# AI Assistance Disclosure

HellionChat uses AI assistance per the
[Dalamud Plugin AI Usage Policy](https://github.com/goatcorp/DalamudPluginsD17/) at the **Pair**
level.

A note up front: HellionChat is currently not submitted to the official Dalamud plugin repository
and technically has no obligation to disclose this. I would rather be upfront about how it is built.

HellionChat is my entry point into game modding and plugin development. I have never written a
plugin for a game before. I work alone, so I get help where I need it. That is not something I want
to hide.

## How I Actually Work

I plan the architecture, decide what gets built, and own every design decision. For each change I:

- Read the code Claude drafts before I integrate it
- Test with my own tooling and in the running game
- Read the Dalamud log output to verify behaviour
- Run security and privacy audits on anything that touches user data

One of the main reasons I use AI is consistency. I want the HellionChat code to match the style of
the upstream Chat 2 codebase and stay readable for anyone who opens the repo, not just for me.
Claude helps me catch when I am drifting from upstream conventions or writing something that only
makes sense in my own head.

The balance is shifting toward more hand-written work as I get more comfortable with Dalamud and
plugin development in general.

## What AI Is Used For

- API explanations (Dalamud, ImGui, .NET specifics I have not worked with before)
- Code drafts that I read, edit, and integrate
- Pattern suggestions and code review
- Keeping style aligned with the upstream Chat 2 codebase

## What AI Is Not Used For

- **Visual assets.** Logos, icons, banners, and screenshots are human-drawn or taken from the
  running game.
- **German translations.** Written by me as a native speaker.

## What Is Where

Upstream Chat 2 (by Infi & Anna, EUPL-1.2) is the foundation and was not produced with AI
assistance. HellionChat-specific code lives in `HellionChat/Privacy/`, `HellionChat/Export/`,
`HellionChat/Resources/HellionStrings*`, `Ui/SettingsTabs/DataAndPrivacy.cs`, `Ui/FirstRunWizard.cs`,
`Ui/HellionStyle.cs`, plus the Migrate3 recovery and plugin layout migration in `MessageStore.cs`
and `Plugin.cs`. These were developed with Pair-level assistance as described above.

## If AI-Assisted Development Is a Dealbreaker for You

Fair enough. There are solid alternatives:

- [Chat 2](https://github.com/Infiziert90/ChatTwo), the upstream project HellionChat is built on
- [XIV Instant Messenger](https://github.com/NightmareXIV/XIVInstantMessenger), a different approach
  to FFXIV chat

Both are good projects. Use what fits you best.

## Tooling

| Tool                                                  | Purpose                                                             |
| ----------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| [Claude](https://claude.ai) (Anthropic)               | Pair-level AI assistance via Claude Code CLI                        |
| [VS Code](https://code.visualstudio.com) + C# Dev Kit | Primary IDE                                                         |
| Dedicated Windows 11 VM                               | Build and in-game test environment (Dalamud requires Windows)       |
| [dalamud.dev](https://dalamud.dev)                    | Dalamud API reference                                               |
| [Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com)        | .NET and C# documentation                                           |
| [Context7](https://context7.com)                      | Up-to-date library docs for Claude context                          |
| [Stack Overflow](https://stackoverflow.com)           | General C# and .NET problem-solving                                 |
| Custom build test suite                               | Pattern-based integration tests written from scratch, drawing on    |
|                                                       | conventions from Lightless, Umbra and other standard FFXIV plugins. |
|                                                       | Not publicly available. Yet.                                        |

## Contact

Questions about this disclosure:
<https://gitea.hellion-forge.cloud/JonKazama-Hellion/HellionChat/issues>
