feat: real Milestone drill-in — completes the Runway story

Clicking a milestone on Runway now opens its real detail: scope + done %, a Monte
Carlo cone over the remaining open work, and the milestone's issues grouped by
lifecycle column. Threaded the gitea milestone id through the Runway row → AppShell
→ a milestoneView().

- backlog.ts: milestoneView(id, ...) → { name, due, scope/done, forecast cone +
  range, groups by lifecycle column }. Reuses forecast + buildBurnUpData + lifecycle
  inference. null for an unknown id → the screen shows the demo fixture.
- RunwayMilestone gains an `id`; runwayView sets it; RunwayScreen.onOpenMilestone(id).
- MilestoneScreen takes optional `data`; renders real header/stats/cone/issue-groups
  when present, fixture otherwise.

Verified: desktop typecheck clean, 14 fixture e2e green. Live: clicking "P2 —
Scheduler + Monte Carlo" opens a real detail — 7 issues · est 20d, 0/7 done, cone
"80% Aug 17–26", issues in Triage/In-review from the real event stream (screenshot).

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

apps/desktop/e2e/live-backlog.spec.ts

@@ -41,6 +41,18 @@ test.describe('live backlog', () => {
     await expect(
       win.getByText(/cold-start priors · \d+\/20 closed issues estimated|calibrated on \d+ closed/),
     ).toBeVisible()
+    // Real per-milestone forecasts — these milestone names come from gitea, not the
+    // fixture (which lists Beta / Pilot-ready / v1.0).
+    await expect(win.getByText(/P2 — Scheduler/)).toBeVisible()
+    await win.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-runway.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })
+
+    // Milestone drill-in — clicking a real milestone opens its real detail
+    await win.getByText(/P2 — Scheduler/).click()
+    await expect(win.getByRole('heading', { name: 'P2 — Scheduler + Monte Carlo' })).toBeVisible()
+    await expect(win.getByText(/\d+ issues · est \d+d/)).toBeVisible()
+    await win.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-milestone.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })
+    await rail.getByRole('button', { name: 'Runway' }).click()
+
     await win.getByRole('button', { name: 'Full report' }).click()
     await expect(win.getByText(/cold-start · \d+\/20|curve active · n ≥ 20/)).toBeVisible()
     await win.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-calibration.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })

apps/desktop/e2e/live-capture.spec.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
+
+import { _electron as electron, expect, test } from '@playwright/test'
+
+const here = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url))
+const MAIN = join(here, '..', 'out', 'main', 'index.js')
+
+// Opt-in (GITEA_LIVE=1 + COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE=1 + a local model on :1234). Launches
+// WITHOUT COMMITEA_E2E so capture_work runs the real decomposition. It Discards at
+// the end so the run never files junk issues (the create-issue POST is unit-tested).
+test.describe('live capture_work', () => {
+  test('decomposes a braindump into a reviewable ticket set', async () => {
+    test.skip(!process.env.GITEA_LIVE || !process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE, 'live model test — opt-in')
+    test.setTimeout(300_000)
+    const app = await electron.launch({ args: [MAIN], env: { ...process.env } })
+    const win = await app.firstWindow()
+    await win.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded')
+    const rail = win.getByRole('navigation', { name: 'Primary' })
+
+    await rail.getByRole('button', { name: 'Capture' }).click()
+    await expect(win.getByRole('heading', { name: 'Capture' })).toBeVisible()
+    // the braindump is prefilled; run the real decomposition
+    await win.getByRole('button', { name: 'Brew tickets' }).click()
+
+    // capture_work → the review tray with a real, estimated ticket set
+    await expect(win.getByText(/tickets · ~\d+d of work/)).toBeVisible({ timeout: 240_000 })
+    await expect(win.getByRole('button', { name: 'Approve all' })).toBeVisible()
+    await win.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-capture.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })
+
+    // Discard — never file junk issues into the real repo from a test
+    await win.getByRole('button', { name: 'Discard' }).click()
+    await expect(win.getByRole('button', { name: 'Brew tickets' })).toBeVisible()
+
+    await app.close()
+  })
+})

apps/desktop/e2e/live-directive.spec.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
+
+import { _electron as electron, expect, test } from '@playwright/test'
+
+const here = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url))
+const MAIN = join(here, '..', 'out', 'main', 'index.js')
+
+// Opt-in (GITEA_LIVE=1 + COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE=1 + a local model + the commitea-pm-state
+// repo). Reginald records a standing directive; it's appended to the real pm-state
+// ledger. The append is idempotent-ish (a fresh line each run); this only reads back
+// that a directive was consulted, and leaves the ledger intact.
+test.describe('live record_directive', () => {
+  test('logs a standing directive to the pm-state ledger', async () => {
+    test.skip(!process.env.GITEA_LIVE || !process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE, 'live model test — opt-in')
+    test.setTimeout(300_000)
+    const app = await electron.launch({ args: [MAIN], env: { ...process.env } })
+    const win = await app.firstWindow()
+    await win.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded')
+    await expect(win.getByText(/· local$/)).toBeVisible({ timeout: 20000 })
+
+    const composer = win.getByPlaceholder(/Tell me what to do/)
+    await composer.fill('Record a standing directive: freeze scope for beta, pilots come first.')
+    await composer.press('Enter')
+
+    // the agent logged it to the ledger (record_directive), not applied a change
+    await expect(win.getByText(/consulted the directive ledger/)).toBeVisible({ timeout: 240_000 })
+    await win.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-directive.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })
+
+    await app.close()
+  })
+})

apps/desktop/e2e/live-persistence.spec.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
+
+import { _electron as electron, expect, test } from '@playwright/test'
+
+const here = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url))
+const MAIN = join(here, '..', 'out', 'main', 'index.js')
+
+// Opt-in (GITEA_LIVE=1). A real launch persists the snapshot; a second launch with
+// gitea unreachable must still show the board + real scheduler output from the
+// persisted cache (offline reads). No model needed.
+test.describe('live persistence', () => {
+  test('offline: serves the persisted snapshot', async () => {
+    test.skip(!process.env.GITEA_LIVE, 'GITEA_LIVE not set — opt-in live test')
+    test.setTimeout(120_000)
+
+    // launch 1 — real reconcile writes the snapshot to disk
+    const app1 = await electron.launch({ args: [MAIN], env: { ...process.env } })
+    const w1 = await app1.firstWindow()
+    await w1.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded')
+    // a scheduler-only phrase confirms real data reconciled (never emitted by fixtures)
+    await expect(w1.getByText(/on the critical path|unblocks #|waits on #|· ready/).first()).toBeVisible({ timeout: 30000 })
+    await app1.close()
+
+    // launch 2 — gitea unreachable; the reconcile must fall back to the persisted snapshot
+    const app2 = await electron.launch({
+      args: [MAIN],
+      env: { ...process.env, GITEA_BASE_URL: 'http://127.0.0.1:9' },
+    })
+    const w2 = await app2.firstWindow()
+    await w2.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded')
+    // Focus still renders real scheduler output — proving it came from the cache, offline
+    await expect(w2.getByText(/on the critical path|unblocks #|waits on #|· ready/).first()).toBeVisible({ timeout: 20000 })
+    await w2.screenshot({ path: join(here, '.artifacts', 'screens', 'live-offline.png'), fullPage: true, animations: 'disabled' })
+    await app2.close()
+  })
+})

apps/desktop/src/main/gitea.ts

@@ -6,21 +6,29 @@
  * properly later.
  */
 
+import { randomUUID } from 'node:crypto'
 import { readFileSync } from 'node:fs'
 import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
 
 import {
+  appendDirective,
   createGiteaClient,
+  type DirectiveEntry,
   type GiteaClient,
   type GiteaConfig,
   type GiteaLabel,
   type IssueChange,
   type LifecycleEvent,
+  makeDirectiveEntry,
+  parseDirectiveLog,
   planIssueChange,
   type ProjectSnapshot,
+  type DirectiveInput,
 } from '@commitea/core'
 import { ipcMain } from 'electron'
 
+import { loadSnapshot, saveSnapshot } from './snapshot-store.js'
+
 /** Walk up from cwd looking for a .env.local with a GITEA_TOKEN (dev convenience). */
 function loadEnvLocalToken(): string | undefined {
   let dir = process.cwd()
@@ -62,6 +70,45 @@ export function getGiteaClient(): GiteaClient | null {
   return sharedClient
 }
 
+// The pm-state repo holds machine-derived state (the directive ledger). Same
+// token/host as the work repo, a different repo (the purity split, decisions D4).
+let pmStateClient: GiteaClient | null | undefined
+export function getPmStateClient(): GiteaClient | null {
+  if (pmStateClient === undefined) {
+    const config = resolveConfig()
+    pmStateClient = config
+      ? createGiteaClient({ ...config, repo: process.env.COMMITEA_PMSTATE_REPO ?? 'commitea-pm-state' }, fetch)
+      : null
+  }
+  return pmStateClient
+}
+
+const DIRECTIVE_LOG_PATH = 'directives/log.jsonl'
+
+async function readDirectiveLog(client: GiteaClient): Promise<{ text: string; sha: string | null }> {
+  const file = await client.getFile(DIRECTIVE_LOG_PATH)
+  if (!file) return { text: '', sha: null }
+  return { text: Buffer.from(file.contentBase64, 'base64').toString('utf8'), sha: file.sha }
+}
+
+/** Record a directive: read the ledger, append, write it back (concatenation merge). */
+export async function appendDirectiveEntry(client: GiteaClient, input: DirectiveInput): Promise<DirectiveEntry> {
+  const entry = makeDirectiveEntry(input, randomUUID(), new Date().toISOString())
+  const { text, sha } = await readDirectiveLog(client)
+  const next = appendDirective(text, entry)
+  await client.putFile(DIRECTIVE_LOG_PATH, {
+    contentBase64: Buffer.from(next, 'utf8').toString('base64'),
+    message: `directive: ${entry.kind}`,
+    sha: sha ?? undefined,
+  })
+  return entry
+}
+
+export async function readDirectives(client: GiteaClient) {
+  const { text } = await readDirectiveLog(client)
+  return parseDirectiveLog(text)
+}
+
 /** Full reconcile: issues + milestones + native deps + lifecycle timelines. */
 export async function reconcileSnapshot(
   client: GiteaClient,
@@ -81,16 +128,81 @@ export async function reconcileSnapshot(
   return { issues, milestones, deps, timelines }
 }
 
