balance-check

name balance-check description Analyzes game balance data files, formulas, and configuration to identify outliers, broken progressions, degenerate strategies, and economy imbalances. Use after modifying any balance-related data or design. Use when user says 'balance report', 'check game balance', 'run a balance check'. argument-hint [system-name|path-to-data-file] user-invocable true allowed-tools Read, Glob, Grep, Write, AskUserQuestion model sonnet agent economy-designer Phase 1: Identify Balance Domain Determine the balance domain from $ARGUMENTS[0] : Combat → weapon/ability DPS, time-to-kill, damage type interactions Economy → resource faucets/sinks, acquisition rates, item pricing Progression → XP/power curves, dead zones, power spikes Loot → rarity distribution, pity timers, inventory pressure File path given → load that file directly and infer domain from content If no argument, ask the user which system to check. Phase 2: Read Data Files Read relevant files from assets/data/ and design/balance/ for the identified domain. Note every file read — they will appear in the Data Sources section of the report. Phase 3: Read Design Document Read the GDD for the system from design/gdd/ to understand intended design targets, tuning knobs, and expected value ranges. This is the baseline for "correct" behaviour. Phase 4: Perform Analysis Run domain-specific checks: Combat balance: Calculate DPS for all weapons/abilities at each power tier Check time-to-kill at each tier Identify any options that dominate all others (strictly better) Check if defensive options can create unkillable states Verify damage type/resistance interactions are balanced Economy balance: Map all resource faucets and sinks with flow rates Project resource accumulation over time Check for infinite resource loops Verify gold sinks scale with gold generation Check if any items are never worth purchasing Progression balance: Plot the XP curve and power curve Check for dead zones (no meaningful progression for too long) Check for power spikes (sudden jumps in capability) Verify content gates align with expected player power Check if skip/grind strategies break intended pacing Loot balance: Calculate expected time to acquire each rarity tier Check pity timer math Verify no loot is strictly useless at any stage Check inventory pressure vs acquisition rate Phase 5: Output the Analysis ## Balance Check: [System Name] ### Data Sources Analyzed - [List of files read] ### Health Summary: [HEALTHY / CONCERNS / CRITICAL ISSUES] ### Outliers Detected | Item/Value | Expected Range | Actual | Issue | |-----------|---------------|--------|-------| ### Degenerate Strategies Found - [Strategy description and why it is problematic] ### Progression Analysis [Graph description or table showing progression curve health] ### Recommendations | Priority | Issue | Suggested Fix | Impact | |----------|-------|--------------|--------| ### Values That Need Attention [Specific values with suggested adjustments and rationale] Phase 6: Fix & Verify Cycle After presenting the report, use AskUserQuestion : Prompt: "Balance check complete. What would you like to do next?" Options: [A] Fix highest-priority issue now — walk me through it [B] Save report to design/balance/balance-check-[system]-[date].md [C] Stop here — I'll review the findings manually If [A]: Ask which issue to address first (refer to the Recommendations table by priority row) Guide the user to update the relevant data file in assets/data/ or formula in design/balance/ After each fix, offer to re-run the relevant balance checks to verify no new outliers were introduced If the fix changes a tuning knob defined in a GDD or referenced by an ADR, remind the user: "This value is defined in a design document. Run /propagate-design-change [path] on the affected GDD to find downstream impacts before committing." If [B]: Write the report to design/balance/balance-check-[system]-[date].md (create the directory if needed). Use the current date for [date] in YYYY-MM-DD format. Confirm the file was written, then end with: "Re-run /balance-check after fixes to verify." If [C]: Summarize open issues and end with: "Re-run /balance-check after fixes to verify."