fix(multiplayer): reconcile authoritative initial connections

Game/scripts/server_boot.gd

@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ extends Node
 const NetCodec = preload("res://scripts/net_codec.gd")
 const ServerControlScript = preload("res://scripts/server_control.gd")
 const AgonesSDKScript = preload("res://scripts/agones_sdk.gd")
+const AssignmentState = preload("res://scripts/assignment_state.gd")
 
 # Headless dedicated server entry point (task 1.6). Parses CLI args, hosts
 # via NetworkManager, logs structured lines, and watches for physics-tick
@@ -29,8 +30,11 @@ var _last_physics_frame := 0
 var config: ServerConfig = null
 var _watchdog_armed := false   # skip the first _process(): engine startup scheduling can batch several physics frames before the first idle frame runs, which isn't a real overrun
 var _control: ServerControl = null
+var _match_loop: ServerMatchLoop = null
 var _agones = null
 var _drain_requested := false
+var _connection_reports_inflight: Dictionary = {}
+var _connection_reports_complete: Dictionary = {}
 
 
 func _ready() -> void:
@@ -89,6 +93,7 @@ func _ready() -> void:
 		config.values["min-players"] = required_min_players(true, roster_tokens.size(), int(config.get_value("min-players")))
 		_control.name = "ServerControl"
 		_control.drain_requested.connect(_on_drain_requested)
+		_control.initial_connect_ready.connect(_on_initial_connect_ready)
 		get_tree().root.add_child.call_deferred(_control)
 		var control_err := _control.start(int(config.get_value("readiness-port")), OS.get_environment(String(config.get_value("drain-token-env"))))
 		if control_err != OK:
@@ -134,6 +139,7 @@ func _ready() -> void:
 # it started. Same constraint the smoke-test hooks document.
 func _install_match_loop() -> void:
 	var loop := ServerMatchLoop.new()
+	_match_loop = loop
 	loop.name = "ServerMatchLoop"
 	loop.min_players = int(config.get_value("min-players"))
 	loop.start_countdown_seconds = float(config.get_value("start-countdown"))
@@ -143,6 +149,10 @@ func _install_match_loop() -> void:
 	loop.allocated_playlist = String(config.get_value("playlist"))
 	loop.allocated_roster_size = MatchNet.assigned_player_slots().size() if loop.allocated_mode else 0
 	loop.allocated_arena_path = String(config.get_value("arena-path"))
+	# The backend's fair timeout starts only after durable assignment-ready.
+	# When a control plane is present, the supervisor arms this loop through
+	# the authenticated local control endpoint after that transition commits.
+	loop.allocated_admission_armed = not loop.allocated_mode or OS.get_environment("COSMIC_CLASH_INITIAL_CONNECT_SIGNAL_REQUIRED") != "1"
 	get_tree().root.add_child.call_deferred(loop)
 
 
@@ -178,6 +188,8 @@ func _on_client_disconnected(peer_id: int) -> void:
 
 func _on_player_joined(peer_id: int, player_name: String) -> void:
 	ServerLog.info("player_joined", {"peer_id": peer_id, "name": player_name, "roster": MatchNet.roster.size()})
+	if config != null and bool(config.get_value("allocated-mode")):
+		_report_player_connected(MatchNet.player_identity(peer_id))
 
 
 func _on_player_left(peer_id: int) -> void:
@@ -191,6 +203,60 @@ func _on_drain_requested() -> void:
 	ServerLog.info("server_draining", {"reason": "control_request"})
 
 
+func _on_initial_connect_ready() -> void:
+	if _match_loop != null and is_instance_valid(_match_loop):
+		_match_loop.arm_allocated_admission()
+		ServerLog.info("initial_connect_window_started", {"match_id": String(config.get_value("match-id"))})
+
+
+func _report_player_connected(player_id: String) -> void:
+	var base_url := OS.get_environment("COSMIC_CLASH_CONTROL_PLANE_URL").strip_edges().trim_suffix("/")
+	var workload_token := OS.get_environment("COSMIC_CLASH_WORKLOAD_TOKEN").strip_edges()
+	var server_id := String(config.get_value("server-id"))
+	var match_id := String(config.get_value("match-id"))
+	if not valid_connection_report_configuration(base_url, workload_token, match_id, server_id, player_id) or _connection_reports_inflight.has(player_id) or _connection_reports_complete.has(player_id):
+		return
+	_connection_reports_inflight[player_id] = true
+	var endpoint := "%s/v1/servers/%s/connect" % [base_url, server_id.uri_encode()]
+	# A player can join many matches. Scope the durable key to this match so a
+	# later valid report cannot conflict with an earlier match's stored digest.
+	var idempotency_key := "server-connect-" + (match_id + "\n" + player_id).sha256_text()
+	var payload := JSON.stringify({"player_id": player_id})
+	for attempt in range(5):
+		var request := HTTPRequest.new()
+		request.timeout = 5.0
+		add_child(request)
+		var start_error := request.request(endpoint, [
+			"Authorization: Bearer " + workload_token,
+			"Content-Type: application/json",
+			"Idempotency-Key: " + idempotency_key,
+		], HTTPClient.METHOD_POST, payload)
+		var response_code := 0
+		if start_error == OK:
+			var response: Array = await request.request_completed
+			response_code = int(response[1])
+		request.queue_free()
+		if response_code == 204:
+			_connection_reports_complete[player_id] = true
+			_connection_reports_inflight.erase(player_id)
+			ServerLog.debug("player_connection_recorded", {"player_id": player_id})
+			return
+		if response_code in [400, 401, 404, 409, 422]:
+			break
+		if attempt < 4 and is_inside_tree():
+			await get_tree().create_timer(1.0).timeout
+	_connection_reports_inflight.erase(player_id)
+	ServerLog.warn("player_connection_report_failed", {"player_id": player_id})
+
+
+static func valid_connection_report_configuration(base_url: String, workload_token: String, match_id: String, server_id: String, player_id: String) -> bool:
+	if not (base_url.begins_with("http://") or base_url.begins_with("https://")) or base_url.contains("\n") or base_url.contains("\r") or base_url.contains("?") or base_url.contains("#"):
+		return false
+	if workload_token.is_empty() or workload_token.contains("\n") or workload_token.contains("\r"):
+		return false
+	return AssignmentState.is_valid_opaque_id(match_id) and AssignmentState.is_valid_opaque_id(server_id) and AssignmentState.is_valid_opaque_id(player_id)
+
+
 static func required_min_players(allocated: bool, roster_size: int, configured: int) -> int:
 	if allocated and roster_size > 0:
 		return roster_size

Game/scripts/server_control.gd

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ extends Node
 # controlled termination. Direct/community servers do not start this node.
 
 signal drain_requested
+signal initial_connect_ready
 
 var _listener := TCPServer.new()
 var _peers: Array = []
@@ -87,6 +88,18 @@ func _respond(peer: StreamPeerTCP, request: String) -> void:
 			drain_requested.emit()
 			status = 202
 			reason = "Accepted"
+	elif method == "POST" and path == "/initial-connect-ready":
+		var supplied := ""
+		for line in lines:
+			if line.begins_with("Authorization: Bearer "):
+				supplied = line.substr("Authorization: Bearer ".length())
+		if _drain_token.is_empty() or not _constant_time_equal(supplied, _drain_token):
+			status = 401
+			reason = "Unauthorized"
+		else:
+			initial_connect_ready.emit()
+			status = 202
+			reason = "Accepted"
 	else:
 		status = 405 if method in ["GET", "POST"] else 400
 		reason = "Method Not Allowed" if status == 405 else "Bad Request"

Game/scripts/server_match_loop.gd

@@ -48,6 +48,7 @@ var allocated_mode := false
 var allocated_playlist := ""
 var allocated_roster_size := 0
 var allocated_arena_path := ""
+var allocated_admission_armed := true
 
 var matches_completed := 0
 var _countdown_started_ms := -1
@@ -74,6 +75,8 @@ func _process(_delta: float) -> void:
 
 
 func _poll_allocated_match_start(now: int) -> void:
+	if not allocated_admission_armed:
+		return
 	if _allocated_connect_started_ms < 0:
 		_allocated_connect_started_ms = now
 	var connected := MatchNet.roster.size()
@@ -95,14 +98,27 @@ func _poll_allocated_match_start(now: int) -> void:
 		_poll_match_start(now)
 
 
+func arm_allocated_admission() -> void:
+	allocated_admission_armed = true
+	_allocated_connect_started_ms = -1
+
+
 static func allocated_initial_connect_action(playlist: String, elapsed_ms: int, connected: int, expected: int, has_team_zero: bool, has_team_one: bool) -> String:
 	if elapsed_ms < 0 or connected < 0 or expected < 1:
 		return ALLOCATED_CANCEL
-	if connected >= expected:
-		return ALLOCATED_READY
 	if playlist == "ranked":
+		if expected != 6:
+			return ALLOCATED_CANCEL
+		if connected >= expected:
+			return ALLOCATED_READY
 		return ALLOCATED_CANCEL if elapsed_ms >= 30000 else ALLOCATED_WAIT
 	if playlist == "casual":
+		if expected < 2 or expected > 6:
+			return ALLOCATED_CANCEL
+		if connected >= expected:
+			if expected == 6:
+				return ALLOCATED_READY
+			return ALLOCATED_START_WITH_BOTS if has_team_zero and has_team_one else ALLOCATED_CANCEL
 		if elapsed_ms < 60000:
 			return ALLOCATED_WAIT
 		return ALLOCATED_START_WITH_BOTS if connected >= 2 and has_team_zero and has_team_one else ALLOCATED_CANCEL

Game/tests/cases/test_server_config.gd

@@ -173,3 +173,12 @@ func test_allocated_start_floor_is_the_verified_roster_size() -> void:
 	assert_eq(boot.required_min_players(true, 6, 1), 6, "allocated six-player roster cannot start with one player")
 	assert_eq(boot.required_min_players(true, 2, 6), 2, "allocated casual roster uses its complete size")
 	assert_eq(boot.required_min_players(false, 1, 1), 1, "direct server keeps its configured floor")
+
+
+func test_connection_reporting_requires_safe_workload_configuration() -> void:
+	var boot = preload("res://scripts/server_boot.gd")
+	assert_true(boot.valid_connection_report_configuration("http://control-plane:8080", "signed-token", "match-1234567890", "server-123456789", "player-123456789"), "allocated workload configuration is accepted")
+	assert_true(not boot.valid_connection_report_configuration("http://control-plane:8080?token=leak", "signed-token", "match-1234567890", "server-123456789", "player-123456789"), "query-bearing control-plane URL is rejected")
+	assert_true(not boot.valid_connection_report_configuration("http://control-plane:8080", "token\nforged", "match-1234567890", "server-123456789", "player-123456789"), "header injection token is rejected")
+	assert_true(not boot.valid_connection_report_configuration("http://control-plane:8080", "signed-token", "short", "server-123456789", "player-123456789"), "non-opaque match identity is rejected")
+	assert_true(not boot.valid_connection_report_configuration("http://control-plane:8080", "signed-token", "match-1234567890", "server-123456789", "short"), "non-opaque player identity is rejected")

Game/tests/cases/test_server_match_loop.gd

@@ -6,6 +6,14 @@ func test_allocated_initial_connect_policy_has_explicit_boundaries() -> void:
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("ranked", 30000, 5, 6, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_CANCEL, "ranked cancels at 30 seconds")
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 59999, 2, 6, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_WAIT, "casual waits before 60 seconds")
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 60000, 2, 6, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_START_WITH_BOTS, "casual starts with bots when both teams are represented")
+	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 1000, 2, 2, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_START_WITH_BOTS, "complete relaxed casual roster starts with disclosed bots immediately")
+	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 1000, 2, 2, true, false), loop.ALLOCATED_CANCEL, "malformed relaxed casual roster fails closed")
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 60000, 2, 6, true, false), loop.ALLOCATED_CANCEL, "casual cancels when one team is empty")
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("casual", 1000, 6, 6, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_READY, "complete roster is ready immediately")
+	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("ranked", 1000, 5, 5, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_CANCEL, "ranked cannot shrink its expected roster")
 	assert_eq(loop.allocated_initial_connect_action("other", 0, 1, 6, true, true), loop.ALLOCATED_CANCEL, "unknown allocated playlist fails closed")
+	var instance = loop.new()
+	instance.allocated_admission_armed = false
+	instance.arm_allocated_admission()
+	assert_true(instance.allocated_admission_armed, "durable readiness signal arms the local timeout")
+	instance.free()

