Simplify

SIMPLIFY is opt-in and not part of ALL. Run it as its own pass once you have reviewed the initial conversion. Its four rectors run in the order below.

PromoteFieldFactoryRector

Promotes FluentRule::field() to a typed factory when every ->rule(...) wrapper in the chain resolves to a rule whose target method lives on exactly one typed subclass. FluentRule::field()->rule('max:61') becomes FluentRule::string()->max(61), which unblocks the escape-hatch cleanup below.

Promoting changes validation behaviour. StringRule adds Laravel's implicit string rule, NumericRule adds numeric; FieldRule adds neither. Intent matches in nearly every max(N) case, but the diff is worth reading.

Other promotions and bail conditions

• string()->rule(Password::default()) / ->rule(Email::default()) → FluentRule::password() / ::email().
• field()->required()->rule('accepted') → FluentRule::accepted()->required(), and the declined analog: those factories seed the constraint in their constructors, so the ->rule() hop is spliced out. Promotion to boolean() stays blocked, because boolean's implicit constraint rejects "yes" / "on" / "true" and "no" / "off" / "false".
• Bails on conditionable hops, chains whose compatible-class intersection is not a singleton, and accepted / declined chains carrying further ->rule(...) payloads.

SimplifyFluentRuleRector

Factory shortcuts (string()->url() → url()), ->label() folded into factory args, min() + max() → between(), redundant type removal.

Bail conditions

• The min()+max() fold bails when either carries messageFor('min'/'max') or a positional message(), because folding would drop the binding.
• Factory-shortcut promotion bails when the chain has a label() call, or the shortcut method is not adjacent to the factory.

SimplifyRuleWrappersRector

Rewrites escape-hatch ->rule(...) calls into native typed methods. Runs after SimplifyFluentRuleRector so shortcuts apply first. Takes an allowlist for factories it cannot introspect.

Rewrite table

Rule family	Receivers	Notes
in / notIn	String/Numeric/Email/Field/Date	HasEmbeddedRules consumers
min / max / between	per-class allowlist	EmailRule has only max
regex	StringRule only
size → exactly	String/Numeric/Array/File	renamed per TypedBuilderHint
enum	HasEmbeddedRules consumers	typed-rule allowlist
Literal-zero comparisons	NumericRule	gt:0 → ->positive(), gte:0 → ->nonNegative(), and so on. Non-zero literals and field refs stay escape
Zero-arg string tokens	receivers with a matching method	accepted, declined, present, prohibited, nullable, sometimes, required, filled

Conditional rules and receiver inference

• COMMA_SEPARATED conditional rules in array, string and concat form all lower to native methods: ->rule(['required_if', 'field', 'value']), ->rule('required_if:field,value') and ->rule('required_with:' . self::FIELD). String form splits the tail on commas; the fluent variadic re-joins with ,, so escaped or quoted commas round-trip. Concat form is scoped to the pure-field family and gated to statically simple string-oriented operands, so a method call, arithmetic or ternary operand stays an escape hatch. BackedEnum cases in tail positions auto-wrap with ->value. required_if_accepted and exclude_with stay escape hatches.
• Rule:: facade conditionals (Rule::requiredIf($cond) and siblings) pass the single Closure|bool through verbatim. Bails on multi-arg calls, on a literal null condition (valid Laravel, but ->requiredIf(null) would TypeError), and on named args, since param names differ between facade and builder.
• Receiver inference walks back to the FluentRule::*() factory, stepping through Conditionable proxy hops when the closure is a bare return, no return, or fn ($r) => $r. Other closure shapes bail, as do variable receivers and methods absent from the resolved class.

InlineMessageParamRector

Collapses ->message('…') and ->messageFor('key', '…') into the inline message: named parameter. Needs fluent-validation ^1.20; earlier floors get zero rewrites via a reflection-time probe.

Rewrite predicates and skip categories

Three predicates: factory-direct (FluentRule::email()->message('Bad') → FluentRule::email(message: 'Bad'), only with no intervening hop), rule-method matched-key (->min(3)->messageFor('min', 'Too short.') → ->min(3, message: 'Too short.')), and rule-object (->rule(new In([...]))->messageFor('in', '…')).

Skipped, each with a log entry: variadic-trailing methods (requiredWith, contains) where inline would bind to the wrong slot; composite methods (digitsBetween, DateRule::between, ImageRule::dimensions) where it would bind to the last sub-rule; mode modifiers (EmailRule::strict, PasswordRule::letters) that never call addRule; deferred-key factories (date, dateTime); L11/L12-divergent Password; and factories with no implicit constraint (field, anyOf).

Pre-existing user misbindings (->min(3)->messageFor('max', …)) stay chained silently. Not the rector's to fix.