@c9up/rune 0.1.7 → 0.1.9

package/src/Schema.ts

@@ -4,13 +4,59 @@
  * @implements FR38, FR39, FR40, FR41
  */
 
+import {
+	type CompareUnit,
+	type DateFormat,
+	parseDateValue,
+	resolveOperand,
+	truncateTo,
+} from "./date.js";
 import type { RuneErrorNode } from "./errors.js";
 import { RuneError, RuneValidationError } from "./errors.js";
+import {
+	type AlphaOptions,
+	alphaPattern,
+	type EmailOptions,
+	escapeHtml,
+	isAscii,
+	isCoordinates,
+	isCreditCard,
+	isEmail,
+	isHexCode,
+	isIban,
+	isIpAddress,
+	isJwt,
+	isMobile,
+	isMobileForLocale,
+	isPassport,
+	isPostalCode,
+	isUlid,
+	isUrlWithOptions,
+	isVat,
+	type NormalizeEmailOptions,
+	type NormalizeUrlOptions,
+	normalizeEmail,
+	normalizeUrl,
+	SUPPORTED_MOBILE_LOCALES,
+	SUPPORTED_PASSPORTS,
+	SUPPORTED_POSTAL_CODES,
+	SUPPORTED_VAT_COUNTRIES,
+	toCamelCase,
+	type UrlOptions,
+	type VatOptions,
+} from "./formats.js";
 import type { MessagesProviderContract } from "./MessagesProvider.js";
+import { toWildcardPath } from "./MessagesProvider.js";
 import {
+	detectFileType,
+	extensionMatches,
+	MAGIC_HEAD_BYTES,
+	readHead,
+} from "./magic.js";
+import {
+	assertNativeAvailable,
 	isNativeAvailable,
 	validateNative,
-	warnNativeUnavailableOnce,
 } from "./native.js";
 
 export type ValidationMessageParams = Record<string, string | number | boolean>;
@@ -48,8 +94,31 @@ export interface FieldContext {
 	meta: Record<string, unknown>;
 	/** `true` while no error has been reported for this field yet. */
 	isValid: boolean;
-	/** Report a validation failure for this field. */
-	report(message: string, rule: string): void;
+	/** Last path segment — `city` for `address.city` (VineJS `name`). */
+	name: string;
+	/** Dotted path with numeric segments replaced by `*` (`tags.*.name`). */
+	wildCardPath: string;
+	/** `true` when this value sits inside an array. */
+	isArrayMember: boolean;
+	/** `true` when the value is neither `undefined` nor `null`. */
+	isDefined: boolean;
+	/** `true` when the value passed its type rule. */
+	isValidDataType: boolean;
+	/** The full dotted path — same value as {@link field}, VineJS spelling. */
+	getFieldPath(): string;
+	/** Replace the value under validation (VineJS `mutate`). */
+	mutate(newValue: unknown): void;
+	/**
+	 * Report a validation failure. `field` and `args` are optional (VineJS
+	 * passes four arguments); omitting them reports against this field with no
+	 * interpolation data.
+	 */
+	report(
+		message: string,
+		rule: string,
+		field?: string | FieldContext,
+		args?: Record<string, unknown>,
+	): void;
 }
 
 /**
@@ -65,6 +134,13 @@ export type RuleValidator<Options = undefined> = (
 /** A compiled `.use()` rule produced by {@link createRule}. */
 export interface CompiledRule {
 	readonly __rune: "rule";
+	/** Run even on `undefined`/`null` (VineJS implicit rules). */
+	readonly implicit?: boolean;
+	readonly name?: string;
+	/** Modifier applied to this field's JSON Schema node. */
+	readonly toJSONSchema?: JsonSchemaModifier;
+	/** The options the rule was built with, handed to {@link toJSONSchema}. */
+	readonly ruleOptions?: unknown;
 	run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): void;
 }
 
@@ -83,23 +159,122 @@ export interface CompiledRule {
  *       passwordConfirmation: rules.string().use(sameAs('password')),
  *     })
  */
+/**
+ * Options accepted by {@link createRule} / {@link createAsyncRule} — VineJS
+ * `vine.createRule(fn, { implicit, isAsync })`.
+ */
+export interface CreateRuleOptions {
+	/**
+	 * Run the rule even when the value is `undefined` or `null`. Non-implicit
+	 * rules are skipped on an absent value, which is why a `required`-style
+	 * custom rule could not be written before.
+	 */
+	implicit?: boolean;
+	/** Rule name reported in errors when the validator does not pass one. */
+	name?: string;
+	/**
+	 * VineJS `toJSONSchema?: JsonSchemaModifier` — a FUNCTION receiving the node
+	 * built so far (plus the rule's options) and returning the modified node.
+	 * A static fragment could only ever add keys; a modifier can also narrow or
+	 * replace what the base rules produced.
+	 */
+	toJSONSchema?: JsonSchemaModifier;
+	/**
+	 * Declare the rule asynchronous (VineJS `{ isAsync: true }`).
+	 * {@link createAsyncRule} sets it; passing it to {@link createRule} routes
+	 * the rule to the async builder instead of silently producing a sync rule
+	 * whose Promise nobody awaits.
+	 */
+	isAsync?: boolean;
+}
+
 export function createRule(
 	validator: RuleValidator<undefined>,
+	options?: CreateRuleOptions,
 ): () => CompiledRule;
 export function createRule<Options>(
 	validator: RuleValidator<Options>,
+	options?: CreateRuleOptions,
 ): (options: Options) => CompiledRule;
 export function createRule<Options>(
 	validator: RuleValidator<Options>,
+	ruleOptions?: CreateRuleOptions,
 ): (options: Options) => CompiledRule {
+	if (ruleOptions?.isAsync) {
+		// VineJS expresses "async" as an option on createRule, so honour it by
+		// BUILDING the async rule rather than refusing: `.use()` routes an
+		// async-marked rule to the awaited register.
+		const asyncBuilder = createAsyncRule(
+			validator as unknown as AsyncRuleValidator<Options>,
+			{ ...ruleOptions, isAsync: undefined },
+		);
+		return asyncBuilder as unknown as (options: Options) => CompiledRule;
+	}
 	return (options: Options): CompiledRule => ({
 		__rune: "rule",
+		implicit: ruleOptions?.implicit ?? false,
+		name: ruleOptions?.name,
+		toJSONSchema: ruleOptions?.toJSONSchema,
+		ruleOptions: options,
 		run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): void {
 			validator(value, options, field);
 		},
 	});
 }
 
+/**
+ * An async `.useAsync()` rule validator — same shape as {@link RuleValidator}
+ * but may return a Promise. Runs only under {@link ValidationSchema.validateResultAsync}.
+ */
+export type AsyncRuleValidator<Options = undefined> = (
+	value: unknown,
+	options: Options,
+	field: FieldContext,
+) => void | Promise<void>;
+
+/** A compiled async rule produced by {@link createAsyncRule}. */
+export interface AsyncCompiledRule {
+	readonly __rune: "asyncRule";
+	/** Run even on `undefined`/`null` (VineJS implicit rules). */
+	readonly implicit?: boolean;
+	readonly name?: string;
+	/** Modifier applied to this field's JSON Schema node. */
+	readonly toJSONSchema?: JsonSchemaModifier;
+	/** The options the rule was built with, handed to {@link toJSONSchema}. */
+	readonly ruleOptions?: unknown;
+	run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void>;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Async counterpart of {@link createRule} — for rules that must await (DB lookups
+ * etc.). Attach with `chain.useAsync(rule(options))`; the schema must then be run
+ * with `validateResultAsync`. This is how DB-backed `unique`/`exists` rules are built
+ * (the validator does the query), keeping rune framework-agnostic.
+ */
+export function createAsyncRule(
+	validator: AsyncRuleValidator<undefined>,
+	options?: CreateRuleOptions,
+): () => AsyncCompiledRule;
+export function createAsyncRule<Options>(
+	validator: AsyncRuleValidator<Options>,
+	options?: CreateRuleOptions,
+): (options: Options) => AsyncCompiledRule;
+export function createAsyncRule<Options>(
+	validator: AsyncRuleValidator<Options>,
+	ruleOptions?: CreateRuleOptions,
+): (options: Options) => AsyncCompiledRule {
+	return (options: Options): AsyncCompiledRule => ({
+		__rune: "asyncRule",
+		implicit: ruleOptions?.implicit ?? false,
+		name: ruleOptions?.name,
+		toJSONSchema: ruleOptions?.toJSONSchema,
+		ruleOptions: options,
+		async run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void> {
+			await validator(value, options, field);
+		},
+	});
+}
+
 /**
  * Validation result — discriminated union that narrows `data` to the schema's
  * `T` when `valid` is `true`, removing the need for callers to cast or guard
@@ -119,18 +294,196 @@ export interface ValidateOptions {
 	 * provider takes precedence over a globally bound translator).
 	 */
 	messagesProvider?: MessagesProviderContract;
+	/**
+	 * VineJS `errorReporter: () => ErrorReporterContract` — a FACTORY returning a
+	 * reporter, so a transcribed Adonis reporter works as-is. A plain
+	 * `(error) => void` observer is also accepted.
+	 *
+	 * The two are told apart by ARITY (a factory takes no argument), never by
+	 * calling one speculatively to see what comes back.
+	 *
+	 * Either way the reporter OBSERVES: the validation result is never changed by
+	 * it, so a reporter cannot mask a failure.
+	 */
+	errorReporter?: ErrorReporterFactory | ((error: ValidationError) => void);
+}
+
+/**
+ * VineJS `JsonSchemaModifier`: receives the JSON Schema node assembled from the
+ * declarative rules and returns the node to use instead.
+ */
+export type JsonSchemaModifier = (
+	node: Record<string, unknown>,
+	options?: unknown,
+) => Record<string, unknown>;
+
+/** VineJS `ErrorReporterContract`. */
+export interface ErrorReporterContract {
+	/** `true` once at least one error has been reported. */
+	hasErrors: boolean;
+	/** Build the exception a caller may throw. */
+	createError(): Error;
+	/** Report one failure. */
+	report(
+		message: string,
+		rule: string,
+		field: FieldContext | string,
+		args?: Record<string, unknown>,
+	): unknown;
+}
+
+/** A zero-argument factory producing a fresh {@link ErrorReporterContract}. */
+export type ErrorReporterFactory = () => ErrorReporterContract;
+
+/**
+ * Normalise either accepted spelling into one "report this error" callback.
+ * A factory is built ONCE per validation, so a stateful Vine reporter sees the
+ * whole run and can assemble its own error shape.
+ */
+function toReporter(
+	reporter:
+		| ErrorReporterFactory
+		| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+		| undefined,
+	data: unknown,
+	meta: Record<string, unknown>,
+):
+	| {
+			report(error: ValidationError): void;
+			createError?: () => Error;
+	  }
+	| undefined {
+	if (!reporter) return undefined;
+	if (reporter.length > 0) {
+		// Plain observer: it consumes each error and never decides the outcome.
+		const observe = reporter as (error: ValidationError) => void;
+		return { report: observe };
+	}
+	const built = (reporter as ErrorReporterFactory)();
+	return {
+		report(error) {
+			// VineJS hands the reporter a FieldContext, not a path string: a real
+			// reporter reads `getFieldPath()` / `name` / `wildCardPath` off it.
+			built.report(
+				error.message,
+				error.rule,
+				reportedFieldContext(error, data, meta),
+				error.meta,
+			);
+		},
+		createError: () => built.createError(),
+	};
+}
+
+/**
+ * Rebuild the {@link FieldContext} a reporter expects from a collected error.
+ *
+ * The traversal reports post-hoc (it collects, then hands the batch over), so
+ * the original context is gone by then — but everything a reporter actually
+ * reads is derivable from the field path plus the root data.
+ */
+function reportedFieldContext(
+	error: ValidationError,
+	data: unknown,
+	meta: Record<string, unknown>,
+): FieldContext {
+	const segments = error.field.split(".");
+	const root = isPlainObject(data) ? data : {};
+	return {
+		value: undefined,
+		data: root,
+		parent: root,
+		field: error.field,
+		meta,
+		isValid: false,
+		name: segments[segments.length - 1] ?? error.field,
+		wildCardPath: toWildcardPath(error.field),
+		isArrayMember: /\.\d+$/.test(error.field),
+		isDefined: false,
+		isValidDataType: false,
+		getFieldPath: () => error.field,
+		mutate: (): void => {},
+		report: (): void => {},
+	};
 }
 
 export interface ValidationSchema<T = Record<string, unknown>> {
 	fields: Record<string, RuleChain>;
-	/** Result-based validation (superset) — never throws. */
-	validate(data: unknown, options?: ValidateOptions): ValidationResult<T>;
+	/**
+	 * The object schema the validator was built from — always a chain, so
+	 * `validator.schema.partial()` / `.pick()` / `.omit()` work as in VineJS
+	 * whichever form `create()` received. The raw field map stays on
+	 * {@link fields}.
+	 */
+	schema: RuleChain;
+	/**
+	 * Standard Schema v1 contract, so a consumer can validate through the
+	 * vendor-neutral protocol instead of rune's own API.
+	 */
+	"~standard": {
+		version: 1;
+		vendor: string;
+		/** Standard JSON Schema v1 props (VineJS 4.3+). */
+		jsonSchema: {
+			input(): Record<string, unknown>;
+			output(): Record<string, unknown>;
+		};
+		validate(
+			value: unknown,
+		): Promise<
+			| { value: T }
+			| { issues: ReadonlyArray<{ message: string; path: string[] }> }
+		>;
+	};
+	/**
+	 * Error reporter for this validator (VineJS `validator.errorReporter`). A
+	 * per-call option still wins; this wins over the process-wide one.
+	 */
+	errorReporter:
+		| ErrorReporterFactory
+		| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+		| null;
+	/** Introspection of the compiled schema — VineJS `{ schema, refs }` shape. */
+	toJSON(): { schema: SchemaIntrospection; refs: string[] };
+	/** JSON Schema for the compiled validator (VineJS `toJSONSchema`). */
+	toJSONSchema(): Record<string, unknown>;
+	/**
+	 * Validate and return the payload, throwing {@link RuneValidationError} on
+	 * failure — the VineJS/Adonis contract (`validator.validate(data)`), async
+	 * so a schema carrying `unique`/`exists` behaves like any other.
+	 *
+	 * The never-throwing, synchronous form rune also offers is
+	 * {@link validateResult}.
+	 */
+	validate(data: unknown, options?: ValidateOptions): Promise<T>;
+	/** Result-based validation (rune superset) — synchronous, never throws. */
+	validateResult(data: unknown, options?: ValidateOptions): ValidationResult<T>;
+	/** Result-based validation awaiting async rules — never throws. */
+	validateResultAsync(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<ValidationResult<T>>;
 	/**
 	 * Throwing validation (VineJS/Adonis parity). Returns the validated data on
 	 * success; throws {@link RuneValidationError} (`E_VALIDATION_ERROR`, HTTP 422)
 	 * with a structured `.messages` array on failure.
 	 */
 	validateOrThrow(data: unknown, options?: ValidateOptions): T;
+	/**
+	 * Non-throwing validation returning `[error, null] | [null, data]`
+	 * (VineJS `tryValidate`).
+	 */
+	tryValidate(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<[RuneValidationError, null] | [null, T]>;
+	/** Synchronous counterpart of {@link tryValidate} (rune superset). */
+	tryValidateSync(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): [RuneValidationError, null] | [null, T];
+	/** Throwing async validation (see {@link validateResultAsync} + {@link validateOrThrow}). */
+	validateOrThrowAsync(data: unknown, options?: ValidateOptions): Promise<T>;
 }
 
