hytale-tag-system

name	hytale-tag-system
description	Documents Hytale's hierarchical tag system and how to use it in Hyforged. Use when implementing tag-based lookups, defining tagged assets, or understanding tag expansion patterns. Triggers - tags, tagging, AssetRegistry, tag categories, tag queries.

Hytale Tag System

This skill documents Hytale's hierarchical tag system and how Hyforged integrates with it for stats, items, blocks, and other assets.

Overview

Hytale uses a hierarchical tag system where tags are defined as a map of categories to value arrays. This creates a rich, queryable tag structure that enables flexible asset lookups.

Key Concepts

Concept	Description
Tag Category	A named group (e.g., "Type", "Element", "Domain")
Tag Value	Values within a category (e.g., ["fire", "elemental"])
Tag Index	Integer index for O(1) lookups via AssetRegistry
Tag Expansion	Hierarchical tags expand to multiple searchable strings

---

JSON Format

Tags in Hytale assets use a map structure, not a flat array:

{
  "Tags": {
    "Category1": ["value1", "value2"],
    "Category2": ["value3"]
  }
}

Example: Item Tags

{
  "Id": "hytale:adamantite_axe",
  "Tags": {
    "Type": ["Weapon"],
    "Family": ["Axe"]
  }
}

Example: Stat Tags

{
  "Id": "hyforged:fire-resistance-bps",
  "Tags": {
    "Domain": ["defense"],
    "Type": ["resistance"],
    "Element": ["fire", "elemental"],
    "Modifier": ["percent"],
    "Source": ["derived"]
  }
}

---

Tag Expansion

When tags are loaded, Hytale's AssetExtraInfo.Data.putTags() expands each entry into multiple searchable tags:

Input	Expanded Tags
"Domain": ["offense"]	Domain, offense, Domain=offense
"Element": ["fire", "elemental"]	Element, fire, elemental, Element=fire, Element=elemental

Expansion Rules

For each entry "Category": ["val1", "val2", ...]:

1. The category key becomes a tag: Category
2. Each value becomes a tag: val1, val2
3. Each category=value combination becomes a tag: Category=val1, Category=val2

This enables flexible querying:

• hasTag("fire") - matches any asset with "fire" in ANY category
• hasTag("Element=fire") - matches only assets with "Element": ["fire"]
• hasTag("Element") - matches any asset with an Element category

---

AssetRegistry API

Hytale's AssetRegistry provides the global tag index system:

Core Methods

// Get existing tag index (returns Integer.MIN_VALUE if not found)
int tagIndex = AssetRegistry.getTagIndex("fire");

// Get or create tag index (creates if not existing)
int tagIndex = AssetRegistry.getOrCreateTagIndex("fire");

Integer Indices

Tags are stored as integer indices for O(1) lookups:

// Fast membership test
IntSet entityTags = entity.getData().getExpandedTagIndexes();
int fireIndex = AssetRegistry.getTagIndex("fire");
if (entityTags.contains(fireIndex)) {
    // Entity has fire tag
}

---

StatDefinitionRegistry Tag API

The Hyforged stat system provides convenience methods for tag queries:

Basic Tag Methods

StatDefinitionRegistry registry = StatDefinitionRegistry.get();

// Check if any stat has a tag
boolean exists = registry.hasTag("fire");

// Get stats by tag (any expanded tag)
Collection<StatDefinition> stats = registry.getStatsForTag("fire");
Set<Integer> indices = registry.getStatIndicesForTag("fire");
List<StatId> statIds = registry.getStatIdsForTag("fire");

Category-Based Methods (Recommended)

For hierarchical tags, use the explicit category-based API:

// Check if any stat has Type=resistance
boolean exists = registry.hasTagValue("Type", "resistance");

// Get all resistance stats
Collection<StatDefinition> resistances = registry.getStatsForTagValue("Type", "resistance");

// Get fire elemental stats
Set<Integer> fireStats = registry.getStatIndicesForTagValue("Element", "fire");