+type Snapshot = Awaited<ReturnType<typeof reconcileSnapshot>>
+
+/**
+ * A single in-memory reconcile cache shared across the app. A full reconcile is
+ * ~2N gitea calls (deps + timelines per issue); without this, every agent tool
+ * call refetched the whole repo. Reads within `maxAgeMs` reuse the cache;
+ * `getSnapshot({ maxAgeMs: 0 })` forces a fresh pull (the explicit UI reconcile),
+ * and any write calls `invalidateSnapshot()` so the next read sees it. The cache
+ * is rebuildable — the durable truth stays in gitea (the purity split, D4).
+ */
+let snapshotCache: { snap: Snapshot; at: number } | null = null
+
+export async function getSnapshot(client: GiteaClient, opts?: { maxAgeMs?: number }): Promise<Snapshot> {
+  const maxAgeMs = opts?.maxAgeMs ?? 0
+  if (snapshotCache && maxAgeMs > 0 && Date.now() - snapshotCache.at <= maxAgeMs) {
+    return snapshotCache.snap
+  }
+  const snap = await reconcileSnapshot(client)
+  snapshotCache = { snap, at: Date.now() }
+  saveSnapshot(snap, new Date().toISOString()) // persist for instant boot + offline
+  return snap
+}
+
+/** Drop the cache so the next read reflects a just-made write. */
+export function invalidateSnapshot(): void {
+  snapshotCache = null
+}
+
+/**
+ * The last persisted snapshot (from a previous session), for instant boot. The
+ * renderer shows it immediately, then a real reconcile supersedes it
+ * (stale-while-revalidate). Returns null when there's nothing on disk; its
+ * `savedAt` marks staleness. It does NOT seed the cache — agent tool calls
+ * always reconcile fresh so they never reason over stale data.
+ */
+export function bootSnapshot(): (Snapshot & { savedAt: string }) | null {
+  const persisted = loadSnapshot()
+  if (!persisted) return null
+  return {
+    issues: persisted.issues,
+    milestones: persisted.milestones,
+    deps: persisted.deps,
+    timelines: persisted.timelines,
+    savedAt: persisted.savedAt,
+  } as unknown as Snapshot & { savedAt: string }
+}
+
+/** Agent tool calls tolerate a slightly stale snapshot (seconds) to stay responsive. */
+export const AGENT_SNAPSHOT_TTL_MS = 30_000
+
 export function registerGiteaIpc(): void {
   const client = getGiteaClient()
   const repo = client ? `${process.env.GITEA_OWNER ?? 'christian'}/${process.env.GITEA_REPO ?? 'commitea'}` : null
 
   ipcMain.handle('gitea:status', () => ({ configured: !!client, repo }))
 
+  // Instant boot: the last persisted snapshot, shown before the fresh reconcile lands.
+  ipcMain.handle('gitea:boot', () => {
+    if (!client) return { configured: false }
+    const persisted = bootSnapshot()
+    return persisted ? { configured: true, cached: true, ...persisted } : { configured: true, cached: false }
+  })
+
   ipcMain.handle('gitea:reconcile', async () => {
     if (!client) return { configured: false, issues: [], milestones: [], deps: [], timelines: {} }
-    const snap = await reconcileSnapshot(client)
+    try {
-    return { configured: true, ...snap }
+      // explicit UI sync — force fresh, and warm the cache for agent tool calls
+      const snap = await getSnapshot(client, { maxAgeMs: 0 })
+      return { configured: true, stale: false, ...snap }
+    } catch (e) {
+      // offline / gitea down — serve the last persisted snapshot rather than error out
+      const persisted = bootSnapshot()
+      if (persisted) return { configured: true, stale: true, ...persisted }
+      throw e
+    }
   })
 
   ipcMain.handle('gitea:getIssue', async (_event, index: number) => {
@@ -122,6 +234,36 @@ export function registerGiteaIpc(): void {
     const ids = await resolveLabelIds(plan.labels)
     await client.setIssueLabels(change.issue, ids)
     const issue = await client.getIssue(change.issue)
+    invalidateSnapshot() // the board + forecast must reflect the label change
     return { ok: true as const, plan, issue }
   })
+
+  // capture_work filing: open each approved issue with its est/* + p/* labels.
+  // Only touches the CommiTea label namespaces — no invented labels (zero-pollution).
+  ipcMain.handle(
+    'gitea:createIssues',
+    async (_event, issues: { title: string; body?: string; estimate?: string; priority?: string }[]) => {
+      if (!client) return { ok: false as const, reason: 'unconfigured' as const }
+      const created: { number: number; title: string }[] = []
+      for (const it of issues) {
+        const names = [it.estimate, it.priority].filter((n): n is string => !!n)
+        const labelIds = await resolveLabelIds(names)
+        const issue = await client.createIssue({ title: it.title, body: it.body, labelIds })
+        created.push({ number: issue.number, title: issue.title })
+      }
+      if (created.length) invalidateSnapshot() // new issues enter the board/scope
+      return { ok: true as const, created }
+    },
+  )
+
+  // Read the directive ledger from the pm-state repo (for the Directives screen).
+  ipcMain.handle('pmstate:directives', async () => {
+    const pm = getPmStateClient()
+    if (!pm) return { ok: false as const, reason: 'unconfigured' as const }
+    try {
+      return { ok: true as const, directives: await readDirectives(pm) }
+    } catch (e) {
+      return { ok: false as const, reason: 'error' as const, message: e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e) }
+    }
+  })
 }

apps/desktop/src/main/model.ts

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 
 import {
   buildProjectView,
+  captureWork,
   type ChangeProposal,
   type ChatMessage,
   createChatClient,
@@ -21,10 +22,17 @@ import {
   REGINALD_SYSTEM,
   REGINALD_TOOLS,
   runAgentTurn,
+  toDirectiveInput,
 } from '@commitea/core'
 import { ipcMain } from 'electron'
 
-import { getGiteaClient, reconcileSnapshot } from './gitea.js'
+import {
+  AGENT_SNAPSHOT_TTL_MS,
+  appendDirectiveEntry,
+  getGiteaClient,
+  getPmStateClient,
+  getSnapshot,
+} from './gitea.js'
 
 /** Small local model for prose + the read tool; big model reserved for later decomposition. */
 function resolveModelRouter(): ModelRouter | null {
@@ -91,7 +99,8 @@ export function registerModelIpc(): void {
     const execute = async (name: string, args: unknown) => {
       if (!client) return { error: 'gitea is not configured' }
       if (name === 'query_project') {
-        const snap = await reconcileSnapshot(client)
+        // reuse a recent reconcile — a multi-tool turn shouldn't refetch the repo each call
+        const snap = await getSnapshot(client, { maxAgeMs: AGENT_SNAPSHOT_TTL_MS })
         const a = (args ?? {}) as { view: ProjectView; filters?: QueryFilters }
         return buildProjectView(a.view, a.filters, snap, new Date())
       }
@@ -105,6 +114,16 @@ export function registerModelIpc(): void {
           ? { proposed: built.map((p) => ({ issue: a.issue, diff: describeChange(p.plan) })) }
           : { proposed: [], note: 'no change — already at that value' }
       }
+      if (name === 'record_directive') {
+        const pm = getPmStateClient()
+        if (!pm) return { error: 'pm-state is not configured' }
+        try {
+          const entry = await appendDirectiveEntry(pm, toDirectiveInput(args))
+          return { recorded: { kind: entry.kind, quote: entry.quote } }
+        } catch (e) {
+          return { error: `could not record — is the pm-state repo created? (${e instanceof Error ? e.message : e})` }
+        }
+      }
       return { error: `unknown tool: ${name}` }
     }
 
@@ -120,4 +139,19 @@ export function registerModelIpc(): void {
       return { ok: false as const, reason: 'error' as const, message: e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e) }
     }
   })
+
+  // capture_work — braindump → proposed issue set. The big model does the
+  // decomposition (with one loaded local model, that's the loaded one). Returns
+  // a proposal; nothing is filed until the Capture tray approves it.
+  ipcMain.handle('model:capture', async (_event, braindump: string) => {
+    if (!router) return { ok: false as const, reason: 'unconfigured' as const }
+    const model = await resolveLoadedModel(router.big.baseUrl, router.big.model)
+    const chat = createChatClient({ ...router.big, model }, fetch)
+    try {
+      const proposal = await captureWork((m, t) => chat.complete(m, t), braindump)
+      return { ok: true as const, ...proposal }
+    } catch (e) {
+      return { ok: false as const, reason: 'error' as const, message: e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e) }
+    }
+  })
 }

apps/desktop/src/main/snapshot-store.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,47 @@
+/**
+ * Durable snapshot store — the reconcile cache, persisted to disk. On boot the
+ * app shows the last snapshot instantly (stale-while-revalidate) instead of a
+ * blank board while ~2N gitea calls run; if gitea is unreachable, reads fall
+ * back to it (offline). It's a rebuildable mirror — the durable truth stays in
+ * gitea (the purity split, D4). A plain JSON file: the whole snapshot fits in
+ * memory at this scale, so indexed SQL buys nothing yet (see the PR).
+ */
+
+import { readFileSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { join } from 'node:path'
+
+import { app } from 'electron'
+
+/** The shape we persist — kept loose so a schema drift degrades to "no cache", not a crash. */
+export interface PersistedSnapshot {
+  issues: unknown[]
+  milestones: unknown[]
+  deps: unknown[]
+  timelines: Record<number, unknown[]>
+  /** ISO time the snapshot was reconciled — shown as "cached since". */
+  savedAt: string
+}
+
+function snapshotPath(): string {
+  return join(app.getPath('userData'), 'commitea-snapshot.json')
+}
+
+/** Load the last persisted snapshot, or null if absent/corrupt. Never throws. */
+export function loadSnapshot(): PersistedSnapshot | null {
+  try {
+    const parsed = JSON.parse(readFileSync(snapshotPath(), 'utf8')) as PersistedSnapshot
+    if (parsed && Array.isArray(parsed.issues)) return parsed
+    return null
+  } catch {
+    return null // missing file, bad JSON, or drift — treat as no cache
+  }
+}
+
+/** Persist a freshly reconciled snapshot. Best-effort — a write failure never breaks a reconcile. */
+export function saveSnapshot(snap: Omit<PersistedSnapshot, 'savedAt'>, savedAt: string): void {
+  try {
+    writeFileSync(snapshotPath(), JSON.stringify({ ...snap, savedAt }), 'utf8')
+  } catch {
+    // disk full / permissions — the in-memory cache still works this session
+  }
+}

apps/desktop/src/preload/index.ts

@@ -5,18 +5,28 @@ const api = {
   gitea: {
     /** Whether the main process has a gitea token + target repo configured. */
     status: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:status'),
+    /** The last persisted snapshot, for instant boot before the fresh reconcile. */
+    boot: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:boot'),
     /** Full read of the managed repo — every issue + milestone. */
     reconcile: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:reconcile'),
     /** One issue by index, normalized (or null if unconfigured). */
     getIssue: (index: number) => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:getIssue', index),
     /** Apply an estimate/priority change (the write path); resolves to the plan + fresh issue. */
     applyChange: (change: unknown) => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:applyChange', change),
+    /** File a set of captured issues with their est/* + p/* labels. */
+    createIssues: (issues: unknown) => ipcRenderer.invoke('gitea:createIssues', issues),
+  },
+  pmstate: {
+    /** Read the directive ledger from the pm-state repo. */
+    directives: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('pmstate:directives'),
   },
   model: {
     /** Whether a model endpoint is configured (else the UI keeps the scripted Reginald). */
     status: () => ipcRenderer.invoke('model:status'),
     /** One agent turn: messages in, Reginald's prose + the tools it consulted out. */
     chat: (messages: unknown) => ipcRenderer.invoke('model:chat', messages),
+    /** Decompose a braindump into a proposed issue set (capture_work). */
+    capture: (braindump: string) => ipcRenderer.invoke('model:capture', braindump),
   },
 }
 

