rimlike/docs/art.md

# rimlike — art / tileset strategy

> Companion to [`memory.md`](../memory.md). This file is the **art strategy**: owned tilesets (now substantial), aesthetic anchor, gaps, license notes, autotile gotchas.

## Aesthetic anchor

**Primary: ElvGames "Ultimate Farming RPG" bundle (Humble) — cute-farming-RPG palette.**

The aesthetic shifted on 2026-05-10 when the bundle was found. Previously locked as "vibrant medieval-fantasy" via Ventilatore + planned Mana Seed; now the spine is ElvGames' bright, cheerful, Stardew-adjacent farming-RPG style. Project tone: **"Going Medieval × Stardew × Rimworld" — cozier than Rimworld, deeper than Stardew, mobile-first.**

Ventilatore Fantasy Tileset Bundle (already owned) stays as a **secondary** layer for biome variety, decorative props, and medieval-flavor accents. Mana Seed series is **dropped** from the buy plan entirely (the bundle covers what we'd planned to purchase).

## Owned art foundation

### Primary — ElvGames "Ultimate Farming RPG" Humble Bundle

Local path: `/mnt/d/godot/assets/humble set new/`. Three tiers, ~70 packs, ~2.8 GB. All 16×16 pixel art (matches our locked spec). License: commercial use OK with credit ("ElvGames"), no NFT/crypto, no resale of pack itself, modification permitted.

**MVP-essential packs (the working art set):**

| Need | Pack | Tier |
|---|---|---|
| Default biome (forest) | Forest Tileset 4 Seasons | T3 |
| Alt biome (open ground) | Farm Game Grasslands 4 Seasons | T1 |
| Mining + caves + ores + crystals + minerals | Mines Tileset 16x16 | T3 |
| Crops with growth stages (16+ crops) | Crops with Stages 01 / 02 / 03 | T2/T3 |
| Pawn sprites (15 characters with anim) | Farming Characters Pack | T1 |
| Animals / livestock (chicken, cow, duck, goat, pig) | Animal Sprites Pixelart | T2 |
| Item icons | Item Icons 16x16 | T2 |
| Workbench / decoration | House Interior Tileset | T3 |
| House exteriors (2 seasons) | Houses Tileset 2 Seasons | T3 |
| Castle / fortress / keep | Fortress Tileset 2 Seasons | T3 |
| Defensive structures (sandbags, towers) | Pixel Tower Defense 1 | T2 |
| Music — cozy ambient | Cozy Melodies Pack 1, Retro Farming Music 1 | T1 |
| SFX — combat / crafting / mining / monsters / UI / sword | Multiple SFX packs | T3 |

**Bonus / post-MVP packs:**

| Use | Pack |
|---|---|
| Monster variety (15 species) for v2 threat events | EvoMonster Pack 01–15 |
| RPG-style enemies for combat polish | Turn-Based RPG Monsters Pack 7–16 |
| Modular building components | Modular Pixel Houses Pack 01–05 |
| Alt aesthetic option | Retro Kingdom Explorer 16x16 series (Castle/Forest/Graveyard/Grotto/Plains/Town) |
| Additional biomes | Mountains 2 Seasons / Marketplace / Village / Frozen Caves / Magma Caves / Dark Castle |
| Effects / spells | Magic and Spells SFX 5/6 |

### Secondary — Ventilatore Fantasy Tileset Complete Bundle

Owner: us. Bundle URL: <https://itch.io/s/117124/the-fantasy-tileset-complete-bundle>. Six packs, 16×16, vibrant medieval-fantasy.

**Use as:** decorative flourish — animated water, encampment props, medieval fences, foliage variety, bridges. Where ElvGames' farming-RPG palette feels too cute, slot in a Ventilatore prop.

**Skip:** prefab houses (wrong paradigm), most exterior buildings (ElvGames covers them).

## Pack file structure

ElvGames packs are consistently structured:

```
<Pack Name>/
├── Characters/        # NPC sprite variants per pack
├── Item Icons/        # category-relevant icons
├── Objects/           # decorative / interactive objects
├── Tilesets/          # main tilesheet PNGs
├── RPG Maker/         # RPG-Maker import format (ignore)
├── License.txt
├── Read Me.txt
├── *.unitypackage     # Unity import (ignore)
└── *.yymps            # GameMaker import (ignore)
```

For Godot: import the **Tilesets/`*.png`** directly as TileSet sources. Objects + Item Icons are individual sprite assets.

