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draw / drawMany ​

Problem ​

You need to pick one random element from an array — for example selecting a random item, quote, or server from a pool.

Solution ​

Use draw(array) to return a single randomly selected element, or drawMany(array, n) to pick n unique items.

ts
import { draw, drawMany } from '@vielzeug/arsenal';

const servers = ['us-east', 'eu-west', 'ap-south'];
draw(servers); // e.g. 'eu-west'

// Pick 2 random unique servers
drawMany(servers, 2); // e.g. ['ap-south', 'us-east']
drawMany(servers, 10); // ['us-east', 'eu-west', 'ap-south'] (clamped to length)

Pitfalls ​

  • draw returns undefined for empty arrays — handle the empty case explicitly.
  • draw uses Math.random() — not cryptographically secure.
  • drawMany uses crypto.getRandomValues — cryptographically random; safe for sampling.