First recorded game win, and the rungs flatten

Fourth recorded session, verdict "better": he beat opponent one — the first
game won in any recorded session — and reached opponent two, which took him
apart with gaps of 1.66-2.13m (60Hz, accurate) while he swung at closest
approach every time. The gradient is real; the step was a wall, because a
rung moves three dials at once. Per-rung increments softened: matchSpeedPer
.12->.08, matchWidePer .4->.25, matchOppPacePer .05->.035. Opponent one
untouched — the bases stay, only the slope flattens.

The contact chain is now verified end to end by recorded play: legs
(matchAssist) -> destination (assistK in intercept + the anyHit short-ball
chase) -> reach (matchReach). Each link was a separate defect found by a
separate recorded session.

49 tests, seeds clean.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

PROJECT.md

@@ -1020,6 +1020,20 @@ contact radius: the tap must be honest" rule stands). A rally mode lives on cont
 Note for future recorder sessions: **a 20 Hz sampler overstates closest approach by up to ~0.5 m**
 on a 20 m/s ball — the recorder now samples at 60 Hz.
 
+**TWENTY-THIRD PASS — first game won, and the rungs flatten.** Fourth recorded session, his
+verdict "better": **he beat opponent one — the first game won in any recorded session — and reached
+opponent two,** which then took him apart with gaps of 1.66-2.13 m (60 Hz, accurate) while he swung
+at closest approach every time. The ladder gradient is real; the STEP was a wall, because every
+rung moves three dials at once (speed, width, pace, plus flub). Per-rung increments softened:
+`matchSpeedPer` .12->.08, `matchWidePer` .4->.25, `matchOppPacePer` .05->.035. Opponent one is
+untouched — the bases stay; only the slope flattens.
+
+The contact chain is now verified end to end by recorded play: LEGS (matchAssist) -> DESTINATION
+(assistK in intercept + the anyHit short-ball chase) -> REACH (matchReach). Each link was a separate
+defect found by a separate recorded session. The flight recorder earned a permanent place in the
+toolbox: passive 20-60 Hz sampling with pre-loss trails ended four rounds of "still the same" in
+four sessions, where autopilot measurement had failed for three passes straight.
+
 **Open, and every one of them is Oliver's call after he plays it:**
 1. ~~**A ball that carries through the lane can complete two steps at once.**~~ Largely CLOSED by
    the slice removal (seventh pass) — a cut ball picking its own next victim was the main way this

index.html

@@ -400,6 +400,6 @@
     </div>
   </div>
 </div>
-<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=175"></script>
+<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=176"></script>
 </body>
 </html>

src/config.js

@@ -390,7 +390,9 @@ export const TUNE = {
                         // the broken recovery (the player never walked back to centre, so every
                         // wide return looked like opponent strength) — with real footwork restored
                         // it starts gentler and the ladder still climbs
-  matchSpeedPer: 0.12, // ...growing this much per opponent felled
+  matchSpeedPer: 0.08, // ...growing this much per opponent felled. Softened once: each rung moves
+                       // THREE dials at once (speed, flub, width, pace), and the recorder showed
+                       // opponent two as a wall — he beat one and lost every gap to two by ~0.3 m
   matchFlub: 0.08,     // the match's own whiff base — the duel's 0.2 gives away a fifth of all
                        // returns, which across a game is an opponent that beats itself
   matchFlubKeep: 0.82, // ...and it keeps only this much per rung — the ladder now that hp is flat
@@ -402,11 +404,11 @@ export const TUNE = {
                      // is the game's job. Held keys still override
   matchOppPace: 0.78,   // scale on the opponent's return SPEED for opponent one (~21 m/s instead
                         // of ~27) — the flight time auto-run needs. THE reachability dial
-  matchOppPacePer: 0.05,// ...climbing back per rung, capped at full pace
+  matchOppPacePer: 0.035,// ...climbing back per rung, capped at full pace (softened with speedPer)
   matchWideBase: 2.1, // m either side of centre the FIRST opponent's returns may land — the width an
                       // auto-run player can actually cover. Its scatter painted lines from game one
                       // ("still a LOT of unreachable balls"); now line-painting is the late ladder
-  matchWidePer: 0.4,  // ...earning this much more width per opponent felled
+  matchWidePer: 0.25, // ...earning this much more width per opponent felled (softened with speedPer)
   matchHeal: 2,     // hp back for a game won (the duel's healPerDuel rate)
   // The timing windows, DRAWN (the match's whole ask: "what is the possible tap window, what is the
   // sweet spot"). Numbers shared with the mechanics they visualise, so the picture cannot lie: