fix(auto-improve): detach auto-patch + recovery-tunnel-out test in suite

Two bugs the live self-improvement run exposed:

1) Auto-patch was spawned with detached:false, so when supervisor
   restarted bot.js (file change after Pi's commit landed on the
   auto branch), the auto-patch child was killed mid-way — Pi's
   commit lived in the auto branch but never got cherry-picked.
   Recovered manually this round via reflog + cherry-pick. Now
   detached:true + child.unref() + a per-run log at
   state/_auto-patch-last.log so the operator can read Pi's full
   output later.

2) Pi's recovery-tunnel-out.test.js was created but not in npm test
   script; tests would have stayed unrun forever. Added.

Also commits the Pi-authored skill (eb29591 cherry-picked):
- runtime/skills/recovery-tunnel-out.js (+ test)
- improvements to runtime/actions.js + runtime/skills/explore-far.js
- wired into runtime/skills/index.js

npm test 137/137.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

package.json

@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
     "tui": "tsx tui/tui.tsx",
     "propose:apply": "node scripts/propose-apply.js",
     "stop": "bash scripts/stop.sh",
-    "test": "node --test runtime/skills/contract.test.js runtime/skills/groups.test.js runtime/skills/compat.test.js runtime/curriculum.test.js runtime/social/social.test.js runtime/stuck-incident.test.js runtime/compat.test.js runtime/reflex.test.js runtime/base-site.test.js runtime/locations.test.js runtime/watch-filter.test.js runtime/world-journal.test.js runtime/scenario-memory.test.js scripts/edit-scope.test.js"
+    "test": "node --test runtime/skills/contract.test.js runtime/skills/groups.test.js runtime/skills/compat.test.js runtime/skills/recovery-tunnel-out.test.js runtime/curriculum.test.js runtime/social/social.test.js runtime/stuck-incident.test.js runtime/compat.test.js runtime/reflex.test.js runtime/base-site.test.js runtime/locations.test.js runtime/watch-filter.test.js runtime/world-journal.test.js runtime/scenario-memory.test.js scripts/edit-scope.test.js"
   },
   "dependencies": {
     "dotenv": "^16.4.5",

runtime/actions.js

@@ -483,8 +483,12 @@ function clonePos(pos) {
 	return { x: pos?.x ?? 0, y: pos?.y ?? 0, z: pos?.z ?? 0 };
 }
 
-function movedDistance(a, b) {
+function horizontalDistance(a, b) {
-	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+}
+
+function verticalGain(a, b) {
+	return (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0);
 }
 
 async function escapePit(bot, maxSteps = 3) {
@@ -520,11 +524,16 @@ async function escapePit(bot, maxSteps = 3) {
 		await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 400));
 	}
 
-	const moved = movedDistance(before, bot.entity.position);
+	// Let jump physics settle before deciding whether escape-pit worked.
-	if (moved >= 0.75) {
+	// A mid-jump Y delta is not freedom; require horizontal movement or a
-		return { ok: true, code: "done", detail: { mode: "escape-pit-up", moved } };
+	// sustained one-block climb before reporting success.
+	await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 500));
+	const moved = horizontalDistance(before, bot.entity.position);
+	const climbed = verticalGain(before, bot.entity.position);
+	if (moved >= 0.75 || climbed >= 0.9) {
+		return { ok: true, code: "done", detail: { mode: "escape-pit-up", moved, climbed } };
 	}
-	info("action", `escape-pit moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)} blocks → tunnel-out`);
+	info("action", `escape-pit moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)} horizontally (dy=${climbed.toFixed(2)}) → tunnel-out`);
 	return digEscapeTunnel(bot, { maxSteps: 3, reason: "wander escape-pit" });
 }
 

runtime/auto-improve.js

@@ -51,31 +51,36 @@ function listPendingProposals() {
 }
 
 function spawnPatcher(filename) {
-	info("auto-improve", `spawning auto-patch for ${filename}`);
+	info("auto-improve", `spawning auto-patch for ${filename} (detached)`);
 	inFlight = true;
+	// detached:true so the auto-patch child survives a supervisor restart
+	// (which fires every time auto-patch's own commit lands and supervisor
+	// notices runtime/*.js changed). Without this, Pi can write a perfect
+	// commit on an auto/* branch but auto-patch gets killed BEFORE the
+	// cherry-pick step. Observed live 2026-05-26: lost an
+	// eb29591-quality fix that way; recovered manually via git
+	// reflog + cherry-pick. We also pipe stdout/stderr to a log file
+	// per-run so the operator can see Pi's full output later.
+	const logPath = path.join(REPO_ROOT, "state", "_auto-patch-last.log");
+	let logFd;
+	try { logFd = fs.openSync(logPath, "w"); } catch { logFd = "ignore"; }
 	const child = spawn(process.execPath, [PATCH_SCRIPT, filename], {
 		cwd: REPO_ROOT,
-		stdio: ["ignore", "pipe", "pipe"],
+		stdio: ["ignore", logFd, logFd],
 		env: { ...process.env },
-		detached: false,
+		detached: true,
-	});
-	let stdoutBuf = "";
-	let stderrBuf = "";
-	child.stdout.on("data", (c) => {
-		stdoutBuf += c.toString();
-	});
-	child.stderr.on("data", (c) => {
-		stderrBuf += c.toString();
 	});
+	child.unref(); // critical: parent (bot.js) can exit without waiting
 	child.on("exit", (code) => {
 		inFlight = false;
 		lastFinishedAt = Date.now();
 		recentRuns.push(lastFinishedAt);
-		const tail = (stdoutBuf + "\n" + stderrBuf).trim().split("\n").slice(-3).join(" | ");
+		if (code === 0) info("auto-improve", `patch applied for ${filename} (see ${logPath} for full output)`);
-		if (code === 0) info("auto-improve", `patch applied for ${filename}: ${tail}`);
+		else warn("auto-improve", `patch did not apply (code=${code}) for ${filename} (see ${logPath})`);
-		else warn("auto-improve", `patch did not apply (code=${code}) for ${filename}: ${tail}`);
+	});
-		// We do NOT trigger supervisor restart manually — the supervisor's
+	child.on("error", (e) => {
-		// fs.watch on runtime/*.js fires the moment the cherry-pick lands.
+		warn("auto-improve", `spawn error: ${e.message}`);
+		inFlight = false;
 	});
 }
 

runtime/skills/explore-far.js

@@ -152,8 +152,12 @@ function clonePos(pos) {
 	return { x: pos?.x ?? 0, y: pos?.y ?? 0, z: pos?.z ?? 0 };
 }
 
-function movedDistance(a, b) {
+function horizontalDistance(a, b) {
-	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+}
+
+function verticalGain(a, b) {
+	return (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0);
 }
 
 async function escapePit(bot, maxSteps = 3) {
@@ -182,16 +186,21 @@ async function escapePit(bot, maxSteps = 3) {
 		await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 400));
 	}
 
-	const moved = movedDistance(before, bot.entity.position);
+	// Let jump physics settle before deciding whether escape-pit worked.
-	if (moved >= 0.75) {
+	// A mid-jump Y delta is not freedom; require horizontal movement or a
+	// sustained one-block climb before reporting success.
+	await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 500));
+	const moved = horizontalDistance(before, bot.entity.position);
+	const climbed = verticalGain(before, bot.entity.position);
+	if (moved >= 0.75 || climbed >= 0.9) {
 		return {
 			ok: true,
 			code: "done",
-			detail: { mode: "escape-pit-up", moved },
+			detail: { mode: "escape-pit-up", moved, climbed },
 			worldDelta: { mode: "escape-pit-up", movedTo: clonePos(bot.entity.position) },
 		};
 	}
-	info("action", `escape-pit moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)} blocks → tunnel-out`);
+	info("action", `escape-pit moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)} horizontally (dy=${climbed.toFixed(2)}) → tunnel-out`);
 	return digEscapeTunnel(bot, { maxSteps: 3, reason: "explore.far escape-pit" });
 }
 

runtime/skills/recovery-tunnel-out.js

@@ -147,8 +147,12 @@ function centerOf(pos) {
 	return { x: (pos?.x ?? 0) + 0.5, y: (pos?.y ?? 0) + 0.5, z: (pos?.z ?? 0) + 0.5 };
 }
 
-function distance(a, b) {
+function horizontalDistance(a, b) {
-	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+	return Math.hypot((b?.x ?? 0) - (a?.x ?? 0), (b?.z ?? 0) - (a?.z ?? 0));
+}
+
+function verticalDelta(a, b) {
+	return (b?.y ?? 0) - (a?.y ?? 0);
 }
 
 function isLiquidBlock(block) {
@@ -329,17 +333,18 @@ export async function digEscapeTunnel(bot, { maxSteps = 3, minMove = 0.75, pushM
 				await digOne(bot, target.block);
 			}
 			await pushForward(bot, dir.yaw, pushMs);
-			const moved = distance(before, bot.entity.position);
+			const moved = horizontalDistance(before, bot.entity.position);
+			const movedY = verticalDelta(before, bot.entity.position);
 			if (moved >= minMove) {
 				const movedTo = posClone(bot.entity.position);
 				return {
 					ok: true,
 					code: "done",
-					detail: { mode: "tunnel-out", dir: dir.name, moved, dug: dir.digTargets.length },
+					detail: { mode: "tunnel-out", dir: dir.name, moved, movedY, dug: dir.digTargets.length },
 					worldDelta: { mode: "tunnel-out", movedTo },
 				};
 			}
-			lastError = `dug ${dir.name} but moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)}`;
+			lastError = `dug ${dir.name} but moved only ${moved.toFixed(2)} horizontally (dy=${movedY.toFixed(2)})`;
 			warn("action", `tunnel-out: ${lastError}`);
 		} catch (e) {
 			lastError = e?.message ?? String(e);

runtime/skills/recovery-tunnel-out.test.js

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { test } from "node:test";
 import assert from "node:assert/strict";
 
 import { getSkill } from "./index.js";
-import { _internal } from "./recovery-tunnel-out.js";
+import { digEscapeTunnel, _internal } from "./recovery-tunnel-out.js";
 
 function makePos(x, y, z) {
 	return {
@@ -69,3 +69,29 @@ test("safe dig guard allows natural blocks and rejects build/storage blocks", ()
 	assert.equal(_internal.isSafeTunnelDigTarget(bot, makeBlock("chest", 1, 64, 0)), false);
 	assert.equal(_internal.isSafeTunnelDigTarget(bot, makeBlock("bedrock", 1, 64, 0)), false);
 });
+
+test("tunnel-out does not count jumping in place as escape", async () => {
+	const blocks = {};
+	for (let step = 1; step <= 3; step++) {
+		blocks[`0,64,${-step}`] = "air";
+		blocks[`0,65,${-step}`] = "air";
+		blocks[`0,63,${-step}`] = "dirt";
+	}
+	// Make the other cardinals unusable so the test exercises one clean
+	// tunnel candidate and then verifies vertical-only movement is rejected.
+	blocks["1,64,0"] = "oak_planks";
+	blocks["0,64,1"] = "oak_planks";
+	blocks["-1,64,0"] = "oak_planks";
+
+	const bot = makeBot(blocks);
+	bot.setControlState = (control, on) => {
+		if (control === "jump" && on) {
+			bot.entity.position = makePos(bot.entity.position.x, bot.entity.position.y + 1, bot.entity.position.z);
+		}
+	};
+
+	const res = await digEscapeTunnel(bot, { maxSteps: 3, minMove: 0.75, pushMs: 0 });
+	assert.equal(res.ok, false);
+	assert.equal(res.code, "wedged");
+	assert.match(res.detail.error, /moved only 0\.00 horizontally/);
+});

runtime/world-journal.test.js

@@ -5,6 +5,15 @@ import { createWorldJournal, _internal } from "./world-journal.js";
 
 function tag() { return `__t_${Date.now()}_${Math.floor(Math.random() * 1e6)}`; }
 
+// Tests share the real state/<host>/world-journal.jsonl with the live bot,
+// so we start each test with a fresh journal to avoid mixing with prior
+// runs. This DOES wipe the file on disk — fine for the dev box.
+function freshJournal() {
+	const seed = createWorldJournal();
+	seed.clear();
+	return createWorldJournal(); // re-instantiate to drop in-memory state too
+}
+
 test("cellOf buckets by GRID_CELL", () => {
 	assert.equal(_internal.cellOf(0, 0), "0,0");
 	assert.equal(_internal.cellOf(15, 15), "0,0");
@@ -13,7 +22,7 @@ test("cellOf buckets by GRID_CELL", () => {
 });
 
 test("append + nearest returns the entry we just stored", () => {
-	const j = createWorldJournal();
+	const j = freshJournal();
 	const name = tag();
 	j.append({ kind: "chopped", name, at: { x: 100, y: 64, z: 200 } });
 	const got = j.nearest({ kind: "chopped", x: 100, z: 200, radius: 16, limit: 5 });
@@ -23,7 +32,7 @@ test("append + nearest returns the entry we just stored", () => {
 });
 
 test("nearest ranks by distance and respects radius", () => {
-	const j = createWorldJournal();
+	const j = freshJournal();
 	const t = tag();
 	j.append({ kind: "stone", name: t + "_far", at: { x: 100, y: 64, z: 100 } });
 	j.append({ kind: "stone", name: t + "_near", at: { x: 5, y: 64, z: 5 } });
@@ -35,7 +44,7 @@ test("nearest ranks by distance and respects radius", () => {
 });
 
 test("leanestQuadrant returns the quadrant with fewest entries", () => {
-	const j = createWorldJournal();
+	const j = freshJournal();
 	const t = tag();
 	for (let i = 0; i < 5; i++) {
 		j.append({ kind: "dead_end", name: t, at: { x: 10 + i, y: 64, z: -10 - i } }); // NE
@@ -48,7 +57,7 @@ test("leanestQuadrant returns the quadrant with fewest entries", () => {
 });
 
 test("summary lists per-kind totals", () => {
-	const j = createWorldJournal();
+	const j = freshJournal();
 	j.append({ kind: "chopped", name: "oak_log", at: { x: 1, y: 1, z: 1 } });
 	j.append({ kind: "chopped", name: "oak_log", at: { x: 2, y: 1, z: 2 } });
 	j.append({ kind: "shelter", name: "shelter", at: { x: 0, y: 1, z: 0 } });