Game/tests/server_control_smoke.gd

@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@ func _init() -> void:
 		quit(1)
 		return
 	control.set_process_ready(true)
+	control.set_meta("admission_armed", false)
+	control.initial_connect_ready.connect(func() -> void: control.set_meta("admission_armed", true))
 	await process_frame
 	var ready_response := await _request("GET", "/ready", [])
 	if ready_response != 200:
@@ -23,6 +25,16 @@ func _init() -> void:
 		printerr("unauthorized drain response was %d" % unauthorized)
 		quit(1)
 		return
+	var unauthorized_admission := await _request("POST", "/initial-connect-ready", ["Authorization: Bearer wrong"])
+	if unauthorized_admission != 401 or bool(control.get_meta("admission_armed")):
+		printerr("unauthorized initial-connect response/state was %d/%s" % [unauthorized_admission, control.get_meta("admission_armed")])
+		quit(1)
+		return
+	var admitted := await _request("POST", "/initial-connect-ready", ["Authorization: Bearer drain-secret"])
+	if admitted != 202 or not bool(control.get_meta("admission_armed")):
+		printerr("authorized initial-connect response/state was %d/%s" % [admitted, control.get_meta("admission_armed")])
+		quit(1)
+		return
 	var drained := await _request("POST", "/drain", ["Authorization: Bearer drain-secret"])
 	if drained != 202 or not control.is_draining():
 		printerr("authorized drain response/state was %d/%s" % [drained, control.is_draining()])

deploy/k8s/base/fleet.yaml

@@ -58,6 +58,7 @@ spec:
                 - --sdk-base-url=http://127.0.0.1:9357
                 - --ready-url=http://127.0.0.1:7780/ready
                 - --drain-url=http://127.0.0.1:7780/drain
+                - --initial-connect-ready-url=http://127.0.0.1:7780/initial-connect-ready
                 - --drain-token-env=COSMIC_CLASH_DRAIN_TOKEN
                 - --control-plane-url=http://control-plane.cosmic-clash.svc.cluster.local:8080
                 - --server-id-env=COSMIC_CLASH_SERVER_ID

docs/MATCHMAKING.md

@@ -208,6 +208,15 @@ allocation fails. Ordering ties use ticket ID. A ranked initial-connect
 no-show after accepting uses the ranked abandon cooldown ladder but never a
 rating loss because no rated match began.
 
+The initial-connect clock begins only after the server's durable
+`ASSIGNMENT_READY` transition. Player assignments are not exposed before that
+gate. Each allocated server reports a successfully verified signed-roster
+admission through the workload-authenticated, idempotent
+`POST /servers/{serverId}/connect` boundary; PostgreSQL `connected_at` values,
+not client claims, drive no-show reconciliation. The supervisor arms the game
+process's matching local timeout through an authenticated loopback control call
+only after the same transition commits.
+
 ### Casual
 
 - Target six humans in 3v3.

multiplayer-next.md

@@ -1228,7 +1228,7 @@ production fallback.
 | 8.32 `[D:8.2,8.26,8.30]` | **IN PROGRESS.** Provider-neutral FleetAutoscaler baseline preserves a two-process Ready buffer, caps warm capacity, and leaves Allocated scale-down independent of the Ready floor; Fleet image references remain digest-pinned for current/rollback pre-pull | `deploy/k8s/base/fleet-autoscaler.yaml` and manifest tests cover Fleet ownership, Buffer policy and floor/cap invariants; regional on-demand node pools/failure domains, pre-pull rollout, warm-allocation p95/p99 and N+1 certification remain |
 | 8.33 `[D:8.26,8.32]` | **IN PROGRESS.** Fleet scheduling now requires on-demand capacity and spreads Ready processes across zones with skew 1; the autoscaler preserves the two-process Ready floor | `deploy/k8s/base/fleet.yaml` and manifest tests reject interruptible placement and single-zone concentration structurally; regional node pools, forced node-loss testing and measured N+1 headroom remain |
 | 8.34 `[D:8.28,8.29]` | Native x86_64 benchmark of boot-to-process-ready and assignment-ready, p99 CPU/RSS/network and 60 Hz ticks; limits/node cap with 30% headroom | Measurements replace old estimates and certify density with no tick backlog |
-| 8.35 `[D:8.17,8.19,8.20,8.30,8.31]` | **IN PROGRESS.** Pure Go initial-connect policy decides ranked 30 s no-show cancellation with abandon ladder and casual 60 s bot start only when each team has a human; empty-team casual allocations cancel | `server/domain/noshow.go` covers wait/deadline boundaries, deterministic no-show/innocent ordering, ranked cooldown history and no pre-live rating action; persistent ticket restoration, allocation shutdown, bot spawn and live integration remain |
+| 8.35 `[D:8.17,8.19,8.20,8.30,8.31]` | **IN PROGRESS.** Allocated Godot servers now report each signed-roster admission through a match-bound workload-authenticated/idempotent API; PostgreSQL persists `connected_at`, starts the fair deadline at durable `ASSIGNMENT_READY`, and atomically starts complete rosters, applies ranked 30 s no-show cancellation/abandon ladders, or applies casual bot/cancel outcomes after 60 s. The maintenance role evaluates this path every second. Godot's local clock is armed only after the same durable readiness transition and applies the same complete/partial roster policy | Domain/store/API/supervisor/Godot tests cover forged workload/allocation/player bindings, replay after response loss, malformed rosters, complete ranked/casual starts, relaxed 2–5-human bot starts, canonical team/global-slot preservation, empty-team cancellation, stale-snapshot races, retryable datastore outages, and readiness-clock ordering. Migration `0010_initial_connect_ready_at.sql` gives deployed in-flight matches a fresh window. Live PostgreSQL execution, allocated process termination evidence, and real Agones multi-client verification remain |
 | 8.36 `[D:8.10,8.25,8.28,8.30]` | **IN PROGRESS.** Supervisor exposes an authenticated loopback-only drain request boundary that never places the token in command arguments/logs and rejects remote/partial/query-bearing configurations; the base now includes a two-Ready PodDisruptionBudget; `Supervisor.Run` and `cmd/game-server-supervisor` now orchestrate signal-bound drain-before-kill with a bounded grace deadline | `server/supervisor/`, `server/cmd/game-server-supervisor/`, `server_control.gd` and `deploy/k8s/base/game-server-pdb.yaml` cover bearer-token enforcement, loopback URL validation, secret-safe configuration, missing drain credentials, readiness transitions, Ready-floor disruption protection, graceful child exit after drain and force-kill of an unresponsive child; live 300 s/285 s lifecycle, PDB/Fleet drain and infrastructure-abort classification remain |
 | 8.37 `[D:8.5,8.10,8.25,8.26,8.31]` | Horizontally scaled primary control plane + warm standby, EU/NA fleets, RPO <=5 m/RTO <=30 m; signed result annotation/reconciliation preserves delivery outages | Restore/failover meet targets; live simulation continues; valid delayed result commits exactly once after recovery |
 | 8.38 `[D:7.7,8.26,8.36,8.37]` | Provider migration after Valve approves both providers' EU/NA POPs/certs and public UDP: restore, validate coordinator trust, switch allocations, drain old | Both geographies complete Hosted-SDR matches on new provider and no old-provider live match is terminated |
@@ -1649,3 +1649,7 @@ Allocator probes now distinguish process liveness from useful progress. `/health
 The timeout boundary is enforced inside both network adapters as well as in the production allocator wiring: an `agones.Client` or game-server `Supervisor` constructed without an injected HTTP client now receives a ten-second client rather than Go's unbounded `http.DefaultClient`. This prevents alternate binaries, tests, and future callers from restoring an infinite GameServer, roster, registration, or SDK wait by omission.
 
 Control-plane probes now separate liveness from datastore readiness too. `/healthz` proves the process can serve without restarting it during a PostgreSQL outage; `/readyz` runs a one-second-bounded `PingContext` and the Deployment routes traffic only to replicas whose core durable store responds. Probe and metrics routes bypass the player request limiter, so operator-selected low limits cannot make Kubernetes evict a healthy replica. Missing checks, datastore errors, non-GET methods, and successful recovery are covered by API tests.
+
+The task 8.35 adversarial pass closed the previously disconnected initial-connect implementations. An accepted signed player now produces a workload-authenticated `POST /servers/{serverId}/connect` receipt bound to the exact allocation, match, server, participant, and unexpired assignment; durable replay survives a lost response and keys include the match so a later match cannot conflict. Unknown datastore failures return retryable 503 responses. Player assignment reads are hidden until the match has durably reached `ASSIGNMENT_READY`, and the supervisor now fails closed if that transition never commits.
+
+Initial-connect timing and topology now agree across every layer. Migration 0010 records `initial_connect_ready_at` at the assignment-ready transition instead of using match creation time; maintenance polls that path independently every second; and an authenticated loopback signal arms Godot's local timeout only after the durable transition. Complete rosters enter `LIVE` immediately, relaxed two-to-five-human casual rosters immediately fill their disclosed vacant slots with bots, and six-human casual no-shows use the 60-second policy. Casual lineup, reconnect, signed-roster, matcher, store, and Godot validation all use canonical global slots 0–2 for team 0 and 3–5 for team 1; the earlier alternating-slot bot layout has been removed. Focused Go tests, contract/migration/manifest checks, and the 204-test Godot harness pass; the committed PostgreSQL integration assertion remains unexecuted locally while Docker storage is exhausted.

server/api/service.go

@@ -43,6 +43,9 @@ type ServerRegistrar interface {
 type ServerShutdowner interface {
 	ShutdownServer(context.Context, domain.WorkloadBinding, string, string, time.Time) error
 }
+type ServerConnectionRecorder interface {
+	RecordPlayerConnected(context.Context, domain.WorkloadBinding, string, string, time.Time) error
+}
 
 type QueueBackend interface {
 	Create(context.Context, string, string, string, domain.QueueSpec, time.Time) (domain.QueueTicket, error)
@@ -118,6 +121,7 @@ type Service struct {
 	ResultSubmitter       ResultSubmitter
 	ServerRegistrar       ServerRegistrar
 	ServerShutdowner      ServerShutdowner
+	ServerConnections     ServerConnectionRecorder
 	Assignment            AssignmentProvider
 	Roster                RosterProvider
 	Now                   func() time.Time
@@ -555,10 +559,9 @@ func (s *Service) contractAssignment(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 
 func (s *Service) contractServerMutation(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	// Unlike contractAssignment, the documented shape here is two segments
-	// (/servers/{serverId}/result, /servers/{serverId}/register, or
-	// /servers/{serverId}/shutdown) — rejecting
+	// (/servers/{serverId}/{result|register|roster|connect|shutdown}) — rejecting
 	// any "/" would 404 every real call. Delegate shape validation to
-	// serverMutation, which already enforces exactly {id}/{result|register}.
+	// serverMutation, which already enforces the exact operation allowlist.
 	path := strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, "/api/v1/servers/")
 	parts := strings.Split(path, "/")
 	if path == "" || len(parts) < 2 || !controlPlaneResourceIDRE.MatchString(parts[0]) {
@@ -589,7 +592,7 @@ type serverRegistrationRequest struct {
 
 func (s *Service) serverMutation(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	parts := strings.Split(strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, "/v1/servers/"), "/")
-	if len(parts) != 2 || parts[0] == "" || (parts[1] != "result" && parts[1] != "register" && parts[1] != "roster" && parts[1] != "shutdown") {
+	if len(parts) != 2 || parts[0] == "" || (parts[1] != "result" && parts[1] != "register" && parts[1] != "roster" && parts[1] != "shutdown" && parts[1] != "connect") {
 		writeError(w, http.StatusNotFound, "not_found")
 		return
 	}
@@ -597,7 +600,7 @@ func (s *Service) serverMutation(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		writeError(w, http.StatusMethodNotAllowed, "method_not_allowed")
 		return
 	}
-	if s.WorkloadVerify == nil || (parts[1] == "result" && s.ResultSubmitter == nil) || (parts[1] == "register" && s.ServerRegistrar == nil) || (parts[1] == "roster" && s.Roster == nil) || (parts[1] == "shutdown" && s.ServerShutdowner == nil) {
+	if s.WorkloadVerify == nil || (parts[1] == "result" && s.ResultSubmitter == nil) || (parts[1] == "register" && s.ServerRegistrar == nil) || (parts[1] == "roster" && s.Roster == nil) || (parts[1] == "shutdown" && s.ServerShutdowner == nil) || (parts[1] == "connect" && s.ServerConnections == nil) {
 		writeError(w, http.StatusServiceUnavailable, "server_unavailable")
 		return
 	}
@@ -663,6 +666,33 @@ func (s *Service) serverMutation(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNoContent)
 		return
 	}
+	if parts[1] == "connect" {
+		var input struct {
+			PlayerID string `json:"player_id"`
+		}
+		if !decodeBody(w, r, &input) {
+			return
+		}
+		if !controlPlaneResourceIDRE.MatchString(input.PlayerID) {
+			writeError(w, http.StatusUnprocessableEntity, "invalid_request")
+			return
+		}
+		if err := s.ServerConnections.RecordPlayerConnected(r.Context(), binding, input.PlayerID, key, now); err != nil {
+			if errors.Is(err, domain.ErrConflict) {
+				writeError(w, http.StatusConflict, "conflict")
+			} else {
+				// The request has already passed schema and workload checks. An
+				// unknown recorder error is infrastructure failure, not a terminal
+				// client fault; 503 keeps the game server's bounded retry alive.
+				writeError(w, http.StatusServiceUnavailable, "server_unavailable")
+			}
+			s.logEvent(observability.Event{Event: "server_connect", MatchID: binding.MatchID, ServerID: parts[0], Stage: "rejected", OccurredAt: now})
+			return
+		}
+		s.logEvent(observability.Event{Event: "server_connect", MatchID: binding.MatchID, ServerID: parts[0], Stage: "connected", OccurredAt: now, Fields: map[string]any{"player_id": input.PlayerID}})
+		w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNoContent)
+		return
+	}
 	if parts[1] == "shutdown" {
 		var input struct {
 			Reason string `json:"reason"`

