v0.4.0

TypeScript (npm)

• Added: var-core: Detect spec drift — a paragraph that was an example and now matches zero steps
• Added: var-core: Drift re-identifies examples by text similarity, so moving and rewording never false-alarm
• Added: var-core: Report drift as a Diagnostic and add a BaselineStore port
• Added: var-core: ReconcileDrift orchestrates baseline read → detect → write through the BaselineStore port
• Added: var-cli: Var run detects spec drift and gates on it
• Added: var-vitest: Read-only drift gate — a spec whose example stopped matching fails the suite
• Fixed: var: Resolve a step's source file from bundled, minified stack traces

Python (PyPI)

• Added: var-core: Detect spec drift with a byte-identical var.lock.json baseline
• Added: var-pytest: Pytest and unittest gate on spec drift, writing var.lock.json
• Added: var-runner: Scaffold a starter project with var init

Java & Kotlin (Maven Central)

• Added: var-core: Detect spec drift with a byte-identical var.lock.json baseline
• Added: var-junit: The JUnit engine gates on spec drift
• Added: var-kotest: Kotest VarSpec gates on spec drift

Ruby (RubyGems)

• ⚠️ Breaking: var: Block-based step DSL
  step files no longer destructure steps into
  param, stimulus, sensor and call them with .call/.(). Move the
  registrations into a steps(...) do … end block and pass the initial state as
  an argument instead of a factory block.
• Added: var-core: Scaffold the ruby workspace and port the UTF-16 span layer
• Added: var-core: Parse Markdown specs to a var-doc AST with UTF-16 spans
• Added: var-core: Register step definitions via cucumber-expressions
• Added: var-core: Match steps and build execution plans
• Added: var-core: Execute plans and compare returns against the document
• Added: var-core: Detect spec drift with a byte-identical var.lock.json baseline
• Added: var-config: Read var.config.json
• Added: var-rspec: Run Markdown specs as RSpec examples
• Added: var-runner: Scaffold a starter project with var init

VS Code extension (Marketplace & Open VSX)

• Added: Drift shows as an editor warning with an "Accept as prose" quick fix
• Added: Recognize Ruby step definitions in the editor
• Fixed: Kotlin parameter types declared with raw-string regexes are now discovered

Specification (all ports)

• ⚠️ Breaking: Custom parameter types pair parse with a format function — mismatches render in the document's notation
  declare a custom parameter type's transform function as
  parse (was transformer) in defineState (TypeScript), define_state (Python),
  Registrar.defineParameterType (Java) and parameterType (Kotlin).

• ⚠️ Breaking: Step matching runs against raw inline text — markup is never stripped
  expressions that relied on emphasis stripping must move
  the markers into a parameter type (e.g. regexp /*[^*]+*/ with parse
  raw.slice(1, -1)); the var-doc artifact's inlineMap field is now
  segmentMap.

• ⚠️ Breaking: Unify step authoring on steps() → param, stimulus, sensor
  the step-authoring API is renamed and restructured in every
  port; parse is now a varargs function over the capture groups.

• TypeScript: const { stimulus, sensor } = defineState(factory, paramTypes)
  becomes const { stimulus, sensor } = steps(factory).param(name, regexp, parse?, format?).
  Chain .param() before destructuring to keep custom-param handler-arg
  inference.

• Python: stimulus, sensor = define_state(factory, param_types=...) becomes
  param, stimulus, sensor = steps(factory), then
  param(name, regexp, parse=None, format=None).

• Java: registrar.defineState(factory) becomes registrar.steps(factory),
  and registrar.defineParameterType(...) becomes s.param(name, Pattern, parse?, format?)
  on the returned binder (parse is a String... varargs SAM; a
  two-argument param(name, Pattern) gives identity parse).

• Kotlin: top-level defineState { ... } becomes steps { ... }, and
  parameterType(...) becomes param(...).

• Added: The state factory argument to defineState/define_state is now optional — step files with pure steps can omit it