Add openrouter_judge.py to rank live image+JSON models by advertised price,
with ordered fallbacks, auth-error handling and auto selection. Wire both judges
to --model auto, record the model used, and add fake-catalogue/mocked-call
tests. Re-run the judges with the valid key: 13/13 screen designs match, 0 diff;
the Forward+ A/B report records the selected model and ~$0.006 spend. Headless
231/231, Python 94/94.
Package a Forward+ preset with volumetric fog, SDFGI and a volumetric flashlight
for a separate Linux/Windows Desktop HQ zip. Gate the effects on a real
RenderingDevice, tune LATE fog, and adapt local light falloff for Godot 4.7.
Record the Compatibility/Forward+ A/B captures and metrics, add the artifact to
the build/publish scripts, and keep the default Compatibility/Web path
unchanged. Headless 231/231, Python 87/87; exported HQ binary boots with Vulkan.
Fix the portrait staging: face the rig toward the camera (the old yaw was 180
degrees out) and hide the focus disc, which was covering the face in close-ups.
Add the before/after Influencer portrait, fit measurements and judge scores in
docs/screens/realism/2026-11-01-gear. Re-run check_screenshots (11 good/0 bad);
headless 229/229.
Blender library
- Rebuild the face: sclera, iris and upper lid per eye, brow ridge, cheekbones,
nose bridge and tip, ears with lobes, split upper/lower lips.
- Give each hand four fingers plus a thumb and end every sleeve in a cuff ring.
- Raise CHAR_MAX_VERTS 4000 -> 5000 (16 avatars still cost ~6.9 ms of a 50 ms
frame), decimate the body to 26 %; characters are now 3,974-5,026 tris and
3,744-4,807 verts. Rebuild all 8 variants and re-bake their AO maps.
Capture tooling
- Add a `portrait` stage to capture_realism.gd: freeze one NPC, park the crowd
out of frame, stand the subject on open sidewalk, turn it into the camera and
put the guard on the sunlit side. New --portrait-type=N picks the role.
- Add the npc_portrait_day concept and map the shot to it, so avatar detail is
scored against a portrait instead of a wide street frame.
Flashlight
- Drop the fake additive beam (Materials.light_beam + the cone mesh): on GL
Compatibility a first-person camera inside the cone renders it as a filled
disc with a bright far ring. Keep the tight spot (14 deg, 20 m, energy 4.2)
and its headless test; the visible shaft is now planned behind a Forward+
preset.
Docs and task tracking
- Move the finished realism follow-ups (ground exposure, flashlight, NPC detail,
judge re-check) to DONE.md and expand TODO.md with step-by-step plans for NPC
gear fit, venue geometry plus the committed gallery, and the Forward+ preset.
- Record the decisions, gotchas and portrait recipe in MEMORY.md; update the
Blender contract, the concept README and the capture section of README.md.
- Refresh the gallery captures affected by the avatar rebuild.
Checks: headless 228/228, Python 86/86, blender_assets audit exit 0,
scene_concepts audit all GOOD, screen_designs compare 11 good / 0 bad,
smoke_npc_budget OK, boot clean (only the known headless mesh warning).
- add the v2 runtime picks: per-phase skyline panoramas, brick, sidewalk
pavers, dry/wet asphalt, awning canvas, and their normal maps
- add the realism tooling and evidence: tools/scene_concepts.py, capture_realism.gd,
concept frames, reports/sheets, and tests
- retune phase lighting/fog/exposure, add sun yaw, brighten the night glow,
add the flashlight beam mesh, and rebuild the planter/tree assets
- regenerate all eleven staged screenshots from the current build; compare is
11 good / 0 bad
- finish the visual-alignment closeout in DONE/TODO, update architecture,
blender-assets, PLAN, and ignore rules (editable Blender sources untracked)
- keep the judge retry and document the verified default judge model
Verification: headless 227/227; Python tooling 86/86; check_screenshots 11/11.
zwitschi