Category
Category: Status: in the alpha
122 articles in this category.
122 articles. See all categories.
- Act I: The Long WakeThe first act, where the Evening Pair starts to drift and the Ranger learns that an irregular signal is not always something to remove.In the alpha
- Anchor & PullThe Sentinel's bonus action that anchors a process and flows the Ranger along a straight open line, or drags a debris clump toward it.In the alpha
ApothecaryThe Threadway building that deals in signalling, with nothing bottled; it tunes your own signal, lets you rest once per outing and arranges the calming visit.In the alpha
Arborwake alphaThe lead's integrated alpha on the Placeholder branch, joining the overworld, the 3D Threadway, turn-based rooms and one save; incomplete, with the story ending after II1.In the alpha- ArchiveThe Cartographer's Archive & Observatory on Threadway, which keeps field notes and research entries and is planned to chart the next outing.In the alpha
Astro VFXThe astrocyte opening - a hole in the ground, one astrocyte process rising, sparkles - used for Link in turn rooms and for the calming visit at Hearth.In the alpha
AstrocyteStar-shaped support cells; in Arborwake they are anchored residents whose help is spatial and finite.In the alpha- AttuneThe Warden's passive that makes Link a bonus action and spreads supported ground one tile further.In the alpha
- Basic actionsThe actions every class has in a turn-based room: Move, Tend, Care, Inspect, Link, Settle, Call, Release and Wait.In the alpha
Board gridThe square-tile grid that turn-based rooms are played on, drawn as tilted 24×20 ground squares with a heavier border around the playable area.In the alpha
Build VFXThe construction and repair effects - built versus in use, a banked road stretch, "later" for one stretch per return, and a shortcut that opens only when it can really be walked.In the alpha- Calming visitAn Apothecary service in which an anchored astrocyte's process reaches up through an opening at Hearth and calms every resident.In the alpha
- CareThe basic action that restores a connection's function, in a fast form that keeps a lingering response going and a recovery form that makes it fade.In the alpha
Care VFXThe turn-room effects for Care, recovery Care, Tend, Engulf, Trim, Process and Settle - three results with three shapes, timed to the rope's contact frame.In the alpha
Character spritesHow Arborwake's cell characters are drawn and animated, from the original Ranger sheets to the six named-cast production sheets installed in the alpha.In the alpha- Clear IntervalMote's Imprint, which shows a lingering response's full fade timer and keeps it readable one round longer.In the alpha
Common HallThe Threadway hall on the first terrace, whose blackboard shows the current story chapter and the community requests.In the alpha- Companion stressA 0–4 level on each microglial resident that rises only from play, never from time, and never causes permanent harm.In the alpha
- ComposureA unit's in-room steadiness in turn-based encounters; at 0 the unit is Overwhelmed and loses its next action.In the alpha
- ControlsKeyboard, pointer and touch controls of the Arborwake alpha in the world maps, in the 3D Threadway and in the Places dialog.In the alpha
- CoordinatorThe specialisation that delegates to a companion, with Direct, Swap and Huddle; it stays locked until the first companion is recruited.In the alpha
CressA microglial resident who crosses the Quiet District with an ordinary record and argues with Wick about when a repaired road is safe.In the alpha
Delivery trayA ceramic basin below Hearth's rosette that holds a finite community delivery of Supply.In the alpha
Dendritic GardensThe first run location, reached from Nearfield Glade, where the Ranger cares for connections through telegraphed pressure fronts.In the alpha- DirectThe Coordinator's bonus action that gives its companion an extra move-and-act now, toward any target it can reach.In the alpha
- EconomyAn overview of how Supply, finds, outings, home buildings and services fit together, with the design rules that stop farming.In the alpha
Encounter backgroundsThe painted room shells behind Arborwake's turn-based boards - sixteen approved "3D made 2D" rooms whose floor fits the 24×20 grid, with round obstacles and per-room ground passes.In the alpha- EnduranceThe outing budget: 6 points from home, 1 spent per room, restored fully only at home.In the alpha
- EngulfA flex skill that clears debris on a tile and all around it and draws the next ring in, after which the Ranger cannot move that turn.In the alpha
Environment artHow Arborwake's places are made - concept studies, Meshy models and Blender renders finished as layered pixel art - and the history of the rejected first packages.In the alpha- Evening PairThe paired evening pulse on Hearth Grove's north connection, the motif that ties every act of The Long Wake together.In the alpha
