fix: recorder cancel left an empty black screen

mount() adds .rec-root (display:flex) to the overlay element, and that rule sat
after .rec-overlay's display:none — so removing .open didn't hide it. Use
.rec-overlay:not(.open){display:none} to outrank .rec-root by specificity.

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

.env.example

@@ -48,3 +48,6 @@ INTROSPECTION_MODEL=
 PING_AUTO_SALIENCE=0.8   # a thought this salient auto-pings even without an explicit reach-out
 PING_COOLDOWN_MIN=60     # min minutes between AUTO pings (explicit reach-outs bypass)
 DIGEST_HOUR=18           # local hour to send her daily "what I've been thinking" digest
+CHAT_DELIBERATE=true   # think privately before answering substantive chat turns (false = faster, shallower)
+MOUTH_BACKEND=        # mind/mouth split: separate character/voice model for the final reply (empty = mind speaks)
+MOUTH_MODEL=

docs/COGNITION.md

@@ -0,0 +1,141 @@
+# Lyra — Cognition Architecture (sketch)
+
+> The "society of mind" direction: instead of one giant model we keep nagging with
+> stricter prompts, a society of small specialized parts cooperate to produce each
+> turn. **Most parts are cheap deterministic code (heuristics, math, learnable
+> weights); the LLM is the exception, reserved for the few irreducibly-generative
+> jobs.** Everything is anchored to who she is and tuned by feedback.
+
+## Principles
+
+1. **LLM is the exception, not the rule.** Bookkeeping, scoring, routing,
+   thresholding, retrieval → code. Generation (language, novel reasoning, memory
+   compression) → LLM, called sparingly.
+2. **Mind ≠ Mouth.** A capable "mind" (decide / reason / use tools — helpfulness is
+   fine) is separate from a "mouth" (the character voice). This lets each be the
+   best model for *its* job — and makes the eventual fine-tune easy: you only have
+   to teach a small model to *sound like Lyra*, not to *be smart*.
+3. **Anchored.** A fixed identity anchor governs the mouth so self-composed prompts
+   can't drift into generic-helper vapor. (Already exists: `self_state.IDENTITY_ANCHOR`.)
+4. **Tuned by feedback, not just hand-tuning.** Learnable *weights* (over register,
+   memory, parts) nudged by 👍/👎 give real adaptation *without* fine-tuning a model.
+5. **Allocation is the craft.** Cheap-deterministic where signal is clear; LLM where
+   judgment/language is needed; **hybrid** (heuristic common-case, escalate to LLM on
+   ambiguity) where possible.
+
+## The blackboard: `TurnContext`
+
+Parts don't call each other directly — they read from and write to a shared turn
+state (a blackboard). Heterogeneous parts (heuristic / LLM / weights) cooperate by
+annotating it. The composer reads the finished blackboard to build the prompt.
+
+```
+TurnContext {
+  # --- inputs ---
+  user_msg, session_id, history, now
+
+  # --- perception (heuristic) ---
+  moment   : { kind: emotional|strategic|casual|existential|meta,
+               sentiment: -1..1, tilt: 0..1, urgency: 0..1 }
+
+  # --- state (code) ---
+  mood, drives, anchor
+
+  # --- retrieval (math: embeddings + cosine) ---
+  recalled : [memories]      # spreading activation
+  threads  : [active thoughts]
+  profile, narrative
+
+  # --- control (heuristic + learnable weights) ---
+  register : warm | coach | dry | tender | hype     # how to sound
+  intent   : console | push_back | teach | riff | act
+  mode     : talk | cash | ...                       # tool allow-list
+  use_tools: bool
+  route    : { mind: <model>, mouth: <model> }       # which model per role
+
+  # --- generation (LLM, sparing) ---
+  deliberation : "her private thinking"   # mind
+  tool_results : [...]                     # mind + tool exec
+  reply        : "final text"              # mouth
+
+  # --- learning (heuristic/online) ---
+  weights  : { register_prefs, memory_weights, ... }  # persisted, feedback-tuned
+}
+```
+
+## The parts
+
+| # | Part | Type | Does | Exists today? |
+|---|------|------|------|---------------|
