Player starts a new day.
Three petitioners appear in the throne room.
Player makes one ruling per petitioner.
Rulings change resources, faction trust, settlement stability, or future event tags.
Player takes one world map action.
Day ends with a summary.
Next day seed is generated from current game state.

The MVP does not need full AI generation at first. It should work with hand-written petitioner data, deterministic seed logic, and simple map state.

AI-generated content can be added later as a content-expansion layer.

Core MVP Screens

1. Home Screen

Purpose:

Start game
Continue game
Open wiki/lore
Open settings

Elements:

Game title
BLB throne image or logo
Start/continue buttons
Cosmic purple-blue background

2. Throne Room Screen

Purpose:

Main gameplay hub for daily petitioners.

Elements:

BLB on throne
Current petitioner
Petitioner text
Ruling choices
Resource HUD
Day counter
Faction/status icons
Button to continue after ruling

Purpose:

Focused decision interface.

Elements:

Petitioner name
Petitioner faction or settlement
Problem description
2-4 ruling choices
Preview style, depending on design:
- Full preview
- Partial preview
- Hidden consequence
- Advisor hint

4. Resource HUD

Purpose:

Always show current economic state.

Elements:

Bone total
Minion total
Cases of milk
Optional later:
- Stability
- Faction trust
- Day
- Warnings

5. World Map Screen

Purpose:

Allow player to spend resources and assign minions after throne rulings.

Elements:

BLB territory
NPC cities
Towns
Homesteads
Settlement status
Available map actions
Resource cost preview
Expected effect preview

6. Daily Summary Screen

Purpose:

Show what happened today and what consequences were created.

Elements:

Resource changes
Faction changes
Settlement changes
New flags/tags
Warnings for tomorrow
Button to start next day

Petitioner Data Schema

Recommended format for MVP: JSON.

Example:

{
  "id": "petitioner_marrowgate_bad_bones_001",
  "name": "Foreman Clatter",
  "type": "settlement_request",
  "faction": "bone_guild",
  "settlementId": "marrowgate",
  "tags": ["bones", "production", "early_game"],
  "minDay": 1,
  "maxDay": 10,
  "weight": 10,
  "requiresFlags": [],
  "blocksFlags": ["marrowgate_resolved_bad_bones"],
  "title": "Bad Bones at Marrowgate",
  "body": "Foreman Clatter reports that Marrowgate's latest bone shipments are brittle, chalky, and emotionally disappointing.",
  "choices": [
    "send_milk_inspection",
    "blame_the_guild",
    "ignore_the_problem"
  ],
  "onSeenFlags": ["seen_bad_bones_case"]
}

Ruling / Choice Schema

Each ruling should be a separate reusable object or embedded inside the petitioner.

Recommended choice object:

{
  "id": "send_milk_inspection",
  "label": "Send three cases of milk and a minion inspector.",
  "tone": "practical",
  "costs": {
    "bones": 0,
    "minions": 1,
    "milk": 3
  },
  "effects": {
    "resources": {
      "bones": 0,
      "minions": -1,
      "milk": -3
    },
    "settlements": {
      "marrowgate": {
        "stability": 5,
        "boneProduction": 2
      }
    },
    "factions": {
      "bone_guild": {
        "trust": 3
      },
      "milken_order": {
        "trust": 1
      }
    },
    "flagsAdd": ["marrowgate_milk_audit_started"],
    "flagsRemove": [],
    "futureEventWeights": {
      "petitioner_marrowgate_recovery_001": 5
    }
  },
  "resultText": "The milk inspection begins immediately. The bones do not become less weird, but they do become more useful."
}

Resource Formula Rules

MVP should start simple and readable.

Daily Resource Production

Each settlement may produce resources at the end of each day.

Example:

dailyBones = sum(settlement.boneProduction)
dailyMilk = sum(settlement.milkProduction)
dailyMinionUpkeep = floor(minionTotal / 10)

Suggested MVP daily update:

bones += totalBoneProduction
milk += totalMilkProduction
milk -= floor(minions / 10)

Optional:

Minions require milk upkeep. If milk cannot cover upkeep, minion morale or count drops.

Resource Triangle Rules

Bones -> Minions

Bones create minions.

MVP formula:

1 minion costs 5 bones

Better minions can come later.

Optional future formula:

minionQuality = averageBoneQuality

Minions -> Milk

Minions can be assigned to produce milk.

MVP formula:

1 assigned minion produces 1 milk per day

Optional improvement:

milkProduced = assignedMinions * settlement.milkMultiplier

Milk -> Bones

Milk improves bone production and bone quality.

