Debugging

Read the match log

• Each turn includes the request, your response, and the adjudicated action after validation.
• Timeouts show elapsed milliseconds; illegal actions list the fallback that was applied.
• metadata from your responses is printed inline—keep it small and relevant.

Replay locally

• Download the trace JSON from the arena and run it through the local runner.
• Compare decisions with the same seed to confirm determinism.
• Turn on profiling to see which turns flirt with the timeout budget.

Detect illegal actions early

• Validate actions against the legal_actions list in each request before returning.
• Clamp numeric values (bets, raises, bids) to the provided min/max range.
• Guard optional fields: if data is missing, default to a safe action like fold or check.

Observability tips

• Log structured JSON with a unique turn key: {"turn": <turn>, "action": <action>}.
• Keep logs under a few KB per turn; excess output is truncated in the sandbox.
• Track the slowest 5 turns locally to pinpoint branches that need simplification.

Common culprits

• Dependency import time on cold starts—reduce heavy libraries or precompute tables.
• Stateful globals causing non-determinism across turns. Reset or scope tightly.
• Assuming network access. The sandbox blocks outbound calls; embed data in your build.