Auto Warz — Master Game Design Document¶

Document Type: Master GDD Version: 0.6 (Updated) Status: In Progress Last Updated: 2026-02-22 Vault destination: 01_Design Documents Author: Solo Developer Related Documents: [04_Factory & Resource System Design](<./04_Factory & Resource System Design.md>) · [[05_Spaceship Design & Building System]] · [[06_Combat & War System Design]] · [[07_Space Exploration Design]] · [[08_Economy & Progression Design]] · [09_UI-UX Design Document](<./09_UI-UX Design Document.md>) · [01_Technical Architecture Document](<../02_Technical Documents/01_Technical Architecture Document.md>) · [02_Server Architecture Document](<../02_Technical Documents/02_Server Architecture Document.md>) · [01_World Bible](<../05_Reference/01_World Bible.md>) · [01_Art Direction Document](<../03_Art & Audio/01_Art Direction Document.md>) · [02_Scope & MVP Document](<./02_Scope & MVP Document.md>) · [01_Development Roadmap](<../04_Project Management/01_Development Roadmap.md>) · [03_Monetization Design Document](<../04_Project Management/03_Monetization Design Document.md>)

Table of Contents¶

#Executive Summary
#Game Vision & Pillars
#Narrative Hook
#Core Gameplay Loop
#The Three Layers
#Session & Multiplayer Model
#Server Architecture
#Economy & Inter-Faction Trade
#Feature Overview
#Achievement System
#Player Experience Goals
#Target Audience
#Platforms & Controls
#Art Style & Tone
#Monetization Model
#Unique Selling Points
#Competitive Landscape
#High-Level Systems Map
#Out of Scope (v1.0)
#Revision History

Executive Summary¶

Auto Warz is a top-down 3D automation, space exploration, and real-time strategy game in which players build and manage an industrial empire to fuel an ongoing interstellar war effort. The game is structured around three interconnected layers — Planet, Space, and War — connected by a player-designed end-to-end supply chain.

The player is a disembodied commander — they have no physical avatar. Construction, mining, and automation are carried out by bots. Each player begins with a single indestructible companion bot named Genesis, the sole survivor of a catastrophic crash landing. Everything must be built from scratch.

Players in a shared session can specialise across layers or move freely between roles at any time. The game features a flexible player-hosted server ecosystem for both PvE and PvP sessions.

Game Vision & Pillars¶

Vision Statement¶

"Build the machine that wins the war."

Auto Warz is about the satisfying loop of industrial mastery enabling military dominance. Every factory belt laid, every resource chain optimised, and every ship designed feeds directly into the player's ability to project power across the galaxy.

The Four Core Pillars¶

Pillar	Description
🏭 Build	Design and optimise automated factories and resource pipelines on planetary surfaces
🚀 Forge	Design modular spaceships from components manufactured in your factories
⚔️ Conquer	Wage war against rival factions to claim new territory and resources
🌌 Explore	Send ships into the galaxy to discover planets, anomalies, and new resources

Narrative Hook¶

The Crash¶

Earth was destroyed. In the chaos, the player escaped aboard a salvage vessel — but the ship was critically damaged and crash-landed on an unknown alien planet. The player survived. So did one bot: Genesis.

Genesis is indestructible, loyal, and the player's only companion. With a handful of starting materials salvaged from the wreck, the player must build an industrial empire from nothing.

Other survivors landed elsewhere. They formed their own factions. The war has already begun.

