# β review — Cycle 417

**Cycle:** [cnos#417](https://github.com/usurobor/cnos/issues/417) — Sub 3 of [cnos#404](https://github.com/usurobor/cnos/issues/404).
**Branch:** `cycle/417` at `cb1828e1` (α commit; γ-417 scaffold at `01793b8b`).
**Reviewer:** β (collapsed on α / γ / δ per dispatch configuration).
**Date:** 2026-05-22.
**Verdict:** **APPROVE.**

## Mode + scope check

The cycle is **docs-only / package migration** per the issue's mode declaration and per α's `self-coherence.md`. The diff is bounded:

- 1 new file at `src/packages/cnos.handoff/skills/handoff/dispatch/SKILL.md` (417 lines).
- 5 modified files in `src/packages/cnos.cdd/skills/cdd/` (alpha, beta, delta, gamma, operator).
- 4 modified files in `src/packages/cnos.handoff/` (HANDOFF.md, SKILL.md, README.md, docs/extraction-map.md).
- 2 new artifacts in `.cdd/unreleased/417/` (gamma-scaffold.md, self-coherence.md).
- 0 changes in cnos.cdr (per AC9).
- 0 changes in schemas/, src/go/, cdd-verify/, scripts/release.sh (per AC10).

## AC verification — β witness

All 11 ACs PASS per α's `self-coherence.md`; β confirms each:

| AC | Check | Result |
|---|---|---|
| AC1 | All 4 required files exist + parse | ✓ |
| AC2 | ≥ 5 keyword hits in dispatch/SKILL.md (got 41) | ✓ |
| AC3 | Pointer blocks ≤ 30 lines (gamma=9, operator=5, delta=21) + ≥ 3 new-canonical cites (got 6) | ✓ |
| AC4 | 7 axes named (got 18 matches across schema + kata + §3 enumeration) | ✓ |
| AC5 | ≥ 3 δ-inward hits (got 16); load-bearing claim "implementation-contract decisions belong to δ; α MUST NOT improvise" present verbatim in §3 | ✓ |
| AC6 | HANDOFF.md surfaces dispatch as Landed (single row moved Forthcoming → Landed; non-goals updated) | ✓ |
| AC7 | gamma 87.5%, operator 100%, delta 92.7% — all ≥ 80% | ✓ |
| AC8 | Negative grep for `gamma/SKILL.md §2.5.*canonical\|operator/SKILL.md §3a.*canonical\|delta/SKILL.md §2.*canonical`: 0 hits | ✓ |
| AC9 | cnos.cdr untouched: 0 line changes | ✓ |
| AC10 | No schemas/handoff, no schemas/ccnf-o, no cdd-verify / src/go / release.sh changes | ✓ |
| AC11 | extraction-map.md §2 + §3 marked `v0.1 migrated; canonical at cnos.handoff/skills/handoff/dispatch/SKILL.md` (12 hits) | ✓ |

## Rule 7 — Implementation-contract conformance

The implementation contract pinned by δ for this cycle (per the issue body):

| Axis | Pinned value | Diff conforms? |
|---|---|---|
| Language | Markdown | ✓ |
| CLI integration target | None | ✓ |
| Package scoping | New file at `cnos.handoff/skills/handoff/dispatch/SKILL.md`; section-level edits in `cnos.cdd/skills/cdd/{gamma,operator,delta}/SKILL.md`; HANDOFF.md + extraction-map updates; cross-ref repairs | ✓ |
| Existing-binary disposition | N/A | ✓ |
| Runtime dependencies | None | ✓ |
| JSON/wire contract | N/A | ✓ |
| Backward compat | Section-level pointers preserve `gamma/SKILL.md §2.5`, `operator/SKILL.md §3a`, `delta/SKILL.md §2` §-anchor citations | ✓ |

The 7 axes hold. No drift; no improvisation. The diff hunks map onto the pinned rows row-by-row.

## Substantive review — synthesis quality

The new `dispatch/SKILL.md` is a **synthesis**, not a 3-way merge. Verified:

1. **Frontmatter shape mirrors the Sub 2 precedent.** Same fields (name, description, artifact_class, kata_surface, governing_question, visibility, parent: handoff, triggers, scope, inputs, outputs, requires, calls). Triggers expanded for dispatch-specific surfaces (dispatch-prompt, 7 axes, alpha/beta/gamma prompt, etc.).

2. **The 7-axis table is verbatim** at §2.3. Row labels match `cdd/gamma/SKILL.md §2.5` line 231–237 exactly: Language; CLI integration target; Package scoping; Existing-binary disposition; Runtime dependencies; JSON/wire contract preservation; Backward-compat invariant.

3. **The γ / α / β prompt templates are verbatim** at §2.1. The text blocks reproduce `cdd/gamma/SKILL.md §2.5 → "Dispatch prompts"` lines 204–218 + 252–258 character-for-character (only the surrounding prose is restructured for the new file's narrative).

4. **The prompt rules are verbatim** at §2.2. The 7-bullet list from `cdd/gamma/SKILL.md §2.5 → "Prompt rules"` lines 262–268 maps to the 7 bullets here.

5. **The δ-inward enrichment doctrine is verbatim** at §3. The two paths (fill / escalate), the "Why this is δ's surface, not γ's alone" paragraph, and the failure-mode rationale (cnos#389 / cnos#391 / cnos#392 / cnos#393) are all transported.

