wow-viewer Map Editing Foundation Plan

Prompt file imported from akspa0/parp-tools (.codex/prompts/editor-plan/wow-viewer-map-editing-foundation-plan.md). Copyright stays with the author.

Design the first narrow editing foundation for wow-viewer so terrain and object edits can become real saved map changes instead of panel-local state.

Read First

1. gillijimproject_refactor/memory-bank/activeContext.md
2. gillijimproject_refactor/memory-bank/progress.md
3. gillijimproject_refactor/src/MdxViewer/memory-bank/activeContext.md
4. gillijimproject_refactor/src/MdxViewer/memory-bank/terrain_editing_plan_2026-02-14.md
5. gillijimproject_refactor/plans/wow_viewer_editor_plan_2026-04-03.md
6. wow-viewer/README.md
7. AGENTS.md

Goal

Define the shared service, persistence, and proof boundary for the first real editing slice in wow-viewer, covering terrain edits, object edits, and save/write ownership without letting GUI code own the format truth.

Existing Inputs To Account For

• MdxViewer chunk clipboard copy or paste and editor overlays
• alpha-mask import or export and related terrain-image workflows
• PM4 workbench, saved PM4 object-match selections, and MPRL evidence overlays
• current ADT or WDT or object readers and partial write or conversion seams in WoWMapConverter.Core
• wow-viewer shared ADT placement, texture, and top-level summary seams

Non-Negotiable Constraints

• The first durable edit/save boundary must live in wow-viewer shared libraries or runtime services, not inside one UI panel.
• PM4 MPRL data can guide terrain conform and saved object decisions, but it must stay labeled as evidence or heuristic until each promoted behavior is proven.
• Saving a moved object and saving a PM4-backed chosen object must share one persistence model instead of separate one-off paths.
• Terrain write ownership, object write ownership, dirty-state tracking, and save packaging are different milestones; do not blur them together.
• Do not claim editor closure from settings persistence or saved PM4 match metadata alone.

What The Plan Must Produce

1. the first editing domain boundary in wow-viewer
2. the terrain-edit, object-edit, and map-save contracts
3. the dirty-state and transaction model
4. how PM4 MPRL evidence feeds terrain conform or placement edits
5. the file families that must be readable and writable for the first saved-map milestone
6. the first narrow vertical slice to implement
7. the real-data proof that would make that slice honest

Deliverables

Return all items:

1. editing service-layer breakdown
2. terrain and object persistence model
3. dirty-state or transaction design
4. PM4 MPRL evidence role and limits
5. first save-capable milestone
6. validation plan
7. risks or open questions still blocking later editor work

First Output

Start with:

1. the first saved-map milestone you think should exist
2. the shared services that milestone needs
3. what the milestone explicitly will not save yet
4. the smallest real-data proof that would make it credible