From 5afc9a57d1622fe540fa376ca17f72c30fd05d2c Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Kelsi <kelsihates2fa@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2026 22:51:13 -0800
Subject: [PATCH] Auto-select newly created character in selection screen

After creating a character, automatically select it in the character
list instead of defaulting to the previously selected character.

Changes:
- Added selectCharacterByName() method to CharacterScreen
- Store created character name in Application
- On creation success, auto-select the new character by name
- Falls back to saved selection if new character name doesn't match
---
 include/core/application.hpp    |  1 +
 include/ui/character_screen.hpp |  6 ++++++
 src/core/application.cpp        |  7 +++++++
 src/ui/character_screen.cpp     | 29 +++++++++++++++++++++++++----
 4 files changed, 39 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)

diff --git a/include/core/application.hpp b/include/core/application.hpp
index 2492e73d..6b016842 100644
--- a/include/core/application.hpp
+++ b/include/core/application.hpp
@@ -107,6 +107,7 @@ private:
 
     AppState state = AppState::AUTHENTICATION;
     bool running = false;
+    std::string pendingCreatedCharacterName_;  // Auto-select after character creation
     bool playerCharacterSpawned = false;
     bool npcsSpawned = false;
     bool spawnSnapToGround = true;
diff --git a/include/ui/character_screen.hpp b/include/ui/character_screen.hpp
index b872b7bf..a8bc21c1 100644
--- a/include/ui/character_screen.hpp
+++ b/include/ui/character_screen.hpp
@@ -49,12 +49,18 @@ public:
      */
     void setStatus(const std::string& message);
 
+    /**
+     * Select character by name (used after character creation)
+     */
+    void selectCharacterByName(const std::string& name);
+
 private:
     // UI state
     int selectedCharacterIndex = -1;
     bool characterSelected = false;
     uint64_t selectedCharacterGuid = 0;
     bool restoredLastCharacter = false;
+    std::string newlyCreatedCharacterName;  // Auto-select this character if set
 
     // Status
     std::string statusMessage;
diff --git a/src/core/application.cpp b/src/core/application.cpp
index d8ca5658..6251e936 100644
--- a/src/core/application.cpp
+++ b/src/core/application.cpp
@@ -581,6 +581,7 @@ void Application::setupUICallbacks() {
 
     // Character create screen callbacks
     uiManager->getCharacterCreateScreen().setOnCreate([this](const game::CharCreateData& data) {
+        pendingCreatedCharacterName_ = data.name;  // Store name for auto-selection
         gameHandler->createCharacter(data);
     });
 
@@ -591,9 +592,15 @@ void Application::setupUICallbacks() {
     // Character create result callback
     gameHandler->setCharCreateCallback([this](bool success, const std::string& msg) {
         if (success) {
+            // Auto-select the newly created character
+            if (!pendingCreatedCharacterName_.empty()) {
+                uiManager->getCharacterScreen().selectCharacterByName(pendingCreatedCharacterName_);
+                pendingCreatedCharacterName_.clear();
+            }
             setState(AppState::CHARACTER_SELECTION);
         } else {
             uiManager->getCharacterCreateScreen().setStatus(msg, true);
+            pendingCreatedCharacterName_.clear();
         }
     });
 
diff --git a/src/ui/character_screen.cpp b/src/ui/character_screen.cpp
index 9e8bd67e..5efb3c70 100644
--- a/src/ui/character_screen.cpp
+++ b/src/ui/character_screen.cpp
@@ -56,16 +56,31 @@ void CharacterScreen::render(game::GameHandler& gameHandler) {
 
     // Restore last-selected character (once per screen visit)
     if (!restoredLastCharacter) {
-        uint64_t lastGuid = loadLastCharacter();
-        if (lastGuid != 0) {
+        // Priority 1: Select newly created character if set
+        if (!newlyCreatedCharacterName.empty()) {
             for (size_t i = 0; i < characters.size(); ++i) {
-                if (characters[i].guid == lastGuid) {
+                if (characters[i].name == newlyCreatedCharacterName) {
                     selectedCharacterIndex = static_cast<int>(i);
-                    selectedCharacterGuid = lastGuid;
+                    selectedCharacterGuid = characters[i].guid;
+                    saveLastCharacter(characters[i].guid);
+                    newlyCreatedCharacterName.clear();
                     break;
                 }
             }
         }
+        // Priority 2: Restore last selected character
+        if (selectedCharacterIndex < 0) {
+            uint64_t lastGuid = loadLastCharacter();
+            if (lastGuid != 0) {
+                for (size_t i = 0; i < characters.size(); ++i) {
+                    if (characters[i].guid == lastGuid) {
+                        selectedCharacterIndex = static_cast<int>(i);
+                        selectedCharacterGuid = lastGuid;
+                        break;
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
         // Fall back to first character if nothing matched
         if (selectedCharacterIndex < 0) {
             selectedCharacterIndex = 0;
@@ -298,6 +313,12 @@ void CharacterScreen::setStatus(const std::string& message) {
     statusMessage = message;
 }
 
+void CharacterScreen::selectCharacterByName(const std::string& name) {
+    newlyCreatedCharacterName = name;
+    restoredLastCharacter = false;  // Allow re-selection in render()
+    selectedCharacterIndex = -1;
+}
+
 ImVec4 CharacterScreen::getFactionColor(game::Race race) const {
     // Alliance races: blue
     if (race == game::Race::HUMAN ||