diff --git a/src/ui/inventory.ts b/src/ui/inventory.ts
index 4d646c3..3613148 100644
--- a/src/ui/inventory.ts
+++ b/src/ui/inventory.ts
@@ -142,10 +142,26 @@ export interface ResolvableItem {
   readonly height?: number | undefined
 }
 
+/**
+ * Returns the canonical, unpadded item code for sprite lookups.
+ *
+ * Simulation items carry `code` as the fixed 4-byte .d2s field, space padded
+ * (`'hp1 '`, `'dr3 '`); UI items carry it unpadded. Both are normalized here,
+ * falling back to the ItemBase code (`base.id`) when `code` is absent.
+ */
+export function normalizeItemCode(item: ResolvableItem): string | undefined {
+  const raw = item.code ?? (item as { base?: { id?: unknown } }).base?.id
+  if (typeof raw !== 'string') return undefined
+  const trimmed = raw.trim()
+  return trimmed.length > 0 ? trimmed : undefined
+}
+
 export function resolveItemSpriteRect(
-  item: ResolvableItem,
+  rawItem: ResolvableItem,
   itemRects: Record<string, SpriteRect> = BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.itemRects,
 ): SpriteRect | null {
+  const normalizedCode = normalizeItemCode(rawItem)
+  const item: ResolvableItem = normalizedCode === rawItem.code ? rawItem : { ...rawItem, code: normalizedCode }
   // Tier 0: Transformed dyed item lookup: `${invFile}_${invtransform}`
   const targetInv =
     item.invFile ||
@@ -403,9 +419,13 @@ export function resolveGroundItemSpriteRect(
     }
   }
 
-  // 4. Base item code lookup in codeToFlippyFile
-  if (item.code) {
-    const fromCode = codeToFlippyFile[item.code] ?? codeToFlippyFile[item.code.toLowerCase()]
+  // 4. Base item code lookup in codeToFlippyFile.
+  // Simulation `Item.code` is the 4-char space-padded .d2s code (e.g. 'dr3 ',
+  // D2Common!6FD77180), so it must be trimmed; `base.id` is the unpadded
+  // ItemBase code and is authoritative when `code` is absent.
+  const itemCode = normalizeItemCode(item)
+  if (itemCode) {
+    const fromCode = codeToFlippyFile[itemCode] ?? codeToFlippyFile[itemCode.toLowerCase()]
     if (fromCode) {
       if (item.invtransform) {
         const dyed = `${fromCode}_${item.invtransform}`.toLowerCase()
diff --git a/tests/ground-drop-sprite.test.ts b/tests/ground-drop-sprite.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dc97774
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/ground-drop-sprite.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+/**
+ * Regression: monster drops rendered with the wrong ground sprite.
+ *
+ * Simulation items produced by executeDropPipeline carry `code` as the 4-byte
+ * space-padded .d2s field ('dr3 '). The ground resolver looked that up verbatim
+ * in codeToFlippyFile, missed, and fell through to the inventory-size guess, so
+ * every 2x2 drop (Antlers 'dr3', caps, ...) rendered as the Horadric Cube
+ * (invbox). Picking the item up rebuilt it through itemToUiInventoryItem, which
+ * is why re-dropping it looked correct.
+ */
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest'
+import { getEmbeddedDropTables } from '../src/game/embedded-drop-tables.ts'
+import { createDroppedItem, executeDropPipeline } from '../src/game/drop-pipeline.ts'
+import { D2Rng } from '../src/game/d2-rng.ts'
+import { BAKED_UI_MANIFEST } from '../src/ui/baked-ui-meta.ts'
+import { normalizeItemCode, resolveGroundItemSpriteRect, resolveItemSpriteRect } from '../src/ui/inventory.ts'
+import { itemToUiInventoryItem } from '../src/ui/item-bridge.ts'
+
+const VARIANT_INV_CODES = new Set(['amu', 'rin', 'jew'])
+
+describe('monster drop ground sprite resolution', () => {
+  const tables = getEmbeddedDropTables()
+  const flippyRects = BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.flippyRects
+  const codeToFlippy = BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.codeToFlippyFile
+
+  it('normalizes padded .d2s codes and falls back to base.id', () => {
+    expect(normalizeItemCode({ code: 'dr3 ' })).toBe('dr3')
+    expect(normalizeItemCode({ code: 'hp1 ' })).toBe('hp1')
+    expect(normalizeItemCode({ base: { id: 'cap' } } as any)).toBe('cap')
+    expect(normalizeItemCode({})).toBeUndefined()
+  })
+
+  it('renders a pipeline-built Antlers (dr3) with flpdr3, not the Horadric Cube', () => {
+    const base = tables.getBase('dr3')!
+    expect(base).toBeDefined()
+    const item = createDroppedItem(base, 'normal', { ilvl: 5, dwInitSeed: 1 } as any)
+    expect(item.code).toBe('dr3 ')
+    const rect = resolveGroundItemSpriteRect(item as any)
+    expect(rect).toBe(flippyRects[codeToFlippy['dr3']!])
+    expect(rect).not.toBe(flippyRects['flpbox'])
+    expect(rect).not.toBe(BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.itemRects['invbox'])
+  })
+
+  it('ground sprite of a raw drop equals the sprite after the pickup→UI round trip', () => {
+    const rng = new D2Rng(7)
+    let checked = 0
+    for (let i = 0; i < 400; i++) {
+      for (const drop of executeDropPipeline(tables, { tcName: 'Act 1 Champ A', nLevel: 5, monsterType: 2, monsterRng: rng } as any)) {
+        if (drop.base.id === 'gold') continue
+        const raw = resolveGroundItemSpriteRect(drop as any)
+        const ui = resolveGroundItemSpriteRect(itemToUiInventoryItem(drop, tables) as any)
+        expect(raw, `${drop.base.id} ${drop.name}`).toBe(ui)
+        checked++
+      }
+    }
+    expect(checked).toBeGreaterThan(100)
+  })
+
+  it('every droppable weapon/armor/misc base with a baked flippy resolves to it directly', () => {
+    const missing: string[] = []
+    let checked = 0
+    for (const [code, flp] of Object.entries(codeToFlippy)) {
+      const base = tables.getBase(code)
+      if (!base || !flippyRects[flp]) continue
+      {
+        checked++
+        const item = createDroppedItem(base, 'normal', { ilvl: 1, dwInitSeed: 1 } as any)
+        if (resolveGroundItemSpriteRect(item as any) !== flippyRects[flp]) missing.push(code)
+        const inv = BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.codeToInvFile[code]
+        // amu/rin/jew pick one of several invfile variants (invamu1..3 etc.) per item seed.
+        if (!VARIANT_INV_CODES.has(code) && inv && BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.itemRects[inv] && resolveItemSpriteRect(item as any) !== BAKED_UI_MANIFEST.itemRects[inv]) {
+          missing.push(`inv:${code}`)
+        }
+      }
+    }
+    expect(checked).toBeGreaterThan(300)
+    expect(missing).toEqual([])
+  })
+})