🗺️ Map, POI, And Objective Systems¶

Maps are where many database systems become concrete gameplay. A resource, building, artifact, shrine, or objective can exist globally, but a campaign map decides where it appears, when it becomes visible, what objective references it, and which rewards or triggers fire.

This page focuses on map-specific systems:

points of interest
objective flow
treasure areas
shrine and sanctuary map content
campaign/map-specific artifacts and combat boosts

Main Files¶

File	Role
`game-gdb/core/gdb/pointsofinterest.gd.xml`	Global point-of-interest templates and treasure area entities
`game-gdb/core/gdb/objectives.gd.xml`	Shared objective definitions and objective components
`game-gdb/core/gdb/campaign map *.gd.xml`	Core campaign map-specific objectives, POIs, NPCs, and triggers
`game-gdb/dlc1/maps/meadowsong map database.gd.xml`	DLC Meadowsong map-specific POIs, objectives, sanctuary content, infection data, and combat boosts
`game-gdb/core/gdb/notifications.gd.xml`	Shared notification data used by objectives and POIs
`game-gdb/dlc1/gdb/notifications.gd.xml`	DLC notification data
`game-gdb/core/gdb/resources.gd.xml`	Artifacts, combat-boost artifacts, treasure maps, and special resources
`game-gdb/core/gdb/treasurehunterrecipes.gd.xml`	Treasure hunter target categories

Current Local Snapshot¶

Current generated system catalogs report:

Catalog	Count
Treasure areas	2
Shrine buildings	6
Shrine abilities	13
Shrine recipes	35
Artifacts and artifact-like resources	33
Treasure hunter recipes	9
Treasure hunter targets	65

Note on "Shrine buildings". This is the generator's shrine classification. Direct <AspectShrine> matches in the local XML count 5 placeable buildings (4 in core, 1 in dlc1); the extra entry reflects an abstract/template shrine entity the generator also counts.

Direct text checks in the current XML also show:

many AspectPointOfInterest entries in game-gdb/core/gdb/pointsofinterest.gd.xml
additional AspectPointOfInterest entries in game-gdb/dlc1/maps/meadowsong map database.gd.xml
AspectTreasureArea entities in game-gdb/core/gdb/pointsofinterest.gd.xml
DLC map-specific Sanctuary and POI entities in game-gdb/dlc1/maps/meadowsong map database.gd.xml

Regenerate the exact current numbers with:

powershell -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File scripts\generate_catalog.ps1

Mental Model¶

Think in four layers:

Global definitions
-> map-specific entities
-> objective and trigger flow
-> player-visible state

Examples:

Resource/artifact definition
-> treasure hunter target or map-specific reward
-> objective or POI references it
-> player discovers, supplies, claims, or completes it

Shrine building and abilities
-> map-specific shrine/sanctuary entity
-> objective unlocks or requires it
-> player uses abilities or supplies offerings

Points Of Interest¶

POIs commonly use AspectPointOfInterest.

A POI can contain or reference:

unknown and known descriptions
active building description
objective completion triggers
required construction or supply behavior
icon/building display data
map-specific variants

Useful search:

rg --no-ignore "AspectPointOfInterest|ObjectiveCompletionTriggers|ActiveBuildingDescription" .\game-gdb

POIs are often objective anchors. Changing one POI can affect objective flow, map pacing, notifications, and rewards.

Objective Flow¶

Objectives are not isolated checkboxes. They are small pieces of a map state machine.

Common links:

Objective
-> requirement component
-> POI/building/resource/unit/NPC target
-> notifications
-> reward timing
-> completion triggers
-> unlocks or follow-up objectives

Useful search:

rg --no-ignore "ObjectiveNotifications|ObjectiveCompletionTriggers|RewardTime|UnlockConditions" .\game-gdb

Map objective edits are high risk because a broken trigger can block scenario progress even when the XML still validates.