Full lore in: [01_World Bible](<../05_Reference/01_World Bible.md>)

Core Gameplay Loop¶

Macro Loop (The Session)¶

Crash land — Genesis is your only companion
      ↓
Mine basic resources with Genesis
      ↓
Build first factory structures → Produce components
      ↓
Research Bot Programming → Unlock Construction Bot Bay
      ↓
Scale factory → Produce Science Drives → Accelerate research
      ↓
Design & Assemble Spaceships (Phase 2)
      ↓
Send Fleets → Explore / Mine / Wage War (Phase 3)
      ↓
Claim Territory → Unlock New Planets → Scale Further

The Three Layers¶

🌍 Layer 1 — Planet¶

Resource extraction, factory building, production chain management
Each player starts with their own Genesis on the shared Home Planet
Alien enemies inhabit planets — aggression triggered by expansion
11 planet types across two categories:
Landable (9 types): Terrestrial, Super-Earth, Ocean, Lava, Carbon, Rogue, Chthonian, Mini-Neptune, Hot Jupiter
Orbital Station Only (2 types): Gas Giants, Ice Giants (remote mining via Genesis on ship/station)
Planet types gate access via research unlocks — harsher planets require research before landing
Resources belong to the planet — no per-player inventory
Vertical factory design — factories built underground (min 2, max 4 levels) and into the sky (min 3, max 6 levels)
Each level is a separate grid; Genesis teleports between levels instantly
Item Lifts, Fluid Risers and Power Conduits connect adjacent underground levels — one structure per type, each occupying the same cell on both levels
Vertical transport (lifts, pumped pipes) unlocked via research
Core Power System — each planet has a unique Core Energy Rating tapped by a surface Core Power Station
Only ONE Core Power Station per planet
Deeper underground levels unlock progressively more of the planet's core energy
Supplements surface generators — both coexist
Planet contribution factor to supply chain (formula deferred to later milestone)

Full detail in: [05_World Generation & Planet Types](<./05_World Generation & Planet Types.md>) · [06_Vertical Layers & Core Power System](<./06_Vertical Layers & Core Power System.md>)

🚀 Layer 2 — Space¶

3D space the player physically flies through in a ship
Universe is procedurally generated from session seed — infinite, lazy generation
Solar systems: clusters of 3–6 planets orbiting a star
Galaxy starts as complete fog of war — only starting planet visible at session start
Scanner buildings on planets reveal nearby solar systems (Basic → Advanced → Deep Space Array)
New systems generated on-demand when revealed — same seed always produces same universe
Alien difficulty scales with distance from starting system (Tier 1 → Tier 5)
Travel: build a ship, then travel is automated/strategic between systems
Orbital stations above Gas Giants and Ice Giants for remote resource harvesting

Full detail in: [05_World Generation & Planet Types](<./05_World Generation & Planet Types.md>)

⚔️ Layer 3 — War¶

RTS-style fleet combat and territory control
AI factions + optional PvP

Session & Multiplayer Model¶

Session Structure¶

Each session is a self-contained universe — one galaxy, one shared economy
Sessions created and hosted by a player (the Host)
Sessions can be saved and resumed
Open-ended session length — no time limit, no forced end condition
Solo sessions can be opened to friends at any time — no restart required (Valheim model)

Session Naming¶

Session name is auto-generated from the galaxy seed by default — deterministic, always the same for the same seed
Host can click Refresh on the session creation screen to randomise a new seed and name
Host can also type a custom name — overrides the generated name
Session name is visible in the session browser and save/load screen

Planet Naming¶

All planets are named procedurally by default — generated from the planet seed
Players can rename any planet they have landed on — rename persists for the session
Starting planet has a fixed lore name — not procedural, always the same. Name TBD in [01_World Bible](<../05_Reference/01_World Bible.md>)

Starting Resources¶

Every player begins a session with a minimum starter stockpile — enough to immediately begin building without waiting for first extraction cycles. Exact values will be tuned during playtest but the design target is:

Enough metal plates / raw materials to build: 2 Smelters, 2 Mining Drills, 20 Belts, 8 IoConnectors, 4 Buffer Chests
Starting stockpile is intentionally minimal — forces engagement with extraction immediately
Values flagged for playtesting and balancing during M5.1 Balance Pass

