ground-game/editions/experiments/h1-problem-stress/VARIANT.md

Experiment H1 — problem pressure + high-stress ATTACK self-soothe

variant_id	h1-problem-stress (legacy — prefer profile h1 = problem_stress.flat_any_open + attack_relief.self_soothe_ge4)
modules	flat problem stress + attack self-soothe (see editions/modules/)
base	ground-darvo-r0
status	measured — reject as baseline (2026-08-08); keep for A/B
measurement	../../../reports/260808-clay-borg-h1-measured.md
catalog	../../catalog.yaml
design note	../../../history/260807-attack-darvo-stress-design.md
workplan	../../../workplans/GROUND-WP-0006-h1-problem-stress-experiment.md

Hypothesis

If unsolved shared Problems raise Stress, and high-Stress ATTACK returns a small self-relief, then competent play will sometimes arm DARVO and sometimes select ATTACK, without making always-ATTACK optimal.

Deltas (only)

H1-A — Problem pressure

At Round End, before the Stress clamp that arms DARVO:

• If any Problem still in play is unclaimed (face-up unsolved, hidden, or Denied), each player +1 Stress.
• Then clamp 0–5, arm DARVO at 5 as in baseline, rotate Lead, advance Round.

H1-B — High-stress ATTACK self-soothe

When an Attack resolves and is not cancelled, if the attacker’s Stress was ≥ 4 before that Attack’s effects, the attacker takes −1 Stress (then clamp). Target and relation effects unchanged.

Table play

Use baseline components for everything except:

1. Read End step and Stress/Attack wording from this package’s Rules_Text.csv / Actions.csv (or this file).
2. Do not mix with baseline r0 wording mid-game.

Simulation (clay-borg)

1. Select variant_id: h1-problem-stress via catalog.
2. Inherit base edition data for Problems/Solutions/Modes/Tokens.
3. Implement rules_delta.yaml in the kernel (H1-A, H1-B). CSV text is provenance for the table, not a substitute for kernel changes.

Decision criteria

See design note §3.2. Catalog utility_estimate / decision update only after measurement — not when packaging.