FREE-AIM slew (Blackhawk & friends): REVERSED -- E/right
panned the view LEFT. The slew consumer pans opposite the twist
convention; on the pod the RIO layer owned the hardware sign. Fix:
negate stick_x ONLY at the two SetFreeAimSlew call sites
(Standard + Veteran branches).
Verified after fix: MadCat E -> currentTwist +0.270 (right); Blackhawk
E -> view pans right. New BT_INPUT_LOG diags: [input] twist
in/currentTwist (Standard branch) + mechYaw in the Basic elev line.
Note for testers: the tester was almost certainly flying a fixed-torso
mech -- 'reversed' reports should always record WHICH mech.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The mechs could always tilt their aim up/down -- Torso models the full
vertical axis (currentElevation, rate, VerticalLimitTop/Bottom,
recenter) and EVERY 1995 control mode routes stickPosition.y into
Torso::SetAnalogElevationAxis -- but the desktop bridge hard-zeroed
stick Y, so the axis was dead on a keyboard rig. The one pod control
the remap left unwired.
- btinput: JoystickY axis -> elevTarget/elevActive/elevAbsolute
- mech4 shim: sElev integrator (same walk/spring model as the twist;
X recenters pitch too via gBTElevRecenter)
- mechmppr bridge: feeds stickPosition.y every bridged frame (the old
unconditional zero removed); both mode branches covered
- CONTROLS.MAP (+ numpad profile + compiled default): R/F = aim
up/down, pad LeftStickY = elevation (was unused)
- torso.hpp: CurrentElevation()/ElevationVelocity() accessors (diag)
- [mppr] trace gains stickY (note: the trace reads AFTER the next
frame's device push re-zeroes the stick -- input flows regardless)
Verified live: R held -> torso elevation climbs at the authored rate
and clamps at 0.349066 rad = exactly 20.0 deg (the Blackhawk's
VerticalLimitTop); release holds the aim. The eyepoint correctly
stays level -- pitch aims the GUNS and reads on the HUD's vertical
elevation tape, as in the pod.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The stubbed dpl-instance ranking display is reborn as screen-space
quads in CameraShipHUDRenderable::Render:
- followed-player callsign banner (bottom center; the old direct
index was correct -- Execute already converts to the 0-based
texture slot)
- the RANKING WINDOW: one row per scoring player, [ordinal][callsign]
in rank order right of center; visibility = the Director's
authentic flash logic (10s on / 15s off, solid final 30s); rows
follow LIVE playerRank pointers so they re-sort as scores change
- discovery: each 128x32 ordinal bitmap packs TWO ordinals side by
side ('1st|2nd', '3rd|4th' -- why 4 bitmaps serve 8 players);
draw = texture rank/2 with a u-half selected by rank parity
- alpha-blended A4R4G4B4 white-on-transparent textures x green
diffuse = the authentic green look
BT_SHOT moved AFTER the 2D pass -- it captured the backbuffer pre-HUD,
so overlays were on screen but invisible to screenshots (cost one
false debugging round). GetOrdinalTexture accessor added.
Screenshot-verified: '1st MAVERICK' standings + MAVERICK banner over
live auto-directed coverage; 2-node mech smoke PASS (un-regressed;
the new render path only executes when a CameraDirector HUD exists).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The spectator/broadcast seat works end-to-end: a hostType=1 +
vehicle=camera pilot page boots a CameraShip whose 62-camera arena1
network loads from the BTL4.RES type-27 resource (the engine's
CreateStreamedCameraInstances existed all along -- the file probe falls
back to it), the BTCameraDirector locks onto the first live mech, and
the ship TRACKS it (sees=1, goal advancing) and CUTS between authored
camera positions (screenshot-verified: wide arena shot -> close
tracking shot).
