Rework how a game starts: dev mode, a bare opening, and fleet growth

Adds a Dev Mode entry to the main menu and takes the play-testing conveniences out of a normal game, which turn out to be the same change from two directions. DEV MODE. Banks 2000 of every resource, grants 500 research points, and plants one of each planet type in the chunks around the spawn. Built ON TOP of reset_new_game() rather than beside it, so a dev game is a normal game plus a stock rather than a second definition of "fresh game" to keep in sync. Offered only when running from Godot - OS.has_feature("editor"), the tag an export clears - as is the map editor. Hidden AND guarded: pressing either anyway is refused, because visibility is presentation and the rule is the rule. The menu now lays its stack out in code. Hiding two of four entries with scene-authored offsets would leave holes in a shipped build - the same failure the HUD columns had - so it measures the entries that actually exist and centres on them. A NORMAL GAME NOW HANDS OVER NOTHING. No 500 banked ore (removed from both reset_new_game and the autoload's own default, so the two cannot disagree), and no gas giant guaranteed in the origin chunk. Both were play-testing conveniences that had become part of the real world's shape: every player got the same landmark in the same place. Play-testing wanted all four planet types anyway, and a normal game wanted none of them - different needs, now different mechanisms. WorldGen cannot read GameState back (an autoload is not resolvable as a global identifier that early, the hazard PlanetSetups.gd already works around), so GameState.dev_mode's setter PUSHES the flag down. World generation stays static and dependency-free, GameState stays the single source of truth, and dev planting is applied after every rng draw so a dev world and a normal one differ only in those four chunks. FLEET SIZE. BASE_FLEET_SIZE was doing two jobs - how many slots exist AND how many ships you start with - which forced a new game to open with a full fleet, leaving the first ship crafter nothing to do. Split into BASE_FLEET_SIZE (3 slots) and STARTING_SHIP_COUNT (1 vessel), so the opening has two empty slots to fill. A third copy of the old value turned up in PlanetAtmosphereController, hardcoded as spawn_ships(5) and silently degraded into "however many slots exist" once max_fleet_size() clamped it. The doctrine branch now runs 3 -> 10 slots. Wing (30 -> 15) and Squadron (70 -> 35, 2 -> 1 points) are cut hardest: they are no longer a mid-game luxury but the ordinary way out of the opening, and pricing them as a luxury made the early game feel stuck. Armada follows at 90/2. Two new tiers, Battlegroup and Grand Fleet, grant +2 each - seven single-vessel nodes in one lane would be a long monotonous chain for a branch that only ever does one thing. DEFAULT_FORMATION grows to 10 slots, because max_fleet_size() clamps to its length and a doctrine past that would charge real resources for nothing; test_fleet_growth.gd asserts that invariant directly. TEST FALLOUT, all of it from the deliberate change rather than a defect: - Tests that silently inherited the old 5-ship default now ask for the fleet they need. Several had to crew it from their first frame rather than _initialize(), where the engine's deferred tree-entry finalization undoes it - the same hazard those tests already documented for set_process(false). - test_planet_landing_proximity and test_return_position_matches_planet take the FIRST chunk holding a planet and land there. The guaranteed gas giant had been masking that this can now be a black hole, which destroys ships on contact. They exclude it, and clear the asteroids the field already placed. - test_pivot_controls measured rotation with angle_difference, which wraps at +/-pi, so a hold that turned a full circle read as no rotation. Latent flakiness that only ever showed under load; it now reads the controller's unwrapped pivot_hold_amount. - test_research_points was failing on ore, not points: can_unlock() checks the ore price too, and a fresh game banks nothing now. - test_gas_system's "a reachable gas source near the spawn" premise moved to dev mode, which is where that guarantee now lives. Full suite green at 97/97. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Derive the context action row from the build button, not a fixed y
2026-08-18 12:10:14 +02:00 · 2026-08-18 12:09:44 +02:00
22 changed files with 809 additions and 39 deletions
--- a/BuildController.gd
+++ b/BuildController.gd
@ -197,6 +197,8 @@ var context_actions_expanded: bool = false

 # Gap between the last resource row and the first row of HUD buttons.
 const HUD_COLUMN_MARGIN: float = 18.0
+# Vertical gap between one row of HUD buttons and the next.
+const HUD_ROW_GAP: float = 16.0


 # Seats the top-anchored HUD button columns below the resource readout instead
@ -438,8 +440,17 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> void:
 func _layout_context_buttons() -> void:
 	# Build is permanently under the resource counter. The contextual berth
 	# directly below it is compact until it has more than one real choice.
-	action_button.offset_top = 324
-	action_button.offset_bottom = 472
+	#
+	# "Directly below it" is MEASURED from the build button rather than
+	# written down as a y. This used to hardcode 324, which was the right
+	# answer only while the build button sat at the 160 the scene authored -
+	# once _seat_hud_columns() started moving the whole block down to clear
+	# the resource readout, this ran on the next context change and dropped
+	# the action row straight back on top of the build button.
+	var row_top: float = build_button.position.y + build_button.size.y + HUD_ROW_GAP
+	var row_height: float = build_button.size.y
+	action_button.offset_top = row_top
+	action_button.offset_bottom = row_top + row_height
 	var buttons: Array = _context_action_buttons()
 	if not context_actions_expanded:
 		for button in buttons:
@ -453,8 +464,8 @@ func _layout_context_buttons() -> void:
 		button.visible = true
 		button.offset_left = 188 + i * 164
 		button.offset_right = button.offset_left + 148
-		button.offset_top = 324
-		button.offset_bottom = 472
+		button.offset_top = row_top
+		button.offset_bottom = row_top + row_height


 func _context_action_buttons() -> Array:
--- a/GameState.gd
+++ b/GameState.gd
@ -5,6 +5,10 @@ const RESOURCE_DEFINITIONS = preload("res://ResourceDefinitions.gd")
 const BUILDING_DEFINITIONS = preload("res://BuildingDefinitions.gd")
 const VESSEL_DEFINITIONS = preload("res://VesselDefinitions.gd")
 const PLANET_DEFINITIONS = preload("res://PlanetDefinitions.gd")
+# By path, not by its `WorldGen` global name: an autoload compiles before the
+# global class table is necessarily populated, the same hazard PlanetSetups.gd
+# works around.
+const WORLD_GEN = preload("res://WorldGen.gd")


 # Autoload singleton - the one thing that survives change_scene_to_file()
@ -14,7 +18,7 @@ const PLANET_DEFINITIONS = preload("res://PlanetDefinitions.gd")
 # survive the trip has to live here instead.

 var has_return_position: bool = false
-var surviving_ship_count: int = 5
+var surviving_ship_count: int = STARTING_SHIP_COUNT
 var surviving_vessel_types: PackedStringArray = PackedStringArray()
 var return_world_position: Vector2 = Vector2.ZERO
 var return_camera_zoom: float = 1.0
@ -52,6 +56,20 @@ func set_fleet_speed_multiplier(value: float) -> void:
 signal research_points_changed(total: int)
 var research_points: int = 0

+# Set only by start_dev_game(), which the main menu offers only when running
+# from Godot. Makes WorldGen plant one of every planet type around the spawn.
+# Cleared by reset_new_game(), so starting a normal game after a dev one
+# cannot leave a dev world behind.
+#
+# The setter mirrors it into WorldGen, which cannot read it back: world
+# generation is static and dependency-free by design. This stays the single
+# place to set it - assigning dev_mode anywhere, tests included, reaches
+# world generation.
+var dev_mode: bool = false:
+	set(value):
+		dev_mode = value
+		WORLD_GEN.dev_planets_enabled = value
+
 # Explored-chunk history for the world map's fog-of-war reveal. Lives
 # here (not on ExplorationTracker, which gets destroyed and recreated on
 # every scene swap) so exploration progress isn't lost every time the
@ -68,7 +86,11 @@ const RESOURCE_TYPES: PackedStringArray = RESOURCE_DEFINITIONS.ORDER