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/capture-screen.tsx

@@ -1,8 +1,12 @@
 import React from 'react'
 
+import type { ProposedIssue } from '@commitea/core'
+
 import { Badge, Button, Card, Icon, Select, Tag } from '../ui/index.js'
 
-// Capture interview — braindump → interview → approved ticket set (< 2 min)
+// Capture interview — braindump → interview → approved ticket set (< 2 min).
+// With a model configured, "Brew tickets" runs real capture_work decomposition
+// and "Approve all" files the issues in gitea; otherwise the scripted demo runs.
 
 interface Ticket {
   title: string
@@ -30,6 +34,64 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
   const [webEst, setWebEst] = React.useState<string | null>(null)
   const [secs, setSecs] = React.useState(0)
 
+  // live capture_work path (real model + gitea writes)
+  const [live, setLive] = React.useState(false)
+  const [brewing, setBrewing] = React.useState(false)
+  const [liveTickets, setLiveTickets] = React.useState<ProposedIssue[] | null>(null)
+  const [filedCount, setFiledCount] = React.useState(0)
+  const [error, setError] = React.useState<string | null>(null)
+
+  React.useEffect(() => {
+    let alive = true
+    window.commitea.model.status().then((s) => { if (alive) setLive(s.configured) }).catch(() => {})
+    return () => { alive = false }
+  }, [])
+
+  const editTicket = (i: number, field: 'estimate' | 'priority', value: string) =>
+    setLiveTickets((ts) => (ts ? ts.map((t, j) => (j === i ? { ...t, [field]: value } : t)) : ts))
+
+  // Decide live-vs-scripted at click time: re-check status if it hasn't resolved
+  // yet, so a configured model never falls into the scripted interview by a race.
+  const onBrew = async () => {
+    const configured = live || (await window.commitea.model.status().then((s) => s.configured).catch(() => false))
+    if (configured) {
+      setLive(true)
+      brew()
+    } else {
+      setStage('interview')
+    }
+  }
+
+  const brew = () => {
+    setError(null)
+    setBrewing(true)
+    window.commitea.model
+      .capture(dump)
+      .then((res) => {
+        setBrewing(false)
+        if (res.ok && res.issues.length) {
+          setLiveTickets(res.issues)
+          setStage('review')
+        } else {
+          setError(res.ok ? 'I could not find concrete work in that — try a bit more detail.' : `Capture failed: ${res.reason === 'error' ? res.message : 'no model'}`)
+        }
+      })
+      .catch(() => { setBrewing(false); setError('I could not reach the model.') })
+  }
+
+  const fileLive = () => {
+    if (!liveTickets) return
+    setBrewing(true)
+    window.commitea.gitea
+      .createIssues(liveTickets)
+      .then((res) => {
+        setBrewing(false)
+        if (res.ok) { setFiledCount(res.created.length); setStage('filed') }
+        else setError('Filing failed — gitea is not configured.')
+      })
+      .catch(() => { setBrewing(false); setError('Filing failed.') })
+  }
+
   const running = stage === 'interview' || stage === 'review'
   React.useEffect(() => {
     if (!running) return
@@ -63,19 +125,23 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
     else setStage('review')
   }
 
-  // draft tickets build as the interview progresses
+  // draft tickets build as the interview progresses (scripted demo path)
-  const tickets: Ticket[] = []
+  const scripted: Ticket[] = []
   if (split === true) {
-    tickets.push({ title: 'Token refresh: retry with backoff', est: 'est/2d', p: 'p/2' })
+    scripted.push({ title: 'Token refresh: retry with backoff', est: 'est/2d', p: 'p/2' })
-    tickets.push({ title: 'Session storage: stale reads on wake', est: 'est/1d', p: 'p/3' })
+    scripted.push({ title: 'Session storage: stale reads on wake', est: 'est/1d', p: 'p/3' })
   } else if (split === false) {
-    tickets.push({ title: 'Auth: token refresh + session storage', est: 'est/3d', p: 'p/2' })
+    scripted.push({ title: 'Auth: token refresh + session storage', est: 'est/3d', p: 'p/2' })
   }
-  if (webEst) tickets.push({ title: 'Webhook debounce: double-fire guard', est: webEst, p: 'p/1', dep: 'blocked by auth work' })
+  if (webEst) scripted.push({ title: 'Webhook debounce: double-fire guard', est: webEst, p: 'p/1', dep: 'blocked by auth work' })
-  if (stage === 'review' || stage === 'filed') {
+  if (!live && (stage === 'review' || stage === 'filed')) {
-    tickets.push({ title: 'Docs: auth setup guide', est: 'est/1d', p: 'p/4', byReginald: true })
+    scripted.push({ title: 'Docs: auth setup guide', est: 'est/1d', p: 'p/4', byReginald: true })
   }
-  const totalDays = tickets.reduce((n, t) => n + parseInt(t.est.replace('est/', '')), 0)
+  // real capture_work output overrides the scripted set when present
+  const tickets: Ticket[] = liveTickets
+    ? liveTickets.map((i) => ({ title: i.title, est: i.estimate ?? 'est/2d', p: i.priority ?? 'p/3' }))
+    : scripted
+  const totalDays = tickets.reduce((n, t) => n + parseInt(t.est.replace('est/', ''), 10), 0)
 
   const estOptions = ['est/1d', 'est/2d', 'est/3d', 'est/5d', 'est/8d'].map((v) => ({ value: v, label: v }))
   const pOptions = ['p/1', 'p/2', 'p/3', 'p/4'].map((v) => ({ value: v, label: v }))
@@ -96,8 +162,20 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
             <div style={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 8, flexWrap: 'wrap' }}>
               {editable ? (
                 <>
-                  <Select options={estOptions} defaultValue={t.est} style={{ width: 96 }} />
+                  <Select
-                  <Select options={pOptions} defaultValue={t.p} style={{ width: 76 }} />
+                    options={estOptions}
+                    value={liveTickets ? t.est : undefined}
+                    defaultValue={liveTickets ? undefined : t.est}
+                    onChange={(e) => editTicket(i, 'estimate', e.target.value)}
+                    style={{ width: 96 }}
+                  />
+                  <Select
+                    options={pOptions}
+                    value={liveTickets ? t.p : undefined}
+                    defaultValue={liveTickets ? undefined : t.p}
+                    onChange={(e) => editTicket(i, 'priority', e.target.value)}
+                    style={{ width: 76 }}
+                  />
                 </>
               ) : (
                 <>
@@ -144,7 +222,12 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
           <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: '10px 0 14px' }}>
             Sentences, fragments, grievances — all welcome. I'll sort it into tickets and only ask what I can't infer.
           </p>
-          <Button icon="sparkles" onClick={() => setStage('interview')}>Brew tickets</Button>
+          <Button icon="sparkles" onClick={() => void onBrew()} disabled={brewing}>
+            {brewing ? 'Brewing…' : 'Brew tickets'}
+          </Button>
+          {error ? (
+            <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--danger)', margin: '10px 0 0' }}>{error}</p>
+          ) : null}
         </Card>
       ) : null}
 
@@ -174,15 +257,26 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
         <div style={{ display: 'grid', gridTemplateColumns: '1fr 1.1fr', gap: 14, alignItems: 'start' }}>
           <Card overline="Consequence" title={`${tickets.length} tickets · ~${totalDays}d of work`} jade
                 footer={<>
-                  <Button onClick={() => setStage('filed')}>Approve all</Button>
+                  <Button onClick={() => (live ? fileLive() : setStage('filed'))} disabled={brewing}>
-                  <Button variant="ghost" onClick={() => { setStage('dump'); setQi(0); setLog([]); setSplit(null); setWebEst(null); setSecs(0); }}>Discard</Button>
+                    {brewing ? 'Filing…' : 'Approve all'}
+                  </Button>
+                  <Button variant="ghost" onClick={() => { setStage('dump'); setQi(0); setLog([]); setSplit(null); setWebEst(null); setSecs(0); setLiveTickets(null); setError(null); }}>Discard</Button>
                 </>}>
+            {live ? (
+              <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: 0 }}>
+                {tickets.length} issue{tickets.length === 1 ? '' : 's'} from your braindump, estimated and prioritized.
+                Adjust the labels, then approve — I'll open them in gitea with only est/* and p/* labels.
+              </p>
+            ) : (
+              <>
                 <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-body)', margin: '0 0 8px' }}>
                   Beta's 80% window moves <span style={{ font: 'var(--text-data)' }}>Mar 3–12 → Mar 5–14</span>. Capacity absorbs the rest.
                 </p>
                 <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: 0 }}>
                   I added the docs ticket you mentioned and wired the dependency. Shall I make it so?
                 </p>
+              </>
+            )}
           </Card>
           <Tray editable />
         </div>
@@ -195,7 +289,7 @@ export function CaptureScreen({ onDone }: { onDone: () => void }) {
               <Icon name="circle-check" size={22} /> Filed
             </span>
             <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-body)', margin: 0 }}>
-              {tickets.length} issues opened in gitea with <span style={{ font: 'var(--text-data)' }}>est/*</span> and <span style={{ font: 'var(--text-data)' }}>p/*</span> labels — nothing else touched.
+              {live ? filedCount : tickets.length} issues opened in gitea with <span style={{ font: 'var(--text-data)' }}>est/*</span> and <span style={{ font: 'var(--text-data)' }}>p/*</span> labels — nothing else touched.
             </p>
             <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: 0 }}>
               Elapsed {clock} — under budget. No bot comments, no synthetic issues; your repo remains yours.