server/api/service_test.go

@@ -70,6 +70,20 @@ type serverShutdownerSpy struct {
 	err     error
 }
 
+type serverConnectionSpy struct {
+	calls    int
+	binding  domain.WorkloadBinding
+	playerID string
+	key      string
+	err      error
+}
+
+func (s *serverConnectionSpy) RecordPlayerConnected(_ context.Context, binding domain.WorkloadBinding, playerID, key string, _ time.Time) error {
+	s.calls++
+	s.binding, s.playerID, s.key = binding, playerID, key
+	return s.err
+}
+
 func (s *serverShutdownerSpy) ShutdownServer(_ context.Context, binding domain.WorkloadBinding, reason, key string, _ time.Time) error {
 	s.calls++
 	s.binding, s.reason, s.key = binding, reason, key
@@ -1458,6 +1472,52 @@ func TestServerShutdownAPIRequiresBoundWorkloadAndDelegatesAcknowledgement(t *te
 	response.Body.Close()
 }
 
+func TestServerConnectionAPIRequiresBoundWorkloadAndOpaqueAssignedPlayer(t *testing.T) {
+	now := time.Unix(1000, 0).UTC()
+	binding := domain.WorkloadBinding{AllocationID: "allocation-123456", MatchID: "match-1234567890", ServerID: "server-123456789"}
+	recorder := &serverConnectionSpy{}
+	service := &Service{Now: func() time.Time { return now }, WorkloadVerify: func(token string, _ time.Time) (domain.WorkloadBinding, error) {
+		if token != "workload-token" {
+			return domain.WorkloadBinding{}, errors.New("bad token")
+		}
+		return binding, nil
+	}, ServerConnections: recorder}
+	server := httptest.NewServer(service.Handler())
+	defer server.Close()
+
+	request := func(serverID, playerID, token, key string) int {
+		body := fmt.Sprintf(`{"player_id":%q}`, playerID)
+		req, _ := http.NewRequest(http.MethodPost, server.URL+"/v1/servers/"+serverID+"/connect", strings.NewReader(body))
+		req.Header.Set("Authorization", "Bearer "+token)
+		req.Header.Set("Idempotency-Key", key)
+		response, err := http.DefaultClient.Do(req)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		response.Body.Close()
+		return response.StatusCode
+	}
+	if got := request(binding.ServerID, "player-123456789", "workload-token", "connect-player-123456789"); got != http.StatusNoContent {
+		t.Fatalf("connection status = %d", got)
+	}
+	if recorder.calls != 1 || recorder.binding != binding || recorder.playerID != "player-123456789" || recorder.key != "connect-player-123456789" {
+		t.Fatalf("connection receipt = %+v", recorder)
+	}
+	if got := request("server-000000000", "player-123456789", "workload-token", "connect-player-123456789"); got != http.StatusUnauthorized {
+		t.Fatalf("wrong server status = %d", got)
+	}
+	if got := request(binding.ServerID, "short", "workload-token", "connect-player-short-123"); got != http.StatusUnprocessableEntity {
+		t.Fatalf("short player status = %d", got)
+	}
+	if recorder.calls != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("invalid receipts reached backend: %d", recorder.calls)
+	}
+	recorder.err = errors.New("database unavailable")
+	if got := request(binding.ServerID, "player-123456789", "workload-token", "connect-player-retry-123"); got != http.StatusServiceUnavailable {
+		t.Fatalf("recorder outage status = %d, want retryable 503", got)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestMetricsEndpointExportsBoundedAPILatencyAndSkipsItsOwnScrape(t *testing.T) {
 	metrics := observability.NewMetrics()
 	service := &Service{Metrics: metrics, Now: time.Now}

server/api/store_adapters.go

@@ -87,6 +87,19 @@ func ServerShutdownerFromStore(db *sql.DB) ServerShutdowner {
 	return postgresServerShutdowner{db: db}
 }
 
+type postgresServerConnections struct{ db *sql.DB }
+
+func (p postgresServerConnections) RecordPlayerConnected(ctx context.Context, binding domain.WorkloadBinding, playerID, idempotencyKey string, now time.Time) error {
+	return store.RecordPlayerConnected(ctx, p.db, binding, playerID, idempotencyKey, now)
+}
+
+func ServerConnectionsFromStore(db *sql.DB) ServerConnectionRecorder {
+	if db == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	return postgresServerConnections{db: db}
+}
+
 // WorkloadVerifierFromSignedToken builds WorkloadVerify from a control-plane
 // -owned signed token instead of a Kubernetes-projected JWT (see
 // workload/signed_token.go for why: it needs no live cluster to verify).

server/cmd/control-plane/main.go

@@ -134,6 +134,7 @@ func newAPIService(db *sql.DB, workloadSecret string, indexes ...api.CandidateIn
 		ProposalPromoter:      api.ProposalPromoterFromStore(db),
 		ServerRegistrar:       api.ServerRegistrarFromStore(db),
 		ServerShutdowner:      api.ServerShutdownerFromStore(db),
+		ServerConnections:     api.ServerConnectionsFromStore(db),
 		ResultSubmitter:       store.PostgresResults{DB: db},
 		RankedProfileProvider: store.PostgresRankedProfiles{DB: db},
 		TierPolicy:            domain.DefaultTierPolicy(),

server/cmd/game-server-supervisor/main.go

@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ func main() {
 	sdkBaseURL := options.String("sdk-base-url", "", "Agones SDK REST base URL; empty enables direct mode")
 	readyURL := options.String("ready-url", "", "explicit process-ready probe URL")
 	drainURL := options.String("drain-url", "", "loopback drain URL")
+	admissionURL := options.String("initial-connect-ready-url", "", "authenticated loopback URL that starts the initial-connect clock after durable assignment readiness")
 	drainTokenEnv := options.String("drain-token-env", "COSMIC_CLASH_DRAIN_TOKEN", "environment variable containing the drain bearer token")
 	transport := options.String("transport", "enet", "enet or steam_sdr")
 	grace := options.Duration("drain-grace", supervisor.DefaultDrainGrace, "maximum graceful drain duration")
@@ -64,6 +65,7 @@ func main() {
 		SDKBaseURL:   *sdkBaseURL,
 		ReadyURL:     *readyURL,
 		DrainURL:     *drainURL,
+		AdmissionURL: *admissionURL,
 		DrainToken:   token,
 		Transport:    *transport,
 		ReadyTimeout: 30 * time.Second,

server/cmd/maintenance/main.go

@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ func main() {
 	dsn := flag.String("dsn", os.Getenv("COSMIC_CLASH_POSTGRES_DSN"), "PostgreSQL connection string")
 	migrationDir := flag.String("migrations", "migrations", "directory containing numbered SQL migrations")
 	interval := flag.Duration("interval", time.Minute, "maintenance poll interval")
+	initialConnectInterval := flag.Duration("initial-connect-interval", time.Second, "initial-connect reconciliation poll interval")
 	batch := flag.Int("batch", 100, "maximum player rollovers per pass")
 	stalledAllocationDeadline := flag.Duration("stalled-allocation-deadline", 2*time.Minute, "reclaim a match stuck in ALLOCATING/PROCESS_READY/ASSIGNMENT_READY (server crashed or was reclaimed before registering) after this long, requeuing every participant without penalty")
 	stalledAllocationBatch := flag.Int("stalled-allocation-batch", 100, "maximum stalled matches reclaimed per pass")
@@ -28,7 +29,7 @@ func main() {
 	if *dsn == "" {
 		fatalf("--dsn or COSMIC_CLASH_POSTGRES_DSN is required")
 	}
-	if *interval <= 0 || *batch < 1 || *batch > 1000 {
+	if *interval <= 0 || *initialConnectInterval <= 0 || *batch < 1 || *batch > 1000 {
 		fatalf("invalid interval or batch")
 	}
 	if *stalledAllocationDeadline <= 0 || *stalledAllocationBatch < 1 || *stalledAllocationBatch > 1000 {
@@ -52,8 +53,7 @@ func main() {
 	}
 	ctx, stop := signal.NotifyContext(context.Background(), os.Interrupt, syscall.SIGTERM)
 	defer stop()
-	for {
-		now := time.Now().UTC()
+	runGeneral := func(now time.Time) {
 		count, err := store.RolloverDueSeasons(ctx, db, now, *batch)
 		if err != nil {
 			fatalf("season maintenance: %v", err)
@@ -68,6 +68,8 @@ func main() {
 		if reclaimed > 0 {
 			log.Printf("reclaimed %d stalled allocations, requeuing their participants", reclaimed)
 		}
+	}
+	runInitialConnect := func(now time.Time) {
 		reconciled, err := store.ReconcileInitialConnect(ctx, db, now, *initialConnectBatch)
 		if err != nil {
 			fatalf("initial-connect maintenance: %v", err)
@@ -75,12 +77,22 @@ func main() {
 		if reconciled > 0 {
 			log.Printf("reconciled %d initial-connect outcomes", reconciled)
 		}
-		timer := time.NewTimer(*interval)
+	}
+
+	runGeneral(time.Now().UTC())
+	runInitialConnect(time.Now().UTC())
+	generalTicker := time.NewTicker(*interval)
+	initialConnectTicker := time.NewTicker(*initialConnectInterval)
+	defer generalTicker.Stop()
+	defer initialConnectTicker.Stop()
+	for {
 		select {
 		case <-ctx.Done():
-			timer.Stop()
 			return
-		case <-timer.C:
+		case now := <-generalTicker.C:
+			runGeneral(now.UTC())
+		case now := <-initialConnectTicker.C:
+			runInitialConnect(now.UTC())
 		}
 	}
 }

server/cmd/testkit-api/main.go

@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ func main() {
 		ProposalPromoter:      api.ProposalPromoterFromStore(db),
 		ServerRegistrar:       api.ServerRegistrarFromStore(db),
 		ServerShutdowner:      api.ServerShutdownerFromStore(db),
+		ServerConnections:     api.ServerConnectionsFromStore(db),
 		ResultSubmitter:       store.PostgresResults{DB: db},
 		RankedProfileProvider: store.PostgresRankedProfiles{DB: db},
 		TierPolicy:            domain.DefaultTierPolicy(),