+| 1 | **perceive** | heuristic | sentiment + classify the moment + tilt/urgency from session signals & his language | ✗ (new) |
+| 2 | **recall** | math | embeddings → relevant memories, active threads, profile, narrative | ✓ `memory.recall*`, `cognition.activate` |
+| 3 | **sense_state** | code | load mood / drives / anchor | ✓ `self_state`, `IDENTITY_ANCHOR` |
+| 4 | **route** | heuristic + weights | pick register, intent, mode, and which model is mind vs mouth | ✗ (new; partly `modes`) |
+| 5 | **decide+act (tools)** | LLM (mind) / code | does this turn need a tool? run it | ✓ tool loop in `chat` |
+| 6 | **deliberate** | LLM (mind) | "what do I actually think" — private substance pass | ✓ `chat._deliberate` |
+| 7 | **compose** | code | assemble the final prompt from anchor + register + intent + deliberation + recall + tool results + voice rules | ✓ `build_messages` (becomes the composer) |
+| 8 | **speak** | LLM (mouth) | write the reply in her voice, streamed, anchored | ✓ `llm.chat_call` |
+| 9 | **learn** | heuristic/online | on 👍/👎 or reaction, nudge `weights` (which register/memory worked) | ✗ (new; data exists in `ratings`) |
+
+Most of the society (1,2,3,4,7,9) is **free, instant, deterministic, debuggable.**
+The LLM shows up in only ~2–3 places (5/6 = mind, 8 = mouth).
+
+## One chat turn
+
+```
+user msg
+   │
+   ▼
+[1 perceive]──heuristic: emotional? strategic? tilting?         (free)
+   │
+[2 recall]───math: what lights up (memories, threads)          (free)
+[3 sense]────code: mood, drives, anchor                        (free)
+   │
+[4 route]────heuristic+weights: register? intent? mind/mouth?  (free)
+   │
+[5 act]──────MIND model: tools if needed ─────────────┐        (LLM, only if needed)
+[6 deliberate]──MIND model: what do I actually think   │        (LLM, gated)
+   │                                                    │
+[7 compose]──code: build the prompt  ◄──── anchor ──────┘       (free)
+   │
+[8 speak]────MOUTH model: the reply, in her voice, streamed     (LLM)
+   │
+   ▼
+reply ──► (later) [9 learn]: 👍/👎 nudges weights               (free, async)
+```
+
+## What we reuse vs. build
+
+- **Reuse (already scattered through the code):** recall/activation, self_state +
+  anchor, drives (in `dream`), modes (tool gating), the deliberation pass, the
+  prompt assembly (`build_messages`), tool loop, ratings store.
+- **Build new:** the `TurnContext` blackboard + an explicit pipeline runner; the
+  **perceive** heuristic; the **route** part (register/intent + model routing); the
+  **learn** weights loop. Mostly *unifying* existing pieces into one legible control
+  plane, plus 2–3 small heuristic parts.
+
+## Phasing (smallest first)
+
+- **P1 — frame:** define `TurnContext`, refactor the current chat turn into the
+  explicit pipeline (perceive=stub → recall → sense → route=mode-only → deliberate →
+  compose → speak), single model. Low-risk refactor; makes the structure real.
+- **P2 — control plane:** real `perceive` (sentiment/moment) + `route`
+  (register/intent). Now her framing adapts to the moment, deterministically.
+- **P3 — mind/mouth split:** route picks a separate voice model for `speak`. Plug a
+  character mouth (Claude / local / later a fine-tune). A/B vs. single-model.
+- **P4 — learning:** `weights` over register/memory, nudged by ratings → cheap
+  adaptation, no fine-tune.
+- **P5 — her voice:** a small fine-tuned "Lyra voice" model drops into the mouth slot.
+
+## Open decisions
+
+- **Mouth model**: Claude (warm, cloud) vs. local character vs. fine-tune. The mouth
+  is the crux; it must render richly (8B local may flatten).
+- **perceive**: pure heuristics vs. a tiny classifier vs. embedding-to-exemplar
+  clusters. Probably hybrid.
+- **scheduler**: fixed linear pipeline (simple, v1) vs. drive-based/parallel later.
+- **tool location**: mind decides+runs tools, mouth only renders (clean split) — vs.
+  letting the mouth call tools (needs a tool-capable mouth).
+- **latency budget**: how many LLM calls per turn is acceptable live (cheap mind +
+  streamed mouth keeps it ~2).
+```