MVP formula:

Sending 3 milk to a bone settlement increases boneProduction by +1 for 3 days.

Alternative:

boneQuality += milkSent * 0.1
boneProduction += floor(milkSent / 3)

Keep the MVP simple. Use the first version unless deeper simulation is needed.

Settlement / World Map Schema

Recommended settlement object:

{
  "id": "marrowgate",
  "name": "Marrowgate",
  "type": "city",
  "owner": "blb",
  "factionInfluence": ["bone_guild"],
  "resources": {
    "boneProduction": 5,
    "milkProduction": 0,
    "minionCapacity": 2
  },
  "stats": {
    "stability": 60,
    "loyalty": 50,
    "need": 30,
    "danger": 10
  },
  "tags": ["bone_city", "industrial", "early_game"],
  "statusEffects": [
    {
      "id": "milk_boost",
      "durationDays": 3,
      "effects": {
        "boneProduction": 1
      }
    }
  ]
}

Faction Schema

Recommended faction object:

{
  "id": "bone_guild",
  "name": "The Bone Guild",
  "trust": 50,
  "power": 40,
  "agenda": "Control bone standards and production rights.",
  "likes": ["bone_investment", "predictable_law", "industrial_expansion"],
  "dislikes": ["milk_theology", "resource_waste", "minion_labor_rights"],
  "tags": ["economic", "bones", "industrial"]
}

Trust and Stability Ranges

Use 0-100 ranges.

Faction Trust

0-20: hostile
21-40: suspicious
41-60: neutral
61-80: supportive
81-100: loyal

Settlement Stability

0-20: collapsing
21-40: unstable
41-60: strained
61-80: stable
81-100: thriving

Settlement Need

0-20: comfortable
21-40: minor need
41-60: serious need
61-80: crisis
81-100: emergency

Minion Assignment Rules

MVP minions can be assigned during the world map phase.

Possible assignments:

Produce milk
Harvest bones
Stabilize settlement
Guard settlement
Repair damage
Support faction project

MVP rule:

Each available minion can be assigned to one task per day.
Assigned minions return at the end of the day unless the action says otherwise.

Example map action:

{
  "id": "assign_minions_to_lacthollow",
  "label": "Assign minions to Lacthollow dairies",
  "costs": {
    "minions": 3
  },
  "durationDays": 1,
  "effects": {
    "milk": 3,
    "settlement": {
      "lacthollow": {
        "stability": 2
      }
    }
  }
}

Daily Seed Algorithm

The daily seed should combine randomness with world state.

MVP daily flow:

1. Start day.
2. Build eligible petitioner pool.
3. Filter by minDay, maxDay, required flags, blocked flags.
4. Increase weights based on current resource shortages.
5. Increase weights based on unstable settlements.
6. Increase weights based on low faction trust.
7. Select 3 petitioners.
8. Prevent duplicate petitioner IDs in same day.
9. Save selected petitioner IDs into day history.

Example weighting rules:

If bones < 20, add +5 weight to bone-related petitioners.
If milk < 10, add +5 weight to milk-related petitioners.
If minions < 5, add +5 weight to minion-related petitioners.
If settlement stability < 40, add +8 weight to that settlement's crisis events.
If faction trust < 30, add +6 weight to that faction's complaint events.

AI rotation can later generate or modify eligible cases, but the MVP should first prove deterministic seeded selection.

Save Game Structure

Recommended save structure:

{
  "saveVersion": "0.1.0",
  "gameId": "run_001",
  "day": 4,
  "resources": {
    "bones": 32,
    "minions": 9,
    "milk": 12
  },
  "kingdom": {
    "stability": 58
  },
  "settlements": {},
  "factions": {},
  "flags": [
    "seen_bad_bones_case",
    "marrowgate_milk_audit_started"
  ],
  "history": {
    "seenPetitioners": [],
    "rulings": [],
    "dailySummaries": []
  },
  "rng": {
    "seed": "BLB_RUN_001_DAY_004"
  }
}

Failure States

MVP failure states:

bones <= 0 = Bone Collapse
minions <= 0 = Workforce Collapse
milk <= 0 = Milk Famine
kingdomStability <= 0 = Dominion Collapse
three settlements collapsed = Map Collapse
one faction trust <= 0 and faction power >= 70 = Faction Coup

Each failure state should have a unique summary screen.

Example Day

Starting Resources

Bones: 25
Minions: 8
Milk: 10
Kingdom Stability: 55

Petitioner 1

Foreman Clatter of Marrowgate

Problem:

Marrowgate's bones are brittle and production is dropping.

Choices:

Send 3 milk and 1 minion inspector.
Punish the Bone Guild.
Ignore the problem.