ExchangeAster's single counter in Starwell, where you pack provisions and drop carried Supply before the Vessel Margins gate.In the alpha- Field gearOne-use items from the Workshop that you carry in a two-slot satchel and use once per outing as a bonus action.In the alpha
- Flex WardA flex skill for the Sentinel and Coordinator: a small one-round ring on a tile and its four neighbours.In the alpha
FlowThe Ranger's overworld travel look, version v002 "melt and move", in which the cell folds its processes in and flows forward on a membrane wave.In the alpha- Full LengthWick's Imprint, which makes the Ranger's Support count twice in tract preparation at the cost of weaker Care.In the alpha
- GlideA flex skill for the Warden and Coordinator that flows the Ranger up to 4 tiles in a straight open line without touching surfaces.In the alpha
Hearth buildingsThe three home projects (Arbor, Recovery nook and Relay node) built on Hearth's plots, plus the two new home connections.In the alpha- Hearth GroveThe Ranger's home base, an open field round a fire bowl where residents keep home duties, buildings go up and every outing starts and ends.In the alpha
Hearth podiumThe outing podium by Hearth's exit - press it and squares float up in the world for the Imprint, the companions and the run records; it is not a shop and not a HUD panel.In the alpha- Hearth strainA 0–4 bar for how hard the home was worked while the Ranger was away; at 4 the next home disturbance overreacts, but nothing locks.In the alpha
Home artThe art of Hearth, the player's home - the H15 map with home layout A, the neurons' own axon lines, the buildings, podium, delivery tray and scorch marks, and the growth lines still under review.In the alpha- Home dutiesThe watches and contacts that residents hold at Hearth; cover is arranged automatically at departure, and each duty is covered, stretched or a gap.In the alpha
Home VFXThe home effects - the Hearth podium's floating squares, Imprint equip at home, the companions board, departure and return, and rest at the Apothecary.In the alpha- HuddleThe Coordinator's passive reaction in which an adjacent companion takes a hit meant for the Ranger.In the alpha
Icon labelsArborwake's rule for words in the interface - a short title on hover, focus or press-and-hold, and a click card with the details and an "in the brain" line.In the alpha- ImprintsSeven passive keepsakes, each earned once by finishing a resident's side story and equipped at home before an outing, like Hades keepsakes.In the alpha
Inventory HUDThe town and home interface - a Stardew-style parchment inventory, the 54-icon set, the themed shop menus and the Hearth strain bar - made on the claude/hud-inventory branch.In the alpha- Kit historyHow the Ranger's classes and skills changed from the legacy two-class kit through kit v1–v5 to the turn-based kit installed in the alpha.In the alpha
- Known TurnsFen's Imprint, which gives an extra move when a turn starts on a tile already stood on, at the cost of reach in round 1.In the alpha
- LessonsThe nine one-lesson tutorial rooms that teach turn-based play, replayable in Memory Meadow.In the alpha
- LinkThe basic action that asks an anchored astrocyte to support its territory, turning the tiles around its socket into supported ground.In the alpha
- Live preview siteThe publicly reachable Arborwake page, built from Placeholder commit 82c3add0d; an incomplete first alpha slice that is older than the lead's local integration.In the alpha
- Location verbsActions that exist only where a room offers them: Seal in Vessel Margins, and Trim and Process in the Quiet Tracts and the Tag Garden.In the alpha
- Long ReachThe Sentinel's passive that raises its reach from 3 tiles to 4.In the alpha
Memory MeadowA hippocampus-inspired dawn meadow north of the Glade where you replay free lessons and try specialisations, and the planned Act V refuge.In the alpha
MicrogliaThe brain's resident immune cells; in Arborwake, the Ranger and every recruitable companion are microglia.In the alpha
MonocyteBlood immune cells that, in some rodent stress models, are recruited to the brain's vessel walls; in Arborwake they appear only in model-labelled Vessel Margins rooms.In the alpha
MoteA small microglial neighbour who records tiny changes in Mote Pocket and can become the first optional field companion.In the alpha
Mote PocketA small, dim, rock-walled dell off the Glade where Mote keeps a tidy nook and the first story observations take place.In the alpha
Movement VFXThe overworld movement effects - a short dot trail behind walking, a finer trail behind Flow, and a body shake when a walk is blocked.In the alpha
Nearfield GladeA woodland crossroads east of Hearth that links home, Memory Meadow, Mote Pocket, the Threadway road and the Dendritic Gardens.In the alpha