 /** Context threaded through validation so field rules can reach root/parent/meta. */
@@ -139,6 +492,594 @@ interface RunContext {
 	parent: Record<string, unknown> | unknown[];
 	meta: Record<string, unknown>;
 	messagesProvider?: MessagesProviderContract;
+	errorReporter?: (error: ValidationError) => void;
+}
+
+/**
+ * An async rule run deferred by the (synchronous) traversal and awaited by
+ * `validateResultAsync`. Collected at EVERY depth — top-level fields, nested object
+ * fields and array items alike.
+ */
+interface PendingAsync {
+	chain: RuleChain;
+	field: string;
+	value: unknown;
+	ctx: RunContext;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Global output mapper for `rules.date()` — VineJS's `VineDate.transform` seam.
+ *
+ * rune has zero runtime dependencies, so a validated date is a plain `Date`. A
+ * consumer that wants its own type (e.g. a `@c9up/chronos` `DateTime`, which is
+ * what atlas hands back on read) binds it here once at boot, exactly like
+ * `bindRosetta` does for translations. Applied AFTER the comparison rules, so
+ * `after`/`before` always compare real `Date`s.
+ */
+let dateOutputTransform: ((value: Date) => unknown) | null = null;
+
+/**
+ * Process-wide messages provider (VineJS `vine.messagesProvider`). A provider
+ * passed per call still wins — global is the fallback, not an override.
+ */
+let globalMessagesProvider: MessagesProviderContract | null = null;
+
+/**
+ * Process-wide error reporter (VineJS `vine.errorReporter = …`). A per-call
+ * option wins over a per-validator one, which wins over this.
+ */
+let globalErrorReporter:
+	| ErrorReporterFactory
+	| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+	| null = null;
+
+/** Bind (or clear) the process-wide error reporter. */
+export function setGlobalErrorReporter(
+	reporter: ErrorReporterFactory | ((error: ValidationError) => void) | null,
+): void {
+	globalErrorReporter = reporter;
+}
+
+/** Read the process-wide error reporter. */
+export function getGlobalErrorReporter():
+	| ErrorReporterFactory
+	| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+	| null {
+	return globalErrorReporter;
+}
+
+/** Host lookup seam backing `activeUrl()` — see that rule's note on why. */
+export interface HostResolver {
+	/** Resolve `true` when the hostname resolves (DNS, or whatever you decide). */
+	resolves(hostname: string): Promise<boolean>;
+}
+
+let hostResolver: HostResolver | null = null;
+
+/** See `rune.convertEmptyStringsToNull`. */
+let convertEmptyStringsToNull = false;
+
+/** Toggle the global `"" -> null` conversion (VineJS `convertEmptyStringsToNull`). */
+export function setConvertEmptyStringsToNull(enabled: boolean): void {
+	convertEmptyStringsToNull = enabled;
+}
+
+/** Read the global `"" -> null` conversion flag. */
+export function getConvertEmptyStringsToNull(): boolean {
+	return convertEmptyStringsToNull;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Rewrite every `""` to `null`, deeply, before validation.
+ *
+ * Applied to the DATA rather than inside each chain: it has to happen before
+ * the optional/nullable decision, and before the native-engine routing — the
+ * Rust engine never sees this flag, so converting later would have made the
+ * behaviour depend on whether the binary was loadable.
+ */
+function convertEmptyStrings(value: unknown): unknown {
+	if (value === "") return null;
+	if (Array.isArray(value)) return value.map(convertEmptyStrings);
+	if (isPlainObject(value)) {
+		return Object.fromEntries(
+			Object.entries(value).map(([k, v]) => [k, convertEmptyStrings(v)]),
+		);
+	}
+	return value;
+}
+
+/** Bind (or clear, with `null`) the resolver backing `activeUrl()`. */
+export function bindHostResolver(resolver: HostResolver | null): void {
+	hostResolver = resolver;
+}
+
+/** Bind (or clear) the process-wide messages provider. */
+export function setGlobalMessagesProvider(
+	provider: MessagesProviderContract | null,
+): void {
+	globalMessagesProvider = provider;
+}
+
+/** Read the process-wide messages provider. */
+export function getGlobalMessagesProvider(): MessagesProviderContract | null {
+	return globalMessagesProvider;
+}
+
+/** Bind (or clear, with `null`) the global `rules.date()` output mapper. */
+export function setDateTransform(fn: ((value: Date) => unknown) | null): void {
+	dateOutputTransform = fn;
+}
+
+/**
+ * A database lookup seam for the Lucid-style `unique` / `exists` rules.
+ *
+ * rune stays framework-agnostic, so it never imports a driver: the host binds
+ * one resolver at boot (as `bindRosetta` does for translations) and the rules
+ * then take Lucid's `{ table, column, where }` options instead of a hand-written
+ * callback. The callback form is kept — it is what the resolver is built from.
+ */
+export interface DatabaseResolver {
+	/** Resolve `true` when at least one row matches. */
+	exists(query: DatabaseLookup): Promise<boolean>;
+}
+
+/** The lookup handed to a {@link DatabaseResolver} (Lucid `unique`/`exists`). */
+export interface DatabaseLookup {
+	table: string;
+	column: string;
+	value: unknown;
+	/** Extra equality filters, e.g. `{ tenant_id: 3 }` (Lucid `where`). */
+	where?: Record<string, unknown>;
+	/** Rows to ignore, e.g. `{ id: 7 }` when updating (Lucid `whereNot`). */
+	whereNot?: Record<string, unknown>;
+}
+
+let databaseResolver: DatabaseResolver | null = null;
+
+/** Bind (or clear, with `null`) the resolver backing `unique()` / `exists()`. */
+export function bindDatabase(resolver: DatabaseResolver | null): void {
+	databaseResolver = resolver;
+}
+
+/** Options form of `unique()` / `exists()` — Lucid's shape. */
+export interface DatabaseRuleOptions {
+	table: string;
+	column?: string;
+	where?: Record<string, unknown>;
+	whereNot?: Record<string, unknown>;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Turn the options form of `unique`/`exists` into the callback the rule runs.
+ * Fails loudly when no resolver is bound: a uniqueness check that cannot run
+ * must never look like one that passed.
+ */
+function toDatabaseCheck(
+	checkOrOptions:
+		| ((value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean>)
+		| DatabaseRuleOptions,
+	kind: "unique" | "exists",
+): (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean> {
+	if (typeof checkOrOptions === "function") return checkOrOptions;
+	const options = checkOrOptions;
+	return async (value, field) => {
+		if (!databaseResolver) {
+			throw new RuneError(
+				"NO_DATABASE_RESOLVER",
+				`rules.${kind}({ table }) needs a database resolver.`,
+				{
+					hint: "Call bindDatabase(resolver) once at boot, or pass a callback.",
+				},
+			);
+		}
+		const found = await databaseResolver.exists({
+			table: options.table,
+			column: options.column ?? field.name,
+			value,
+			where: options.where,
+			whereNot: options.whereNot,
+		});
+		return kind === "unique" ? !found : found;
+	};
+}
+
+/** VineJS number coercion: a numeric string becomes a number, the rest is untouched. */
+function coerceNumber(value: unknown): unknown {
+	if (typeof value !== "string") return value;
+	const trimmed = value.trim();
+	if (trimmed === "") return value;
+	const n = Number(trimmed);
+	return Number.isFinite(n) ? n : value;
+}
+
+/** VineJS boolean coercion over the usual form-encoded spellings. */
+function coerceBoolean(value: unknown): unknown {
+	if (value === 1 || value === 0) return value === 1;
+	if (typeof value !== "string") return value;
+	const v = value.trim().toLowerCase();
+	if (["true", "on", "1"].includes(v)) return true;
+	if (["false", "off", "0"].includes(v)) return false;
+	return value;
+}
+
+/** Options accepted by every date comparison (VineJS `{ compare, format }`). */
+export interface DateCompareOptions {
+	/** Granularity of the comparison. Defaults to `"day"`, like VineJS. */
+	compare?: CompareUnit;
+	/** Format used to parse the operand / sibling, when it is a string. */
+	format?: string;
+}
+
+/**
+ * The structural shape `file()` accepts. An Adonis bodyparser `MultipartFile`
+ * satisfies it without rune having to know the type.
+ */
+export interface FileLike {
+	size: number;
+	/**
+	 * MIME type as REPORTED by the upload. Trust it only with
+	 * `verifyContent()`, which checks it against the real bytes.
+	 */
+	type?: string;
+	/** Adonis bodyparser's temp path — a byte source for `verifyContent()`. */
+	tmpPath?: string;
+	/** Alternative byte-source paths. */
+	filePath?: string;
+	path?: string;
+	/** In-memory bytes, when the upload was buffered. */
+	buffer?: Uint8Array;
+	extname?: string | null;
+	clientName?: string;
+	name?: string;
+}
+
+/** Byte multipliers for the size spellings Adonis accepts. */
+const BYTE_UNITS: Record<string, number> = {
+	b: 1,
+	kb: 1024,
+	mb: 1024 ** 2,
+	gb: 1024 ** 3,
+	tb: 1024 ** 4,
+};
+
+/**
+ * Parse a size limit — a byte count, or Adonis's `"2mb"` / `"512kb"` spelling.
+ * Throws on an unreadable unit rather than falling back to "unlimited": a cap
+ * that silently stops capping is worse than no cap at all.
+ */
+export function parseByteSize(size: number | string): number {
+	if (typeof size === "number") return size;
+	const match = /^\s*(\d+(?:\.\d+)?)\s*(b|kb|mb|gb|tb)\s*$/i.exec(size);
+	if (!match) {
+		throw new RuneError("INVALID_SIZE", `file(): cannot read size '${size}'.`, {
+			hint: 'Use a byte count, or "2mb" / "512kb" / "1gb".',
+		});
+	}
+	return Math.round(Number(match[1]) * BYTE_UNITS[match[2].toLowerCase()]);
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get the leading bytes of an upload, from whichever source it exposes.
+ * Returns `null` when there is none — the caller must treat that as a FAILURE,
+ * not as "nothing to check".
+ */
+async function readFileHead(file: FileLike): Promise<Uint8Array | null> {
+	if (file.buffer instanceof Uint8Array) {
+		return file.buffer.subarray(0, MAGIC_HEAD_BYTES);
+	}
+	const path = file.tmpPath ?? file.filePath ?? file.path;
+	if (typeof path !== "string" || path.length === 0) return null;
+	try {
+		return await readHead(path);
+	} catch {
+		return null;
+	}
+}
+
+/** Structural guard for {@link FileLike}. */
+function isFileLike(value: unknown): value is FileLike {
+	return (
+		typeof value === "object" &&
+		value !== null &&
+		"size" in value &&
+		typeof (value as FileLike).size === "number"
+	);
+}
+
+/** Lowercase extension without the dot, from `extname` or a file name. */
+function fileExtension(file: FileLike): string | null {
+	if (typeof file.extname === "string" && file.extname.length > 0) {
+		return file.extname.replace(/^\./, "").toLowerCase();
+	}
+	const name = file.clientName ?? file.name;
+	if (typeof name !== "string") return null;
+	const dot = name.lastIndexOf(".");
+	return dot > 0 ? name.slice(dot + 1).toLowerCase() : null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * What a `parse()` callback receives besides the value — VineJS's
+ * `ParseFn = (value, ctx: Pick<FieldContext, 'data' | 'parent' | 'meta'>)`.
+ */
+export type ParseContext = Pick<FieldContext, "data" | "parent" | "meta">;
+
+/**
+ * A conditional set of properties merged into an object (VineJS `vine.group`).
+ * The first branch whose predicate matches contributes its shape; `otherwise`
+ * is the unconditional fallback.
+ */
+export interface ConditionalGroup {
+	readonly __rune: "group";
+	branches: ReadonlyArray<{
+		predicate: ((data: Record<string, unknown>) => boolean) | null;
+		shape: Record<string, RuleChain>;
+	}>;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Called when no union branch matched (VineJS `UnionNoMatchCallback`). Report
+ * through the field context; reporting nothing suppresses the generic error.
+ */
+export type UnionNoMatchCallback = (
+	value: unknown,
+	field: FieldContext,
+) => void;
+
+/**
+ * Called with a record's keys (VineJS `RecordKeysCallback`). Report through the
+ * field context; reporting nothing accepts the key set.
+ */
+export type RecordKeysCallback = (keys: string[], field: FieldContext) => void;
+
+/** Per-field introspection returned inside `toJSON().schema`. */
+export type SchemaIntrospection = Record<
+	string,
+	{ rules: string[]; optional: boolean; nullable: boolean }
+>;
+
+/** Describe every field's rules — the `schema` half of `toJSON()`. */
+function introspect(fields: Record<string, RuleChain>): SchemaIntrospection {
+	return Object.fromEntries(
+		Object.entries(fields).map(([field, chain]) => [
+			field,
+			{
+				rules: chain.rules.map((rule) => rule.name),
+				optional: chain.isOptionalField,
+				nullable: chain.isNullable,
+			},
+		]),
+	);
+}
+
+/** Rule name → the JSON Schema fragment it contributes. */
+const JSON_SCHEMA_TYPES: Record<string, string> = {
+	string: "string",
+	number: "number",
+	boolean: "boolean",
+	date: "string",
+	accepted: "boolean",
+	object: "object",
+	record: "object",
+	array: "array",
+	tuple: "array",
+};
+
+/**
+ * Translate a field map to JSON Schema.
+ *
+ * Only rules with a real JSON Schema equivalent are emitted; a rule without one
+ * is OMITTED rather than approximated, because a schema that quietly drops a
+ * constraint is worse than one that says less.
+ */
+function chainToJSONSchema(
+	fields: Record<string, RuleChain>,
+): Record<string, unknown> {
+	const properties: Record<string, unknown> = {};
+	const required: string[] = [];
+	for (const [field, chain] of Object.entries(fields)) {
+		const node: Record<string, unknown> = {};
+		for (const rule of chain.rules) {
+			const type = JSON_SCHEMA_TYPES[rule.name];
+			if (type !== undefined) node.type = type;
+			const args = rule.args ?? {};
+			if (rule.name === "minLength") node.minLength = args.min ?? rule.param;
+			if (rule.name === "maxLength") node.maxLength = args.max ?? rule.param;
+			if (rule.name === "fixedLength") {
+				node.minLength = args.length ?? rule.param;
+				node.maxLength = args.length ?? rule.param;
+			}
+			if (rule.name === "min") node.minimum = args.min ?? rule.param;
+			if (rule.name === "max") node.maximum = args.max ?? rule.param;
+			if (rule.name === "range") {
+				node.minimum = args.min;
+				node.maximum = args.max;
+			}
+			if (rule.name === "email") node.format = "email";
+			if (rule.name === "uuid") node.format = "uuid";
+			if (rule.name === "url") node.format = "uri";
+			if (rule.name === "date") node.format = "date-time";
+			if (rule.name === "regex" && typeof args.pattern === "string") {
+				node.pattern = args.pattern;
+			}
+			if (rule.name === "enum" && Array.isArray(args.values)) {
+				node.enum = args.values;
+			}
+			if (rule.name === "literal" && "value" in args) {
+				node.const = args.value;
+			}
+			if (rule.name === "notEmpty") node.minItems = 1;
+			if (rule.name === "distinct") node.uniqueItems = true;
+			if (rule.name === "withoutDecimals") node.type = "integer";
+			if (rule.name === "positive") node.exclusiveMinimum = 0;
+			if (rule.name === "negative") node.exclusiveMaximum = 0;
+			if (rule.name === "nonNegative") node.minimum = 0;
+			if (rule.name === "nonPositive") node.maximum = 0;
+			if (rule.name === "nullType") node.type = "null";
+			if (rule.name === "ulid") node.pattern = "^[0-7][0-9A-HJKMNP-TV-Z]{25}$";
+			if (rule.name === "alpha") node.pattern = "^[a-zA-Z]+$";
+			if (rule.name === "alphaNumeric") node.pattern = "^[a-zA-Z0-9]+$";
+			if (rule.name === "hexCode") node.format = "color";
+			if (rule.name === "ipAddress")
+				node.format = args.version === 6 ? "ipv6" : "ipv4";
+			if (rule.name === "file" || rule.name === "nativeFile") {
+				node.type = "string";
+				node.contentEncoding = "binary";
+			}
+			// A declarative rule may carry its own modifier too.
+			if (typeof rule.toJSONSchema === "function") {
+				Object.assign(node, rule.toJSONSchema(node, rule.args));
+			}
+		}
+		// `.use()` and async rules live outside `chain.rules`, so reading only that
+		// register left a declared modifier unreachable from the public API.
+		let modified = node;
+		for (const rule of [...chain.useRules, ...chain.asyncRules]) {
+			if (typeof rule.toJSONSchema === "function") {
+				modified = rule.toJSONSchema(modified, rule.ruleOptions);
+			}
+		}
+		if (chain.isNullable && typeof node.type === "string") {
+			node.type = [node.type, "null"];
+		}
+		const nested = chain.getProperties();
+		if (nested) {
+			Object.assign(modified, chainToJSONSchema(nested));
+			// A rune object DROPS undeclared keys unless allowUnknownProperties(),
+			// so the emitted schema must say so — otherwise a consumer generating a
+			// form from it would offer fields the validator silently discards.
+			modified.additionalProperties = chain.allowsUnknown;
+		}
+		if (chain.metadata) Object.assign(modified, chain.metadata);
+
+		// Containers: describe what they hold, not just that they are containers.
+		const itemChain = chain.arrayItem;
+		if (itemChain) {
+			modified.items = chainToJSONSchema({ item: itemChain }).properties as
+				| Record<string, unknown>
+				| undefined;
+			if (isRecordOfUnknown(modified.items))
+				modified.items = modified.items.item;
+		}
+		const tupleChains = chain.tupleItems;
+		if (tupleChains) {
+			modified.prefixItems = tupleChains.map((entry) => {
+				const built = chainToJSONSchema({ item: entry });
+				const props = built.properties;
+				return isRecordOfUnknown(props) ? props.item : {};
+			});
+			modified.items = false;
+		}
+		const recordChain = chain.recordValue;
+		if (recordChain) {
+			const built = chainToJSONSchema({ item: recordChain });
+			const props = built.properties;
+			modified.additionalProperties = isRecordOfUnknown(props)
+				? props.item
+				: true;
+		}
+		properties[field] = modified;
+		if (!chain.isOptionalField) required.push(field);
+	}
+	return {
+		type: "object",
+		properties,
+		...(required.length > 0 ? { required } : {}),
+	};
+}
+
+/** Narrow to a string-keyed record — used when threading nested JSON Schema. */
+function isRecordOfUnknown(value: unknown): value is Record<string, unknown> {
+	return typeof value === "object" && value !== null && !Array.isArray(value);
+}
+
+/** `snake_case` / `kebab-case` / spaced key to `camelCase`. */
+function toCamelCaseKey(key: string): string {
+	return key
+		.replace(/[-_\s]+(.)?/g, (_, c: string | undefined) =>
+			c ? c.toUpperCase() : "",
+		)
+		.replace(/^(.)/, (c) => c.toLowerCase());
+}
+
+/** Structural guard telling a plain shape from a {@link ConditionalGroup}. */
+function isConditionalGroup(
+	value: Record<string, RuleChain> | ConditionalGroup,
+): value is ConditionalGroup {
+	return "__rune" in value && value.__rune === "group";
+}
+
+/** Build a conditional group (VineJS `vine.group([...])`). */
+export function group(
+	branches: ReadonlyArray<{
+		predicate: ((data: Record<string, unknown>) => boolean) | null;
+		shape: Record<string, RuleChain>;
+	}>,
+): ConditionalGroup {
+	return { __rune: "group", branches };
+}
+
+/** A predicate-guarded group branch (`vine.group.if`). */
+export function groupIf(
+	predicate: (data: Record<string, unknown>) => boolean,
+	shape: Record<string, RuleChain>,
+): {
+	predicate: (data: Record<string, unknown>) => boolean;
+	shape: Record<string, RuleChain>;
+} {
+	return { predicate, shape };
+}
+
+/** The unconditional fallback branch (`vine.group.else` / `.otherwise`). */
+export function groupElse(shape: Record<string, RuleChain>): {
+	predicate: null;
+	shape: Record<string, RuleChain>;
+} {
+	return { predicate: null, shape };
+}
+
+/** A union branch guarded by a predicate — `vine.union.if(...)`. */
+export interface ConditionalBranch {
+	/** `null` for an unconditional branch (`union.else`). */
+	predicate: ((value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean) | null;
+	chain: RuleChain;
+}
+
+/** What `union()` accepts: a bare chain, or a guarded branch. */
+export type UnionBranch = RuleChain | ConditionalBranch;
+
+/** Normalise a bare chain into an unconditional branch. */
+function toUnionBranch(branch: UnionBranch): ConditionalBranch {
+	return branch instanceof RuleChain
+		? { predicate: null, chain: branch }
+		: branch;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Guarded union branch (VineJS `vine.union.if`). The predicate picks the branch;
+ * the chosen branch's OWN errors are reported, which is what makes a union
+ * diagnosable — "matches nothing" tells the caller nothing about which shape it
+ * nearly matched.
+ */
+export function unionIf(
+	predicate: (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean,
+	chain: RuleChain,
+): ConditionalBranch {
+	return { predicate, chain };
+}
+
+/** Fallback union branch (VineJS `vine.union.else`). */
+export function unionElse(chain: RuleChain): ConditionalBranch {
+	return { predicate: null, chain };
+}
+
+/** The checkbox-style truthies VineJS `accepted` recognises. */
+function isAcceptedValue(value: unknown): boolean {
+	return (
+		value === true ||
+		value === 1 ||
+		(typeof value === "string" &&
+			["1", "on", "yes", "true"].includes(value.toLowerCase()))
+	);
 }
 
