docs(oath): correct stale Executor framing after swedsl#27 closed

swedsl#27 (var-go strategic-fit ADR) closed 2026-07-18 and killed the
Executor/Reviewer path entirely — var-go is gate-only by design, each
consuming repo supplies its own candidate. The real blocker for
enforcement here is swedsl/oath's non-importable module path
(swedsl#35), not a nonexistent Executor. Corrects PROJECT.md,
INCEPTION-OATH.md, and the cd.yml comment to match.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

.context/PROJECT.md

@@ -54,9 +54,16 @@ assessor-loop ledger) → `06 PR → CI` (go test/vet/lint/govulncheck + **var-g
 
 This repo is built *through* the workflow it depicts. It is `dispatch-allow`-enabled, and its
 own build increments are governed by a **var-go Oath** embedded in their spec issues (see the
-Stage-03 tracking issue). Bootstrapping honesty (per swedsl honest-stub discipline): the Oath is
+Stage-03 tracking issue). Bootstrapping honesty (per swedsl honest-stub discipline): `cmd/vargo-gate`
-**defined** but `cmd/vargo-gate` is **not yet wired** into this repo's CI — until it is, the Oath
+is wired into `.gitea/workflows/cd.yml`'s `oath` job (issue #1, verified with a real PR) — it runs
-is advisory here. Wiring it is a first tracked task; disclosed in code, this doc, and CI config.
+on every pull_request, fetches the linked issue's oath, and posts a `var-go/oath` commit status.
+But its candidate is still swedsl's hardcoded toy self-test registry, not cad-atlas's own — it
+fails closed against any real oath. var-go's Executor/Reviewer path is **not** the blocker (that
+was explicitly killed by swedsl's ADR-0002, swedsl#27 — var-go is gate-only by design, each
+consumer supplies its own candidate). The real blocker is `swedsl/oath`'s import path
+(`swedsl#35`); once fixed, cad-atlas writes its own candidate (`#8`). The status is **not**
+required by branch protection, so it can't block merges yet. Disclosed in the CI config comment,
+this doc, and `docs/INCEPTION-OATH.md`.
 
 ## Brain references (source of truth — `brain_get <path>`)
 

.gitea/workflows/cd.yml

@@ -53,6 +53,51 @@ jobs:
       - name: Run checks
         run: task check
 
+  oath:
+    name: var-go/oath
+    needs: guard
+    # Only a real pull_request event carries a linked-issue oath to gate (mirrors
+    # swedsl's own oath job, .gitea/workflows/ci.yml). v1 simplification (swedsl#30):
+    # the oath issue number is the PR's OWN number.
+    #
+    # DISCLOSED LIMITATION (honest-stub discipline, see docs/INCEPTION-OATH.md S3 and
+    # knowledge/swedsl-vargo-sprint1-enforcement-teeth-verdict.md): cmd/vargo-gate's
+    # candidate is a hardcoded toy self-test registry (swedsl's own #9 fixture
+    # vocabulary), not a real PR-diff checker. It will fail closed against any oath
+    # that isn't that toy vocabulary — which is every real oath, including this repo's
+    # own #1. A red or green "var-go/oath" status here currently proves the WIRING
+    # (fetch issue -> gate -> post commit status) runs end-to-end on a real PR, not
+    # that the PR satisfies its linked issue's oath. Deliberately NOT required by
+    # branch protection until cad-atlas has its own candidate matching its real oath
+    # vocabulary (#8, blocked on swedsl/oath's import path, swedsl#35) — making it
+    # required now would permanently block every cad-atlas PR.
+    if: needs.guard.outputs.is_template != 'true' && github.event_name == 'pull_request'
+    runs-on: self-hosted
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout swedsl (var-go source — not go-installable, module path isn't a real import path)
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          repository: mathias/swedsl
+          path: swedsl
+          token: ${{ secrets.DMABE_GITEA_API_TOKEN }}
+
+      - uses: actions/setup-go@v5
+        with:
+          go-version-file: swedsl/oath/go.mod
+          cache: false
+
+      - name: Run vargo-gate (fetch -> gate -> post status against this PR)
+        working-directory: swedsl/oath
+        env:
+          VARGO_GITEA_BASEURL: ${{ github.server_url }}
+          VARGO_GITEA_OWNER: ${{ github.repository_owner }}
+          VARGO_GITEA_REPO: cad-atlas
+          VARGO_GITEA_ISSUE: ${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}
+          VARGO_GITEA_SHA: ${{ github.event.pull_request.head.sha }}
+        run: |
+          export DMABE_GITEA_API_TOKEN='${{ secrets.DMABE_GITEA_API_TOKEN }}'
+          go run ./cmd/vargo-gate
+
   build:
     name: Build & Import
     needs: [guard, check]

docs/INCEPTION-OATH.md

@@ -3,8 +3,9 @@
 The acceptance contract for standing up cad-atlas. The sprint is finalized only when this
 Oath holds. Methodology: brain `wiki/homelab/decisions/inception-sprint-and-oath.md`.
 
-> **Status of enforcement:** this Oath is currently **advisory** (human-verified). Machine
+> **Status of enforcement:** this Oath is currently **advisory** (human-verified). `var-go/oath`
-> enforcement via `var-go/oath` is deferred — see the honesty rule below and issue #1.
+> is wired (issue #1) and runs on every PR, but its candidate is a toy self-test — it fails closed
+> against any real oath and is not required by branch protection. See the honesty rule below.
 
 ## General clauses (any inception sprint)
 
@@ -24,7 +25,7 @@ Oath holds. Methodology: brain `wiki/homelab/decisions/inception-sprint-and-oath
 |---|--------|--------|----------|
 | S1 | Atlas served at `/`, renders all 9 stages signal→pod | ✅ | `internal/web/handler.go` + `static/cad-atlas.html` |
 | S2 | Oath covered in the viz (stages 03 + 06) | ✅ | var-go Oath nodes in the atlas |
-| S3 | `var-go/oath` enforces cad-atlas's own PRs | ⏸ **deferred → #1** | var-go v1 candidate is a toy self-test; module not cross-repo consumable. See honesty rule. |
+| S3 | `var-go/oath` enforces cad-atlas's own PRs | ⏸ **wired, not enforcing → #8** | `oath` job runs + posts status (#1, verified with a real PR). Not branch-protection-required: candidate is still swedsl's toy self-test, fails closed on every real oath. Blocked on `swedsl/oath` import path (swedsl#35) → cad-atlas writing its own candidate (#8). Not blocked on an Executor — that path was killed by swedsl's ADR-0002. See honesty rule. |
 
 ## Deployment
 
@@ -37,9 +38,9 @@ namespace `cad-atlas`, 1 replica, `cad-atlas:80 → :8080` (manifests in `mathia
 
 A clause blocked by an external dependency is **descoped and tracked, never marked satisfied** —
 a self-lying Oath is a rubber stamp, the exact failure the Oath exists to prevent. S3's real
-enforcement depends on a var-go Executor (swedsl#27) + a published `oath` module; it is tracked as
+enforcement depends on `swedsl/oath` becoming importable (swedsl#35) and cad-atlas writing its own
-a fast-follow on **#1**, not claimed here. The `DMABE_GITEA_API_TOKEN` Actions secret is
+candidate (#8); it is tracked there, not claimed here. The `DMABE_GITEA_API_TOKEN` Actions secret
-pre-provisioned so #1 can land without a secret-write.
+is pre-provisioned so #1 landed without a secret-write.
 
