alex/sots-engine
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Pull requests Projects Releases Packages Wiki Activity Actions
From-scratch reimplementation of the Sword of the Stars (2006) engine. Clean-room; engine code only — bring your own game copy. Planning/RE evidence live in sots-re.
246 commits 1 branch 0 tags 11 MiB
Find a file
alex 618ccb1c25 shim: research.replace_cascade, and a completion counter that prints in replace mode too 
The B3 hook's unlock cascade was compare-mode only, so a replace run left the
completed node unstamped and no tech unlocked -- and its only per-call counter was
gated on the cascade, so a replace run had no instrument of its own saying a
completion had happened at all. Lane CR needs both halves to ask whether
ProcessResearch can be displaced.

research.replace_cascade=on (default off, so the shipped behaviour is unchanged and
still measurable) lets a replace-mode call write the four TechNode words
SetResearched stamps and the tree's completion-order counter. The ServerPlayer half
of the callback stays unmodelled and stays declared: no event is posted, no
ObservedTech element is appended, no tech effect is applied. The pair of settings is
the measurement -- same binary, one config line, and the leaf difference between the
two autosaves is the cascade's own contribution.

The per-call log line now prints in every mode and counts completions from the pass's
own step results, so 'a completion fired' is a statement by the instrument rather
than an inference from the artefact under test.
2026-09-09 09:15:47 -04:00
cmake m0: binkw32 proxy shim, minhook, trace hook on Application::Initialize; build/deploy tooling 2026-09-07 17:22:15 -04:00
docs rng: model chance(), the only entry point that can cost zero words 2026-09-08 22:32:14 -04:00
include/generated shim: aivisit, the fleet-assignment visit-order log (lane BU) 2026-09-09 03:10:52 -04:00
src shim: research.replace_cascade, and a completion counter that prints in replace mode too 2026-09-09 09:15:47 -04:00
tests rng: model chance(), the only entry point that can cost zero words 2026-09-08 22:32:14 -04:00
third_party mars/vfs: gob ZIP reader + native override, miniz 3.1.2; oracle-verified 8352+2035 entries 2026-09-07 17:40:51 -04:00
tools shim: fix cbpin's wrapped header and six unnamed hooks; add a config check 2026-09-09 02:01:58 -04:00
.gitignore init commit 2026-09-07 17:07:54 -04:00
CMakeLists.txt shim: aivisit, the fleet-assignment visit-order log (lane BU) 2026-09-09 03:10:52 -04:00
CMakePresets.json m0: binkw32 proxy shim, minhook, trace hook on Application::Initialize; build/deploy tooling 2026-09-07 17:22:15 -04:00
CONTRIBUTING.md CONTRIBUTING: note uv tool install cmake as the local workaround 2026-09-08 09:07:47 -04:00
LICENSE init commit 2026-09-07 17:07:54 -04:00
README.md src/app: the standalone -- load a save, run a turn, write a save 2026-09-08 10:35:45 -04:00

README.md

sots-engine

A from-scratch, functional reimplementation of the engine behind Sword of the Stars (2006). Not a byte-for-byte decompilation: behavior-equivalent code, built up one verified piece at a time (OpenRCT2-style) until the tree can build the whole application on its own.

Bring your own game. This repository contains engine code only. Game data, assets, saves, and the original binaries are never included; tests and tools read an owner-supplied copy via $SOTS_DATA_DIR. See CONTRIBUTING.md for the clean-room rules.

Status

Phase 2. M0 done — the shim frontend (src/shim/, a proxy binkw32.dll the original game loads) builds, deploys, hooks, and logs from a real game launch. Engine code accrues under src/mars/ and src/game/; each module is oracle-verified against the owner's game data before merge:

  • mars/parse — brace-block + .effect readers (1,531/1,531 files agree with the reference)
  • mars/text — flat key/value tables, id manifests, CSV (64/64 files agree)
  • game/sim — strategic formulas (economy, research, colonies, movement) as pure functions; 356 hand-computed checks
  • mars/vfs — .gob (ZIP) archive reader + loose-file override; entry counts and bytes verified against unzip
  • mars/stream — the game's self-describing save/serialization format (reader, writer, typed shapes) + gzip; three real saves round-trip byte-identical
  • mars/rng — MT19937 with save-state load/store; layout confirmed against real saves, draw mappings read off the binary (docs/mars-rng.md)
  • game/data — typed catalogs (weapons, ship sections, turrets, id registries, tech tree, strings) with cross-reference checks; 229k values agree with the reference
  • game/design — ship-design assembly/fit/tech-gating rules and derived stats; validates all 127 stock designs from real saves
  • app — the standalone: sots_turn loads a save, runs one strategic turn over the published phase order of all three turn drivers, and writes a save. 14 of the 44 turn-driver phases are modelled; every phase that is not appears in the run log as a named no-op. How far it is from the byte-match, and what stands in the way, is in docs/S-standalone.md

Build: cmake --preset host && cmake --build --preset host && ctest --preset host (Linux); tools/sync-build.sh cross-builds the shim on the lab box and stages it for deployment.

Layout (grows with the work)

  • src/shim/ — binkw32 proxy + hooks + old-vs-new compare harness (frontend #1)
  • src/mars/, src/game/ — the engine and game reimplementation (accruing)
  • src/app/ — the standalone turn driver (frontend #2): load a save, run a turn, write a save
  • include/generated/sots_addresses.h — binary facts (RVAs/prototypes), generated from the RE repo
  • tests/ — host tests; real-data tests skip unless $SOTS_DATA_DIR is set
  • tools/ — build (MinGW i686 cross) and deploy scripts

Planning, findings, and verification evidence are tracked in the private RE repo (sots-re).