Iron Exiles (Malestrom)

Space MMO prototype based on the Iron Exiles universe. Design docs live in docs/; the active game client is a Unity project (see ADR-034 in .adlc/context/architecture.md).

Engine status

See .adlc/knowledge/lessons/LESSON-002-engine-pivot-unity.md for the pivot rationale.

Prerequisites (Unity)

Optional: Scripts/unity-root.local.ps1 (copy from example) to point batchmode scripts at your Hub editor install.

Quick start (Unity)

1. Clone the repository.
2. Run .\Scripts\Launch-UnityEditor.ps1 (or open Client/ in Unity Hub).
3. Open scene Assets/Scenes/Test/EmptySector.unity.
4. Press Play — ship spawns with chase camera and flight HUD (see Client/README.md).

# Open Unity Editor with Client/
.\Scripts\Launch-UnityEditor.ps1

# Open EmptySector for play-testing (press Play in the Editor)
.\Scripts\Run-UnityGame.ps1

# Run Edit Mode tests (batchmode — close Unity Editor first)
.\Scripts\Run-UnityTests.ps1

Project layout

Client/                     # Unity project (Iron Exiles) — REQ-051
legacy/unreal/              # Planned home for deprecated UE tree
IronExiles.uproject         # Legacy UE5 (root until moved)
Source/IronExiles/          # Legacy C++ module
Scripts/                    # Repo automation (Unity dev scripts; UE legacy under Scripts/legacy/)
docs/                       # Game design documents
.adlc/                      # Spec-driven development artifacts
deploy/                     # Docker/K8s scaffolding (backend — REQ-042+)

Zed

Project tasks live in .zed/tasks.json. In VS Code / Cursor, use Run and Debug (.vscode/launch.json) or Tasks: Run Task (.vscode/tasks.json).

In Zed: task: spawn (or Alt+Shift+T) → Iron Exiles: Local Multiplayer Dev (Server + Unity).

That starts the dedicated server in one terminal and opens Unity with EmptySector. Press Play, then Connect To Server on NetworkSessionManager (or enable Auto Connect In Editor on EmptySectorMultiplayerBootstrap first).

# Same flow from a shell (builds server automatically on first run)
.\Scripts\Launch-LocalMultiplayerDev.ps1

Legacy Unreal tasks are prefixed Legacy UE5: and live under Scripts/legacy/.

CI

• Unity: .github/workflows/unity-ci.yml (added with REQ-051) — batchmode build + Edit/Play Mode tests.
• Legacy UE5: .github/workflows/compile-editor.yml — manual workflow_dispatch only; requires self-hosted ue5 runner.

ADLC

Incremental delivery is spec-driven. See .adlc/specs/REQ-031-delivery-roadmap/ for the REQ sequence.

Current milestone: REQ-034 chase camera + flight HUD shipped. Next: REQ-035 dedicated server bootstrap.

Legacy Unreal (optional)

The UE5 scaffold at repo root was completed under REQ-032/033. It is superseded and frozen. Scripts are under Scripts/legacy/.

Prerequisites: Unreal 5.5.x, Visual Studio 2022, Scripts/legacy/ue-root.local.ps1 (copy from Scripts/legacy/ue-root.local.ps1.example).

Copy-Item Scripts/legacy/ue-root.local.ps1.example Scripts/legacy/ue-root.local.ps1
# Edit UE_ROOT path, then:
.\Scripts\legacy\Build-Editor.ps1
.\Scripts\legacy\Launch-UEEditor.ps1
.\Scripts\legacy\Initialize-Content.ps1
.\Scripts\legacy\Run-FoundationTests.ps1
.\Scripts\legacy\Run-FlightTests.ps1

License

Proprietary — Iron Exiles.