Mid-Session Multiplayer¶

Host starts alone and can play fully solo
At any point, host can toggle "Open to Friends" to allow friends to join via IP
Joining friend receives full simulation state sync and their own Genesis bot
Session switches to multiplayer mode on first friend join
If all friends disconnect, session returns to solo mode automatically
Solo-only achievements earned before friends joined are kept
Solo-only achievements lock once multiplayer begins, re-enable when back to solo

Host-Customizable Session Rules¶

Rule	Options	Default	Supply Chain Contribution Effect
Time limit	2hr / 5hr / 10hr / Unlimited	Unlimited	—
Galaxy size	Small / Medium / Large	Medium	—
Faction aggression	Passive / Normal / Aggressive	Passive	—
Starting resources	Easy / Normal / Hard / Custom	Normal	—
Win condition	Conquest / Economic / Exploration / None	None	—
Permadeath	On / Off	Off	—
PvP	Enabled / Disabled	Disabled	—
Alien enemies	Off / Passive / Aggressive	Off	—
Pipe complexity	Basic / Standard / Full	Standard	Basic = ×1.0 · Standard = ×1.15 · Full = ×1.30
Faction aggression	Passive / Normal / Aggressive	Passive	How quickly factions become hostile to neutral players
Faction presence	All 4 / Random 2 / None	All 4	—
Mercenary mode	Optional / Forced / Disabled	Optional	Forced = no Allied possible; Disabled = must choose faction on space entry

Pipe Complexity Modes: - Basic — no pressure or temperature simulation. Pipes are simple fluid conveyors. Fluids flow at a fixed rate as long as a connection exists. - Standard — pressure model active. Flow rate depends on source pressure, pipe length, pump placement, and gravity on vertical levels. No temperature simulation. - Full — pressure + temperature simulation. Heat loss over distance, solidification, pipe damage from overtemperature, building temperature requirements, flammability. Full system as designed in [07_Pipe & Fluid System Design](<./07_Pipe & Fluid System Design.md>).

Higher pipe complexity rewards players who invest in understanding and managing the full fluid system with a permanent boost to their planet's supply chain contribution multiplier.

Genesis in Multiplayer¶

Each player has their own Genesis — it is personal to them, not a shared resource
Genesis position and movement is client-side only (not synced)
Genesis task requests are validated by the host — effects on the shared simulation are synced to all players
In multiplayer, Genesis status chip shows the owning player's name

Player Roles¶

Fully free — any player can operate in any layer at any time
Natural specialisation emerges from the scale of work

Server Architecture¶

Authoritative Host Model¶

Factory simulation runs on host only
Clients render the world, they do not simulate
All player actions validated server-side before applying
Full state sync every 5 seconds, delta updates every tick

Full technical detail in: [02_Server Architecture Document](<../02_Technical Documents/02_Server Architecture Document.md>)

Economy & Inter-Faction Trade¶

Internal Economy¶

Resources flow through player-designed supply chains
Supply routes run automatically once set up

Inter-Faction Trade¶

Players from different factions can buy and sell resources
Trade and war coexist — economic partners may still be military rivals

Feature Overview¶

Factory & Resource Management¶

Planetary resource extraction
Multi-stage production chains (4 tiers)
Logistics: conveyor belts, drones, pipes, trains
Power system: building-range based grid, no separate power poles
Factory blueprinting and copy-paste
Supply chain diagnostics
See: [04_Factory & Resource System Design](<./04_Factory & Resource System Design.md>)

Building Modules¶

Buildings start with 0 module slots — unlocked via research
Modules are physical cubes stacked on top of buildings
Stacking order matters — effects apply bottom to top
Combination bonuses for certain module pairings
Module types: Efficiency, Speed, Quality, Power, Capacity
Crafted in dedicated Module Crafter building
See: [04_Factory & Resource System Design](<./04_Factory & Resource System Design.md>)

