I’m starting to wonder if it isn’t a soft bricked sleeping issue, but more of a EEPROM issue due to low or irregular power?
I found something that says the programming process is interrupted (e.g., due to power loss), the existing data can be corrupted, potentially rendering the chip unusable. This seems like it could be the issue.
The sketch will run fine when plugged into the computer, but if you unplug it and plug in a battery (again, I am using the battery pads on the back plugged into a buck converter and then into a standard 9v - the 9v is a hard requirement for my project) My fear is something is up with this setup providing reliable power and that’s screwing something up at a crucial moment with the EEPROM and corrupting the chip.
I’ve tried to replicate this a few times now and it seems sometimes things work fine, but sometimes not. I’d say it’s twice as likely to brick as it is to work, and it’s very, very sad.