Chosen:

Send milk and inspector.

Result:

Milk -3
Minions -1 for the day
Marrowgate Stability +5
Marrowgate Bone Production +1 for 3 days
Bone Guild Trust +3

Petitioner 2

Gerald the Minion Clerk

Problem:

Minions are complaining that milk duty is sticky, humiliating, and "beneath skeleton-adjacent workers of their station."

Choices:

Promise hats.
Ignore them.
Spend bones to improve minion tools.

Chosen:

Promise hats.

Result:

Minion morale flag added: promised_hats
No immediate resource cost
Future event unlocked: hat_accountability

Petitioner 3

Mayor Pella of Ribcage Crossing

Problem:

Merchants want lower tariffs in exchange for emergency milk barrels.

Choices:

Accept the trade.
Refuse and protect Dominion markets.
Demand bones instead.

Chosen:

Accept trade.

Result:

Milk +5
Ribcage Crossing Loyalty +4
Bone Guild Trust -2
Future trade event weight +5

World Map Action

Action:

Assign 3 minions to Lacthollow dairies.

Result:

Milk +3 at end of day
Lacthollow Stability +2
3 minions unavailable until next day

End of Day Summary

Bones: 25
Minions: 8
Milk: 15
Marrowgate is recovering.
The Bone Guild is slightly annoyed by trade concessions.
The minions remember the promised hats.
Tomorrow's petitioner pool now includes possible hat-related consequences.

Content Format

MVP Recommendation

Use:

/content/petitioners/*.json
/content/choices/*.json
/content/settlements/*.json
/content/factions/*.json
/wiki/*.md

Do not start with a database unless the game already needs live editing, user-generated content, or server-side persistence.

AI-Generated Content Rule

AI-generated petitioners should not directly mutate the game state without validation.

Recommended flow:

AI generates petitioner draft.
System validates schema.
System assigns approved tags/effects only from allowed list.
Generated content is cached.
Player sees cached petitioner.
Ruling applies deterministic effects.

The AI may write flavor.

The game engine must control consequences.

UI Wireframe Notes

Throne Screen

[Resource HUD]

 [BLB on Throne]

[Petitioner Portrait]
[Petitioner Text]

[Choice 1]
[Choice 2]
[Choice 3]

[Day / Map / Summary Buttons]

Resource HUD

Bones: 25 Minions: 8 Milk: 10
Stability: 55 Day: 4

Map Screen

[Resource HUD]

 [World Map]

Marrowgate: Stable, Bone +5
Lacthollow: Strained, Milk +3
Ribcage Crossing: Neutral, Trade Active
Homesteads: Need Rising

[Available Actions Panel]

Daily Summary

Day 4 Complete

Resource Changes:
Bones +0
Minions +0
Milk +5

Settlement Changes:
Marrowgate recovering
Lacthollow stabilized

New Flags:
promised_hats
marrowgate_milk_audit_started

[Begin Day 5]

Build Priority

Phase 1: Static MVP

Home screen
Throne room screen
Resource HUD
Three hard-coded petitioners
Choice effects
Daily summary
Basic save state

Phase 2: Seeded Days

Petitioner pool
Weighted selection
Flags
Settlement/faction state
Map action screen

Phase 3: Reactive World

Settlement consequences
Faction trust
Recurring petitioners
Failure states
Endings

Phase 4: AI Layer

AI-generated petitioner drafts
Schema validation
Cached event rotation
Flavor expansion
Dynamic but controlled content

See also: Home | Gameplay | Lore | Story | References

Technical Design Specs

MVP Overview

Core MVP Screens

1. Home Screen

2. Throne Room Screen

3. Petitioner Modal / Case Panel

4. Resource HUD

5. World Map Screen

6. Daily Summary Screen

Petitioner Data Schema

Ruling / Choice Schema

Resource Formula Rules

Daily Resource Production

Resource Triangle Rules

Bones -> Minions

Minions -> Milk

Milk -> Bones

Settlement / World Map Schema

Faction Schema

Trust and Stability Ranges

Faction Trust

Settlement Stability

Settlement Need

Minion Assignment Rules

Daily Seed Algorithm

Save Game Structure

Failure States

Example Day

Starting Resources

Petitioner 1

Petitioner 2

Petitioner 3

World Map Action

End of Day Summary

Content Format

MVP Recommendation

AI-Generated Content Rule

UI Wireframe Notes

Throne Screen

Resource HUD

Map Screen

Daily Summary

Build Priority

Phase 1: Static MVP

Phase 2: Seeded Days

Phase 3: Reactive World

Phase 4: AI Layer