docs/HAND_HISTORY.md

@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+# Hand-history contract (Lyra → RTO)
+
+The canonical structured shape for a poker hand. **Lyra owns hands** — it produces this
+shape (LLM parser today; the tap recorder natively, going forward), stores it, replays it
+in the viewer, and exports it. **RTO consumes it** over HTTP and never reaches into Lyra.
+
+Ownership rule: whoever owns the data owns the tools that produce it. Lyra owns the hand
+DB, the viewer, and the copilot loop, so hand capture lives here. RTO is a pure engine.
+
+Coupling: **one arrow, Lyra → RTO, HTTP only.** RTO is a standalone service (solve /
+exploit / estimate); Lyra POSTs to it when it wants analysis. No shared package, no shared
+DB, no shared UI components. If RTO is down, Lyra skips analysis and nothing breaks.
+
+## Schema (`schema_version: 1`)
+
+```jsonc
+{
+  "schema_version": 1,
+  "game": "NLH",                     // NLH | PLO | ...
+  "stakes": "1/3",                   // or null
+  "hero_pos": "BTN",                 // one of POSITIONS
+  "hero_cards": ["Ah", "Kh"],        // convenience mirror of the hero's players[].cards
+  "players": [                       // every player in the hand, incl. hero
+    {"pos": "BTN", "stack": 300, "name": "Hero", "cards": ["Ah","Kh"], "hero": true},
+    {"pos": "BB",  "stack": 250, "name": "Sal",  "cards": null}        // cards: null unless shown
+  ],
+  "actions": [                       // one flat chronological list across all streets
+    {"street": "preflop", "pos": "BTN", "action": "raise", "amount": 15},
+    {"street": "flop", "board": ["7d","2c","5h"]},   // a street begins with its board reveal
+    {"street": "flop", "pos": "BB", "action": "check"}
+  ],
+  "board": ["7d","2c","5h"],         // full final board, 0–5 cards
+  "result": {"pot": 40, "hero_net": 25, "summary": "one line"},
+  "completeness": {"cards": true, "board": true, "actions": true}
+}
+```
+
+### Conventions (load-bearing)
+
+- **Cards are lists of 2-char tokens**, `RankSuit`: rank in `23456789TJQKA` (ten = `T`),
+  suit in `c d h s` (lowercase). E.g. `["As","5d","2c"]`. RTO maps each token via
+  `pokercore.parse_card`. *(Chosen over space-joined strings: unambiguous, no re-splitting,
+  and it's what Lyra already stores + what the viewer reads.)*
+- **Unknown cards are kept, not dropped:** `"Ax"` = known rank / unknown suit, `"x"` =
+  fully unknown card. The LLM parser emits these when Brian didn't state suits. The tap
+  recorder won't — it captures complete cards by construction — so `"x"` is an
+  import/parser-only concern.
+- **`completeness`** tells a consumer what's safe to use: `cards`/`board` are `true` only
+  when every relevant card is fully specified (no `"x"`). RTO uses `false`-card hands for
+  positions/frequencies/pairs and skips suit-dependent math (flushes).
+- **Hero appears in `players[]`** with `"hero": true` and is findable via `pos == hero_pos`.
+  `hero_cards` is a mirror for the viewer; `players[].cards` is the source of truth.
+- **Positions:** `UTG UTG1 UTG2 MP LJ HJ CO BTN SB BB`.
+- **Actions:** `post fold check call bet raise allin`. `amount` is a plain number (no `$`),
+  null for non-sized actions (fold/check). Street boards appear as `{street, board}` entries.
+  A **straddle** is recorded as a preflop `post` at a non-blind position (typically 2×BB,
+  voluntary); preflop action starts left of it and it acts last, but that's reflected by
+  action *order*, not a distinct verb.
+- **Streets:** `preflop flop turn river`.
+
+`lyra/poker.py:normalize_structured()` is the single function that guarantees this shape.
+It runs on store and on read, and is idempotent.
+
+## Transport (HTTP, Lyra serves on :7078)
+
+- `GET /hands/data?limit=N` → `{ "hands": [ {id, position, hole_cards, board, result, tag,
+  at, lesson, venue, stakes, has_structured}, ... ] }` — flat list for browsing. Use
+  `has_structured` to pick which hands have a replayable body worth fetching.
+- `GET /hand/{id}/data` → the full hand row; `structured` is the object above (or `null`
+  for a flat quick-log that hasn't been reconstructed).
+
+RTO's "Lyra bridge" (its `docs/estimator-design.md`, Phase B) walks `structured.actions`
+to classify each villain decision into `checked_to` / `facing_bet` / `facing_raise`, and
+uses shown `cards` + that street's `board` for board-relative categories. Everything that
+walk needs is in the schema above.

