Initial commit, with rules 0.5 and basic bots

RULES.md

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+# Il Labirinto del Dojo — Rules (draft v0.5)
+
+Working language: English. The final gift edition will be produced separately in Italian.
+
+Items marked **[VARIANT]** are unresolved and will be decided by simulation (see
+[Rule variants under test](#rule-variants-under-test)).
+
+## Goal
+
+Start as a White belt, climb to Brown, reach the Central Dojo and pass the Final Exam.
+The first player to wear the Black Belt wins.
+
+## Components
+
+- Board: 16×16 grid with walls, rooms and tunnels; 4 corner Safe Rooms; the Central Dojo (4×4, centre).
+- Up to 8 pawns.
+- One progress track per player.
+- 2 six-sided dice (d6).
+- Nebbia del Dojo deck (22 cards).
+- Legend card for square effects.
+
+## The progress track
+
+Each player has a position from **0 to 17**. Your belt is the segment you are in:
+
+| Position | Belt |
+|---|---|
+| 0–2 | White |
+| 3–5 | Yellow |
+| 6–8 | Orange |
+| 9–11 | Green |
+| 12–14 | Blue |
+| 15–17 | Brown |
+
+- One **stripe** = 1 step on the track. One **belt** = 3 steps.
+- Position never goes below 0 or above 17.
+- **[VARIANT]** *Brown requires Kumite*: squares and cards cannot move a player from 14 to 15.
+  Once Brown, squares and cards may move the player freely within 15–17.
+- A player below 15 is not Brown, whatever their previous belt was.
+
+## Setup
+
+- 3–4 players: one pawn per corner Safe Room.
+- 5–8 players: two pawns per corner Safe Room. Players sharing a corner are never consecutive in turn order.
+- Everyone starts on track position 0.
+  *Variant to test with 6+ players: start on 3 (Yellow).*
+- Choose the first player at random; play proceeds clockwise.
+
+## Turn
+
+1. Roll **2d6**.
+2. Move **exactly** that many steps:
+   - orthogonal steps only;
+   - never through a wall;
+   - never re-entering a square already visited during this move.
+
+   If no move of the full count exists, move as far as possible. (The board is designed
+   without dead ends, so this should never happen; it is a safeguard.)
+3. **Entering a square occupied by an opponent starts a Kumite** (you are the attacker).
+   This includes the last step of the move. Leaving a square never starts a Kumite.
+   - If you win, the defender is sent to Start and you continue with your remaining steps.
+     You may fight several opponents in a single move (chain).
+   - If you lose, you are sent to Start and your turn ends.
+4. When movement ends, resolve the effect of the square you stopped on.
+
+## Safe areas
+
+**Corner Safe Rooms** (3×3, two exits on different sides):
+
+- No Kumite takes place inside.
+- No square effects (all squares are Tatami).
+- Any number of pawns may share a square.
+- Pawns inside cannot be targeted by cards or square effects.
+- Any player may enter any Safe Room.
+- "Sent to Start" always means your own corner Safe Room. You place your pawn on any square
+  of the room you choose, both at setup and when sent back.
+
+**Central Dojo**: no pawn ever remains inside (see Final Exam).
+
+## Kumite
+
+1. Both players roll **1d6**.
+2. The higher belt adds **+1 per belt of difference, maximum +2**.
+3. After both dice are rolled, the attacker may play one Tecnica card, then the defender may
+   play one. Each decides seeing both dice; the defender also sees the attacker's card.
+   A Tecnica can only be played in this window (Uke included: you commit before the result).
+4. Higher total wins.
+5. **Senshu rule**: on a tie, the attacker wins.
+
+### Consequences
+
+| Result | Winner | Loser |
+|---|---|---|
+| Equal belts | +3 | −3, sent to Start |
+| Lower belt wins (upset) | +3 | −3, sent to Start |
+| Higher belt wins | **[VARIANT]** 0 or +1 | sent to Start |
+
+## Squares
+
+| Code | Name | Effect when you stop on it |
+|---|---|---|
+| `.` | Tatami | Nothing. |
+| `A` | Allenamento | +1 stripe. |
+| `F` | Fatica | −1 stripe. |
+| `?` | Nebbia del Dojo | Draw a card. The square stays active. Reshuffle the discard pile when the deck is empty. |
+| `T` | Tunnel | You **may** teleport to the paired Tunnel. Movement is already over; the exit square has no effect. If the exit is occupied, a Kumite starts (you are the attacker). An exit holding a meditating pawn cannot be used. |
+| `P` | Passo Falso | Return to the square where this move started. Kumite already fought during the move stand. |
+| `K` | Sfida | You **must** fight a Kumite against an opponent of your choice outside a safe area (you are the attacker). If there is none, nothing happens. |
+
+## Meditazione
+
+A meditating pawn cannot be fought or targeted. Other pawns pass through it freely.
+If your move ends exactly on its square, take one extra step following the normal movement
+rules (it may start a Kumite); the effect of the square you finally stop on applies.
+If no legal extra step exists, stay.
+
+The same extra step applies whenever your move would end on any square (outside Safe Rooms)
+holding a pawn you cannot fight — for example a defender who lost but was saved by Uke.
