diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 4bc8f13..3b1eebc 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -658,6 +658,12 @@ dependencies = [
  "unicode-width",
 ]
 
+[[package]]
+name = "color"
+version = "0.3.3"
+source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
+checksum = "2ec7c5eb7a16992b1904d76c517d170ab353b0e0b3d5a0c81a8a0cd1037893cf"
+
 [[package]]
 name = "combine"
 version = "4.6.7"
@@ -1705,17 +1711,27 @@ source = "registry+https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index"
 checksum = "e2db585e1d738fc771bf08a151420d3ed193d9d895a36df7f6f8a9456b911ddc"
 
 [[package]]
-name = "kiln"
+name = "kiln-core"
 version = "0.1.0"
 dependencies = [
- "eframe",
- "image",
- "rfd",
+ "color",
  "rhai",
  "serde",
  "toml",
 ]
 
+[[package]]
+name = "kiln-egui"
+version = "0.1.0"
+dependencies = [
+ "color",
+ "eframe",
+ "image",
+ "kiln-core",
+ "rfd",
+ "serde",
+]
+
 [[package]]
 name = "leb128fmt"
 version = "0.1.0"
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 4d0a15b..977628e 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -1,12 +1,3 @@
-[package]
-name = "kiln"
-version = "0.1.0"
-edition = "2024"
-
-[dependencies]
-eframe = "0.33.3"
-rhai = "1"
-serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
-toml = { version = "0.8", features = ["preserve_order"] }
-image = { version = "0.25", default-features = false, features = ["png"] }
-rfd = "0.15"
+[workspace]
+members = ["kiln-core", "kiln-egui"]
+resolver = "2"
diff --git a/kiln-core/Cargo.toml b/kiln-core/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7ce24b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/kiln-core/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[package]
+name = "kiln-core"
+version = "0.1.0"
+edition = "2024"
+
+[dependencies]
+color = "0.3.3"
+rhai = "1"
+serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
+toml = { version = "0.8", features = ["preserve_order"] }
diff --git a/src/game.rs b/kiln-core/src/game.rs
similarity index 92%
rename from src/game.rs
rename to kiln-core/src/game.rs
index 4a8e5d6..ef9374a 100644
--- a/src/game.rs
+++ b/kiln-core/src/game.rs
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
-use eframe::egui::Color32;
+use color::Rgba8;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use std::collections::HashMap;
+use std::hash::{Hash, Hasher};
 
 /// The visual representation of a single board cell.
 ///
@@ -14,14 +15,23 @@ use std::collections::HashMap;
 /// `Glyph` values come from the map file palette and are set at load time.
 /// The player is the only entity whose glyph is hardcoded at runtime
 /// (see [`Glyph::player`]).
-#[derive(Clone, Copy, PartialEq, Eq, Hash)]
+#[derive(Clone, Copy, PartialEq, Eq)]
 pub struct Glyph {
     /// Tile index into the board's bitmap font (left-to-right, top-to-bottom).
     pub tile: u32,
     /// Foreground color, applied to non-background pixels of the tile.
-    pub fg: Color32,
+    pub fg: Rgba8,
     /// Background color, drawn as a filled rectangle behind the tile.
-    pub bg: Color32,
+    pub bg: Rgba8,
+}
+
+impl Hash for Glyph {
+    /// Hash via packed u32 representations so the impl stays in sync with Eq.
+    fn hash<H: Hasher>(&self, state: &mut H) {
+        self.tile.hash(state);
+        self.fg.to_u32().hash(state);
+        self.bg.to_u32().hash(state);
+    }
 }
 