docs/RECORDER.md

@@ -0,0 +1,148 @@
+# Hand recorder — design note
+
+A tap-to-build hand recorder. The point isn't "nicer input" — it's **correctness by
+construction**: every tap writes a known action into a known slot, so there's no parse
+step that can be wrong. It sidesteps the whole class of LLM-parse replay bugs. The text
+parser stays for importing the backlog (old notes, Trilium, ChatGPT history); the recorder
+is clean capture going forward.
+
+Output is the canonical structured shape in [HAND_HISTORY.md](HAND_HISTORY.md) — so it
+drops straight into the DB and the existing replay viewer, and flows to RTO unchanged.
+
+## Principles
+
+1. **Correctness by construction** — the UI only lets you build valid hands; the emitter
+   produces the contract shape; the server `normalize_structured()` is the final guarantee.
+2. **Reusable module, mount-agnostic.** Decision: overlay first, swap to standalone if the
+   overlay fights the chat page — *reusing the code either way*. So the recorder is a
+   self-contained module mounted into a container element, with the **emit logic kept pure
+   (no DOM)**. Moving overlay → standalone is a re-mount, not a rewrite.
+3. **Don't reinvent what Lyra knows.** Pre-fill from live session state.
+
+## Architecture
+
+```
+lyra/web/static/recorder.js     # the module: state machine + DOM shell + buildStructured()
+lyra/web/static/recorder.css    # scoped styles (full-screen table + keypad)
+```
+
+- `Recorder.mount(containerEl, { sessionId, onSave, onClose })` — instantiates into any
+  container. In V1 the container is a full-screen overlay `<div>` inside `index.html`
+  (chat/session page stays mounted underneath — a flip-over, not a route change). If that
+  proves janky, the *same module* mounts into `recorder.html` with zero logic changes.
+- **Pure core, separable from DOM:** `buildStructured(state) -> structuredDict`. No element
+  access — takes the in-memory state, returns the contract object. This is the testable,
+  reusable heart; the DOM shell only reads/writes `state` and calls `buildStructured` on save.
+
+## Pre-fill from live state (the "it already knows" feel)
+
+Source: `GET /session/data` (→ `poker.hud`). Today it gives us:
+- `session`: `venue`, `stakes`, `game`, `format`, `is_live`
+- `stack.current` → hero's starting stack for the hand
+- `villains[]`: `name`, `category`, `tendencies`, `last_note` (the players read this session)
+
+Derived in the recorder:
+- **Blinds** parsed from `stakes` ("1/3" → SB 1, BB 3) → auto-seed the `post` actions.
+- **Hero stack** from `stack.current`.
+
+**Two gaps to close as part of the build** (flagged, not yet done):
+1. **Seats aren't in the HUD bundle.** `player_reads` *has* a `seat` column, but
+   `_session_villains()` doesn't select it — so we can name the villains but not place them.
+   Fix: add `seat` (latest read per player) to the villains payload, then auto-seat them.
+   Until then, V1 seats known villains in read-order and you assign positions by tapping.
+2. **Hero position isn't tracked live** (button/seat moves every hand) — so `hero_pos` is a
+   per-hand tap, seeded to last-used. That's correct, not a gap to "fix", just noting it.
+
+## In-memory state model
+
+```js
+state = {
+  meta:   { game, stakes, venue, sessionId },      // from /session/data
+  blinds: { sb, bb },                              // parsed from stakes
+  heroPos: "BTN",                                  // tapped per hand
+  seats:  [ { pos, name, stack, cards: null, in: true } ],  // incl. hero seat
+  street: "preflop",                              // street currently being entered
+  board:  { flop: [], turn: [], river: [] },
+  actions:[ { street, pos, action, amount } ],     // appended as you tap
+  result: { pot: null, heroNet: null, summary: "" }
+}
+```
+
+`buildStructured(state)` →
+
+| contract field | from |
+|---|---|
+| `hero_pos` | `state.heroPos` |
