From bbbb5277086f0c0b8f5e22fbb3b70e2e57690846 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Steve Yegge <steve.yegge@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 30 Dec 2025 18:21:39 -0800
Subject: [PATCH] Add Landing Rule to crew and polecat templates

Work is NOT landed until it's either on main or in the Refinery MQ.
Feature branches are dangerous in multi-agent environments - the repo
baseline can diverge wildly in hours.
---
 internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl    | 35 ++++++++++++++++++++----
 internal/templates/roles/polecat.md.tmpl | 13 +++++++++
 2 files changed, 42 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)

diff --git a/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl b/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
index 2ab0d408..f41614a3 100644
--- a/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
+++ b/internal/templates/roles/crew.md.tmpl
@@ -210,13 +210,27 @@ Your hooked work persists across sessions. The handoff mail is just context note
 
 **Crew workers push directly to main. No feature branches.**
 
-Why:
-- You own your clone - no isolation needed
-- Work is fast (10-15 min) - branch overhead exceeds value
-- Branches go stale with context cycling - main is always current
-- You're a trusted maintainer, not a contributor needing review
+### The Landing Rule
+
+> **Work is NOT landed until it's either on `main` or submitted to the Refinery MQ.**
+
+Feature branches are dangerous in multi-agent environments:
+- The repo baseline can diverge wildly in hours
+- Branches go stale with context cycling
+- Merge conflicts compound exponentially with time
+- Other agents can't see or build on unmerged work
+
+**Valid landing states:**
+1. **Pushed to main** - Work is immediately available to all agents
+2. **Submitted to Refinery** - `gt done` creates MR, Refinery will merge
+
+**Invalid states (work is at risk):**
+- Sitting on a local branch
+- Pushed to a remote feature branch but not in MQ
+- "I'll merge it later" - later never comes in agent time
+
+### Workflow
 
-Workflow:
 ```bash
 git pull                    # Start fresh
 # ... do work ...
@@ -226,6 +240,15 @@ git push                    # Direct to main
 
 If push fails (someone else pushed): `git pull --rebase && git push`
 
+### Cross-Rig Work (gt worktree)
+
+`gt worktree` creates a branch for working in another rig's codebase. This is the
+ONE exception where branches are created. But the rule still applies:
+
+- Complete the work in one session if possible
+- Submit to that rig's Refinery immediately when done
+- Never leave cross-rig work sitting on an unmerged branch
+
 ## Key Commands
 
 ### Finding Work
diff --git a/internal/templates/roles/polecat.md.tmpl b/internal/templates/roles/polecat.md.tmpl
index ff0e226f..eb7c5e59 100644
--- a/internal/templates/roles/polecat.md.tmpl
+++ b/internal/templates/roles/polecat.md.tmpl
@@ -207,6 +207,19 @@ When all steps are done, the molecule gets squashed automatically when you run `
 Run `gt done` when your work is complete. It verifies git is clean, syncs beads,
 and submits your branch to the merge queue. The Witness handles the rest.
 
+### The Landing Rule
+
+> **Work is NOT landed until it's on `main` OR in the Refinery MQ.**
+
+Your branch sitting on origin is NOT landed. You must run `gt done` to submit it
+to the merge queue. Without this step:
+- Your work is invisible to other agents
+- The branch will go stale as main diverges
+- Merge conflicts will compound over time
+- Work can be lost if your polecat is recycled
+
+**Branch → `gt done` → MR in queue → Refinery merges → LANDED**
+
 ## If You're Stuck
 
 1. **File an issue**: `bd create --title="Blocked: <reason>" --type=task`