 impl Glyph {
@@ -33,8 +43,8 @@ impl Glyph {
     pub const fn player() -> Self {
         Self {
             tile: 64,
-            fg: Color32::LIGHT_BLUE,
-            bg: Color32::BLACK,
+            fg: Rgba8 { r: 173, g: 216, b: 230, a: 255 }, // light blue
+            bg: Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 },       // black
         }
     }
 }
@@ -144,24 +154,24 @@ impl Archetype {
         match self {
             Archetype::Empty => Glyph {
                 tile: 32,
-                fg: Color32::BLACK,
-                bg: Color32::BLACK,
+                fg: Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 },
+                bg: Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 },
             },
             Archetype::Wall => Glyph {
                 tile: 35,
-                fg: Color32::from_rgb(0x80, 0x80, 0x80),
-                bg: Color32::from_rgb(0x60, 0x60, 0x60),
+                fg: Rgba8 { r: 0x80, g: 0x80, b: 0x80, a: 255 },
+                bg: Rgba8 { r: 0x60, g: 0x60, b: 0x60, a: 255 },
             },
             Archetype::Object => Glyph {
                 tile: 63,
-                fg: Color32::YELLOW,
-                bg: Color32::BLACK,
+                fg: Rgba8 { r: 255, g: 255, b: 0, a: 255 }, // yellow
+                bg: Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 },
             },
             // Visually distinct so malformed map files are immediately obvious.
             Archetype::ErrorBlock => Glyph {
                 tile: 63,
-                fg: Color32::YELLOW,
-                bg: Color32::RED,
+                fg: Rgba8 { r: 255, g: 255, b: 0, a: 255 }, // yellow on red
+                bg: Rgba8 { r: 255, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 },
             },
         }
     }
@@ -323,6 +333,13 @@ impl Board {
         &mut self.cells[y * self.width + x]
     }
 
+    /// Returns a slice of all cells in row-major order.
+    ///
+    /// Useful for iterating over the full board (e.g. to collect unique glyphs).
+    pub fn cells(&self) -> &[(Glyph, Archetype)] {
+        &self.cells
+    }
+
     /// Returns `true` if the cell at `(x, y)` allows entities to pass through.
     ///
     /// Objects block movement before the grid cell archetype is consulted.
diff --git a/kiln-core/src/lib.rs b/kiln-core/src/lib.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c3e3eeb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/kiln-core/src/lib.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+/// Core game types: [`game::Board`], [`game::Glyph`], [`game::Archetype`], etc.
+pub mod game;
+/// Map file loading and saving (`.toml` format).
+pub mod map_file;
diff --git a/src/map_file.rs b/kiln-core/src/map_file.rs
similarity index 96%
rename from src/map_file.rs
rename to kiln-core/src/map_file.rs
index 39c320c..c1096ce 100644
--- a/src/map_file.rs
+++ b/kiln-core/src/map_file.rs
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 use crate::game::{Archetype, Board, FontSpec, Glyph, ObjectDef, Player, PortalDef};
-use eframe::egui::Color32;
+use color::Rgba8;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use std::collections::HashMap;
 use std::convert::TryFrom;
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ pub struct MapFile {
     pub font: Option<FontHeader>,
     /// Any `[[objects]]` entries. Optional; defaults to empty.
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Vec::is_empty")]
-    pub objects: Vec<MapFileObjectEntry>,
+    pub(crate) objects: Vec<MapFileObjectEntry>,
     /// Any `[[portals]]` entries. Optional; defaults to empty.
     #[serde(default, skip_serializing_if = "Vec::is_empty")]
     pub portals: Vec<PortalDef>,
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ pub struct FontHeader {
 /// the key to `tile`; the char form keeps working.
 #[derive(Deserialize, Serialize)]
 #[serde(untagged)]
-enum TileIndex {
+pub(crate) enum TileIndex {
     /// A direct tile index (e.g. `tile = 35`).
     Num(u32),
     /// A single-character shorthand (e.g. `tile = "#"`); converted to its Unicode scalar.
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ enum TileIndex {
 }
 
 impl TileIndex {
-    fn into_u32(self) -> u32 {
+    pub(crate) fn into_u32(self) -> u32 {
         match self {
             TileIndex::Num(n) => n,
             TileIndex::Chr(c) => c as u32,
@@ -143,22 +143,22 @@ pub(crate) struct MapFileObjectEntry {
     script_name: Option<String>,
 }
 
