func _find_valid_drop_position() -> Vector2i:
	# Try random adjacent cells
	var neighbors = enhanced_gridmap.get_neighbors(current_position, 0)
	neighbors.shuffle()
	
	for neighbor in neighbors:
		var pos = neighbor.position
		# Check item layer
		var item_cell = Vector3i(pos.x, 1, pos.y)
		if enhanced_gridmap.get_cell_item(item_cell) == -1:
			if not is_position_occupied(pos):
				# Gauntlet Mode explicit overrides
				var gm = null
				var main_gauntlet = get_tree().root.get_node_or_null("Main")
				if main_gauntlet and main_gauntlet.get("gauntlet_manager"):
					gm = main_gauntlet.gauntlet_manager
				if gm and gm.is_active:
					if pos.x == 0 or pos.x == gm.ARENA_COLUMNS - 1 or pos.y == 0 or pos.y == gm.ARENA_ROWS - 1:
						continue
					if gm._is_npc_zone(pos):
						continue
				return pos
					
	return Vector2i(-1, -1)