 /** Default context for internal callers that don't supply one (no root available). */
@@ -160,6 +1101,16 @@ function isPlainObject(value: unknown): value is Record<string, unknown> {
  * The TS chain rules (minLength/uuid/alpha/in/enum/range/…) live only in the TS
  * validator, so they are deliberately absent here.
  */
+/**
+ * Rules whose default message is a TRANSLATABLE key (`validation.<rule>`).
+ *
+ * This set answers one question only: "does this rule have a canonical message?"
+ * It used to answer a second one — "can the Rust engine run it?" — and that
+ * conflation is why every divergence kept coming back: excluding a rule from the
+ * native path silently un-translated it, and adding a TS-only option to a listed
+ * rule silently made the option inert. {@link NATIVE_RULES} answers the routing
+ * question now.
+ */
 const STANDARD_RULES: ReadonlySet<string> = new Set([
 	"string",
 	"number",
@@ -184,6 +1135,38 @@ const STANDARD_RULES: ReadonlySet<string> = new Set([
 	"range",
 ]);
 
+/**
+ * Rules the Rust engine implements IDENTICALLY to the TS path.
+ *
+ * A rule belongs here only while both engines answer the same question for
+ * every input. `email` is excluded on purpose: the TS check is structural
+ * (quoted local parts, IP-literal domains, RFC length caps, validator.js-style
+ * options) where Rust has one regex — routing there would give a different
+ * answer for the same schema.
+ */
+const NATIVE_RULES: ReadonlySet<string> = new Set([
+	"string",
+	"number",
+	"boolean",
+	"min",
+	"max",
+	"positive",
+	"minLength",
+	"maxLength",
+	"fixedLength",
+	"uuid",
+	"alpha",
+	"alphaNumeric",
+	"startsWith",
+	"endsWith",
+	"in",
+	"notIn",
+	"enum",
+	"negative",
+	"nonNegative",
+	"range",
+]);
+
 /** Default messages for standard rules — used only for translator-key fallback. */
 const STANDARD_MSGS: Readonly<Record<string, string>> = {
 	string: "Must be a string",
@@ -215,6 +1198,9 @@ const TYPE_RULE_NAMES: ReadonlySet<string> = new Set([
 	"boolean",
 	"object",
 	"array",
+	// `optional()` / `null()` are schema TYPES in VineJS, not modifiers.
+	"optionalType",
+	"nullType",
 ]);
 let validationTranslator: ValidationTranslator | undefined;
 
@@ -276,9 +1262,12 @@ function resolveRuleMessage(
 		if (rule.name === "max" || rule.name === "maxLength")
 			params.max = rule.param;
 	}
+	// STANDARD_MSGS is the last-resort default for a standard rule: a rule object
+	// built without a message (or with an empty one) still gets the canonical
+	// text rather than an empty error. `rule.message` wins when it carries one.
 	return resolveValidationMessage(
 		`validation.${rule.name}`,
-		rule.message,
+		rule.message || STANDARD_MSGS[rule.name] || rule.name,
 		params,
 	);
 }
@@ -303,12 +1292,14 @@ function resolveRequiredMessage(field: string, ctx: RunContext): string {
 function detectHasCustomRules(fields: Record<string, RuleChain>): boolean {
 	return Object.values(fields).some((chain) => {
 		if (chain.useRules.length > 0) return true; // .use() rule — TS-only (Rust can't run JS)
+		if (chain.asyncRules.length > 0) return true; // async rule — TS-only, needs validateResultAsync
 		if (chain.hasConditionalRequired) return true; // requiredWhen — TS-only
 		if (chain.preTransforms.length > 0) return true; // .parse() — TS-only
 		if (chain.transforms.length > 0) return true; // .transform() — Rust gets only the NAME, can't run a JS fn
 		if (chain.isNullable) return true; // .nullable() — the flag is not sent to the Rust engine
 		return chain.rules.some((r) => {
-			if (!STANDARD_RULES.has(r.name)) return true; // custom rule
+			if (!NATIVE_RULES.has(r.name)) return true; // Rust cannot run it identically
+			if (r.tsOnly === true) return true; // native-listed name, TS-only options
 			if (hasCustomMessage(r)) return true; // custom message
 			return false;
 		});
@@ -356,20 +1347,46 @@ export type Infer<S> = Prettify<
  */
 export function schema<S extends Record<string, RuleChain>>(
 	fields: S,
+	objectChain?: RuleChain,
 ): ValidationSchema<Infer<S>>;
 export function schema<T = Record<string, unknown>>(
 	fields: Record<string, RuleChain>,
+	objectChain?: RuleChain,
 ): ValidationSchema<T>;
 export function schema(
 	fields: Record<string, RuleChain>,
+	objectChain?: RuleChain,
 ): ValidationSchema<Record<string, unknown>> {
+	// Per-validator reporter (VineJS `validator.errorReporter = …`), overridable
+	// per call. Mutable on purpose: that is how Vine exposes it.
+	let validatorErrorReporter:
+		| ErrorReporterFactory
+		| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+		| null = null;
+	// Set by the last run; the throwing entry points prefer the reporter's own
+	// error, because VineJS lets the reporter decide the failure shape.
+	let reporterError: (() => Error) | undefined;
+
 	// Computed once at construction time, not per validate() call.
 	const hasCustomRules = detectHasCustomRules(fields);
+	// Any field carrying async rules (`unique`/`exists`/`useAsync`) forces callers
+	// onto the async path — the sync path throws rather than silently skipping them.
+	const hasAsyncRules = Object.values(fields).some(
+		(chain) => chain.hasAsyncRulesDeep,
+	);
 
-	function validate(
-		data: unknown,
+	function validateResult(
+		rawData: unknown,
 		options?: ValidateOptions,
 	): ValidationResult<Record<string, unknown>> {
+		const data = convertEmptyStringsToNull
+			? convertEmptyStrings(rawData)
+			: rawData;
+		if (hasAsyncRules) {
+			throw new Error(
+				"rune: this schema has async rules (unique/exists/useAsync) — call validateResultAsync() (result-based) or validate() (throwing) instead of validateResult().",
+			);
+		}
 		if (!isPlainObject(data)) {
 			return {
 				valid: false,
@@ -379,15 +1396,34 @@ export function schema(
 			};
 		}
 
-		const provider = options?.messagesProvider;
+		// The global provider counts exactly like a per-call one: the Rust engine
+		// renders default messages, so routing there would silently ignore it.
+		const provider =
+			options?.messagesProvider ?? globalMessagesProvider ?? undefined;
 		if (!hasCustomRules && !validationTranslator && !provider) {
 			if (isNativeAvailable()) {
-				return validateWithRust(fields, data);
+				const native = validateWithRust(fields, data);
+				// Report here too: the native path returns before the TS traversal,
+				// so instrumenting only the latter left the reporter silent exactly
+				// when the fast path was taken.
+				const nativeReporter = toReporter(
+					options?.errorReporter ??
+						validatorErrorReporter ??
+						globalErrorReporter ??
+						undefined,
+					data,
+					options?.meta ?? {},
+				);
+				if (nativeReporter) {
+					for (const error of native.errors) nativeReporter.report(error);
+				}
+				reporterError = nativeReporter?.createError;
+				return native;
 			}
-			// This schema would have used the native engine, but it isn't loaded —
-			// surface the platform-dependent TS fallback once instead of diverging
-			// silently.
-			warnNativeUnavailableOnce();
+			// This schema carries nothing the engine cannot run, so the engine is
+			// what must run it. Falling back to the TypeScript validator here made
+			// the verdict depend on whether a binary loaded.
+			assertNativeAvailable();
 		}
 
 		const errors: ValidationError[] = [];
@@ -396,6 +1432,7 @@ export function schema(
 			data,
 			parent: data,
 			meta: options?.meta ?? {},
+			errorReporter: options?.errorReporter,
 			messagesProvider: provider,
 		};
 
@@ -411,6 +1448,18 @@ export function schema(
 			}
 		}
 
+		const reporter = toReporter(
+			options?.errorReporter ??
+				validatorErrorReporter ??
+				globalErrorReporter ??
+				undefined,
+			data,
+			options?.meta ?? {},
+		);
+		if (reporter) {
+			for (const error of errors) reporter.report(error);
+		}
+		reporterError = reporter?.createError;
 		if (errors.length === 0) {
 			return { valid: true, errors, data: validated };
 		}
@@ -421,14 +1470,258 @@ export function schema(
 		data: unknown,
 		options?: ValidateOptions,
 	): Record<string, unknown> {
-		const result = validate(data, options);
+		const result = validateResult(data, options);
 		if (result.valid) {
 			return result.data;
 		}
-		throw new RuneValidationError(result.errors.map(toErrorNode));
+		// The reporter decides the failure shape when one is bound (VineJS).
+		throw reporterError
+			? reporterError()
+			: new RuneValidationError(result.errors.map(toErrorNode));
 	}
 
-	return { fields, validate, validateOrThrow };
+	async function validateResultAsync(
+		rawData: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<ValidationResult<Record<string, unknown>>> {
+		const data = convertEmptyStringsToNull
+			? convertEmptyStrings(rawData)
+			: rawData;
+		if (!isPlainObject(data)) {
+			return {
+				valid: false,
+				errors: [
+					{ field: "_root", rule: "type", message: "Input must be an object" },
+				],
+			};
+		}
+		const errors: ValidationError[] = [];
+		const validated: Record<string, unknown> = {};
+		const rootCtx: RunContext = {
+			data,
+			parent: data,
+			meta: options?.meta ?? {},
+			errorReporter: options?.errorReporter,
+			messagesProvider:
+				options?.messagesProvider ?? globalMessagesProvider ?? undefined,
+		};
+
+		for (const [field, chain] of Object.entries(fields)) {
+			// One collector per top-level field, drained straight away, so async
+			// errors stay grouped with their field rather than piling up at the end.
+			const pending: PendingAsync[] = [];
+			const result = chain._validateWithTransform(
+				field,
+				data[field],
+				rootCtx,
+				pending,
+			);
+			const fieldErrors = [...result.errors];
+			// The collector already applied the gate at every depth: a chain records
+			// itself only when its own subtree passed and its value is present —
+			// mirrors Lucid skipping a DB rule on an already-invalid or absent field.
+			for (const task of pending) {
+				const asyncErrors = await task.chain._runAsyncRules(
+					task.field,
+					task.value,
+					task.ctx,
+				);
+				fieldErrors.push(...asyncErrors);
+			}
+			errors.push(...fieldErrors);
+			if (fieldErrors.length === 0 && result.transformed !== undefined) {
+				validated[field] = result.transformed;
+			}
+		}
+
+		const reporter = toReporter(
+			options?.errorReporter ??
+				validatorErrorReporter ??
+				globalErrorReporter ??
+				undefined,
+			data,
+			options?.meta ?? {},
+		);
+		if (reporter) {
+			for (const error of errors) reporter.report(error);
+		}
+		reporterError = reporter?.createError;
+		if (errors.length === 0) {
+			return { valid: true, errors, data: validated };
+		}
+		return { valid: false, errors };
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Non-throwing validation returning a `[error, null] | [null, data]` tuple
+	 * (VineJS `tryValidate`), for when a failure is an expected code path.
+	 */
+	function tryValidateSync(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): [RuneValidationError, null] | [null, Record<string, unknown>] {
+		const result = validateResult(data, options);
+		if (result.valid) return [null, result.data];
+		return [new RuneValidationError(result.errors.map(toErrorNode)), null];
+	}
+
+	/** Async counterpart of {@link tryValidate}. */
+	async function tryValidate(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<[RuneValidationError, null] | [null, Record<string, unknown>]> {
+		const result = await validateResultAsync(data, options);
+		if (result.valid) return [null, result.data];
+		return [new RuneValidationError(result.errors.map(toErrorNode)), null];
+	}
+
+	async function validateOrThrowAsync(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<Record<string, unknown>> {
+		const result = await validateResultAsync(data, options);
+		if (result.valid) {
+			return result.data;
+		}
+		// The reporter decides the failure shape when one is bound (VineJS).
+		throw reporterError
+			? reporterError()
+			: new RuneValidationError(result.errors.map(toErrorNode));
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * The VineJS contract: async, returns the payload, throws on failure. A
+	 * schema carrying async rules works here without the caller having to know,
+	 * which is the whole point of Vine's single entry point.
+	 */
+	async function validate(
+		data: unknown,
+		options?: ValidateOptions,
+	): Promise<Record<string, unknown>> {
+		return validateOrThrowAsync(data, options);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Introspection of the compiled schema (VineJS `toJSON`): field names and the
+	 * rules attached to each, enough to render a form or diff two schemas.
+	 */
+	function toJSON(): { schema: SchemaIntrospection; refs: string[] } {
+		// VineJS shape: `{ schema, refs }`. The flat `{ field: { rules } }` map was
+		// rune's own invention, so a consumer written against Vine read undefined.
+		return {
+			schema: introspect(fields),
+			refs: Object.keys(fields),
+		};
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Emit a JSON Schema for the compiled validator (VineJS `toJSONSchema`).
+	 * Covers the rules that HAVE a JSON Schema equivalent; a custom rule
+	 * contributes its `jsonSchema` metadata when it declares one, and is
+	 * otherwise omitted rather than guessed at.
+	 */
+	function toJSONSchema(): Record<string, unknown> {
+		return chainToJSONSchema(fields);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Standard Schema v1 (`~standard`), the vendor-neutral contract VineJS also
+	 * implements — lets a consumer validate without knowing it holds a rune
+	 * schema.
+	 */
+	const standard = {
+		version: 1 as const,
+		vendor: "rune",
+		/**
+		 * Standard JSON Schema v1 (`~standard.jsonSchema`), added by VineJS 4.3.
+		 * `input` describes what may be sent, `output` what validation returns.
+		 */
+		jsonSchema: {
+			input: (): Record<string, unknown> => toJSONSchema(),
+			output: (): Record<string, unknown> => toJSONSchema(),
+		},
+		validate: (
+			value: unknown,
+		): Promise<
+			| { value: Record<string, unknown> }
+			| { issues: ReadonlyArray<{ message: string; path: string[] }> }
+		> =>
+			validateResultAsync(value).then((result) =>
+				result.valid
+					? { value: result.data }
+					: {
+							issues: result.errors.map((error) => ({
+								message: error.message,
+								path: error.field.split("."),
+							})),
+						},
+			),
+	};
+
+	return {
+		fields,
+		/** Per-validator error reporter (VineJS `validator.errorReporter`). */
+		get errorReporter() {
+			return validatorErrorReporter;
+		},
+		set errorReporter(reporter:
+			| ErrorReporterFactory
+			| ((error: ValidationError) => void)
+			| null,) {
+			validatorErrorReporter = reporter;
+		},
+		// ALWAYS a chain, even when the validator was built from a bare field map:
+		// VineJS documents `createUserValidator.schema.partial()`, and returning
+		// the map left that broken on the most common Adonis path.
+		schema: objectChain ?? new RuleChain().object(fields),
+		"~standard": standard,
+		toJSON,
+		toJSONSchema,
+		validate,
+		validateResult,
+		validateResultAsync,
+		validateOrThrow,
+		validateOrThrowAsync,
+		tryValidate,
+		tryValidateSync,
+	};
+}
+
+/**
+ * VineJS's `vine.create(...)`. Same thing as {@link schema} — the Adonis
+ * spelling is provided so a validator reads the same in both frameworks.
+ */
+/**
+ * VineJS's `vine.create(...)`. Accepts either a map of fields (rune's native
+ * spelling) or the `RuleChain` produced by `rune.object({...})`, because
+ * `vine.create(vine.object({...}))` is the form Adonis documents.
+ */
+export function create<S extends Record<string, RuleChain>>(
+	fields: S,
+): ValidationSchema<Infer<S>>;
+export function create(chain: RuleChain): ValidationSchema;
+export function create(
+	input: Record<string, RuleChain> | RuleChain,
+): ValidationSchema {
+	return input instanceof RuleChain
+		? schema(toFieldMap(input), input)
+		: schema(input);
+}
+
+/** Unwrap `rune.object({...})` back to the field map `schema()` expects. */
+function toFieldMap(
+	input: Record<string, RuleChain> | RuleChain,
+): Record<string, RuleChain> {
+	if (!(input instanceof RuleChain)) return input;
+	const shape = input.getProperties();
+	if (!shape) {
+		throw new RuneError(
+			"NOT_AN_OBJECT",
+			"create()/compile() received a chain that declares no object shape.",
+			{ hint: "Use rune.object({ … }), or pass the field map directly." },
+		);
+	}
+	return shape;
 }
 