 ## The Oath (advisory form)
 

docs/UX-REVIEW-2.md

@@ -0,0 +1,236 @@
+# CAD Atlas — Fresh-Eyes UX Review, Lap 2
+
+Reviewer role: fresh-eyes UX (not implementer). Second pass, judging the shipped
+progressive-disclosure sprint against the goal set in `UX-REVIEW.md`. This document
+critiques; it does not change code.
+
+Sources reviewed:
+- `docs/UX-REVIEW.md` (the spec that was implemented — lap 1)
+- `internal/atlas/atlas.json` (authored data: `plain_title`, `plain`, `trans_label`,
+  `trans` per stage; `plain` per node)
+- `internal/web/static/cad-atlas.html` (the renderer: Plain⇄Technical toggle, spine
+  transition labels, legend, substrate/footer hidden in Plain)
+- `/tmp/ux5/home.png` (deployed Plain view, stages 00–04 in frame)
+
+---
+
+## 1. Verdict
+
+**The sprint largely achieved the *phase* half of the success criterion and made a real
+dent in the *transition* half — but it does not fully clear the bar. Grade for a naive
+viewer: B / B+.**
+
+Success criterion was: a viewer with no briefing can explain **every phase** AND **what
+advances work across every transition.**
+
+- **Phases: pass.** This is the big win. The headline hierarchy works — big plain_title
+  ("Notice what's happening", "Why we're here", "Agents do the work"), a dim technical
+  subtitle, and a jargon-free "what happens" sentence. A cold stakeholder can now narrate
+  every column. This is a genuine, measurable improvement over lap 1, where every column
+  was a mechanism name. Full marks here.
+
+- **Transitions: partial.** The short spine labels ("Does it matter to us?", "Worth a
+  session?", "Decision reached", "Sealed & agent-ready") convey the *gist* of each hop,
+  which is a step-change from the blank arrows of lap 1. But three things hold it back
+  from "can explain what advances work":
+  1. The actual "what must be true to advance" sentence (`trans`) is **hover-only** (an
+     SVG `<title>` tooltip). That is undiscoverable — nothing signals it's hoverable — and
+     dead on touch devices. So the naive viewer gets the one-line theme, not the gate
+     logic.
+  2. The labels are **terse and grammatically mixed**: some are questions ("Does it matter
+     to us?"), some are achieved-states ("Decision reached", "It's live"). A first-timer
+     builds two different mental models — "is this the question asked here, or the answer
+     reached?" — from one row.
+  3. **They vanish on narrow screens.** All transition labels live inside `svg.spine`,
+     which is `display:none` under 820px, and the stacked mobile layout renders no HTML
+     fallback. The single biggest comprehension win of the sprint is absent on a phone.
+
+- **The viewport undermines both.** The atlas is a 9-column horizontal scroll and a laptop
+  shows ~stages 00–03. That means **stage 04, the one human gate — the thing the header
+  literally advertises ("one human gate") — is off-screen on load**, along with execution,
+  CI, deploy, and the loop. A first-timer cannot see the shape of the gated flow, cannot
+  see that a human checkpoint exists, and gets no affordance that five more stages are to
+  the right. The atlas's whole payoff — "see the auditable flow from signal to pod at a
+  glance" — is not deliverable in the default viewport.
+
+Net: the copy layer is excellent and the toggle is the right architecture. The remaining
+gap is structural (what's visible, and where the transition rationale lives), plus one
+stubborn copy residue (node titles). A naive viewer *can* explain the phases unprompted;
+they can explain the transitions only at a slogan level, and only for the half of the
+pipeline they happen to scroll to.
+
+---
+
+## 2. What works (the genuine wins)
+
+- **Plain default + persisted toggle.** Right call, right default. Nothing was thrown
+  away; Technical is the old atlas verbatim. Architecture matches the spec.
+- **Stage headline hierarchy.** plain_title dominant, technical title demoted to a dim mono
+  subtitle, plain sentence underneath. Clean, scannable, correct visual weight.
+- **Transitions exist at all.** Even terse, the labelled arrows turn a row of boxes into a
+  narrated flow. This was the #1 lap-1 miss and it shipped in the default layer.
+- **Density dropped in Plain.** Tags, risk chips, host ribbon and footer are all suppressed
+  in Plain (`body.plain`), so the reading surface is airy and calm — a real contrast to the
+  lap-1 wall of pills.
+- **Stage 06 no longer reads as empty.** An authored "Automated checks" node with plain copy
+  now backstops the live CI generation, so the CI gate never looks like a no-op on a cold
+  load. Directly fixes lap-1 punch-item 7.
+- **Feedback bus is honestly hedged.** Dashed violet + "partly manual today" in both the loop
+  label and the legend. Matches the dogfooding-honesty discipline.
+- **The pulse gives direction.** The travelling dot is a low-cost "this flows left-to-right,
+  then loops back" cue — helpful for orientation.
+
+---
+
+## 3. What's still weak (shipped Plain view)
+
+**a. Node titles are still pure mechanism-jargon — the exact lap-1 disease, one level down.**
+The node *body* is now plain, but the node *title* — the first, boldest thing the eye lands
+on in a card — is untouched: "Applied AI Radar", "Intention substrate", "Admission
+controller", "var-go Oath", "Session-Dispatch bridge", "Executor + reviewer loop",
+"dma-cli · routing + scope", "assessor-loop ledger". The plain body can't fully rescue a
+card whose title already framed it as a mechanism. The stage head got the plain-title/tech-
+subtitle treatment; the node did **not** — an inconsistency that leaves each column half-
+translated. See §4.
+
+**b. The transition rationale is hidden and fragile.** As in §1: `trans` is hover-only
+(undiscoverable, touch-dead) and the whole label layer disappears under 820px. The "what
+must be true to advance" — the governance content the atlas exists to show — is the least
+robustly delivered part of the whole thing.
+
+**c. Horizontal scroll with no affordance = half the pipeline is invisible.** Nothing at the
+right edge signals "more stages this way" — no fade, no scrollbar cue, no "→ 04–08", no
+overview. A first-timer may reasonably believe the pipeline is five stages that end at "Write
+the work order". The marquee human gate and the entire execute→ship→loop arc are off-frame by
+default. This is the single largest comprehension barrier remaining.
+
+**d. Transition-label attachment is weaker than specced.** Lap-1 §5 asked for **label chips
+sitting on the spine**; what shipped is floating 10px mono text ~9px above the arrow with no
+background. On the dark grid it reads, but it floats — the viewer has to mentally bind the
+text to the arrow beneath it. A chip (or a short leader) would make the label read as *of*
+the arrow, not near it.
+
+**e. Gate treatment is cryptic.** Lap-1 §5 asked for a lock/shield glyph + stronger colour on
+the two real gates (04 human, 06 CI). What shipped is a "▸ " prefix + gold + bold on those two
+labels. A naive viewer will not read "▸" as "governance checkpoint"; the only real cue is
+"one of these labels is gold", which leans entirely on the legend. The two most important hops
+in the whole atlas deserve a glyph that says *stop / check*, not an arrowhead character.
+
+**f. The legend doesn't match the colours actually on screen.** The KEY decodes green/amber/
+coral as CI run-states plus gold=gate + dashed=feedback. But in Plain the cards show **violet,