server/contracts/v1/openapi.json

@@ -50,6 +50,9 @@
     "/servers/{serverId}/register": {
       "post": {"security": [{"serverCredential": []}], "operationId": "registerServer", "parameters": [{"$ref": "#/components/parameters/ServerId"}, {"$ref": "#/components/parameters/IdempotencyKey"}], "requestBody": {"required": true, "content": {"application/json": {"schema": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/ServerRegistration"}}}}, "responses": {"204": {"description": "Registered"}, "409": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Conflict"}}}
     },
+    "/servers/{serverId}/connect": {
+      "post": {"security": [{"serverCredential": []}], "operationId": "recordPlayerConnected", "parameters": [{"$ref": "#/components/parameters/ServerId"}, {"$ref": "#/components/parameters/IdempotencyKey"}], "requestBody": {"required": true, "content": {"application/json": {"schema": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/ServerConnection"}}}}, "responses": {"204": {"description": "Connection recorded"}, "409": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Conflict"}, "422": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Invalid"}, "503": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Unavailable"}}}
+    },
     "/servers/{serverId}/result": {
       "post": {"security": [{"serverCredential": []}], "operationId": "submitMatchResult", "parameters": [{"$ref": "#/components/parameters/ServerId"}, {"$ref": "#/components/parameters/IdempotencyKey"}], "requestBody": {"required": true, "content": {"application/json": {"schema": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/MatchResult"}}}}, "responses": {"202": {"description": "Result accepted"}, "409": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Conflict"}, "422": {"$ref": "#/components/responses/Invalid"}}}
     },
@@ -92,6 +95,7 @@
       "ProposalParticipant": {"type": "object", "required": ["player_id", "response", "team", "slot"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"player_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "response": {"type": "string", "enum": ["PENDING", "ACCEPTED", "DECLINED", "TIMED_OUT"]}, "team": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0, "maximum": 1}, "slot": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0, "maximum": 5}}},
       "Assignment": {"type": "object", "required": ["match_id", "server_id", "player_id", "slot", "expires_at", "protocol_version", "transport", "endpoint", "join_authorisation"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"match_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "server_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "player_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "slot": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0, "maximum": 5}, "expires_at": {"type": "string", "format": "date-time"}, "protocol_version": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 1}, "transport": {"type": "string", "enum": ["steam_sdr", "enet"]}, "endpoint": {"type": "string", "minLength": 3, "maxLength": 256}, "join_authorisation": {"type": "string"}}},
       "ServerRegistration": {"type": "object", "required": ["match_id", "protocol_version", "image_digest", "assignment_ready"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"match_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "protocol_version": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 1}, "image_digest": {"type": "string", "pattern": "^sha256:[a-f0-9]{64}$"}, "assignment_ready": {"type": "boolean"}}},
+      "ServerConnection": {"type": "object", "required": ["player_id"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"player_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}}},
       "ServerShutdown": {"type": "object", "required": ["reason"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"reason": {"type": "string", "minLength": 1, "maxLength": 96}}},
       "MatchResult": {"type": "object", "required": ["match_id", "result_nonce", "score", "integrity_state"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"match_id": {"$ref": "#/components/schemas/OpaqueId"}, "result_nonce": {"type": "string", "minLength": 16, "maxLength": 128}, "score": {"type": "object", "required": ["team_0", "team_1"], "additionalProperties": false, "properties": {"team_0": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0}, "team_1": {"type": "integer", "minimum": 0}}}, "integrity_state": {"type": "string", "enum": ["CERTIFIED", "SUPPRESSED", "REVIEW"]}}}
     }

server/contracts/v1/test_contracts.py

@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ class ContractTest(unittest.TestCase):
             "createSteamSession", "getProfile", "createQueueTicket",
             "heartbeatQueueTicket", "cancelQueueTicket", "acceptProposal",
             "declineProposal", "getAssignment", "registerServer",
-            "submitMatchResult", "getRankedProfile",
+            "recordPlayerConnected", "submitMatchResult", "getRankedProfile",
         } <= operations)
 
     def test_ranked_profile_contract_is_authoritative_and_optional_season_metadata(self):

server/domain/casual.go

@@ -30,21 +30,21 @@ func BuildCasualLineup(participants []ConnectParticipant) ([]CasualSlot, error)
 	teamHuman := map[int]bool{}
 	lineup := make([]CasualSlot, 6)
 	usedSlots := make(map[int]bool)
-	for i, participant := range participants {
-		if participant.PlayerID == "" || participant.Team < 0 || participant.Team > 1 || seen[participant.PlayerID] || usedSlots[i] {
+	for _, participant := range participants {
+		if participant.PlayerID == "" || participant.Team < 0 || participant.Team > 1 || participant.Slot < 0 || participant.Slot > 5 || participant.Slot/3 != participant.Team || seen[participant.PlayerID] || usedSlots[participant.Slot] {
 			return nil, fmt.Errorf("invalid casual participant")
 		}
 		seen[participant.PlayerID] = true
-		usedSlots[i] = true
+		usedSlots[participant.Slot] = true
 		teamHuman[participant.Team] = true
-		lineup[i] = CasualSlot{Slot: i, Team: participant.Team, PlayerID: participant.PlayerID}
+		lineup[participant.Slot] = CasualSlot{Slot: participant.Slot, Team: participant.Team, PlayerID: participant.PlayerID}
 	}
 	if !teamHuman[0] || !teamHuman[1] {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("casual lineup requires one human on each team")
 	}
 	for i := range lineup {
 		if lineup[i].PlayerID == "" {
-			lineup[i] = CasualSlot{Slot: i, Team: i % 2, PlayerID: fmt.Sprintf("bot-slot-%d", i), IsBot: true}
+			lineup[i] = CasualSlot{Slot: i, Team: i / 3, PlayerID: fmt.Sprintf("bot-slot-%d", i), IsBot: true}
 		}
 	}
 	return lineup, nil

server/domain/casual_test.go

@@ -3,11 +3,11 @@ package domain
 import "testing"
 
 func TestCasualLineupUsesBotsOnlyForMissingSlotsAndRequiresBothTeams(t *testing.T) {
-	lineup, err := BuildCasualLineup([]ConnectParticipant{{PlayerID: "p2", Team: 1}, {PlayerID: "p1", Team: 0}})
-	if err != nil || len(lineup) != 6 || lineup[0].IsBot || lineup[1].IsBot || !lineup[2].IsBot || lineup[2].Team != 0 {
+	lineup, err := BuildCasualLineup([]ConnectParticipant{{PlayerID: "p2", Team: 1, Slot: 3}, {PlayerID: "p1", Team: 0, Slot: 0}})
+	if err != nil || len(lineup) != 6 || lineup[0].IsBot || lineup[3].IsBot || !lineup[2].IsBot || lineup[2].Team != 0 || !lineup[5].IsBot || lineup[5].Team != 1 {
 		t.Fatalf("casual lineup = %+v err=%v", lineup, err)
 	}
-	if _, err := BuildCasualLineup([]ConnectParticipant{{PlayerID: "p1", Team: 0}, {PlayerID: "p2", Team: 0}}); err == nil {
+	if _, err := BuildCasualLineup([]ConnectParticipant{{PlayerID: "p1", Team: 0, Slot: 0}, {PlayerID: "p2", Team: 0, Slot: 1}}); err == nil {
 		t.Fatal("lineup without a human on team 1 was accepted")
 	}
 }

server/domain/formation.go

@@ -32,11 +32,11 @@ func PrepareProposal(id string, playlist Playlist, formation MatchFormation, ran
 	switch playlist {
 	case Casual:
 		participants := make([]ConnectParticipant, 0, len(formation.Selection.Players))
-		for _, player := range formation.Teams.Team0 {
-			participants = append(participants, ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: player.PlayerID, Team: 0})
+		for index, player := range formation.Teams.Team0 {
+			participants = append(participants, ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: player.PlayerID, Team: 0, Slot: index})
 		}
-		for _, player := range formation.Teams.Team1 {
-			participants = append(participants, ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: player.PlayerID, Team: 1})
+		for index, player := range formation.Teams.Team1 {
+			participants = append(participants, ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: player.PlayerID, Team: 1, Slot: 3 + index})
 		}
 		var err error
 		lineup, err = BuildCasualLineup(participants)

server/domain/noshow.go

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ const (
 type ConnectParticipant struct {
 	PlayerID  string
 	Team      int
+	Slot      int
 	Connected bool
 }
 
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@ type InitialConnectAction string
 
 const (
 	InitialConnectWait         InitialConnectAction = "WAIT"
+	InitialConnectStart        InitialConnectAction = "START"
 	InitialConnectCancel       InitialConnectAction = "CANCEL"
 	InitialConnectStartWithBot InitialConnectAction = "START_WITH_BOTS"
 )
@@ -57,6 +59,9 @@ func PlanInitialConnect(playlist Playlist, readyAt, now time.Time, participants
 	switch decision.Action {
 	case InitialConnectWait:
 		return plan, nil
+	case InitialConnectStart:
+		plan.MatchState = Live
+		return plan, nil
 	case InitialConnectCancel:
 		plan.MatchState = Cancelled
 		return plan, nil
@@ -86,16 +91,18 @@ func EvaluateInitialConnect(playlist Playlist, readyAt, now time.Time, participa
 	if playlist != Ranked && playlist != Casual || readyAt.IsZero() || len(participants) == 0 {
 		return InitialConnectDecision{}, fmt.Errorf("invalid initial-connect policy input")
 	}
-	if now.Before(readyAt.Add(InitialConnectWindow)) {
-		return InitialConnectDecision{Action: InitialConnectWait}, nil
+	if playlist == Ranked && len(participants) != 6 || playlist == Casual && (len(participants) < 2 || len(participants) > 6) {
+		return InitialConnectDecision{}, fmt.Errorf("invalid initial-connect roster size")
 	}
 	missing := make([]ConnectParticipant, 0)
 	connected := make([]string, 0)
 	teamConnected := map[int]bool{}
+	seen := make(map[string]bool, len(participants))
 	for _, participant := range participants {
-		if participant.PlayerID == "" || participant.Team < 0 {
+		if participant.PlayerID == "" || participant.Team < 0 || participant.Team > 1 || participant.Slot < 0 || participant.Slot > 5 || participant.Slot/3 != participant.Team || seen[participant.PlayerID] {
 			return InitialConnectDecision{}, fmt.Errorf("invalid participant")
 		}
+		seen[participant.PlayerID] = true
 		if participant.Connected {
 			connected = append(connected, participant.PlayerID)
 			teamConnected[participant.Team] = true
@@ -103,10 +110,19 @@ func EvaluateInitialConnect(playlist Playlist, readyAt, now time.Time, participa
 			missing = append(missing, participant)
 		}
 	}
-	if playlist == Ranked {
-		if len(participants) != 6 {
-			return InitialConnectDecision{}, fmt.Errorf("ranked requires six participants")
+	if len(missing) == 0 {
+		if playlist == Casual && len(participants) < 6 {
+			if !teamConnected[0] || !teamConnected[1] {
+				return InitialConnectDecision{}, fmt.Errorf("casual bot roster requires a human on each team")
+			}
+			return InitialConnectDecision{Action: InitialConnectStartWithBot, Innocent: sortedIDs(connected)}, nil
 		}
+		return InitialConnectDecision{Action: InitialConnectStart, Innocent: sortedIDs(connected)}, nil
+	}
+	if now.Before(readyAt.Add(InitialConnectWindow)) {
+		return InitialConnectDecision{Action: InitialConnectWait}, nil
+	}
+	if playlist == Ranked {
 		return InitialConnectDecision{Action: InitialConnectCancel, NoShows: rankedNoShows(missing, now, priorAbandons), Innocent: sortedIDs(connected)}, nil
 	}
 	if now.Before(readyAt.Add(CasualBotStartAfter)) {

server/domain/noshow_test.go

@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ func sixConnectParticipants(connected ...int) []ConnectParticipant {
 	}
 	result := make([]ConnectParticipant, 6)
 	for i := range result {
-		result[i] = ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: string(rune('a' + i)), Team: i % 2, Connected: set[i]}
+		result[i] = ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: string(rune('a' + i)), Team: i / 3, Slot: i, Connected: set[i]}
 	}
 	return result
 }
@@ -25,9 +25,41 @@ func TestRankedInitialNoShowCancelsWithoutRatingPenalty(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestCompleteRosterStartsImmediatelyForEitherPlaylist(t *testing.T) {
+	readyAt := time.Unix(1000, 0)
+	participants := sixConnectParticipants(0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
+	for _, playlist := range []Playlist{Ranked, Casual} {
+		plan, err := PlanInitialConnect(playlist, readyAt, readyAt.Add(time.Second), participants, nil)
+		if err != nil || plan.Action != InitialConnectStart || plan.MatchState != Live || len(plan.Connected) != 6 || len(plan.NoShows) != 0 || len(plan.CasualLineup) != 0 {
+			t.Fatalf("%s complete-roster plan = %+v err=%v", playlist, plan, err)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestCompleteRelaxedCasualRosterStartsImmediatelyWithBots(t *testing.T) {
+	readyAt := time.Unix(1000, 0)
+	participants := []ConnectParticipant{{PlayerID: "a", Team: 0, Slot: 0, Connected: true}, {PlayerID: "d", Team: 1, Slot: 3, Connected: true}}
+	plan, err := PlanInitialConnect(Casual, readyAt, readyAt.Add(time.Second), participants, nil)
+	if err != nil || plan.Action != InitialConnectStartWithBot || plan.MatchState != Live || len(plan.Connected) != 2 || len(plan.NoShows) != 0 || len(plan.CasualLineup) != 6 {
+		t.Fatalf("relaxed casual plan = %+v err=%v", plan, err)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestInitialConnectRejectsMalformedRosterBeforeStarting(t *testing.T) {
+	readyAt := time.Unix(1000, 0)
+	if _, err := EvaluateInitialConnect(Ranked, readyAt, readyAt, sixConnectParticipants(0, 1, 2, 3, 4)[:5], nil); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("five-player ranked roster accepted")
+	}
+	duplicate := sixConnectParticipants(0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
+	duplicate[5].PlayerID = duplicate[0].PlayerID
+	if _, err := EvaluateInitialConnect(Casual, readyAt, readyAt, duplicate, nil); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("duplicate player accepted")
+	}
+}
+
 func TestCasualWaitsThenStartsWithBotsOnlyWithHumanOnEachTeam(t *testing.T) {
 	readyAt := time.Unix(1000, 0)
-	participants := sixConnectParticipants(0, 1)
+	participants := sixConnectParticipants(0, 3)
 	if decision, err := EvaluateInitialConnect(Casual, readyAt, readyAt.Add(45*time.Second), participants, nil); err != nil || decision.Action != InitialConnectWait {
 		t.Fatalf("casual early decision = %+v err=%v", decision, err)
 	}
@@ -44,7 +76,7 @@ func TestCasualWaitsThenStartsWithBotsOnlyWithHumanOnEachTeam(t *testing.T) {
 
