diff --git a/PLAN.md b/PLAN.md
index c0bf9d7..94e9823 100644
--- a/PLAN.md
+++ b/PLAN.md
@@ -226,3 +226,16 @@ Abgabe: **9. Dezember 2026, 03:00 MEZ**. Eingereicht wird in „Best Daily Game
   `win` = mindestens ein Stern, `score` = Gold. Alles „feuern und vergessen“.
 - Reddit leitet Ereignisse erst nach Freischaltung in der App-Review weiter (Allowlist); bis dahin „dropped“.
 - Katalog (Besitzer): App-Icon aus dem Hauptspiel, Texte wie vorgeschlagen, Kategorie Game → Strategy.
+
+### 2026-11-13 – README und Löschregel
+
+- **`README.md`** (Pflicht laut Jam und Devvit-Regeln, Großschreibung): Überblick, Spielanleitung, Sterne/Bestenliste/
+  Streak, Einrichtung für Moderatoren, Datenschutz, Entwicklung, Credits, Lizenz. Die Vorlage hieß `readme.md`.
+- **Devvit-Regel „Enable and respect user deletions“:** Für Kontolöschungen gibt es keinen Trigger. Deshalb laufen
+  alle Schlüssel mit User-ID oder Namen nach **30 Tagen** ab (`RETENTION_S`), jede Abgabe verlängert die Frist.
+  Spielerdaten liegen jetzt je Spieler unter `player:{userId}` statt im Hash `players` (einzelne Hash-Felder können
+  nicht ablaufen). Folge: Bestenlisten älterer Posts sind nach 30 Tagen leer; wer 30 Tage nicht spielt, verliert
+  Statistik und Freischaltungen (Phase 2 – beim Entwurf der Freischaltungen bedenken). Schutztest in
+  `server.test.ts`.
+- **Playtest-Fallstrick:** Mehrere Änderungen in kurzer Folge (vor allem an `devvit.json`) lösten zwei Uploads mit
+  derselben Versionsnummer aus („This AppVersion already exists“), `devvit playtest` brach ab → neu starten.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..baedf9c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+# Ninelands – a daily strategy puzzle for Reddit
+
+**Ninelands** is a bite-sized strategy game that lives inside a Reddit post. Every day brings a fresh 9×9 map that is
+the same for everyone. Build your realm piece by piece, claim lands and gold, chase three stars and climb today's
+leaderboard – then compare your realm with the community in the comments.
+
+It is a port of [Ninelands](https://ninelands.stackteam.at), a strategy board game by StackTeam that runs on the web,
+desktop, Android and itch.io. The Reddit edition is a new, focused daily mode built on Devvit Web for the
+_Reddit Game of the Day 2026_ hackathon.
+
+## How to play
+
+1. **Open today's post** and press **Play**.
+2. **Place your castle.** It is free and founds your realm. It claims land in straight lines (up to 5 cells) –
+   nothing can be built on claimed land afterwards.
+3. **Grow your realm.** Every new piece must connect to the land you already hold:
+
+   | Piece      | Cost | Claims                                            | Rules                                                |
+   | :--------- | :--: | :------------------------------------------------ | :--------------------------------------------------- |
+   | **Castle** | free | straight lines, reach 5, crosses borders          | only one, placed first, not in the moor              |
+   | **Farmer** | free | the 8 surrounding cells in its own land           | must border your land directly, in the same land     |
+   | **Knight** |  10  | straight lines, reach 2, stops at the land border | must touch your land in the same land · **2× yield** |
+   | **Bishop** |  15  | diagonal lines, reach 2, crosses borders          | must touch your land                                 |
+
+4. **Earn gold.** Ore (mountains) and herbs (moor) pay 20 gold, every claimed pasture cell 5 (7 in a land with a lake).
+   Knights pay double. Building costs are deducted.
+5. **Rule lands.** The board is split into 9 lands; you rule a land once you claim at least half of it.
+6. **Finish.** The game ends when no move is left – or whenever you press **End game** (tap twice). If no remaining
+   move earns gold, the game suggests ending.
+
+Every map has one **law of the realm** that changes the rules a little (e.g. _Costly knights_, _One farm per land_).
+Hover or tap a cell to preview what a piece would claim and how much gold it brings; the line below the board
+explains why a cell does or doesn't fit.
+
+### Stars, leaderboard and streaks
+
+- **Three stars per map:** reach the gold target, rule the lands target, and both in the same game. Targets are
+  computed from computer games on that very map, so every day and every law is fair.
+- **Only your first game counts.** You may play again for practice; it won't change your result.
+- **Leaderboard:** more stars first, then more gold; on a tie the earlier submission wins. The server replays every
+  submitted game with the same engine and computes gold and stars itself – results cannot be faked.
+- **Streak:** play the map of the day on consecutive days. Older posts can still be played, but only today's map
+  keeps your streak alive.
+- **Share** your result line (`Ninelands #12 ★★☆ · 8/9 lands · 85 gold`) and discuss strategies in the comments.
+
+## Features