-/// Parses an `"#RRGGBB"` hex color string into a [`Color32`].
-/// Returns black on any parse failure.
-fn parse_color(hex: &str) -> Color32 {
+/// Parses an `"#RRGGBB"` hex color string into an [`Rgba8`].
+/// Returns opaque black on any parse failure.
+fn parse_color(hex: &str) -> Rgba8 {
     let hex = hex.trim_start_matches('#');
     if hex.len() != 6 {
-        return Color32::BLACK;
+        return Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 };
     }
     let r = u8::from_str_radix(&hex[0..2], 16).unwrap_or(0);
     let g = u8::from_str_radix(&hex[2..4], 16).unwrap_or(0);
     let b = u8::from_str_radix(&hex[4..6], 16).unwrap_or(0);
-    Color32::from_rgb(r, g, b)
+    Rgba8 { r, g, b, a: 255 }
 }
 
-/// Converts a [`Color32`] to an `"#RRGGBB"` hex string.
-fn color_to_hex(color: Color32) -> String {
-    format!("#{:02X}{:02X}{:02X}", color.r(), color.g(), color.b())
+/// Converts an [`Rgba8`] to an `"#RRGGBB"` hex string (alpha is ignored).
+fn color_to_hex(color: Rgba8) -> String {
+    format!("#{:02X}{:02X}{:02X}", color.r, color.g, color.b)
 }
 
 /// Converts a parsed map file into a runtime [`Board`].
@@ -368,6 +368,7 @@ impl From<&Board> for MapFile {
                 script_name: o.script_name.clone(),
             })
             .collect();
+
         let portals = board
             .portals
             .iter()
@@ -498,8 +499,6 @@ O
     #[test]
     fn object_glyph_round_trips_through_toml() {
         // Objects must survive a save→load cycle with their glyph intact.
-        use eframe::egui::Color32;
-
         let toml = r##"
 [map]
 name = "Test"
@@ -531,8 +530,8 @@ bg = "#000000"
         assert_eq!(obj.x, 1);
         assert_eq!(obj.y, 1);
         assert_eq!(obj.glyph.tile, 64);
-        assert_eq!(obj.glyph.fg, Color32::from_rgb(0x00, 0xFF, 0xFF));
-        assert_eq!(obj.glyph.bg, Color32::BLACK);
+        assert_eq!(obj.glyph.fg, Rgba8 { r: 0x00, g: 0xFF, b: 0xFF, a: 255 });
+        assert_eq!(obj.glyph.bg, Rgba8 { r: 0, g: 0, b: 0, a: 255 });
 
         // Save back to TOML and reload; glyph must survive.
         let map_file = MapFile::from(&board);
diff --git a/kiln-egui/Cargo.toml b/kiln-egui/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5f2c05a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/kiln-egui/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+[package]
+name = "kiln-egui"
+version = "0.1.0"
+edition = "2024"
+
+[[bin]]
+name = "kiln"
+path = "src/main.rs"
+
+[dependencies]
+kiln-core = { path = "../kiln-core" }
+eframe = "0.33.3"
+color = "0.3.3"
+image = { version = "0.25", default-features = false, features = ["png"] }
+rfd = "0.15"
+serde = { version = "1", features = ["derive"] }
diff --git a/assets/vga-font-8x16.png b/kiln-egui/assets/vga-font-8x16.png
similarity index 100%
rename from assets/vga-font-8x16.png
rename to kiln-egui/assets/vga-font-8x16.png
diff --git a/src/editor.rs b/kiln-egui/src/editor.rs
similarity index 99%
rename from src/editor.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/editor.rs
index 75642d5..7c95050 100644
--- a/src/editor.rs
+++ b/kiln-egui/src/editor.rs
@@ -3,8 +3,8 @@ use egui::{Sense, vec2};
 
 use crate::font::BitmapFont;
 use crate::font_dialog::{FontDialogState, show as show_font_dialog};
-use crate::game::{ALL_ARCHETYPES, Archetype, Board, Glyph};
 use crate::render::{PALETTE_PANEL_W, paint_glyph};
+use kiln_core::game::{ALL_ARCHETYPES, Archetype, Board, Glyph};
 
