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z3ed: AI-Powered CLI for YAZE

Status: Active Development | Production Ready (AI Integration)
Latest Update: October 3, 2025

Recent Updates (October 3, 2025)

Z3ED_AI Build Flag Consolidation

  • New Master Flag: Single -DZ3ED_AI=ON flag enables all AI features
  • Crash Fix: Gemini no longer segfaults when API key set but JSON disabled
  • Improved UX: Clear error messages and graceful degradation
  • Production Ready: Both Gemini and Ollama tested and working
  • Documentation: See Z3ED_AI_FLAG_MIGRATION.md

🎯 Current Focus

  • Live LLM Testing: Verifying function calling with real Ollama/Gemini models
  • GUI Chat Widget: Bringing conversational agent to YAZE GUI (6-8h estimate)
  • Tool Coverage: Expanding ROM introspection capabilities

Overview

z3ed is a command-line interface for YAZE that enables AI-driven ROM modifications through a proposal-based workflow. It provides both human-accessible commands for developers and machine-readable APIs for LLM integration.

Core Capabilities:

  1. AI-Driven Editing: Natural language prompts → ROM modifications (overworld tile16, dungeon objects, sprites, palettes)
  2. GUI Test Automation: Widget discovery, test recording/replay, introspection for debugging
  3. Proposal System: Safe sandbox editing with accept/reject workflow
  4. Multiple AI Backends: Ollama (local), Gemini (cloud), Claude (planned)

Quick Start

Build Options

# Basic z3ed (CLI only, no AI/testing features)
cmake --build build --target z3ed

# Full build with AI agent (RECOMMENDED - uses consolidated flag)
cmake -B build -DZ3ED_AI=ON
cmake --build build --target z3ed

# Full build with AI agent AND testing suite
cmake -B build -DZ3ED_AI=ON -DYAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON
cmake --build build --target z3ed

Build Flags Explained:

  • Z3ED_AI=ON - Master flag for AI features (enables JSON, YAML, httplib for Ollama + Gemini)
  • YAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON - Optional GUI automation and test harness (also enables JSON)
  • YAZE_WITH_JSON=ON - Lower-level flag (auto-enabled by Z3ED_AI or GRPC)

Dependencies for AI Features (auto-managed by Z3ED_AI):

  • nlohmann/json (JSON parsing for AI responses)
  • yaml-cpp (Config file loading)
  • httplib (HTTP/HTTPS API calls)
  • OpenSSL (optional, for Gemini HTTPS - auto-detected on macOS/Linux)

AI Agent Commands

# Generate commands from natural language prompt
z3ed agent plan --prompt "Place a tree at position 10, 10 on map 0"

# Execute in sandbox with auto-approval
z3ed agent run --prompt "Create a 3x3 water pond at 15, 20" --rom zelda3.sfc --sandbox

# Chat with the agent in the terminal (FTXUI prototype)
z3ed agent chat

# List all proposals
z3ed agent list

# View proposal details
z3ed agent diff --proposal <id>

# Inspect project metadata for the LLM toolchain
z3ed agent resource-list --type dungeon --format json

# Dump sprite placements for a dungeon room
z3ed agent dungeon-list-sprites --room 0x012

# Search overworld maps for a tile ID using shared agent tooling
z3ed agent overworld-find-tile --tile 0x02E --map 0x05

GUI Testing Commands

# Run automated test
z3ed agent test --prompt "Open Overworld editor and verify it loads"

# Query test status
z3ed agent test status --test-id <id> --follow

# Record manual workflow
z3ed agent test record start --output tests/my_test.json
# ... perform actions in GUI ...
z3ed agent test record stop

# Replay recorded test
z3ed agent test replay tests/my_test.json

# Test conversational agent (batch mode, no TUI required)
z3ed agent test-conversation

# Test with custom conversation file
z3ed agent test-conversation --file my_tests.json

AI Service Setup

# Install Ollama
brew install ollama  # macOS
# or download from https://ollama.com

# Pull recommended model
ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b

# Start server
ollama serve

# z3ed will auto-detect Ollama at localhost:11434
z3ed agent plan --prompt "test"

Gemini (Google Cloud API)