Genesis Bot & Construction System¶

Each player starts with one indestructible bot named Genesis
Genesis is a codename — the default in-game name players see. Players can rename their Genesis bot to anything they like. The rename persists for the session.
Genesis pronouns: it/its — referred to as "it" in all documentation, UI copy, and in-game text
Genesis voice: beeps + synthetic voice — communicates through a mix of expressive beeps/chirps and short synthetic speech lines
Genesis is personal to each player — position is local, task effects are shared
Fully autonomous — patrols the base freely and executes queued tasks without player direction
Build mode is the default — placing a building immediately queues it for Genesis to build. No clicking Genesis required.
Plan mode toggle (bottom-left of build menu) — places ghost buildings without queuing. Border colour of build menu changes + screen border indicator active. Useful for laying out factory before committing.
Blueprints work in both modes — in build mode, blueprint stamp immediately queues all buildings
Task queue visible top-right — right-click a task to remove it. Research unlocks task reordering.
War mode toggle — when activated, Genesis automatically engages nearby enemies with laser/pulsar weapons. Player can optionally redirect Genesis to specific targets. If Genesis leaves viewport, it continues fighting autonomously — player can ignore it and keep building.
Genesis always returns to construction tasks when no enemies are in range
Full design in: [04_Factory & Resource System Design](<./04_Factory & Resource System Design.md>) and [09_UI-UX Design Document](<./09_UI-UX Design Document.md>)

Research System¶

Hybrid A+D: Science Drives (active) + Passive Field Data (always trickles)
8 tabbed branches: Industrial, Power, Research & Science, Vertical Expansion, Exploration, Defence, Genesis Abilities, Modules
Branching prerequisite graph — some nodes require multiple parents (cross-branch prerequisites)
Branch-based RP cost curves — each branch scales at its own rate
1 concurrent research slot at start — unlocks to max 3 via Research & Science branch
Session-scoped — tree resets each session, no cross-session persistence
Nodes unlock: buildings, recipes, building upgrades, logistics tiers, vertical levels, planet landing, Genesis abilities, module slots, module types, concurrent slots
Full tree in: [08_Research Tree Design](<./08_Research Tree Design.md>)

Player Levelling¶

Persistent across all sessions — tied to player account, never resets
One XP pool fed by 6 sources ranked by rate: War/Combat > Factory/RP > Asteroid Mining > Exploration > Hours Played > Gauntlet Waves
Logarithmic curve — always feels achievable at any level
Rewards alternate between cosmetic unlocks and mechanical bonuses
Mechanical bonuses: meaningful but not game-changing (+2% SC contribution per 10 levels, +1% extraction per 20 levels, +10% passive RP rate at level 80)
Research slots are exclusively unlocked via the Research & Science branch — player level has no influence on this
Cosmetics: Genesis skins, ship skins, building skin sets, UI themes
Full design in: [13_Player Levelling System](<./13_Player Levelling System.md>)
Each planet inhabited by alien creatures
Aggression triggered by expansion into alien territory
Alien aggression scales P2W supply chain demand
Defence: turrets, walls, deployable units
See: [[06_Combat & War System Design]]

Spaceship Design & Building¶

Modular ship editor — player selects ship class first, then builds within that class's constraints
Ship classes: Fighter, Frigate, Cruiser, Carrier, Freighter, Mining Vessel
Army Points system — every component placed on a ship contributes points to the ship's total Army Power Rating (APR). Fleet APR is the sum of all ships.
APR is used to match players against faction armies — the game shows win/loss probability before committing to a battle
Players can see enemy fleet APR before engagement — informed risk decisions
Full design in: [15_Ship & Army Points Design](<./15_Ship & Army Points Design.md>)

Win Conditions¶

No traditional win condition — the session never ends by force
The planet layer milestone is reaching space — building and launching a first ship
Launching triggers faction contact, unlocks the space layer, grants XP burst and session reward
Time limit (host option) is the only forced session end
Full design in: [14_Win Conditions & Faction Allegiance](<./14_Win Conditions & Faction Allegiance.md>)

Endgame Paths¶

The session never ends by force, so "endgame" means what the factory is for once Milestone 3 is passed. There are three open paths, and none is the correct one:

Path	Shape
War effort	Feed the interstellar war. The original framing.
Supply chain provider	Become the industry others depend on. Build for other players rather than for yourself.
Restoration	Peaceful. Take a planet wrecked by industry, yours or another player's, and bring it back.