+blue, and coral pills** and **coloured/dashed borders** (council=violet, bridge=dashed-blue,
+oath=dashed-gold, executor=coral) that the KEY never explains — while the green/amber/coral CI
+states the KEY *does* explain are barely present in Plain. So the viewer sees a violet dot on
+"Intention substrate" and a dashed-gold box on "var-go Oath" with no way to decode them, and a
+legend describing states they can't see. Colour is carrying two unrelated meanings (authored
+semantics vs. live CI status) under one key. Either key every colour/border shown in Plain, or
+strip the decorative pills/borders in Plain so colour means only what the legend says.
+
+**g. The technical subtitle is a wash — mild noise, mild help.** Under the plain_title sits
+`s.title`: sometimes near-plain ("Signals", "Strategic session"), sometimes pure jargon
+("TELOS", "Spec → Gitea issue", "PR → CI", "Execute · agentsquad"). For a naive viewer roughly
+half of these subtitles are undecodable filler directly under the headline; for a new engineer
+they're a useful canonical-name bridge without a mode-switch. Because it's dim and small the
+noise cost is low, so **keep it** — but note the *inconsistency*: the stage trusts the reader
+with a dim technical name under a plain headline, yet the node doesn't extend that same courtesy
+(§4). Apply the pattern uniformly.
+
+**h. Unexplained accent colours on headlines.** plain_title is violet for TELOS/Loop and amber
+for the gate. Meaningful to the author, unkeyed for the viewer — a minor echo of problem (f).
+
+**i. The feedback bus reads as a mystery line in-viewport.** The dashed violet return leg drops
+straight down out of the TELOS column, but its label ("What did we learn? · feedback bus")
+sits at the very bottom of a 9-column-wide canvas — off-screen for anyone who hasn't scrolled
+down and right. In the default view you see an unexplained dashed vertical line and no origin
+(stage 08 is off-frame right). The honesty hedge is good; the *legibility* of the loop in the
+first screen is poor.
+
+---
+
+## 4. Node-title question — recommendation: **add plain node titles; keep the technical name as a dim subtitle inside the card.**
+
+Do **not** keep titles as-is, and do **not** simply swap in plain titles and delete the
+technical ones. Mirror the pattern the stage head already uses, one level down:
+
+```
+[pill] Marks its own homework? No.          ← plain_t  (bold, primary)
+       Executor + reviewer loop             ← t        (dim mono subtitle)
+       One agent does the work; a second,   ← plain    (body, already shipped)
+       independent agent reviews it …
+```
+
+Reasoning for the mixed audience:
+
+- **The title is the frame.** The eye reads title → body. A jargon title ("Admission
+  controller", "var-go Oath") sets a mechanism frame that a plain body then fights against.
+  This is precisely the lap-1 diagnosis ("every node names a *mechanism* rather than the
+  *thing that happens to the work*") — it was fixed for stages and bodies but left standing in
+  node titles. The job is half-done until titles get the same treatment.
+- **A naive viewer needs the plain title.** "Marks its own homework? No.", "Signed so tampering
+  shows", "The one human yes/no", "A machine-checkable definition of done" — these are
+  explainable at a glance; "dma-cli · routing + scope" is not.
+- **A new engineer still needs the canonical name.** "var-go Oath", "Ed25519 admission
+  controller", "assessor-loop ledger" are the searchable terms that connect the picture to the
+  code and the brain. Deleting them would help the stakeholder and hurt the engineer — the
+  wrong trade for a "everyone" audience.
+- **Consistency is its own win.** Right now stage heads say "plain big / technical small" and
+  nodes say "technical only". Two rules for the same card type is friction. One rule, applied
+  at both levels, makes the whole atlas feel like one designed system and makes the toggle's
+  mental model ("plain names up front, mechanisms one layer in") coherent.
+
+Concretely: add an optional `plain_t` per node in `atlas.json`; in Plain render `plain_t` as
+the title and `t` as a `tech-sub`-style dim line (reuse the existing class); in Technical keep
+today's behaviour (`t` as title). Nodes without a `plain_t` fall back to `t`, so it's an
+incremental authoring task, not a big-bang rewrite.
+
+---
+
+## 5. Prioritized next punch list (top 6 by comprehension impact)
+
+1. **Add plain node titles (`plain_t`), technical name demoted to a dim in-card subtitle.**
+   Highest impact: the title is the first thing read and it's still the lap-1 jargon disease.
+   Finishes the progressive-disclosure job the stages already got. (§3a, §4)
+
+2. **Solve the horizontal-scroll blindness.** A first-timer must be able to tell the pipeline
+   is nine stages and reach the human gate and the loop. Ship at least a right-edge fade +
+   "→ stages 04–08" hint; ideally a "fit to width / overview" zoom toggle so the whole gated
+   shape (and the one human gate the header promises) is visible at a glance. (§3c)
+
+3. **Render transition labels in the stacked/narrow layout, and surface the `trans` sentence
+   without a hover.** The labels currently die under 820px (they live only in the SVG) and the
+   gate rationale is hover-only/touch-dead. Emit `trans_label` as an HTML element between
+   stacked stages, and make the full `trans` reachable by click/tap (expandable), not just
+   desktop hover. This is the "explain every transition" half of the success criterion. (§1, §3b)
+
+4. **Give the two governance gates (04 human, 06 CI) a real glyph and make the feedback loop
+   legible in-viewport.** Replace the "▸" prefix with a lock/shield on the gold gate labels so
+   the checkpoints read as checkpoints; and attach a visible "What did we learn?" chip to the
+   top of the feedback return leg near TELOS so the dashed line isn't a mystery in the first
+   screen. (§3e, §3i)
+
+5. **Reconcile the legend with the colours on screen in Plain.** Either key every pill/border
+   meaning the Plain view shows (violet/blue/coral pills; council/bridge/oath borders) or drop
+   the decorative pills/borders in Plain so colour means only the CI states the KEY describes.
+   Today the legend and the canvas disagree. (§3f, §3h)
+
+6. **Turn floating transition text into attached chips and normalise the grammar.** Give each
+   label a small chip background so it reads as *on* the arrow, and pick one voice — all
+   "what-must-be-true" states ("Mattered to us", "Decision reached", "Human said go", "All
+   checks green", "It's live") reads more consistently than mixing questions and states. (§3d)
+
+---
+
+### Scorecard vs. lap-1 punch list
+
+| Lap-1 item | Status |
+|---|---|
+| 1. Label every arrow | **Shipped** (desktop only; hover-only rationale; dies on mobile) |
+| 2. plain_what per stage + demoted title | **Shipped** — clean |
+| 3. Plain⇄Technical toggle, default Plain, persisted | **Shipped** — correct |
+| 4. Plain node primary text, `d` on demand | **Half** — bodies plain, **titles still jargon** (§4) |
+| 5. Distinguish the two gates (lock/shield) | **Weak** — "▸"+gold, no glyph |
+| 6. Legend keying colours + gate types | **Partial** — legend exists but doesn't match Plain colours |
+| 7. Fix stage-06 empty column | **Shipped** — authored fallback node |
+| 8. Honest feedback bus + suppress proper nouns in Plain | **Half** — bus honest; proper nouns still leak via node titles + tech-subs |
+</content>
+</invoke>

