Module Lambda: Wormholes — Design Document

Status: Design phase — awaiting implementation
Classification: Warped (exhibition only)
Theme: Spatial topology manipulation through wormhole generation

1. Core Concept

Module Lambda introduces spatial inversion as a game mechanic. Captains can open “Wormholes” that transpose their personal Warp Trail with the public Neutral Zone, fundamentally altering board state ownership.

Key Innovation

Unlike other modules that modify scoring or add constraints, Lambda rewrites the ownership graph of the board state itself. This creates hostile takeover dynamics where one captain’s investment becomes another’s prize.

2. Mechanical Specification

2.1 Wormhole Trigger (Event Horizon)

Activation Condition:

  • A captain plays a double tile onto the Neutral Zone
  • The double immediately triggers a Red Alert
  • Before Red Alert resolution, the Wormhole sequence executes

2.2 Spatial Inversion (The Warp)

The Swap:

OLD STATE:
  Captain A's Trail: [tiles...] (private, owned by A)
  Neutral Zone:      [tiles...] (public, open to all)

NEW STATE (after Captain A opens Wormhole):
  Captain A's Trail: [former Neutral Zone tiles] (now private to A)
  Neutral Zone:      [former Captain A tiles] (now public, open to all)

Implementation Model: From an engine perspective, this is a pointer swap:

const temp = round.table.warpTrails[playerId];
round.table.warpTrails[playerId] = round.table.neutralZone;
round.table.neutralZone = temp;

Distress Beacon Handling:

  • If Captain A had a Distress Beacon active on their trail before the swap, it is destroyed during transit
  • The newly established Neutral Zone (former Captain A trail) remains permanently open to all players (standard Neutral Zone behavior)
  • Rationale: The wormhole is a “reset” event — you’re escaping your dead-end trail

2.3 Red Alert Resolution Post-Warp

Critical Timing:

  1. Captain plays double on Neutral Zone
  2. Wormhole opens (swap happens)
  3. Red Alert activates on the new trail (formerly the Neutral Zone)
  4. Captain must satisfy Red Alert from their hand
  5. If they fail → Distress Beacon deploys on their new trail

Why This Order Matters:

  • The captain is now responsible for satisfying the Red Alert on their newly acquired trail
  • This prevents “free escapes” — you must be able to handle the chaos you’re stealing
  • If you steal a long, complex trail but can’t answer the double, you immediately beacon it open to everyone

3. Strategic Implications

3.1 Hostile Takeover

Scenario: Captain B has built a perfect 18-tile Warp Trail with excellent connectivity.
Attack: Captain A plays a double on Neutral Zone → steals Captain B’s trail
Result: Captain B now “owns” the chaotic public trail Captain A was building on

3.2 The Escape Pod

Scenario: Captain C has a dead-end trail with blocked doubles and high pips.
Strategy: Captain C intentionally opens a Wormhole to dump their disaster into the public sphere
Result: Captain C gets a fresh start with the Neutral Zone’s tiles

3.3 Risk Assessment

Before opening a Wormhole, evaluate:

  • Can you answer the double you’re playing? (Red Alert must be satisfied)
  • Is the Neutral Zone better than your current trail?
  • Will your old trail help or hurt opponents when it becomes public?

3.4 Defensive Play

Preventing Theft:

  • Avoid building long, valuable personal trails when Lambda is active
  • Keep the Neutral Zone chaotic (play mismatched tiles, create dead ends)
  • Force opponents to draw tiles so they can’t answer the Red Alert after stealing

4. AI Heuristic Challenges

4.1 Valuation Problem

Traditional heuristics value:

  • Own trail length (good under normal rules)
  • Neutral Zone chaos (neutral under normal rules)

Under Lambda:

  • Own trail length = vulnerability (can be stolen)
  • Neutral Zone order = opportunity (can be stolen)

4.2 Lookahead Complexity

The AI must evaluate:

if (have_double_in_hand && can_answer_red_alert_after_swap) {
  value = evaluate(neutral_zone_state) - evaluate(own_trail_state);
  if (value > threshold) {
    consider_wormhole_attack();
  }
}

This requires:

  1. State prediction (what will the board look like after swap?)
  2. Red Alert satisfaction check (can I cover the double from my new position?)
  3. Opponent response modeling (how will they exploit my old trail being public?)

wormholeOpportunity (Module Lambda):

score(action: WarpAiAction, ctx: WarpEvalContext): number {
  if (!lambda.enabled || action.kind !== 'chart') return 0;
  if (!isDouble(action.coordinate)) return 0;
  if (action.route.kind !== 'neutral-zone') return 0;
  