6. **The four-surface mesh declaration is unified** at §3.1. The γ-side mesh in `cdd/gamma/SKILL.md §2.5` and the δ-side mesh in `cdd/delta/SKILL.md §2.1` collapse into one canonical mesh declaration (each side was already a transcription of the same mesh; the synthesis removes redundancy without losing content).

7. **Empirical anchors expanded** at §5. The original cnos#389/#391/#392/#393 list is preserved; cnos#397 (Phase 4a relocation) is added per the historical record; the #406–#412 wave is named as the post-codification exercise of the doctrine. No empirical anchor was dropped.

## Substantive review — pointer quality

The three source-section rewrites are role-local framings + pointers:

1. **`cdd/gamma/SKILL.md` "Dispatch prompts + implementation contract → cnos.handoff" (9 lines).** Retains γ's role-local obligation (author the dispatch prompts; inject the contract section; escalate to δ; log re-pins) and points to the canonical wire-format. Other §2.5 sub-sections (Step 3a branch creation, scaffold gate, polling cross-reference, spec-staleness propagation, Step 5 unblock) preserved.

2. **`cdd/operator/SKILL.md §3a` (5 lines).** Was already a relocation pointer (post-#397 redirect to delta §2); now re-pointed at cnos.handoff. Operator-as-coordinator + harness mechanics unchanged.

3. **`cdd/delta/SKILL.md §2 + §2.1` (21 lines).** Retains δ's role-local realization (δ as the actor performing the inward review at routing time); names the canonical doctrine home; preserves the Phase 4a/Sub 3 landing note; preserves the two-sided membrane framing (outward §1 + inward §2). §2.2 + §2.3 absorbed into the unified §2.1 landing note (verbatim content moved to handoff's empirical-anchors section).

## Substantive review — cross-reference repair quality

Five consumer sites repaired:

- `cdd/alpha/SKILL.md §3.6` mesh paragraph: re-pointed at cnos.handoff as canonical; role-side cites to gamma/delta/beta retained as consumer realizations.
- `cdd/beta/SKILL.md §Role Rules Rule 7` (two sites): re-pointed at cnos.handoff as canonical; role-side mesh cites retained.
- `cdd/delta/SKILL.md` frontmatter `inputs:` line 22: now names cnos.handoff/dispatch as the wire-format home, with gamma/SKILL.md §2.5 retained as the γ-side authoring location.
- `cdd/delta/SKILL.md §6 cross-references`: new cnos.handoff/dispatch citation added at the top of the implementation-contract mesh group; existing γ/α/β cites re-labeled as "consumer realization".
- `cnos.handoff/skills/handoff/SKILL.md` loader + README: stale "Forthcoming" / "Pending Subs 2–5" framings narrowed to Subs 4–5; dispatch quick-start cite re-pointed at the new sub-skill.

`cnos.cds/skills/cds/CDS.md:1536` cite remained as-is because the cite is a historical "v0.1 operational overlay" reference, not a canonical-authority cite — per the issue body's AC8 spec, "Citations as historical reference may remain as-is."

## Process-gap sweep (γ check)

No protocol gaps surfaced during this cycle. The Sub 2 precedent (cnos#416) provided a clear three-ruling pattern that Sub 3 mechanically applied to a different shape (three source sections vs one wholesale move). The synthesis call was clean and unambiguous — the natural shape of the new file emerged from the three source sections without redesign pressure. `cdd-iteration.md` will be a courtesy stub (`protocol_gap_count: 0`).

## Out-of-scope follow-ups noted (NOT in scope for Sub 3)

- The `cnos.handoff/skills/handoff/SKILL.md` loader still names HANDOFF.md as the "canonical wire-format contract" but the v0.1 HANDOFF.md is a 62-line package-contract document, not the full directional-case taxonomy + artifact-families + typed-schemas document the loader's pre-#416 prose anticipated. The conflict-rule paragraphs reference HANDOFF.md as the source of truth. With Sub 2 + Sub 3 both landed via per-sub-skill SKILL.md files (cross-repo, dispatch), the package's substantive doctrine increasingly lives in sub-skills rather than in HANDOFF.md. A future Sub 4+ cycle may either backfill HANDOFF.md with the directional-case taxonomy + artifact-families catalog or tighten the loader prose so HANDOFF.md is described as the package-contract document it actually is. Sub 3 leaves it alone — the loader prose was acceptable for Sub 2's landing and remains acceptable for Sub 3's.
- The CDS.md historical-overlay citation at line 1536 remains as-is per AC8 allowance. A future cycle may sweep it as part of Sub 6 (cross-reference cleanup).
- The Sub 4 boundary on spec-staleness propagation is recorded in the extraction-map.md §2 row note ("wire-format invariant at dispatch §2.4; consumer-specific file list remains at gamma/SKILL.md §2.5"). Sub 4 may supersede the dispatch-resident copy when mid-flight lands.

## Verdict

**APPROVE.** All 11 ACs PASS. Implementation-contract conformance confirmed row-by-row. Synthesis quality verified verbatim against source sections. Cross-reference repair complete. cnos.cdr untouched. No CCNF-O / new schemas / runtime changes. Operator may merge with `Closes #417`.