The missing piece was the Mech override of PlayerLinkMessageHandler
(@0049f624), which the reconstruction never filled. The engine base
resolves mech->player; BT's override adds:
1. the REVERSE link player->playerVehicle = this on EVERY node
(replicants included) -- how the camera director and scoreboard
find a REMOTE player's mech; without it a spectator parks forever
('NO goal entity')
2. clears NonScoringPlayerFlag (0x4000 = bit 14): a pilot with a
vehicle is a SCORING player -- this admits REPLICATED players to
the ranking pass, so cross-node rank/score displays work
3. master only: seeds the heat bank's ambientTemperature (bank
@0x1d4) from the mission [mission] temperature= (BTMission+0xf4)
-- correcting the heat family's 'frozen 300' deviation note (it
was never frozen; THIS is the writer)
Bridge BTSetBankAmbientTemperature lives in heatfamily_reslice.cpp
(mech.cpp cannot include subsystem headers -- local-stub collision).
BT_CAM_LOG diagnostics: camera-network count, director pick + Players
group census, ship follow state, link dispatch/receive.
Verified live: 2-seat (mech + camera) relay session -- replicated
player shows +veh, director goal locked w/ 30s timer, ship tracking a
moving mech through camera cuts; standard 2-node mech smoke PASS
(un-regressed). Lesson re-learned: a 'clean' build filtered on 'error
C' missed a linker file-lock failure -- one whole test cycle ran
against a stale exe (the /FORCE gotcha's cousin; grep -i error, not
error C).
Remaining (task open): ranking-window overlay draw (L4VIDRND stubs),
operator-app camera-seat row, shot polish.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The 'cameras\ directory missing, ask Nick' entry (a03b16f, same day)
was WRONG: the file path is only the DEV OVERRIDE (the RP-style loose
.CAM files -- present for RP in the nick-games 410SRC archive, which
prompted the re-check). The shipped binary falls back to a BTL4.RES
resource TYPE 27 (0x1b) named after the map (FUN_0042be3c probe ->
FUN_0042c078 res loader; per-cam binary records, parsers @0042ad54/
@0042b9f8) -- and our res has ALL 8 maps' networks (arena1 = 62
cameras; cavern/dbase/grass ~57KB each). First arena1 record parses
clean (pos+quat, type 2).
The spectator/broadcast seat needs no external data: remaining work is
the type-27 loader in the WinTesla CAMMGR (file flavor only today),
the stubbed ranking-window draw, and a camera-vehicle boot test.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The CameraShip spectator system is engine-complete (CameraDirector
auto-follows the score leader, CAMSHIP cuts between fixed map camera
positions like TV coverage, ranking window flashes 10s/15s + final
30s), but the per-map cameras\<mapname> notation files are absent from
the archive -- added to the get-from-Nick list with the reconstruction
alternatives (author our own / chase-cam fallback) and the two code
gaps (stubbed ranking-window draw, camera vehicle never boot-tested).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
User: 'isn't the game supposed to time out tho?' Yes -- and it was
HALF-implemented: the egg's [mission] length drives the pods' countdown
and the final-30s ranking window, and the full StopMission -> fade ->
end chain exists, but nothing ever fired it: in 1995 the CONSOLE sent
StopMission at expiry. Our console never did, so missions ran forever.
- btconsole relay: arms the clock when RunMission #2 fires; sends
Application::StopMissionMessage (clientID 4, msgID 6 per APP.h:383,
exitCode NullExitCodeID) at length + 2s grace; stdin 'stop' command
ends the mission early (works in auto and manual modes).
- btoperator: END MISSION button (enabled once launched; resets per
session).
Verified live: 40s test mission -- relay logged the armed clock, sent
StopMission on time, the pod ran the authentic end chain and exited
cleanly ('[boot] RunMissions returned'). Standard eggs carry
length=600, so real sessions are now authentic 10-minute pod missions
with the score display in the last 30 seconds.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
User request after the first internet join attempt: 'should we modify
the program so it sits and retries with a waiting-for-session?' The
arcade model is a pod that waits for the operator, not one that
aborts.