 # All resource-bearing locations use the same container. The old public
 # names below are computed compatibility accessors, not separate storage.
-var bank_inventory: RefCounted = INVENTORY.new({RESOURCE_ORE: 500})
+# Starts EMPTY. A new game used to open with 500 ore banked, which quietly
+# skipped the opening of the game - the first mining run is what teaches the
+# fleet hold, the return trip and the mothership. Dev mode (start_dev_game)
+# is where a stocked start belongs.
+var bank_inventory: RefCounted = INVENTORY.new()
 var fleet_inventory: RefCounted = INVENTORY.new()

 var rocks: int:
@ -324,7 +346,11 @@ const SKILL_TREE: Array = [
 		"desc": "Build gas burners. Each converts gas into energy at its own site - hub transporters keep it stocked and collect what it makes.",
 	},
 	{
-		"id": "wing", "name": "Wing Doctrine", "cost": 30, "requires": "coordination",
+		# Cheaper than it was (30 ore / 1 point): the fleet now starts at
+		# BASE_FLEET_SIZE 3 rather than 5, so the first two doctrines are no
+		# longer a mid-game luxury but the ordinary way out of the opening.
+		# Pricing them as a luxury made the early game feel stuck.
+		"id": "wing", "name": "Wing Doctrine", "cost": 15, "requires": "coordination",
 		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 1, "research_points": 1,
 		"desc": "Permanent: +1 vessel in the fleet.",
 	},
@ -335,18 +361,41 @@ const SKILL_TREE: Array = [
 		# prerequisite, also x=0.82) instead, so the whole fleet-size
 		# doctrine branch now runs straight rather than zigzagging into
 		# someone else's lane.
-		"id": "squadron", "name": "Squadron Doctrine", "cost": 70, "requires": "wing",
+		# Also cut (70 ore / 2 points), for the same reason as wing.
+		"id": "squadron", "name": "Squadron Doctrine", "cost": 35, "requires": "wing",
+		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 1, "research_points": 1,
+		"desc": "Permanent: +1 vessel in the fleet.",
+	},
+	{
+		"id": "armada", "name": "Armada Doctrine", "cost": 90, "requires": "squadron",
 		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 1, "research_points": 2,
 		"desc": "Permanent: +1 vessel in the fleet.",
 	},
 	{
-		"id": "armada", "name": "Armada Doctrine", "cost": 150, "requires": "squadron",
-		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 1, "research_points": 3,
-		"desc": "Permanent: +1 vessel in the fleet.",
+		# The last two tiers grant +2 rather than +1. Seven single-vessel
+		# nodes in one lane would be a long, monotonous chain for a branch
+		# that only ever does one thing; two larger, costlier steps carry the
+		# ceiling from 6 to 10 while keeping the branch a readable length.
+		"id": "battlegroup", "name": "Battlegroup Doctrine", "cost": 180, "requires": "armada",
+		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 2, "research_points": 4,
+		"desc": "Permanent: +2 vessels in the fleet.",
+	},
+	{
+		"id": "grand_fleet", "name": "Grand Fleet Doctrine", "cost": 320, "requires": "battlegroup",
+		"x": 0.82, "fleet_bonus": 2, "research_points": 6,
+		"desc": "Permanent: +2 vessels in the fleet.",
 	},
 ]

-const BASE_FLEET_SIZE: int = 5
+# How many SLOTS the fleet has before any doctrine is researched. Distinct
+# from STARTING_SHIP_COUNT below: this is capacity, that is how many vessels
+# are actually flying. The two used to be one constant, which forced a new
+# game to open with a full fleet and left the first crafter with nothing to
+# do - there was no room to put a vessel until a doctrine was researched.
+const BASE_FLEET_SIZE: int = 3
+# A new game opens with a SINGLE vessel. Building the fleet up is the early
+# game, so the two empty slots are the first thing a ship crafter is for.
+const STARTING_SHIP_COUNT: int = 1

 var unlocked: Array = []

@ -448,7 +497,7 @@ func reset_progression() -> void:
 # fresh game.
 func reset_new_game() -> void:
 	has_return_position = false
-	surviving_ship_count = BASE_FLEET_SIZE
+	surviving_ship_count = STARTING_SHIP_COUNT
 	surviving_vessel_types = PackedStringArray()
 	return_world_position = Vector2.ZERO
 	return_camera_zoom = 1.0
@ -459,8 +508,9 @@ func reset_new_game() -> void:
 	_distorder_drain_progress = 0.0
 	boost_depleted_notice = false
 	research_points = 0
+	dev_mode = false
 	explored_chunks.clear()
-	bank_inventory = INVENTORY.new({RESOURCE_ORE: 500})
+	bank_inventory = INVENTORY.new()
 	fleet_inventory = INVENTORY.new()
 	buildings.clear()
 	next_building_id = 1
@ -473,6 +523,29 @@ func reset_new_game() -> void:
 	reset_formation()


+# Amounts a dev game opens with: enough of everything to reach any part of
+# the game immediately, without being so large that costs stop registering.
+const DEV_RESOURCE_AMOUNT: int = 2000
+const DEV_RESEARCH_POINTS: int = 500
+
+
+# A new game stocked for play-testing: every resource banked, research points
+# to spend, and one of each planet type next to the spawn (WorldGen reads
+# dev_mode for that). Offered by the main menu only when running from Godot -
+# see MainMenu.gd - so it cannot be reached in a shipped build.
+#
+# Deliberately built ON TOP of reset_new_game() rather than beside it, so a
+# dev game is a normal game plus a stock rather than a second, separately
+# maintained definition of what a fresh game is.
+func start_dev_game() -> void:
+	reset_new_game()
+	dev_mode = true
+	for resource_type in resource_types():
+		bank_inventory.set_amount(resource_type, DEV_RESOURCE_AMOUNT)
+	research_points = DEV_RESEARCH_POINTS
+	research_points_changed.emit(research_points)
+
+
 # --- building stock and production queue (#16) -----------------------------

 # Since #12, a building cannot just deduct from the bank at the moment of
@ -1101,9 +1174,13 @@ func get_mothership_position() -> Variant:
 # capacity upgrade is researched, but they are defined up front so the wedge
 # keeps a deliberate shape as it grows rather than having positions invented
 # at unlock time.
+# Ten slots, because max_fleet_size() caps itself on this array's length -
+# so the wedge has to be long enough for every doctrine to be worth buying.
+# The last pair continues the V rather than starting a new shape.
 const DEFAULT_FORMATION: Array = [
 	Vector2(0, -48), Vector2(-30, -8), Vector2(30, -8), Vector2(-60, 32), Vector2(60, 32),
 	Vector2(-90, 72), Vector2(90, 72), Vector2(0, 56),
+	Vector2(-120, 112), Vector2(120, 112),
 ]

 var formation: Array = DEFAULT_FORMATION.duplicate()
--- a/MainMenu.gd
+++ b/MainMenu.gd
@ -1,8 +1,35 @@
 extends Node2D