+
+## Nebbia del Dojo deck
+
+Nebbia cards are chances, not gifts: **every card must be resolved**, even when it turns out
+badly for you. If a card needs a target and there is none, nothing happens.
+
+**Tecnica cards are secret:**
+
+- When you draw a Tecnica, do not show it: keep it face down in front of you.
+- Everyone can see *that* you hold one, not *which* one.
+- You hold **at most one**. When you draw a second, keep one and discard the other
+  **face down**, so nobody learns which one you kept.
+- A Tecnica is revealed only when played; it then goes to the discard pile.
+
+All other cards are shown and resolved immediately.
+
+| Type | Card | Effect | Qty |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| Tecnica | Kiai | +2 to your Kumite total. *(+1 to be tested)* | 3 |
+| Tecnica | Uke (Parata) | If you lose, you are not sent to Start (the track change still applies). A losing defender stays on its square; a losing attacker returns to the square it came from, and its turn ends with no square effect. | 2 |
+| Tecnica | Kaeshi (Contrattacco) | Reroll your die. | 2 |
+| Movement | Tsugi-ashi | Roll 2d6 and make another full move. That move has its own starting square (for Passo Falso). | 2 |
+| Movement | Tunnel Segreto | Teleport to a Tunnel of your choice (occupied exit: Kumite, you are the attacker). You cannot choose one holding a meditating pawn. | 1 |
+| Movement | Irimi (Scambio) | Swap places with an opponent of your choice outside a safe area. No Kumite, no square effects. | 2 |
+| Interaction | Sfida | Fight a Kumite against an opponent of your choice outside a safe area. You are the attacker. | 2 |
+| Event | Il Sensei Osserva | The player(s) lowest on the track gain +2. | 1 |
+| Event | Il Peso della Cintura | The player(s) highest on the track lose 1. | 1 |
+| Event | Allenamento Intensivo | +1 stripe. | 2 |
+| Event | Colpo Proibito | −1 stripe. | 1 |
+| Event | Passo Falso | Return to the square where this move started. | 2 |
+| Event | Meditazione | Your next turn is skipped. Until the end of that skipped turn you cannot be fought or targeted. | 1 |
+
+## Central Dojo and Final Exam
+
+- Only a Brown player (position 15+) may enter. For everyone else the Dojo is a wall.
+- Entering costs one step and needs no exact count: reach a square adjacent to an entrance
+  with at least 1 step left and step in. Movement ends immediately.
+- You may enter in the same move in which you became Brown by winning a Kumite.
+- The Final Exam starts at once. The **opponent highest on the track** defends
+  (tie: the challenger chooses among them). The defender's pawn does not move.
+  Meditating players cannot defend; if nobody can, you return to the square you entered
+  from and there is no Exam this turn.
+- The exam is a Kumite with the challenger as attacker; Senshu and Tecnica cards apply.
+  - **Challenger wins**: they wear the Black Belt and win the game.
+  - **Challenger loses**: −3 and sent to Start. The defender gains nothing.
+  - If the challenger plays Uke and loses, they return to the square they entered from instead of Start.
+
+## Rule variants under test
+
+| Variant | Brown requires Kumite | Higher belt beats lower |
+|---|---|---|
+| **A** | No | winner gains 0 |
+| **B** | Yes (squares/cards cannot move 14 → 15) | winner gains +1 |
+
+Rationale for B: with the cap, a Blue leader on 14 facing only lower belts could never
+become Brown if beating lower belts gave nothing. The +1 removes that deadlock.
+
+Other parameters to validate by simulation: Kiai +2 vs +1; starting on 3 with 6+ players;
+square mix; game length at 3/4/6/8 players.
+
+## FAQ
+
+**Which effects can I refuse?**
+Only the Tunnel square ("you may teleport"). Everything else — squares and Nebbia cards —
+must be resolved, including Sfida, Irimi and Tunnel Segreto.
+
+**I was moved without walking (Passo Falso, Irimi, Uke retreat). Does that start a Kumite
+or trigger the square I land on?**
+No to both. Only arriving through a Tunnel or Tunnel Segreto starts a Kumite on an occupied
+square, and even then the exit square has no effect.
+
+**I became Brown by winning a Kumite in the middle of my move. Can I enter the Dojo with
+the steps I have left?**
+Yes. Your belt changes immediately, so the Dojo opens for the rest of that move.
+
+**My move would end on a pawn I cannot fight. What now?**
+Take one extra step (see [Meditazione](#meditazione)). If none is possible, stay.
+
+**I am boxed in and cannot move the full count.**
+Move as far as possible. This should never happen on a well-designed board.
+
+**My Uke saved me as the attacker. Do I get the effect of the square I return to?**
+No. Losing a Kumite always ends your turn.
+
+**I drew Tsugi-ashi and then hit Passo Falso on the extra move. Where do I go back to?**
+To the square where the extra move started, not where your turn started.
+
+**Can opponents know which Tecnica I hold?**
+No. They only know whether you hold one. See [Nebbia del Dojo deck](#nebbia-del-dojo-deck).