Treasure Areas¶

Treasure areas use AspectTreasureArea.

Current generated catalog:

generated/catalog/systems/treasure-areas.md

Treasure areas appear as map or POI-style entities. They connect to treasure hunter logic, discovery state, and sometimes objectives or notifications.

Trace pattern:

Treasure area
-> AspectTreasureArea
-> Treasure Hunter building/search behavior
-> treasure hunter recipe target list
-> resource/artifact target
-> objective or notification

Useful search:

rg --no-ignore "AspectTreasureArea|TreasureArea|TreasureHunterRecipe" .\game-gdb

Shrines And Sanctuary On Maps¶

Shrines are global buildings and ability systems, but maps can add local shrine-like content or local objective flow around them.

Current generated catalogs:

generated/catalog/systems/shrine-buildings.md
generated/catalog/systems/shrine-abilities.md
generated/catalog/systems/shrine-recipes.md

The DLC Meadowsong map contains map-specific Sanctuary/POI data. It references the broader DLC sanctuary system and ties it into map objectives, infection systems, abilities, and local story flow.

Trace pattern:

Map-specific sanctuary or shrine entity
-> AspectPointOfInterest and/or AspectShrine
-> abilities
-> shrine recipes / mana resources / offerings
-> objectives and notifications

Useful search:

rg --no-ignore "Sanctuary|AspectShrine|ShrineAbility|ShrineRecipe|AspectPointOfInterest" ".\game-gdb\dlc1\maps\meadowsong map database.gd.xml"

Map-Specific Artifacts And Combat Boosts¶

Artifacts and combat-boost artifacts are defined as resources, but maps can decide how they matter.

Relevant generated catalogs:

generated/catalog/systems/artifacts.md
generated/catalog/systems/treasure-hunter-targets.md
generated/catalog/systems/artifact-treasure-shrine-graph.md

Map files can reference combat boost tags or values in encounter, reward, NPC, or objective data. In the current DLC Meadowsong map, combat boost artifact references appear in map-specific data.

Useful search:

rg --no-ignore "Artifact|CombatBoostArtifact|CombatBoostArtifactTag|TreasureHunter" ".\game-gdb\dlc1\maps\meadowsong map database.gd.xml"

Treat artifact edits as cross-system edits. A resource may be a treasure target, a combat boost, an objective reward, and a map pacing tool at the same time.

Safe Trace Workflow¶

For any map/POI/objective system:

Start from the map file or POI entity.
Record entity name, GUID, package, and file.
List components under Values.
Search every non-null GUID in .\game.
Resolve references in generated/entities.json or the catalog browser.
Check notifications and objective completion triggers.
Check generated system catalogs for treasure, shrine, and artifact links.
Validate after any edit.
Test from a fresh start of that map.

Useful local files:

generated/entities.json
generated/references.json
generated/catalog/systems/
generated/catalog/search-index.json
tools/catalog-browser/index.html

Or use the live catalog browser and load your local search-index.json through its file picker.

Safer Modding Ideas¶

Safer first experiments:

document a POI/objective chain without editing it
change a small objective amount in a copied test map
adjust display text keys in a copied POI
compare two POI templates
trace which artifacts are map-specific versus globally available

Riskier changes:

remove objective completion triggers
change POI target GUIDs
edit reward timing
delete or replace map-specific shrine entities
change combat boost artifact tags or values without checking encounters
alter treasure areas without testing treasure hunter behavior

What Still Needs Research¶

Open questions:

exact runtime relationship between map entity placement and database entity definitions
which POI fields control discovery versus completion
whether treasure areas can be safely added to arbitrary maps
how map-specific artifacts are awarded or spawned in all cases
which shrine/sanctuary fields are mandatory for map flow
how much objective trigger behavior is data-only versus hardcoded

For now, treat map/POI/objective edits as high-impact scenario changes. Trace first, edit only small pieces, and test the full map flow from the beginning.