internal/atlas/atlas.json

@@ -7,49 +7,51 @@
   ],
   "ns": "Tailscale mesh · ns: ai-stack · supervisor(→brain) · gitea-mcp · infra-mcp · council",
   "stages": [
-    {"no":"STAGE 00","title":"Signals","plain_title":"Notice what's happening","plain":"New ideas and developments worth reacting to are collected — mostly an automated daily/weekly scan of AI news, plus things saved by hand.","path":"→ mathias/signals",
+    {"no":"STAGE 00","short":"Notice","title":"Signals","plain_title":"Notice what's happening","plain":"New ideas and developments worth reacting to are collected — mostly an automated daily/weekly scan of AI news, plus things saved by hand.","path":"→ mathias/signals",
      "trans_label":"Does it matter to us?","trans":"A raw signal only advances if it connects to something we actually care about. Most captured signals stop here; the few that touch the mission get pulled up against a goal.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Applied AI Radar","plain":"An automated scan reads AI news every day (and deeper every week) and keeps only claims backed by a real paper, benchmark, code, or named lab.","d":"Daily Tier-1 + weekly Tier-2 deep pass. Verified-primary bar (paper/benchmark/code/named-lab).","tags":["cron · daily/weekly","→ signals #1–26+"]},
+      {"t":"Applied AI Radar","plain_t":"Automated news scan","plain":"An automated scan reads AI news every day (and deeper every week) and keeps only claims backed by a real paper, benchmark, code, or named lab.","d":"Daily Tier-1 + weekly Tier-2 deep pass. Verified-primary bar (paper/benchmark/code/named-lab).","tags":["cron · daily/weekly","→ signals #1–26+"]},
-      {"t":"Manual capture","plain":"Anything interesting spotted by hand gets saved into the same inbox.","d":"claude.ai strategic drop · brain capture tool.","tags":["ad-hoc"]},
+      {"t":"Manual capture","plain_t":"Saved by hand","plain":"Anything interesting spotted by hand gets saved into the same inbox.","d":"claude.ai strategic drop · brain capture tool.","tags":["ad-hoc"]},
-      {"t":"Aspirational surfaces","plain":"Planned but not built yet: sending ideas in by Telegram, voice, or a URL.","pill":"var(--dim)","d":"Telegram / voice / URL → inbox. NOT built.","tags":["gap"]}
+      {"t":"Aspirational surfaces","plain_t":"Not built yet","plain":"Planned but not built yet: sending ideas in by Telegram, voice, or a URL.","pill":"var(--dim)","d":"Telegram / voice / URL → inbox. NOT built.","tags":["gap"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 01","cls":"telos","title":"TELOS","plain_title":"Why we're here","plain":"The mission, goals, and problems we're actually trying to solve live here — every piece of work downstream has to trace back to one of these goals.","path":"wiki/telos/",
+    {"no":"STAGE 01","short":"Why","cls":"telos","title":"TELOS","plain_title":"Why we're here","plain":"The mission, goals, and problems we're actually trying to solve live here — every piece of work downstream has to trace back to one of these goals.","path":"wiki/telos/",
      "trans_label":"Worth a session?","trans":"A goal or problem on the board becomes the seed for a design session when it's decided worth working on now. The goal is the input the session must trace back to.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Intention substrate","plain":"The master list of mission, goals, problems, and current status — the yardstick everything downstream is measured against.","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"Mission · goals · problems · strategies · status. Every downstream item traces to a goal.","tags":["brain_query wing=telos"]}
+      {"t":"Intention substrate","plain_t":"The goal board","plain":"The master list of mission, goals, problems, and current status — the yardstick everything downstream is measured against.","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"Mission · goals · problems · strategies · status. Every downstream item traces to a goal.","tags":["brain_query wing=telos"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 02","title":"Strategic session","plain_title":"Think it through","plain":"A human and AI models work out what to do and why, debating hard calls and writing down the decision and what \"done\" will mean.","path":"claude.ai frontier + brain MCP",
+    {"no":"STAGE 02","short":"Think","title":"Strategic session","plain_title":"Think it through","plain":"A human and AI models work out what to do and why, debating hard calls and writing down the decision and what \"done\" will mean.","path":"claude.ai frontier + brain MCP",
      "trans_label":"Decision reached","trans":"It advances only when the thinking converges on a decision and is written down as a concrete, testable specification — not while the answer is still open.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Design · ADRs · specs","plain":"A human and a top-tier AI model figure out the approach and write down the decision plus what a finished result must prove.","d":"Human + frontier model. ISC acceptance criteria written here.","tags":["Define / converge"]},
+      {"t":"Design · ADRs · specs","plain_t":"Decide the approach","plain":"A human and a top-tier AI model figure out the approach and write down the decision plus what a finished result must prove.","d":"Human + frontier model. ISC acceptance criteria written here.","tags":["Define / converge"]},
-      {"t":"🏛️ LLM Council","plain":"For hard calls, several AI models answer independently, anonymously critique each other, and a \"chair\" model synthesises one verdict — reducing any single model's bias.","cls":"council","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"fan-out → anonymous cross-review → chairman synth. glm-4.7-flash · qwen36-35b · gemma4-31b (chair).","tags":["hard strategic Q","chat.d-ma.be"]},
+      {"t":"🏛️ LLM Council","plain_t":"AI review panel","plain":"For hard calls, several AI models answer independently, anonymously critique each other, and a \"chair\" model synthesises one verdict — reducing any single model's bias.","cls":"council","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"fan-out → anonymous cross-review → chairman synth. glm-4.7-flash · qwen36-35b · gemma4-31b (chair).","tags":["hard strategic Q","chat.d-ma.be"]},
-      {"t":"Autoresearch Council","plain":"A parallel version of the same review that vets research findings before they're allowed through.","cls":"council","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"Sibling pipe — ratifies research before the gate.","tags":["proposed: → standalone svc"]}
+      {"t":"Autoresearch Council","plain_t":"Research review panel","plain":"A parallel version of the same review that vets research findings before they're allowed through.","cls":"council","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"Sibling pipe — ratifies research before the gate.","tags":["proposed: → standalone svc"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 03","title":"Spec → Gitea issue","plain_title":"Write the work order","plain":"The decision is turned into a precise, self-contained work order an AI agent can execute unsupervised — with a pass/fail definition of done, a risk rating, and a tamper-proof seal.","path":"agent-ready contract",