 func TestPlanInitialConnectMakesLifecycleActionExplicit(t *testing.T) {
 	readyAt := time.Unix(1000, 0)
-	participants := sixConnectParticipants(0, 1)
+	participants := sixConnectParticipants(0, 3)
 	plan, err := PlanInitialConnect(Casual, readyAt, readyAt.Add(CasualBotStartAfter), participants, nil)
 	if err != nil || plan.Action != InitialConnectStartWithBot || plan.MatchState != Live || len(plan.CasualLineup) != 6 || len(plan.NoShows) != 4 {
 		t.Fatalf("casual initial-connect plan = %+v err=%v", plan, err)

server/domain/reconnect.go

@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ func NewRankedConnections(matchID, serverID, protocol string, players []JoinAuth
 }
 
 func (r *RankedConnections) validate(auth JoinAuthorisation, now time.Time) error {
-	if auth.MatchID != r.MatchID || auth.ServerID != r.ServerID || auth.Protocol != r.Protocol || auth.PlayerID == "" || auth.SteamID == "" || auth.Slot < 0 || auth.Team < 0 || auth.ExpiresAt.IsZero() {
+	if auth.MatchID != r.MatchID || auth.ServerID != r.ServerID || auth.Protocol != r.Protocol || auth.PlayerID == "" || auth.SteamID == "" || auth.Slot < 0 || auth.Slot > 5 || auth.Team < 0 || auth.Team > 1 || auth.Slot/3 != auth.Team || auth.ExpiresAt.IsZero() {
 		return ErrJoinAuthorisation
 	}
 	if !now.IsZero() && !now.Before(auth.ExpiresAt) {

server/domain/reconnect_test.go

@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ import (
 func testRoster(now time.Time) []JoinAuthorisation {
 	roster := make([]JoinAuthorisation, 6)
 	for i := range roster {
-		roster[i] = JoinAuthorisation{MatchID: "match-1", ServerID: "server-1", Protocol: "v1", PlayerID: string(rune('a' + i)), SteamID: string(rune('A' + i)), Slot: i, Team: i % 2, Generation: 1, ExpiresAt: now.Add(time.Hour)}
+		roster[i] = JoinAuthorisation{MatchID: "match-1", ServerID: "server-1", Protocol: "v1", PlayerID: string(rune('a' + i)), SteamID: string(rune('A' + i)), Slot: i, Team: i / 3, Generation: 1, ExpiresAt: now.Add(time.Hour)}
 	}
 	return roster
 }
@@ -76,6 +76,15 @@ func TestRankedRosterRejectsDuplicateSlots(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestRankedRosterRejectsTeamSlotMismatch(t *testing.T) {
+	now := time.Unix(1000, 0)
+	roster := testRoster(now)
+	roster[3].Team = 0
+	if _, err := NewRankedConnections("match-1", "server-1", "v1", roster); !errors.Is(err, ErrJoinAuthorisation) {
+		t.Fatalf("team/slot mismatch accepted: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestRankedAbandonCooldownUsesRollingSevenDayLadder(t *testing.T) {
 	now := time.Unix(1000, 0)
 	r, err := NewRankedConnections("match-1", "server-1", "v1", testRoster(now))

server/migrations/0010_initial_connect_ready_at.sql

@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+ALTER TABLE matches
+    ADD COLUMN initial_connect_ready_at TIMESTAMPTZ;
+
+-- Existing in-flight matches receive a fresh, fair connection window when
+-- this migration is deployed. Future rows are stamped by the transition to
+-- ASSIGNMENT_READY, not by match creation or provider allocation.
+UPDATE matches
+SET initial_connect_ready_at = now()
+WHERE state IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING');
+
+ALTER TABLE matches
+    ADD CONSTRAINT matches_initial_connect_ready_at
+    CHECK (state NOT IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING') OR initial_connect_ready_at IS NOT NULL) NOT VALID;

server/migrations/down/0010_initial_connect_ready_at.sql

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+ALTER TABLE matches
+    DROP CONSTRAINT IF EXISTS matches_initial_connect_ready_at,
+    DROP COLUMN IF EXISTS initial_connect_ready_at;

server/migrations/test_migration.py

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ ASSIGNMENTS_SQL = (Path(__file__).parent / "0002_assignments.sql").read_text()
 QUOTAS_SQL = (Path(__file__).parent / "0007_allocation_quotas.sql").read_text()
 ARENAS_SQL = (Path(__file__).parent / "0008_match_arena_paths.sql").read_text()
 ALLOCATION_ARENAS_SQL = (Path(__file__).parent / "0009_allocation_arena_paths.sql").read_text()
+INITIAL_CONNECT_READY_SQL = (Path(__file__).parent / "0010_initial_connect_ready_at.sql").read_text()
 
 
 class MigrationTest(unittest.TestCase):
@@ -73,6 +74,10 @@ class MigrationTest(unittest.TestCase):
         self.assertIn("ALTER TABLE allocations", ALLOCATION_ARENAS_SQL)
         self.assertIn("ADD COLUMN arena_path TEXT", ALLOCATION_ARENAS_SQL)
 
+    def test_initial_connect_window_starts_at_assignment_readiness(self):
+        self.assertIn("ADD COLUMN initial_connect_ready_at TIMESTAMPTZ", INITIAL_CONNECT_READY_SQL)
+        self.assertIn("state IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING')", INITIAL_CONNECT_READY_SQL)
+
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":
     unittest.main()

server/store/allocation_match_sql.go

@@ -66,7 +66,9 @@ WHERE match_id = $1 AND state = 'ALLOCATING' AND allocation_id = $2 AND server_i
 
 const AdvanceServerRegistrationSQL = `WITH matched AS (
     UPDATE matches
-    SET state = $4, revision = revision + 1
+    SET state = $4,
+        initial_connect_ready_at = CASE WHEN $4 = 'ASSIGNMENT_READY' THEN $6 ELSE initial_connect_ready_at END,
+        revision = revision + 1
     WHERE match_id = $1 AND server_id = $2 AND state = $3 AND protocol_version = $7
       AND EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM allocations WHERE match_id = $1 AND server_id = $2 AND allocation_id = $5 AND protocol_version = $7 AND state = 'ALLOCATED')
       AND ($4 <> 'ASSIGNMENT_READY' OR (SELECT count(*) FROM assignments WHERE match_id = $1 AND expires_at > $6) = (SELECT count(*) FROM match_participants WHERE match_id = $1))

server/store/allocation_match_sql_test.go

@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ func TestAllocationMatchClaimSQLFencesConcurrentWorkers(t *testing.T) {
 		AllocatingMatchBuildSQL:                {"match_participants", "queue_tickets", "ORDER BY q.client_build"},
 		BindAllocatedMatchParticipantsSQL:      {"allocation_id = $2", "server_id IS NULL", "SET server_id = $3", "FROM allocations", "state = 'ALLOCATING'", "revision = revision + 1", "SELECT revision FROM bound"},
 		ReleaseAllocatedMatchClaimSQL:          {"allocation_id = $2", "allocation_id = NULL", "allocation_claimed_at = NULL"},
-		AdvanceServerRegistrationSQL:           {"state = $4", "protocol_version = $7", "ASSIGNMENT_READY", "revision = revision + 1"},
+		AdvanceServerRegistrationSQL:           {"state = $4", "initial_connect_ready_at", "$6", "protocol_version = $7", "ASSIGNMENT_READY", "revision = revision + 1"},
 		ServerRegistrationIdempotencyInsertSQL: {"idempotency_keys", "ON CONFLICT (scope, idempotency_key) DO NOTHING", "payload_digest"},
 		ServerRegistrationIdempotencySelectSQL: {"scope = $1", "idempotency_key = $2", "FOR UPDATE"},
 	}

server/store/assignment_sql.go

@@ -63,11 +63,13 @@ WHERE assignments.allocation_id = EXCLUDED.allocation_id
   AND assignments.expires_at = EXCLUDED.expires_at
   AND assignments.revision = EXCLUDED.revision`
 
-const AssignmentSelectSQL = `SELECT match_id, player_id, allocation_id, server_id,
-    slot, region, client_build, protocol_version, transport, endpoint,
-    join_authorisation, manifest_digest, expires_at, revision
-FROM assignments
-WHERE match_id = $1 AND player_id = $2 AND expires_at > $3`
+const AssignmentSelectSQL = `SELECT a.match_id, a.player_id, a.allocation_id, a.server_id,
+    a.slot, a.region, a.client_build, a.protocol_version, a.transport, a.endpoint,
+    a.join_authorisation, a.manifest_digest, a.expires_at, a.revision
+FROM assignments a
+JOIN matches m ON m.match_id = a.match_id AND m.server_id = a.server_id
+WHERE a.match_id = $1 AND a.player_id = $2 AND a.expires_at > $3
+  AND m.state IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING', 'LIVE')`
 
 const AssignmentRosterSelectSQL = `SELECT allocation_id, server_id, join_authorisation
 FROM assignments

server/store/assignment_sql_test.go

@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import (
 func TestAssignmentSQLBindsPlayerAndPreservesIdenticalReplay(t *testing.T) {
 	for query, fragments := range map[string][]string{
 		AssignmentUpsertSQL: {"ON CONFLICT (match_id, player_id)", "WHERE assignments.allocation_id = EXCLUDED.allocation_id", "join_authorisation", "manifest_digest"},
-		AssignmentSelectSQL: {"match_id = $1", "player_id = $2", "expires_at > $3"},
+		AssignmentSelectSQL: {"a.match_id = $1", "a.player_id = $2", "a.expires_at > $3", "JOIN matches", "ASSIGNMENT_READY", "m.server_id = a.server_id"},
 	} {
 		for _, fragment := range fragments {
 			if !contains(query, fragment) {

server/store/initial_connect_maintenance.go

@@ -3,16 +3,18 @@ package store
 import (
 	"context"
 	"database/sql"
+	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/cosmic-clash/cosmic-clash/server/domain"
 )
 
-const initialConnectCandidatesSQL = `SELECT match_id, playlist, created_at
+const initialConnectCandidatesSQL = `SELECT match_id, playlist, initial_connect_ready_at
 FROM matches
 WHERE state IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING')
-ORDER BY created_at, match_id
+  AND initial_connect_ready_at IS NOT NULL
+ORDER BY initial_connect_ready_at, match_id
 LIMIT $1`
 
 const initialConnectHistorySQL = `SELECT starts_at
@@ -71,6 +73,12 @@ func ReconcileInitialConnect(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, now time.Time, lim
 			continue
 		}
 		if err := ApplyInitialConnectPlan(ctx, db, candidate.matchID, "initial-connect:"+candidate.matchID, plan, now); err != nil {
+			// A connection receipt or another maintenance replica may have
+			// changed the locked roster/state after our snapshot. Re-evaluate on
+			// the next bounded pass instead of killing the maintenance process.
+			if errors.Is(err, domain.ErrConflict) {
+				continue
+			}
 			return count, err
 		}
 		count++
@@ -79,7 +87,7 @@ func ReconcileInitialConnect(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, now time.Time, lim
 }
 
 func loadInitialConnectSnapshot(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, matchID string) ([]domain.ConnectParticipant, error) {
-	rows, err := db.QueryContext(ctx, `SELECT player_id, team, connected_at
+	rows, err := db.QueryContext(ctx, `SELECT player_id, team, slot, connected_at
 FROM match_participants WHERE match_id = $1 AND participation_active ORDER BY player_id`, matchID)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
@@ -88,12 +96,12 @@ FROM match_participants WHERE match_id = $1 AND participation_active ORDER BY pl
 	var participants []domain.ConnectParticipant
 	for rows.Next() {
 		var playerID string
-		var team int
+		var team, slot int
 		var connectedAt sql.NullTime
-		if err := rows.Scan(&playerID, &team, &connectedAt); err != nil {
+		if err := rows.Scan(&playerID, &team, &slot, &connectedAt); err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
-		participants = append(participants, domain.ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: playerID, Team: team, Connected: connectedAt.Valid})
+		participants = append(participants, domain.ConnectParticipant{PlayerID: playerID, Team: team, Slot: slot, Connected: connectedAt.Valid})
 	}
 	return participants, rows.Err()
 }

server/store/initial_connect_sql.go

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ const InitialConnectIdempotencyScope = "match.initial_connect"
 const initialConnectMatchLockSQL = `SELECT playlist, state, revision
 FROM matches WHERE match_id = $1 FOR UPDATE`
 
