weiss-sim 0.1.3

Deterministic Weiss Schwarz simulator with a Rust core and Python bindings.

Weiss Schwarz Simulator (Rust core + Python bindings)

Deterministic, RL-first Weiss Schwarz simulation: Rust runs the hot loop, advances until a decision point, and exposes a fixed action space + mask (and legal action ids) for efficient batched training. Python gets a thin EnvPool wrapper for stepping many environments in parallel.

---

Why this exists

Weiss Schwarz has hidden information, branching, and timing windows. For RL you typically want:

• Determinism: reproduce episodes from a seed and action sequence.
• Few boundary crossings: avoid Python↔Rust overhead for micro-steps.
• Stable action space: fixed-size actions with legality masking.
• Introspectability: canonical action descriptions, replays, and event logs.

This repo is built around those constraints.

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Highlights

• Advance-until-decision loop: engine runs internally until a player must act.
• Canonical legal actions: ActionDesc list is the single truth source.
• Fixed action id space + mask: derived from canonical actions and versioned (ACTION_ENCODING_VERSION).
• Legal action ids (fast): use ids to avoid Python-side mask scans in hot loops.
• Fixed-length observations: int32 arrays, versioned (OBS_ENCODING_VERSION).
• Multicore stepping: EnvPool uses Rayon; Python binding releases the GIL.
• Replays: deterministic, versioned, optional event stream, public-safe sanitization when enabled.
• Curriculum switches: gate rules/features for training curricula.

Each environment is deterministic given its seed and action sequence. Parallel batch stepping does not change outcomes because envs are fully isolated.

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Automation & Benchmarks

• CI runs on every push/PR: Rust fmt/clippy/tests + Python ruff/pytest.
• Wheels build on pushes to main (artifacts), and tags v* publish to GitHub Releases + PyPI.
• Benchmarks run on pushes to main; history + charts are published via GitHub Pages.
• Docs are published to GitHub Pages on pushes to main.

Latest benchmark history and charts: https://victorwp288.github.io/weiss-schwarz-simulator/benchmarks

Rust API docs: https://victorwp288.github.io/weiss-schwarz-simulator/rustdoc/

Note: with only 1–2 benchmark runs, charts can look “empty” until more points exist.

Releases

Release automation is handled by Release Please. To ensure downstream workflows (like Wheels) run automatically when a release tag is created, configure a fine-grained PAT as RELEASE_PLEASE_TOKEN in GitHub Actions secrets; otherwise you can manually run the Wheels workflow for the release tag.

Benchmark Snapshot (main, top 12)

Last updated: 2026-01-05 00:44 UTC

Benchmark	Time
rust/advance_until_decision	63280 ns/iter
rust/step_batch_64	26268 ns/iter
rust/step_batch_fast_256_priority_off	111592 ns/iter
rust/step_batch_fast_256_priority_on	109646 ns/iter
rust/legal_actions	44 ns/iter
rust/legal_actions_forced	43 ns/iter
rust/on_reverse_decision_frequency_on	1534 ns/iter
rust/on_reverse_decision_frequency_off	1540 ns/iter
rust/observation_encode	228 ns/iter
rust/observation_encode_forced	233 ns/iter
rust/mask_construction	455 ns/iter
rust/mask_construction_forced	412 ns/iter

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Repo layout

• weiss_core/: Rust simulator core (state machine, legality, encoding, replay, pool)
• weiss_py/: PyO3 extension module (weiss_sim) exposing EnvPool
• python/weiss_sim/: Python wrapper that re-exports the extension
• python/tests/: pytest smoke tests + fixture card DB

---

Installation

Python (local build via maturin)

Prerequisites:

• Python: ≥ 3.10
• Rust toolchain: stable (cargo, rustc)
• Bindings: built with PyO3 0.24 + numpy 0.24 (Rust side)

Install (editable):

python -m pip install -U pip
python -m pip install -U maturin
python -m pip install -e .