## Gaps still uncovered

Even with the bundle, these need authoring or sourcing:

1. **Autotile-ready buildable wall sets** — UNKNOWN. The bundle's house and fortress sheets need an autotile audit (count corners / T-junctions / cap pieces). If insufficient, options are:
   - Custom-author terrain bits onto bundle wall tiles (~half-day per material)
   - Source a dedicated construction tileset (Mana Seed Iconic Homestead remains available as fallback at $19.99)
2. **Designation overlays** — blueprint ghosts, chop-this-tree marks, mine-this marks. ~4–8 tiles, custom (~2 hrs).
3. **Indoor tint shader** — a subtle blue-grey overlay on Layer 0/1 tiles when Roof flag set. Not asset, just shader work.
4. **Lighting shader** — for visual lighting at night (we locked this in mood/lighting). Not asset.
5. **Cleaning visualization** — dirty-tile decals. Some bundle packs (Mines? grass spring etc.) may have grunge tiles we can repurpose.
6. **Wolf sprite** — bundle's Animal Sprites pack does NOT include wolves. Options:
   - Reskin a different animal (a darker dog?)
   - Pick a suitable wild creature from EvoMonster Pack series
   - Custom wolf sprite (a few hours of pixel art) or external pack
7. **Cremation pyre furniture** — may be in House Interior or Marketplace; otherwise custom.
8. **Grave marker tile** — likely needs custom or graveyard-themed pack (Retro Graveyard 16×16 in Tier 3 *might* have it).

## Audit list (action items before any release build)

**Audit results, 2026-05-10** — three of five closed via visual inspection (researcher Haiku subagent + verification).

- [x] **`FG_Houses.png` autotile coverage** — **NOT autotile-solvable.** Pieces are pre-built decorative house compositions across 4 distinct roof palettes (blue-roof timber, red-brick, dark-slate, plus accent details). No corner / T-junction / cap modular family. Estimated cost to author terrain bits on top: ~½–1 day per material.
- [x] **`FG_Fortress.png` autotile coverage** — **autotile-solvable.** ~20–30 modular tan-stone pieces (straight, corners, battlement caps) with dark-grid mortar lines. Wang-style Godot 4 terrain works with minimal extra art. Iconic Homestead fallback not needed.
- [ ] **Aesthetic harmony test** — still open. Needs your eye on a Forest tile + a Ventilatore tile side-by-side. ~15 min.
- [x] **Wolf sprite source** — **none in the bundle, none in Ventilatore.** Scanned EvoMonster Packs 03/04/06/09/10 (cute fantasy creatures, no canines), broader ElvGames Tier 1–3 sweep (farm animals + humanoid monsters only). Ventilatore (6 packs, all 6 scanned 2026-05-10) is character + terrain + decoration only — no animal sprites at all besides player + slimes. Remaining options: commission (~$30–60), CC0 source (OpenGameArt), or recolor-a-dog placeholder until Phase 10. Tracked in `memory.md` Open questions.
- [x] **Grave marker** — **`Retro Graveyard 16x16 Tileset [Kingdom Explorer]` confirmed in Tier 3.** Path: `Ultimate Farming RPG Tier 3/Retro Graveyard 16x16 Tileset [Kingdom Explorer]/Tilesets/KE_Graveyard.png`. Contents: tombstones (varied), wooden crosses, grave mounds, crypt entries, skeletal markers, ground-transition tiles. Direct use in Phase 14.
- [ ] **License attribution credits document** — kick off the list now; add to it as packs come in. Include Kingdom Explorer (likely separate license from ElvGames — check `License.txt`).