+
+- A new post every day at 00:01 UTC (Devvit scheduler) with its own map, leaderboard and comment thread.
+- Inline start screen in the feed (map preview, law of the day, goals or your result, streak, top 3) and the full
+  board in expanded mode.
+- Mobile first: tap once to preview, tap again to place. Music starts only after your first tap and can be muted.
+- Devvit Journeys: app ready, journey start when the castle is placed, a progress event per star, end with gold as
+  score.
+
+## For moderators: setup
+
+1. **Install the app** in your subreddit from its page on developers.reddit.com.
+2. **That's it.** On installation the app creates today's post. After that it posts a new map automatically every day
+   at 00:01 UTC – no manual work needed.
+3. If a daily post is ever missing, open the subreddit's mod menu (⋯) and choose
+   **“Ninelands: create today's post”**. It never creates a duplicate.
+
+Each subreddit has its own leaderboards and streaks. There is nothing to configure.
+
+## Privacy
+
+The app stores only what the game needs: your Reddit user ID and name with your first result per day (for the
+leaderboard) and your streak statistics. All of it expires automatically **30 days** after your last game. No data
+leaves Reddit.
+
+## Development
+
+Built from the Devvit template _Bare_: TypeScript, esbuild, Biome, `node --test`.
+
+```sh
+npm install
+npm run test       # types, lint, unit tests, build
+npm run playtest   # build, upload and install in the test subreddit
+npm run capture    # record the catalog assets (video, GIF, stills) into dist/marketing/
+```
+
+- `src/client/` – start screen (`splash`) and game (`game`)
+- `src/server/` – endpoints: day state, verified submission, leaderboard, streak, daily post, journeys
+- `src/shared/` – API types and the daily map (seed from the UTC date)
+- `src/engine/` – the Ninelands engine and board renderer, copied unchanged from a tagged release by
+  `scripts/sync-engine.sh` (see `src/engine/VERSION`)
+
+## Credits
+
+- Music: “Dreamscape (part I)” by Vee Ray – CC BY-SA 4.0 (re-encoded)
+- Graphics: “Mini World Sprites” by Shade and octoshrimpy – CC0
+- Font: Pixelify Sans – SIL Open Font License 1.1
+- Project skeleton: Devvit template “Bare” © Reddit Inc. – BSD-3-Clause
+
+Details in [CREDITS.md](CREDITS.md).
+
+## License
+
+GPL-3.0 – see [LICENSE](LICENSE). The template parts remain under BSD-3-Clause ([LICENSE-TEMPLATE.md](LICENSE-TEMPLATE.md)).
diff --git a/readme.md b/readme.md
deleted file mode 100644
index b5349f0..0000000
--- a/readme.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,28 +0,0 @@
-## Devvit Bare Template
-
-A practical [Devvit](https://developers.reddit.com/) app template with few dependencies. A little simpler at the expense of a little code.
-
-## Getting Started
-
-> Make sure you have Node 22 downloaded on your machine before running!
-
-1. Run `npm create devvit@latest --template=bare`
-2. Go through the installation wizard. You will need to create a Reddit account and connect it to Reddit Developers.
-
-## Commands
-
-- `npm run playtest [r/sub]`: watches changes, builds, uploads, and installs on Reddit. Accepts an optional subreddit.
-- `npm run build`: builds client and server, including esbuild metafiles.
-- `npm run clean`: removes build outputs.
-- `npm run test`: runs all tests.
-- `npm run format`: fixes lints and formatting.
-- `npm run lint`: checks lints and formatting.
-- `npm run publish`: cleans, builds, uploads, and files a new app review request.
-
-## Features
-
-- A plain Node.js server with front and backend typing.
-- Tests using the builtin Node.js test runner.
-- Promise misuse linter.
-- Formatter and bundler.
-- TypeScript project skeleton split by environment (frontend, backend, test, etc).
diff --git a/src/server/db.ts b/src/server/db.ts
index 689baa5..6691fcc 100644
--- a/src/server/db.ts
+++ b/src/server/db.ts
@@ -4,8 +4,12 @@
 //   results:{day}          Hash userId → JSON des ersten Versuchs (hSetNX = nur der erste zählt)
 //   board:{day}            Sorted Set userId → rankScore (Bestenliste)
 //   seq:{day}              Zähler der Abgaben (Gleichstand: frühere Abgabe gewinnt)
-//   players                Hash userId → JSON PlayerStats + lastDay
+//   player:{userId}        JSON PlayerStats + lastDay
 //   posts                  Hash day → postId (verhindert doppelte Tagesposts)
+//
+// Devvit-Regel „Enable and respect user deletions“: Für Kontolöschungen gibt es keinen Trigger, deshalb laufen alle
+// Schlüssel mit User-ID oder Namen nach RETENTION_S ab (Reddit empfiehlt ≤ 30 Tage). Jede Abgabe verlängert die
+// Frist der betroffenen Schlüssel; wer 30 Tage nicht spielt, ist danach vollständig gelöscht.
 import {redis} from '@devvit/web/server'
 import type {DayResult, Goals, LeaderRow, PlayerStats} from '../shared/api.ts'
 import {addDays} from '../shared/daily.ts'
@@ -22,6 +26,9 @@ type StoredPlayer = PlayerStats & {lastDay: string}
 