Note (macOS/PyO3): if you build wheels locally, prefer an explicit interpreter to avoid linking errors and unsupported system Pythons:

maturin build --release --manifest-path weiss_py/Cargo.toml --interpreter .venv/bin/python -o dist

Sanity check:

python -c "import weiss_sim; print(weiss_sim.__version__, weiss_sim.EnvPool)"

Rust (core only)

cargo build -p weiss_core
cargo test -p weiss_core

---

Quickstart (Python): step with a trivial policy

The environment exposes a fixed action space and an action mask. You can select any index where mask==1. For speed, use legal action ids instead of scanning the full mask.

from pathlib import Path
import numpy as np
import weiss_sim

fixture_dir = Path("python/tests/fixtures")
db_path = fixture_dir / "cards.wsdb"

pool = weiss_sim.EnvPool.new_rl_train(
    1,
    str(db_path),
    deck_lists=[[1] * 50, [2] * 50],
    deck_ids=[1, 2],
    max_decisions=200,
    max_ticks=10_000,
    seed=123,
    num_threads=None,  # set to an int to pin a dedicated Rayon pool
)

buf = weiss_sim.EnvPoolBuffers(pool)
buf.reset()

for _ in range(10):
    ids_flat, offsets = buf.legal_action_ids()
    start, end = int(offsets[0]), int(offsets[1])
    action = int(ids_flat[start])
    actions = np.array([action], dtype=np.uint32)
    buf.step(actions)

Debug print (very lightweight):

print(pool.render_ansi(env_index=0, perspective=0))

Examples:

python python/examples/sb3_maskable_ppo.py
python python/examples/cleanrl_maskable_ppo.py
python python/examples/bench_python_boundary.py --num-envs 256 --steps 5000 --mode both

---

Python API (what you get)

The extension module is weiss_sim and the package re-exports it as import weiss_sim.

weiss_sim.EnvPool

Constructors (classmethods):

EnvPool.new_rl_train(
    num_envs: int,
    db_path: str,
    deck_lists: list[list[int]],
    deck_ids: list[int] | None = None,
    max_decisions: int = 10_000,
    max_ticks: int = 100_000,
    seed: int = 0,
    reward_json: str | None = None,
    num_threads: int | None = None,
)

EnvPool.new_rl_eval(...)
EnvPool.new_debug(...)

Minimal RL stepping uses BatchOutMinimal:

out = weiss_sim.BatchOutMinimal(num_envs)
pool.reset_into(out)
pool.step_into(actions, out)

Core methods:

• reset_into(out: BatchOutMinimal) -> None
• reset_indices_into(indices: list[int], out: BatchOutMinimal) -> None
• reset_done_into(done_mask: np.ndarray[bool], out: BatchOutMinimal) -> None
• step_into(actions: np.ndarray[uint32], out: BatchOutMinimal) -> None
• step_debug_into(actions: np.ndarray[uint32], out: BatchOutDebug) -> None
• reset_debug_into(out: BatchOutDebug) -> None
• reset_indices_debug_into(indices: list[int], out: BatchOutDebug) -> None
• legal_action_ids_into(ids: np.ndarray[uint16], offsets: np.ndarray[uint32]) -> int
• auto_reset_on_error_codes_into(engine_status: np.ndarray[uint8], out: BatchOutMinimal) -> int
• engine_error_reset_count() -> int
• reset_engine_error_reset_count() -> None

Debug helpers:

• action_lookup_batch() -> list[list[dict | None]]
• describe_action_ids(action_ids: list[int]) -> list[dict | None]
• decision_info_batch() -> list[dict]
• state_fingerprint_batch() -> np.ndarray[uint64]
• events_fingerprint_batch() -> np.ndarray[uint64]
• render_ansi(env_index: int, perspective: int) -> str

Convenience properties:

• action_space: int
• obs_len: int
• num_envs: int

Python helper:

• EnvPoolBuffers(pool) allocates persistent numpy buffers and exposes reset(), step(), and legal_action_ids().
• reset_rl(pool) / step_rl(pool, actions) return a RlStep dataclass with named fields.
• pass_action_id_for_decision_kind(decision_kind) returns PASS_ACTION_ID for convenience.