+    {"no":"STAGE 03","short":"Write order","title":"Spec → Gitea issue","plain_title":"Write the work order","plain":"The decision is turned into a precise, self-contained work order an AI agent can execute unsupervised — with a pass/fail definition of done, a risk rating, and a tamper-proof seal.","path":"agent-ready contract",
-     "trans_label":"Order written, sealed, agent-ready","trans":"Advances to the gate only when the spec is a complete contract: a pass/fail test, a risk tier, a regulatory note, no open human dependencies, one embedded Oath, and a valid cryptographic signature. A malformed or unsigned order fails closed and never reaches the gate.","nodes":[
+     "trans_label":"Sealed & agent-ready","trans":"Advances to the gate only when the spec is a complete contract: a pass/fail test, a risk tier, a regulatory note, no open human dependencies, one embedded Oath, and a valid cryptographic signature. A malformed or unsigned order fails closed and never reaches the gate.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Contract enforced","plain":"The work order must have a clear pass/fail test, a risk rating, a regulatory-risk note, and no unfinished human dependencies before it counts as agent-ready.","d":"Binary ISC · declared risk tier · reg-risk assessment · no open human deps.","tags":["LOW / MED / HIGH"]},
+      {"t":"Contract enforced","plain_t":"The work-order rules","plain":"The work order must have a clear pass/fail test, a risk rating, a regulatory-risk note, and no unfinished human dependencies before it counts as agent-ready.","d":"Binary ISC · declared risk tier · reg-risk assessment · no open human deps.","tags":["LOW / MED / HIGH"]},
-      {"t":"Admission controller","plain":"The work order is cryptographically signed when created, so any later tampering is detectable and the eventual change can be checked against it.","d":"Ed25519-sign issue body at creation (#36). Verify sig + PR alignment at infra boundary.","tags":["chain of custody"]},
+      {"t":"Admission controller","plain_t":"Tamper-proof seal","plain":"The work order is cryptographically signed when created, so any later tampering is detectable and the eventual change can be checked against it.","d":"Ed25519-sign issue body at creation (#36). Verify sig + PR alignment at infra boundary.","tags":["chain of custody"]},
-      {"t":"⚖️ var-go Oath","plain":"A machine-checkable \"definition of done\" is embedded in the work order — exactly one, or the order is rejected — later used to prove the result actually meets the spec.","cls":"oath","pill":"var(--gold)","d":"Acceptance contract embedded in the issue as a var fenced block. Exactly one — zero/multiple fail closed. Prose → typed steps; failures anchored to byte spans.","tags":["swedsl · var-go","defined here → enforced @06"]}
+      {"t":"⚖️ var-go Oath","plain_t":"Definition of done","plain":"A machine-checkable \"definition of done\" is embedded in the work order — exactly one, or the order is rejected — later used to prove the result actually meets the spec.","cls":"oath","pill":"var(--gold)","d":"Acceptance contract embedded in the issue as a var fenced block. Exactly one — zero/multiple fail closed. Prose → typed steps; failures anchored to byte spans.","tags":["swedsl · var-go","defined here → enforced @06"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 04","cls":"gate","title":"Human dispatch gate","plain_title":"Human says go","plain":"A person reviews the work order and its risk and decides whether to release it — the one and only checkpoint where work does not move on its own.","path":"the only checkpoint",
+    {"no":"STAGE 04","short":"Human go","cls":"gate","title":"Human dispatch gate","plain_title":"Human says go","plain":"A person reviews the work order and its risk and decides whether to release it — the one and only checkpoint where work does not move on its own.","path":"the only checkpoint",
      "trans_label":"A human said go","trans":"The hard stop. Nothing crosses automatically — a person must review the plan and risk and explicitly release it, and the repo must be on the allow-list, before any agent starts. This is the single human checkpoint in the whole pipeline.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Human triggers execution","plain":"A person confirms the plan and its risk level, then releases the work — nothing runs until they do.","cls":"gateway","pill":"var(--amber)","d":"Ratify proposed-plan + risk tier, then dispatch.","gate":true},
+      {"t":"Human triggers execution","plain_t":"The go button","plain":"A person confirms the plan and its risk level, then releases the work — nothing runs until they do.","cls":"gateway","pill":"var(--amber)","d":"Ratify proposed-plan + risk tier, then dispatch.","gate":true},
-      {"t":"Session-Dispatch bridge","plain":"The approval flips a switch that hands the signed work order over to the agents to start execution.","cls":"bridge","pill":"var(--blue)","d":"claude.ai MCP → gitea:workflow_run_trigger → cad-dispatch.yml → agentsquad. The final design→execution bridge.","tags":["workflow_dispatch"]}
+      {"t":"Session-Dispatch bridge","plain_t":"Hand-off to agents","plain":"The approval flips a switch that hands the signed work order over to the agents to start execution.","cls":"bridge","pill":"var(--blue)","d":"claude.ai MCP → gitea:workflow_run_trigger → cad-dispatch.yml → agentsquad. The final design→execution bridge.","tags":["workflow_dispatch"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 05","cls":"exec","title":"Execute · agentsquad","plain_title":"Agents do the work","plain":"AI agents actually build the thing — one writes, a second independent one reviews it to avoid marking its own homework — and every step is logged for the audit trail.","path":"koala · cmd/agentsquad-serve",
+    {"no":"STAGE 05","short":"Build","cls":"exec","title":"Execute · agentsquad","plain_title":"Agents do the work","plain":"AI agents actually build the thing — one writes, a second independent one reviews it to avoid marking its own homework — and every step is logged for the audit trail.","path":"koala · cmd/agentsquad-serve",
-     "trans_label":"Agents produced a change","trans":"Advances when the agents finish and open a proposed change (a PR) with its audit log attached. Until there's a concrete change to test, nothing moves.","nodes":[
+     "trans_label":"Change proposed","trans":"Advances when the agents finish and open a proposed change (a PR) with its audit log attached. Until there's a concrete change to test, nothing moves.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Task API","plain":"A request kicks off a job and hands back an id you can poll for progress.","pill":"var(--coral)","d":"POST /tasks → job id · GET /tasks/{id}. taskqueue + serve (v0.12+).","tags":["single agentsquad.yaml"]},