Restoration needs no new mechanics, only a starting condition. You inherit a working but filthy base that is producing and poisoning at the same time, and the job is retooling a live system: swapping dirty generation for clean, rerouting belts around dumps you are clearing, fitting Air Scrubbers, Water Treatment and Soil Remediation into a layout that never planned for them, and restoring the deepest levels last because contamination leached downward and the sink is at the bottom.

Fixing a bad factory is a different puzzle from designing a good one, and it is one almost nothing in the genre offers.

It works because the galaxy is persistent and shared: a player who industrialised fast and dirty is not punished for a legitimate speed choice, and the world they leave behind becomes authored content for someone else. Damaged planets are also seeded procedurally, so the path exists before enough players have wrecked anything.

Restoration also stands alone as a game mode. A restoration scenario is a closed problem with a measurable outcome — identical wrecked factory, identical starting conditions — which is exactly what conventional factory games cannot offer and why they cannot carry meaningful leaderboards. This mirrors Outpost Mode's existing three-mode structure: Progression on fixed seeds, Seasonal on a monthly rotation with a leaderboard, and Sandbox on player seeds.

Full design in: [28_Restoration - Third Endgame Path](<./28_Restoration - Third Endgame Path.md>)

Faction System¶

4 factions: The Salvagers, The Vanguard, The Cultivators, The Remnants
Player starts as neutral independent — mercenary is a fully viable long-term path
Factions contact the player organically after first ship launch, and approach based on playstyle
Dual score system: Reputation (cooperation) + Hostility (conflict) per faction
Relationship tiers: Allied / Friendly / Neutral / Hostile / Enemy
Rival system: helping one faction increases hostility with their rival (Salvagers↔Vanguard, Cultivators↔Remnants)
Only one faction Allied at a time — switching loses exclusive research nodes
Faction benefits: supply chain contracts, military support, exclusive research (9th research tab), territory access
Full design in: [14_Win Conditions & Faction Allegiance](<./14_Win Conditions & Faction Allegiance.md>)

Space Exploration¶

Galaxy map with fog of war — scanner buildings reveal systems progressively
11 planet types with unique resources, hazards, and alien tiers
Gauntlet Planet — one fixed special planet per galaxy, discoverable via scanner. Tower defence gameplay: player builds defences to survive escalating alien waves. Waves completed unlock modifiers (production bonuses, efficiency boosts, supply chain contribution increases, and others TBD).
Full planet design in: [05_World Generation & Planet Types](<./05_World Generation & Planet Types.md>)
Full Gauntlet Planet design in: [12_Gauntlet Planet Design](<./12_Gauntlet Planet Design.md>) (pending)

Achievement System¶

Overview¶

Achievements are tracked per-player across all sessions. They unlock exclusive cosmetic rewards — never available for purchase in DLC. DLC cosmetics are entirely separate designs.

Achievement Categories¶

Category	Solo Only	Multi Only	Both Modes
Factory milestones			✅
Research milestones			✅
Defence milestones			✅
Efficiency milestones			✅
Solo survival	✅
Multiplayer co-op		✅
Easter eggs / hidden			✅

Cosmetic Rewards¶

Achievement Tier	Reward
Common	Building colour variants
Rare	Full building skin (unique model)
Legendary	Genesis skin (unique Genesis visual)
Hidden	Special effects (particle trails, animated badges)

The Player Promise¶

"Every cosmetic reward earned through achievements is exclusive — it cannot be bought. Every cosmetic available for purchase is different — it cannot be earned. Your time is always respected."