## Wall-material decision (locked 2026-05-10)

**Player builds in two materials: wood (early) → stone (upgrade).** Both visible in MVP.

- **Wood walls** are the day-one player-buildable material. Source pack: `Houses Tileset 2 Seasons [Farming Game]/Tilesets/FG_Houses.png` (the warm-brown timber + blue-roof palette). The audit found this pack is **not autotile-solvable as-is** — pieces are pre-built house compositions, not modular variants. Authoring task: **extract or paint corner / T-junction / cap / cross variants** for a Godot 4 Wang-style terrain. Estimated cost ~½ day. Lands in **Phase 5** (implementation.md).
- **Stone walls** are the upgrade material. Source pack: `Fortress Tileset 2 Seasons [Farming Game]/Tilesets/FG_Fortress.png` (tan stonework with dark-grid mortar). The audit found this pack is **autotile-solvable as-is** — ~20–30 modular pieces are present. Authoring task: import as TileSet, build the terrain definition, sample-test on a small map. Estimated cost ~few hours. Lands in **Phase 5** (alongside wood).
- Choosing both materials matches the aesthetic anchor: Stardew-cabin warmth carries the early game; the stone upgrade gestures toward Going Medieval as the colony grows. Loses the Fortress-stone-only "pure Going Medieval" option but keeps the project's design DNA intact.
- **Phase 5 wall sub-tasks** (record-keeping for implementation.md):
  1. Author wood-wall corner/T/cap variants on top of FG_Houses (~½ day, custom pixel art on existing tiles)
  2. Build Godot TileSet terrain for wood walls (~½ day, in editor)
  3. Build Godot TileSet terrain for stone walls (FG_Fortress, ~few hours, mostly assembly)
  4. Phase 5's existing wall/floor/door rendering logic stays unchanged — both materials plug in via the same WallMaterial enum / data path.

Iconic Homestead $19.99 fallback **not needed** — the bundle covers both materials with ~½ day of art work.

## Tileset prep (the gotcha)

ElvGames packs are RPG-style — designed primarily for RPG Maker / GameMaker hand-painted maps, not tile-by-tile colony construction. Same caveat as Mana Seed: walls and floors may not have full 47-tile autotile coverage. Plan for ~half-day per buildable material to author Godot terrain bits onto the existing tiles.

Designation overlays still custom. Estimated 4–8 tiles, ~2 hours of pixel art.

## License notes

**ElvGames terms (most packs in the bundle):**

> You can: use in personal or commercial projects. Edit/modify to fit your game. Credits to ElvGames.
> You cannot: use in NFT/crypto projects. Sell this asset pack (even modified). Claim it as your own.

Source: `License.txt` in each pack. Full terms: <https://elv-games.itch.io/terms>

**Some packs may be by other authors** (e.g. Retro Kingdom Explorer series). License for each is in the pack's own `License.txt`. **Audit and honor each.**

**Ventilatore terms:** confirmed commercial-friendly during prior owner-of-bundle research; verify before any commercial release build.

**Credits screen requirement:** maintain a list of pack names + creator names; display in game's credits UI.

## What was dropped from the plan

- **Mana Seed series purchases** — Smithing Gear, Crops #1, Iconic Homestead. Bundle's coverage replaces them. Free Mana Seed forest packs and Character Base remain optional fallbacks if Bundle palettes mismatch a specific need.
- **Gold Rush / Pixel Farm RPG / LimeZu / Cute Fantasy / Mars Colony** — all dropped from active consideration; bundle covers their roles.

## Comprehensive survey (kept for reference)

Earlier-session survey of itch.io / OpenGameArt candidates (now superseded). Maintained so future sessions don't redo the search.

- **Mana Seed by Seliel the Shaper** ([itch profile](https://seliel-the-shaper.itch.io/)) — only tileset family explicitly authored for tile-by-tile player construction. Free seasonal forest + Farmer Base remain optional fallbacks.
- **[Iconic Homestead](https://seliel-the-shaper.itch.io/iconic-homestead)** ($19.99) — fallback if bundle's wall autotile coverage is insufficient. Stone/wood/plaster wall variants explicitly construction-authored.
- **[Modern Interiors / Exteriors](https://limezu.itch.io/moderninteriors)** by LimeZu — modern aesthetic, wrong direction.
- **[Cute Fantasy RPG](https://kenmi-art.itch.io/cute-fantasy-rpg)** by Kenmi — Stardew-adjacent (similar to bundle's tone, could supplement).
- **[Base Building Tileset](https://elihaun.itch.io/base-building-tileset)** by Eli Haun — Rimworld-genre match but small.
- **[Colony Sim Assets](https://opengameart.org/content/colony-sim-assets)** by Buch — CC0 fallback.

## Reading list (TBD)

- ElvGames license fine-print on each pack used.
- Godot 4 docs: TileMap, TileSet terrains, AStarGrid2D.
- Rimworld design talks (Tynan Sylvester) — storyteller / drama / interest curve.

## What lives elsewhere

- **Game design / mechanics** — see [`design.md`](./design.md).
- **Engine architecture and TileMap layer plan** — see [`architecture.md`](./architecture.md).
- **Touch UI** — see [`ui.md`](./ui.md).
- **Pillars and vertical slice** — see [`memory.md`](../memory.md).