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gamedev-the-steward/docs/SIMULATION_STATE_SCHEMA.md
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# The Steward — Simulation State Schema
## Current contract
`SimulationStateRecord` is the versioned JSON boundary for the current
simulation. Schema v1 captures:
- simulation seed, tick interval, tick count, clock remainder, and elapsed
clock ticks;
- every NPC's identity, needs, attributes, task lifecycle, target, position,
starvation state, and decision RNG stream;
- village resource counters;
- controlled per-NPC wander RNG streams;
- scene-independent resource state plus the definition facts needed while its
ResourceNode is unloaded.
The top-level identity is:
```json
{
"schema": "the_steward.simulation",
"schema_version": 1
}
```
Unknown schema versions and structurally incomplete records are rejected. Add
an explicit migration function before accepting a future version; never
silently reinterpret old data as the newest layout.
## Deterministic continuation
RNG seeds and internal states are encoded as decimal strings. They are signed
64-bit values and cannot safely pass through every JSON number implementation
without precision loss. Converting them to ordinary JSON numbers caused a
restored simulation to retain the same visible state while silently changing
its future random sequence.
`tests/simulation_state_serialization_test.gd` protects this contract by:
1. running a fixed-seed scenario for 48 ticks without interruption;
2. running the same scenario for 24 ticks;
3. serializing and restoring into a fresh manager;
4. running the remaining 24 ticks;
5. requiring the complete final-state checksums to match.
It also verifies clock remainder, resource amount/reservation/enabled
round-tripping, presentation unload/rebind, and rejection of unsupported
schemas.
## Resource authority
`SimulationManager` owns `ResourceStateRecord` instances independently of the
scene tree. Amount, reservation, enabled state, action/resource identity,
yield, and usage permissions remain available and serializable while no
ResourceNode is loaded.
ResourceNode binds to a record by stable ID and provides presentation,
interaction transforms, and active-world discoverability. Unloading a node does
not delete its record. Loading another node with the same stable ID rebinds to
the existing record and cannot overwrite its amount or reservation with scene
defaults.
ResourceStateRecord v2 adds the definition facts needed while unloaded. Nested
v1 resource records are migrated explicitly and hydrate their missing
definition from a matching presentation node when one becomes available.
## Deliberately out of scope
This phase does not yet provide:
- save-slot files, metadata, thumbnails, or atomic disk writes;
- backward migrations beyond schema v1;
- inventory, relationship, schedule, or history records;
- a player-facing load flow;
- save-slot persistence for scene-independent resource state.
Those features should build on this boundary rather than inventing parallel
serialization paths.