# Get API key from https://aistudio.google.com/apikey
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-key-here"

# z3ed will auto-select Gemini when key is set
z3ed agent plan --prompt "test"

Note: Gemini requires OpenSSL (HTTPS). Build with -DYAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON -DYAZE_WITH_JSON=ON to enable SSL support. OpenSSL is auto-detected on macOS/Linux. Windows users can use Ollama instead.

Example Prompts

Here are some example prompts you can try with either Ollama or Gemini:

Overworld Tile16 Editing:

  • "Place a tree at position 10, 20 on map 0"
  • "Create a 3x3 water pond at coordinates 15, 10"
  • "Add a dirt path from position 5,5 to 5,15"
  • "Plant a row of trees horizontally at y=8 from x=20 to x=25"

Dungeon Editing (Label-Aware):

  • "Add 3 soldiers to the Eastern Palace entrance room"
  • "Place a chest in Hyrule Castle treasure room"

Core Documentation

Essential Reads

  1. BUILD_QUICK_REFERENCE.md - NEW! Fast build guide with Z3ED_AI flag examples
  2. AGENT-ROADMAP.md - The primary source of truth for the AI agent's strategic vision, architecture, and next steps
  3. Z3ED_AI_FLAG_MIGRATION.md - NEW! Complete guide to Z3ED_AI flag and crash fixes
  4. E6-z3ed-cli-design.md - Detailed architecture and design philosophy
  5. E6-z3ed-reference.md - Complete command reference and API documentation

Current Status (October 3, 2025)

Production Ready

  • Build System: Z3ED_AI flag consolidation complete
    • Single flag for all AI features
    • Graceful degradation when dependencies missing
    • Clear error messages and build status
    • Backward compatible with old flags
  • AI Backends: Both Ollama and Gemini operational
    • Auto-detection based on environment
    • Health checks and error handling
    • Tested with real API calls
  • Conversational Agent: Multi-step tool execution loop
    • Chat history management
    • Tool result replay without recursion
    • JSON/table rendering in TUI
  • Tool Dispatcher: 5 read-only tools operational
    • Resource listing, sprite inspection, tile search
    • Map descriptions, warp enumeration
    • Machine-readable JSON output

<EFBFBD> In Progress (Priority Order)

  1. Live LLM Testing (1-2h): Verify function calling with real models
  2. GUI Chat Widget (6-8h): ImGui integration (TUI exists as reference)
  3. Tool Coverage Expansion (8-10h): Dialogue, sprites, regions

📋 Next Steps

See AGENT-ROADMAP.md for detailed technical roadmap.

AI Editing Focus Areas

z3ed is optimized for practical ROM editing workflows:

Overworld Tile16 Editing PRIMARY FOCUS

Why: Simple data model (uint16 IDs), visual feedback, reversible, safe

  • Single tile placement (trees, rocks, bushes)
  • Area creation (water ponds, dirt patches)
  • Path creation (connecting points with tiles)
  • Pattern generation (tree rows, forests, boundaries)

Dungeon Editing

  • Sprite placement with label awareness ("eastern palace entrance")
  • Object placement (chests, doors, switches)
  • Entrance configuration
  • Room property editing

Palette Editing

  • Color modification by index
  • Sprite palette adjustments
  • Export/import workflows

Additional Capabilities

  • Sprite data editing
  • Compression/decompression
  • ROM validation
  • Patch application

Example Workflows

Basic Tile16 Edit

# AI generates command
z3ed agent plan --prompt "Place a tree at 10, 10"
# Output: overworld set-tile --map 0 --x 10 --y 10 --tile 0x02E