Full achievement list in: [02_Server Architecture Document](<../02_Technical Documents/02_Server Architecture Document.md>)
Full cosmetic and DLC design in: [03_Monetization Design Document](<../04_Project Management/03_Monetization Design Document.md>)

Player Experience Goals¶

By the end of a play session, the player should feel: - Satisfied — a supply chain is running smoothly - Attached — Genesis is a companion, not just a tool - Powerful — their fleet or factory accomplished something meaningful - Connected — in multiplayer, their contribution mattered - Curious — there is always a new problem to solve

Target Audience¶

Primary¶

Age 16–40, strategy/factory/space game fans
Reference titles: Factorio, Dyson Sphere Program, Stellaris, Homeworld

Secondary¶

Casual mobile players who enjoy base-building
Competitive players attracted by PvP servers

Platforms & Controls¶

Primary: PC (Windows, macOS, Linux)
Secondary: Mobile (iOS & Android)
Future: Console (post-launch)

Art Style & Tone¶

Cel-Shaded Low Poly — Cool Sci-Fi Industrial¶

Clean low poly geometry — smooth flat-faced shapes, hard edges, no voxels
Thick dark outlines via cel-shader — Thronefall is the primary rendering reference
Cool base palette: blues, teals, steel greys — accent colours per building category
Faction badge: thin coloured band at the base of every owned building
Modules stack on top of buildings — taller = more upgraded
Day/night cycle: emissive glow intensity increases at night, dims during day
Belts and rail tracks are slightly raised above terrain
Primary reference: Thronefall (rendering style) + Satisfactory (industrial optimism) + Astroneer (friendly proportions)

Genesis Visual Design¶

Flying bot — large head dominant proportion, small body underneath, no legs
Front-facing visor panel emits laser beam for all interactions — construction, deconstruction, and combat
Single laser system serves all purposes
White/silver chassis, blue-white visor glow
No faction badge — Genesis belongs to everyone

See: [01_Art Direction Document](<../03_Art & Audio/01_Art Direction Document.md>)

Monetization Model¶

One-time purchase (~$25–$40 USD)
Cosmetic DLC post-launch — exclusively different from achievement rewards
No subscription, no pay-to-win, no ads

See: [03_Monetization Design Document](<../04_Project Management/03_Monetization Design Document.md>)

Unique Selling Points¶

Genesis — a personal indestructible companion bot with narrative weight
The Full Three-Layer Loop — Planet → Space → War in one seamless experience
Player-Designed Supply Chains — physically built logistics connects factory to fleet
Module Stacking — optimise buildings by stacking physical cubes in the right order
Expansion-Triggered Threat — alien aggression scales with how fast you expand
Achievement Exclusives — earned cosmetics that can never be bought
Flexible Multiplayer — each player has their own Genesis, natural role specialisation

Competitive Landscape¶

Game	What It Does Well	What Auto Warz Does Differently
Factorio	Deep factory simulation	Adds space layer, war, Genesis narrative, module stacking
Dyson Sphere Program	Beautiful 3D factory + space	Adds PvP, territory war, player economy, achievements
Stellaris	Deep space strategy	Hands-on factory and physical ship building
Homeworld	Cinematic fleet combat	Adds factory layer and persistent territory

High-Level Systems Map¶

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    SESSION UNIVERSE                      │
└──────┬─────────────────────────────────┬─────────────────┘
       │                                 │
┌──────▼──────────┐             ┌────────▼────────┐
│   GALAXY MAP    │             │  ACHIEVEMENT    │
│ Territory Nodes │             │  SYSTEM         │
│ Fog of War      │             │  Solo / Multi   │
└──────┬──────────┘             └────────┬────────┘
       │                                 │
┌──────▼─────────────────────────────────▼────────┐
│                 WAR LAYER ⚔️                     │
└──────────────────────┬──────────────────────────┘
                       │
┌──────────────────────▼──────────────────────────┐
│                SPACE LAYER 🚀                    │
└──────────────────────┬──────────────────────────┘
                       │
┌──────────────────────▼──────────────────────────┐
│               PLANET LAYER 🌍                    │
│   Genesis (per player) · Factory · Aliens        │
│   Modules · Science Drives · Construction Bots   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Out of Scope (v1.0)¶

