DevLog #7 – Persistence & Spawn Systems (Sept 28, 2025)

Posted on September 28, 2025 by Brinn

TL;DR

• Persistence Server fully live. Accounts, sessions, characters, and positional data persist.
• Spawn/Zone system implemented. Live entity creation, despawn, and tracking enabled.
• Account-to-Game flow connected: login → character → spawn → RiftStep movement.
• UE client parses snapshots; RiftStep tested from player input to world position with server-side validation.
• Per-client baselines live; bandwidth now scales predictably with RTT & entity activity.

Persistence Pipeline

• SQL Server: character data (ID, position, health, Will, status) persists across sessions.
• Session-to-Character bridge: account login → active character session → injected into world.
• Delta State Tracking: updated only on meaningful change, reducing persistence overhead.

Spawn System

• Zone-aware spawning implemented; RiftNet snapshot emitter filters entities based on Zone membership.
• RiftEntityManager tracks all entities, lifetime state, and ensures despawn logic triggers on logout.
• Server uses event-driven hooks for entity lifecycle (OnSpawn, OnDespawn, OnZoneEnter).

Combat + RiftStep

• Live movement → hit detection → combat resolution loop wired.
• RiftStep validated via server-authoritative raycasts (via Bullet for now).
• Basic enemy AI patrol behavior active for testing engagement logic.

Networking Enhancements

• Per-client snapshot baselines implemented; bandwidth now dynamic per client activity.
• RTT and RTO sampling now visible in client debug overlay.
• New snapshot diagnostic tools allow inspection of per-entity delta and history chain.

Web / Account System

• account_details now updates on login; no redirect required.
• Session tokens now expire correctly on logout, and cleanup handled by server daemon.
• Character creation now routes through persistent endpoint; enforced naming rules + duplication lock-in place.

UE Client

• Client receives snapshots, interpolates RiftStep, renders entity health/state.
• Next: animations, visual hit effects, and skill casting.
• Client-side logs track performance metrics for each incoming frame.

What’s Next (→ Oct 10 Alpha Target)

1. World object interactions (pickups, destructibles, trigger zones)
2. First Crafting Node Prototype (harvest + inventory update)
3. Local Chat Relay
4. Enemy Aggro → Chase → Attack flow + Death/Respawn
5. Character Creation UI polish and front-end zone selector