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/directives-screen.tsx

@@ -8,6 +8,35 @@ export function DirectivesScreen() {
   const [pending, setPending] = React.useState<DirectivePending | null>(DIRECTIVES.pending)
   const [entries, setEntries] = React.useState<DirectiveEntry[]>(DIRECTIVES.entries)
 
+  // Real ledger from the pm-state repo, when it exists — else the fixture demo.
+  React.useEffect(() => {
+    let alive = true
+    window.commitea.pmstate
+      .directives()
+      .then((r) => {
+        if (!alive || !r.ok || r.directives.length === 0) return
+        setPending(null)
+        setEntries(
+          r.directives
+            .slice()
+            .reverse()
+            .map((d) => ({
+              seq: d.seq,
+              who: 'You',
+              when: new Date(d.ts).toLocaleDateString(),
+              what: d.quote,
+              why: d.rationale ?? '',
+              status: d.status === 'accepted' ? 'applied' : d.status === 'withdrawn' ? 'withdrawn' : 'superseded',
+              consequence: '',
+            })),
+        )
+      })
+      .catch(() => {})
+    return () => {
+      alive = false
+    }
+  }, [])
+
   const resolve = (status: string) => {
     setEntries((e) => [{
       seq: pending!.seq, who: pending!.who, when: pending!.when, what: pending!.what, why: 'pilot demo on the 14th',

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/milestone-screen.tsx

@@ -1,22 +1,44 @@
 import React from 'react'
 
 import { COLUMNS, type IssueRef } from '../../data/fixtures.js'
+import { type MilestoneView } from '../../lib/backlog.js'
 import { BurnUpCone } from '../charts/chart.js'
 import { Badge, Button, Card, Icon, Tag } from '../ui/index.js'
 
-// Milestone detail — scope, cone, issues; forecasts stay ranges
+// Milestone detail — scope, cone, issues; forecasts stay ranges.
-export function MilestoneScreen({ onBack, onOpenIssue }: { onBack: () => void; onOpenIssue: (issue: IssueRef) => void }) {
+// `data` (real milestone forecast) overrides the demo fixture when present.
+export function MilestoneScreen({
+  onBack,
+  onOpenIssue,
+  data,
+}: {
+  onBack: () => void
+  onOpenIssue: (issue: IssueRef) => void
+  data?: MilestoneView
+}) {
   const cols = COLUMNS
   const byState = (ids: number[]) =>
     cols.flatMap((c) => c.issues.map((i) => ({ ...i, col: c.label }))).filter((i) => ids.includes(i.id))
 
-  const groups = [
+  const fixtureGroups = [
     { label: 'Steeping', issues: byState([87, 84]) },
     { label: 'In review', issues: byState([92]) },
     { label: 'Queued', issues: byState([102, 103, 99, 96, 78]) },
     { label: 'Done', issues: byState([71, 69, 65]), muted: true },
   ]
 
+  // real or demo, in one shape the render loop understands
+  const groups = data
+    ? data.groups.map((g) => ({ label: g.label, issues: g.issues, muted: g.label === 'Done' }))
+    : fixtureGroups
+  const name = data ? data.name : 'Beta'
+  const dueLine = data
+    ? `milestone · due ${data.due} · ${data.soft ? 'soft — scope may flex' : 'hard deadline'}`
+    : 'milestone · due Mar 15 · soft — scope may flex'
+  const forecastLabel = data ? (data.forecastRange ? `80% ${data.forecastRange}` : 'all shipped') : '80% Mar 3–12'
+  const scopeStat = data ? `${data.scopeCount} issues · est ${data.scopeEstDays}d` : '42 issues · est 61d'
+  const doneStat = data ? `${data.doneCount} · ${data.donePct}%` : '24 · 57%'
+
   const Stat = ({ label, value, tone }: { label: string; value: string; tone?: string }) => (
     <div style={{ flex: 1, padding: '12px 18px', borderRight: '1px solid var(--line-1)' }}>
       <div style={{ font: 'var(--text-overline)', letterSpacing: 'var(--letter-spacing-wide)', textTransform: 'uppercase', color: 'var(--ink-3)', marginBottom: 5 }}>{label}</div>
@@ -36,12 +58,12 @@ export function MilestoneScreen({ onBack, onOpenIssue }: { onBack: () => void; o
         <header style={{ borderBottom: 'var(--rule-double)', paddingBottom: 14, display: 'flex', alignItems: 'flex-start', gap: 16 }}>
           <div style={{ flex: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
             <p style={{ font: '400 12px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-3)', margin: '0 0 6px', display: 'inline-flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 6 }}>
-              <Icon name="milestone" size={13} /> milestone · due Mar 15 · soft — scope may flex
+              <Icon name="milestone" size={13} /> {dueLine}
             </p>
-            <h1 style={{ font: 'var(--text-display)', color: 'var(--ink-1)', margin: 0 }}>Beta</h1>
+            <h1 style={{ font: 'var(--text-display)', color: 'var(--ink-1)', margin: 0 }}>{name}</h1>
             <div style={{ display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 8, marginTop: 10 }}>
-              <Badge tone="ok" dot>ahead of forecast</Badge>
+              <Badge tone="ok" dot>{data ? `${data.doneCount}/${data.scopeCount} done` : 'ahead of forecast'}</Badge>
-              <span style={{ font: '400 12px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>80% Mar 3–12</span>
+              <span style={{ font: '400 12px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>{forecastLabel}</span>
             </div>
           </div>
           <Button variant="secondary" icon="arrow-up-right">Open in Gitea</Button>
@@ -51,21 +73,25 @@ export function MilestoneScreen({ onBack, onOpenIssue }: { onBack: () => void; o
       {/* stats strip */}
       <Card flush>
         <div style={{ display: 'flex' }}>
-          <Stat label="Scope" value="42 issues · est 61d" />
+          <Stat label="Scope" value={scopeStat} />
-          <Stat label="Done" value="24 · 57%" />
+          <Stat label="Done" value={doneStat} />
-          <Stat label="Forecast" value="80% Mar 3–12" />
+          <Stat label="Forecast" value={forecastLabel} />
           <div style={{ flex: 1, padding: '12px 18px' }}>
-            <div style={{ font: 'var(--text-overline)', letterSpacing: 'var(--letter-spacing-wide)', textTransform: 'uppercase', color: 'var(--ink-3)', marginBottom: 5 }}>Drift · 7d</div>
+            <div style={{ font: 'var(--text-overline)', letterSpacing: 'var(--letter-spacing-wide)', textTransform: 'uppercase', color: 'var(--ink-3)', marginBottom: 5 }}>Remaining</div>
-            <div style={{ font: '500 14px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ok)', whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>−2d · cone narrowed</div>
+            <div style={{ font: '500 14px var(--font-mono)', color: 'var(--ink-1)', whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>{data ? `${data.scopeCount - data.doneCount} open` : '−2d · cone narrowed'}</div>
           </div>
         </div>
       </Card>
 
       <div style={{ display: 'grid', gridTemplateColumns: '1.2fr 1fr', gap: 14, alignItems: 'start' }}>
-        <Card overline="Burn-up" title={<>80% this lands <span style={{ whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>Mar 3–12</span></>} jade>
+        <Card overline="Burn-up" title={<>80% this lands <span style={{ whiteSpace: 'nowrap' }}>{data ? (data.forecastRange ?? 'shipped') : 'Mar 3–12'}</span></>} jade>
-          <BurnUpCone />
+          <BurnUpCone data={data?.cone ?? undefined} />
           <p style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-2)', margin: '10px 0 0' }}>
-            Comfortably ahead. Beta needs #87 more than it needs my commentary.
+            {data
+              ? data.cone
+                ? `${data.scopeCount - data.doneCount} open of ${data.scopeCount}. Cone over what's left.`
+                : 'Everything here has shipped.'
+              : 'Comfortably ahead. Beta needs #87 more than it needs my commentary.'}
           </p>
         </Card>
 

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/screens/runway-screen.tsx

@@ -2,18 +2,22 @@ import React from 'react'
 
 import { RunwayBar } from '../charts/chart.js'
 import { Card, Badge, Tag, Icon, IconButton } from '../ui/index.js'
-import { RUNWAY, CAPACITY } from '../../data/fixtures.js'
+import { RUNWAY, CAPACITY, type RunwayMilestone } from '../../data/fixtures.js'
 
-// Runway — capacity vs milestone dates; ranges, never points
+// Runway — capacity vs milestone dates; ranges, never points.
+// `milestones` (real per-milestone forecasts) overrides the demo when present.
 export function RunwayScreen({
   onOpenCalibration,
   onOpenMilestone,
   calibration,
+  milestones,
 }: {
   onOpenCalibration: () => void
-  onOpenMilestone: () => void
+  onOpenMilestone: (id?: number) => void
   calibration?: { n: number; coldStart: boolean }
+  milestones?: RunwayMilestone[]
 }) {
+  const rows = milestones && milestones.length ? milestones : RUNWAY
   const calibNote = calibration
     ? calibration.coldStart
       ? `cold-start priors · ${calibration.n}/20 closed issues estimated`
@@ -28,8 +32,8 @@ export function RunwayScreen({
 
       <Card overline="Milestones" flush>
         <div>
-          {RUNWAY.map((m, i) => (
+          {rows.map((m, i) => (
-            <div key={m.name} onClick={onOpenMilestone} style={{
+            <div key={m.name} onClick={() => onOpenMilestone(m.id)} style={{
               display: 'grid', gridTemplateColumns: '160px 1fr 150px 90px', gap: 16, alignItems: 'center', cursor: 'pointer',
               padding: '14px 20px', borderTop: i === 0 ? 'none' : '1px solid var(--line-1)',
             }}