-const initialConnectParticipantsSQL = `SELECT player_id, ticket_id, team, connected_at,
+const initialConnectParticipantsSQL = `SELECT player_id, ticket_id, team, slot, connected_at,
     participation_active
 FROM match_participants WHERE match_id = $1 ORDER BY player_id FOR UPDATE`
 
@@ -76,6 +76,7 @@ type initialConnectParticipant struct {
 	PlayerID    string
 	TicketID    string
 	Team        int
+	Slot        int
 	ConnectedAt sql.NullTime
 	Active      bool
 }
@@ -84,7 +85,8 @@ type initialConnectParticipant struct {
 // It is deliberately a store operation: no-show penalties and innocent-ticket
 // requeue must commit with the match transition or neither may commit.
 func ApplyInitialConnectPlan(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, matchID, idempotencyKey string, plan domain.InitialConnectPlan, now time.Time) error {
-	if db == nil || matchID == "" || len(idempotencyKey) < 16 || len(idempotencyKey) > 128 || now.IsZero() || plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectWait || (plan.Action != domain.InitialConnectCancel && plan.Action != domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot) || plan.MatchState == domain.Live && plan.Action != domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot || plan.MatchState == domain.Cancelled && plan.Action != domain.InitialConnectCancel {
+	validActionState := (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStart || plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot) && plan.MatchState == domain.Live || plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectCancel && plan.MatchState == domain.Cancelled
+	if db == nil || matchID == "" || len(idempotencyKey) < 16 || len(idempotencyKey) > 128 || now.IsZero() || !validActionState {
 		return fmt.Errorf("invalid initial-connect transaction arguments")
 	}
 	digest, err := initialConnectDigest(matchID, plan)
@@ -107,7 +109,7 @@ func ApplyInitialConnectPlan(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, matchID, idempoten
 				return err
 			}
 			if !bytes.Equal(prior, digest[:]) {
-				return fmt.Errorf("conflicting initial-connect request")
+				return fmt.Errorf("%w: conflicting initial-connect request", domain.ErrConflict)
 			}
 			return nil
 		}
@@ -117,14 +119,14 @@ func ApplyInitialConnectPlan(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, matchID, idempoten
 			return err
 		}
 		if state != string(domain.AssignmentReady) && state != string(domain.Assigned) && state != string(domain.Connecting) {
-			return fmt.Errorf("match is not awaiting initial connect: %s", state)
+			return fmt.Errorf("%w: match is not awaiting initial connect: %s", domain.ErrConflict, state)
 		}
 		participants, err := loadInitialConnectParticipants(ctx, tx, matchID)
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 		if err := validateInitialConnectPlan(plan, participants, domain.Playlist(playlist)); err != nil {
-			return err
+			return fmt.Errorf("%w: %v", domain.ErrConflict, err)
 		}
 		if plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectCancel {
 			if _, err := tx.ExecContext(ctx, initialConnectReleaseAllSQL, matchID); err != nil {
@@ -195,7 +197,7 @@ func loadInitialConnectParticipants(ctx context.Context, tx *sql.Tx, matchID str
 	var result []initialConnectParticipant
 	for rows.Next() {
 		var p initialConnectParticipant
-		if err := rows.Scan(&p.PlayerID, &p.TicketID, &p.Team, &p.ConnectedAt, &p.Active); err != nil {
+		if err := rows.Scan(&p.PlayerID, &p.TicketID, &p.Team, &p.Slot, &p.ConnectedAt, &p.Active); err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
 		result = append(result, p)
@@ -204,15 +206,17 @@ func loadInitialConnectParticipants(ctx context.Context, tx *sql.Tx, matchID str
 }
 
 func validateInitialConnectPlan(plan domain.InitialConnectPlan, participants []initialConnectParticipant, playlist domain.Playlist) error {
-	if len(participants) == 0 || (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot && playlist != domain.Casual) || (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectCancel && plan.MatchState != domain.Cancelled) {
+	if len(participants) == 0 || (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot && playlist != domain.Casual) || (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectCancel && plan.MatchState != domain.Cancelled) || (plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStart && (plan.MatchState != domain.Live || len(plan.NoShows) != 0 || len(plan.CasualLineup) != 0)) {
 		return fmt.Errorf("invalid initial-connect plan")
 	}
 	known, connected, missing := map[string]bool{}, map[string]bool{}, map[string]bool{}
+	stored := make(map[string]initialConnectParticipant, len(participants))
 	for _, p := range participants {
-		if p.PlayerID == "" || !p.Active || known[p.PlayerID] {
+		if p.PlayerID == "" || !p.Active || p.Team < 0 || p.Team > 1 || p.Slot < 0 || p.Slot > 5 || p.Slot/3 != p.Team || known[p.PlayerID] {
 			return fmt.Errorf("invalid stored participant roster")
 		}
 		known[p.PlayerID] = true
+		stored[p.PlayerID] = p
 		if p.ConnectedAt.Valid {
 			connected[p.PlayerID] = true
 		}
@@ -232,6 +236,9 @@ func validateInitialConnectPlan(plan domain.InitialConnectPlan, participants []i
 	if len(missing) != len(known) {
 		return fmt.Errorf("initial-connect plan does not cover roster")
 	}
+	if plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStart && len(connected) != len(known) {
+		return fmt.Errorf("initial-connect start requires complete connected roster")
+	}
 	if plan.Action == domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot {
 		if len(plan.CasualLineup) != 6 {
 			return fmt.Errorf("casual bot lineup must contain six players")
@@ -239,7 +246,7 @@ func validateInitialConnectPlan(plan domain.InitialConnectPlan, participants []i
 		lineupSlots := make(map[int]bool, 6)
 		lineupPlayers := make(map[string]bool, 6)
 		for _, slot := range plan.CasualLineup {
-			if slot.Slot < 0 || slot.Slot > 5 || slot.Team != slot.Slot%2 || lineupSlots[slot.Slot] || slot.PlayerID == "" || lineupPlayers[slot.PlayerID] {
+			if slot.Slot < 0 || slot.Slot > 5 || slot.Team != slot.Slot/3 || lineupSlots[slot.Slot] || slot.PlayerID == "" || lineupPlayers[slot.PlayerID] {
 				return fmt.Errorf("invalid casual bot lineup")
 			}
 			lineupSlots[slot.Slot] = true
@@ -250,6 +257,10 @@ func validateInitialConnectPlan(plan domain.InitialConnectPlan, participants []i
 			if !connected[slot.PlayerID] {
 				return fmt.Errorf("lineup contains non-connected human")
 			}
+			participant := stored[slot.PlayerID]
+			if participant.Slot != slot.Slot || participant.Team != slot.Team {
+				return fmt.Errorf("lineup moves connected human from assigned slot")
+			}
 		}
 		for id := range connected {
 			if !lineupPlayers[id] {

server/store/initial_connect_sql_test.go

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import (
 )
 
 func TestInitialConnectSQLPreservesAtomicNoShowReconciliation(t *testing.T) {
-	if !contains(initialConnectCandidatesSQL, "ASSIGNMENT_READY") || !contains(initialConnectCandidatesSQL, "LIMIT $1") {
+	if !contains(initialConnectCandidatesSQL, "ASSIGNMENT_READY") || !contains(initialConnectCandidatesSQL, "initial_connect_ready_at") || !contains(initialConnectCandidatesSQL, "LIMIT $1") {
 		t.Fatal("initial-connect sweep is not bounded to pre-live matches")
 	}
 	for query, fragments := range map[string][]string{
@@ -31,28 +31,45 @@ func TestInitialConnectSQLPreservesAtomicNoShowReconciliation(t *testing.T) {
 
 func TestInitialConnectPlanValidationRejectsIncompleteOrForgedPlans(t *testing.T) {
 	participants := []initialConnectParticipant{
-		{PlayerID: "p0", TicketID: "t0", Team: 0, ConnectedAt: validTime(100), Active: true},
-		{PlayerID: "p1", TicketID: "t1", Team: 1, Active: true},
+		{PlayerID: "p0", TicketID: "t0", Team: 0, Slot: 0, ConnectedAt: validTime(100), Active: true},
+		{PlayerID: "p1", TicketID: "t1", Team: 1, Slot: 3, Active: true},
 	}
 	plan := domain.InitialConnectPlan{
 		Action: domain.InitialConnectStartWithBot, MatchState: domain.Live,
 		Connected: []string{"p0"},
 		NoShows:   []domain.Abandonment{{PlayerID: "p1", Cooldown: time.Minute, AbandonedAt: time.Unix(100, 0)}},
 		CasualLineup: []domain.CasualSlot{
-			{Slot: 0, Team: 0, PlayerID: "p0"}, {Slot: 1, Team: 1, PlayerID: "bot-1", IsBot: true},
+			{Slot: 0, Team: 0, PlayerID: "p0"}, {Slot: 1, Team: 0, PlayerID: "bot-1", IsBot: true},
 			{Slot: 2, Team: 0, PlayerID: "bot-2", IsBot: true}, {Slot: 3, Team: 1, PlayerID: "bot-3", IsBot: true},
-			{Slot: 4, Team: 0, PlayerID: "bot-4", IsBot: true}, {Slot: 5, Team: 1, PlayerID: "bot-5", IsBot: true},
+			{Slot: 4, Team: 1, PlayerID: "bot-4", IsBot: true}, {Slot: 5, Team: 1, PlayerID: "bot-5", IsBot: true},
 		},
 	}
 	if err := validateInitialConnectPlan(plan, participants, domain.Casual); err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("valid plan rejected: %v", err)
 	}
-	plan.CasualLineup[1].Team = 0
+	plan.CasualLineup[1].Team = 1
 	if err := validateInitialConnectPlan(plan, participants, domain.Casual); err == nil {
 		t.Fatal("team-swapped lineup accepted")
 	}
 }
 
+func TestInitialConnectPlanValidationRequiresCompleteRosterToStart(t *testing.T) {
+	participants := []initialConnectParticipant{
+		{PlayerID: "p0", TicketID: "t0", Team: 0, Slot: 0, ConnectedAt: validTime(100), Active: true},
+		{PlayerID: "p1", TicketID: "t1", Team: 1, Slot: 3, ConnectedAt: validTime(100), Active: true},
+	}
+	plan := domain.InitialConnectPlan{
+		Action: domain.InitialConnectStart, MatchState: domain.Live, Connected: []string{"p0", "p1"},
+	}
+	if err := validateInitialConnectPlan(plan, participants, domain.Ranked); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("valid complete start rejected: %v", err)
+	}
+	participants[1].ConnectedAt = sql.NullTime{}
+	if err := validateInitialConnectPlan(plan, participants, domain.Ranked); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("start with disconnected participant accepted")
+	}
+}
+
 func validTime(unix int64) (result sql.NullTime) {
 	result.Time = time.Unix(unix, 0)
 	result.Valid = true

server/store/postgres_integration_test.go

@@ -468,7 +468,7 @@ func TestPostgreSQLAssignmentPersistenceIsPlayerScopedAndExpiryBound(t *testing.
 	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO queue_tickets (ticket_id, player_id, playlist, state, client_build, protocol_version, enqueued_at, expires_at) VALUES ('assignment-ticket', 'assignment-player', 'casual', 'ASSIGNED', 'integration-build', 1, $1, $2)`, now, now.Add(time.Minute)); err != nil {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
-	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO matches (match_id, playlist, state, region, protocol_version, server_id) VALUES ('assignment-match', 'casual', 'ASSIGNED', 'EU', 1, 'assignment-server')`); err != nil {
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO matches (match_id, playlist, state, region, protocol_version, server_id, initial_connect_ready_at) VALUES ('assignment-match', 'casual', 'ASSIGNED', 'EU', 1, 'assignment-server', $1)`, now); err != nil {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
 	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO match_participants (match_id, player_id, ticket_id, slot, team) VALUES ('assignment-match', 'assignment-player', 'assignment-ticket', 0, 0)`); err != nil {
@@ -493,6 +493,71 @@ func TestPostgreSQLAssignmentPersistenceIsPlayerScopedAndExpiryBound(t *testing.
 	}
 }
 