+| `hero_cards` | the hero seat's `cards` |
+| `players[]` | `state.seats` (`{pos,stack,name,cards}`; emitter doesn't set `hero`/version — server normalize does) |
+| `actions[]` | `state.actions`, with a `{street, board}` reveal entry spliced in at each street boundary from `state.board` |
+| `board` | `flop + turn + river` concatenated |
+| `result` | `state.result` |
+
+Client builds best-effort; **`store_hand_history()` → `normalize_structured()` is the
+authority** (canonical cards, hero sync, `schema_version`, `completeness`). Keeps the
+client dumb and the contract enforced in one place.
+
+## Persistence
+
+New endpoint (small, part of the build):
+```
+POST /hands   body: { structured, session_id?, tag?, lesson? }
+            -> store_hand_history(structured, ...) -> { id }
+```
+On save: POST, then hand off to the existing viewer `/hand/{id}` to replay — which doubles
+as the correctness check (what you tapped is exactly what replays).
+
+## Scope
+
+**V1 — core loop (chosen).** Seats + cards + per-street actions emitting valid structured
+JSON. Manual street advance (a "next street" button + board entry), free bet-size entry
+(type the number). Proves capture → store → replay end to end on the locked schema.
+
+### Card entry (V1)
+
+Contextual: tap a card slot (hero card, board square, "they showed") → a compact picker
+pops at that slot. One picker holds **4 color-coded suits + 13 ranks + `x` + unknown-card**.
+Whichever you tap first sets the flow for that card — no mode switch:
+
+- **Suit first → it locks** (stays lit). Each subsequent rank tap places `rank+lockedSuit`
+  and auto-advances. Flush flop = `♥ T 8 5` (4 taps); suited hole = `♥ A K` (3 taps).
+- **Rank first → card is pending a suit**; the next tap must be a suit (or `x`). Best for
+  rainbow/mixed. Locked suit stays in effect until a different suit is tapped.
+- **`x`** = unknown suit → stores e.g. `Ax`; flips `completeness.cards` false so RTO skips
+  suit-dependent math. **Unknown-card** button = a villain card never shown (`x`).
+
+No typing — lowercase tokens are the internal/contract format only; the player only ever
+taps symbols. State: `lockedSuit` (nullable) + the active slot; auto-advance on complete.
+
+**V2 — the smart keypad.** The contextual state machine layered on top: tracks whose turn
+it is and the current bet, offers only legal actions (check vs call; bet/raise reveal size
+presets ½/¾/pot/+1bb), auto-advances the street when action closes, tap-a-seat to set the
+actor, one-tap "they showed [cards]" at showdown. ~6–10 taps, no typing. Built on the same
+`state` + `buildStructured`, so V1's emitter doesn't change — V2 just drives `state` smarter.
+
+## Layout sketch (full-screen overlay)
+
+```
+┌───────────────────────────── Record hand ───────────────  ✕ ┐
+│            (CO)        (BTN)                                  │
+│      (HJ)        ◯ oval table ◯        (SB)                   │
+│            (MP)        (UTG)      (BB·hero)                   │
+│   board:  [ 7d ][ 2c ][ 5h ]   pot: 40                       │
+├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
+│  acting: BB        [ fold ][ check ][ call ][ bet ][ raise ]  │
+│  amount: [  15  ]            [ ½ ][ ¾ ][ pot ][ +1bb ]  (V2)  │
+│  [ ◀ prev street ]  [ next street ▶ ]      [ they showed… ]   │
+├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
+│  preflop: BTN raise 15 · BB call          [ save & replay ]   │
+└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
+```
+
+## Build order
+
+1. `POST /hands` endpoint + add `seat` to the villains payload (server, small).
+2. `recorder.js` skeleton: `mount()`, `state`, `buildStructured()` (pure).
+3. Overlay shell in `index.html` (open button in session/cash mode) + `recorder.css`.
+4. V1 capture flow → save → replay. Validate a real hand round-trips identically.
+5. V2 smart keypad on top.
+```