# Execute manually
z3ed overworld set-tile --map 0 --x 10 --y 10 --tile 0x02E

# Or auto-execute with sandbox
z3ed agent run --prompt "Place a tree at 10, 10" --rom zelda3.sfc --sandbox

Complex Multi-Step Edit

# AI generates multiple commands
z3ed agent plan --prompt "Create a 3x3 water pond at 15, 20"

# Review proposal
z3ed agent diff --latest

# Accept and apply
z3ed agent accept --latest

Locate Existing Tiles

# Find every instance of tile 0x02E across the overworld
z3ed overworld find-tile --tile 0x02E --format json

# Narrow search to Light World map 0x05
z3ed overworld find-tile --tile 0x02E --map 0x05

# Ask the agent to perform the same lookup (returns JSON by default)
z3ed agent overworld-find-tile --tile 0x02E --map 0x05

Label-Aware Dungeon Edit

# AI uses ResourceLabels from your project
z3ed agent plan --prompt "Add 3 soldiers to my custom fortress entrance"
# AI explains: "Using label 'custom_fortress' for dungeon 0x04"

Dependencies Guard

AI agent features require:

  • YAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON - GUI automation and test harness
  • YAZE_WITH_JSON=ON - AI service communication
  • OpenSSL (optional) - Gemini HTTPS support (auto-detected)

Windows Compatibility: Build without gRPC/JSON for basic z3ed functionality. Use Ollama (localhost) instead of Gemini for AI features without SSL dependency.

Recent Changes (Oct 3, 2025)

Z3ED_AI Build Flag (Major Improvement)

  • Consolidated Build Flags: New -DZ3ED_AI=ON replaces multiple flags
    • Old: -DYAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON -DYAZE_WITH_JSON=ON
    • New: -DZ3ED_AI=ON (simpler, clearer intent)
  • Fixed Gemini Crash: Graceful degradation when dependencies missing
  • Better Error Messages: Clear guidance on missing dependencies
  • Production Ready: Both backends tested and operational

Build System

  • Auto-manages dependencies (JSON, YAML, httplib, OpenSSL)
  • Backward compatible with old flags
  • Ready for build modularization (optional libyaze_agent.a)

Documentation

  • Updated build instructions with Z3ED_AI flag
  • Added migration guide: Z3ED_AI_FLAG_MIGRATION.md
  • Clear troubleshooting section with common issues

Troubleshooting

"OpenSSL not found" warning

Impact: Gemini API won't work (HTTPS required)
Solutions:

  • Use Ollama instead (no SSL needed, runs locally) - RECOMMENDED
  • Install OpenSSL: brew install openssl (macOS) or apt-get install libssl-dev (Linux)
  • Windows: Use Ollama (localhost) instead of Gemini

"Build with -DZ3ED_AI=ON" warning

Impact: AI agent features disabled (no Ollama or Gemini)
Solution: Rebuild with AI support:

cmake -B build -DZ3ED_AI=ON
cmake --build build --target z3ed

"gRPC not available" error

Impact: GUI testing and automation disabled
Solution: Rebuild with -DYAZE_WITH_GRPC=ON (also requires Z3ED_AI)

AI generates invalid commands

Causes: Vague prompt, unfamiliar tile IDs, missing context
Solutions:

  • Use specific coordinates and tile types
  • Reference tile16 IDs from documentation
  • Provide map context ("Light World", "map 0")
  • Check ResourceLabels are loaded for your project

Testing the conversational agent

Problem: TUI chat requires interactive input
Solution: Use the new batch testing mode:

# Run with default test cases (no interaction required)
z3ed agent test-conversation --rom zelda3.sfc

# Or use the automated test script
./scripts/test_agent_conversation_live.sh

Verifying ImGui test harness

Problem: Unsure if GUI automation is working
Solution: Run the verification script:

./scripts/test_imgui_harness.sh

Gemini-Specific Issues

  • "Cannot reach Gemini API": Check your internet connection, API key, and that you've built with SSL support.
  • "Invalid Gemini API key": Regenerate your key at aistudio.google.com/apikey.