Control-Loop Atlas

This atlas is the high-level map for RT3 1.06. It is intentionally broader than the function map: each section explains who owns a loop, where it starts, what dispatches it, which state blocks anchor it, and where control is handed to neighboring subsystems.

CRT and Process Startup

Roots: entry at 0x005a313b, CRT helpers in the 0x005a2d..0x005ad4.. range, and app_bootstrap_main at 0x00484440.
Trigger/Cadence: single process startup path before shell or engine services exist.
Key Dispatchers: startup_init_tls_state, startup_init_file_handle_table, startup_run_init_callback_table, __setenvp, startup_build_argv, ___crtGetEnvironmentStringsA, then app_bootstrap_main.
State Anchors: CRT heap and file-handle tables; process environment and argv storage.
Subsystem Handoffs: exits the generic CRT path at app_bootstrap_main, which becomes the first RT3-owned coordinator.
Evidence: artifacts/exports/rt3-1.06/startup-call-chain.md, artifacts/exports/rt3-1.06/function-map.csv.
Open Questions: exact ownership boundary between compiler CRT shims and the first game-owned bootstrap helper; whether any nontrivial startup callbacks seed game globals before app_bootstrap_main.

Bootstrap and Shell Service Bring-Up

Roots: app_bootstrap_main at 0x00484440 and bootstrap_init_shell_window_services at 0x004840e0.
Trigger/Cadence: one-time bootstrap handoff immediately after CRT completion.
Key Dispatchers: app_bootstrap_main, bootstrap_init_shell_window_services, graphics config load or default-init helpers, runtime capability probes, and early shell service initializers under the 0x004610..0x0053f0.. branch.
State Anchors: shell service bundle rooted at 0x006d4024, display/runtime globals under 0x006d4024 and 0x006d4030, host capability flags gathered by bootstrap_probe_system_profile.
Subsystem Handoffs: hands control into shell/UI configuration, presentation defaults, and later per-frame shell work.
Evidence: startup-call-chain.md, function-map rows for app_bootstrap_main, bootstrap_init_shell_window_services, shell_load_graphics_config_or_init_defaults, shell_reset_display_runtime_defaults, and related graphics setup helpers.
Open Questions: where the first persistent main-loop owner object becomes stable; whether 0x0046c230 or one of the unnamed bootstrap children is the shell's first long-lived coordinator.

Shell UI Command and Deferred Work Flow

Roots: shell callback paths that converge on shell_dispatch_ui_command at 0x00464410.
Trigger/Cadence: event-driven UI command dispatch plus deferred-message queue flushing during shell activity.
Key Dispatchers: shell_dispatch_ui_command, shell_enqueue_deferred_work_message, shell_post_deferred_message_type5, shell_post_deferred_message_type6, shell_enqueue_deferred_message_type4, shell_enqueue_deferred_message_type1.
State Anchors: shell object at 0x0062be68, queue roots around [this+0x11369d], [this+0x1136a1], and [this+0x1136a5], plus global routing gates at 0x006d4034.
Subsystem Handoffs: routes into graphics config, scenario-text export, overlay generation, multiplayer UI, and presentation-facing deferred work.
Evidence: function-map shell rows around 0x00464410 and 0x0051f1d0..0x0051f460.
Open Questions: where the deferred queues are drained in the wider frame loop; whether the shell command dispatcher is also used by hotkeys or only by UI callback tables.

Presentation, Overlay, and Frame Timing

Roots: shell display runtime setup and the frame-time history path under shell_update_frame_time_history at 0x0051fd70.
Trigger/Cadence: recurring shell or presentation update loop once the window and display runtime are live.
Key Dispatchers: shell_update_frame_time_history, shell_set_gamma_ramp_scalar, overlay builders such as shell_queue_single_world_anchor_overlay, shell_queue_world_anchor_overlay_list, and shell_queue_indexed_world_anchor_marker.
State Anchors: shell frame history ring at 0x006d403c, display/runtime state inside the shell block near [this+0x114282] and [this+0x11428a], presentation service pointer at [this+0x0c].
Subsystem Handoffs: consumes world/object state for overlays and pushes deferred presentation messages back through shell queues.
Evidence: function-map rows for shell frame history, gamma ramp, world-anchor overlay builders, and graphics runtime helpers.
Open Questions: the exact outer frame pump is still unnamed; simulation cadence and shell presentation cadence may be separate loops that only rendezvous through shared shell state.