+# The menu stacks whatever entries are actually available, rather than
+# trusting the positions authored in the scene.
+#
+# Two of the four entries only exist when the game is run from Godot, so a
+# shipped build shows a two-entry menu and an editor run shows four. Fixed
+# offsets would leave holes where the hidden entries used to be - the same
+# failure the HUD's button columns had, where a literal y meant "below the
+# thing above me" and stopped being true when that thing moved. Here the
+# stack is measured instead, and centred on whatever it ends up containing.
+
+const ROW_BUTTON_HEIGHT: float = 128.0
+const ROW_LABEL_OFFSET: float = 134.0
+const ROW_LABEL_HEIGHT: float = 56.0
+const ROW_HEIGHT: float = ROW_LABEL_OFFSET + ROW_LABEL_HEIGHT
+const ROW_GAP: float = 20.0
+const ROW_PITCH: float = ROW_HEIGHT + ROW_GAP
+# The stack is centred on this rather than on the screen, to leave the title
+# above it room to breathe.
+const STACK_CENTER_Y: float = 40.0
+const STATUS_GAP: float = 20.0
+const STATUS_HEIGHT: float = 70.0
+
@onready var play_button: IconButton = $UI/PlayButton
+@onready var play_label: Label = $UI/PlayLabel
@onready var editor_button: IconButton = $UI/EditorButton
+@onready var editor_label: Label = $UI/EditorLabel
+@onready var dev_button: IconButton = $UI/DevModeButton
+@onready var dev_label: Label = $UI/DevModeLabel
@onready var quit_button: IconButton = $UI/QuitButton
+@onready var quit_label: Label = $UI/QuitLabel
@onready var status_label: Label = $UI/StatusLabel


@ -10,16 +37,78 @@ func _ready() -> void:
 	play_button.pressed.connect(_on_play_pressed)
 	editor_button.pressed.connect(_on_editor_pressed)
 	editor_button.enabled = true
+	dev_button.pressed.connect(_on_dev_mode_pressed)
+	dev_button.enabled = true
 	quit_button.pressed.connect(_on_quit_pressed)
 	quit_button.visible = not OS.has_feature("web")

+	# Dev mode and the map editor are development tools, not features of the
+	# game: they are for building and play-testing it, and a player who
+	# installed a build has no use for either. `editor` is the feature tag
+	# Godot sets when running from the editor and clears in an export, which
+	# is exactly the "started from Godot" distinction wanted here.
+	var developing: bool = is_developer_build()
+	editor_button.visible = developing
+	editor_label.visible = developing
+	dev_button.visible = developing
+	dev_label.visible = developing
+
+	_layout_stack()
+
+
+# Wrapped so tests can state the rule they are checking rather than
+# duplicating the feature-tag string.
+func is_developer_build() -> bool:
+	return OS.has_feature("editor")
+
+
+func _layout_stack() -> void:
+	var rows: Array = []
+	for row in [[play_button, play_label], [editor_button, editor_label],
+			[dev_button, dev_label], [quit_button, quit_label]]:
+		if row[0].visible:
+			rows.append(row)
+	if rows.is_empty():
+		return
+
+	# The last row carries no trailing gap, so the block is one pitch per row
+	# minus that gap.
+	var block_height: float = float(rows.size()) * ROW_PITCH - ROW_GAP
+	var top: float = STACK_CENTER_Y - block_height * 0.5
+	for row in rows:
+		var button: Control = row[0]
+		var label: Label = row[1]
+		button.offset_top = top
+		button.offset_bottom = top + ROW_BUTTON_HEIGHT
+		label.offset_top = top + ROW_LABEL_OFFSET
+		label.offset_bottom = top + ROW_LABEL_OFFSET + ROW_LABEL_HEIGHT
+		top += ROW_PITCH
+
+	# Status sits under the whole stack, where a message about any entry can
+	# be read without it shifting the entries themselves.
+	var status_top: float = top - ROW_GAP + STATUS_GAP
+	status_label.offset_top = status_top
+	status_label.offset_bottom = status_top + STATUS_HEIGHT
+

 func _on_play_pressed() -> void:
 	GameState.reset_new_game()
 	get_tree().change_scene_to_file("res://Main.tscn")


+func _on_dev_mode_pressed() -> void:
+	# Guarded as well as hidden. Visibility is presentation; this is the rule.
+	if not is_developer_build():
+		status_label.text = "Dev mode only runs from Godot"
+		return
+	GameState.start_dev_game()
+	get_tree().change_scene_to_file("res://Main.tscn")
+
+
 func _on_editor_pressed() -> void:
+	if not is_developer_build():
+		status_label.text = "Map editor only runs from Godot"
+		return
 	if editor_button.enabled:
 		get_tree().change_scene_to_file("res://PlanetSetupEditor.tscn")
 		return
--- a/MainMenu.tscn
+++ b/MainMenu.tscn
@ -97,6 +97,33 @@ theme_override_font_sizes/font_size = 32
 horizontal_alignment = 1
 text = "Map Editor"

+[node name="DevModeButton" type="Control" parent="UI"]
+anchor_left = 0.5
+anchor_right = 0.5
+anchor_top = 0.5
+anchor_bottom = 0.5
+offset_left = -64
+offset_right = 64
+offset_top = 190
+offset_bottom = 318
+script = ExtResource("2")
+icon = 29
+glow_color = Color(1, 0.7, 0.25, 1)
+
+[node name="DevModeLabel" type="Label" parent="UI"]
+mouse_filter = 2
+anchor_left = 0.5
+anchor_right = 0.5
+anchor_top = 0.5
+anchor_bottom = 0.5
+offset_left = -200
+offset_right = 200
+offset_top = 324
+offset_bottom = 380
+theme_override_font_sizes/font_size = 32
+horizontal_alignment = 1
+text = "Dev Mode"
+
 [node name="StatusLabel" type="Label" parent="UI"]
 anchor_left = 0.5
 anchor_right = 0.5
--- a/PlanetAtmosphereController.gd
+++ b/PlanetAtmosphereController.gd
@ -40,7 +40,12 @@ func _ready() -> void:
 		camera.zoom = Vector2(GameState.return_camera_zoom, GameState.return_camera_zoom)
 		GameState.has_return_position = false
 	else:
-		fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
+		# A brand new game. STARTING_SHIP_COUNT rather than a literal: this
+		# said 5, which was the old BASE_FLEET_SIZE written out by hand, and
+		# it silently became "however many slots exist" once max_fleet_size()
+		# clamped it. The opening fleet size is one decision and it lives in
+		# GameState.
+		fleet.spawn_ships(GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT, Vector2.ZERO)

 	# AsteroidField/PlanetField normally only populate nearby chunks once
 	# their own check_interval timer elapses (~1s) - fine during normal
--- a/WorldGen.gd
+++ b/WorldGen.gd
@ -29,12 +29,42 @@ const BLACK_HOLE_CHANCE: float = 0.05
 # research points had become to progression.
 const RESEARCH_LAB_CHANCE: float = 0.16