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/shell/app-shell.tsx

@@ -4,7 +4,14 @@ import logoIcon from '../../design/assets/logo-icon.png'
 import type { IssueChange } from '@commitea/core'
 
 import type { IssueRef } from '../../data/fixtures.js'
-import { backlogCalibration, forecastBacklog, issuesToBoardColumns, scheduleFocus } from '../../lib/backlog.js'
+import {
+  backlogCalibration,
+  forecastBacklog,
+  issuesToBoardColumns,
+  milestoneView,
+  runwayView,
+  scheduleFocus,
+} from '../../lib/backlog.js'
 import { useBacklog } from '../../lib/use-backlog.js'
 import { PrimitivesGallery } from '../gallery.js'
 import { BoardScreen } from '../screens/board-screen.js'
@@ -87,6 +94,7 @@ export function AppShell() {
   const [offline, setOffline] = useState(false)
   const [issue, setIssue] = useState<IssueRef | null>(null)
   const [readIds, setReadIds] = useState<number[]>([])
+  const [milestoneId, setMilestoneId] = useState<number | null>(null)
   const [backlog, refetchBacklog] = useBacklog()
   const boardColumns =
     backlog.status === 'ready' ? issuesToBoardColumns(backlog.issues, backlog.timelines) : undefined
@@ -98,6 +106,19 @@ export function AppShell() {
     backlog.status === 'ready'
       ? (forecastBacklog(backlog.issues, backlog.deps, new Date(), calibration?.model) ?? undefined)
       : undefined
+  const runwayMilestones =
+    backlog.status === 'ready' ? runwayView(backlog.issues, backlog.milestones, backlog.deps) : undefined
+  const milestone =
+    backlog.status === 'ready' && milestoneId != null
+      ? (milestoneView(
+          milestoneId,
+          backlog.issues,
+          backlog.milestones,
+          backlog.deps,
+          backlog.timelines,
+          calibration?.model,
+        ) ?? undefined)
+      : undefined
 
   useEffect(() => {
     document.documentElement.setAttribute('data-theme', dark ? 'dark' : 'light')
@@ -194,14 +215,18 @@ export function AppShell() {
         return (
           <RunwayScreen
             onOpenCalibration={() => setView('calibration')}
-            onOpenMilestone={() => setView('milestone')}
+            onOpenMilestone={(id) => {
+              setMilestoneId(id ?? null)
+              setView('milestone')
+            }}
             calibration={calibration ? { n: calibration.model.n, coldStart: calibration.model.coldStart } : undefined}
+            milestones={runwayMilestones}
           />
         )
       case 'calibration':
         return <CalibrationScreen onBack={() => setView('runway')} data={calibration?.data} />
       case 'milestone':
-        return <MilestoneScreen onBack={() => setView('runway')} onOpenIssue={openIssue} />
+        return <MilestoneScreen onBack={() => setView('runway')} onOpenIssue={openIssue} data={milestone} />
       case 'inbox':
         return (
           <InboxScreen

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/components/shell/chat-panel.tsx

@@ -101,7 +101,7 @@ export function ChatPanel({ onOpenDirectives, offline, onApplyChange }: ChatPane
         {thinking ? <div style={{ font: 'var(--text-agent)', color: 'var(--ink-3)' }}>considering…</div> : null}
         {!thinking && steps.length ? (
           <div style={{ font: 'var(--text-caption)', color: 'var(--ink-3)', display: 'flex', alignItems: 'center', gap: 5 }}>
-            <Icon name="eye" size={11} /> consulted {Array.from(new Set(steps.map((s) => s.replace('query_project', 'the project').replace('propose_change', 'the labels')))).join(', ')}
+            <Icon name="eye" size={11} /> consulted {Array.from(new Set(steps.map((s) => s.replace('query_project', 'the project').replace('propose_change', 'the labels').replace('record_directive', 'the directive ledger')))).join(', ')}
           </div>
         ) : null}
         {proposals.map((p) => (

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/data/fixtures.ts

@@ -315,6 +315,8 @@ export interface RunwayMilestone {
   spread: number
   tone: 'ok' | 'warn'
   note: string
+  /** gitea milestone id, for the drill-in (absent on the demo fixture). */
+  id?: number
 }
 
 export const RUNWAY: RunwayMilestone[] = [

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/global.d.ts

@@ -2,12 +2,15 @@ import type {
   AgentStep,
   ChangeProposal,
   ChatMessage,
+  CaptureProposal,
   DependencyEdge,
+  DirectiveRecord,
   GiteaIssue,
   GiteaMilestone,
   IssueChange,
   LabelPlan,
   LifecycleEvent,
+  ProposedIssue,
 } from '@commitea/core'
 
 /** The result of a write through the bridge. */
@@ -15,19 +18,44 @@ export type ApplyChangeResult =
   | { ok: false; reason: 'unconfigured' }
   | { ok: true; plan: LabelPlan; issue: GiteaIssue }
 
-/** The gitea bridge exposed by the preload over IPC (main-process backed). */
+/** The result of filing captured issues. */
-export interface GiteaBridge {
+export type CreateIssuesResult =
-  status(): Promise<{ configured: boolean; repo: string | null }>
+  | { ok: false; reason: 'unconfigured' }
-  reconcile(): Promise<{
+  | { ok: true; created: { number: number; title: string }[] }
+
+/** The result of a capture_work decomposition. */
+export type CaptureResult =
+  | { ok: false; reason: 'unconfigured' | 'error'; message?: string }
+  | ({ ok: true } & CaptureProposal)
+
+/** A reconciled snapshot as it crosses the bridge. */
+export interface SnapshotPayload {
   configured: boolean
   issues: GiteaIssue[]
   milestones: GiteaMilestone[]
   deps: DependencyEdge[]
   /** Normalized lifecycle events keyed by issue number. */
   timelines: Record<number, LifecycleEvent[]>
-  }>
+  /** true when served from the persisted cache (offline / instant boot). */
+  stale?: boolean
+  /** ISO time the persisted snapshot was reconciled (present on cached reads). */
+  savedAt?: string
+}
+
+/** Boot payload — the persisted snapshot, or a marker that there's none yet. */
+export type BootPayload =
+  | { configured: false }
+  | { configured: true; cached: false }
+  | ({ configured: true; cached: true } & Omit<SnapshotPayload, 'configured'>)
+
+/** The gitea bridge exposed by the preload over IPC (main-process backed). */
+export interface GiteaBridge {
+  status(): Promise<{ configured: boolean; repo: string | null }>
+  boot(): Promise<BootPayload>
+  reconcile(): Promise<SnapshotPayload>
   getIssue(index: number): Promise<GiteaIssue | null>
   applyChange(change: IssueChange): Promise<ApplyChangeResult>
+  createIssues(issues: ProposedIssue[]): Promise<CreateIssuesResult>
 }
 
 /** One agent turn's result. */
@@ -39,6 +67,17 @@ export type ChatResult =
 export interface ModelBridge {
   status(): Promise<{ configured: boolean; model: string | null }>
   chat(messages: ChatMessage[]): Promise<ChatResult>
+  capture(braindump: string): Promise<CaptureResult>
+}
+
+/** The result of reading the directive ledger. */
+export type DirectivesResult =
+  | { ok: false; reason: 'unconfigured' | 'error'; message?: string }
+  | { ok: true; directives: DirectiveRecord[] }
+
+/** The pm-state bridge (machine-derived state) exposed by the preload over IPC. */
+export interface PmStateBridge {
+  directives(): Promise<DirectivesResult>
 }
 
 declare global {
@@ -47,6 +86,7 @@ declare global {
       platform: string
       gitea: GiteaBridge
       model: ModelBridge
+      pmstate: PmStateBridge
     }
   }
 }

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/lib/backlog.ts

@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import {
   fitCalibration,
   forecast,
   type GiteaIssue,
+  type GiteaMilestone,
   inferLifecycle,
   type LifecycleColumn,
   type LifecycleEvent,
@@ -16,10 +17,17 @@ import {
   type ScheduledItem,
   selectFocus,
   toDurationModel,
+  workingDaysBetween,
 } from '@commitea/core'
 
-import { type BoardColumn, type BoardIssue, type CalibrationData, type FocusIssue } from '../data/fixtures.js'
+import {
-import { type BurnUpData, buildBurnUpData } from './dates.js'
+  type BoardColumn,
+  type BoardIssue,
+  type CalibrationData,
+  type FocusIssue,
+  type RunwayMilestone,
+} from '../data/fixtures.js'
+import { addWorkingDays, type BurnUpData, buildBurnUpData, formatRange, formatShort } from './dates.js'
 
 type Timelines = Record<number, LifecycleEvent[]>
 
@@ -232,3 +240,133 @@ export function scheduleFocus(
     later: toFocusIssue(f.later, inf),
   }
 }
+
+/**
+ * Per-milestone Monte Carlo forecast for the Runway screen — each open milestone's
+ * open scope gets its own cone, and the p80 landing is compared to the milestone's
+ * due date (ok/at-risk). Ranges, never point dates. Milestones with no open scope
+ * (already shipped) are omitted. Falls back to the demo when there's nothing real.
+ */
+export function runwayView(
+  issues: GiteaIssue[],
+  milestones: GiteaMilestone[],
+  deps: DependencyEdge[],
+  today: Date = new Date(),
+): RunwayMilestone[] {
+  const open = issues.filter((i) => i.state === 'open')
+  const rows = milestones
+    .filter((m) => m.state === 'open')
+    .map((m) => ({ m, scope: open.filter((i) => i.milestone?.id === m.id) }))
+    .filter((x) => x.scope.length > 0)
+    .map(({ m, scope }) => {
+      const f = forecast(
+        scope.map((i) => ({
+          number: i.number,
+          title: i.title,
+          labels: i.labels,
+          estimateDays: i.facts.estimateDays,
+          priority: i.facts.priority,
+        })),
+        deps,
+      )
+      const p90 = f.curve.length ? f.curve[f.curve.length - 1].p90Day : f.p95Day
+      const dueDay = m.dueOn ? workingDaysBetween(today, new Date(m.dueOn)) : null
+      return { m, p50: f.p50Day, p80: f.p80Day, p90, dueDay }
+    })
+
+  const horizon = Math.max(1, ...rows.map((r) => Math.max(r.p90, r.dueDay ?? 0)))
+
+  return rows.map(({ m, p50, p80, p90, dueDay }) => {
+    const onTrack = dueDay == null || p80 <= dueDay
+    return {
+      id: m.id,
+      name: m.title,
+      due: m.dueOn ? formatShort(new Date(m.dueOn)) : 'no date',
+      hard: false,
+      p80: formatRange(addWorkingDays(today, p50), addWorkingDays(today, p90)),
+      pos: p80 / horizon,
+      spread: Math.min(0.6, (p90 - p50) / horizon),
+      tone: onTrack ? ('ok' as const) : ('warn' as const),
+      note: dueDay == null ? `${Math.ceil(p80)}d of work` : onTrack ? 'on track' : 'at risk',
+    }
+  })
+}
+
+export interface MilestoneGroup {
+  label: string
+  issues: { id: number; title: string; labels: string[]; days?: string }[]
+}
+
+export interface MilestoneView {
+  name: string
+  due: string
+  soft: boolean
+  scopeCount: number
+  scopeEstDays: number
+  doneCount: number
+  donePct: number
+  /** p50..p90 landing range for the remaining open scope; null when nothing's open. */
+  forecastRange: string | null
+  cone: BurnUpData | null
+  groups: MilestoneGroup[]
+}
+
+/**
+ * The Milestone drill-in: real scope, done %, a Monte Carlo cone over the
+ * milestone's remaining open work, and its issues grouped by lifecycle column.
+ * Returns null for an unknown id — the screen then shows the demo fixture.
+ */
+export function milestoneView(
+  id: number,
+  issues: GiteaIssue[],
+  milestones: GiteaMilestone[],
+  deps: DependencyEdge[],
+  timelines: Timelines = {},
+  calibration?: CalibrationModel,
+  today: Date = new Date(),
+): MilestoneView | null {
+  const m = milestones.find((x) => x.id === id)
+  if (!m) return null
+  const all = issues.filter((i) => i.milestone?.id === id)
+  const open = all.filter((i) => i.state === 'open')
+  const done = all.filter((i) => i.state === 'closed')
+  const scopeEstDays = all.reduce((sum, i) => sum + (i.facts.estimateDays ?? 2), 0)
+
+  const model = calibration ? toDurationModel(calibration) : undefined
+  const f = forecast(
+    open.map((i) => ({
+      number: i.number,
+      title: i.title,
+      labels: i.labels,
+      estimateDays: i.facts.estimateDays,
+      priority: i.facts.priority,
+    })),
+    deps,
+    model ? { model } : {},
+  )
+  const cone = buildBurnUpData(f, today)
+
+  const inf = inferAll(all, timelines, today)
+  const groups: MilestoneGroup[] = COLUMN_ORDER.map((key) => ({
+    label: COLUMN_LABELS[key],
+    issues: all
+      .filter((i) => inf.get(i.number)!.column === key)
+      .map((i) => {
+        const days = inf.get(i.number)!.steepingDays
+        return { id: i.number, title: i.title, labels: i.labels, days: days != null ? `${days}d` : undefined }
+      }),
+  })).filter((g) => g.issues.length > 0)
+
+  return {
+    name: m.title,
+    due: m.dueOn ? formatShort(new Date(m.dueOn)) : 'no date',
+    soft: true,
+    scopeCount: all.length,
+    scopeEstDays,
+    doneCount: done.length,
+    donePct: all.length ? Math.round((done.length / all.length) * 100) : 0,
+    forecastRange: cone ? cone.rangeLabel : null,
+    cone,
+    groups,
+  }
+}