 /** Map an internal {@link ValidationError} to a {@link RuneErrorNode}. */
@@ -461,10 +1754,24 @@ export interface RuleDef {
 	param?: number;
 	/** Interpolation args exposed to i18n/messages providers (e.g. `{ min: 3 }`). */
 	args?: Record<string, unknown>;
-	validate: (value: unknown) => boolean;
+	/**
+	 * `field` is the context VineJS hands a rule — a callback-valued rule
+	 * (`in`, `notIn`, `enum`) reads `meta`/`parent` off it to compute its list
+	 * per request. Rules that do not need it simply declare one parameter.
+	 */
+	validate: (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean;
 	message: string;
 	/** Set when `.message()` overrode this rule's default text. */
 	hasCustomMessage?: boolean;
+	/**
+	 * Keep this rule off the Rust path even though its NAME is in
+	 * {@link NATIVE_RULES}. Set by options the native engine does not know about
+	 * (`uuid({ version })`, a callback list for `in` / `notIn`): the engine would
+	 * run the rule without them and silently answer a different question.
+	 */
+	tsOnly?: boolean;
+	/** Modifier this rule applies to its field's JSON Schema node. */
+	toJSONSchema?: JsonSchemaModifier;
 }
 
 /** A conditional-required condition (VineJS `requiredWhen` family). */
@@ -483,6 +1790,23 @@ const UUID_RE =
 	/^[0-9a-f]{8}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{4}-[0-9a-f]{12}$/i;
 
 /** Rule chain — fluent, phantom-typed validation builder. */
+/**
+ * The value list accepted by `in` / `notIn` / `enum` — static, or computed at
+ * validation time (VineJS parity).
+ */
+export type AllowedValues =
+	| ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>
+	| ((field: FieldContext) => ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>);
+
+/** Normalise a static list or a callback into a getter. */
+function allowedValuesResolver(
+	values: AllowedValues,
+): (field: FieldContext) => ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean> {
+	if (typeof values === "function") return values;
+	const snapshot = [...values];
+	return () => snapshot;
+}
+
 export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	/** Phantom output type — drives {@link Infer}; never read at runtime. */
 	declare readonly [OUTPUT]: Output;
@@ -490,15 +1814,58 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	#rules: RuleDef[] = [];
 	#isOptional = false;
 	#isNullable = false;
-	#bail = false;
+	/**
+	 * VineJS validates a field in bail mode by DEFAULT — it stops at that field's
+	 * first failing rule (`FieldOptions.bail: true`). rune defaulted to `false`
+	 * and reported every failing rule, which silently produced a different error
+	 * array for the same schema. `.bail(false)` restores the exhaustive mode.
+	 */
+	#bail = true;
 	#transforms: Array<{
 		name: string;
 		fn: (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => unknown;
 	}> = [];
-	#preTransforms: Array<(value: unknown) => unknown> = [];
+	#preTransforms: Array<(value: unknown, ctx: ParseContext) => unknown> = [];
+	/**
+	 * Type coercions (VineJS accepts `"32"` for a number). Kept OUT of
+	 * `#preTransforms` on purpose: a pre-transform forces the TS path, and the
+	 * Rust engine implements the very same coercion from the rule's `strict`
+	 * param, so both engines agree without giving up the native path.
+	 */
+	#coercions: Array<(value: unknown) => unknown> = [];
+	/** Formats accepted by `date()` — also used to parse `afterField` siblings. */
+	#dateFormats: DateFormat[] | null = null;
 	#nestedSchema: Record<string, RuleChain> | null = null;
 	#arrayItemChain: RuleChain | null = null;
+	#allowUnknown = false;
+	#metadata: Record<string, unknown> | null = null;
+	/** Extensions / MIME types declared by `file()` / `mimeTypes()`. */
+	#declaredExtnames: readonly string[] | null = null;
+	#declaredMimeTypes: readonly string[] | null = null;
+	/** `true` once the content-verification rule has been registered. */
+	#contentVerified = false;
+	/** Set by `{ verifyContent: false }` — an explicit, auditable opt-out. */
+	#contentVerificationOff = false;
+	#camelCaseKeys = false;
+	#groups: ConditionalGroup[] = [];
+	#recordValueChain: RuleChain | null = null;
+	#enumChoices:
+		| ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>
+		| ((field: FieldContext) => ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>)
+		| null = null;
+	#recordKeysCheck: RecordKeysCallback | null = null;
+	#tupleChains: RuleChain[] | null = null;
+	#unionChains: ConditionalBranch[] | null = null;
+	#unionNoMatch: UnionNoMatchCallback | null = null;
 	#useRules: CompiledRule[] = [];
+	#asyncRules: AsyncCompiledRule[] = [];
+	/** Last rule added, whichever register it landed in — the `message()` target. */
+	#lastRule:
+		| { kind: "value"; ref: RuleDef }
+		| { kind: "reporting"; ref: CompiledRule | AsyncCompiledRule }
+		| null = null;
+	/** `.message()` overrides for rules that report their own text from `run`. */
+	#ruleMessages = new Map<CompiledRule | AsyncCompiledRule, string>();
 	#requiredConditions: RequiredCondition[] = [];
 
 	/** Public read access to rules (for OpenAPI generation, Rust bridge). */
@@ -522,8 +1889,62 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	get useRules(): readonly CompiledRule[] {
 		return this.#useRules;
 	}
+	/** Public read access to async rules (`unique`/`exists`/`useAsync`) — run by `validateResultAsync`. */
+	get asyncRules(): readonly AsyncCompiledRule[] {
+		return this.#asyncRules;
+	}
+	/**
+	 * Does this chain — or anything nested under it (object fields, array items) —
+	 * carry async rules? The schema-level detection used to inspect only the
+	 * top-level chains, so a nested `unique`/`exists` was invisible: `validate()`
+	 * did not throw and the async pass never ran the rule, silently accepting
+	 * an unchecked value.
+	 */
+	get hasAsyncRulesDeep(): boolean {
+		if (this.#asyncRules.length > 0) return true;
+		if (this.#nestedSchema) {
+			for (const chain of Object.values(this.#nestedSchema)) {
+				if (chain.hasAsyncRulesDeep) return true;
+			}
+		}
+		if (this.#arrayItemChain?.hasAsyncRulesDeep) return true;
+		if (this.#recordValueChain?.hasAsyncRulesDeep) return true;
+		for (const chain of [
+			...(this.#tupleChains ?? []),
+			...(this.#unionChains ?? []).map((b) => b.chain),
+		]) {
+			if (chain.hasAsyncRulesDeep) return true;
+		}
+		return false;
+	}
+	/** Does this object keep keys its shape does not declare? */
+	get allowsUnknown(): boolean {
+		return this.#allowUnknown;
+	}
+	/** Free-form JSON Schema metadata attached with `meta()`. */
+	get metadata(): Record<string, unknown> | null {
+		return this.#metadata;
+	}
+	/** The item chain of an `array()`, if declared. */
+	get arrayItem(): RuleChain | null {
+		return this.#arrayItemChain;
+	}
+	/** The positional chains of a `tuple()`, if declared. */
+	get tupleItems(): RuleChain[] | null {
+		return this.#tupleChains;
+	}
+	/** The value chain of a `record()`, if declared. */
+	get recordValue(): RuleChain | null {
+		return this.#recordValueChain;
+	}
+	/** Whether this chain stops at its first failing rule (VineJS `bail`). */
+	get bails(): boolean {
+		return this.#bail;
+	}
 	/** Public read access to `.parse()` pre-transforms (kept off the native path). */
-	get preTransforms(): ReadonlyArray<(value: unknown) => unknown> {
+	get preTransforms(): ReadonlyArray<
+		(value: unknown, ctx: ParseContext) => unknown
+	> {
 		return this.#preTransforms;
 	}
 	/** Whether this chain carries a `requiredWhen`-family condition. */
@@ -544,10 +1965,29 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		next.#isNullable = this.#isNullable;
 		next.#bail = this.#bail;
 		next.#transforms = [...this.#transforms];
+		next.#dateFormats = this.#dateFormats;
+		next.#coercions = [...this.#coercions];
+		next.#allowUnknown = this.#allowUnknown;
+		next.#metadata = this.#metadata ? { ...this.#metadata } : null;
+		next.#declaredExtnames = this.#declaredExtnames;
+		next.#declaredMimeTypes = this.#declaredMimeTypes;
+		next.#contentVerified = this.#contentVerified;
+		next.#contentVerificationOff = this.#contentVerificationOff;
+		next.#camelCaseKeys = this.#camelCaseKeys;
+		next.#groups = [...this.#groups];
+		next.#recordValueChain = this.#recordValueChain;
+		next.#enumChoices = this.#enumChoices;
+		next.#recordKeysCheck = this.#recordKeysCheck;
+		next.#tupleChains = this.#tupleChains;
+		next.#unionChains = this.#unionChains;
+		next.#unionNoMatch = this.#unionNoMatch;
+		next.#ruleMessages = new Map(this.#ruleMessages);
+		next.#lastRule = this.#lastRule;
 		next.#preTransforms = [...this.#preTransforms];
 		next.#nestedSchema = this.#nestedSchema;
 		next.#arrayItemChain = this.#arrayItemChain;
 		next.#useRules = [...this.#useRules];
+		next.#asyncRules = [...this.#asyncRules];
 		next.#requiredConditions = [...this.#requiredConditions];
 		return next;
 	}
@@ -581,7 +2021,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	object<Sh extends Record<string, RuleChain>>(
 		shape: Sh,
 	): RuleChain<Infer<Sh>> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "object",
 			validate: (v) => isPlainObject(v),
 			message: "Must be an object",
@@ -592,7 +2032,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Must be an array. Items validated by the provided chain. */
 	array<Item extends RuleChain>(itemChain?: Item): RuleChain<OutputOf<Item>[]> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "array",
 			validate: (v) => Array.isArray(v),
 			message: "Must be an array",
@@ -603,7 +2043,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Must be a string. */
 	string(): RuleChain<string> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "string",
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string",
 			message: "Must be a string",
@@ -611,10 +2051,17 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		return this.#retype<string>();
 	}
 
-	/** Must be a number. */
-	number(): RuleChain<number> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	/**
+	 * Must be a number. Like VineJS, a numeric STRING is coerced (`"32"` → `32`)
+	 * — HTML form bodies and query strings carry numbers as text, so requiring
+	 * `typeof v === "number"` rejected the values Adonis accepts. Pass
+	 * `{ strict: true }` to refuse anything that is not already a number.
+	 */
+	number(options?: { strict?: boolean }): RuleChain<number> {
+		if (!options?.strict) this.#coercions.push(coerceNumber);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "number",
+			args: { strict: options?.strict === true },
 			validate: (v) =>
 				typeof v === "number" && !Number.isNaN(v) && Number.isFinite(v),
 			message: "Must be a number",
@@ -622,35 +2069,705 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		return this.#retype<number>();
 	}
 
-	/** Must be a boolean. */
-	boolean(): RuleChain<boolean> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	/**
+	 * Must be a boolean. Like VineJS, `"true"`, `"false"`, `"on"`, `"off"`,
+	 * `"1"`, `"0"`, `1` and `0` are coerced; `{ strict: true }` refuses them.
+	 */
+	boolean(options?: { strict?: boolean }): RuleChain<boolean> {
+		if (!options?.strict) this.#coercions.push(coerceBoolean);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "boolean",
+			args: { strict: options?.strict === true },
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "boolean",
 			message: "Must be a boolean",
 		});
 		return this.#retype<boolean>();
 	}
 