-# A predictable early gas source for play-testing. The origin chunk is
-# deterministically normal space. Its explicit in-chunk position puts it
-# roughly 1,080 world units from a fresh fleet: easy to reach, but not
-# sitting on the spawn.
-const NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_CHUNK: Vector2i = Vector2i.ZERO
-const NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_LOCAL_POS: Vector2 = Vector2(900.0, 600.0)
+# DEV MODE ONLY: one of every planet type, parked in the chunks immediately
+# around the spawn so all four can be reached in seconds.
+#
+# This replaces the guaranteed gas giant that used to sit in the origin
+# chunk for every game. That was a play-testing convenience which had become
+# part of the real world's shape - every player got the same landmark in the
+# same place, and the surrounding space was generated as if it were normal.
+# Play-testing wants ALL the planet types to hand, not just gas, and a
+# normal game wants none of them handed over; those are different needs and
+# they now have different mechanisms.
+#
+# The local positions keep each planet off the spawn point itself: a fresh
+# fleet starts at world origin, which is the top-left corner of chunk (0,0).
+const DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS: Dictionary = {
+	Vector2i(0, 0): PLANET_DEFINITIONS.GAS_GIANT_ID,
+	Vector2i(1, 0): PLANET_DEFINITIONS.ROCKY_ID,
+	Vector2i(0, 1): PLANET_DEFINITIONS.RESEARCH_LAB_ID,
+	Vector2i(1, 1): PLANET_DEFINITIONS.BLACK_HOLE_ID,
+}
+const DEV_PLANET_LOCAL_POS: Vector2 = Vector2(600.0, 600.0)
+
+
+# Dev mode plants a fixed set of planets; a normal game must not see them.
+#
+# PUSHED here by GameState.dev_mode's setter rather than read back out of the
+# autoload. World generation is deliberately dependency-free - it is static,
+# seeded purely by chunk coordinates, and callable from anywhere - and an
+# autoload cannot be named from here anyway: `GameState` is not resolvable as
+# a global identifier this early, the same load-order hazard PlanetSetups.gd
+# and PlanetSurfaceController.gd already work around. GameState.dev_mode
+# stays the single source of truth; this is its mirror.
+static var dev_planets_enabled: bool = false
+
+
+static func _dev_planets_active() -> bool:
+	return dev_planets_enabled

 static var _noise: FastNoiseLite
 static var _planet_noise: FastNoiseLite
@ -76,7 +106,7 @@ static func biome_at_chunk(chunk: Vector2i) -> int:


 static func has_planet_at_chunk(chunk: Vector2i) -> bool:
-	if chunk == NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_CHUNK:
+	if _dev_planets_active() and DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS.has(chunk):
 		return true
 	var n: float = _get_planet_noise().get_noise_2d(float(chunk.x), float(chunk.y))
 	return (biome_at_chunk(chunk) == Biome.ASTEROID_FIELD and n > PLANET_THRESHOLD) or (biome_at_chunk(chunk) == Biome.SPACE and n > GAS_GIANT_THRESHOLD)
@ -92,8 +122,9 @@ static func planet_data_at_chunk(chunk: Vector2i) -> Dictionary:
 	# can never drift out of sync with each other.
 	var rng: RandomNumberGenerator = RandomNumberGenerator.new()
 	rng.seed = hash(chunk)
-	var guaranteed_nearby_giant: bool = chunk == NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_CHUNK
-	var local_pos: Vector2 = NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_LOCAL_POS if guaranteed_nearby_giant \
+	var forced_definition_id: String = String(DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS.get(chunk, "")) \
+		if _dev_planets_active() else ""
+	var local_pos: Vector2 = DEV_PLANET_LOCAL_POS if not forced_definition_id.is_empty() \
 		else Vector2(rng.randf() * CHUNK_SIZE, rng.randf() * CHUNK_SIZE)
 	var shape_seed: int = rng.randi()
 	# Drawn unconditionally, in the same fixed position every call,
@ -105,15 +136,20 @@ static func planet_data_at_chunk(chunk: Vector2i) -> Dictionary:
 	var research_lab_roll: float = rng.randf()
 	# A stable per-chunk roll makes gas giants persistent landmarks rather
 	# than a different resource whenever the scene reloads.
-	var gas_giant: bool = guaranteed_nearby_giant or biome_at_chunk(chunk) == Biome.SPACE
+	var gas_giant: bool = biome_at_chunk(chunk) == Biome.SPACE
 	var definition_id: String = PLANET_DEFINITIONS.GAS_GIANT_ID if gas_giant else PLANET_DEFINITIONS.ROCKY_ID
 	# A rare third outcome, seeded the same deterministic way as everything
-	# else here. Never overrides the guaranteed early gas giant landmark -
-	# that chunk's whole purpose is to always be the same reachable source.
-	if not guaranteed_nearby_giant and black_hole_roll < BLACK_HOLE_CHANCE:
+	# else here.
+	if black_hole_roll < BLACK_HOLE_CHANCE:
 		definition_id = PLANET_DEFINITIONS.BLACK_HOLE_ID
-	elif not guaranteed_nearby_giant and research_lab_roll < RESEARCH_LAB_CHANCE:
+	elif research_lab_roll < RESEARCH_LAB_CHANCE:
 		definition_id = PLANET_DEFINITIONS.RESEARCH_LAB_ID
+	# Dev mode's fixed planting wins over every roll above. Applied last, and
+	# AFTER all the rng draws, so switching it on cannot shift which random
+	# values any other chunk consumes - a dev world and a normal one differ
+	# only in these four chunks.
+	if not forced_definition_id.is_empty():
+		definition_id = forced_definition_id
 	var definition: Resource = PLANET_DEFINITIONS.get_definition(definition_id)
 	var names: PackedStringArray = definition.names
 	var planet_name: String = names[rng.randi() % names.size()]
--- a/tests/test_dev_mode.gd
+++ b/tests/test_dev_mode.gd
@ -0,0 +1,152 @@
+extends SceneTree
+
+# Headless test: run with
+#   godot --headless -s res://tests/test_dev_mode.gd
+# A "Dev Mode" start for play-testing: one of every planet type next to the
+# spawn, every resource banked, and research points to spend. Offered by the
+# main menu only when the game is run from Godot, alongside the map editor.
+#
+# The same change took the training wheels off a NORMAL game: no 500 free
+# ore, and no gas giant guaranteed in the origin chunk. Both of those were
+# play-testing conveniences that had become part of the real game, so this
+# test covers both sides - what dev mode hands you, and what a normal game
+# no longer does.
+#
+# Covers:
+#   A. a dev game banks every resource type and research points
+#   B. a dev game is a normal game PLUS that, not a separate definition
+#   C. one of each planet type sits within a chunk or two of the spawn
+#   D. none of that leaks into a normal game, and starting one clears it
+#   E. a normal game starts with an empty bank
+#   F. the menu gates dev mode and the map editor on the same rule
+
+var game_state: Node
+var menu: Node
+var stage: int = 0
+var elapsed: float = 0.0
+
+
+func _initialize() -> void:
+	game_state = root.get_node("GameState")
+
+
+func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
+	elapsed += delta
+	match stage:
+		0:
+			# --- E. a normal game hands over nothing ----------------------
+			game_state.reset_new_game()
+			if game_state.rocks != 0:
+				return _fail("a normal game started with %d ore banked" % game_state.rocks)
+			for resource_type in game_state.resource_types():
+				if game_state.banked_resource(resource_type) != 0:
+					return _fail("a normal game started with %s banked" % resource_type)
+			if game_state.research_points != 0:
+				return _fail("a normal game started with research points")
+			if game_state.dev_mode:
+				return _fail("a normal game started in dev mode")
+			print("normal game starts with an empty bank and no research points")
+
+			# --- D. no dev planets in a normal game -----------------------
+			# The dev arrangement must not survive into a normal world. Noise
+			# could coincidentally place a planet in one of these chunks, so
+			# what is asserted is that the ARRANGEMENT is not reproduced, not
+			# that each chunk is empty.
+			var reproduced: bool = true
+			for chunk in WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS:
+				var expected: String = String(WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS[chunk])
+				var data: Dictionary = WorldGen.planet_data_at_chunk(chunk)
+				if not WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk) or String(data.get("definition_id", "")) != expected:
+					reproduced = false
+				if Vector2(data.get("local_pos", Vector2.ZERO)) == WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_LOCAL_POS:
+					return _fail("a normal game placed a planet at dev mode's fixed in-chunk position, in chunk %s" % chunk)
+			if reproduced:
+				return _fail("a normal game reproduced dev mode's whole planet arrangement")
+			print("normal game does not carry dev mode's planets")
+
+			# --- A + B. what a dev game hands over ------------------------
+			game_state.add_building(GameState.BUILDING_MOTHERSHIP, Vector2.ZERO)
+			game_state.planet_capture["chunk:9:9"] = {"captured": [true], "conquered": true}
+			game_state.start_dev_game()
+			if not game_state.dev_mode:
+				return _fail("start_dev_game() did not set dev_mode")
+			for resource_type in game_state.resource_types():
+				var banked: int = game_state.banked_resource(resource_type)
+				if banked != GameState.DEV_RESOURCE_AMOUNT:
+					return _fail("dev game banked %d of %s, expected %d" \
+						% [banked, resource_type, GameState.DEV_RESOURCE_AMOUNT])
+			if game_state.research_points != GameState.DEV_RESEARCH_POINTS:
+				return _fail("dev game granted %d research points, expected %d" \
+					% [game_state.research_points, GameState.DEV_RESEARCH_POINTS])
+			# B: it still went through reset_new_game, so a dirty run is gone.
+			if not game_state.buildings.is_empty() or not game_state.planet_capture.is_empty():
+				return _fail("a dev game did not reset the previous run - it must be a fresh game plus a stock")
+			print("dev game banks %d of each resource and %d research points, from a clean slate" \
+				% [GameState.DEV_RESOURCE_AMOUNT, GameState.DEV_RESEARCH_POINTS])
+
+			# --- C. one of each planet type, close by ---------------------
+			var found: Dictionary = {}
+			for chunk in WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS:
+				if not WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk):
+					return _fail("dev mode chunk %s holds no planet" % chunk)
+				var data: Dictionary = WorldGen.planet_data_at_chunk(chunk)
+				var definition_id: String = String(data.get("definition_id", ""))
+				if definition_id != String(WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS[chunk]):
+					return _fail("dev mode chunk %s holds a %s, expected a %s" \
+						% [chunk, definition_id, WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS[chunk]])
+				found[definition_id] = true
+				# "Near the start" is the whole point - a play-tester should
+				# reach any of them in seconds, not go exploring.
+				var world_pos: Vector2 = WorldGen.chunk_origin(chunk) + Vector2(data.local_pos)
+				if world_pos.length() > WorldGen.CHUNK_SIZE * 2.5:
+					return _fail("dev mode's %s spawned %.0f units away, too far to be 'near the start'" \
+						% [definition_id, world_pos.length()])
+			for definition_id in [PlanetDefinitions.ROCKY_ID, PlanetDefinitions.GAS_GIANT_ID,
+					PlanetDefinitions.BLACK_HOLE_ID, PlanetDefinitions.RESEARCH_LAB_ID]:
+				if not found.has(definition_id):
+					return _fail("dev mode is missing a %s - it must plant one of EVERY planet type" % definition_id)
+			print("dev mode plants all %d planet types within %.0f units of the spawn" \
+				% [found.size(), WorldGen.CHUNK_SIZE * 2.5])
+
+			# --- D. starting a normal game clears it ----------------------
+			game_state.reset_new_game()
+			if game_state.dev_mode:
+				return _fail("starting a normal game after a dev one left dev_mode set")
+			if game_state.rocks != 0 or game_state.research_points != 0:
+				return _fail("starting a normal game after a dev one kept the dev stock")
+			print("starting a normal game afterwards clears dev mode entirely")
+
+			menu = load("res://MainMenu.tscn").instantiate()
+			root.add_child(menu)
+			current_scene = menu
+			elapsed = 0.0
+			stage = 1
+			return false
+		1:
+			# --- F. the menu gates both on the same rule ------------------
+			if elapsed < 0.1:
+				return false
+			var developing: bool = menu.is_developer_build()
+			if menu.dev_button.visible != developing:
+				return _fail("the dev mode button's visibility did not follow is_developer_build()")
+			if menu.editor_button.visible != developing:
+				return _fail("the map editor button's visibility did not follow is_developer_build()")
+			if menu.play_button.visible != true or menu.quit_button.visible != (not OS.has_feature("web")):
+				return _fail("gating the development entries also hid an entry a player needs")
+			# Hiding is presentation; pressing it anyway must still be refused.
+			if not developing:
+				menu._on_dev_mode_pressed()
+				if game_state.dev_mode:
+					return _fail("dev mode started outside a developer build")
+			print("dev mode and the map editor are both gated on is_developer_build() (%s here)" % developing)
+
+			print("TEST_DEV_MODE: PASS")
+			quit(0)
+			return true
+	return false
+
+
+func _fail(message: String) -> bool:
+	print("TEST_DEV_MODE: FAIL (%s)" % message)
+	quit(1)
+	return true
--- a/tests/test_enemy_collision.gd
+++ b/tests/test_enemy_collision.gd
@ -32,6 +32,13 @@ func _physics_process(delta: float) -> bool:
 		# happens strictly after _ready(). Here, at the point _ready() is
 		# already confirmed complete, it's safe.
 		main_scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+		# Crew the fleet HERE, not in _initialize(), for the same reason the
+		# set_process(false) call above lives here: work done in _initialize()
+		# can be undone by the engine's deferred tree-entry finalization. A
+		# new game flies one vessel into three slots now, and this test needs
+		# a full one.
+		root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+		fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
 		target_ship = fleet.ships[0]
 		var enemy_scene: PackedScene = load("res://Enemy.tscn")
 		enemy = enemy_scene.instantiate()
--- a/tests/test_enemy_combat.gd
+++ b/tests/test_enemy_combat.gd
@ -32,6 +32,13 @@ func _physics_process(delta: float) -> bool:
 		# happens strictly after _ready(). Here, at the point _ready() is
 		# already confirmed complete, it's safe.
 		main_scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+		# Crew the fleet HERE, not in _initialize(), for the same reason the
+		# set_process(false) call above lives here: work done in _initialize()
+		# can be undone by the engine's deferred tree-entry finalization. A
+		# new game flies one vessel into three slots now, and this test needs
+		# a full one.
+		root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+		fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
 		var enemy_scene: PackedScene = load("res://Enemy.tscn")
 		enemy = enemy_scene.instantiate()
 		enemy.position = fleet.get_centroid() + SPAWN_OFFSET
--- a/tests/test_enemy_mothership.gd
+++ b/tests/test_enemy_mothership.gd
@ -54,6 +54,9 @@ var elapsed: float = 0.0
 func _initialize() -> void:
 	game_state = root.get_node("GameState")
 	beam_script = load("res://EnemyBigLaserBeam.gd")
+	# Four vessels are crewed below, past BASE_FLEET_SIZE's 3 slots, so the
+	# capacity doctrines are granted rather than assumed.
+	game_state.unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
 	main = load("res://Main.tscn").instantiate()
 	root.add_child(main)
 	fleet = main.get_node("Fleet")
--- a/tests/test_fleet_growth.gd
+++ b/tests/test_fleet_growth.gd
@ -0,0 +1,139 @@
+extends SceneTree
+
+# Headless gameplay test: run with
+#   godot --headless -s res://tests/test_fleet_growth.gd
+# A new game opens with a SINGLE vessel and three slots, and the fleet grows
+# from there through the doctrine branch of the skill tree.
+#
+# BASE_FLEET_SIZE used to be both "how many slots exist" and "how many ships
+# you start with", which forced a new game to open with a full fleet - there
+# was nowhere to put a vessel until a doctrine was researched, so the first
+# ship crafter had nothing to do. The two are now separate constants, and
+# this test pins the distinction.
+#
+# Covers:
+#   A. a new game starts with one vessel and three slots
+#   B. the fleet really spawns one ship, and can be grown into its slots
+#   C. every doctrine raises the ceiling by its own stated bonus
+#   D. the doctrine branch is a chain, in increasing cost order
+#   E. the tree cannot promise a slot the formation has no room for - the
+#      invariant that made extra doctrines silently worthless
+
+const DOCTRINE_CHAIN: Array = ["wing", "squadron", "armada", "battlegroup", "grand_fleet"]
+
+var game_state: Node
+var scene: Node
+var fleet: Node
+var stage: int = 0
+var elapsed: float = 0.0
+
+
+func _initialize() -> void:
+	game_state = root.get_node("GameState")
+	game_state.reset_new_game()
+
+
+func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
+	elapsed += delta
+	match stage:
+		0:
+			# --- A. the opening position ---------------------------------
+			if GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT != 1:
+				return _fail("a new game starts with %d vessels, expected 1" % GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT)
+			if GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE != 3:
+				return _fail("the fleet has %d slots by default, expected 3" % GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE)
+			if game_state.surviving_ship_count != GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT:
+				return _fail("reset_new_game left %d surviving ships" % game_state.surviving_ship_count)
+			if game_state.max_fleet_size() != GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE:
+				return _fail("an unresearched fleet caps at %d, expected %d" \
+					% [game_state.max_fleet_size(), GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE])
+			print("new game: %d vessel, %d slots" % [GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT, GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE])
+
+			# --- C + D. the doctrine chain -------------------------------
+			var expected: int = GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE
+			var previous_cost: int = -1
+			var previous_points: int = -1
+			var previous_id: String = "coordination"
+			for id in DOCTRINE_CHAIN:
+				var node: Dictionary = game_state.skill_node(id)
+				if node.is_empty():
+					return _fail("no skill node '%s' - the doctrine chain is broken" % id)
+				var bonus: int = int(node.get("fleet_bonus", 0))
+				if bonus <= 0:
+					return _fail("'%s' is in the doctrine chain but grants no fleet_bonus" % id)
+				if String(node.get("requires", "")) != previous_id:
+					return _fail("'%s' requires '%s', expected it to follow '%s' - the branch is not one chain" \
+						% [id, node.get("requires", ""), previous_id])
+				# Later tiers must not be cheaper than earlier ones, or the
+				# order the player meets them stops matching what they cost.
+				var cost: int = int(node.get("cost", 0))
+				var points: int = int(node.get("research_points", 0))
+				if cost <= previous_cost:
+					return _fail("'%s' costs %d ore, not more than the tier before it (%d)" % [id, cost, previous_cost])
+				if points < previous_points:
+					return _fail("'%s' costs %d research points, fewer than the tier before it (%d)" \
+						% [id, points, previous_points])
+				previous_cost = cost
+				previous_points = points
+				previous_id = id
+
+				game_state.unlocked.append(id)
+				expected += bonus
+				if game_state.max_fleet_size() != expected:
+					return _fail("after researching '%s' the fleet caps at %d, expected %d" \
+						% [id, game_state.max_fleet_size(), expected])
+				print("  %-12s +%d -> %2d slots (%d ore, %d research)" % [id, bonus, expected, cost, points])
+
+			# --- E. no doctrine may be swallowed by the formation ---------
+			# max_fleet_size() clamps to the formation's length, so a doctrine
+			# added without extending DEFAULT_FORMATION would cost the player
+			# real resources and grant nothing.
+			if expected > GameState.DEFAULT_FORMATION.size():
+				return _fail("the doctrines promise %d slots but DEFAULT_FORMATION only defines %d - the last ones buy nothing" \
+					% [expected, GameState.DEFAULT_FORMATION.size()])
+			print("full doctrine chain reaches %d slots, with %d formation positions defined" \
+				% [expected, GameState.DEFAULT_FORMATION.size()])
+
+			# --- B. what actually flies ----------------------------------
+			game_state.reset_new_game()
+			scene = load("res://Main.tscn").instantiate()
+			root.add_child(scene)
+			fleet = scene.get_node("Fleet")
+			elapsed = 0.0
+			stage = 1
+			return false
+		1:
+			if elapsed < 0.3:
+				return false
+			scene.get_node("AsteroidField").set_process(false)
+			scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+			if fleet.ships.size() != GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT:
+				return _fail("a fresh scene spawned %d vessels, expected %d" \
+					% [fleet.ships.size(), GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT])
+			print("a fresh game really flies %d vessel" % fleet.ships.size())
+
+			# The two empty slots are what the opening is for, so they have to
+			# be fillable without researching anything.
+			for i in range(GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE - GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT):
+				if not fleet.add_ship(GameState.VESSEL_INTERCEPTOR):
+					return _fail("could not crew slot %d of the starting fleet" % (i + 2))
+			if fleet.ships.size() != GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE:
+				return _fail("the fleet holds %d after filling its slots, expected %d" \
+					% [fleet.ships.size(), GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE])
+			# And the cap has to actually bite past that.
+			if fleet.add_ship(GameState.VESSEL_INTERCEPTOR):
+				return _fail("a %dth vessel joined an unresearched fleet of %d slots" \
+					% [fleet.ships.size(), GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE])
+			print("the starting slots fill to %d and refuse a %dth" \
+				% [GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE, GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE + 1])
+
+			print("TEST_FLEET_GROWTH: PASS")
+			quit(0)
+			return true
+	return false
+
+
+func _fail(message: String) -> bool:
+	print("TEST_FLEET_GROWTH: FAIL (%s)" % message)
+	quit(1)
+	return true
--- a/tests/test_gas_system.gd
+++ b/tests/test_gas_system.gd
@ -20,15 +20,21 @@ func _initialize() -> void:
 func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 	elapsed += delta
 	if stage == 0:
-		var nearby_chunk: Vector2i = WorldGen.NEARBY_GAS_GIANT_CHUNK
+		# A guaranteed gas source near the spawn is now a DEV MODE guarantee
+		# rather than something every game gets - a normal game has to go and
+		# find one. Dev mode is therefore where this premise still holds, and
+		# where a play-tester reaching gas quickly still matters.
+		game_state.dev_mode = true
+		var nearby_chunk: Vector2i = Vector2i.ZERO
+		for chunk in WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS:
+			if String(WorldGen.DEV_PLANET_CHUNKS[chunk]) == "gas_giant":
+				nearby_chunk = chunk
 		var nearby_data: Dictionary = WorldGen.planet_data_at_chunk(nearby_chunk)
 		var nearby_position: Vector2 = WorldGen.chunk_origin(nearby_chunk) + nearby_data.local_pos
 		if not WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(nearby_chunk):
-			return _fail("nearby gas giant chunk does not contain a planet")
-		if WorldGen.biome_at_chunk(nearby_chunk) != WorldGen.Biome.SPACE:
-			return _fail("nearby gas giant is not in the normal space biome")
+			return _fail("dev mode's gas giant chunk does not contain a planet")
 		if String(nearby_data.get("definition_id", "")) != "gas_giant":
-			return _fail("nearby guaranteed planet is not a gas source")
+			return _fail("dev mode's guaranteed planet is not a gas source")
 		if nearby_position.length() > WorldGen.CHUNK_SIZE * 2.0:
 			return _fail("nearby gas giant spawned too far away: %s" % nearby_position)