Official global server (post-launch, funding dependent)
Ground combat beyond alien defence
Console release (deferred post-launch)
Modding support / Steam Workshop
Full diplomacy system
Voiced narrative or cutscenes

Open items for this document are tracked in docs/open-items.md, area docs.

Revision History¶

Version	Date	Changes
0.7	2026-08-27	Added the Endgame Paths section: war effort, supply chain provider and Restoration as three open paths after Milestone 3, with Restoration also noted as a standalone mode carrying a leaderboard.
0.1	2026-02-22	Initial draft
0.2	2026-02-22	Three-layer system, session model, multiplayer
0.3	2026-02-22	Server architecture, inter-faction economy, monetisation
0.4	2026-02-22	Fixed TOC Obsidian anchor links
0.5	2026-02-22	Genesis Bot, module system, alien enemy system, power changes, Hybrid A+D research
0.6	2026-02-22	Genesis clarified as per-player (position client-side, tasks host-validated). Achievement system added — categories, solo/multi split, cosmetic rewards, Option A DLC coexistence
0.7	2026-02-23	Mid-session multiplayer added — solo sessions can be opened to friends at any time (Valheim model). Solo achievements kept if earned before friends join, locked once multiplayer begins, re-enabled when all friends disconnect.
0.8	2026-02-26	Galaxy and planet system added — 11 planet types, infinite procedural generation from session seed, Scanner discovery system, orbital stations for Gas Giants/Ice Giants, alien difficulty scaling by distance.
0.9	2026-02-26	Vertical factory system added — underground levels (min 2, max 4), sky levels (min 3, max 6), Shaft mechanics, Core Power Station, Core Energy Rating per planet, level-restricted buildings, vertical transport research gates.
1.0	2026-02-27	Pipe complexity added as host-configurable session option — Basic / Standard / Full. Higher complexity rewards with supply chain contribution multiplier (×1.0 / ×1.15 / ×1.30). Default: Standard.
1.1	2026-02-27	Research system expanded — 8 tabbed branches, full prerequisite tree, session-scoped, max 3 concurrent slots unlocked via Research branch, cross-branch prerequisites documented.
1.2	2026-02-27	Genesis redesigned — fully autonomous, build mode default, plan mode toggle with screen border indicator, war mode toggle with laser/pulsar combat and autonomous fighting. Ship Army Power Rating (APR) system added. Gauntlet Planet added (one fixed per galaxy, tower defence, wave-based rewards TBD). Art style updated — cel-shaded low poly, Thronefall as primary reference, cool palette confirmed.
1.3	2026-02-27	Player Levelling System added — persistent XP across sessions, 6 sources, logarithmic curve, cosmetic + mechanical rewards. AI art stack updated: Recraft + Leonardo + Vectorizer + Inkscape.
1.4	2026-02-28	Win conditions redesigned — no traditional win condition, rocket launch is planet milestone not session end. Faction system added — 4 factions, dual reputation/hostility scores, rival pairs, one Allied at a time, exclusive research lost on allegiance switch, mercenary path. Faction session options added to host rules.
1.5	2026-08-29	Vertical connection corrected to the three named structures - Item Lift, Fluid Riser, Power Conduit - replacing the generic Shaft. The container-plus-contents model was removed in `06_Vertical Layers` v0.3; this was one of the documents still carrying it. (OI-013)

This document anchors all Auto Warz design documentation. When in doubt about a design decision, return to #Game Vision & Pillars.