+      {"t":"Task API","plain_t":"Start a job","plain":"A request kicks off a job and hands back an id you can poll for progress.","pill":"var(--coral)","d":"POST /tasks → job id · GET /tasks/{id}. taskqueue + serve (v0.12+).","tags":["single agentsquad.yaml"]},
-      {"t":"Executor + reviewer loop","plain":"One agent does the work; a second, independent agent on a different model reviews it — so nothing marks its own homework.","cls":"win","pill":"var(--coral)","d":"ADK Go + LiteLLM. Frontier models (local qwen spirals). Reviewer on distinct tier — echo-chamber prevention.","risk":true},
+      {"t":"Executor + reviewer loop","plain_t":"Build + independent review","plain":"One agent does the work; a second, independent agent on a different model reviews it — so nothing marks its own homework.","cls":"win","pill":"var(--coral)","d":"ADK Go + LiteLLM. Frontier models (local qwen spirals). Reviewer on distinct tier — echo-chamber prevention.","risk":true},
-      {"t":"dma-cli · routing + scope","plain":"A router sends each agent to the right AI backend and enforces what it is and isn't allowed to touch, with a confirmation gate as a guardrail.","cls":"bridge","pill":"var(--blue)","d":"Harness-config arm: routes agents to the right LLM backend. Three-layer scope policy + confirmation gate = CAD guardrail.","tags":["backend routing","scope guardrail"]},
+      {"t":"dma-cli · routing + scope","plain_t":"Router & guardrails","plain":"A router sends each agent to the right AI backend and enforces what it is and isn't allowed to touch, with a confirmation gate as a guardrail.","cls":"bridge","pill":"var(--blue)","d":"Harness-config arm: routes agents to the right LLM backend. Three-layer scope policy + confirmation gate = CAD guardrail.","tags":["backend routing","scope guardrail"]},
-      {"t":"assessor-loop ledger","plain":"Every step is recorded in a tamper-evident log so the whole run can be audited afterwards.","d":"Attestation ledger (audit trail) + brain session_log on completion.","tags":["audit package"]}
+      {"t":"assessor-loop ledger","plain_t":"Audit log","plain":"Every step is recorded in a tamper-evident log so the whole run can be audited afterwards.","d":"Attestation ledger (audit trail) + brain session_log on completion.","tags":["audit package"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 06","title":"PR → CI","plain_title":"Automatic quality checks","plain":"The proposed change is run through automated tests and safety checks — including a check that it actually satisfies the work order's definition of done — and only a clean pass lets it continue.","path":"Gitea Actions · cd.yml (live)","generate":"ci-jobs",
+    {"no":"STAGE 06","short":"Check","title":"PR → CI","plain_title":"Automatic quality checks","plain":"The proposed change is run through automated tests and safety checks — including a check that it actually satisfies the work order's definition of done — and only a clean pass lets it continue.","path":"Gitea Actions · cd.yml (live)","generate":"ci-jobs",
-     "trans_label":"All checks green","trans":"Advances only if every automated check passes — tests, linters, security scan, and the Oath check proving it meets the original work order. Any red gate stops it here; a passing reviewer is not enough to override a failed Oath.","nodes":[]},
+     "trans_label":"All checks green","trans":"Advances only if every automated check passes — tests, linters, security scan, and the Oath check proving it meets the original work order. Any red gate stops it here; a passing reviewer is not enough to override a failed Oath.","nodes":[
-    {"no":"STAGE 07","cls":"cd","title":"CD → pod","plain_title":"Ship it","plain":"Once everything is green, the change is deployed automatically to the live server — with the rule that merging code alone doesn't ship it; the release has to be pointed at the new version.","path":"Flux GitOps → k3s","generate":"deploy-state",
+      {"t":"Automated checks","plain_t":"Quality checks","plain":"Tests, linters, a security scan, plus a check that the change actually meets the work order — all must pass to continue.","d":"go test · vet · lint · govulncheck + var-go/oath gate.","tags":["green = proceed"]}
+    ]},
+    {"no":"STAGE 07","short":"Ship","cls":"cd","title":"CD → pod","plain_title":"Ship it","plain":"Once everything is green, the change is deployed automatically to the live server — with the rule that merging code alone doesn't ship it; the release has to be pointed at the new version.","path":"Flux GitOps → k3s","generate":"deploy-state",
      "trans_label":"It's live","trans":"Once the new version is actually running on the server, the deployed outcome becomes the input to scoring. Advancing means shipped and observable, not just merged.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Deploy on green","plain":"When all checks pass, the release system rolls the new version onto the live server automatically — but only once the release is pointed at that version (merging code alone doesn't ship it).","pill":"var(--green)","d":"Flux reconciles image → k3s pod on koala. Push ≠ deploy: bump tag in mathias/infra.","tags":["ntfy on deploy"]}
+      {"t":"Deploy on green","plain_t":"Auto-deploy when green","plain":"When all checks pass, the release system rolls the new version onto the live server automatically — but only once the release is pointed at that version (merging code alone doesn't ship it).","pill":"var(--green)","d":"Flux reconciles image → k3s pod on koala. Push ≠ deploy: bump tag in mathias/infra.","tags":["ntfy on deploy"]}
     ]},
-    {"no":"STAGE 08","cls":"telos","title":"Loop back","plain_title":"Did it work?","plain":"The result is scored against the goal that started it and fed back into the mission board, so the next round of planning learns from what shipped.","path":"→ TELOS (feedback bus)",
+    {"no":"STAGE 08","short":"Learn","cls":"telos","title":"Loop back","plain_title":"Did it work?","plain":"The result is scored against the goal that started it and fed back into the mission board, so the next round of planning learns from what shipped.","path":"→ TELOS (feedback bus)",
      "trans_label":"What did we learn?","trans":"The scored outcome flows back into the mission board so goals, problems, and priorities update — the loop that makes the pipeline a cycle rather than a line. Partly manual today; an explicit improvement target.","nodes":[
-      {"t":"Close the loop","plain":"The outcome is scored against the goal that started it and written back to the mission board, so future planning learns from what actually shipped.","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"session_log + attestation → brain. Score deploy outcome vs originating goal. (arc partly manual — improvement target.)","tags":["continuous"]}
+      {"t":"Close the loop","plain_t":"Score & feed back","plain":"The outcome is scored against the goal that started it and written back to the mission board, so future planning learns from what actually shipped.","pill":"var(--violet)","d":"session_log + attestation → brain. Score deploy outcome vs originating goal. (arc partly manual — improvement target.)","tags":["continuous"]}
     ]}
   ]
 }