--- a/tests/test_hud_layout.gd
+++ b/tests/test_hud_layout.gd
@ -0,0 +1,130 @@
+extends SceneTree
+
+# Headless test: run with
+#   godot --headless -s res://tests/test_hud_layout.gd
+# The HUD's top-anchored button columns must not collide with the resource
+# readout, and must not collide with each other.
+#
+# Both halves are regressions that actually shipped:
+#   - ResourceReadout builds one row per resource type AT RUNTIME, so the
+#     scene's authored offset_bottom understated it and the build button,
+#     at a hardcoded y, ended up underneath the resource list.
+#   - Seating the columns below the readout then exposed a second hardcoded
+#     y: _layout_context_buttons() wrote the action row back to 324 on the
+#     next context change, dropping it on top of the moved build button.
+#
+# Both were a literal coordinate that encoded "below the thing above me" and
+# stopped being true when the thing above moved. So this asserts the
+# RELATIONSHIP rather than any particular coordinate - a fresh hardcoded y
+# fails here whatever value someone picks.
+#
+# Covers:
+#   A. every HUD button clears the resource readout's real bottom
+#   B. no two simultaneously-usable buttons overlap each other
+#   C. both still hold after _layout_context_buttons() runs, collapsed and
+#      expanded - the path that broke
+#   D. it holds with MORE resource types than the scene was authored for,
+#      which is the direction this drifts
+
+var scene: Node
+var controller: Node
+var readout: Node
+var stage: int = 0
+var elapsed: float = 0.0
+
+# Deliberately share a row: a building either offers its own action or a
+# hangar, never both, so their rects coinciding is the design.
+const EXCLUSIVE_PAIRS: Array = [["building_action_button", "hangar_button"]]
+
+
+func _initialize() -> void:
+	scene = load("res://Main.tscn").instantiate()
+	root.add_child(scene)
+	controller = scene.get_node("BuildController")
+	readout = scene.get_node("UI/ResourceReadout")
+
+
+func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
+	elapsed += delta
+	match stage:
+		0:
+			if elapsed < 0.2:
+				return false
+			scene.get_node("AsteroidField").set_process(false)
+			scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+			if not _check("as laid out at load"):
+				return true
+
+			# --- C. the path that broke it ------------------------------
+			controller.context_actions_expanded = false
+			controller._layout_context_buttons()
+			if not _check("after _layout_context_buttons() collapsed"):
+				return true
+
+			controller.context_actions_expanded = true
+			controller._layout_context_buttons()
+			if not _check("after _layout_context_buttons() expanded"):
+				return true
+
+			print("TEST_HUD_LAYOUT: PASS")
+			quit(0)
+			return true
+	return false
+
+
+func _buttons() -> Dictionary:
+	return {
+		"build_button": controller.build_button,
+		"transfer_button": controller.transfer_button,
+		"action_button": controller.action_button,
+		"landing_button": controller.landing_button,
+		"building_action_button": controller.building_action_button,
+		"hangar_button": controller.hangar_button,
+	}
+
+
+func _check(context: String) -> bool:
+	var buttons: Dictionary = _buttons()
+	var names: Array = buttons.keys()
+
+	# --- A. clear of the resource readout ---------------------------------
+	# content_bottom() is the readout's REAL extent, from the live resource
+	# list - not the stale height the scene happens to declare.
+	var readout_bottom: float = readout.content_bottom()
+	for name in names:
+		var button: Control = buttons[name]
+		if button == null:
+			continue
+		if button.position.y < readout_bottom:
+			return _fail("%s sits at y %.0f, inside the resource readout which reaches %.0f (%s)" \
+				% [name, button.position.y, readout_bottom, context])
+
+	# --- B. clear of each other -------------------------------------------
+	for i in range(names.size()):
+		for j in range(i + 1, names.size()):
+			var a_name: String = names[i]
+			var b_name: String = names[j]
+			if _is_exclusive(a_name, b_name):
+				continue
+			var a: Control = buttons[a_name]
+			var b: Control = buttons[b_name]
+			if a == null or b == null:
+				continue
+			if a.get_rect().intersects(b.get_rect()):
+				return _fail("%s %s overlaps %s %s (%s)" \
+					% [a_name, a.get_rect(), b_name, b.get_rect(), context])
+	print("clear of the readout (reaches %.0f) and of each other - %s" % [readout_bottom, context])
+	return true
+
+
+func _is_exclusive(a: String, b: String) -> bool:
+	for pair in EXCLUSIVE_PAIRS:
+		if (a == pair[0] and b == pair[1]) or (a == pair[1] and b == pair[0]):
+			return true
+	return false
+
+
+func _fail(message: String) -> bool:
+	print("TEST_HUD_LAYOUT: FAIL (%s)" % message)
+	quit(1)
+	return false
--- a/tests/test_hud_layout.gd.uid
+++ b/tests/test_hud_layout.gd.uid
@ -0,0 +1 @@
+uid://65cagevj7qbj
--- a/tests/test_main_menu.gd
+++ b/tests/test_main_menu.gd
@ -35,6 +35,14 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 				return false
 			if not menu.editor_button.enabled:
 				return _fail("map editor button is not enabled (#48 shipped)")
+			# Both development entries follow the same rule, and the rule is
+			# what is under test rather than the concrete boolean - this run
+			# is from Godot, so it exercises the "shown" branch.
+			var developing: bool = menu.is_developer_build()
+			if menu.editor_button.visible != developing or menu.editor_label.visible != developing:
+				return _fail("map editor entry visibility did not follow is_developer_build()")
+			if menu.dev_button.visible != developing or menu.dev_label.visible != developing:
+				return _fail("dev mode entry visibility did not follow is_developer_build()")
 			if menu.quit_button.visible != (not OS.has_feature("web")):
 				return _fail("quit button visibility did not follow OS.has_feature('web')")

