diff --git a/include/pipeline/asset_manager.hpp b/include/pipeline/asset_manager.hpp
index f2285ddb..fbcb7bcc 100644
--- a/include/pipeline/asset_manager.hpp
+++ b/include/pipeline/asset_manager.hpp
@@ -147,6 +147,16 @@ public:
      */
     size_t purgeExtractedAssets();
 
+    /**
+     * Resolve a normalized WoW path to its on-disk location. Checks the
+     * override directory first, then the manifest, then the base-fallback
+     * manifest. Public so callers (e.g. terrain_manager probing for
+     * sidecar files like .whm/.wot/.woc next to a .adt) can locate the
+     * extracted file's directory without reading it.
+     * @return absolute or relative fs path, or "" if not found
+     */
+    std::string resolveFile(const std::string& normalizedPath) const;
+
 private:
     bool initialized = false;
     std::string dataPath;
@@ -162,11 +172,7 @@ private:
     std::string    baseFallbackDataPath_;
     AssetManifest  baseFallbackManifest_;
 
-    /**
-     * Resolve filesystem path: check override dir first, then base manifest.
-     * Returns empty string if not found.
-     */
-    std::string resolveFile(const std::string& normalizedPath) const;
+    // (resolveFile moved to public — declaration above.)
 
     // Guards fileCache, dbcCache, fileCacheTotalBytes, fileCacheAccessCounter, and
     // fileCacheBudget.  Shared lock for read-only cache lookups (readFile cache hit,
diff --git a/src/rendering/terrain_manager.cpp b/src/rendering/terrain_manager.cpp
index 6f9b95c3..612b7e55 100644
--- a/src/rendering/terrain_manager.cpp
+++ b/src/rendering/terrain_manager.cpp
@@ -368,6 +368,37 @@ std::shared_ptr<PendingTile> TerrainManager::prepareTile(int x, int y) {
         }
     }
 
+    // Try WHM/WOT sidecar from the asset tree (asset_extract --emit-terrain
+    // writes one alongside the ADT). This lets the runtime use the open
+    // format without copying anything into custom_zones/.
+    if (!loadedFromWot) {
+        std::string adtPath = getADTPath(coord);
+        std::string adtFsPath = assetManager->resolveFile(adtPath);
+        if (!adtFsPath.empty() && adtFsPath.size() >= 4) {
+            std::string sidecarBase = adtFsPath.substr(0, adtFsPath.size() - 4);
+            if (pipeline::WoweeTerrainLoader::exists(sidecarBase) &&
+                pipeline::WoweeTerrainLoader::load(sidecarBase, *terrainPtr)) {
+                loadedFromWot = true;
+                LOG_INFO("Loaded asset-tree WHM/WOT sidecar: ", sidecarBase);
+                if (pipeline::WoweeCollisionBuilder::exists(sidecarBase)) {
+                    auto woc = pipeline::WoweeCollisionBuilder::load(sidecarBase + ".woc");
+                    if (woc.isValid()) {
+                        CollisionData cd;
+                        cd.triangles.reserve(woc.triangles.size());
+                        for (const auto& t : woc.triangles)
+                            cd.triangles.push_back({t.v0, t.v1, t.v2, t.flags});
+                        cd.boundsMin = woc.bounds.min;
+                        cd.boundsMax = woc.bounds.max;
+                        cd.loaded = true;
+                        collisionTiles_[tileKey(coord.x, coord.y)] = std::move(cd);
+                        LOG_INFO("Loaded sidecar WOC collision: ",
+                                 woc.triangles.size(), " triangles");
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
     // Fall back to ADT format
     if (!loadedFromWot) {
         std::string adtPath = getADTPath(coord);