-	/** Must equal one of `values` (enum). Narrows the output to the union. */
+	/**
+	 * Must be a date (VineJS `vine.date()`). ISO 8601 by default; pass `formats`
+	 * for unix timestamps (`x` = ms, `X` = seconds) or a token format such as
+	 * `DD/MM/YYYY`. Parsing is calendar-strict — `2026-02-31` is rejected.
+	 *
+	 * The validated output is a `Date`; bind {@link setDateTransform} to map it
+	 * to your own type once at boot.
+	 */
+	date(options?: { formats?: DateFormat[] }): RuleChain<Date> {
+		const formats = options?.formats ?? ["iso8601"];
+		this.#dateFormats = formats;
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "date",
+			args: { formats },
+			validate: (v) => parseDateValue(v, formats) !== null,
+			message: "Must be a valid date",
+		});
+		// Parse to a real `Date` BEFORE the comparison rules run, so `after`/
+		// `before` never re-parse and never compare strings lexicographically.
+		this.#transforms.push({
+			name: "date",
+			fn: (value) => parseDateValue(value, formats) ?? value,
+		});
+		return this.#retype<Date>();
+	}
+
+	/** Must be strictly after `operand` (`'today'`, an ISO string, or a `Date`). */
+	after(operand: unknown, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDate("after", operand, (a, b) => a > b, options);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be strictly before `operand`. */
+	before(operand: unknown, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDate("before", operand, (a, b) => a < b, options);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be after `operand`, or equal to it. */
+	afterOrEqual(operand: unknown, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDate(
+			"afterOrEqual",
+			operand,
+			(a, b) => a >= b,
+			options,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be before `operand`, or equal to it. */
+	beforeOrEqual(operand: unknown, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDate(
+			"beforeOrEqual",
+			operand,
+			(a, b) => a <= b,
+			options,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be after the date held by a sibling field (VineJS `afterField`). */
+	afterField(otherField: string, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDateField(
+			"afterField",
+			otherField,
+			options,
+			(a, b) => a > b,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be before the date held by a sibling field. */
+	beforeField(otherField: string, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDateField(
+			"beforeField",
+			otherField,
+			options,
+			(a, b) => a < b,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be the same instant as `operand` (VineJS `equals`). */
+	equals(operand: unknown, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDate("equals", operand, (a, b) => a === b, options);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be after the sibling's date, or the same instant (VineJS `afterOrSameAs`). */
+	afterOrSameAs(otherField: string, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDateField(
+			"afterOrSameAs",
+			otherField,
+			options,
+			(a, b) => a >= b,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be before the sibling's date, or the same instant. */
+	beforeOrSameAs(otherField: string, options?: DateCompareOptions): this {
+		return this.#compareDateField(
+			"beforeOrSameAs",
+			otherField,
+			options,
+			(a, b) => a <= b,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must fall on a Saturday or Sunday (VineJS `weekend`). */
+	weekend(): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "weekend",
+			validate: (v) =>
+				v instanceof Date && (v.getDay() === 0 || v.getDay() === 6),
+			message: "Must be a weekend date",
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Must fall on a Monday-to-Friday day (VineJS `weekday`). */
+	weekday(): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "weekday",
+			validate: (v) => v instanceof Date && v.getDay() > 0 && v.getDay() < 6,
+			message: "Must be a weekday date",
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Shared body of the `after`/`before`/`*OrEqual` literal comparisons. */
+	#compareDate(
+		name: string,
+		operand: unknown,
+		cmp: (a: number, b: number) => boolean,
+		options?: DateCompareOptions,
+	): this {
+		// VineJS: `options.compare || "day"`. A bare `after('today')` is about the
+		// calendar date, not the clock — comparing exact timestamps made every
+		// same-day value fail a rule the caller read as "today or later".
+		const unit: CompareUnit = options?.compare ?? "day";
+		const formats = options?.format ? [options.format] : null;
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name,
+			// A callable operand is resolved per validation, not once at build
+			// time — otherwise `after(() => Date.now())` would freeze the boundary
+			// at the moment the schema was declared (VineJS allows the callback).
+			args: typeof operand === "function" ? undefined : { operand },
+			validate: (v) => {
+				const raw =
+					typeof operand === "function"
+						? (operand as () => unknown)()
+						: operand;
+				const other =
+					formats && typeof raw === "string"
+						? parseDateValue(raw, formats)
+						: resolveOperand(raw);
+				if (!(v instanceof Date) || other === null) return false;
+				return cmp(truncateTo(v, unit), truncateTo(other, unit));
+			},
+			message: `Must be ${name.replace(/([A-Z])/g, " $1").toLowerCase()} ${String(operand)}`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Shared body of the `afterField`/`beforeField` sibling comparisons. */
+	#compareDateField(
+		name: string,
+		otherField: string,
+		options: DateCompareOptions | undefined,
+		cmp: (a: number, b: number) => boolean,
+	): this {
+		const formats = options?.format
+			? [options.format]
+			: (this.#dateFormats ?? ["iso8601"]);
+		const unit: CompareUnit = options?.compare ?? "day";
+		this.#pushUse({
+			__rune: "rule",
+			run: (value, field) => {
+				const other = parseDateValue(readSibling(field, otherField), formats);
+				if (!(value instanceof Date) || other === null) {
+					field.report(`Cannot compare with ${otherField}`, name);
+					return;
+				}
+				if (!cmp(truncateTo(value, unit), truncateTo(other, unit))) {
+					field.report(
+						`Must be ${name.replace("Field", "")} ${otherField}`,
+						name,
+					);
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Keep keys the object shape does not declare (VineJS
+	 * `allowUnknownProperties`). Off by default: dropping undeclared keys is what
+	 * makes a validated payload safe to hand to a mass assignment.
+	 */
+	allowUnknownProperties(): this {
+		this.#allowUnknown = true;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Convert the object's KEYS to camelCase in the output (VineJS
+	 * `object.toCamelCase()`), so a snake_case payload hydrates camelCase
+	 * properties. Distinct from the string `toCamelCase()`, which rewrites a
+	 * VALUE — that one was never a substitute for this.
+	 */
+	toCamelCaseKeys(): this {
+		return this.toCamelCase();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Merge extra properties into this object's shape (VineJS `merge`). Accepts a
+	 * plain shape or a {@link ConditionalGroup} whose branch is chosen per
+	 * payload — `vine.group` in VineJS.
+	 */
+	merge(extra: Record<string, RuleChain> | ConditionalGroup): this {
+		if (!this.#nestedSchema) {
+			throw new RuneError(
+				"NOT_AN_OBJECT",
+				"merge() needs an object() shape to merge into.",
+				{ hint: "rules.any().object({ … }).merge({ … })" },
+			);
+		}
+		if (isConditionalGroup(extra)) {
+			this.#groups.push(extra);
+			return this;
+		}
+		this.#nestedSchema = { ...this.#nestedSchema, ...extra };
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** The nested shape declared by `object()`, if any (VineJS `getProperties`). */
+	getProperties(): Record<string, RuleChain> | null {
+		// CLONE each chain, not just the map. A shallow copy shares the chain
+		// instances, so mutating one through the copy relaxes the source schema —
+		// the same trap that made `partial()` mutate its origin.
+		if (!this.#nestedSchema) return null;
+		return Object.fromEntries(
+			Object.entries(this.#nestedSchema).map(([key, chain]) => [
+				key,
+				chain.clone(),
+			]),
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Independent copy of this chain (VineJS `clone`). */
+	clone(): RuleChain<Output> {
+		return this.#retype<Output>();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * A CLONED subset of the object's properties (VineJS `pick`).
+	 *
+	 * Returns a properties record, not a schema — VineJS types it
+	 * `Pick<Properties, Keys>` precisely so it composes by spread:
+	 * `rules.any().object({ ...userShape.pick(["id"]) })`. Returning a chain here
+	 * broke that idiom.
+	 */
+	pick<K extends string>(keys: readonly K[]): Record<string, RuleChain> {
+		return this.#subsetOfProperties((key) => keys.includes(key as K));
+	}
+
+	/** A cloned copy of the properties EXCLUDING `keys` (VineJS `omit`). */
+	omit<K extends string>(keys: readonly K[]): Record<string, RuleChain> {
+		return this.#subsetOfProperties((key) => !keys.includes(key as K));
+	}
+
+	/** Shared body of `pick`/`omit` — clones so the source stays untouched. */
+	#subsetOfProperties(
+		keep: (key: string) => boolean,
+	): Record<string, RuleChain> {
+		const shape = this.getProperties();
+		if (!shape) {
+			throw new RuneError(
+				"NOT_AN_OBJECT",
+				"pick()/omit() need an object() shape to work on.",
+				{ hint: "rules.any().object({ … }).pick([…])" },
+			);
+		}
+		return Object.fromEntries(
+			Object.entries(shape).filter(([key]) => keep(key)),
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Make every property of an object shape optional (VineJS `partial`). */
+	partial(keys?: readonly string[]): RuleChain<Output> {
+		// `optional()` mutates and returns the SAME chain, so calling it on the
+		// stored properties made the source shape optional too — `base.partial()`
+		// silently relaxed `base`. Clone each property first, like VineJS does.
+		return this.#reshape((shape) =>
+			Object.fromEntries(
+				Object.entries(shape).map(([key, chain]) => [
+					key,
+					keys === undefined || keys.includes(key)
+						? chain.clone().optional()
+						: chain,
+				]),
+			),
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Shared body of `pick`/`omit`/`partial` — rebuilds the nested shape on a clone. */
+	#reshape(
+		transform: (shape: Record<string, RuleChain>) => Record<string, RuleChain>,
+	): RuleChain<Output> {
+		if (!this.#nestedSchema) {
+			throw new RuneError(
+				"NOT_AN_OBJECT",
+				"pick()/omit()/partial() need an object() shape to work on.",
+				{
+					hint: "Declare the shape first: rules.any().object({ … }).pick([…])",
+				},
+			);
+		}
+		const next = this.#retype<Output>();
+		next.#nestedSchema = transform(this.#nestedSchema);
+		return next;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be an "accepted" value — `true`, `1`, `"1"`, `"on"`, `"yes"`,
+	 * `"true"` (VineJS `accepted`, for checkbox-style consent fields).
+	 */
+	accepted(): RuleChain<true> {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "accepted",
+			validate: isAcceptedValue,
+			message: "Must be accepted",
+		});
+		// Normalise ONLY an accepted value: a blanket `() => true` would rewrite a
+		// refused value into an accepted one before the rule ever saw it.
+		this.#transforms.push({
+			name: "accepted",
+			fn: (value) => (isAcceptedValue(value) ? true : value),
+		});
+		return this.#retype<true>();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Object with arbitrary keys, every value validated by `valueChain`
+	 * (VineJS `record`).
+	 */
+	record<Item extends RuleChain>(
+		valueChain: Item,
+	): RuleChain<Record<string, OutputOf<Item>>> {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "record",
+			validate: (v) => isPlainObject(v),
+			message: "Must be an object",
+		});
+		this.#recordValueChain = valueChain;
+		return this.#retype<Record<string, OutputOf<Item>>>();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Check the record's KEYS, not its values (VineJS `record().validateKeys()`).
+	 *
+	 * The callback receives every key at once and reports through the field
+	 * context — the set is what matters when keys must be exclusive, exhaustive,
+	 * or drawn from a list only known at runtime.
+	 */
+	validateKeys(callback: RecordKeysCallback): this {
+		this.#recordKeysCheck = callback;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Fixed-length array with a schema per position (VineJS `tuple`). Extra
+	 * items are rejected — a tuple that silently ignores a trailing element is
+	 * how unvalidated data slips through.
+	 */
+	tuple<const Items extends readonly RuleChain[]>(
+		items: Items,
+	): RuleChain<{ [K in keyof Items]: OutputOf<Items[K]> }> {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "tuple",
+			args: { length: items.length },
+			validate: (v) => Array.isArray(v) && v.length === items.length,
+			message: `Must be an array of exactly ${items.length} items`,
+		});
+		this.#tupleChains = [...items];
+		return this.#retype<{ [K in keyof Items]: OutputOf<Items[K]> }>();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Value must satisfy at least one of `chains`.
+	 *
+	 * Two forms, both supported:
+	 *
+	 * - guarded (VineJS parity): `union([rules.union.if(pred, chain), …,
+	 *   rules.union.else(fallback)])` — the predicate SELECTS the branch and
+	 *   that branch's own errors are reported, so a failure says which shape was
+	 *   meant and why it did not fit.
+	 * - bare chains: tried in order, first match wins, and a total miss reports a
+	 *   single `union` error rather than every losing branch's noise.
+	 */
+	/**
+	 * What to do when NO union branch matched (VineJS `union().otherwise()`).
+	 *
+	 * The callback receives the value and the field, and reports the error it
+	 * wants — the point being that "matches nothing" is a useless message when
+	 * the caller knows which shapes were on offer. Reporting nothing from the
+	 * callback suppresses the generic error entirely, which is how a union
+	 * folded into a larger check stays quiet.
+	 */
+	otherwise(callback: UnionNoMatchCallback): this {
+		this.#unionNoMatch = callback;
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	union(chains: readonly UnionBranch[]): this {
+		this.#unionChains = chains.map(toUnionBranch);
+		// Marker rule: its name is not in NATIVE_RULES, which is what keeps a
+		// union off the native path. The Rust engine knows nothing about branches
+		// and would silently accept anything.
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "union",
+			validate: () => true,
+			message: "Does not match any allowed shape",
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be an uploaded file (VineJS/Adonis `vine.file()`).
+	 *
+	 * Named deviation: Adonis validates a bodyparser `MultipartFile`, which rune
+	 * cannot import and stay agnostic. It checks the STRUCTURE instead — any
+	 * object exposing `size` and a name/extension — so an Adonis MultipartFile
+	 * satisfies it, and so does any other upload representation.
+	 *
+	 * `size` is a byte count; `extnames` are compared lowercase, without the dot.
+	 */
+	file(options?: {
+		size?: number | string;
+		extnames?: readonly string[];
+		/**
+		 * Skip the magic-number check. Default `true` — Adonis derives `extname`
+		 * from the real bytes before validation, so trusting the declaration is
+		 * NOT the safe default: a `.exe` renamed `.png` satisfies every
+		 * declarative check, since all of them come from the uploader.
+		 */
+		verifyContent?: boolean;
+	}): RuleChain<FileLike> {
+		// Adonis documents `size: '2mb'`; a numeric-only option meant a
+		// transcribed validator either failed the typecheck or, in JS, silently
+		// stopped capping.
+		const maxBytes =
+			options?.size === undefined ? undefined : parseByteSize(options.size);
+		if (options?.extnames) this.#declaredExtnames = options.extnames;
+		if (options?.verifyContent === false) this.#contentVerificationOff = true;
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "file",
+			args: options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+			validate: (v) => {
+				if (!isFileLike(v)) return false;
+				if (maxBytes !== undefined && v.size > maxBytes) return false;
+				if (options?.extnames) {
+					const ext = fileExtension(v);
+					if (ext === null) return false;
+					if (!options.extnames.map((e) => e.toLowerCase()).includes(ext)) {
+						return false;
+					}
+				}
+				return true;
+			},
+			message: "Must be a valid file",
+		});
+		// Declaring an allowed extension list is a SECURITY statement, so the
+		// bytes are checked by default. `{ verifyContent: false }` opts out
+		// explicitly and leaves a trace in the schema.
+		if (options?.extnames) this.#ensureContentVerification();
+		return this.#retype<FileLike>();
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Uploaded file with VineJS `nativeFile` options — `minSize`, `maxSize`,
+	 * `mimeTypes`. Same structural contract as {@link file}: rune never reads
+	 * bytes, so the MIME type is the one the upload REPORTS.
+	 */
+	nativeFile(options?: {
+		minSize?: number | string;
+		maxSize?: number | string;
+		mimeTypes?: readonly string[];
+	}): RuleChain<FileLike> {
+		const min =
+			options?.minSize === undefined
+				? undefined
+				: parseByteSize(options.minSize);
+		const max =
+			options?.maxSize === undefined
+				? undefined
+				: parseByteSize(options.maxSize);
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "nativeFile",
+			args: options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+			validate: (v) => {
+				if (!isFileLike(v)) return false;
+				if (min !== undefined && v.size < min) return false;
+				if (max !== undefined && v.size > max) return false;
+				if (options?.mimeTypes) {
+					const type = typeof v.type === "string" ? v.type.toLowerCase() : null;
+					if (type === null) return false;
+					if (!options.mimeTypes.map((m) => m.toLowerCase()).includes(type)) {
+						return false;
+					}
+				}
+				return true;
+			},
+			message: "Must be a valid file",
+		});
+		// Declaring allowed MIME types is a SECURITY statement, so the bytes are
+		// checked by default.
+		if (options?.mimeTypes) this.#ensureContentVerification();
+		return this.#retype<FileLike>();
+	}
+
+	/** Minimum upload size (VineJS `nativeFile().minSize()`). */
+	minSize(size: number | string): this {
+		const min = parseByteSize(size);
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "minSize",
+			args: { size },
+			validate: (v) => isFileLike(v) && v.size >= min,
+			message: `Must be at least ${size} in size`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Maximum upload size (VineJS `nativeFile().maxSize()`). */
+	maxSize(size: number | string): this {
+		const max = parseByteSize(size);
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "maxSize",
+			args: { size },
+			validate: (v) => isFileLike(v) && v.size <= max,
+			message: `Must be at most ${size} in size`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Allowed MIME types (VineJS `nativeFile().mimeTypes()`). The type is the one
+	 * the upload REPORTS — rune never reads bytes, see {@link file}.
+	 */
+	mimeTypes(types: readonly string[]): this {
+		const allowed = types.map((t) => t.toLowerCase());
+		this.#declaredMimeTypes = allowed;
+		this.#ensureContentVerification();
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "mimeTypes",
+			args: { types: allowed },
+			validate: (v) =>
+				isFileLike(v) &&
+				typeof v.type === "string" &&
+				allowed.includes(v.type.toLowerCase()),
+			message: `Must be one of ${allowed.join(", ")}`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Verify the file's REAL type against its magic number (Adonis parity).
+	 *
+	 * A `.exe` renamed `.jpg` passes every declarative check — size, extension,
+	 * reported MIME — because all three come from the uploader. This reads the
+	 * leading bytes and refuses a mismatch.
+	 *
+	 * Async by nature (it touches the filesystem), so the schema must run with
+	 * `validateResultAsync` / `validate`. Needs a byte source on the file object
+	 * (`buffer`, `tmpPath`, `filePath` or `path`) — an Adonis `MultipartFile`
+	 * carries `tmpPath`. With NO source it FAILS: a content check that cannot
+	 * run must never look like one that passed.
+	 */
+	verifyContent(): this {
+		this.#contentVerificationOff = false;
+		return this.#ensureContentVerification();
+	}
+
+	/** Register the content check once, honouring an explicit opt-out. */
+	#ensureContentVerification(): this {
+		if (this.#contentVerified || this.#contentVerificationOff) return this;
+		this.#contentVerified = true;
+		return this.#registerContentVerification();
+	}
+
+	/** The async rule itself — reads the bytes and confronts the declaration. */
+	#registerContentVerification(): this {
+		const extnames = this.#declaredExtnames;
+		const mimeTypes = this.#declaredMimeTypes;
+		this.#pushAsync({
+			__rune: "asyncRule",
+			async run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void> {
+				if (!isFileLike(value)) {
+					field.report("Must be a valid file", "verifyContent");
+					return;
+				}
+				const head = await readFileHead(value);
+				if (head === null) {
+					field.report(
+						"Cannot read the file's content to verify its type",
+						"verifyContent",
+					);
+					return;
+				}
+				const detected = detectFileType(head);
+				if (detected === null) {
+					field.report("File type could not be recognised", "verifyContent");
+					return;
+				}
+				// The declared extension must agree with the bytes.
+				const declaredExt =
+					typeof value.extname === "string" && value.extname.length > 0
+						? value.extname
+						: null;
+				if (declaredExt && !extensionMatches(detected.ext, declaredExt)) {
+					field.report(
+						`Content is ${detected.ext}, not ${declaredExt.replace(/^\./, "")}`,
+						"verifyContent",
+					);
+					return;
+				}
+				if (
+					extnames &&
+					!extnames.some((allowed) => extensionMatches(detected.ext, allowed))
+				) {
+					field.report(
+						`Content is ${detected.ext}, which is not allowed`,
+						"verifyContent",
+					);
+					return;
+				}
+				if (mimeTypes && !mimeTypes.includes(detected.mime)) {
+					field.report(
+						`Content is ${detected.mime}, which is not allowed`,
+						"verifyContent",
+					);
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must equal one of `values` (enum). Narrows the output to the union.
+	 *
+	 * `values` may be a callback receiving the field, which is how a list that
+	 * depends on the request — the roles this tenant allows, the statuses this
+	 * user may set — is computed per validation instead of frozen at import.
+	 */
 	enum<const V extends readonly (string | number | boolean)[]>(
-		values: V,
+		values: V | ((field: FieldContext) => V),
 	): RuleChain<V[number]> {
-		const allowed = [...values];
-		this.#rules.push({
+		const lazy = typeof values === "function";
+		const resolve = allowedValuesResolver(values);
+		this.#enumChoices = lazy ? values : [...values];
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "enum",
-			args: { values: allowed },
-			validate: (v) => allowed.includes(asPrimitive(v)),
+			args: lazy ? {} : { values: [...values] },
+			// A computed list is per-call; the native engine only ever sees a
+			// static array, so it must not run this rule.
+			tsOnly: lazy,
+			validate: (v, field) => resolve(field).includes(asPrimitive(v)),
 			message: "Invalid value",
 		});
 		return this.#retype<V[number]>();
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * The choices this enum was declared with (VineJS `getChoices()`) — the list
+	 * itself, or the callback when it is computed per request.
+	 *
+	 * Reading them back is what lets a form render the same options the
+	 * validator will accept, from one declaration instead of two.
+	 */
+	getChoices():
+		| ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>
+		| ((field: FieldContext) => ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>)
+		| undefined {
+		return this.#enumChoices ?? undefined;
+	}
+
 	/** Must equal a literal value. */
 	literal<V extends string | number | boolean>(value: V): RuleChain<V> {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "literal",
-			args: { expectedValue: value },
+			args: { value, expectedValue: value },
 			validate: (v) => v === value,
 			message: `Must be ${String(value)}`,
 		});
@@ -659,7 +2776,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Minimum length (string) or minimum value (number). Alias of min/minLength. */
 	min(n: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "min",
 			param: n,
 			args: { min: n },
@@ -676,7 +2793,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Maximum length (string) or maximum value (number). Alias of max/maxLength. */
 	max(n: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "max",
 			param: n,
 			args: { max: n },
@@ -691,105 +2808,549 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Minimum length for a string or array (VineJS `minLength`). */
-	minLength(n: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "minLength",
-			param: n,
-			args: { min: n },
-			validate: (v) => sizedLength(v) >= n,
-			message: `Must have at least ${n} characters`,
+	/** Minimum length for a string or array (VineJS `minLength`). */
+	minLength(n: number): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "minLength",
+			param: n,
+			args: { min: n },
+			validate: (v) => sizedLength(v) >= n,
+			message: `Must have at least ${n} characters`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Maximum length for a string or array (VineJS `maxLength`). */
+	maxLength(n: number): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "maxLength",
+			param: n,
+			args: { max: n },
+			validate: (v) => {
+				const len = sizedLength(v);
+				return len >= 0 && len <= n;
+			},
+			message: `Must not exceed ${n} characters`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Exact length for a string or array (VineJS `fixedLength`). */
+	fixedLength(n: number): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "fixedLength",
+			param: n,
+			args: { size: n },
+			validate: (v) => sizedLength(v) === n,
+			message: `Must be exactly ${n} characters`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a valid email. */
+	email(options?: EmailOptions): this {
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"email",
+			(v) => isEmail(v, options),
+			"Must be a valid email address",
+			options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must match a regular expression (TS-only — never dispatched to Rust). */
+	regex(pattern: RegExp): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "regex",
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && pattern.test(v),
+			message: "Invalid format",
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a valid URL (TS-only — uses the WHATWG URL parser). */
+	url(options?: UrlOptions): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "url",
+			args: options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+			validate: (v) =>
+				typeof v === "string" &&
+				(options ? isUrlWithOptions(v, options) : isValidUrl(v)),
+			message: "Must be a valid URL",
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * The host must actually resolve (VineJS `activeUrl`).
+	 *
+	 * The only rule needing the network, which rune cannot do and stay agnostic
+	 * and zero-dependency — so it runs through a resolver bound once at boot,
+	 * exactly like `unique()`. Async by nature: run the schema with
+	 * `validateResultAsync`. Unbound it THROWS, rather than passing a host nobody
+	 * checked.
+	 */
+	activeUrl(): this {
+		this.#pushAsync({
+			__rune: "asyncRule",
+			async run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void> {
+				if (!hostResolver) {
+					throw new RuneError(
+						"NO_HOST_RESOLVER",
+						"activeUrl() needs a host resolver.",
+						{ hint: "Call bindHostResolver(resolver) once at boot." },
+					);
+				}
+				let host: string;
+				try {
+					host = new URL(String(value)).hostname;
+				} catch {
+					field.report("Must be a valid URL", "activeUrl");
+					return;
+				}
+				if (!(await hostResolver.resolves(host))) {
+					field.report("Must be an active URL", "activeUrl");
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be a valid UUID, optionally restricted to given versions
+	 * (VineJS `uuid({ version: [4] })`, versions 1 through 8).
+	 */
+	uuid(options?: { version?: number | number[] }): this {
+		const versions =
+			options?.version === undefined ? undefined : [options.version].flat();
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "uuid",
+			args: versions === undefined ? {} : { version: versions },
+			// The Rust engine checks UUID shape only; a version constraint would
+			// be dropped there.
+			tsOnly: versions !== undefined,
+			validate: (v) => {
+				if (typeof v !== "string" || !UUID_RE.test(v)) return false;
+				if (versions === undefined) return true;
+				// Version nibble: first character of the third group.
+				const version = Number.parseInt(v[14] ?? "", 16);
+				return versions.includes(version);
+			},
+			message:
+				versions === undefined
+					? "Must be a valid UUID"
+					: `Must be a UUID v${versions.join("/")}`,
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a ULID (VineJS `ulid`). */
+	ulid(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule("ulid", isUlid, "Must be a valid ULID");
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a JSON Web Token — three dot-separated base64url segments. */
+	jwt(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule("jwt", isJwt, "Must be a valid JWT");
+	}
+
+	/** Must contain only ASCII characters (VineJS `ascii`). */
+	ascii(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"ascii",
+			isAscii,
+			"Must contain only ASCII characters",
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a CSS hex colour code, with or without the leading `#`. */
+	hexCode(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule("hexCode", isHexCode, "Must be a valid hex code");
+	}
+
+	/** Must be an IP address. Pass `version` to require v4 or v6 specifically. */
+	ipAddress(options?: { version?: 4 | 6 }): this {
+		const version = options?.version;
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"ipAddress",
+			(v) => isIpAddress(v, version),
+			`Must be a valid IP address${version ? ` (v${version})` : ""}`,
+			{ version },
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must pass the Luhn checksum (VineJS `creditCard`). */
+	creditCard(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"creditCard",
+			isCreditCard,
+			"Must be a valid credit card number",
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must be an IBAN passing the ISO 13616 mod-97 check. */
+	iban(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule("iban", isIban, "Must be a valid IBAN");
+	}
+
+	/** Must be a `"lat,lng"` pair within the valid ranges. */
+	coordinates(): this {
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"coordinates",
+			isCoordinates,
+			"Must be valid coordinates",
+		);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be a mobile number (VineJS/Adonis `mobile()`).
+	 *
+	 * With no `locale`, the number must be in E.164 form. With one or more,
+	 * it must match one of their numbering plans, as in VineJS. rune carries
+	 * its own plans rather than validator.js', so it knows fewer locales — an
+	 * unknown one raises `UNSUPPORTED_LOCALE` at schema build, naming the ones
+	 * it does know, rather than silently accepting anything at request time.
+	 */
+	mobile(options?: { locale?: string | string[]; strictMode?: boolean }): this {
+		const locales = options?.locale ? [options.locale].flat() : null;
+		for (const locale of locales ?? []) {
+			if (isMobileForLocale("", locale) === null) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"UNSUPPORTED_LOCALE",
+					`mobile(): no numbering plan for locale '${locale}'.`,
+					{
+						hint: `Supported: ${SUPPORTED_MOBILE_LOCALES.join(", ")}. Omit the locale for E.164, or use .regex().`,
+					},
+				);
+			}
+		}
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"mobile",
+			(v) => {
+				// strictMode (validator.js): the number must carry its `+` country
+				// prefix, so a national-format string is not silently accepted.
+				if (options?.strictMode && !v.trim().startsWith("+")) return false;
+				return locales
+					? locales.some((locale) => isMobileForLocale(v, locale) === true)
+					: isMobile(v);
+			},
+			"Must be a valid mobile number",
+			(locales ?? options?.strictMode)
+				? { locale: locales, strictMode: options?.strictMode }
+				: undefined,
+		);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be a postal code for `countryCode`. Throws for a country rune has no
+	 * pattern for, rather than accepting the value unchecked.
+	 */
+	postalCode(
+		options:
+			| { countryCode: string | string[] }
+			| ((field: FieldContext) => {
+					countryCode: string | string[];
+			  }),
+	): this {
+		// The callback form resolves per validation (VineJS lets the country come
+		// from a sibling field), so its countries cannot be checked up front.
+		if (typeof options === "function") {
+			this.#pushUse({
+				__rune: "rule",
+				run: (value, field) => {
+					if (typeof value !== "string") return;
+					const countries = [options(field).countryCode].flat();
+					if (!countries.some((c) => isPostalCode(value, c) === true)) {
+						field.report(
+							`Must be a valid ${countries.join("/")} postal code`,
+							"postalCode",
+						);
+					}
+				},
+			});
+			return this;
+		}
+		const countries = [options.countryCode].flat();
+		for (const country of countries) {
+			if (isPostalCode("", country) === null) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"UNSUPPORTED_COUNTRY",
+					`postalCode(): no pattern for country '${country}'.`,
+					{
+						hint: `Supported: ${SUPPORTED_POSTAL_CODES.join(", ")}. Use .regex() for others.`,
+					},
+				);
+			}
+		}
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"postalCode",
+			(v) => countries.some((c) => isPostalCode(v, c) === true),
+			`Must be a valid ${countries.join("/").toUpperCase()} postal code`,
+			{ countryCode: countries },
+		);
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Must be a valid VAT number (VineJS 4.2 `vat`). Accepts a country list or a
+	 * callback resolving it per payload.
+	 *
+	 * Checksums are run where the country defines a short, well-defined one
+	 * (BE, DE, NL, IT, PT, LU, CH); the others are FORMAT-only, which is stated
+	 * rather than implied. An unknown country LEVES rather than accepting the
+	 * value unchecked.
+	 */
+	vat(options: VatOptions | ((field: FieldContext) => VatOptions)): this {
+		if (typeof options === "function") {
+			this.#pushUse({
+				__rune: "rule",
+				run: (value, field) => {
+					if (typeof value !== "string") return;
+					const countries = [options(field).countryCode].flat();
+					if (!countries.some((c) => isVat(value, c) === true)) {
+						field.report(
+							`Must be a valid ${countries.join("/")} VAT number`,
+							"vat",
+						);
+					}
+				},
+			});
+			return this;
+		}
+		const countries = [options.countryCode].flat();
+		for (const country of countries) {
+			if (isVat("", country) === null) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"UNSUPPORTED_COUNTRY",
+					`vat(): no rule for country '${country}'.`,
+					{
+						hint: `Supported: ${SUPPORTED_VAT_COUNTRIES.join(", ")}. Use .regex() for others.`,
+					},
+				);
+			}
+		}
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"vat",
+			(v) => countries.some((c) => isVat(v, c) === true),
+			`Must be a valid ${countries.join("/").toUpperCase()} VAT number`,
+			{ countryCode: countries },
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Must differ from a sibling field (VineJS `notSameAs`). */
+	notSameAs(otherField: string): this {
+		const formats = this.#dateFormats;
+		this.#pushUse({
+			__rune: "rule",
+			run: (value, field) => {
+				const other = readSibling(field, otherField);
+				if (formats !== null && value instanceof Date) {
+					const parsed = parseDateValue(other, formats);
+					if (parsed !== null && parsed.getTime() === value.getTime()) {
+						field.report(`Must be different from ${otherField}`, "notSameAs");
+					}
+					return;
+				}
+				if (value === other) {
+					field.report(`Must be different from ${otherField}`, "notSameAs");
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/** Array items must be unique — optionally compared on `field` (VineJS `distinct`). */
+	distinct(field?: string | string[]): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "distinct",
+			args: { field },
+			validate: (v) => {
+				if (!Array.isArray(v)) return false;
+				const fieldList = field === undefined ? null : [field].flat();
+				const keys: string[] = [];
+				for (const item of v) {
+					// VineJS ignores null/undefined items entirely: `[1, null, 2, null]`
+					// is distinct. Serialising them would make the second one a
+					// duplicate of the first.
+					if (item === null || item === undefined) continue;
+					if (fieldList === null) {
+						keys.push(JSON.stringify(item));
+						continue;
+					}
+					if (!isPlainObject(item)) continue;
+					// VineJS skips an item missing the key(s): two absent values are
+					// not a duplicate of each other.
+					if (
+						fieldList.some((k) => item[k] === undefined || item[k] === null)
+					) {
+						continue;
+					}
+					keys.push(JSON.stringify(fieldList.map((k) => item[k])));
+				}
+				return new Set(keys).size === keys.length;
+			},
+			message: field
+				? `Items must have a unique ${field}`
+				: "Items must be unique",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Maximum length for a string or array (VineJS `maxLength`). */
-	maxLength(n: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "maxLength",
-			param: n,
-			args: { max: n },
-			validate: (v) => {
-				const len = sizedLength(v);
-				return len >= 0 && len <= n;
-			},
-			message: `Must not exceed ${n} characters`,
+	/** Must be less than or equal to zero (VineJS `nonPositive`). */
+	nonPositive(): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "nonPositive",
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && v <= 0,
+			message: "Must be zero or negative",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Exact length for a string or array (VineJS `fixedLength`). */
-	fixedLength(n: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "fixedLength",
-			param: n,
-			args: { size: n },
-			validate: (v) => sizedLength(v) === n,
-			message: `Must be exactly ${n} characters`,
+	/** Array must hold at least one item (VineJS `notEmpty`). */
+	notEmpty(): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "notEmpty",
+			validate: (v) => Array.isArray(v) && v.length > 0,
+			message: "Must not be empty",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Must be a valid email. */
-	email(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "email",
-			// Mirror the Rust engine's regex exactly so the SAME schema validates
-			// identically whether or not the native binary loaded.
-			validate: (v) =>
-				typeof v === "string" && /^[^\s@]+@[^\s@]+\.[^\s@]+$/.test(v),
-			message: "Must be a valid email",
+	/** Drop `null`, `undefined` and `""` items before the item rules run. */
+	compact(): this {
+		this.#transforms.push({
+			name: "compact",
+			fn: (value) =>
+				Array.isArray(value)
+					? value.filter(
+							(item) => item !== null && item !== undefined && item !== "",
+						)
+					: value,
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Must match a regular expression (TS-only — never dispatched to Rust). */
-	regex(pattern: RegExp): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "regex",
-			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && pattern.test(v),
-			message: "Invalid format",
+	/** Number must have no fractional part (VineJS `withoutDecimals`). */
+	withoutDecimals(): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name: "withoutDecimals",
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && Number.isInteger(v),
+			message: "Must not have decimals",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Must be a valid URL (TS-only — uses the WHATWG URL parser). */
-	url(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "url",
-			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && isValidUrl(v),
-			message: "Must be a valid URL",
+	/** Shared body of the string-format rules: reject non-strings, then check. */
+	#stringRule(
+		name: string,
+		check: (value: string) => boolean,
+		message: string,
+		args?: Record<string, unknown>,
+	): this {
+		this.#pushRule({
+			name,
+			args,
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && check(v),
+			message,
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Must be a valid UUID. */
-	uuid(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
-			name: "uuid",
-			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && UUID_RE.test(v),
-			message: "Must be a valid UUID",
+	/** Must be a passport number for `countryCode`. Throws for an uncovered country. */
+	passport(options: { countryCode: string | string[] }): this {
+		const countries = [options.countryCode].flat();
+		for (const country of countries) {
+			if (isPassport("", country) === null) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"UNSUPPORTED_COUNTRY",
+					`passport(): no pattern for country '${country}'.`,
+					{
+						hint: `Supported: ${SUPPORTED_PASSPORTS.join(", ")}. Use .regex() for others.`,
+					},
+				);
+			}
+		}
+		return this.#stringRule(
+			"passport",
+			(v) => countries.some((c) => isPassport(v, c) === true),
+			`Must be a valid ${countries.join("/").toUpperCase()} passport number`,
+			{ countryCode: countries },
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Lowercase the value (VineJS `toLowerCase`). */
+	toLowerCase(): this {
+		return this.#stringMutation("toLowerCase", (v) => v.toLowerCase());
+	}
+
+	/** Uppercase the value (VineJS `toUpperCase`). */
+	toUpperCase(): this {
+		return this.#stringMutation("toUpperCase", (v) => v.toUpperCase());
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * VineJS `toCamelCase()`, on both shapes it exists for:
+	 *
+	 * - on an `object()` chain it camelCases the object's KEYS
+	 *   (`VineObject.toCamelCase`);
+	 * - on any other chain it camelCases the string VALUE (`VineString`).
+	 *
+	 * One name, because Vine has one name. Dispatching on whether a nested shape
+	 * was declared is what keeps a transcribed validator behaving the same.
+	 */
+	toCamelCase(): this {
+		if (this.#nestedSchema) {
+			this.#camelCaseKeys = true;
+			return this;
+		}
+		return this.#stringMutation("toCamelCase", toCamelCase);
+	}
+
+	/** HTML-escape `& < > " '` (VineJS `escape`). */
+	escape(): this {
+		return this.#stringMutation("escape", escapeHtml);
+	}
+
+	/** Normalise an email address (VineJS `normalizeEmail`). */
+	normalizeEmail(options?: NormalizeEmailOptions): this {
+		return this.#stringMutation("normalizeEmail", (v) =>
+			normalizeEmail(v, options),
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Normalise a URL (VineJS `normalizeUrl`). */
+	normalizeUrl(options?: NormalizeUrlOptions): this {
+		return this.#stringMutation("normalizeUrl", (v) =>
+			normalizeUrl(v, options),
+		);
+	}
+
+	/** Shared body of the string mutations — non-strings pass through untouched. */
+	#stringMutation(name: string, fn: (value: string) => string): this {
+		this.#transforms.push({
+			name,
+			fn: (value) => (typeof value === "string" ? fn(value) : value),
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
 	/** Must contain only ASCII letters. */
-	alpha(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	alpha(options?: AlphaOptions): this {
+		const pattern = alphaPattern("a-zA-Z", options);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "alpha",
-			validate: (v) =>
-				typeof v === "string" && v.length > 0 && /^[a-zA-Z]+$/.test(v),
+			args: options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && v.length > 0 && pattern.test(v),
 			message: "Must contain only letters",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
 	/** Must contain only ASCII letters and digits. */
-	alphaNumeric(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	alphaNumeric(options?: AlphaOptions): this {
+		const pattern = alphaPattern("a-zA-Z0-9", options);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "alphaNumeric",
-			validate: (v) =>
-				typeof v === "string" && v.length > 0 && /^[a-zA-Z0-9]+$/.test(v),
+			args: options ? { ...options } : undefined,
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && v.length > 0 && pattern.test(v),
 			message: "Must contain only letters and numbers",
 		});
 		return this;
@@ -797,7 +3358,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** String must start with `substring`. */
 	startsWith(substring: string): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "startsWith",
 			args: { substring },
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && v.startsWith(substring),
@@ -808,7 +3369,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** String must end with `substring`. */
 	endsWith(substring: string): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "endsWith",
 			args: { substring },
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "string" && v.endsWith(substring),
@@ -817,25 +3378,35 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Value must be one of `values`. */
-	in(values: ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>): this {
-		const allowed = [...values];
-		this.#rules.push({
+	/**
+	 * Value must be one of `values`.
+	 *
+	 * VineJS also accepts a callback so the list can be computed at validation
+	 * time (tenant-scoped roles, values read from config…). A static array is
+	 * snapshotted; a callback is invoked on every check.
+	 */
+	in(values: AllowedValues): this {
+		const resolve = allowedValuesResolver(values);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "in",
-			args: { values: allowed },
-			validate: (v) => allowed.includes(asPrimitive(v)),
+			args: typeof values === "function" ? {} : { values: [...values] },
+			// A callback list is computed per call — the native engine only ever
+			// sees a static array, so it must not run this rule.
+			tsOnly: typeof values === "function",
+			validate: (v, field) => resolve(field).includes(asPrimitive(v)),
 			message: "Invalid value",
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
 	/** Value must NOT be one of `values`. */
-	notIn(values: ReadonlyArray<string | number | boolean>): this {
-		const denied = [...values];
-		this.#rules.push({
+	notIn(values: AllowedValues): this {
+		const resolve = allowedValuesResolver(values);
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "notIn",
-			args: { values: denied },
-			validate: (v) => !denied.includes(asPrimitive(v)),
+			args: typeof values === "function" ? {} : { values: [...values] },
+			tsOnly: typeof values === "function",
+			validate: (v, field) => !resolve(field).includes(asPrimitive(v)),
 			message: "Invalid value",
 		});
 		return this;
@@ -843,7 +3414,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Number must be positive (> 0) and finite. */
 	positive(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "positive",
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) && v > 0,
 			message: "Must be positive",
@@ -853,7 +3424,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Number must be negative (< 0) and finite. */
 	negative(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "negative",
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) && v < 0,
 			message: "Must be negative",
@@ -863,7 +3434,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 
 	/** Number must be >= 0 and finite. */
 	nonNegative(): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "nonNegative",
 			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) && v >= 0,
 			message: "Must be positive or zero",
@@ -872,38 +3443,55 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	}
 