 const TOP = 10
 
+/** Aufbewahrung von Nutzerdaten: 30 Tage */
+export const RETENTION_S = 30 * 24 * 60 * 60
+
 export async function dbGetGoals(day: string): Promise<Goals | undefined> {
   const raw = await redis.get(`goals:${day}`)
   return raw ? (JSON.parse(raw) as Goals) : undefined
@@ -29,6 +36,7 @@ export async function dbGetGoals(day: string): Promise<Goals | undefined> {
 
 export async function dbSetGoals(day: string, goals: Goals): Promise<void> {
   await redis.set(`goals:${day}`, JSON.stringify(goals))
+  await redis.expire(`goals:${day}`, RETENTION_S)
 }
 
 /**
@@ -52,6 +60,11 @@ export async function dbSaveFirstResult(
     member: userId,
     score: rankScore(result.stars, result.gold, seq),
   })
+  await Promise.all(
+    [`results:${day}`, `board:${day}`, `seq:${day}`].map(k =>
+      redis.expire(k, RETENTION_S),
+    ),
+  )
   return true
 }
 
@@ -112,7 +125,7 @@ const EMPTY_STATS: StoredPlayer = {
 }
 
 async function loadPlayer(userId: string): Promise<StoredPlayer> {
-  const raw = await redis.hGet('players', userId)
+  const raw = await redis.get(`player:${userId}`)
   return raw
     ? {...EMPTY_STATS, ...(JSON.parse(raw) as StoredPlayer)}
     : {...EMPTY_STATS}
@@ -154,7 +167,8 @@ export async function dbRecordPlay(
     p.bestStreak = Math.max(p.bestStreak, p.streak)
     p.lastDay = today
   }
-  await redis.hSet('players', {[userId]: JSON.stringify(p)})
+  await redis.set(`player:${userId}`, JSON.stringify(p))
+  await redis.expire(`player:${userId}`, RETENTION_S)
   return visibleStats(p, today)
 }
 
diff --git a/src/server/server.test.ts b/src/server/server.test.ts
index c37c0af..0bf2aaa 100644
--- a/src/server/server.test.ts
+++ b/src/server/server.test.ts
@@ -41,7 +41,12 @@ const sortedAsc = (k: string) =>
   [...zset(k).entries()].sort((a, b) => a[1] - b[1])
 
 const original = {...redis}
+/** Ablaufzeiten, die db.ts gesetzt hat (Schlüssel → Sekunden) */
+const expiries = new Map<string, number>()
 const fake: Partial<typeof redis> = {
+  expire: async (k, seconds) => {
+    expiries.set(k, seconds)
+  },
   get: async k => strings.get(k),
   set: async (k, v) => {
     strings.set(k, v)
@@ -112,6 +117,7 @@ const today = dailyMap(new Date()).day
 
 beforeEach(() => {
   strings.clear()
+  expiries.clear()
   hashes.clear()
   zsets.clear()
   ctx = {userId: 't2_alice', username: 'alice', postData: {day: today}}
@@ -164,6 +170,18 @@ test('Abgabe wird nachgespielt, gewertet und zählt die Streak', async () => {
   assert.equal(body.top[0]?.name, 'alice')
 })
 
+test('Nutzerdaten laufen nach 30 Tagen ab (Devvit-Regel zu Löschungen)', async () => {
+  await submit({day: today, moves: botMoves(today, 1)})
+  const month = 30 * 24 * 60 * 60
+  for (const k of [
+    `results:${today}`,
+    `board:${today}`,
+    `seq:${today}`,
+    'player:t2_alice',
+  ])
+    assert.equal(expiries.get(k), month, k)
+})
+
 test('nur der erste Versuch zählt', async () => {
   await submit({day: today, moves: botMoves(today, 1)})
   const second = (await (
@@ -176,8 +194,8 @@ test('nur der erste Versuch zählt', async () => {
 
 test('Streak wächst an Folgetagen und reißt nach einer Lücke', async () => {
   const stored = (lastDay: string, streak: number) =>
-    hash('players').set(
-      't2_alice',
+    strings.set(
+      'player:t2_alice',
       JSON.stringify({
         streak,
         bestStreak: streak,