---
tags:
- roadmap
- milestones
updated: 2026-06-03
permalink: gamevault/06-roadmap/milestones
---

# Milestones

| Milestone | Goal | Status |
|---|---|---|
| **M0 — Foundation** | DOTS + Netcode stack, asmdef split, bootstrap, smoke test green | ✅ Done 2026-05-29 — [[2026-05-29_Project_Setup]] |
| **M1 — Player slice** | Server-spawned owner-predicted player; twin-stick WASD + directional aim | ✅ Done 2026-05-31 — runtime-validated on Unity 6.4.7 (connect→spawn→owner-predicted ghost→replication; EditMode 3/3). The 6.6 failure was environment-specific, see [[DR-002_Unity66_Alpha_Netcode_Transport]] — [[2026-05-30_M1_Player_Slice]] |
| **M2 — Combat** | Directional ability fire + deterministic soft auto-target; server-authoritative damage/health | ✅ Done 2026-05-31 — runtime-validated on 6.4.7: input→fire→**predicted projectile**→**swept hit**→server damage→`Health` `[GhostField]` replicated server→client; movement + fire confirmed live; EditMode 22/22. Predicted-projectile + server auto-target + non-Burst classifier — [[DR-003_M2_Combat_Netcode_Architecture]], [[2026-05-31_M2_Combat]]. (Projectile ghost-map errors were later root-caused to a `[ReadOnly]`-write in `ProjectileClassificationSystem` — fixed 2026-06-01, see [[2026-06-01_M4_LAN_CoOp_And_Classification_Fix]] — NOT two-editor tick-batching as first thought.) |
| **M3 — Data-driven abilities & modifiers** | Ability **and** character stats authored in ScriptableObjects, baked to DOTS **blob assets**; runtime **flat + % modifier** stacks (upgrades/buffs) → effective stats, server-authoritative + prediction-correct. Pattern slice: refactor the current projectile ability + 1–2 sample abilities onto the data model. | ✅ Done 2026-05-31 — runtime-validated on 6.4.7: blob DB baked into both worlds; data-driven base + replicated `StatModifier` ghost buffer → **identical effective stats on server & owner-predicted client** (held under tick-batching); data-only ability swap; real pickup grant; EditMode 38/38. Blob DB + replicated modifier buffer + every-tick effective recompute — [[DR-004_M3_DataDriven_Abilities_Modifiers]], [[2026-05-31_M3_Data_Driven_Abilities]]. |
| **M4 — Co-op** | 2–4 players; client-hosted listen-server (Direct IP/LAN now, Unity Relay later) | ✅ Done 2026-06-02 — **LAN slice + multi-client validated**: no-auto-connect `ConnectionConfig` + request-component host/join, editor auto-host + thin clients, deterministic ring spawn; 3 clients (1 real + 2 thin) connect→spawn (distinct slots)→replicate→clean disconnect; `ConnectionUI` for builds; EditMode 45/45. **Two controllable characters in-game confirmed 2026-06-02 via Unity Multiplayer Play Mode** (extra virtual player; full connection handshake not exercised end-to-end, but in-scene co-op looks good). **Unity Relay + real two-build LAN join deferred** — [[DR-005_M4_Connection_Model_Direct_IP]], [[2026-06-01_M4_LAN_CoOp_And_Classification_Fix]]. |
| **M5 — Home base + physics** | Persistent base subscene streaming + Unity Physics in the predicted loop | 🚧 In progress 2026-06-01 — **physics-in-prediction slice done + runtime-validated** on 6.4.7: player is a velocity-driven dynamic Unity Physics body in the predicted loop (built-in `CapsuleCollider`+`Rigidbody` bake; `PhysicsVelocity` auto-replicated), collides with baked static walls (stops at the surface, no tunnel/climb-over), planar-pinned, **server == client** with no desync; EditMode 51/51. **Base subscene streaming deferred** to a later pass — [[DR-006_M5_Physics_In_Prediction]], [[2026-06-01_M5_Physics_In_Prediction]]. **M5b (same day): player movement re-founded on the Unity Character Controller package** (`com.unity.charactercontroller` 1.4.2) — kinematic collide-and-slide, owner-predicted, data-driven speed; replaces the dynamic-Rigidbody mover (keeps the DR-006 predicted-physics infra). Runtime-validated (collide-and-slide, planar, server==client, CharacterInterpolation predicted-only); EditMode 47/47 — [[DR-007_M5b_Character_Controller_Package]], [[2026-06-01_M5b_Character_Controller]]. **Base-layer done 2026-06-02 + runtime-validated:** home base = baked ghost-free `BaseAnchor` + locked deterministic planar build-grid (`BaseGridMath`, 1.0u × 32²; M6 builds on it) + player spawn re-rooted onto the anchor + one **shared-storage ghost** (ownerless interpolated; deposit/withdraw via server-authoritative `IRpcCommand`; **server == client** buffer). EditMode 62/62. **Subscene split (base/expedition) + disk persistence still deferred** — [[DR-008_M5_HomeBase_BaseLayer_Storage]], [[2026-06-02_M5_HomeBase_BaseLayer]]. |
| **M5.5 — Game feel & identity** | Bridge "tech-demo → game": the **Husk** enemy (server AI, interpolated ghost), player death/respawn, combat juice (damage numbers/VFX/SFX/camera shake), a core HUD, and a sci-fi look pass — under the new fiction ([[Identity]], sci-fi frontier colony) | ✅ Done 2026-06-02 — runtime-validated on 6.4.7: Husks spawn(6)+replicate+chase+strike; death→respawn loop; HUD (health/cooldown/threat/downed); emissive dark-sci-fi look. EditMode **74/74**. ctx7-verified APIs. **Deepened same day:** auto-target on Husks, replicated respawn-invulnerability, and a `WaveSystem` threat director (escalating waves of 3 Husk variants — Grunt/Swarmer/Brute) replacing the flat sustain — runtime-validated (wave 1→2 escalation 4→6, distinct maxHP 30/15/80). [[DR-009_GameFeel_Identity_FirstBlood]], [[2026-06-02_GameFeel_Identity]], [[2026-06-02_GameFeel_Deepening]] |
| **— 2026-06-03 Visual & controls polish —** | Non-milestone polish layered on M5.5 (no mechanical rework): HDRP→URP art import + reusable converter; a cohesive **Synty** sci-fi colony world (cosmetic SampleScene GameObjects) + **GabrielAguiar** combat VFX; **KBM mouse-cursor aim + gamepad aim** with last-actuation device auto-switch (rides the existing `PlayerInput.Aim` ghost field). | ✅ Done 2026-06-03 — [[DR-010_Art_Import_URP_Conversion_Visual_Upgrade]], [[DR-011_Synty_World_VFX_Integration]], [[DR-012_Aim_Controls_Cursor_Gamepad]] |
| **— 2026-06-03 Pre-M6 cleanup —** | Loose-ends pass before M6: vault roadmap reconcile, Unity-template + orphaned-material removal, rate-limited turning, console/runtime health gate. | ✅ Done 2026-06-03 — [[2026-06-03_Pre_M6_Cleanup]] |
| **M6 — The Aether Cycle (core loop)** | Reframed from "grid build placement" into the first vertical slice of the **core game loop**: Expedition (gather) → Defend (wave) → Build/Charge (spend), persistent base + procedural sorties, escalating toward a goal. Build placement is now Stage 3 of this milestone. | 🚧 In progress 2026-06-03 — **Stages 0–2 done + runtime-validated** on 6.4.7: **base/expedition split via coordinate-region + `GhostRelevancy`** (player transit despawns/re-grants the other region's ghosts; server==client); a **server phase-director** (Expedition→Defend→Build→Expedition auto-cycle, cycle 1→2, Husk `WaveSystem` only in Defend, escalation 4→6); and **resources + harvest** — a **global CycleDirector ghost** carrying the replicated `CycleState` + a shared resource **ledger** (relevant in every region, unlike the base storage), a procedural **expedition field** (8 resource-node ghosts seeded per cycle, region-scoped), and a tunnel-safe **harvest** sweep depositing into the ledger; client **HUD** shows phase + resource counts. Supersedes DR-008's "split requires streaming" framing. **Stages 3–4 (build placement/turret/ability-tiers, persistence/goal) = continuation.** — [[DR-013_M6_Aether_Cycle_Region_Split]], [[2026-06-03_M6_Aether_Cycle_CoreLoop]] |
| **M7 — Automation** | Self-running tick-based production chains (deterministic offline catch-up) | ⬜ |

Promote items from [[Backlog]] here when committed.