 /// Which tab is active in the editor side panel.
 #[derive(Copy, Clone, PartialEq, Eq)]
diff --git a/src/font.rs b/kiln-egui/src/font.rs
similarity index 100%
rename from src/font.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/font.rs
diff --git a/src/font_dialog.rs b/kiln-egui/src/font_dialog.rs
similarity index 99%
rename from src/font_dialog.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/font_dialog.rs
index 6fd17ea..be335b5 100644
--- a/src/font_dialog.rs
+++ b/kiln-egui/src/font_dialog.rs
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ use eframe::egui;
 use egui::{Color32, DragValue, Rect, Stroke, vec2};
 
 use crate::font::BitmapFont;
-use crate::game::FontSpec;
+use kiln_core::game::FontSpec;
 
 /// State for the font-picker dialog.
 ///
diff --git a/src/glyph_picker.rs b/kiln-egui/src/glyph_picker.rs
similarity index 89%
rename from src/glyph_picker.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/glyph_picker.rs
index ed33ad2..4d622e9 100644
--- a/src/glyph_picker.rs
+++ b/kiln-egui/src/glyph_picker.rs
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@ use eframe::egui;
 use egui::{Color32, Rect, Sense, Stroke, vec2};
 
 use crate::font::BitmapFont;
-use crate::game::{Archetype, Glyph};
-use crate::render::{paint_glyph, pos_to_cell};
+use crate::render::{paint_glyph, pos_to_cell, rgba8_to_color32};
+use kiln_core::game::{Archetype, Glyph};
 
 /// Renders the floating glyph-picker dialog and updates `glyph` in place.
 ///
@@ -62,18 +62,24 @@ pub(crate) fn show(
 
             ui.label("Colors");
             ui.horizontal(|ui| {
+                // The color picker works with Color32; convert to/from Rgba8 around the call.
+                let mut fg = rgba8_to_color32(glyph.fg);
                 ui.label("FG");
                 egui::color_picker::color_edit_button_srgba(
                     ui,
-                    &mut glyph.fg,
+                    &mut fg,
                     egui::color_picker::Alpha::Opaque,
                 );
+                glyph.fg = color::Rgba8 { r: fg.r(), g: fg.g(), b: fg.b(), a: fg.a() };
+
+                let mut bg = rgba8_to_color32(glyph.bg);
                 ui.label("BG");
                 egui::color_picker::color_edit_button_srgba(
                     ui,
-                    &mut glyph.bg,
+                    &mut bg,
                     egui::color_picker::Alpha::Opaque,
                 );
+                glyph.bg = color::Rgba8 { r: bg.r(), g: bg.g(), b: bg.b(), a: bg.a() };
             });
 
             ui.separator();
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/kiln-egui/src/main.rs
similarity index 95%
rename from src/main.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/main.rs
index bad475f..6b3a21d 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/kiln-egui/src/main.rs
@@ -5,14 +5,13 @@ use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
 mod editor;
 mod font;
 mod font_dialog;
-mod game;
 mod glyph_picker;
-mod map_file;
 mod render;
 