 	/** Number must fall within `[min, max]` (inclusive). */
-	range(min: number, max: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	range(bounds: [min: number, max: number]): this {
+		// VineJS signature is a TUPLE (`range([18, 60])`); the two-argument form
+		// silently dropped `max` when an Adonis validator was transcribed as-is.
+		const [min, max] = bounds;
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "range",
 			args: { min, max },
-			validate: (v) =>
-				typeof v === "number" && Number.isFinite(v) && v >= min && v <= max,
+			validate: (v) => typeof v === "number" && v >= min && v <= max,
 			message: `Must be between ${min} and ${max}`,
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
 	/** Number must have at most `digits` decimal places (TS-only). */
-	decimal(digits: number): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+	decimal(digits: number | [number, number]): this {
+		// VineJS accepts a `[min, max]` range as well as a single maximum.
+		const [min, max] = Array.isArray(digits) ? digits : [0, digits];
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name: "decimal",
 			args: { digits },
 			validate: (v) => {
 				if (typeof v !== "number" || !Number.isFinite(v)) return false;
-				const parts = String(v).split(".");
-				return (parts[1]?.length ?? 0) <= digits;
+				const places = String(v).split(".")[1]?.length ?? 0;
+				return places >= min && places <= max;
 			},
-			message: `Must have at most ${digits} decimal places`,
+			message: Array.isArray(digits)
+				? `Must have between ${min} and ${max} decimal places`
+				: `Must have at most ${max} decimal places`,
 		});
 		return this;
 	}
 