Map and Scenario Content Load

Roots: reference-database setup via map_bundle_open_reference_databases at 0x00444dd0, followed by narrower loaders such as map_load_geographic_label_database and map_load_city_database.
Trigger/Cadence: map or scenario open paths and scenario-text export commands.
Key Dispatchers: map_bundle_open_reference_databases, map_load_geographic_label_database, map_load_city_database, scenario_text_export_build_language_file, scenario_text_export_report_language_file, scenario_text_export_batch_process_maps.
State Anchors: map bundle state allocated through 0x00530c80, geography tables rooted at 0x0062b2fc and 0x0062b268, shell-side map-selection context.
Subsystem Handoffs: feeds shell preview panels, scenario export tooling, and later gameplay map state.
Evidence: function-map map/scenario rows, analysis-context exports for geographic-label and city database strings.
Open Questions: the main gameplay map-load entrypoint is still broader than the currently grounded reference-database loaders; scenario load versus scenario-text export remain only partially overlapped.

Multiplayer Session and Transport Flow

Roots: Multiplayer.win session-event callback table around 0x00468de0..0x004691d0, plus the transport object and pending-template paths around 0x00597880..0x0059caf0.
Trigger/Cadence: event-driven session callbacks, registered-name updates, and repeated socket I/O service steps.
Key Dispatchers: session-event wrappers for actions 1, 2, 4, 7, 8; multiplayer_transport_text_stream_service_io; multiplayer_transport_dispatch_pending_template_node; multiplayer_transport_service_pending_template_dispatch_store.
State Anchors: live session globals at 0x006d40d0, status latch at 0x006cd974, pending-template list at [this+0x550], dispatch store at [this+0x55c], text-stream buffers at [this+0x108] and [this+0x114].
Subsystem Handoffs: bridges shell/UI status presentation, transport text streams, session state changes, and pending-template completion callbacks.
Evidence: function-map.csv, pending-template-store-management.md, pending-template-store-functions.csv.
Open Questions: unresolved request-id semantics for 1, 2, 4, and 7; the exact owner loop that repeatedly services transport I/O; and how multiplayer preview data ties back into the shell flow.

Input, Save/Load, and Simulation

Roots: not yet cleanly named in the current ledger.
Trigger/Cadence: expected recurring gameplay or shell-driven loops, but the current evidence is still indirect.
Key Dispatchers: currently unresolved; nearest grounded hints are bootstrap_capture_keyboard_state, filesystem-related strings, and shell pathways that save graphics config rather than gameplay state.
State Anchors: input DLL import DINPUT8.dll, save/load path strings under .\Saved Games\, and map/scenario globals already observed elsewhere.
Subsystem Handoffs: likely connect shell/UI into gameplay state, but not yet strongly evidenced in committed exports.
Evidence: binary-summary.json, imported-dlls.txt, subsystem-inventory.md, and broad strings in interesting-strings.txt.
Open Questions: first real input pump, first gameplay save/load dispatcher, first simulation tick owner, and the exact boundary between shell frame work and gameplay world stepping.

Next Mapping Passes

Name the first stable owner of the outer shell or presentation loop above the existing frame-history helpers.
Connect the map bundle open path to the broader map/scenario load coordinator instead of only the database leaves.
Identify the owner loop that repeatedly services multiplayer transport I/O and dispatch-store work.
Ground the first real input ingest path and the first gameplay save/load dispatcher.
Keep detailed pending-template or transport work scoped to the specific atlas edges that remain unresolved.

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