fix(dispatch): surface auth_required cause on unranked AGY quota rows

.agents/skills/specialist-tools/SKILL.md

@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+---
+name: specialist-tools
+description: >-
+  Route one task to the captain-approved ECC, paperthin, or ultrawork specialist path without loading an entire tool catalog into context.
+user-invocable: false
+metadata:
+  internal: true
+---
+
+# Specialist tool routing
+
+Load this skill before selecting a specialist path for a task.
+Select at most one specialist by default.
+Keep Firstmate as the owner of intake, worktree, quota, approval, state, review, delivery, and merge authority.
+
+## Selection
+
+| tool | select for | load behavior |
+| --- | --- | --- |
+| `ecc` | focused code review, security review, TDD, architecture, or verification workflow | Discover the matching skill in the installed native ECC catalog, then load only that `SKILL.md`. Do not load the catalog, all agents, hooks, MCP definitions, or memory into the prompt. |
+| `paperthin` | code hygiene, scope reduction, SSOT, fact checking, memory curation, or repository cleanup | Discover one matching installed paperthin skill such as `re0-*`, `ssotize`, `dedash`, `reorder`, `debloat`, `factchk`, `mandela`, or `readchk`, then load only that skill. |
+| `ultrawork` (`lazy codex`) | captain-requested maximum verification or work with an explicit heavy verification need | Invoke the existing `/ultrawork` or `/ulw` path once. Do not additionally load ECC or paperthin unless the captain explicitly requests a comparison. |
+
+If no specialist matches, use the ordinary Firstmate path.
+Do not select a specialist merely because it is installed.
+
+## ECC boundary
+
+Use the native `ecc@ecc` Codex plugin installation.
+Never run ECC's deprecated legacy sync into `~/.codex`.
+Treat ECC hooks, MCP servers, and guided global configuration as separate opt-in surfaces; do not trust, start, or configure them as part of ordinary task intake.
+Installing the full package does not authorize those surfaces.
+
+Resolve the ECC skill path from the current plugin registration or its cache; never hardcode a user-specific absolute path.
+Search names and descriptions, choose the smallest matching skill, and read its body only after selection.
+Record the selected tool and skill in the task brief so review can reproduce the route.
+If the plugin is missing or its catalog cannot be resolved, report `MISSING_MANUAL` and stop specialist dispatch rather than falling back silently.
+
+## Cost boundary
+
+Do not preload any specialist catalog, agent collection, reference tree, or full tool description.
+Pass the selected skill name and one-sentence reason to the worker.
+Reuse the current Firstmate quota and harness gates; specialist selection never bypasses authentication, quota, isolation, or independent review requirements.

.agents/skills/task-steering/SKILL.md

@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+---
+name: task-steering
+description: >- Agent-only reference for steering a live worker and driving its lifecycle. Load before sending ordinary text to a worker, resending after an unconfirmed remote delivery, closing an open keyed decision with an answer, or interrupting, exiting, or relaunching a worker.
+user-invocable: false
+metadata:
+  internal: true
+---
+
+# task-steering
+
+This skill is the single owner of the full steering and lifecycle-control
+mechanics, including the remote-secondmate transport and pending-reply
+correlation contract.
+`AGENTS.md` section 7 owns only the always-loaded command names and the
+never-mix-planes boundary.
+
+Steer a worker with ordinary text through fail-closed `fm-send`: the message becomes a durable record in the task's steering inbox (multi-line text is legal, local and remote alike) and the worker's terminal receives only a constant doorbell line, with the watcher re-ringing an unacknowledged local message and escalating a stuck one (`../../../bin/fm-task-inbox-lib.sh`; `../../../bin/fm-send.sh` owns the typed-plane carve-outs).
+A remote secondmate steer rides the same durable-inbox model through the remote transport; after an unconfirmed delivery, only the exact `FM_PENDING_REPLY_EXISTING_CORR=<id>` resend command printed by `fm-send` is safe because it preserves the request body for remote enqueue deduplication (`fm-send.sh` header).
+When a steer answers an open keyed decision or blocker, pass `fm-send`'s `--resolve-key` so the answer itself closes that decision record at answer time, identically for local and remote workers (contract: `fm-send.sh` header).
+`fm-send` is the data plane for text the worker should read; never use its key or text paths for interrupt, exit, or other lifecycle control, because routing-marked lifecycle text becomes chat the worker reasons about instead of executing.
+Drive a worker's lifecycle through `../../../bin/fm-control.sh <task-id> interrupt|exit|relaunch`, which owns the per-runtime mechanics, verifies each action, and never tears down or discards anything (`../../../docs/agent-control.md`).
+A secondmate's routed reply returns through status or a document pointer, not by firstmate peeking into its chat.
+For the parent-owned correlation, recovery, and escalation contract on marked secondmate requests, see `../../../bin/fm-pending-reply-lib.sh`.

.agents/skills/updatefirstmate/SKILL.md

@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ This touches only the firstmate repo and its own worktrees, never anything under
 
 2. **Re-read AGENTS.md if your own instructions changed.**
    When the updater printed `reread-firstmate: yes`, the tracked instruction surface (`AGENTS.md`, `bin/`, or `.agents/skills/`) just advanced under you.
-   **Read `AGENTS.md` now** (CLAUDE.md is a real `@AGENTS.md` pointer to it) to refresh your operating instructions before doing anything else, so you are acting on the new instructions rather than the stale ones you were started with.
+   **Read `AGENTS.md` now** to refresh your operating instructions before doing anything else, so you are acting on the new instructions rather than the stale ones you were started with.
    When it printed `reread-firstmate: no`, nothing changed for you - skip the re-read.
 
 3. **Restart every second mate the updater named.**

.backpassrc.json

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+{
+  "memoryFiles": [
+    "AGENTS.md",
+    "CLAUDE.md"
+  ],
+  "budgetTokens": 5000,
+  "skillsDir": ".agents/skills",
+  "minGapEvidence": 2,
+  "maxTranscripts": 100,
+  "analysis": {
+    "agent": null,
+    "model": null,
+    "effort": null
+  },
+  "synthesis": {
+    "agent": null,
+    "model": null,
+    "effort": null
+  },
+  "discovery": {
+    "harnesses": [
+      "claude",
+      "codex",
+      "pi",
+      "opencode",
+      "grok",
+      "cursor",
+      "hermes"
+    ],
+    "since": "30d",
+    "worktreeGlobs": [],
+    "minUserTurns": 2
+  },
+  "jobs": 4
+}

.github/workflows/ci.yml

@@ -485,13 +485,6 @@ jobs:
       - name: Compatibility pointers must stay intact
         run: |
           set -eu
-          [ ! -L CLAUDE.md ] || { echo "::error::CLAUDE.md must be a real @AGENTS.md pointer file, not a symlink"; exit 1; }
-          tmp=$(mktemp)
-          trap 'rm -f "$tmp"' EXIT
-          printf '%s\n' \
-            '<!-- Points Claude at AGENTS.md via import; edit AGENTS.md, not this file. -->' \
-            '@AGENTS.md' >"$tmp"
-          cmp -s CLAUDE.md "$tmp" || { echo "::error::CLAUDE.md must be the canonical @AGENTS.md pointer"; exit 1; }
           [ "$(readlink .claude/skills)" = "../.agents/skills" ] || { echo "::error::.claude/skills must be a symlink to ../.agents/skills"; exit 1; }
       - name: Personal fleet paths must not be tracked
         run: |

.gitignore

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ data/
 scratchpad*
 .no-mistakes/
 .lavish/
+.treehouse/
 .fm-secondmate-home
 .fm-secondmate-parent
 .DS_Store