@ -74,8 +82,10 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 			if elapsed < 0.3:
 				return false
 			var on_main: bool = current_scene != null and current_scene.name == "Main"
-			var reset_ok: bool = game_state.rocks == 500 and game_state.buildings.is_empty() \
-				and game_state.surviving_ship_count == GameState.BASE_FLEET_SIZE \
+			# A normal game now starts with NOTHING banked - the opening
+			# mining run is the tutorial, and 500 free ore skipped it.
+			var reset_ok: bool = game_state.rocks == 0 and game_state.buildings.is_empty() \
+				and game_state.surviving_ship_count == GameState.STARTING_SHIP_COUNT \
 				and game_state.planet_capture.is_empty()
 			print("on_main=%s reset_ok=%s rocks=%d buildings=%d ship_count=%d" % [
 				on_main, reset_ok, game_state.rocks, game_state.buildings.size(),
--- a/tests/test_pivot_controls.gd
+++ b/tests/test_pivot_controls.gd
@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ var cw: IconButton
 var stage: int = 0
 var elapsed: float = 0.0
 var angle_at_hold_start: float = 0.0
+var hold_amount_at_start: float = 0.0
 var angle_after_hold: float = 0.0
 # GameState (an autoload) is not available as a bare identifier from a
 # script that extends SceneTree - fetch it via the tree root instead.
@ -45,6 +46,13 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 		0:
 			scene.get_node("AsteroidField").set_process(false)
 			scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+			# Crew the fleet HERE, not in _initialize(): work done there can
+			# be undone by the engine's deferred tree-entry finalization, the
+			# same reason the set_process(false) calls above sit at this
+			# point. A new game flies one vessel now, and the checks below
+			# index ships[1].
+			game_state.unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+			fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
 			# Hold the button down without releasing it.
 			angle_at_hold_start = _angle()
 			cw.pressed_down = true
@ -127,6 +135,7 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 				return true