apps/desktop/src/renderer/src/lib/use-backlog.ts

@@ -12,13 +12,18 @@ export type BacklogState =
       milestones: GiteaMilestone[]
       deps: DependencyEdge[]
       timelines: Record<number, LifecycleEvent[]>
+      /** true while showing the persisted snapshot (instant boot / offline). */
+      stale: boolean
+      /** ISO time the shown snapshot was reconciled, when stale. */
+      savedAt?: string
     }
 
 /**
- * Reconcile the managed repo through the main-process bridge. Runs once on
+ * Reconcile the managed repo through the main-process bridge, stale-while-
- * mount; the returned `refetch` re-reconciles after a write so the board and
+ * revalidate: on mount it shows the persisted snapshot instantly (marked stale),
- * forecast reflect the change. `unconfigured` means no token — the UI falls
+ * then a fresh reconcile supersedes it. If gitea is unreachable, the fresh
- * back to demo fixtures. Errors (network, bad token) surface as `error`.
+ * reconcile falls back to the persisted snapshot (offline). `refetch` re-syncs
+ * after a write. `unconfigured` means no token — the UI uses demo fixtures.
  */
 export function useBacklog(): [BacklogState, () => void] {
   const [state, setState] = useState<BacklogState>({ status: 'loading' })
@@ -27,6 +32,30 @@ export function useBacklog(): [BacklogState, () => void] {
 
   useEffect(() => {
     let alive = true
+
+    // instant boot from the persisted snapshot (only on first mount, not refetch)
+    if (nonce === 0) {
+      window.commitea.gitea
+        .boot()
+        .then((b) => {
+          if (!alive || !('cached' in b) || !b.cached) return
+          setState((prev) =>
+            prev.status === 'ready' && !prev.stale
+              ? prev // a fresh reconcile already won the race
+              : {
+                  status: 'ready',
+                  issues: b.issues,
+                  milestones: b.milestones,
+                  deps: b.deps,
+                  timelines: b.timelines,
+                  stale: true,
+                  savedAt: b.savedAt,
+                },
+          )
+        })
+        .catch(() => {})
+    }
+
     window.commitea.gitea
       .reconcile()
       .then((r) => {
@@ -39,12 +68,19 @@ export function useBacklog(): [BacklogState, () => void] {
                 milestones: r.milestones,
                 deps: r.deps,
                 timelines: r.timelines,
+                stale: r.stale ?? false,
+                savedAt: r.savedAt,
               }
             : { status: 'unconfigured' },
         )
       })
       .catch((e: unknown) => {
-        if (alive) setState({ status: 'error', message: e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e) })
+        if (alive) {
+          // keep a shown boot snapshot rather than clobbering it with an error
+          setState((prev) =>
+            prev.status === 'ready' ? prev : { status: 'error', message: e instanceof Error ? e.message : String(e) },
+          )
+        }
       })
     return () => {
       alive = false

packages/core/src/agent/agent-live.test.ts

@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
 
 import { extractLabelFacts } from '../labels/label-schema.js'
 import type { FetchLike, GiteaIssue } from '../gitea/types.js'
@@ -10,11 +10,22 @@ import { buildProjectView, type ProjectSnapshot } from './query-project.js'
 /**
  * Opt-in (COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE=1). Drives the real chat client + agent loop
  * against a local OpenAI-compatible server (LM Studio on :1234 by default),
- * proving the model calls query_project and narrates the real result.
+ * proving the model calls the tools and narrates the real result. The model is
+ * whatever is loaded (via LM Studio's native API), so it never JIT-swaps.
  */
 const LIVE = !!process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_LIVE
 const BASE = process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_URL ?? 'http://localhost:1234/v1'
-const MODEL = process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_SMALL ?? 'google/gemma-4-e4b'
+let MODEL = process.env.COMMITEA_MODEL_SMALL ?? ''
+
+beforeAll(async () => {
+  if (!LIVE || MODEL) return
+  const root = BASE.replace(/\/v1\/?$/, '')
+  const loaded = await fetch(`${root}/api/v0/models`)
+    .then((r) => (r.ok ? (r.json() as Promise<{ data?: { id: string; state?: string; type?: string }[] }>) : null))
+    .then((d) => d?.data?.find((m) => m.state === 'loaded' && m.type !== 'embeddings')?.id)
+    .catch(() => undefined)
+  MODEL = loaded ?? 'google/gemma-4-e4b'
+})
 
 function issue(over: Partial<GiteaIssue>): GiteaIssue {
   const labels = over.labels ?? []
@@ -59,4 +70,34 @@ describe('agent loop (live model)', () => {
     },
     60_000,
   )
+
+  it.skipIf(!LIVE)(
+    'records a standing instruction via record_directive',
+    async () => {
+      const client = createChatClient({ baseUrl: BASE, model: MODEL }, globalThis.fetch as unknown as FetchLike)
+      const recorded: unknown[] = []
+      const turn = await runAgentTurn({
+        complete: (m, t) => client.complete(m, t),
+        messages: [
+          { role: 'system', content: REGINALD_SYSTEM },
+          { role: 'user', content: 'Log this standing directive: pilots come first, everything else waits.' },
+        ],
+        tools: REGINALD_TOOLS,
+        execute: async (name, args) => {
+          if (name === 'record_directive') {
+            recorded.push(args)
+            return { recorded: { kind: (args as { kind?: string }).kind ?? 'note' } }
+          }
+          return name === 'query_project'
+            ? buildProjectView((args as { view: any }).view, (args as any).filters, SNAP, new Date())
+            : { error: `unknown tool ${name}` }
+        },
+      })
+
+      // the model logged the directive rather than trying to apply it
+      expect(turn.steps.some((s) => s.tool === 'record_directive')).toBe(true)
+      expect(recorded.length).toBeGreaterThan(0)
+    },
+    60_000,
+  )
 })

packages/core/src/agent/agent-tools.ts

@@ -52,13 +52,40 @@ export const PROPOSE_CHANGE_TOOL: ToolDecl = {
   },
 }
 
-export const REGINALD_TOOLS: ToolDecl[] = [QUERY_PROJECT_TOOL, PROPOSE_CHANGE_TOOL]
+export const RECORD_DIRECTIVE_TOOL: ToolDecl = {
+  name: 'record_directive',
+  description:
+    'Log a standing instruction from the PM to the durable directive ledger — a reprioritization, ' +
+    'a re-estimate policy, a deadline, a scope or capacity call, or a plain note. Use it when the user ' +
+    'states intent that should persist ("pilots come first", "freeze scope for beta"). This records the ' +
+    'intent verbatim; the actual issue edits still go through propose_change.',
+  parameters: {
+    type: 'object',
+    properties: {
+      kind: { type: 'string', enum: ['reprioritize', 'reestimate', 'set-deadline', 'scope', 'capacity', 'note'] },
+      quote: { type: 'string', description: "the PM's own words, stored verbatim" },
+      target: {
+        type: 'object',
+        properties: {
+          issue: { type: 'number' },
+          milestone: { type: 'number' },
+          member: { type: 'string' },
+        },
+      },
+      rationale: { type: 'string', description: 'why (optional)' },
+    },
+    required: ['kind', 'quote'],
+  },
+}
+
+export const REGINALD_TOOLS: ToolDecl[] = [QUERY_PROJECT_TOOL, PROPOSE_CHANGE_TOOL, RECORD_DIRECTIVE_TOOL]
 
 export const REGINALD_SYSTEM = [
   'You are Reginald, the calm, dry project manager inside CommiTea — a tool that runs projects on Gitea.',
   'Call query_project to ground every answer in the real project; never invent issues, numbers, or dates.',
   'The scheduler and forecasts are deterministic code — report their output, do not recompute it.',
   'To change an estimate or priority, call propose_change — it shows the human a diff to approve.',
+  'When the PM states standing intent ("pilots first", "freeze scope"), call record_directive to log it.',
   'Never claim a change is applied; you propose, the human approves. Forecasts are ranges, never single dates.',
   'Refer to issues as #<number>. Be brief and plain — a sentence or two. No preamble, no bullet dumps.',
 ].join(' ')