internal/atlas/build_test.go

@@ -60,8 +60,25 @@ func TestDefault_HasPlainLayerAndTransitions(t *testing.T) {
 			if n.Plain == "" {
 				t.Fatalf("stage %s node %q missing plain", s.No, n.Title)
 			}
+			if n.PlainTitle == "" {
+				t.Fatalf("stage %s node %q missing plain_t", s.No, n.Title)
 			}
 		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestBuild_KeepsCIPlaceholderWhenNoJobs(t *testing.T) {
+	atlasJSON := []byte(`{"substrate":[],"stages":[
+	  {"no":"STAGE 06","title":"PR → CI","generate":"ci-jobs","nodes":[{"t":"Automated checks","plain":"checks run here"}]}
+	]}`)
+	// A workflow with no jobs block must NOT error and must keep the placeholder.
+	a, err := atlas.Build(atlasJSON, []byte("name: cd\n"))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Build should tolerate a no-jobs workflow, got: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(a.Stages[0].Nodes) != 1 || a.Stages[0].Nodes[0].Title != "Automated checks" {
+		t.Fatalf("placeholder not kept: %+v", a.Stages[0].Nodes)
+	}
 }
 
 func TestBuild_ErrorsOnBadAtlasJSON(t *testing.T) {

internal/atlas/model.go

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ type Host struct {
 // the technical detail shown on demand.
 type Node struct {
 	Title      string   `json:"t"`
+	PlainTitle string   `json:"plain_t,omitempty"`
 	Plain      string   `json:"plain,omitempty"`
 	Desc       string   `json:"d,omitempty"`
 	Pill       string   `json:"pill,omitempty"`
@@ -31,6 +32,7 @@ type Node struct {
 // Nodes are derived from a live source at Build time.
 type Stage struct {
 	No         string `json:"no"`
+	Short      string `json:"short,omitempty"`
 	Title      string `json:"title"`
 	PlainTitle string `json:"plain_title,omitempty"`
 	Plain      string `json:"plain,omitempty"`
@@ -64,12 +66,12 @@ func Build(atlasJSON, workflow []byte) (Atlas, error) {
 			continue
 		}
 		jobs, err := JobsFromWorkflow(workflow)
-		if err != nil {
+		if err != nil || len(jobs) == 0 {
-			return Atlas{}, fmt.Errorf("stage %s: %w", a.Stages[i].No, err)
+			continue // no CI job list available — keep the authored plain placeholder
 		}
 		nodes := make([]Node, 0, len(jobs))
 		for _, j := range jobs {
-			nodes = append(nodes, Node{Title: j})
+			nodes = append(nodes, Node{Title: j, Plain: "An automated check that must pass."})
 		}
 		a.Stages[i].Nodes = nodes
 	}

internal/web/static/cad-atlas.html

@@ -65,8 +65,40 @@
   .translabel{fill:var(--mono);font-size:10px;font-family:ui-monospace,SFMono-Regular,monospace}
   .translabel-gate{fill:var(--gold);font-weight:700}
   .stagehead{min-height:64px}
+  @media(min-width:821px){
     body.plain .stagehead{min-height:188px}
     .stage .node:first-of-type{margin-top:24px}
+  }
+  .trans-row{display:none}
+  @media(max-width:820px){
+    .trans-row{display:block;margin:0 0 10px 6px;padding:7px 12px;border-left:3px solid var(--mono);
+      background:var(--panel);border-radius:0 8px 8px 0;font-size:12px;color:var(--dim);line-height:1.45}
+    .trans-row .tr-lbl{display:block;color:var(--mono);font-weight:600;margin-bottom:2px}
+    .trans-row-gate{border-left-color:var(--gold)}
+    .trans-row-gate .tr-lbl{color:var(--gold)}
+  }
+  /* Plain view hides the jargon-dense infra ribbon + technical footer */
+  body.plain .substrate{display:none}
+  body.plain footer{display:none}
+  .legend{display:flex;gap:16px;flex-wrap:wrap;align-items:center;
+    padding:7px 22px;border-bottom:1px solid var(--line);background:var(--bg);font-size:11px;color:var(--dim)}
+  .legend .lbl{letter-spacing:1.5px;margin-right:2px}
+  .legend .lg{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:6px}
+  .legend .lg i{width:11px;height:11px;border-radius:3px;display:inline-block;border:1px solid rgba(0,0,0,.35)}
+  .legend .dash{width:18px;border-top:2px dashed var(--violet);display:inline-block}
+  /* overview rail — see the whole 9-stage shape + jump to any stage */
+  .rail{display:flex;gap:4px;flex-wrap:wrap;align-items:center;
+    padding:8px 22px;border-bottom:1px solid var(--line);background:var(--panel)}
+  .rail .lbl{color:var(--dim);letter-spacing:1.5px;margin-right:4px;font-size:11px}
+  .railchip{font:inherit;font-size:11px;cursor:pointer;color:var(--ink);
+    background:var(--panel2);border:1px solid var(--line);border-radius:6px;padding:4px 9px}
+  .railchip:hover{border-color:var(--blue)}
+  .railchip b{color:var(--dim);font-weight:600;margin-right:3px}
+  .railchip.gate{border-color:rgba(245,185,66,.5)} .railchip.telos{border-color:rgba(155,140,255,.5)}
+  .railchip.exec{border-color:rgba(255,122,92,.5)} .railchip.cd{border-color:rgba(74,208,122,.5)}
+  .railarr{color:var(--dim);font-size:10px}
+  /* Plain view: drop decorative node pills so colour is reserved for live status (keyed in the legend) */
+  body.plain .node .pill{display:none}
 