 			angle_at_hold_start = _angle()
+			hold_amount_at_start = controller.pivot_hold_amount
 			elapsed = 0.0
 			stage = 2
 			return false
@ -135,7 +144,12 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 				return false
 			# Both fingers still down: the formation must have kept turning
 			# while the stick kept re-issuing move orders every frame.
-			var turned_while_steering: float = absf(angle_difference(angle_at_hold_start, _angle()))
+			# The ACCUMULATED turn, not the angle difference. Comparing
+			# formation angles wraps at +/-pi, so a hold that happened to
+			# rotate a full turn read as no rotation at all - and how far it
+			# gets in 0.4s depends on frame times, so this failed only under
+			# load. pivot_hold_amount is the same quantity without the wrap.
+			var turned_while_steering: float = controller.pivot_hold_amount - hold_amount_at_start
 			print("turned %.3f rad while steering" % turned_while_steering)
 			if turned_while_steering < 0.05:
 				print("TEST_PIVOT_CONTROLS: FAIL (no rotation while the stick was held)")
--- a/tests/test_planet_atmosphere_transition.gd
+++ b/tests/test_planet_atmosphere_transition.gd
@ -64,6 +64,12 @@ func _initialize() -> void:
 	current_scene = main_scene

 	fleet = main_scene.get_node("Fleet")
+	# A new game now flies STARTING_SHIP_COUNT (1) vessel into BASE_FLEET_SIZE
+	# (3) slots. This test needs a crewed fleet, so it asks for one outright
+	# rather than inheriting whatever a fresh game happens to open with -
+	# which is exactly what changed underneath it.
+	root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+	fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
 	planet_field = main_scene.get_node("PlanetField")
 	landing_controller = main_scene.get_node("LandingController")
 	asteroid_field_ref = main_scene.get_node("AsteroidField")
--- a/tests/test_planet_landing_proximity.gd
+++ b/tests/test_planet_landing_proximity.gd
@ -20,7 +20,13 @@ func _initialize() -> void:
 	for x in range(-15, 15):
 		for y in range(-15, 15):
 			var chunk: Vector2i = Vector2i(x, y)
-			if WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk):
+			# Not a black hole: it destroys ships on contact, and this
+			# scan takes the FIRST planet it finds. That used to be the gas
+			# giant guaranteed in the origin chunk; with that guarantee gone
+			# the scan can land the fleet on something that kills it, which
+			# is not what either of these tests is about.
+			if WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk) \
+					and String(WorldGen.planet_data_at_chunk(chunk).get("definition_id", "")) != "black_hole":
 				target_chunk = chunk
 				found = true
 				break
@ -57,6 +63,18 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 			# complete (fleet.ships is reliably populated by now), it's safe.
 			main_scene.get_node("AsteroidField").set_process(false)
 			main_scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+			# Crew the fleet HERE rather than in _initialize(): work done
+			# there can be undone by the engine's deferred tree-entry
+			# finalization, the same reason the set_process(false) calls
+			# above live at this point. A new game flies one vessel now.
+			root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+			fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
+			# Silencing the field does not remove what it already placed, and
+			# those keep drifting - a rock taking the fleet out mid-test reads
+			# here as a landing failure.
+			for rock in get_nodes_in_group("asteroids"):
+				if is_instance_valid(rock):
+					rock.queue_free()

 			# PlanetField only scans chunks near the fleet's CURRENT
 			# position, so it never even looks at target_chunk unless the
--- a/tests/test_research_points.gd
+++ b/tests/test_research_points.gd
@ -61,6 +61,10 @@ func _initialize() -> void:

 	# --- F. a fresh game still reaches a crafter and an extractor -------------
 	game_state.reset_new_game()
+	# can_unlock() also checks the ore price, and a new game now banks
+	# nothing - the opening mining run is the point. Stock the ore so this
+	# checks what it says it checks: reachability at ZERO RESEARCH POINTS.
+	game_state.rocks = 500
 	if not game_state.can_unlock("shipyards"):
 		return _fail("shipyards is not reachable with 0 research points")
 	game_state.unlock("shipyards")
--- a/tests/test_resource_transfer.gd
+++ b/tests/test_resource_transfer.gd
@ -55,6 +55,12 @@ func _initialize() -> void:
 	scene = load("res://Main.tscn").instantiate()
 	root.add_child(scene)
 	fleet = scene.get_node("Fleet")
+	# A new game now flies STARTING_SHIP_COUNT (1) vessel into BASE_FLEET_SIZE
+	# (3) slots. This test needs a crewed fleet, so it asks for one outright
+	# rather than inheriting whatever a fresh game happens to open with -
+	# which is exactly what changed underneath it.
+	root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+	fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
 	controller = scene.get_node("BuildController")


--- a/tests/test_resources_and_buildings.gd
+++ b/tests/test_resources_and_buildings.gd
@ -104,6 +104,10 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 			if elapsed < 0.3:
 				return false
 			# --- crafter adds a ship --------------------------------------
+			# Crafting adds a FOURTH vessel below, one past the 3 slots a
+			# new game has, so make room first - the subject here is the
+			# crafter, not the fleet cap.
+			game_state.unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
 			fleet.spawn_ships(3, Vector2.ZERO)
 			var before_ships: int = fleet.ships.size()
 			var before_rocks: int = game_state.rocks
--- a/tests/test_return_position_matches_planet.gd
+++ b/tests/test_return_position_matches_planet.gd
@ -25,7 +25,13 @@ func _initialize() -> void:
 	for x in range(-15, 15):
 		for y in range(-15, 15):
 			var chunk: Vector2i = Vector2i(x, y)
-			if WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk):
+			# Not a black hole: it destroys ships on contact, and this
+			# scan takes the FIRST planet it finds. That used to be the gas
+			# giant guaranteed in the origin chunk; with that guarantee gone
+			# the scan can land the fleet on something that kills it, which
+			# is not what either of these tests is about.
+			if WorldGen.has_planet_at_chunk(chunk) \
+					and String(WorldGen.planet_data_at_chunk(chunk).get("definition_id", "")) != "black_hole":
 				target_chunk = chunk
 				found = true
 				break
@ -53,6 +59,18 @@ func _process(delta: float) -> bool:
 		0:
 			main_scene.get_node("AsteroidField").set_process(false)
 			main_scene.get_node("EnemySpawner").set_process(false)
+			# Crew the fleet HERE rather than in _initialize(): work done
+			# there can be undone by the engine's deferred tree-entry
+			# finalization, the same reason the set_process(false) calls
+			# above live at this point. A new game flies one vessel now.
+			root.get_node("GameState").unlocked.append_array(["wing", "squadron", "armada"])
+			fleet.spawn_ships(5, Vector2.ZERO)
+			# Silencing the field does not remove what it already placed, and
+			# those keep drifting - a rock taking the fleet out mid-test reads
+			# here as a landing failure.
+			for rock in get_nodes_in_group("asteroids"):
+				if is_instance_valid(rock):
+					rock.queue_free()
 			var vicinity_pos: Vector2 = WorldGen.chunk_origin(target_chunk) + Vector2.ONE * WorldGen.CHUNK_SIZE * 0.5
 			for ship in fleet.ships:
 				ship.position = vicinity_pos