NeuronNerve cells that carry signals; in Arborwake they are rooted gold residents whose pulses the player learns to read and must never lose.In the alpha
OligodendrocyteThe cells that wrap axons in myelin; in Arborwake they are anchored and only extend, and only they can repair the Quiet District road.In the alpha
Oligodendrocyte precursor cellThe young cells that can mature into new oligodendrocytes; in the Quiet Tracts they mature in place and wrap by extension.In the alpha
Orders VFXThe turn-room effects for a companion's orders - Direct, Swap, Huddle and Call - where Call is drawn as a signal that residents choose to answer.In the alpha
Panels VFXThe menu and inventory effects - hover corners, a pressed button that sinks, tab and item markers, equip and unequip - with one shape for each state and no words.In the alpha
PipHearth Grove's keeper, a microglial resident who covers the east bend and can become a late field companion after a real handoff.In the alpha- Places dialogThe map picker that lists Arborwake's places as picture buttons; in the alpha it walks the player toward the right exit instead of teleporting.In the alpha
- Pneumatic tubeA glass tube in Threadway's station that carries you between the street and the upper deck, where the road to the Quiet District starts.In the alpha
Pressure & AftermathThe Dendritic Gardens encounter module, in which forecast pressure fronts strike connections and the Ranger protects them, then helps them settle.In the alpha
Pressure front VFXThe animated pressure front in turn rooms - coming, striking, resolving one at a time, lingering and held overload - restyled to the painted rooms and approved by the user.In the alpha- Prologue: The Last Regular EveningThe opening of The Long Wake, where the Ranger learns a calm Hearth Grove, meets Pip and Mote and first sees the Evening Pair.In the alpha
Pull and Glide VFXThe turn-room effects for Pull, Glide and dragged debris - anchors and landings while aiming, a gripping diamond and clamps, a body that flows tile by tile, and a still trail under reduced motion.In the alpha- Quest scrollThe quest tracker - one narrow parchment scroll that winds open below a rolled header, with named rows, square progress pips and red and blue unread marks.In the alpha
Quests VFXThe quest and pickup effects - tracking a quest, evidence found at its cell, a finished side story, the first permanent unlock, and taking something from a pickup source.In the alpha
Quiet DistrictA night-blue side-on district round an elevated myelinated road with five repairable stretches, the Wrapping Depot and the gate to the Quiet Tracts.In the alpha- Quiet HandoffPip's Imprint, which makes a paid Call answer in the same round at the cost of weaker Care.In the alpha
- Quiet TractsThe third run location, gated by the Quiet District, where the Ranger clears debris so an anchored oligodendrocyte can wrap a tract.In the alpha
RangerThe player's microglial cell, a resident of Hearth Grove with no forced name, gender or destiny.In the alpha- RecruitmentHow companions join: only by completing a quest step in their side story, never through a menu, button, shop or the podium; one companion per outing.In the alpha
- RestA paid Apothecary service during an outing that restores 2 endurance, never above 4, once per outing; it replaced resting at Starwell and the Depot.In the alpha
RillA microglial resident of the Dendritic Gardens who shares one room with the Ranger and never joins the roster.In the alpha
Run HUDThe interface for turn-based rooms - goal strip, action bar, unit cards, tutorial prompt, result screen and endurance chip - made by the Run HUDs session and approved piece by piece by the user.In the alpha- Saving and save migrationHow each Arborwake build stores progress, what session.game v1 holds, and how older saves carry over after the Arborwake rename and between alpha versions.In the alpha
- SentinelThe specialisation that finds and reaches, with Survey for hidden threats, Anchor & Pull for movement and the Long Reach passive.In the alpha
- Services v3Version 3 of Claude B's district services module, which added Hearth strain to the turn-based gear, signal tuning and companion stress of version 2.In the alpha
- SettleThe basic self-calming action that restores Composure, more on supported ground.In the alpha
- Shared BoundaryAster and Vessa's Imprint, which shows visible telegraphs one round earlier at the cost of one move in the first round.In the alpha
- Signal tuningAn Apothecary service that sets one of the Ranger's own signals to level 0–3 for a whole outing, following an inverted U.In the alpha
- Stand FastThe Warden's stance action that roots the Ranger until its next turn, wards its own tile and makes the first hit cost no Composure.In the alpha
StarwellA side-on support and staging district at Threadway's east end, with the Exchange, the Star Well and the gate to Vessel Margins.In the alpha
StudiosThe Threadway training building, planned to hold a class lobby and one floor of advanced drills per specialisation; in the alpha it points you to Memory Meadow.In the alpha- SupplyArborwake's one currency, carried as cargo in the field and banked at home, spent on home buildings, gear, provisions and Apothecary services.In the alpha
- Supported groundTiles around a linked astrocyte socket that restore Composure and strengthen Care; it replaced the recovery parcel as in-room recovery.In the alpha
- SurfacesTile states on a turn-based board, such as debris, inflamed, supported and scorch, that change movement, Care and Composure.In the alpha
- SurveyThe Sentinel's action that reveals hidden things within 5 tiles and shows every telegraph two rounds ahead until its next turn.In the alpha
- Survey ribbonOne-use Workshop field gear that sweeps 3 tiles around the Ranger for anything hidden, as a bonus action for any class.In the alpha
Survey VFXThe turn-room effects for Survey - a scan tint over the exact area, two sweeping scan columns, an evidence frame and lens on each revealed front, and a hollow return when nothing is found.In the alpha- SwapThe Coordinator's bonus action that trades places with its companion along an open line.In the alpha
Tea HouseA terrace café on Threadway where a shared tea answers a resident's open visit request.In the alpha
TendrilsThe thin rope-like processes that microglia, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes extend only during actions, drawn under the body by one shared rope module.In the alpha- The Space BetweenNell's Imprint, which keeps the "working again" sign readable one round longer but forbids Caring the same connection twice in a row.In the alpha
ThreadwayThe town street, a live 3D scene with flat 2D cells, where the Threadway buildings stand and the roads to the Glade, Starwell and Quiet District meet.In the alpha
Threadway 3D sceneThe art side of Threadway - the P24 Blender scene with frozen painted projections, a hazed back row and a glass tract, shown live in 3D with flat 2D cell sprites.In the alpha
Threadway residencesThe Home and Apartments on Threadway, closed façades for recurring characters whose interiors are still placeholders.In the alpha
ThreatsThe telegraphed processes that act on a turn-based board each round, such as pressure fronts, jolts, debris flows and the monocyte surge.In the alpha- Travel and movementHow the Ranger walks the world: free continuous movement, collision-aware click routing, fades between maps, the 3D Threadway's measured navigation and the pneumatic tube.In the alpha
- Turn-based encountersArborwake's room combat since 1 November 2026, a side-based tactics system inspired by Into the Breach and Baldur's Gate 3.In the alpha
- TypographyArborwake's two original pixel fonts - Canopy for titles and short labels, Fieldnotes for reading text - approved by the user and used across the game except in painted signs.In the alpha
- UpgradesRun upgrades that reshape a class's action economy, each with a real cost; eight exist in the turn-based kit.In the alpha
Vessel MarginsThe second run location, gated by Starwell, where the Ranger reads vessel walls and answers each with the right partner.In the alpha
Vessel VFXThe Vessel Margins effects - a visible monocyte surge countdown along the vessel's centre line, and adhesion where a monocyte sticks to the wall.In the alpha
VFXArborwake's visual effects - quiet, tactile pixel feedback with no words and no popups, built as eight turn groups and five overworld groups, all approved by the user.In the alpha- WardThe Warden's action that plants a 3×3 ring for 2 rounds, holding back 60% of the harm to everything inside it, never all of it.In the alpha
- Ward stakeOne-use Workshop field gear that wards a single tile for one round, as a bonus action for any class.In the alpha
Ward VFXThe turn-room effects for Ward and Stand Fast - five plates per tile, three solid and two empty, so a ward visibly shares 60% of a hit and never reads as immunity.In the alpha- WardenThe specialisation that protects what the room threatens, with the 60% Ward ring, Stand Fast and the Attune passive.In the alpha
- Within ReachStella's Imprint, which makes Care stronger on supported ground and slightly weaker elsewhere.In the alpha
WorkshopAn open ground-floor shop on Threadway that builds and fits permanent tools and makes one-use field gear.In the alpha- Workshop toolsThree permanent Workshop tools (Steady grip, Quick hands, Reaching frame), each a sidegrade; one is fitted at a time.In the alpha
Wrapping DepotThe Quiet District workshop that turns wrapping spools from the Quiet Tracts into repairs of the district's road, one stretch per return.In the alpha
A to Z#
A
- Act I: The Long Wake In the alpha The first act, where the Evening Pair starts to drift and the Ranger learns that an irregular signal is not always something to remove.
- Anchor & Pull In the alpha The Sentinel's bonus action that anchors a process and flows the Ranger along a straight open line, or drags a debris clump toward it.
- Apothecary In the alpha The Threadway building that deals in signalling, with nothing bottled; it tunes your own signal, lets you rest once per outing and arranges the calming visit.
- Arborwake alpha In the alpha The lead's integrated alpha on the Placeholder branch, joining the overworld, the 3D Threadway, turn-based rooms and one save; incomplete, with the story ending after II1.
- Archive In the alpha The Cartographer's Archive & Observatory on Threadway, which keeps field notes and research entries and is planned to chart the next outing.
- Astro VFX In the alpha The astrocyte opening - a hole in the ground, one astrocyte process rising, sparkles - used for Link in turn rooms and for the calming visit at Hearth.
- Astrocyte In the alpha Star-shaped support cells; in Arborwake they are anchored residents whose help is spatial and finite.
- Attune In the alpha The Warden's passive that makes Link a bonus action and spreads supported ground one tile further.
B
- Basic actions In the alpha The actions every class has in a turn-based room: Move, Tend, Care, Inspect, Link, Settle, Call, Release and Wait.
- Board grid In the alpha The square-tile grid that turn-based rooms are played on, drawn as tilted 24×20 ground squares with a heavier border around the playable area.
- Build VFX In the alpha The construction and repair effects - built versus in use, a banked road stretch, "later" for one stretch per return, and a shortcut that opens only when it can really be walked.
C
- Calming visit In the alpha An Apothecary service in which an anchored astrocyte's process reaches up through an opening at Hearth and calms every resident.
- Care In the alpha The basic action that restores a connection's function, in a fast form that keeps a lingering response going and a recovery form that makes it fade.
- Care VFX In the alpha The turn-room effects for Care, recovery Care, Tend, Engulf, Trim, Process and Settle - three results with three shapes, timed to the rope's contact frame.
- Character sprites In the alpha How Arborwake's cell characters are drawn and animated, from the original Ranger sheets to the six named-cast production sheets installed in the alpha.
- Clear Interval In the alpha Mote's Imprint, which shows a lingering response's full fade timer and keeps it readable one round longer.
- Common Hall In the alpha The Threadway hall on the first terrace, whose blackboard shows the current story chapter and the community requests.
- Companion stress In the alpha A 0–4 level on each microglial resident that rises only from play, never from time, and never causes permanent harm.
- Composure In the alpha A unit's in-room steadiness in turn-based encounters; at 0 the unit is Overwhelmed and loses its next action.
- Controls In the alpha Keyboard, pointer and touch controls of the Arborwake alpha in the world maps, in the 3D Threadway and in the Places dialog.
- Coordinator In the alpha The specialisation that delegates to a companion, with Direct, Swap and Huddle; it stays locked until the first companion is recruited.
- Cress In the alpha A microglial resident who crosses the Quiet District with an ordinary record and argues with Wick about when a repaired road is safe.
D
- Delivery tray In the alpha A ceramic basin below Hearth's rosette that holds a finite community delivery of Supply.
- Dendritic Gardens In the alpha The first run location, reached from Nearfield Glade, where the Ranger cares for connections through telegraphed pressure fronts.
- Direct In the alpha The Coordinator's bonus action that gives its companion an extra move-and-act now, toward any target it can reach.
E
- Economy In the alpha An overview of how Supply, finds, outings, home buildings and services fit together, with the design rules that stop farming.
- Encounter backgrounds In the alpha The painted room shells behind Arborwake's turn-based boards - sixteen approved "3D made 2D" rooms whose floor fits the 24×20 grid, with round obstacles and per-room ground passes.
- Endurance In the alpha The outing budget: 6 points from home, 1 spent per room, restored fully only at home.
- Engulf In the alpha A flex skill that clears debris on a tile and all around it and draws the next ring in, after which the Ranger cannot move that turn.
- Environment art In the alpha How Arborwake's places are made - concept studies, Meshy models and Blender renders finished as layered pixel art - and the history of the rejected first packages.
- Evening Pair In the alpha The paired evening pulse on Hearth Grove's north connection, the motif that ties every act of The Long Wake together.
- Exchange In the alpha Aster's single counter in Starwell, where you pack provisions and drop carried Supply before the Vessel Margins gate.
F
- Field gear In the alpha One-use items from the Workshop that you carry in a two-slot satchel and use once per outing as a bonus action.
- Flex Ward In the alpha A flex skill for the Sentinel and Coordinator: a small one-round ring on a tile and its four neighbours.
- Flow In the alpha The Ranger's overworld travel look, version v002 "melt and move", in which the cell folds its processes in and flows forward on a membrane wave.
- Full Length In the alpha Wick's Imprint, which makes the Ranger's Support count twice in tract preparation at the cost of weaker Care.
G
- Glide In the alpha A flex skill for the Warden and Coordinator that flows the Ranger up to 4 tiles in a straight open line without touching surfaces.
H
- Hearth buildings In the alpha The three home projects (Arbor, Recovery nook and Relay node) built on Hearth's plots, plus the two new home connections.
- Hearth Grove In the alpha The Ranger's home base, an open field round a fire bowl where residents keep home duties, buildings go up and every outing starts and ends.
- Hearth podium In the alpha The outing podium by Hearth's exit - press it and squares float up in the world for the Imprint, the companions and the run records; it is not a shop and not a HUD panel.
- Hearth strain In the alpha A 0–4 bar for how hard the home was worked while the Ranger was away; at 4 the next home disturbance overreacts, but nothing locks.
- Home art In the alpha The art of Hearth, the player's home - the H15 map with home layout A, the neurons' own axon lines, the buildings, podium, delivery tray and scorch marks, and the growth lines still under review.
- Home duties In the alpha The watches and contacts that residents hold at Hearth; cover is arranged automatically at departure, and each duty is covered, stretched or a gap.
- Home VFX In the alpha The home effects - the Hearth podium's floating squares, Imprint equip at home, the companions board, departure and return, and rest at the Apothecary.
- Huddle In the alpha The Coordinator's passive reaction in which an adjacent companion takes a hit meant for the Ranger.
I
- Icon labels In the alpha Arborwake's rule for words in the interface - a short title on hover, focus or press-and-hold, and a click card with the details and an "in the brain" line.
- Imprints In the alpha Seven passive keepsakes, each earned once by finishing a resident's side story and equipped at home before an outing, like Hades keepsakes.
- Inventory HUD In the alpha The town and home interface - a Stardew-style parchment inventory, the 54-icon set, the themed shop menus and the Hearth strain bar - made on the claude/hud-inventory branch.
K
- Kit history In the alpha How the Ranger's classes and skills changed from the legacy two-class kit through kit v1–v5 to the turn-based kit installed in the alpha.
- Known Turns In the alpha Fen's Imprint, which gives an extra move when a turn starts on a tile already stood on, at the cost of reach in round 1.
L
- Lessons In the alpha The nine one-lesson tutorial rooms that teach turn-based play, replayable in Memory Meadow.
- Link In the alpha The basic action that asks an anchored astrocyte to support its territory, turning the tiles around its socket into supported ground.
- Live preview site In the alpha The publicly reachable Arborwake page, built from Placeholder commit 82c3add0d; an incomplete first alpha slice that is older than the lead's local integration.
- Location verbs In the alpha Actions that exist only where a room offers them: Seal in Vessel Margins, and Trim and Process in the Quiet Tracts and the Tag Garden.
- Long Reach In the alpha The Sentinel's passive that raises its reach from 3 tiles to 4.
M
- Memory Meadow In the alpha A hippocampus-inspired dawn meadow north of the Glade where you replay free lessons and try specialisations, and the planned Act V refuge.
- Microglia In the alpha The brain's resident immune cells; in Arborwake, the Ranger and every recruitable companion are microglia.
- Monocyte In the alpha Blood immune cells that, in some rodent stress models, are recruited to the brain's vessel walls; in Arborwake they appear only in model-labelled Vessel Margins rooms.
- Mote In the alpha A small microglial neighbour who records tiny changes in Mote Pocket and can become the first optional field companion.
- Mote Pocket In the alpha A small, dim, rock-walled dell off the Glade where Mote keeps a tidy nook and the first story observations take place.
- Movement VFX In the alpha The overworld movement effects - a short dot trail behind walking, a finer trail behind Flow, and a body shake when a walk is blocked.
N
- Nearfield Glade In the alpha A woodland crossroads east of Hearth that links home, Memory Meadow, Mote Pocket, the Threadway road and the Dendritic Gardens.
- Neuron In the alpha Nerve cells that carry signals; in Arborwake they are rooted gold residents whose pulses the player learns to read and must never lose.
O
- Oligodendrocyte In the alpha The cells that wrap axons in myelin; in Arborwake they are anchored and only extend, and only they can repair the Quiet District road.
- Oligodendrocyte precursor cell In the alpha The young cells that can mature into new oligodendrocytes; in the Quiet Tracts they mature in place and wrap by extension.
- Orders VFX In the alpha The turn-room effects for a companion's orders - Direct, Swap, Huddle and Call - where Call is drawn as a signal that residents choose to answer.
P
- Panels VFX In the alpha The menu and inventory effects - hover corners, a pressed button that sinks, tab and item markers, equip and unequip - with one shape for each state and no words.
- Pip In the alpha Hearth Grove's keeper, a microglial resident who covers the east bend and can become a late field companion after a real handoff.
- Places dialog In the alpha The map picker that lists Arborwake's places as picture buttons; in the alpha it walks the player toward the right exit instead of teleporting.
- Pneumatic tube In the alpha A glass tube in Threadway's station that carries you between the street and the upper deck, where the road to the Quiet District starts.
- Pressure & Aftermath In the alpha The Dendritic Gardens encounter module, in which forecast pressure fronts strike connections and the Ranger protects them, then helps them settle.
- Pressure front VFX In the alpha The animated pressure front in turn rooms - coming, striking, resolving one at a time, lingering and held overload - restyled to the painted rooms and approved by the user.
- Prologue: The Last Regular Evening In the alpha The opening of The Long Wake, where the Ranger learns a calm Hearth Grove, meets Pip and Mote and first sees the Evening Pair.
- Pull and Glide VFX In the alpha The turn-room effects for Pull, Glide and dragged debris - anchors and landings while aiming, a gripping diamond and clamps, a body that flows tile by tile, and a still trail under reduced motion.
Q
- Quest scroll In the alpha The quest tracker - one narrow parchment scroll that winds open below a rolled header, with named rows, square progress pips and red and blue unread marks.
- Quests VFX In the alpha The quest and pickup effects - tracking a quest, evidence found at its cell, a finished side story, the first permanent unlock, and taking something from a pickup source.
- Quiet District In the alpha A night-blue side-on district round an elevated myelinated road with five repairable stretches, the Wrapping Depot and the gate to the Quiet Tracts.
- Quiet Handoff In the alpha Pip's Imprint, which makes a paid Call answer in the same round at the cost of weaker Care.
- Quiet Tracts In the alpha The third run location, gated by the Quiet District, where the Ranger clears debris so an anchored oligodendrocyte can wrap a tract.
R
- Ranger In the alpha The player's microglial cell, a resident of Hearth Grove with no forced name, gender or destiny.
- Recruitment In the alpha How companions join: only by completing a quest step in their side story, never through a menu, button, shop or the podium; one companion per outing.
- Rest In the alpha A paid Apothecary service during an outing that restores 2 endurance, never above 4, once per outing; it replaced resting at Starwell and the Depot.
- Rill In the alpha A microglial resident of the Dendritic Gardens who shares one room with the Ranger and never joins the roster.
- Run HUD In the alpha The interface for turn-based rooms - goal strip, action bar, unit cards, tutorial prompt, result screen and endurance chip - made by the Run HUDs session and approved piece by piece by the user.
S
- Saving and save migration In the alpha How each Arborwake build stores progress, what session.game v1 holds, and how older saves carry over after the Arborwake rename and between alpha versions.
- Sentinel In the alpha The specialisation that finds and reaches, with Survey for hidden threats, Anchor & Pull for movement and the Long Reach passive.
- Services v3 In the alpha Version 3 of Claude B's district services module, which added Hearth strain to the turn-based gear, signal tuning and companion stress of version 2.
- Settle In the alpha The basic self-calming action that restores Composure, more on supported ground.
- Shared Boundary In the alpha Aster and Vessa's Imprint, which shows visible telegraphs one round earlier at the cost of one move in the first round.
- Signal tuning In the alpha An Apothecary service that sets one of the Ranger's own signals to level 0–3 for a whole outing, following an inverted U.
- Stand Fast In the alpha The Warden's stance action that roots the Ranger until its next turn, wards its own tile and makes the first hit cost no Composure.
- Starwell In the alpha A side-on support and staging district at Threadway's east end, with the Exchange, the Star Well and the gate to Vessel Margins.
- Studios In the alpha The Threadway training building, planned to hold a class lobby and one floor of advanced drills per specialisation; in the alpha it points you to Memory Meadow.
- Supply In the alpha Arborwake's one currency, carried as cargo in the field and banked at home, spent on home buildings, gear, provisions and Apothecary services.
- Supported ground In the alpha Tiles around a linked astrocyte socket that restore Composure and strengthen Care; it replaced the recovery parcel as in-room recovery.
- Surfaces In the alpha Tile states on a turn-based board, such as debris, inflamed, supported and scorch, that change movement, Care and Composure.
- Survey In the alpha The Sentinel's action that reveals hidden things within 5 tiles and shows every telegraph two rounds ahead until its next turn.
- Survey ribbon In the alpha One-use Workshop field gear that sweeps 3 tiles around the Ranger for anything hidden, as a bonus action for any class.
- Survey VFX In the alpha The turn-room effects for Survey - a scan tint over the exact area, two sweeping scan columns, an evidence frame and lens on each revealed front, and a hollow return when nothing is found.
- Swap In the alpha The Coordinator's bonus action that trades places with its companion along an open line.
T
- Tea House In the alpha A terrace café on Threadway where a shared tea answers a resident's open visit request.
- Tendrils In the alpha The thin rope-like processes that microglia, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes extend only during actions, drawn under the body by one shared rope module.
- The Space Between In the alpha Nell's Imprint, which keeps the "working again" sign readable one round longer but forbids Caring the same connection twice in a row.
- Threadway In the alpha The town street, a live 3D scene with flat 2D cells, where the Threadway buildings stand and the roads to the Glade, Starwell and Quiet District meet.
- Threadway 3D scene In the alpha The art side of Threadway - the P24 Blender scene with frozen painted projections, a hazed back row and a glass tract, shown live in 3D with flat 2D cell sprites.
- Threadway residences In the alpha The Home and Apartments on Threadway, closed façades for recurring characters whose interiors are still placeholders.
- Threats In the alpha The telegraphed processes that act on a turn-based board each round, such as pressure fronts, jolts, debris flows and the monocyte surge.
- Travel and movement In the alpha How the Ranger walks the world: free continuous movement, collision-aware click routing, fades between maps, the 3D Threadway's measured navigation and the pneumatic tube.
- Turn-based encounters In the alpha Arborwake's room combat since 1 November 2026, a side-based tactics system inspired by Into the Breach and Baldur's Gate 3.
- Typography In the alpha Arborwake's two original pixel fonts - Canopy for titles and short labels, Fieldnotes for reading text - approved by the user and used across the game except in painted signs.
U
- Upgrades In the alpha Run upgrades that reshape a class's action economy, each with a real cost; eight exist in the turn-based kit.
V
- Vessel Margins In the alpha The second run location, gated by Starwell, where the Ranger reads vessel walls and answers each with the right partner.
- Vessel VFX In the alpha The Vessel Margins effects - a visible monocyte surge countdown along the vessel's centre line, and adhesion where a monocyte sticks to the wall.
- VFX In the alpha Arborwake's visual effects - quiet, tactile pixel feedback with no words and no popups, built as eight turn groups and five overworld groups, all approved by the user.
W
- Ward In the alpha The Warden's action that plants a 3×3 ring for 2 rounds, holding back 60% of the harm to everything inside it, never all of it.
- Ward stake In the alpha One-use Workshop field gear that wards a single tile for one round, as a bonus action for any class.
- Ward VFX In the alpha The turn-room effects for Ward and Stand Fast - five plates per tile, three solid and two empty, so a ward visibly shares 60% of a hit and never reads as immunity.
- Warden In the alpha The specialisation that protects what the room threatens, with the 60% Ward ring, Stand Fast and the Attune passive.
- Within Reach In the alpha Stella's Imprint, which makes Care stronger on supported ground and slightly weaker elsewhere.
- Workshop In the alpha An open ground-floor shop on Threadway that builds and fits permanent tools and makes one-use field gear.
- Workshop tools In the alpha Three permanent Workshop tools (Steady grip, Quick hands, Reaching frame), each a sidegrade; one is fitted at a time.
- Wrapping Depot In the alpha The Quiet District workshop that turns wrapping spools from the Quiet Tracts into repairs of the district's road, one stretch per return.