A leaderboard only matters when every score reaches it by the same rules. Mosslight Meadow uses a Steam Trusted leaderboard backed by deterministic replay and Lanternleaf server verification; r128 moves that trust boundary to the moment before play begins.
Production verification path
A score earns trust one step at a time.
The game client records the player's input, but it is no longer the final authority for a competitive result.
- Steam confirms the player A Steam session starts an identified run without exposing publisher credentials to the game client.
- The run is recorded A unique run reference and meadow seed are paired with movement, actions, day transitions, and keepsake choices.
- The server replays it The Lanternleaf service uses the matching fixed-step rules to reconstruct the run without the renderer, effects, or user interface.
- Only matching results pass Only an exact replay can be published by the server to Steam; the game client has no direct leaderboard write path.
r128 authorization boundary · Controlled test passed
A verified trail must be trusted before it starts.
In r128, a supported online build asks the Lanternleaf service for a one-use grant before frame zero. The grant carries a unique server nonce that becomes part of the deterministic meadow generation, so an offline run cannot be turned into an Online Records proof afterward.
A wander started without online authorization stays in Local Records only: it creates no trusted proof and no uploadable queue entry. Only a trail that was already authorized online can retry its protected submission after a later connection loss.
Deterministic replay
The whole run has to agree.
Mosslight Meadow's game rules now have a renderer-independent, fixed-step simulation frozen to each accepted build. The same seed and the same decisions must produce the same movement, encounters, score, and final state every time; a mismatch rejects the competitive result.
Player-friendly by design
Verification without an invasive scanner.
This approach does not need a kernel driver, a permanent background service, or broad scanning of the player's files. Offline play continues to save results in Local Records. A wander begun without online authorization remains local permanently; only an already-authorized trail can retry after a later disconnect.
Production and next step
The replay path is live; the start boundary is being tightened.
The current production service accepts the exact r126 replay format, authenticates the Steam session, reconstructs every recorded frame, and alone publishes a matching result to the stable Steam Trusted leaderboard using KeepBest. The r128 grant-based start boundary is built, packaged, uploaded to Steam, and has passed a controlled end-to-end test through the Trusted TEST leaderboard. It is not enabled by the production service, and the stable leaderboard remains on the r126 path. Historical scores are not silently relabeled as verified.