 	/** Must equal a sibling field (VineJS `sameAs`). Cross-field → TS-only. */
 	sameAs(otherField: string): this {
-		this.#useRules.push({
+		const formats = this.#dateFormats;
+		this.#pushUse({
 			__rune: "rule",
 			run: (value, field) => {
 				const other = readSibling(field, otherField);
+				// On a date chain the value is a parsed `Date` and the sibling is
+				// still raw, so `!==` would compare a Date to a string and always
+				// fail. Compare instants instead.
+				if (formats !== null && value instanceof Date) {
+					const parsed = parseDateValue(other, formats);
+					if (parsed === null || parsed.getTime() !== value.getTime()) {
+						field.report(`Must match ${otherField}`, "sameAs");
+					}
+					return;
+				}
 				if (value !== other) {
 					field.report(`Must match ${otherField}`, "sameAs");
 				}
@@ -913,14 +3501,24 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	}
 
 	/** Must equal its `<field>_confirmation` sibling (VineJS `confirmed`). */
-	confirmed(options?: { confirmationField?: string }): this {
-		this.#useRules.push({
+	confirmed(options?: { as?: string; confirmationField?: string }): this {
+		this.#pushUse({
 			__rune: "rule",
 			run: (value, field) => {
 				const leaf = field.field.split(".").pop() ?? field.field;
-				const other = options?.confirmationField ?? `${leaf}_confirmation`;
+				// `as` is the current VineJS spelling; `confirmationField` is its
+				// deprecated alias, kept so existing callers keep working.
+				const other =
+					options?.as ?? options?.confirmationField ?? `${leaf}_confirmation`;
 				if (value !== readSibling(field, other)) {
-					field.report("Confirmation does not match", "confirmed");
+					// VineJS reports on the CONFIRMATION field: that is the input the
+					// user has to fix, and where a form renders the message.
+					const prefix = field.field.slice(0, -leaf.length);
+					field.report(
+						"Confirmation does not match",
+						"confirmed",
+						`${prefix}${other}`,
+					);
 				}
 			},
 		});
@@ -975,7 +3573,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	}
 
 	/** Pre-validation transform of the raw input (VineJS `parse`). */
-	parse(fn: (value: unknown) => unknown): this {
+	parse(fn: (value: unknown, ctx: ParseContext) => unknown): this {
 		this.#preTransforms.push(fn);
 		return this;
 	}
@@ -986,7 +3584,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		validate: (value: unknown) => boolean,
 		message?: string,
 	): this {
-		this.#rules.push({
+		this.#pushRule({
 			name,
 			validate,
 			message: message ?? `Failed custom rule: ${name}`,
@@ -999,7 +3597,12 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 	 * receives a {@link FieldContext} with the root `data` and `parent`, so it can
 	 * validate across fields. Runs after this field's type/value rules.
 	 */
-	use(rule: CompiledRule): this {
+	use(rule: CompiledRule | AsyncCompiledRule): this {
+		// A rule built with `{ isAsync: true }` arrives here (VineJS has one
+		// `use`); routing it to the sync register would drop the await.
+		if (rule.__rune === "asyncRule") {
+			return this.useAsync(rule);
+		}
 		if (rule?.__rune !== "rule" || typeof rule.run !== "function") {
 			throw new RuneError(
 				"INVALID_RULE",
@@ -1007,21 +3610,243 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 				{ hint: "use(myRule()) or use(myRule(options)), not use(myRule)" },
 			);
 		}
-		this.#useRules.push(rule);
+		this.#pushUse(rule);
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Attach an async rule (from {@link createAsyncRule}). The schema must then be
+	 * run with `validateResultAsync` — sync `validate()` throws for such a schema.
+	 */
+	useAsync(rule: AsyncCompiledRule): this {
+		if (rule?.__rune !== "asyncRule" || typeof rule.run !== "function") {
+			throw new RuneError(
+				"INVALID_RULE",
+				"useAsync() expects a compiled async rule — call the factory first",
+				{ hint: "useAsync(myRule()) or useAsync(myRule(options))" },
+			);
+		}
+		this.#pushAsync(rule);
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * DB-backed uniqueness rule (Adonis Lucid `unique`). `check(value, field)`
+	 * resolves `true` when the value is unique (valid). rune stays agnostic — the
+	 * check does the query (e.g. against atlas). Requires the async path (`validateResultAsync` / `validate`).
+	 *
+	 *     rules.string().email().unique(async (value) => {
+	 *       const row = await db.from('users').where('email', value).first()
+	 *       return !row
+	 *     })
+	 */
+	unique(
+		check: (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean>,
+		message?: string,
+	): this;
+	unique(options: DatabaseRuleOptions, message?: string): this;
+	unique(
+		checkOrOptions:
+			| ((value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean>)
+			| DatabaseRuleOptions,
+		message?: string,
+	): this {
+		const check = toDatabaseCheck(checkOrOptions, "unique");
+		this.#pushAsync({
+			__rune: "asyncRule",
+			async run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void> {
+				const ok = await check(value, field);
+				if (!ok) {
+					field.report(
+						message ?? `The ${field.field} has already been taken`,
+						"database.unique",
+					);
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * DB-backed existence rule (Adonis Lucid `exists`). `check(value, field)`
+	 * resolves `true` when a matching row exists (valid). Requires the async path (`validateResultAsync` / `validate`).
+	 */
+	exists(
+		check: (value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean>,
+		message?: string,
+	): this;
+	exists(options: DatabaseRuleOptions, message?: string): this;
+	exists(
+		checkOrOptions:
+			| ((value: unknown, field: FieldContext) => boolean | Promise<boolean>)
+			| DatabaseRuleOptions,
+		message?: string,
+	): this {
+		const check = toDatabaseCheck(checkOrOptions, "exists");
+		this.#pushAsync({
+			__rune: "asyncRule",
+			async run(value: unknown, field: FieldContext): Promise<void> {
+				const ok = await check(value, field);
+				if (!ok) {
+					field.report(
+						message ?? `The selected ${field.field} is invalid`,
+						"database.exists",
+					);
+				}
+			},
+		});
+		return this;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Attach free-form JSON Schema metadata (VineJS `meta()`) — `title`,
+	 * `description`, `examples`, `deprecated`… Merged verbatim into the field's
+	 * node by `toJSONSchema()`.
+	 */
+	meta(metadata: Record<string, unknown>): this {
+		this.#metadata = { ...this.#metadata, ...metadata };
 		return this;
 	}
 
-	/** Set custom error message for the last rule. */
+	/**
+	 * Set a custom error message for the rule that was just added.
+	 *
+	 * "The last rule" spans all three registers: value rules (`#rules`),
+	 * cross-field `.use()` rules (`sameAs`, `confirmed`, `afterField`,
+	 * `notSameAs`) and async rules (`unique`, `exists`, `useAsync`). Targeting
+	 * `#rules` alone silently retargeted the PREVIOUS value rule — or threw
+	 * `NO_RULE` — whenever the preceding call was a cross-field or async rule.
+	 */
 	message(msg: string): this {
-		if (this.#rules.length === 0) {
+		const target = this.#lastRule;
+		if (!target) {
 			throw new RuneError("NO_RULE", "message() must be called after a rule");
 		}
-		const last = this.#rules[this.#rules.length - 1];
-		last.message = msg;
-		last.hasCustomMessage = true;
+		if (target.kind === "value") {
+			target.ref.message = msg;
+			target.ref.hasCustomMessage = true;
+		} else {
+			// `.use()` / async rules report their own text from inside `run`, so the
+			// override is applied when the rule reports rather than stored on it.
+			this.#ruleMessages.set(target.ref, msg);
+		}
 		return this;
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Build the {@link FieldContext} handed to `.use()` / async rules. Shared so
+	 * the sync and async paths cannot drift on what a rule can see.
+	 */
+	#makeFieldContext(
+		field: string,
+		value: unknown,
+		ctx: RunContext,
+		errors: ValidationError[],
+		onMutate: (next: unknown) => void,
+	): FieldContext {
+		const segments = field.split(".");
+		return {
+			value,
+			data: ctx.data,
+			parent: ctx.parent,
+			field,
+			meta: ctx.meta,
+			isValid: errors.length === 0,
+			name: segments[segments.length - 1] ?? field,
+			wildCardPath: toWildcardPath(field),
+			isArrayMember: Array.isArray(ctx.parent),
+			isDefined: value !== undefined && value !== null,
+			isValidDataType: errors.length === 0,
+			getFieldPath: () => field,
+			mutate: onMutate,
+			report(
+				message: string,
+				rule: string,
+				reportedField?: string | FieldContext,
+				args?: Record<string, unknown>,
+			): void {
+				// VineJS plugins pass the FIELD CONTEXT here, not a path. Accepting
+				// only a string let the object through and produced a
+				// `ValidationError.field` that was not a string at runtime.
+				const target =
+					typeof reportedField === "string"
+						? reportedField
+						: (reportedField?.getFieldPath() ?? field);
+				errors.push({
+					field: target,
+					rule,
+					message,
+					...(args ? { meta: args } : {}),
+				});
+			},
+		};
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Run only the implicit `.use()` rules against an absent value. A rule
+	 * declared `{ implicit: true }` exists to police `undefined`/`null`, so the
+	 * early return for optional fields must not skip it.
+	 */
+	#runImplicitRules(
+		field: string,
+		value: unknown,
+		ctx: RunContext,
+		pending?: PendingAsync[],
+	): ValidationError[] {
+		// An implicit ASYNC rule polices an absent value too, so it has to be
+		// queued here as well — filtering `#useRules` alone dropped it silently.
+		if (pending && this.#asyncRules.some((rule) => rule.implicit)) {
+			pending.push({ chain: this, field, value, ctx });
+		}
+		const implicitRules = this.#useRules.filter((rule) => rule.implicit);
+		if (implicitRules.length === 0) return [];
+		const errors: ValidationError[] = [];
+		const fieldCtx = this.#makeFieldContext(
+			field,
+			value,
+			ctx,
+			errors,
+			() => {},
+		);
+		for (const rule of implicitRules) {
+			fieldCtx.isValid = errors.length === 0;
+			rule.run(value, fieldCtx);
+		}
+		return errors;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Register a TYPE rule from outside the chain — used by the `optional()` and
+	 * `null()` factories, which are types in their own right.
+	 * @internal
+	 */
+	pushTypeRule(rule: RuleDef): void {
+		this.#pushRule(rule);
+	}
+
+	/** Re-type this chain in place, without cloning. @internal */
+	retypeTo<U>(): RuleChain<U> {
+		return this.#retype<U>();
+	}
+
+	/** Add a value rule and remember it as the `message()` target. */
+	#pushRule(rule: RuleDef): void {
+		this.#rules.push(rule);
+		this.#lastRule = { kind: "value", ref: rule };
+	}
+
+	/** Add a cross-field `.use()` rule and remember it as the `message()` target. */
+	#pushUse(rule: CompiledRule): void {
+		this.#useRules.push(rule);
+		this.#lastRule = { kind: "reporting", ref: rule };
+	}
+
+	/** Add an async rule and remember it as the `message()` target. */
+	#pushAsync(rule: AsyncCompiledRule): void {
+		this.#asyncRules.push(rule);
+		this.#lastRule = { kind: "reporting", ref: rule };
+	}
+
 	/** Whether the field is required given the surrounding data (conditionals). */
 	#isRequired(ctx: RunContext): boolean {
 		if (this.#requiredConditions.length === 0) return true;
@@ -1030,36 +3855,68 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		);
 	}
 
-	/** Internal: validate a field value and return errors + transformed value. */
+	/**
+	 * Internal: validate a field value and return errors + transformed value.
+	 *
+	 * `pending` is the async-rule collector. The traversal itself stays sync (it
+	 * is shared with `validate()`); when a collector is supplied, every chain in
+	 * the tree that carries async rules and passed its sync rules records itself
+	 * for the async path to await. Without it, nested async rules never ran.
+	 */
 	_validateWithTransform(
 		field: string,
 		rawValue: unknown,
 		ctx: RunContext = EMPTY_RUN_CONTEXT,
+		pending?: PendingAsync[],
 	): { errors: ValidationError[]; transformed: unknown } {
-		// 0. Pre-validation parse() transforms run on the raw value first.
+		// 0. Pre-validation parse() transforms run on the raw value first. VineJS
+		//    hands them `(value, { data, parent, meta })` — without the context a
+		//    parser cannot look at a sibling, which is half its purpose.
 		let value = rawValue;
+		const parseCtx: ParseContext = {
+			data: ctx.data,
+			parent: ctx.parent,
+			meta: ctx.meta,
+		};
 		for (const pre of this.#preTransforms) {
-			value = pre(value);
+			value = pre(value, parseCtx);
 		}
 
 		if (value === undefined) {
 			if (this.#isOptional || !this.#isRequired(ctx)) {
-				return { errors: [], transformed: value };
+				// Implicit rules are precisely the ones that must see an absent value.
+				return {
+					errors: this.#runImplicitRules(field, value, ctx, pending),
+					transformed: value,
+				};
 			}
 			return { errors: [this.#requiredError(field, ctx)], transformed: value };
 		}
 		if (value === null) {
-			// rune treats a `null` value as "absent" for optional/nullable/
-			// non-required fields (a deliberate, cross-engine-conformance-tested
-			// choice — see the Rust↔TS parity suite). `.nullable()` additionally
-			// keeps it in the output. This unifies null/undefined for optional
-			// fields, a documented deviation from VineJS's stricter split.
-			if (this.#isNullable || this.#isOptional || !this.#isRequired(ctx)) {
-				return { errors: [], transformed: value };
+			// VineJS split, now matched exactly: `nullable()` accepts null AND keeps
+			// it in the output; `optional()` accepts null but DROPS the key. rune
+			// used to keep null in both cases, so an optional field silently added
+			// `key: null` to a payload VineJS would have left without the key.
+			if (this.#isNullable) {
+				return {
+					errors: this.#runImplicitRules(field, value, ctx, pending),
+					transformed: value,
+				};
+			}
+			if (this.#isOptional || !this.#isRequired(ctx)) {
+				return {
+					errors: this.#runImplicitRules(field, value, ctx, pending),
+					transformed: undefined,
+				};
 			}
 			return { errors: [this.#requiredError(field, ctx)], transformed: value };
 		}
 
+		// 0b. Coerce before the type rules — a coerced value is the validated value.
+		for (const coerce of this.#coercions) {
+			value = coerce(value);
+		}
+
 		// 1. Type rules first on the raw value — bail on type mismatch.
 		const typeError = this.#runTypeRules(field, value, ctx);
 		if (typeError) return { errors: [typeError], transformed: value };
@@ -1071,22 +3928,179 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		// 3. Vine-style .use() rules — run with a FieldContext exposing the root
 		//    `data` and `parent`, so a rule can validate across fields.
 		if (this.#useRules.length > 0 && !(this.#bail && errors.length > 0)) {
-			this.#runUseRules(field, transformed, ctx, errors);
+			// `.use()` rules may call `field.mutate()`, so the value can change here.
+			transformed = this.#runUseRules(field, transformed, ctx, errors);
+		}
+
+		// 3b. Date output mapping (VineJS `VineDate.transform`). Deliberately AFTER
+		//     the comparison rules so `after`/`before`/`afterField` always see a
+		//     real `Date`, whatever type the consumer maps it to.
+		if (
+			this.#dateFormats !== null &&
+			dateOutputTransform !== null &&
+			transformed instanceof Date
+		) {
+			transformed = dateOutputTransform(transformed);
 		}
 