  // Can we answer the Red Alert after swap?
  const canAnswer = handHasMatchForDouble(ctx.hand, action.coordinate);
  if (!canAnswer) return -500; // Don't suicide
  
  // Is Neutral Zone better than our trail?
  const nzValue = evaluateTrailQuality(ctx.obs.round.table.neutralZone);
  const ownValue = evaluateTrailQuality(ctx.obs.round.table.warpTrails[ctx.obs.playerId]);
  
  const gain = nzValue - ownValue;
  if (gain > 10) return 50; // Strong incentive to steal good trail
  if (gain < -10) return -30; // Weak incentive (defensive trade)
  return 0;
}

5. Balance Considerations

5.1 Skill Preservation

Lambda will likely reduce skill ordering because:

  • High-skill players invest in long-term trail building
  • Lambda punishes that investment (theft risk)
  • Lower-skill players benefit from randomness of who controls what

Expected calibration: ~50-60% higher-skill win rate (borderline Warped)

5.2 Game Length Impact

  • May increase game length (more chaotic board states)
  • May decrease game length (escape pod allows going out faster)
  • Net effect unclear — requires testing

5.3 Interaction with Other Modules

Synergies:

  • Module Theta (Longest Trail): Creates incentive to steal long trails, then protect them
  • Module Delta (Hazard Marker): Wormhole + losing hazard marker = double escape
  • Module Gamma (Subspace Fracture): Can you steal a trail with an active fracture? (rules TBD)

Conflicts:

  • Module Alpha (Q-Continuum): Flash effects that open trails become even more chaotic
  • Module Epsilon (Draft): Drafted hands become less predictable when trails swap mid-game

6. Implementation Checklist

6.1 Engine Changes

New Action Type:

interface OpenWormholeAction extends GameAction {
  type: 'OPEN_WORMHOLE';
  playerId: PlayerId;
  coordinate: Coordinate; // The double being played
  // Wormhole opens, trails swap, THEN Red Alert activates
}

State Modifications:

  • Add wormhole module config to GameModules
  • Implement trail swap logic in apply-action.ts
  • Handle Distress Beacon destruction during swap
  • Ensure Red Alert activates on new trail after swap
  • Update legal moves to detect Wormhole triggers

6.2 AI Heuristics

  • Add wormholeOpportunity heuristic
  • Add wormholeDefense heuristic (avoid building valuable trails)
  • Update dumpPips to account for theft risk
  • Update longestTrailBonus (Module Theta) to reduce trail building under Lambda

6.3 UI/UX

  • Add visual indicator when Wormhole is about to trigger
  • Confirmation dialog: “Open Wormhole? Your trail will become public.”
  • Animation for trail swap (visual feedback of the topology change)
  • Update game log: “Armstrong opened a Wormhole — trail swapped with the Neutral Zone”

6.4 Testing

  • Unit tests: Trail swap mechanics
  • Unit tests: Red Alert resolution post-swap
  • Unit tests: Distress Beacon destruction
  • Calibration: Skill ordering preservation
  • Calibration: Interaction with other modules

7. Open Questions

  1. Can you steal a trail with an active Subspace Fracture?
    • Option A: Fracture travels with the trail (you inherit the fracture)
    • Option B: Fracture is destroyed during transit (clean slate)
    • Recommendation: Option A (fracture travels) — more strategic depth
  2. What if multiple captains try to open Wormholes in quick succession?
    • Standard turn order applies — first one to play double on NZ gets it
    • No “chaining” of Wormholes in a single turn
  3. Does this module work in go-out objective?
    • Recommendation: Yes, but it’s even more chaotic
    • Stealing a trail with 1 tile left = instant victory opportunity
  4. Should there be a limit on Wormholes per round?
    • Option A: Unlimited (chaos mode)
    • Option B: One per captain per round (balanced)
    • Recommendation: Start unlimited, add limit if testing shows it’s too dominant

8. Naming Alternatives

If “Wormholes” doesn’t fit the theme:

  • Spatial Inversion
  • Topology Swap
  • Subspace Exchange
  • Transwarp Conduit
  • Borg Assimilation (too aggressive?)

Current favorite: Wormholes (clear, iconic, fits Star Trek lore)

9. Next Steps

  1. Prototype in engine (libs/engine/src/lib/engine/wormhole.ts)
  2. Write unit tests to verify swap mechanics
  3. Add to module calibration suite
  4. Run 500-game calibration to measure skill preservation
  5. If skill ordering < 60% → classify as Warped (exhibition only)
  6. If skill ordering ≥ 70% → consider for rated play (unlikely)

Document Version: 1.0
Author: Design discussion with user
Date: 2026-07-12

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