---

Encodings (stable + versioned)

Encodings are deterministic and explicitly versioned:

• weiss_sim.OBS_ENCODING_VERSION (currently 1)
• weiss_sim.ACTION_ENCODING_VERSION (currently 1)

Observation tensor

Observations are fixed-length int32 arrays. Query the current length via:

• weiss_sim.OBS_LEN or pool.obs_len

Visibility modes (observation_visibility):

• "public": opponent hidden zones are masked (filled with -1).
• "full": opponent hidden zones are revealed.

The header includes active player, phase, decision kind/player, last action, attack context, and choice pagination metadata. After the per-player blocks (perspective player first), the encoder appends:

• Reason bits: public-safe flags for phase/resource/target gating.
• Reveal history: recent revealed card ids for the observing player.
• Context bits: priority/choice/stack/encore context.

Exact layout is defined in weiss_core/src/encode.rs and versioned by OBS_ENCODING_VERSION.

Action space

Actions are fixed to ACTION_SPACE_SIZE (pool.action_space). Families include:

• pass (contextual; PASS_ACTION_ID)
• mulligan confirm / mulligan select
• clock
• main play character/event/climax, moves, activated abilities
• attack / counter
• choice select + pagination
• level up / encore
• trigger order
• concede (only legal when allow_concede=true)

The legal-action mask is derived from the canonical ActionDesc list and mapped to ids in a versioned way (ACTION_ENCODING_VERSION).

---

Performance & throughput

Rust core is already extremely fast; Python-side overhead can dominate.

Practical performance tips:

• Use into-buffer APIs (reset_into, step_into) with preallocated buffers.
• Prefer legal action ids over mask scans in Python.
• Pin num_threads if you want repeatable multicore behavior.

---

RL-safe defaults (recommended)

• EnvPool.new_rl_train(...) for training and EnvPool.new_rl_eval(...) for eval.
• observation_visibility = Public
• enable_visibility_policies = true
• allow_concede = false
• priority_allow_pass = true
• strict_priority_mode = false
• enable_priority_windows = false unless you explicitly train with priority timing windows
• Treat timeouts as truncations (bootstrap value)

If you need to deviate, document the assumption and update the PPO guide.

---

Replays (WSR1)

Replays are binary WSR1 files written via ReplayWriter and serialized with postcard.

What gets recorded:

• Header: obs/action encoding versions, replay schema version, seed, starting player, deck ids, curriculum id, config hash
• Body: action sequence, per-step metadata (actor/decision kind/flags), optional event stream, final snapshot (terminal + state hash)

Replay sampling can be enabled from Rust (EnvPool::enable_replay_sampling). The Python binding does not currently expose replay sampling toggles.

Tooling:

cargo run -p weiss_core --bin replay_dump -- path/to/episode_00000000.wsr

---

Card database (WSDB)

The simulator loads a binary card DB:

• Magic: WSDB
• Schema version: u32 little-endian (WSDB_SCHEMA_VERSION = 1)
• Payload: postcard-encoded CardDb

Pack JSON → WSDB:

cargo run -p weiss_core --bin carddb_pack -- cards.json cards.wsdb

See weiss_core/src/db.rs for the CardStatic schema and supported ability templates.

Scraper + converter pipeline (full card set)

The full EN card set is produced by the scraper + converter pipeline:

• Scrape: scraper/scrape.py → scraper/out/cards.jsonl
• Convert: scraper/convert.py → scraper/out/cards.json + scraper/out/cards_raw.json
• Pack: carddb_pack → scraper/out/cards.wsdb

Smoke check with Python:

PYTHONPATH=python python python/wsdb_smoke.py

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Project status (implemented vs simplified)

This is a simulator core built for RL training and determinism first. Some rule systems are intentionally simplified or diverge from the physical game.

Examples of current intentional simplifications/deviations:

• local priority/stack model; official check-timing/play-timing subtleties are not fully replicated
• card text is limited to implemented AbilityTemplate variants (no free-form text engine)
• trigger icon semantics are simplified :
  • Draw is mandatory (not optional “may”)
  • Shot resolves as immediate 1 damage (not delayed on cancel)
  • Bounce returns a character from your stage (not opponent’s)
• deck-top search/reveal modeled as top‑N reveal to controller

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License

Dual-licensed under MIT OR Apache-2.0 (see workspace metadata in Cargo.toml).