packages/core/src/agent/capture-work.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+
+import type { CompletionResult } from './chat-client.js'
+import { captureWork, parseCaptureArgs } from './capture-work.js'
+
+describe('parseCaptureArgs', () => {
+  it('validates issues and keeps only real titles + valid labels', () => {
+    const p = parseCaptureArgs({
+      issues: [
+        { title: 'Fix token refresh', body: 'dies silently', estimate: 'est/2d', priority: 'p/1' },
+        { title: '  ', body: 'blank title dropped' },
+        { title: 'Docs', estimate: 'est/9d', priority: 'urgent' }, // invalid labels → dropped to undefined
+      ],
+      consequence: 'Beta slips a day',
+    })
+    expect(p.issues).toHaveLength(2)
+    expect(p.issues[0]).toEqual({ title: 'Fix token refresh', body: 'dies silently', estimate: 'est/2d', priority: 'p/1' })
+    expect(p.issues[1]).toEqual({ title: 'Docs', body: '', estimate: undefined, priority: undefined })
+    expect(p.consequence).toBe('Beta slips a day')
+  })
+
+  it('tolerates a missing/!array issues field', () => {
+    expect(parseCaptureArgs({}).issues).toEqual([])
+    expect(parseCaptureArgs({ issues: 'nope' }).issues).toEqual([])
+  })
+})
+
+describe('captureWork', () => {
+  it('forces propose_issues and returns the validated set', async () => {
+    const result: CompletionResult = {
+      content: '',
+      toolCalls: [
+        {
+          id: 'c1',
+          name: 'propose_issues',
+          arguments: JSON.stringify({
+            issues: [{ title: 'Retry token refresh with backoff', body: '', estimate: 'est/2d', priority: 'p/2' }],
+            consequence: 'no material shift',
+          }),
+        },
+      ],
+    }
+    let sawTool = ''
+    const proposal = await captureWork(async (_m, tools) => {
+      sawTool = tools?.[0]?.name ?? ''
+      return result
+    }, 'auth is flaky, token refresh dies')
+    expect(sawTool).toBe('propose_issues')
+    expect(proposal.issues[0].title).toBe('Retry token refresh with backoff')
+    expect(proposal.consequence).toBe('no material shift')
+  })
+
+  it('returns an empty set when the model answers without the tool', async () => {
+    const proposal = await captureWork(async () => ({ content: 'I need more detail.', toolCalls: [] }), 'vague')
+    expect(proposal.issues).toEqual([])
+  })
+
+  it('survives malformed tool arguments', async () => {
+    const proposal = await captureWork(
+      async () => ({ content: '', toolCalls: [{ id: 'c1', name: 'propose_issues', arguments: '{not json' }] }),
+      'x',
+    )
+    expect(proposal.issues).toEqual([])
+  })
+})

packages/core/src/agent/capture-work.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+/**
+ * capture_work — braindump → a small set of concrete issues. This is the one
+ * place the big model earns its keep (decomposition + estimate negotiation).
+ * It returns a *proposal*; nothing is filed until the human approves it in the
+ * Capture tray and it goes through the create-issue write path. Pure
+ * orchestration over an injected `complete` — stubbable, so it's testable offline.
+ */
+
+import {
+  type EstimateLabel,
+  ESTIMATE_LABELS,
+  type PriorityLabel,
+  PRIORITY_LABELS,
+} from '../labels/label-schema.js'
+import type { ChatMessage, CompletionResult, ToolDecl } from './chat-client.js'
+
+export interface ProposedIssue {
+  title: string
+  body: string
+  estimate?: EstimateLabel
+  priority?: PriorityLabel
+}
+
+export interface CaptureProposal {
+  issues: ProposedIssue[]
+  /** One-line schedule impact, if the model offered one. */
+  consequence?: string
+}
+
+export const PROPOSE_ISSUES_TOOL: ToolDecl = {
+  name: 'propose_issues',
+  description: 'Return the decomposed issue set for a braindump. Call this exactly once.',
+  parameters: {
+    type: 'object',
+    properties: {
+      issues: {
+        type: 'array',
+        items: {
+          type: 'object',
+          properties: {
+            title: { type: 'string', description: 'a clear imperative title' },
+            body: { type: 'string', description: 'one or two lines of detail' },
+            estimate: { type: 'string', enum: ['est/1d', 'est/2d', 'est/3d', 'est/5d', 'est/8d'] },
+            priority: { type: 'string', enum: ['p/1', 'p/2', 'p/3', 'p/4'] },
+          },
+          required: ['title'],
+        },
+      },
+      consequence: { type: 'string', description: 'one-line note on the schedule impact' },
+    },
+    required: ['issues'],
+  },
+}
+
+export const CAPTURE_SYSTEM = [
+  'You are Reginald, decomposing a rough braindump into a small set of concrete Gitea issues.',
+  'Call propose_issues exactly once. Split genuinely separate work; merge trivially-coupled work; invent no scope.',
+  'Each issue gets an imperative title, a one-line body, an estimate (est/1d…8d) and a priority (p/1…4).',
+  'Estimate honestly — a "quick" task is rarely one day. Keep the set tight; three good issues beat eight vague ones.',
+].join(' ')
+
+function isEstimate(v: unknown): v is EstimateLabel {
+  return typeof v === 'string' && (ESTIMATE_LABELS as readonly string[]).includes(v)
+}
+function isPriority(v: unknown): v is PriorityLabel {
+  return typeof v === 'string' && (PRIORITY_LABELS as readonly string[]).includes(v)
+}
+
+/** Coerce the model's raw propose_issues args into a validated proposal. */
+export function parseCaptureArgs(args: unknown): CaptureProposal {
+  const a = (args ?? {}) as { issues?: unknown[]; consequence?: unknown }
+  const issues: ProposedIssue[] = []
+  for (const raw of Array.isArray(a.issues) ? a.issues : []) {
+    const r = (raw ?? {}) as Record<string, unknown>
+    const title = typeof r.title === 'string' ? r.title.trim() : ''
+    if (!title) continue
+    issues.push({
+      title,
+      body: typeof r.body === 'string' ? r.body : '',
+      estimate: isEstimate(r.estimate) ? r.estimate : undefined,
+      priority: isPriority(r.priority) ? r.priority : undefined,
+    })
+  }
+  return { issues, consequence: typeof a.consequence === 'string' ? a.consequence : undefined }
+}
+
+/**
+ * Run one decomposition turn. Forces the model to answer via propose_issues and
+ * returns the validated set. An empty set means the model declined to structure it.
+ */
+export async function captureWork(
+  complete: (messages: ChatMessage[], tools?: ToolDecl[]) => Promise<CompletionResult>,
+  braindump: string,
+): Promise<CaptureProposal> {
+  const res = await complete(
+    [
+      { role: 'system', content: CAPTURE_SYSTEM },
+      { role: 'user', content: braindump },
+    ],
+    [PROPOSE_ISSUES_TOOL],
+  )
+  const call = res.toolCalls.find((t) => t.name === 'propose_issues')
+  if (!call) return { issues: [] }
+  try {
+    return parseCaptureArgs(JSON.parse(call.arguments || '{}'))
+  } catch {
+    return { issues: [] }
+  }
+}

packages/core/src/directives/record-directive-v0.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest'
+
+import {
+  appendDirective,
+  makeDirectiveEntry,
+  parseDirectiveLog,
+  serializeDirective,
+  toDirectiveInput,
+} from './record-directive-v0.js'
+
+describe('toDirectiveInput', () => {
+  it('keeps a valid kind + target and drops an empty target', () => {
+    const input = toDirectiveInput({ kind: 'reprioritize', quote: 'pilots first', target: { issue: 87 }, rationale: 'blocked' })
+    expect(input).toEqual({ kind: 'reprioritize', quote: 'pilots first', target: { issue: 87 }, params: undefined, rationale: 'blocked' })
+    expect(toDirectiveInput({ kind: 'note', quote: 'x', target: {} }).target).toBeUndefined()
+  })
+
+  it('falls back to note for an unknown kind', () => {
+    expect(toDirectiveInput({ kind: 'nonsense', quote: 'hmm' }).kind).toBe('note')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('serialize + parse round-trip', () => {
+  const entry = makeDirectiveEntry(
+    { kind: 'reprioritize', quote: 'pilots come first', target: { issue: 87 } },
+    'id-1',
+    '2026-02-01T09:00:00Z',
+  )
+
+  it('serializes to one JSON line', () => {
+    const line = serializeDirective(entry)
+    expect(line).not.toContain('\n')
+    expect(JSON.parse(line)).toMatchObject({ id: 'id-1', kind: 'reprioritize', status: 'accepted' })
+  })
+
+  it('parses a log, orders by ts, and assigns a 1-based seq', () => {
+    const a = serializeDirective(makeDirectiveEntry({ kind: 'note', quote: 'later' }, 'b', '2026-02-02T00:00:00Z'))
+    const b = serializeDirective(makeDirectiveEntry({ kind: 'note', quote: 'earlier' }, 'a', '2026-02-01T00:00:00Z'))
+    const records = parseDirectiveLog(`${a}\n${b}\n`)
+    expect(records.map((r) => r.quote)).toEqual(['earlier', 'later'])
+    expect(records.map((r) => r.seq)).toEqual([1, 2])
+  })
+
+  it('skips blank and corrupt lines without losing the rest', () => {
+    const good = serializeDirective(entry)
+    const records = parseDirectiveLog(`\n{not json\n${good}\n\n`)
+    expect(records).toHaveLength(1)
+    expect(records[0].id).toBe('id-1')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('appendDirective', () => {
+  it('concatenates a newline-terminated entry, normalizing a missing trailing newline', () => {
+    const e1 = makeDirectiveEntry({ kind: 'note', quote: 'one' }, 'i1', '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z')
+    const e2 = makeDirectiveEntry({ kind: 'note', quote: 'two' }, 'i2', '2026-01-02T00:00:00Z')
+    let log = appendDirective('', e1)
+    log = appendDirective(log, e2)
+    expect(parseDirectiveLog(log).map((r) => r.quote)).toEqual(['one', 'two'])
+    expect(log.endsWith('\n')).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  it('handles existing text without a trailing newline', () => {
+    const e = makeDirectiveEntry({ kind: 'note', quote: 'x' }, 'i', '2026-01-01T00:00:00Z')
+    expect(appendDirective('{"id":"prev","ts":"2025-01-01T00:00:00Z"}', e).split('\n').filter(Boolean)).toHaveLength(2)
+  })
+})

