Tune special effect projectiles

context/combat.md

@@ -1,3 +1,31 @@
+# Update: Special Projectile Trail
+
+- `SPECIAL_EFFECT.PROJECTILE.TRAIL` controls optional afterimages for the moving special projectile. Each trail copy uses the projectile's current texture frame, scale, rotation, and flip state.
+- Trail objects are visual-only combat objects: they fade out and self-dispose, but they do not participate in hit detection.
+- `TRAIL.INTERVAL_MS` and `TRAIL.LIFETIME_MS` bound how many afterimages can exist at once.
+
+# Update: Split Special Projectile Visual Configs
+
+- Special projectile visual asset settings are separated by caster type. Melee visual sheets are configured under `SPECIAL_EFFECT.MELEE`; ranged visual sheets are configured under `SPECIAL_EFFECT.RANGE`.
+- `SPECIAL_EFFECT.PROJECTILE` now carries shared projectile behavior only: hold time, acceleration/ease, fallback speed, target density area, travel clamp, hit radius, max lifetime, and optional trail visuals.
+
+# Update: One-Shot Accelerating Special Projectile
+
+- `SPECIAL_EFFECT.MELEE.REPEAT = 0` makes melee special sprites play once. `special-melee-effect-1` currently has `frameSequence` commented out, so it uses the sprite sheet's natural frame order.
+- Special projectile movement now uses a tween instead of constant `physics.moveTo`. `SPECIAL_EFFECT.PROJECTILE.startHoldMs` keeps the effect stationary for the pre-launch tell, `travelDurationMs` controls the launch duration when set, and `movementEase` controls the acceleration curve. If `travelDurationMs` is unset, movement falls back to `speed`.
+- Projectile hit checks still run from the scene UPDATE event while the tween moves the sprite, so instant-kill path detection remains active during acceleration.
+
+# Update: Special Effect Frame Sequence Refresh
+
+- `createSpecialAnimation()` now rebuilds a special animation when the existing Phaser global animation no longer matches the configured frames, repeat count, or frame rate. This prevents stale animation keys from hiding `frameSequence` edits.
+- `frameSequence` values stay 1-based in config and are converted with `generateFrameNumbers(..., { frames })`, so repeated frames are preserved when a special asset enables a custom sequence.
+
+# Update: Special Effect Frame Rate And Render Budget
+
+- `SPECIAL_EFFECT.FRAME_RATE_MULTIPLIER` multiplies only special-effect animation frame rates. Caster sparkle, melee special sprites, and ranged special projectile frames can play faster or slower without changing caster hold time, launch delay, projectile movement speed, travel distance, or cleanup timers.
+- `SPECIAL_EFFECT.FOCUS_LAYER.BLUR_MAX_FIGHTERS` caps when `specialEffects.js` creates the full-arena blurred render-texture snapshot. Above that living-fighter count, the special focus keeps the dim layer and raised caster but skips the expensive blur pass.
+- Special projectile hit checks prefer `scene.combatTargetIndex` and scan only spatial cells around the projectile segment, falling back to `scene.fighters` when no index exists.
+
 # Update: Special Effect Projectile
 
 - `specialEffects.js` owns the one-shot special effect flow: asset preload/animation creation, random live-match scheduling, underdog caster selection, caster pose lock, launch visuals, projectile path checks, and cleanup.
@@ -8,8 +36,8 @@
 - The Hurt-frame preparation also spawns a caster sparkle overlay from `public/assets/effects/special/effect.png`. Its animation uses the 1-based frame sequence `[2, 3, 4]` only, positions near the caster's eyes through `SPECIAL_EFFECT.CASTER_SPARKLE`, and is disposed before the attack animation starts.
 - Caster emphasis uses `SPECIAL_EFFECT.FOCUS_LAYER`: `specialEffects.js` snapshots the current battlefield into a render texture, applies Phaser Blur FX when available, adds a dim layer, and raises the caster above both layers until cleanup.
 - The special camera does not follow the projectile. When projectile movement begins, `zoomOutSpecialEffectCameraFocus()` zooms out in place using `SPECIAL_EFFECT.CAMERA.PROJECTILE_VIEW_ZOOM` and `PROJECTILE_ZOOM_OUT_MS` so the projectile remains readable without dragging the camera off the arena.
-- Melee special projectile effects can define 1-based `frameSequence` arrays. `specialEffects.js` converts them to Phaser frames so the largest frames can be repeated for readability, and melee projectile animations loop while traveling. The projectile's `startHoldMs` keeps it visible at the caster before travel begins.
-- At target-selection time, the special projectile scans living enemies with a summed-area table and locks onto the `SPECIAL_EFFECT.PROJECTILE.targetAreaTiles` square containing the highest represented `stackCount` population. The moving projectile visual is type-based: melee casters fire one random `SPECIAL_EFFECT.MELEE.ASSETS` sprite, while ranged casters fire the configured projectile sprite. Movement uses an Arcade Physics sprite and `physics.moveTo`, matching normal ranged projectile position updates, and projectile travel is cut to the arena bounds using `arenaEdgePadding`.
+- Melee special projectile effects can define 1-based `frameSequence` arrays. `specialEffects.js` converts them to Phaser frames so specific frames can be repeated for readability. The projectile's `startHoldMs` keeps it visible at the caster before travel begins.
+- At target-selection time, the special projectile scans living enemies with a summed-area table and locks onto the `SPECIAL_EFFECT.PROJECTILE.targetAreaTiles` square containing the highest represented `stackCount` population. The moving projectile visual is type-based: melee casters fire one random `SPECIAL_EFFECT.MELEE.ASSETS` sprite, while ranged casters use `SPECIAL_EFFECT.RANGE`. Movement uses a tweened Arcade Physics sprite, matching normal ranged projectile path-update checks while allowing acceleration, and projectile travel is cut to the arena bounds using `arenaEdgePadding`.
 - The special projectile calls `applySpecialEffectInstantKill()` from `combat.js`, so instant kills still use the normal death animation, death-stat recording, kill log attribution when there is a surviving caster, split-on-death behavior, scoreboard refresh, and match-finish checks.
 
 # Update: Elite Magic Attack Effect Scale