ludic build --check reads the maps only for the package's entry - a partial program (a unit test, a molecule, a bake's runner) lacks the game's constants and cannot judge them; --maps reads them anyway, --no-maps never; ludicc unchanged

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

LANGUAGE.md

@@ -715,7 +715,9 @@ field's type, `@OneOf` and `@Range` hold, an `@Ref` into a game registry is in r
 into a `@PerMap` registry names a row of that table in the same map (in any of its chunks; `""` is
 none). A key is written once in a file. Errors carry the map file's line and column, through the
 diagnostics as any other (`--diagnostics=json`); `--no-maps` leaves the maps alone, and no maps
-root is nothing to check. `LUDIC_PERMAP_SRC=<file>` appends what the compiler wrote for each table.
+root is nothing to check. `ludic build --check` reads them only for the package's `entry` (the game):
+a partial program - a unit test, a molecule, a bake's runner - lacks the game's constants and cannot
+judge them, so they are left alone there unless `--maps` asks. `LUDIC_PERMAP_SRC=<file>` appends what the compiler wrote for each table.
 
 ### Editor attributes and the schema (`@Ref`, `@Range`, ..., `ludic schema`)
 

changes/maps-entry-only.md

@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+bump: patch
+type: fix
+**`ludic build --check` reads the maps only for the package's entry.** A partial program - a unit test, a
+molecule, a bake's runner - lacks the game's constants, so checking every map's tables against it refused
+rows the game reads fine (`TH_*`, `NPCK_*` unknown). The maps are now checked with the `entry` package.ludic
+names (as `ludic build --check` with no file, and tests/pack.sh, do); `--maps` checks them anyway, `--no-maps`
+never. `ludicc` itself is unchanged: it reads them unless told `--no-maps`.

tools/ludic-cli/project.ludic

@@ -278,6 +278,7 @@ function parse_build_args(start: int) -> pointer {
     else if a == "--unsafe" { g_unsafe_build = true }
     else if a == "--check" { g_check_build = true }
     else if a == "--no-maps" { g_no_maps_build = true }     # --check leaves the map directories alone
+    else if a == "--maps" { g_maps_build = true }           # ... or reads them, whatever program it checks
     else if a == "--diagnostics=json" { g_check_build = true;  g_diag_json_build = true }   # every error, as JSON on stdout
     else if a == "-o" {
       ai += 1
@@ -286,7 +287,7 @@ function parse_build_args(start: int) -> pointer {
     }
     else if a[0] == '-' {
       err(`ludic: unknown option {a}\n`)
-      err("  build/run take: [file] [--headless|--windowed] [-o out] [--save-temps] [--check [--diagnostics=json] [--no-maps]]\n")
+      err("  build/run take: [file] [--headless|--windowed] [-o out] [--save-temps] [--check [--diagnostics=json] [--maps|--no-maps]]\n")
       g_argerr = true
     }
     else { src = a }
@@ -311,17 +312,31 @@ function output_path(entry: pointer) -> pointer {
 var g_check_build: bool = false
 var g_diag_json_build: bool = false     # --diagnostics=json: the compiler's JSON array is the whole stdout
 var g_no_maps_build: bool = false
-function no_maps_flag() -> pointer {
+var g_maps_build: bool = false
+# the maps are checked with the package's entry - the game - and left alone for any other program: a
+# partial program (a unit test, a bake's runner) lacks the game's constants and cannot judge them
+function no_maps_flag(src: pointer) -> pointer {
   if g_no_maps_build { return " --no-maps" }
-  return ""
+  if g_maps_build { return "" }
+  if not file_exists("package.ludic") { return "" }
+  let m = read_root_manifest()
+  if m.entry == "" or bld_same_path(m.entry, src) { return "" }
+  return " --no-maps"
+}
+function bld_same_path(a: pointer, b: pointer) -> bool {
+  var x = a
+  var y = b
+  if len(x) > 2 and x[0] == '.' and x[1] == '/' { x = x[2..len(x)] }
+  if len(y) > 2 and y[0] == '.' and y[1] == '/' { y = y[2..len(y)] }
+  return x == y
 }
 function check_app(src: pointer) -> int {
   ensure_ludicc()
   if g_diag_json_build {
-    if not shq(`{ludicc()} --check --diagnostics=json{no_maps_flag()}{title_flag()}{unsafe_flag()} {src}`) { return 1 }
+    if not shq(`{ludicc()} --check --diagnostics=json{no_maps_flag(src)}{title_flag()}{unsafe_flag()} {src}`) { return 1 }
     return 0
   }
-  if not shq(`{ludicc()} --check{no_maps_flag()}{title_flag()}{unsafe_flag()} {src}`) { return 1 }
+  if not shq(`{ludicc()} --check{no_maps_flag(src)}{title_flag()}{unsafe_flag()} {src}`) { return 1 }
   print(`checked {src}`)
   return 0
 }