// Get all ability score stat IDs
List<StatId> abilityScores = registry.getStatIdsForTagValue("Type", "ability-score");

Integer Index Methods (Performance)

For hot paths, use pre-resolved integer indices:

// Resolve once, use many times
int fireTagIndex = registry.getOrCreateTagIndex("Element=fire");

// Fast O(1) lookup
IntSet stats = registry.getStatIndicesForTagIndex(fireTagIndex);

---

Standard Tag Categories

Stats

Category	Values	Purpose
Domain	offense, defense, resource, utility, attributes	Primary functional classification
Element	physical, fire, cold, lightning, chaos, elemental	Damage/resistance element
Type	damage, resistance, rating, ability-score, speed, critical, ailment, leech, skill-level, area, resource	What the stat represents
Modifier	flat, percent, more	How the stat value applies
Source	derived, base	Origin of the stat value
Mechanic	attack, spell, projectile, melee, ranged, minion, aura, totem, trap	Usage mechanism
Resource	health, mana, stamina, rage	Which resource it affects
Ailment	bleed, poison, ignite, chill, shock, freeze	Specific ailment type
Weapon	sword, axe, mace, dagger, bow, crossbow, staff, unarmed	Weapon type affinity

Items (Hytale Native)

Category	Values	Purpose
Type	Weapon, Armor, Tool, Consumable, Material	Item classification
Family	Sword, Axe, Helmet, Chestplate, etc.	Item family
Material	Wood, Stone, Iron, Gold, Adamantite	Material type
Tier	Basic, Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary	Quality tier

---

Implementing Tags in New Assets

1. Define JSON Schema with Map Codec

// In your asset class
public static final AssetBuilderCodec<String, MyAsset> CODEC = AssetBuilderCodec
    .builder(MyAsset.class, MyAsset::new, ...)
    .appendInherited(
        new KeyedCodec<>("Tags", new MapCodec<>(Codec.STRING_ARRAY, HashMap::new)),
        (asset, value) -> asset.rawTags = value != null ? value : new HashMap<>(),
        asset -> asset.rawTags,
        (asset, parent) -> asset.rawTags = new HashMap<>(parent.rawTags)
    )
    .add()
    .build();

private Map<String, String[]> rawTags = new HashMap<>();

2. Expand Tags on Load

public Set<String> getExpandedTags() {
    Set<String> expanded = new HashSet<>();
    for (Map.Entry<String, String[]> entry : rawTags.entrySet()) {
        String category = entry.getKey();
        expanded.add(category);
        for (String value : entry.getValue()) {
            expanded.add(value);
            expanded.add(category + "=" + value);
        }
    }
    return expanded;
}

3. Register Tags with AssetRegistry

// During asset registration
for (String tag : asset.getExpandedTags()) {
    int tagIndex = AssetRegistry.getOrCreateTagIndex(tag);
    tagToAssetIndices.computeIfAbsent(tagIndex, k -> new IntOpenHashSet()).add(assetIndex);
}

---

Best Practices

DO

• ✅ Use category-based API (getStatsForTagValue("Type", "resistance")) for explicit queries
• ✅ Pre-resolve tag indices for hot paths
• ✅ Use consistent category names across asset types
• ✅ Document your tag categories in the asset schema
• ✅ Use IntSet for efficient tag membership tests

DON'T

• ❌ Use flat tag arrays ("Tags": ["fire", "damage"]) - use hierarchical format
• ❌ Create duplicate tags across different categories with same meaning
• ❌ Store tag strings at runtime - resolve to indices
• ❌ Assume tag order matters - it doesn't

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Related Files

• AssetRegistry - Hytale's global tag index registry
• AssetExtraInfo.Data.putTags() - Tag expansion logic
• StatDefinitionRegistry - Stat-specific tag queries
• StatDefinitionAsset - JSON codec for stat tags
• TagSet / TagSetLookupTable - Advanced tag grouping (like NPCGroup)

ADR Reference

See ADR-0008 in .memory_bank/ADRs.md for the decision rationale behind adopting Hytale's tag system.