ADK Terminology

ADK uses a few recurring names for different parts of the framework. The distinctions matter: Brain makes framework decisions, while Pinky stays close to the game engine and performs only its narrow integration work.

This page is generated from the public part of the canonical project terminology registry.

ADK - The project and framework as a whole. The initials are the stable public name and should normally be used without expansion.
Brain - The external .NET logic kernel that owns authoritative framework reasoning, scheduling, validation, and state decisions.
Pinky - The thin in-process host shim that observes engine facts, translates approved data, and applies accepted host operations.
Pinky Companion - The isolated local .NET process paired with one Pinky and host instance. It handles host-specific transport mediation, decoding, batching, compatibility projection, and diagnostics outside the host process.
Host - The game engine or server runtime integrated through Pinky.
Plugin - Isolated third-party or first-party logic that declares needs and submits intents through approved ADK capabilities.
Intent - A structured request for an outcome. It is not permission to mutate authoritative state directly.
Warehouse - Brain-owned authoritative live component storage. Persistence is not the live source of truth.
Data plane - The bounded high-frequency paths that move runtime facts and accepted operations without carrying control-plane work.
Control plane - Lower-frequency configuration, administration, coordination, and lifecycle work.
ADC - The Agnostic Domain Controller for approved central, cross-server, identity, distribution, and coordination services.
Kestrel - The administrator- or player-facing web environment, whether local, ADC-central, or hybrid.
Capability - A declared framework service or approved operation that a plugin may request under policy.
Attribute package - A versioned reusable group of data fields and semantics that can be applied to eligible entities or objects.
Handle - A stable logical identity token that resolves through current generation and location tables without exposing raw memory addresses.
Standing query - A derived result maintained incrementally because repeated equivalent searches justify continuous availability.
NPC - A non-player character controlled by the game or ADK rather than by a human player. ADK may give an NPC memory, personality, goals, and limits, but it remains a game character.
Authoritative state - The version of a fact that its designated owner is allowed to treat as final. A request or prediction is not authoritative until that owner accepts it.
Entity - A distinct thing tracked by the game or ADK, such as a player, NPC, item, vehicle, or structure.
Snapshot - A stable read-only view of selected state from one known moment. It lets work read a consistent answer while the live world keeps changing.
Projection - A purpose-built view calculated from authoritative information. It can support searches, decisions, or presentation, but it does not replace the source it came from.
Replication - The controlled copying of accepted state or actions to another process, server, or player view.
Schema - A structured description of what data or configuration fields mean, which values are allowed, and how they fit together.
Sandbox - An isolated test environment where code or configuration can be tried without being allowed to change the live server.
Faction - An organised group in the game world, often containing NPCs and sometimes players, with shared relationships, knowledge, resources, or goals.
Wipe - A server reset that removes or resets some world and progression data. Exactly what survives depends on the server's rules and ADK configuration.
Runtime artifact - The exact checked and compiled plugin package that ADK can load, together with the identity and evidence needed to know what was approved.
Lineage - The recorded continuity between related NPC generations, allowing selected history, reputation, or inherited traits to outlive one character.
World layer - A controlled version or view of part of the game world that selected players or systems can experience without changing the main world for everyone.
Orchestration - A bounded coordinator that combines existing services into a larger activity, such as an event or minigame, without taking ownership of their data.