 		// 4. Nested object validation (only if type check passed — not arrays)
 		if (this.#nestedSchema && isPlainObject(transformed)) {
-			const obj: Record<string, unknown> = { ...transformed };
+			// Start from the DECLARED keys only. Spreading the input kept every
+			// undeclared key, so the mass-assignment guarantee that holds at the
+			// top level silently stopped holding one level down:
+			// `object({ name })` let an `isAdmin` through. `allowUnknownProperties()`
+			// is the opt-in, as in VineJS.
+			const source: Record<string, unknown> = transformed;
+			const obj: Record<string, unknown> = this.#allowUnknown
+				? { ...source }
+				: {};
 			transformed = obj;
-			for (const [nestedField, chain] of Object.entries(this.#nestedSchema)) {
+			// A conditional group contributes its branch's properties for THIS
+			// payload, so the shape is resolved per validation, not at build time.
+			let shape = this.#nestedSchema;
+			for (const grp of this.#groups) {
+				const branch =
+					grp.branches.find(
+						(candidate) => candidate.predicate?.(source) === true,
+					) ?? grp.branches.find((candidate) => candidate.predicate === null);
+				if (branch) shape = { ...shape, ...branch.shape };
+			}
+			for (const [nestedField, chain] of Object.entries(shape)) {
 				const nestedResult = chain._validateWithTransform(
 					`${field}.${nestedField}`,
-					obj[nestedField],
-					{ ...ctx, parent: obj },
+					source[nestedField],
+					{ ...ctx, parent: source },
+					pending,
 				);
 				errors.push(...nestedResult.errors);
 				if (nestedResult.transformed !== undefined) {
-					obj[nestedField] = nestedResult.transformed;
+					obj[this.#camelCaseKeys ? toCamelCaseKey(nestedField) : nestedField] =
+						nestedResult.transformed;
+				}
+			}
+			if (this.#camelCaseKeys && this.#allowUnknown) {
+				// Undeclared keys are camelCased too, otherwise the output would mix
+				// both spellings depending on whether a key was declared.
+				for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(source)) {
+					const camel = toCamelCaseKey(key);
+					if (!(camel in obj)) obj[camel] = value;
+				}
+			}
+		}
+
+		// 4b. Record values — same shape as the nested-object walk, arbitrary keys.
+		if (this.#recordKeysCheck && isPlainObject(transformed)) {
+			// Keys first: a key-level rule that rejects the shape makes the
+			// per-value errors that would follow noise.
+			this.#recordKeysCheck(
+				Object.keys(transformed),
+				this.#makeFieldContext(field, transformed, ctx, errors, () => {}),
+			);
+		}
+		if (this.#recordValueChain && isPlainObject(transformed)) {
+			const obj: Record<string, unknown> = { ...transformed };
+			transformed = obj;
+			for (const key of Object.keys(obj)) {
+				const res = this.#recordValueChain._validateWithTransform(
+					`${field}.${key}`,
+					obj[key],
+					{ ...ctx, parent: obj },
+					pending,
+				);
+				errors.push(...res.errors);
+				if (res.transformed !== undefined) obj[key] = res.transformed;
+			}
+		}
+
+		// 4c. Tuple positions — length was already enforced by the `tuple` rule.
+		if (this.#tupleChains && Array.isArray(transformed)) {
+			const arr: unknown[] = [...transformed];
+			transformed = arr;
+			this.#tupleChains.forEach((chain, i) => {
+				const res = chain._validateWithTransform(
+					`${field}.${i}`,
+					arr[i],
+					{ ...ctx, parent: arr },
+					pending,
+				);
+				for (const e of res.errors) if (e.index === undefined) e.index = i;
+				errors.push(...res.errors);
+				if (res.transformed !== undefined) arr[i] = res.transformed;
+			});
+		}
+
+		// 4d. Union — first branch that validates wins; its transform is kept.
+		if (this.#unionChains) {
+			let matched = false;
+			// A guarded branch (union.if) is SELECTED by its predicate, and its own
+			// errors are reported — that is the diagnosable half of VineJS's union.
+			const guarded = this.#unionChains.filter((b) => b.predicate !== null);
+			if (guarded.length > 0) {
+				const probe = this.#makeFieldContext(
+					field,
+					transformed,
+					ctx,
+					[],
+					() => {},
+				);
+				const chosen =
+					guarded.find((b) => b.predicate?.(transformed, probe)) ??
+					this.#unionChains.find((b) => b.predicate === null);
+				if (chosen) {
+					const res = chosen.chain._validateWithTransform(
+						field,
+						transformed,
+						ctx,
+						pending,
+					);
+					transformed = res.transformed;
+					errors.push(...res.errors);
+					matched = true;
+				}
+			}
+			for (const branch of matched ? [] : this.#unionChains) {
+				// Each branch collects into its OWN buffer: a losing branch must not
+				// leave async work queued, and the winning one must not lose it —
+				// without this, a `unique()` inside the matching branch was never
+				// awaited, which reads exactly like a check that passed.
+				const branchPending: PendingAsync[] = [];
+				const res = branch.chain._validateWithTransform(
+					field,
+					transformed,
+					ctx,
+					pending ? branchPending : undefined,
+				);
+				if (res.errors.length === 0) {
+					transformed = res.transformed;
+					matched = true;
+					if (pending) pending.push(...branchPending);
+					break;
+				}
+			}
+			if (!matched) {
+				if (this.#unionNoMatch) {
+					// The callback owns the reporting: whatever it pushes is the
+					// error, and pushing nothing means it handled the case itself.
+					const reported: ValidationError[] = [];
+					this.#unionNoMatch(
+						transformed,
+						this.#makeFieldContext(field, transformed, ctx, reported, () => {}),
+					);
+					errors.push(...reported);
+				} else {
+					errors.push({
+						field,
+						rule: "union",
+						message: resolveRuleMessage(
+							field,
+							{
+								name: "union",
+								validate: () => false,
+								message: "Does not match any allowed shape",
+							},
+							ctx,
+						),
+					});
 				}
 			}
 		}
@@ -1100,6 +4114,7 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 					`${field}.${i}`,
 					arr[i],
 					{ ...ctx, parent: arr },
+					pending,
 				);
 				for (const e of itemResult.errors) {
 					if (e.index === undefined) e.index = i;
@@ -1111,6 +4126,19 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 			}
 		}
 
+		// 6. Record this chain's async rules for the async path to await. Mirrors
+		//    Lucid skipping a DB rule on an already-invalid or absent field: only a
+		//    clean, present value is worth a round-trip.
+		if (
+			pending &&
+			this.#asyncRules.length > 0 &&
+			errors.length === 0 &&
+			transformed !== undefined &&
+			transformed !== null
+		) {
+			pending.push({ chain: this, field, value: transformed, ctx });
+		}
+
 		return { errors, transformed };
 	}
 
@@ -1120,22 +4148,72 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		transformed: unknown,
 		ctx: RunContext,
 		errors: ValidationError[],
-	): void {
-		const fieldCtx: FieldContext = {
-			value: transformed,
-			data: ctx.data,
-			parent: ctx.parent,
+	): unknown {
+		// Set per iteration so `report` can substitute the `.message()` override of
+		// the rule currently running — these rules carry their text inside `run`.
+		let override: string | undefined;
+		let current = transformed;
+		const fieldCtx = this.#makeFieldContext(
 			field,
-			meta: ctx.meta,
-			isValid: errors.length === 0,
-			report(message: string, rule: string): void {
-				errors.push({ field, rule, message });
+			transformed,
+			ctx,
+			errors,
+			(next) => {
+				current = next;
+				fieldCtx.value = next;
 			},
-		};
+		);
+		const report = fieldCtx.report.bind(fieldCtx);
+		fieldCtx.report = (message, rule, reportedField, args) =>
+			report(override ?? message, rule, reportedField, args);
 		for (const rule of this.#useRules) {
+			// A non-implicit rule is skipped on an absent value (VineJS semantics);
+			// `implicit: true` is what lets a custom rule police undefined/null.
+			if (!rule.implicit && (current === undefined || current === null))
+				continue;
+			fieldCtx.isValid = errors.length === 0;
+			fieldCtx.isDefined = current !== undefined && current !== null;
+			override = this.#ruleMessages.get(rule);
+			rule.run(current, fieldCtx);
+		}
+		return current;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Run this chain's async rules on the (already sync-validated) value, awaiting
+	 * each in order. Returns the errors they reported. Used by `validateResultAsync`.
+	 * @internal
+	 */
+	async _runAsyncRules(
+		field: string,
+		transformed: unknown,
+		ctx: RunContext,
+	): Promise<ValidationError[]> {
+		const errors: ValidationError[] = [];
+		let override: string | undefined;
+		let current = transformed;
+		const fieldCtx = this.#makeFieldContext(
+			field,
+			transformed,
+			ctx,
+			errors,
+			(next) => {
+				current = next;
+				fieldCtx.value = next;
+			},
+		);
+		const report = fieldCtx.report.bind(fieldCtx);
+		fieldCtx.report = (message, rule, reportedField, args) =>
+			report(override ?? message, rule, reportedField, args);
+		for (const rule of this.#asyncRules) {
+			if (!rule.implicit && (current === undefined || current === null))
+				continue;
 			fieldCtx.isValid = errors.length === 0;
-			rule.run(transformed, fieldCtx);
+			fieldCtx.isDefined = current !== undefined && current !== null;
+			override = this.#ruleMessages.get(rule);
+			await rule.run(current, fieldCtx);
 		}
+		return errors;
 	}
 
 	#requiredError(field: string, ctx: RunContext): ValidationError {
@@ -1152,8 +4230,14 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		value: unknown,
 		ctx: RunContext,
 	): ValidationError | null {
+		let context: FieldContext | undefined;
+		const fieldContext = (): FieldContext =>
+			(context ??= this.#makeFieldContext(field, value, ctx, [], () => {}));
 		for (const rule of this.#rules) {
-			if (TYPE_RULE_NAMES.has(rule.name) && !rule.validate(value)) {
+			if (
+				TYPE_RULE_NAMES.has(rule.name) &&
+				!rule.validate(value, fieldContext())
+			) {
 				return {
 					field,
 					rule: rule.name,
@@ -1172,10 +4256,21 @@ export class RuleChain<Output = unknown> {
 		ctx: RunContext,
 	): ValidationError[] {
 		const errors: ValidationError[] = [];
+		// Built once and only if a rule actually reads it: most rules take the
+		// value alone, and a context per rule per field is pure waste.
+		let context: FieldContext | undefined;
+		const fieldContext = (): FieldContext =>
+			(context ??= this.#makeFieldContext(
+				field,
+				transformed,
+				ctx,
+				[],
+				() => {},
+			));
 		for (const rule of this.#rules) {
 			if (TYPE_RULE_NAMES.has(rule.name)) continue;
 			if (this.#bail && errors.length > 0) break;
-			if (!rule.validate(transformed)) {
+			if (!rule.validate(transformed, fieldContext())) {
 				errors.push({
 					field,
 					rule: rule.name,
@@ -1224,6 +4319,13 @@ const LAST_FIELD: FieldContext = {
 	field: "",
 	meta: {},
 	isValid: true,
+	name: "",
+	wildCardPath: "",
+	isArrayMember: false,
+	isDefined: false,
+	isValidDataType: true,
+	getFieldPath: () => "",
+	mutate: (): void => {},
 	report(): void {},
 };
 
@@ -1309,23 +4411,130 @@ function evalRequiredCondition(
 }
 
 /** No-op alias of {@link schema} — VineJS `vine.compile()` API parity. */
-export function compile<T extends ValidationSchema>(s: T): T {
-	return s;
+export function compile<T extends ValidationSchema>(s: T): T;
+export function compile(chain: RuleChain): ValidationSchema;
+export function compile(input: ValidationSchema | RuleChain): ValidationSchema {
+	// A rune schema is already compiled, so this is identity for that form; the
+	// `RuleChain` form exists because `vine.compile(vine.object({…}))` is the
+	// shape Adonis documents.
+	return input instanceof RuleChain ? schema(toFieldMap(input), input) : input;
 }
 
 /** Entry point for building rules. */
 export const rules = {
 	string: (): RuleChain<string> => new RuleChain().string(),
-	number: (): RuleChain<number> => new RuleChain().number(),
-	boolean: (): RuleChain<boolean> => new RuleChain().boolean(),
+	number: (options?: { strict?: boolean }): RuleChain<number> =>
+		new RuleChain().number(options),
+	boolean: (options?: { strict?: boolean }): RuleChain<boolean> =>
+		new RuleChain().boolean(options),
 	any: (): RuleChain<unknown> => new RuleChain(),
+	date: (options?: { formats?: DateFormat[] }): RuleChain<Date> =>
+		new RuleChain().date(options),
+	accepted: (): RuleChain<true> => new RuleChain().accepted(),
+	file: (options?: {
+		size?: number | string;
+		extnames?: readonly string[];
+		verifyContent?: boolean;
+	}): RuleChain<FileLike> => new RuleChain().file(options),
+	nativeFile: (options?: {
+		minSize?: number | string;
+		maxSize?: number | string;
+		mimeTypes?: readonly string[];
+	}): RuleChain<FileLike> => new RuleChain().nativeFile(options),
+	record: <Item extends RuleChain>(
+		valueChain: Item,
+	): RuleChain<Record<string, OutputOf<Item>>> =>
+		new RuleChain().record(valueChain),
+	tuple: <const Items extends readonly RuleChain[]>(
+		items: Items,
+	): RuleChain<{ [K in keyof Items]: OutputOf<Items[K]> }> =>
+		new RuleChain().tuple(items),
+	union: Object.assign(
+		(chains: readonly UnionBranch[]): RuleChain =>
+			new RuleChain().union(chains),
+		// `otherwise` is VineJS's spelling of the fallback branch; `else` stays
+		// because it reads better in some call styles.
+		{ if: unionIf, else: unionElse, otherwise: unionElse },
+	),
+	/**
+	 * Union discriminated by the value's TYPE (VineJS `unionOfTypes`): the first
+	 * branch whose own type rule accepts the value wins.
+	 */
+	/**
+	 * Make every property of a shape optional (VineJS `vine.helpers.optional`).
+	 * A properties TRANSFORMER, like `pick`/`omit` — it returns a record to
+	 * spread, not a schema.
+	 */
+	/**
+	 * A field that must be ABSENT (VineJS `vine.optional()` → `VineOptional`,
+	 * `builder.d.ts:135`). Mostly a `unionOfTypes` branch. Distinct from
+	 * `.optional()` on a chain, which relaxes an existing type — this one IS the
+	 * type. The properties transformer that used to squat this name moved to
+	 * `helpers.optional`, where VineJS keeps it.
+	 */
+	optional: (): RuleChain<undefined> => {
+		const chain = new RuleChain();
+		chain.pushTypeRule({
+			name: "optionalType",
+			validate: (v) => v === undefined,
+			message: "Must not be provided",
+		});
+		return chain.optional().retypeTo<undefined>();
+	},
+	/** A field that must be `null` (VineJS `vine.null()` → `VineNull`). */
+	null: (): RuleChain<null> => {
+		const chain = new RuleChain();
+		chain.pushTypeRule({
+			name: "nullType",
+			validate: (v) => v === null,
+			message: "Must be null",
+		});
+		return chain.nullable().retypeTo<null>();
+	},
+	unionOfTypes: (chains: readonly RuleChain[]): RuleChain => {
+		// VineJS requires DISTINCT types: two branches claiming the same type make
+		// the discrimination meaningless, and the second would be dead code.
+		const seen = new Set<string>();
+		for (const chain of chains) {
+			const typeRule = chain.rules.find((rule) =>
+				TYPE_RULE_NAMES.has(rule.name),
+			);
+			const name = typeRule?.name;
+			if (name === undefined) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"NO_TYPE_RULE",
+					"unionOfTypes() needs every branch to declare a type (string/number/…).",
+					{ hint: "Use union([...]) for predicate-based branches." },
+				);
+			}
+			if (seen.has(name)) {
+				throw new RuneError(
+					"DUPLICATE_UNION_TYPE",
+					`unionOfTypes() got two '${name}' branches — the second can never be reached.`,
+					{ hint: "Give each branch a distinct type, or use union([...])." },
+				);
+			}
+			seen.add(name);
+		}
+		return new RuleChain().union(
+			chains.map((chain) => {
+				const typeRule = chain.rules.find((rule) =>
+					TYPE_RULE_NAMES.has(rule.name),
+				);
+				return unionIf(
+					(value, field) => typeRule?.validate(value, field) === true,
+					chain,
+				);
+			}),
+		);
+	},
 	object: <Sh extends Record<string, RuleChain>>(
 		shape: Sh,
 	): RuleChain<Infer<Sh>> => new RuleChain().object(shape),
 	array: <Item extends RuleChain>(item?: Item): RuleChain<OutputOf<Item>[]> =>
 		new RuleChain().array(item),
 	enum: <const V extends readonly (string | number | boolean)[]>(
-		values: V,
+		values: V | ((field: FieldContext) => V),
 	): RuleChain<V[number]> => new RuleChain().enum(values),
 	literal: <V extends string | number | boolean>(value: V): RuleChain<V> =>
 		new RuleChain().literal(value),
@@ -1342,6 +4551,7 @@ function validateWithRust(
 			rules: Array<{ name: string; params: unknown }>;
 			optional: boolean;
 			transforms: string[];
+			bail: boolean;
 		}
 	> = {};
 
@@ -1356,6 +4566,8 @@ function validateWithRust(
 			rules: ruleDescs,
 			optional: chain.isOptionalField,
 			transforms: chain.transforms.map((t) => t.name),
+			// Sent explicitly so the Rust engine and the TS path agree on bail.
+			bail: chain.bails,
 		};
 	}