 use editor::{EditorState, EditorTab, show_editor_panel};
 use font::BitmapFont;
-use game::{Archetype, FontSpec, GameState, Glyph, ObjectDef};
+use kiln_core::game::{Archetype, FontSpec, GameState, Glyph, ObjectDef};
+use kiln_core::map_file;
 use render::{
     DEFAULT_WINDOW_H, DEFAULT_WINDOW_W, MIN_WINDOW_H, MIN_WINDOW_W, board_origin, draw_board,
     draw_object_overlays, pos_to_cell,
@@ -56,7 +55,7 @@ struct App {
     state: GameState,
     mode: AppMode,
     editor: EditorState,
-    /// The default font, loaded from `assets/default_font.png` or a placeholder.
+    /// The default font, embedded in the binary and loaded at startup.
     default_font: BitmapFont,
     /// A per-board font loaded from `board.font`, if one is specified.
     board_font: Option<BitmapFont>,
@@ -71,9 +70,10 @@ impl App {
     /// `egui_ctx` is needed to upload font textures before the first frame.
     /// `initial_path` is the file the board was loaded from and becomes the
     /// default Save target.
-    fn new(board: game::Board, egui_ctx: &egui::Context, initial_path: PathBuf) -> Self {
-        // Load the default font from assets/. Fall back to a placeholder if missing.
-        let default_font = BitmapFont::load(egui_ctx, Path::new("assets/vga-font-8x16.png"), 8, 16)
+    fn new(board: kiln_core::game::Board, egui_ctx: &egui::Context, initial_path: PathBuf) -> Self {
+        // Default font is embedded in the binary; no runtime file I/O needed.
+        let font_bytes = include_bytes!("../assets/vga-font-8x16.png");
+        let default_font = BitmapFont::from_bytes(egui_ctx, font_bytes, 8, 16, "vga-font-8x16")
             .unwrap_or_else(|_| BitmapFont::create_placeholder(egui_ctx));
 
         // If the board specifies its own font, try to load it now.
@@ -286,7 +286,7 @@ impl eframe::App for App {
                 ctx,
                 &mut self.editor.glyph_picker_open,
                 &mut self.editor.glyph,
-                &self.state.board.cells,
+                &self.state.board.cells(),
                 font,
             );
         }
@@ -299,7 +299,7 @@ impl eframe::App for App {
                 ctx,
                 &mut self.editor.object_glyph_picker_open,
                 &mut self.editor.object_editing_glyph,
-                &self.state.board.cells,
+                &self.state.board.cells(),
                 font,
             );
         }
diff --git a/src/render.rs b/kiln-egui/src/render.rs
similarity index 95%
rename from src/render.rs
rename to kiln-egui/src/render.rs
index 4c0ab6b..526b232 100644
--- a/src/render.rs
+++ b/kiln-egui/src/render.rs
@@ -28,7 +28,12 @@ use eframe::egui;
 use egui::{Color32, Pos2, Rect, vec2};
 
 use crate::font::BitmapFont;
-use crate::game::{Board, Glyph, Player};
+use kiln_core::game::{Board, Glyph, Player};
+
+/// Converts a core [`Glyph`] color ([`color::Rgba8`]) to egui [`Color32`].
+pub(crate) fn rgba8_to_color32(c: color::Rgba8) -> Color32 {
+    Color32::from_rgba_unmultiplied(c.r, c.g, c.b, c.a)
+}
 
 /// Approximate height of the egui menu bar in pixels, used for window sizing.
 pub(crate) const MENU_H: f32 = 24.0;
@@ -51,9 +56,9 @@ pub(crate) const MIN_WINDOW_H: f32 = 8.0 * 5.0 + MENU_H + 2.0 * PANEL_MARGIN;
 /// `glyph.fg`. Unlike [`draw_glyph`], the caller owns the rect and handles
 /// interaction — use this when you need the click [`egui::Response`].
 pub(crate) fn paint_glyph(painter: &egui::Painter, rect: Rect, glyph: &Glyph, font: &BitmapFont) {
-    painter.rect_filled(rect, 0.0, glyph.bg);
+    painter.rect_filled(rect, 0.0, rgba8_to_color32(glyph.bg));
     let uv = font.tile_uv(glyph.tile);
-    painter.image(font.texture.id(), rect, uv, glyph.fg);
+    painter.image(font.texture.id(), rect, uv, rgba8_to_color32(glyph.fg));
 }
 
 /// Draws a single cell at grid position `(x, y)` using the given glyph and font.