- RelayRequestSeat: retry loop (2s dials, 30 min cap) with live status
into the join.bat console window (BTRelayWaitStatus: AttachConsole to
the parent cmd; silent without one) -- banner + progress dots, a
distinct 'game is FULL, waiting for a free seat' state, and 'seat
assigned -- joining!' on success. The unreachable MessageBox now
only fires at the 30-minute give-up.
- BT_RELAY=auto discovery: same patient loop ('searching for a game on
this network...'), LAN-only guidance in the give-up box.
Verified live: pod launched against a dead relay, waited 20+s, relay
started, pod seat-requested/registered/UDP-up automatically with no
user action.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
A zip recipient can dork around offline -- no -net argument means the
game self-launches a solo mission (all maps ship in content/). Solo
gets its own exit message (btl4.log pointer, no server language).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Field report (first internet-join attempt): both join bats 'hard
crash' on the remote machine. Root cause was procedural -- the host
session was not running -- but the failure PRESENTATION was the bug:
Release Fail() is a bare abort(), so a dead relay = silent process
death + instantly-closing console window.
- L4NET: the two player-facing dead-ends (LAN discovery no-answer,
seat request unreachable/full) now show a MessageBox saying what
happened and what to do before exiting (verified live against a
dead relay: 'BattleTech -- can't join the game' appears).
- join bats: echo + pause after exit so the window stays readable;
join_lan.bat header now says it is LAN-only (the remote user ran
both -- join_lan can never work over the internet).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
'Launch local instances' did nothing visible when no roster row had
Local checked (log pane quietly said 'launched 0') or when the session
was not started yet (instances would dial a dead relay and fail after
the bounded retry). Both now pop a clear dialog saying what to do.
Found live: user pressed the button with both Local boxes unchecked
and no session running -- 'nothing happened'.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The egg generator's known-good list was just bhk1+madcat (the only two
ever exercised as egg vehicles); the operator roster therefore leaned on
those. Swept every ModelList candidate as a solo egg vehicle: 18/18
boot a mission, spawn, and animate with no crash -- avatar, blkhawk,
loki, owens, sunder, thor, vulture and all short variants (ava1, lok1/2,
mad1/2, own1, snd1, thr1, vul1) join bhk1/madcat as first-class picks.
eggmodel now lists the canonical 8 first for the operator dropdown.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
4 pods, relay-assigned seats, 4-pilot MP4.EGG (eggmodel-generated incl.
callsign bitmaps): 4 distinct seats, full ladder, every node replicates
all 3 foreign mechs (host-qualified [repl] sets are exact complements),
4 distinct spawn positions (no dropzone stacking), UDP at 4-pod fan-out
(relay tx=3x rx, zero drops), all pods alive through the session.
Per-host [net-rx] census symmetric: 36 NewDynamicEntity makes (mech +
subsystem roster) from every host to every node.
DIAGNOSTIC TRAP that cost a false bug-hunt: EntityID::operator int()
returns localID ONLY, so the [repl] log's (long)GetEntityID() collapsed
different hosts' mechs onto one number and read as 'missing
replicants'. The log now streams the EntityID object (host:local via
its operator<<).
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
The game rewrites LAST.EGG at every run, so every build stamped '+'
(false-dirty) even from a pristine checkout.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
4.10 = the 1995 arcade release; 4.11 = the win32 reconstruction; the
build number is the git commit count -- monotonic, zero-maintenance,
and every exe pins to exact source via the short hash ('+' = built
from an uncommitted tree). tools/btversion.cmake regenerates
build/btversion.h on every build (write-if-changed, no rebuild churn);
the stamp shows in the boot banner (btl4.log head, replacing the stale
'v4.10' line) and the window title (incl. the MP node tag).
Verified: build stamps 4.11.311 (980c9cd+), banner + title correct on
a live boot.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