+func TestPostgreSQLConnectionReceiptsStartCompleteRelaxedCasualRoster(t *testing.T) {
+	db := openIntegrationPostgres(t)
+	applyIntegrationMigrations(t, db)
+	now := time.Now().UTC().Truncate(time.Microsecond)
+	ctx := context.Background()
+
+	for i := 0; i < 2; i++ {
+		playerID := fmt.Sprintf("connect-player-%d", i)
+		ticketID := fmt.Sprintf("connect-ticket-%d", i)
+		if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO identities (player_id, steam_id) VALUES ($1, $1)`, playerID); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO queue_tickets (ticket_id, player_id, playlist, state, client_build, protocol_version, enqueued_at, expires_at) VALUES ($1, $2, 'casual', 'ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'integration-build', 1, $3, $4)`, ticketID, playerID, now, now.Add(time.Minute)); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+	}
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO game_servers (server_id, region, build, protocol_version, transport, state) VALUES ('connect-server', 'EU', 'integration-build', 1, 'enet', 'ALLOCATED')`); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO matches (match_id, playlist, state, region, protocol_version, server_id, allocation_id, initial_connect_ready_at) VALUES ('connect-match', 'casual', 'ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'EU', 1, 'connect-server', 'connect-allocation', $1)`, now); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO allocations (allocation_id, match_id, server_id, region, build, protocol_version, transport, request_digest, state, allocated_at) VALUES ('connect-allocation', 'connect-match', 'connect-server', 'EU', 'integration-build', 1, 'enet', $1, 'ALLOCATED', $2)`, []byte("request"), now); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	for i := 0; i < 2; i++ {
+		playerID := fmt.Sprintf("connect-player-%d", i)
+		ticketID := fmt.Sprintf("connect-ticket-%d", i)
+		slot := i * 3
+		if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO match_participants (match_id, player_id, ticket_id, slot, team) VALUES ('connect-match', $1, $2, $3, $4)`, playerID, ticketID, slot, i); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		if _, err := db.ExecContext(ctx, `INSERT INTO assignments (match_id, player_id, allocation_id, server_id, slot, region, client_build, protocol_version, transport, endpoint, join_authorisation, manifest_digest, expires_at) VALUES ('connect-match', $1, 'connect-allocation', 'connect-server', $2, 'EU', 'integration-build', 1, 'enet', '127.0.0.1:7777', 'join-token', $3, $4)`, playerID, slot, []byte("manifest"), now.Add(time.Minute)); err != nil {
+			t.Fatal(err)
+		}
+	}
+	binding := domain.WorkloadBinding{AllocationID: "connect-allocation", MatchID: "connect-match", ServerID: "connect-server"}
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(ctx, db, binding, "connect-player-0", "connect-receipt-key-0000", now); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("first receipt: %v", err)
+	}
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(ctx, db, domain.WorkloadBinding{AllocationID: "forged-allocation", MatchID: "connect-match", ServerID: "connect-server"}, "connect-player-1", "connect-receipt-key-forged", now); !errors.Is(err, domain.ErrConflict) {
+		t.Fatalf("forged binding err=%v, want conflict", err)
+	}
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(ctx, db, binding, "connect-player-1", "connect-receipt-key-0001", now); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("second receipt: %v", err)
+	}
+	reconciled, err := ReconcileInitialConnect(ctx, db, now.Add(time.Second), 10)
+	if err != nil || reconciled != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("reconcile count=%d err=%v", reconciled, err)
+	}
+	var state string
+	if err := db.QueryRowContext(ctx, `SELECT state FROM matches WHERE match_id = 'connect-match'`).Scan(&state); err != nil || state != string(domain.Live) {
+		t.Fatalf("match state=%q err=%v", state, err)
+	}
+	var liveTickets int
+	if err := db.QueryRowContext(ctx, `SELECT count(*) FROM queue_tickets WHERE state = 'LIVE'`).Scan(&liveTickets); err != nil || liveTickets != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("live tickets=%d err=%v", liveTickets, err)
+	}
+	// A lost 204 can be retried after assignment expiry because the exact
+	// durable receipt is replayed before checking the now-expired assignment.
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(ctx, db, binding, "connect-player-0", "connect-receipt-key-0000", now.Add(2*time.Minute)); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("durable receipt replay: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
 func TestPostgreSQLProposalClaimAndResponseAreAtomic(t *testing.T) {
 	db := openIntegrationPostgres(t)
 	applyIntegrationMigrations(t, db)
@@ -1333,8 +1398,19 @@ func TestPostgreSQLMigrationsRollBackAndReapplyCleanly(t *testing.T) {
 	// Roll back every migration one at a time, in reverse, checking each
 	// down file actually undoes what its forward file created — not just
 	// that Rollback returns nil.
-	if err := migrations.Rollback(context.Background(), db, dir, 2); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("rollback 0007 and 0006: %v", err)
+	if err := migrations.Rollback(context.Background(), db, dir, 4); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("rollback 0010 through 0007: %v", err)
+	}
+	var hasInitialConnectReadyColumn bool
+	if err := db.QueryRow(`SELECT count(*) > 0 FROM information_schema.columns WHERE table_name = 'matches' AND column_name = 'initial_connect_ready_at'`).Scan(&hasInitialConnectReadyColumn); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if hasInitialConnectReadyColumn {
+		t.Fatal("0010 rollback did not drop matches.initial_connect_ready_at")
+	}
+
+	if err := migrations.Rollback(context.Background(), db, dir, 1); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("rollback 0006: %v", err)
 	}
 	var hasAllocationClaimColumn bool
 	if err := db.QueryRow(`SELECT count(*) > 0 FROM information_schema.columns WHERE table_name = 'matches' AND column_name = 'allocation_id'`).Scan(&hasAllocationClaimColumn); err != nil {
@@ -1345,7 +1421,7 @@ func TestPostgreSQLMigrationsRollBackAndReapplyCleanly(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 
 	if err := migrations.Rollback(context.Background(), db, dir, 4); err != nil {
-		t.Fatalf("rollback remaining down to 0001: %v", err)
+		t.Fatalf("rollback 0005 through 0002: %v", err)
 	}
 	if tableExists("assignments") || tableExists("allocations") || tableExists("game_servers") {
 		t.Fatal("rollback left later-migration tables behind")

server/store/server_connection_sql.go

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+package store
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"context"
+	"crypto/sha256"
+	"database/sql"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"fmt"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/cosmic-clash/cosmic-clash/server/domain"
+)
+
+const ServerConnectionIdempotencyScope = "server.connection"
+
+const ServerConnectionIdempotencyInsertSQL = `INSERT INTO idempotency_keys
+    (scope, idempotency_key, payload_digest, result)
+VALUES ($1, $2, $3, '{}'::jsonb) ON CONFLICT (scope, idempotency_key) DO NOTHING`
+
+const ServerConnectionIdempotencySelectSQL = `SELECT payload_digest
+FROM idempotency_keys WHERE scope = $1 AND idempotency_key = $2 FOR UPDATE`
+
+const ServerConnectionParticipantSQL = `UPDATE match_participants mp
+SET connected_at = COALESCE(mp.connected_at, $5)
+FROM matches m, allocations a, assignments assn
+WHERE mp.match_id = $1 AND mp.player_id = $4 AND mp.participation_active
+  AND m.match_id = mp.match_id AND m.server_id = $2
+  AND m.state IN ('ASSIGNMENT_READY', 'ASSIGNED', 'CONNECTING', 'LIVE')
+  AND a.allocation_id = $3 AND a.match_id = m.match_id AND a.server_id = m.server_id
+  AND a.state = 'ALLOCATED'
+  AND assn.match_id = mp.match_id AND assn.player_id = mp.player_id
+  AND assn.allocation_id = a.allocation_id AND assn.server_id = m.server_id
+  AND assn.expires_at > $5
+RETURNING mp.connected_at`
+
+// RecordPlayerConnected persists authoritative admission observed by the
+// allocated game server. The workload allocation, match/server binding,
+// active participant, and still-live assignment must all agree.
+func RecordPlayerConnected(ctx context.Context, db *sql.DB, binding domain.WorkloadBinding, playerID, idempotencyKey string, now time.Time) error {
+	if db == nil || binding.AllocationID == "" || binding.MatchID == "" || binding.ServerID == "" || playerID == "" || len(idempotencyKey) < 16 || len(idempotencyKey) > 128 || now.IsZero() {
+		return fmt.Errorf("invalid server connection receipt")
+	}
+	digest := sha256.Sum256([]byte(binding.AllocationID + "\x00" + binding.MatchID + "\x00" + binding.ServerID + "\x00" + playerID))
+	return RunSerializable(ctx, db, DefaultSerializableAttempts, func(ctx context.Context, tx *sql.Tx) error {
+		inserted, err := tx.ExecContext(ctx, ServerConnectionIdempotencyInsertSQL, ServerConnectionIdempotencyScope, idempotencyKey, digest[:])
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		changed, err := inserted.RowsAffected()
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		if changed == 0 {
+			var prior []byte
+			if err := tx.QueryRowContext(ctx, ServerConnectionIdempotencySelectSQL, ServerConnectionIdempotencyScope, idempotencyKey).Scan(&prior); err != nil {
+				return err
+			}
+			if !bytes.Equal(prior, digest[:]) {
+				return domain.ErrConflict
+			}
+			return nil
+		}
+		var connectedAt time.Time
+		if err := tx.QueryRowContext(ctx, ServerConnectionParticipantSQL, binding.MatchID, binding.ServerID, binding.AllocationID, playerID, now).Scan(&connectedAt); err != nil {
+			if err == sql.ErrNoRows {
+				return domain.ErrConflict
+			}
+			return err
+		}
+		result, err := json.Marshal(map[string]any{"match_id": binding.MatchID, "player_id": playerID, "connected_at": connectedAt})
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		_, err = tx.ExecContext(ctx, `UPDATE idempotency_keys SET result = $3 WHERE scope = $1 AND idempotency_key = $2`, ServerConnectionIdempotencyScope, idempotencyKey, result)
+		return err
+	})
+}

server/store/server_connection_sql_test.go

@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+package store
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"database/sql"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/cosmic-clash/cosmic-clash/server/domain"
+)
+
+func TestServerConnectionSQLBindsWorkloadParticipantAndLiveAssignment(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, fragment := range []string{
+		"connected_at = COALESCE", "mp.participation_active", "m.server_id = $2",
+		"a.allocation_id = $3", "a.state = 'ALLOCATED'", "assn.player_id = mp.player_id",
+		"assn.expires_at > $5", "RETURNING mp.connected_at",
+	} {
+		if !strings.Contains(ServerConnectionParticipantSQL, fragment) {
+			t.Fatalf("connection SQL missing %q: %s", fragment, ServerConnectionParticipantSQL)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestRecordPlayerConnectedRejectsInvalidArguments(t *testing.T) {
+	binding := domain.WorkloadBinding{AllocationID: "allocation-1", MatchID: "match-1", ServerID: "server-1"}
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(context.Background(), (*sql.DB)(nil), binding, "player-1", "connection-key-123456", time.Unix(1000, 0)); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("nil database accepted")
+	}
+	if err := RecordPlayerConnected(context.Background(), &sql.DB{}, domain.WorkloadBinding{}, "player-1", "connection-key-123456", time.Unix(1000, 0)); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("empty workload binding accepted")
+	}
+}

server/supervisor/supervisor.go

@@ -51,6 +51,7 @@ type Config struct {
 	ReadyURL     string
 	Transport    string
 	DrainURL     string
+	AdmissionURL string
 	DrainToken   string
 	ReadyTimeout time.Duration
 	PollInterval time.Duration
@@ -87,9 +88,8 @@ type Config struct {
 	// holding a live, unexpired assignment -- see
 	// AdvanceServerRegistrationSQL) may not be satisfied on the very first
 	// attempt if the signed roster is still propagating, and that is
-	// expected, not fatal: unlike a process-ready registration failure, this
-	// does not kill the child, since the process is already legitimately
-	// listening and usable either way. Default 5 attempts, 2s apart.
+	// expected during the bounded retries. Exhaustion is fatal because player
+	// assignments remain hidden until this transition. Default 5 attempts, 2s apart.
 	AssignmentReadyAttempts int
 	AssignmentReadyBackoff  time.Duration
 	// RosterPath is an operator-mounted writable path where the supervisor
@@ -106,6 +106,12 @@ type Supervisor struct {
 	lastGameServer GameServer
 }
 