packages/core/src/directives/record-directive-v0.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,106 @@
+/**
+ * record_directive — the PM's standing instructions ("pilots come first"),
+ * appended to an append-only JSONL ledger in the pm-state repo (decisions.md D4,
+ * pm-state.md). A directive is *intent*: it's logged verbatim; its effects land
+ * later through apply_changes. Merge is concatenation — order derives from `ts`
+ * at read time, so two writers never conflict. `seq` is a display ordinal
+ * computed on read, never stored. This module is pure serialize/parse; the
+ * append (read → concat → write) is the bridge's job.
+ */
+
+export type DirectiveKind = 'reprioritize' | 'reestimate' | 'set-deadline' | 'scope' | 'capacity' | 'note'
+
+export type DirectiveStatus = 'proposed' | 'accepted' | 'amended' | 'withdrawn'
+
+export interface DirectiveTarget {
+  issue?: number
+  milestone?: number
+  member?: string
+}
+
+/** What the record_directive tool captures. */
+export interface DirectiveInput {
+  kind: DirectiveKind
+  /** Verbatim PM words, shown in the ledger. */
+  quote: string
+  target?: DirectiveTarget
+  /** Structured effect the scheduler applies, e.g. { priority: 1 }. */
+  params?: Record<string, unknown>
+  rationale?: string
+}
+
+/** A ledger entry — an input plus its durable id/ts/status. */
+export interface DirectiveEntry extends DirectiveInput {
+  id: string
+  ts: string
+  status: DirectiveStatus
+}
+
+/** A ledger entry as read back, with a computed display ordinal. */
+export interface DirectiveRecord extends DirectiveEntry {
+  seq: number
+}
+
+const DIRECTIVE_KINDS: readonly DirectiveKind[] = [
+  'reprioritize',
+  'reestimate',
+  'set-deadline',
+  'scope',
+  'capacity',
+  'note',
+]
+
+/** Normalize a raw tool payload into a DirectiveInput (unknown kind → note). */
+export function toDirectiveInput(raw: unknown): DirectiveInput {
+  const r = (raw ?? {}) as Record<string, unknown>
+  const kind = DIRECTIVE_KINDS.includes(r.kind as DirectiveKind) ? (r.kind as DirectiveKind) : 'note'
+  const target = (r.target ?? undefined) as DirectiveTarget | undefined
+  return {
+    kind,
+    quote: typeof r.quote === 'string' ? r.quote : '',
+    target: target && (target.issue || target.milestone || target.member) ? target : undefined,
+    params: (r.params && typeof r.params === 'object' ? (r.params as Record<string, unknown>) : undefined),
+    rationale: typeof r.rationale === 'string' ? r.rationale : undefined,
+  }
+}
+
+/** Build a full entry from an input + externally-supplied id/ts (Date/uuid live in the caller). */
+export function makeDirectiveEntry(
+  input: DirectiveInput,
+  id: string,
+  ts: string,
+  status: DirectiveStatus = 'accepted',
+): DirectiveEntry {
+  return { ...input, id, ts, status }
+}
+
+/** One JSONL line (no trailing newline — the caller joins). */
+export function serializeDirective(entry: DirectiveEntry): string {
+  return JSON.stringify(entry)
+}
+
+/**
+ * Parse a JSONL log into records ordered by `ts` (then id for stability), with a
+ * 1-based `seq` assigned on read. Blank/corrupt lines are skipped, not fatal.
+ */
+export function parseDirectiveLog(text: string): DirectiveRecord[] {
+  const entries: DirectiveEntry[] = []
+  for (const line of text.split('\n')) {
+    const trimmed = line.trim()
+    if (!trimmed) continue
+    try {
+      const e = JSON.parse(trimmed) as DirectiveEntry
+      if (e && typeof e.id === 'string' && typeof e.ts === 'string') entries.push(e)
+    } catch {
+      // skip a corrupt line rather than lose the whole ledger
+    }
+  }
+  entries.sort((a, b) => (a.ts === b.ts ? a.id.localeCompare(b.id) : a.ts.localeCompare(b.ts)))
+  return entries.map((e, i) => ({ ...e, seq: i + 1 }))
+}
+
+/** Append a serialized entry to existing log text (concatenation merge). */
+export function appendDirective(existing: string, entry: DirectiveEntry): string {
+  const base = existing.endsWith('\n') || existing === '' ? existing : existing + '\n'
+  return `${base}${serializeDirective(entry)}\n`
+}

packages/core/src/gitea/client.test.ts

@@ -146,6 +146,40 @@ describe('createGiteaClient.getIssue', () => {
     ])
   })
 
+  it('getFile returns null on 404 and content+sha on hit', async () => {
+    const miss = stubFetch('nope', 404)
+    expect(await createGiteaClient(CONFIG, miss.fetch).getFile('directives/log.jsonl')).toBeNull()
+
+    const hit = stubFetch({ content: 'aGVsbG8=\n', sha: 'abc123' })
+    const file = await createGiteaClient(CONFIG, hit.fetch).getFile('directives/log.jsonl')
+    expect(file).toEqual({ contentBase64: 'aGVsbG8=', sha: 'abc123' })
+    expect(hit.calls[0].url).toContain('/contents/directives/log.jsonl')
+  })
+
+  it('putFile POSTs to create and PUTs to update (with sha)', async () => {
+    const create = stubFetch({}, 201)
+    await createGiteaClient(CONFIG, create.fetch).putFile('directives/log.jsonl', { contentBase64: 'eA==', message: 'seed' })
+    expect(create.calls[0].init?.method).toBe('POST')
+    expect(JSON.parse(create.calls[0].init?.body ?? '{}')).toEqual({ content: 'eA==', message: 'seed' })
+
+    const update = stubFetch({}, 200)
+    await createGiteaClient(CONFIG, update.fetch).putFile('directives/log.jsonl', { contentBase64: 'eQ==', message: 'append', sha: 's1' })
+    expect(update.calls[0].init?.method).toBe('PUT')
+    expect(JSON.parse(update.calls[0].init?.body ?? '{}')).toEqual({ content: 'eQ==', message: 'append', sha: 's1' })
+  })
+
+  it('createIssue POSTs title/body/labels and returns a normalized issue', async () => {
+    const created = { ...RAW_ISSUE, number: 44, title: 'Retry token refresh', labels: [{ name: 'est/2d' }, { name: 'p/2' }] }
+    const { fetch, calls } = stubFetch(created, 201)
+    const issue = await createGiteaClient(CONFIG, fetch).createIssue({ title: 'Retry token refresh', body: 'backoff', labelIds: [3, 7] })
+
+    expect(calls[0].url).toBe('https://gitea.stephenmann.io/api/v1/repos/christian/commitea/issues')
+    expect(calls[0].init?.method).toBe('POST')
+    expect(JSON.parse(calls[0].init?.body ?? '{}')).toEqual({ title: 'Retry token refresh', body: 'backoff', labels: [3, 7] })
+    expect(issue.number).toBe(44)
+    expect(issue.labels).toEqual(['est/2d', 'p/2'])
+  })
+
   it('throws GiteaApiError carrying status + body on a non-2xx response', async () => {
     const { fetch } = stubFetch('not found', 404)
     const client = createGiteaClient(CONFIG, fetch)

packages/core/src/gitea/client.ts

@@ -103,6 +103,12 @@ export interface GiteaClient {
   listLabels(): Promise<GiteaLabel[]>
   /** Replace an issue's entire label set with the given label ids. Write. */
   setIssueLabels(index: number, labelIds: number[]): Promise<void>
+  /** Open a new issue with a title, optional body, and label ids. Write. */
+  createIssue(input: { title: string; body?: string; labelIds?: number[] }): Promise<GiteaIssue>
+  /** Read a repo file's base64 content + blob sha; null if it (or the repo) is absent. */
+  getFile(path: string): Promise<{ contentBase64: string; sha: string } | null>
+  /** Create or update a repo file with base64 content (pass `sha` to update). Write. */
+  putFile(path: string, input: { contentBase64: string; message: string; sha?: string }): Promise<void>
 }
 
 /** Map raw gitea issue JSON to the normalized domain shape. Pure. */
@@ -222,5 +228,33 @@ export function createGiteaClient(config: GiteaConfig, fetchImpl: FetchLike): Gi
     async setIssueLabels(index, labelIds) {
       await request(`/issues/${index}/labels`, { method: 'PUT', body: { labels: labelIds } })
     },
+
+    async createIssue(input) {
+      const raw = (await request('/issues', {
+        method: 'POST',
+        body: { title: input.title, body: input.body ?? '', labels: input.labelIds ?? [] },
+      })) as RawIssue
+      return normalizeIssue(raw)
+    },
+
+    async getFile(path) {
+      const res = await fetchImpl(`${repoBase}/contents/${path}`, {
+        headers: { Authorization: `token ${config.token}`, Accept: 'application/json' },
+      })
+      if (res.status === 404) return null
+      if (!res.ok) {
+        const body = await res.text().catch(() => '')
+        throw new GiteaApiError(res.status, `GET contents/${path} failed (${res.status})`, body)
+      }
+      const json = (await res.json()) as { content?: string; sha: string }
+      return { contentBase64: (json.content ?? '').replace(/\n/g, ''), sha: json.sha }
+    },
+
+    async putFile(path, input) {
+      await request(`/contents/${path}`, {
+        method: input.sha ? 'PUT' : 'POST',
+        body: { content: input.contentBase64, message: input.message, ...(input.sha ? { sha: input.sha } : {}) },
+      })
+    },
   }
 }

packages/core/src/index.ts

@@ -85,6 +85,30 @@ export { pickModel } from './agent/model-router.js'
 export type { ModelRouter, TaskKind } from './agent/model-router.js'
 export { runAgentTurn } from './agent/agent-loop.js'
 export type { AgentStep, AgentTurn, ToolExecutor } from './agent/agent-loop.js'
-export { PROPOSE_CHANGE_TOOL, QUERY_PROJECT_TOOL, REGINALD_SYSTEM, REGINALD_TOOLS } from './agent/agent-tools.js'
+export {
+  PROPOSE_CHANGE_TOOL,
+  QUERY_PROJECT_TOOL,
+  RECORD_DIRECTIVE_TOOL,
+  REGINALD_SYSTEM,
+  REGINALD_TOOLS,
+} from './agent/agent-tools.js'
 export { buildProjectView } from './agent/query-project.js'
 export type { ProjectSnapshot, ProjectView, QueryFilters } from './agent/query-project.js'
+export { CAPTURE_SYSTEM, captureWork, parseCaptureArgs, PROPOSE_ISSUES_TOOL } from './agent/capture-work.js'
+export type { CaptureProposal, ProposedIssue } from './agent/capture-work.js'
+
+export {
+  appendDirective,
+  makeDirectiveEntry,
+  parseDirectiveLog,
+  serializeDirective,
+  toDirectiveInput,
+} from './directives/record-directive-v0.js'
+export type {
+  DirectiveEntry,
+  DirectiveInput,
+  DirectiveKind,
+  DirectiveRecord,
+  DirectiveStatus,
+  DirectiveTarget,
+} from './directives/record-directive-v0.js'