   .scroll{overflow-x:auto;padding:24px 22px 20px}
   .track{position:relative;display:flex;align-items:flex-start;min-width:max-content}
@@ -140,6 +172,15 @@
 
 <div class="substrate" id="substrate"><span class="lbl mono">SUBSTRATE</span></div>
 <div class="tl mono" id="timeline"></div>
+<div class="legend mono">
+  <span class="lbl">KEY</span>
+  <span class="lg"><i style="background:var(--green)"></i>passed / ready</span>
+  <span class="lg"><i style="background:var(--amber)"></i>running / waiting</span>
+  <span class="lg"><i style="background:var(--coral)"></i>failed / blocked</span>
+  <span class="lg"><i style="background:var(--gold)"></i>governance gate — must pass to advance</span>
+  <span class="lg"><span class="dash"></span> feedback loop · partly manual</span>
+</div>
+<div class="rail mono" id="rail"></div>
 
 <div class="scroll">
   <div class="track" id="track">
@@ -185,9 +226,9 @@ function renderAtlas(){
     el.innerHTML=`<b>${h.n}</b><span class="k mono">${h.k}</span>`;sub.appendChild(el);});
   const mesh=document.createElement('div');mesh.className='host mesh mono';mesh.textContent=NS;sub.appendChild(mesh);
   stageEls=[];
-  track.querySelectorAll('.stage').forEach(el=>el.remove());
+  track.querySelectorAll('.stage,.trans-row').forEach(el=>el.remove());
   const plain = MODE==='plain';
-  STAGES.forEach(s=>{
+  STAGES.forEach((s,idx)=>{
   const st=document.createElement('div');st.className='stage '+(s.cls||'');
   const head = plain
     ? `<div class="no mono">${s.no}</div><h2>${s.plain_title||s.title}</h2>`+
@@ -197,7 +238,9 @@ function renderAtlas(){
   (s.nodes||[]).forEach(n=>{
     const pill=n.pill?`<span class="pill" style="background:${n.pill}"></span>`:'';
     const body = plain ? (n.plain||n.d||'') : (n.d||'');
-    let inner=`<div class="t">${pill}${n.t}</div>`+(body?`<div class="d">${body}</div>`:'');
+    const ntitle = (plain && n.plain_t) ? n.plain_t : n.t;
+    const nsub = (plain && n.plain_t && n.plain_t!==n.t) ? `<div class="tech-sub">${n.t}</div>` : '';
+    let inner=`<div class="t">${pill}${ntitle}</div>${nsub}`+(body?`<div class="d">${body}</div>`:'');
     if(!plain){
       if(n.tags&&n.tags.length)inner+=n.tags.map(t=>`<span class="tag mono">${t}</span>`).join('');
       if(n.risk)inner+=`<div class="risk mono"><span class="lo">LOW · auto</span><span class="md">MED · ntfy gate</span><span class="hi">HIGH · blocked</span></div>`;
@@ -206,6 +249,27 @@ function renderAtlas(){
     h+=`<div class="node ${n.cls||''}">${inner}</div>`;
   });
   st.innerHTML=h;track.appendChild(st);stageEls.push(st);
+  // stacked-layout transition row (shown on mobile where the SVG spine is hidden)
+  if(s.trans_label){
+    const tr=document.createElement('div');
+    tr.className='trans-row'+((idx===4||idx===6)?' trans-row-gate':'');
+    tr.innerHTML=`<span class="tr-lbl">${(idx===4||idx===6)?'🔒 ':''}${s.trans_label}</span>${s.trans?' '+s.trans:''}`;
+    track.appendChild(tr);
+  }
+  });
+  renderRail();
+}
+
+function renderRail(){
+  const rail=document.getElementById('rail');
+  rail.innerHTML='<span class="lbl">PIPELINE</span>';
+  STAGES.forEach((s,i)=>{
+    const c=document.createElement('button');
+    c.className='railchip'+(s.cls?' '+s.cls:'');
+    c.innerHTML=`<b>${(s.no||'').replace('STAGE ','')}</b>${s.short||s.plain_title||s.title}`;
+    c.onclick=()=>{ if(stageEls[i]) stageEls[i].scrollIntoView({behavior:'smooth',inline:'center',block:'nearest'}); };
+    rail.appendChild(c);
+    if(i<STAGES.length-1){const a=document.createElement('span');a.className='railarr';a.textContent='→';rail.appendChild(a);}
   });
 }
 
@@ -246,7 +310,7 @@ function build(){
   const lastX=cs[cs.length-1], telosX=cs[1];
   loopPath.setAttribute('d',`M ${lastX} ${RAILY} L ${lastX} ${loopY} L ${telosX} ${loopY} L ${telosX} ${RAILY}`);
   loopLbl.setAttribute('x',(telosX+lastX)/2-90);loopLbl.setAttribute('y',loopY-8);
-  loopLbl.textContent=(STAGES[8]&&STAGES[8].trans_label?STAGES[8].trans_label+' · ':'')+'feedback bus';
+  loopLbl.textContent=(STAGES[8]&&STAGES[8].trans_label?STAGES[8].trans_label+' · ':'')+'feedback bus · partly manual today';
   // transition labels on the spine — the "what must be true to advance" story.
   // Always visible (default layer). Gate hops (04→05 human, 06→07 CI) in gold.
   const tg=document.getElementById('translabels'); tg.innerHTML='';
@@ -257,7 +321,7 @@ function build(){
     t.setAttribute('x',(cs[i]+cs[i+1])/2);t.setAttribute('y',RAILY-9);
     t.setAttribute('text-anchor','middle');
     t.setAttribute('class',gate?'translabel translabel-gate':'translabel');
-    t.textContent=(gate?'▸ ':'')+s.trans_label;
+    t.textContent=(gate?'🔒 ':'')+s.trans_label;
     const ttl=document.createElementNS('http://www.w3.org/2000/svg','title');
     ttl.textContent=s.trans||''; t.appendChild(ttl);
     tg.appendChild(t);