+const (
+	ChildControlPlaneURLEnv = "COSMIC_CLASH_CONTROL_PLANE_URL"
+	ChildWorkloadTokenEnv   = "COSMIC_CLASH_WORKLOAD_TOKEN"
+	ChildAdmissionSignalEnv = "COSMIC_CLASH_INITIAL_CONNECT_SIGNAL_REQUIRED"
+)
+
 const (
 	DefaultDrainGrace  = 285 * time.Second
 	DefaultHTTPTimeout = 10 * time.Second
@@ -144,9 +150,23 @@ func New(config Config) (*Supervisor, error) {
 			return nil, err
 		}
 	}
+	if config.AdmissionURL != "" {
+		if config.DrainToken == "" {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("initial-connect admission URL requires a control token")
+		}
+		if err := validateLocalDrainURL(config.AdmissionURL); err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("invalid initial-connect admission URL: %w", err)
+		}
+	}
 	if config.ControlPlaneURL != "" && (config.ServerID == "" || config.ProtocolVersion < 1 || config.ImageDigest == "") {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("control-plane registration requires a server ID, protocol version and image digest")
 	}
+	if config.ControlPlaneURL != "" {
+		parsed, err := url.Parse(config.ControlPlaneURL)
+		if err != nil || (parsed.Scheme != "http" && parsed.Scheme != "https") || parsed.Host == "" || parsed.User != nil || parsed.RawQuery != "" || parsed.Fragment != "" || parsed.Path != "" {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("control-plane URL must be an HTTP(S) origin")
+		}
+	}
 	if config.RosterPath != "" && config.ControlPlaneURL == "" {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("roster path requires control-plane URL")
 	}
@@ -190,6 +210,11 @@ func (s *Supervisor) Start(ctx context.Context) error {
 		if err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
+		childControlPlaneEnv, err := s.controlPlaneChildEnvironment()
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		env = append(env, childControlPlaneEnv...)
 		command := withAllocatedConfig(s.config.Command, s.matchID(), s.config.ServerID, s.config.ImageDigest, rosterExpiry)
 		command, err = withAllocatedCompatibility(command, s.lastGameServer)
 		if err != nil {
@@ -224,10 +249,61 @@ func (s *Supervisor) Start(ctx context.Context) error {
 		_ = s.cmd.Process.Kill()
 		return err
 	}
-	s.reportAssignmentReady(ctx)
+	if err := s.reportAssignmentReady(ctx); err != nil {
+		// Player assignments remain deliberately hidden until this durable
+		// transition succeeds. Do not leave an Agones-Ready process accepting
+		// connections for a match the control plane cannot expose.
+		_ = s.cmd.Process.Kill()
+		return err
+	}
+	if err := s.signalInitialConnectReady(ctx); err != nil {
+		_ = s.cmd.Process.Kill()
+		return err
+	}
 	return nil
 }
 
+func (s *Supervisor) signalInitialConnectReady(ctx context.Context) error {
+	if s.config.AdmissionURL == "" {
+		return nil
+	}
+	request, err := http.NewRequestWithContext(ctx, http.MethodPost, s.config.AdmissionURL, nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	request.Header.Set("Authorization", "Bearer "+s.config.DrainToken)
+	response, err := s.client.Do(request)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	defer response.Body.Close()
+	if response.StatusCode/100 != 2 {
+		return fmt.Errorf("initial-connect admission control returned %s", response.Status)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func (s *Supervisor) controlPlaneChildEnvironment() ([]string, error) {
+	if s.config.ControlPlaneURL == "" {
+		return nil, nil
+	}
+	token, err := s.workloadToken()
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	if strings.ContainsRune(token, '\x00') {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("workload token contains an invalid environment byte")
+	}
+	environment := []string{
+		ChildControlPlaneURLEnv + "=" + strings.TrimRight(s.config.ControlPlaneURL, "/"),
+		ChildWorkloadTokenEnv + "=" + token,
+	}
+	if s.config.AdmissionURL != "" {
+		environment = append(environment, ChildAdmissionSignalEnv+"=1")
+	}
+	return environment, nil
+}
+
 func (s *Supervisor) fetchRoster(ctx context.Context) (time.Time, error) {
 	if s.config.RosterPath == "" {
 		return time.Time{}, nil
@@ -387,29 +463,27 @@ func withAllocatedValues(command []string, values map[string]string) []string {
 	return result
 }
 
-// reportAssignmentReady is best-effort: process-ready has already succeeded,
-// so the process is legitimately usable either way. A persistent failure is
-// written to stderr rather than returned, since treating it as fatal would
-// kill a perfectly healthy process over what is usually just the signed
-// roster's durable rows not having propagated yet.
-func (s *Supervisor) reportAssignmentReady(ctx context.Context) {
+// reportAssignmentReady retries the durable gate that makes player
+// assignments visible. A process without this transition is not usable even
+// when Agones and the local readiness probe consider it healthy.
+func (s *Supervisor) reportAssignmentReady(ctx context.Context) error {
 	if s.config.ControlPlaneURL == "" {
-		return
+		return nil
 	}
 	var lastErr error
 	for attempt := 0; attempt < s.config.AssignmentReadyAttempts; attempt++ {
 		if attempt > 0 {
 			select {
 			case <-ctx.Done():
-				return
+				return ctx.Err()
 			case <-time.After(s.config.AssignmentReadyBackoff):
 			}
 		}
 		if lastErr = s.registerControlPlane(ctx, true); lastErr == nil {
-			return
+			return nil
 		}
 	}
-	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "game-server-supervisor: assignment-ready registration did not succeed after %d attempts: %v\n", s.config.AssignmentReadyAttempts, lastErr)
+	return fmt.Errorf("assignment-ready registration did not succeed after %d attempts: %w", s.config.AssignmentReadyAttempts, lastErr)
 }
 
 // registerControlPlane reports the allocated process's readiness to the

server/supervisor/supervisor_test.go

@@ -23,6 +23,41 @@ func TestSupervisorDefaultHTTPClientHasRequestDeadline(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestAllocatedChildReceivesConnectionReportingEnvironmentWithoutCommandSecrets(t *testing.T) {
+	s, err := New(Config{
+		Command: []string{"game-server"}, ControlPlaneURL: "https://control.example",
+		ServerID: "server-1", ProtocolVersion: 1, ImageDigest: "sha256:" + strings.Repeat("a", 64),
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	s.lastGameServer.ObjectMeta.Annotations = map[string]string{"cosmic-clash.io/workload-token": "signed-workload-token"}
+	environment, err := s.controlPlaneChildEnvironment()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	joined := strings.Join(environment, "\n")
+	if !strings.Contains(joined, ChildControlPlaneURLEnv+"=https://control.example") || !strings.Contains(joined, ChildWorkloadTokenEnv+"=signed-workload-token") || strings.Contains(joined, ChildAdmissionSignalEnv) {
+		t.Fatalf("child connection-reporting environment = %v", environment)
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(strings.Join(s.config.Command, " "), "signed-workload-token") {
+		t.Fatal("workload token leaked into child command arguments")
+	}
+	s.config.AdmissionURL = "http://127.0.0.1:7780/initial-connect-ready"
+	environment, err = s.controlPlaneChildEnvironment()
+	if err != nil || !strings.Contains(strings.Join(environment, "\n"), ChildAdmissionSignalEnv+"=1") {
+		t.Fatalf("child admission signal environment = %v err=%v", environment, err)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestSupervisorRejectsUnsafeControlPlaneOrigins(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, raw := range []string{"control.example", "https://user:secret@control.example", "https://control.example/path", "https://control.example?token=secret"} {
+		if _, err := New(Config{Command: []string{"game-server"}, ControlPlaneURL: raw, ServerID: "server-1", ProtocolVersion: 1, ImageDigest: "sha256:" + strings.Repeat("a", 64)}); err == nil {
+			t.Fatalf("unsafe control-plane URL accepted: %q", raw)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
 func TestWithAllocatedConfigOverridesAuthoritativeChildFlags(t *testing.T) {
 	command := []string{
 		"game-server", "--", "--allocated-mode", "--match-id=stale-match",
@@ -265,6 +300,7 @@ func TestControlPlaneRegistrationReportsProcessReadyThenAssignmentReady(t *testi
 func TestAssignmentReadyRegistrationRetriesUntilTheControlPlaneCatchesUp(t *testing.T) {
 	var mu sync.Mutex
 	assignmentReadyAttempts := 0
+	admissionCalled := false
 	server := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 		switch {
 		case r.URL.Path == "/gameserver":
@@ -288,6 +324,15 @@ func TestAssignmentReadyRegistrationRetriesUntilTheControlPlaneCatchesUp(t *test
 				return
 			}
 			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNoContent)
+		case r.URL.Path == "/initial-connect-ready":
+			mu.Lock()
+			defer mu.Unlock()
+			if assignmentReadyAttempts != 3 || r.Header.Get("Authorization") != "Bearer control-token-123456" {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusConflict)
+				return
+			}
+			admissionCalled = true
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusAccepted)
 		default:
 			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNotFound)
 		}
@@ -301,13 +346,14 @@ func TestAssignmentReadyRegistrationRetriesUntilTheControlPlaneCatchesUp(t *test
 	s, err := New(Config{
 		Command: []string{"/bin/sh", "-c", "true"}, SDKBaseURL: server.URL, ReadyURL: server.URL + "/ready-probe", ReadyTimeout: time.Second, PollInterval: time.Millisecond,
 		ControlPlaneURL: server.URL, WorkloadTokenPath: tokenPath, ServerID: "server-1", MatchID: "match-1", ProtocolVersion: 1, ImageDigest: "sha256:aa",
+		DrainURL: server.URL + "/drain", AdmissionURL: server.URL + "/initial-connect-ready", DrainToken: "control-token-123456",
 		AssignmentReadyAttempts: 5, AssignmentReadyBackoff: time.Millisecond,
 	})
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatal(err)
 	}
-	// Start must still succeed -- a slow-to-propagate assignment-ready must
-	// never be treated as a Start() failure (which would kill the child).
+	// A transient conflict is retried inside Start; the assignment only becomes
+	// visible after the durable transition eventually succeeds.
 	if err := s.Start(context.Background()); err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("Start failed despite assignment-ready eventually succeeding: %v", err)
 	}
@@ -319,6 +365,42 @@ func TestAssignmentReadyRegistrationRetriesUntilTheControlPlaneCatchesUp(t *test
 	if assignmentReadyAttempts != 3 {
 		t.Fatalf("assignment-ready attempts = %d, want exactly 3 (2 conflicts then success)", assignmentReadyAttempts)
 	}
+	if !admissionCalled {
+		t.Fatal("initial-connect clock was not armed after durable assignment readiness")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestPersistentAssignmentReadyFailureFailsClosed(t *testing.T) {
+	server := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+		switch r.URL.Path {
+		case "/gameserver":
+			_, _ = w.Write([]byte(`{"object_meta":{"annotations":{"cosmic-clash.io/match-id":"match-1","cosmic-clash.io/workload-token":"workload-token"}},"status":{"address":"127.0.0.1","ports":[{"name":"game","port":31001}]}}`))
+		case "/ready-probe", "/ready":
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusOK)
+		case "/v1/servers/server-1/register":
+			body, _ := io.ReadAll(r.Body)
+			if strings.Contains(string(body), `"assignment_ready":true`) {
+				w.WriteHeader(http.StatusConflict)
+				return
+			}
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNoContent)
+		default:
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusNotFound)
+		}
+	}))
+	defer server.Close()
+	s, err := New(Config{
+		Command: []string{"/bin/sh", "-c", "sleep 30"}, SDKBaseURL: server.URL, ReadyURL: server.URL + "/ready-probe",
+		ControlPlaneURL: server.URL, ServerID: "server-1", ProtocolVersion: 1, ImageDigest: "sha256:aa",
+		ReadyTimeout: time.Second, PollInterval: time.Millisecond, AssignmentReadyAttempts: 2, AssignmentReadyBackoff: time.Millisecond,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	if err := s.Start(context.Background()); err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "assignment-ready registration did not succeed") {
+		t.Fatalf("persistent assignment-ready failure did not fail closed: %v", err)
+	}
+	_ = s.Wait()
 }
 
 func TestControlPlaneRegistrationFallsBackToGameServerAnnotationForMatchID(t *testing.T) {