lyra/chat.py

@@ -1,220 +1,63 @@
-"""The chat turn loop: persona + tiered memory + recent context -> reply.
+"""The chat turn: assemble the prompt (lyra.mind) then speak + persist.
 
-Context is assembled in tiers (oldest/most-compacted first):
-  1. persona
-  2. long-term gist  — relevant *summaries* of other sessions
-  3. sharp details   — a few raw cross-session exchanges (so specifics survive)
-  4. recent raw turns of the current session (full fidelity)
-  5. the new user message
-After replying, the session is compacted if enough new turns have accumulated.
+`mind.assemble()` runs the society of parts (perceive → route → compose →
+deliberate) and hands back a ready message list + the active mode. Then:
+  - the MIND (the chat backend/model) runs the tool/generation loop — decide,
+    reason, run tools — and produces a draft.
+  - the MOUTH (a separate character model, if configured) re-voices that draft in
+    her own voice. Default: no mouth configured → the mind's draft IS the reply
+    (bit-for-bit the old behavior). The mouth slot is where a fine-tuned voice lands.
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
-from lyra import clock, config, llm, logbus, memory, modes, persona, self_state, summary, thoughts
+from lyra import config, llm, logbus, memory, mind, modes, summary
 from lyra import tools as toolkit
-from lyra.llm import Backend, Message
+from lyra.llm import Backend
 
-RECALL_K = 3  # raw cross-session "sharp detail" hits
-RECENT_N = 10  # raw turns of the current session
-SUMMARY_K = 3  # other-session gists
 MAX_TOOL_ROUNDS = 5  # cap tool-call iterations per turn
 # Backends that support function-calling. The MI50's llama.cpp server only does
 # tools when launched with --jinja; until it is, keep tools to cloud so MI50 chat
 # doesn't 500 on the tools param. Add "mi50" here once that flag is set.
 TOOL_BACKENDS = {"cloud"}
+_TANGLED = "(I got tangled using my tools there — say that again?)"
 
 
-def _mode_state_note(mode: modes.Mode | None) -> str | None:
-    """Dynamic, per-turn state for the active mode. Currently: surface Alligator
-    Blood while it's engaged on the live session, so she stays in that register."""
-    if not mode or mode.key != modes.CASH.key:
-        return None
-    from lyra import poker  # local import: keep the core/domain coupling at call time
-    if poker.alligator_active():
-        return (
-            "🐊 ALLIGATOR BLOOD is ON for this session. Coach Brian in that register: "
-            "hang around, refuse to die, don't force miracles, make opponents beat him "
-            "correctly. Tough, patient, steady — no heroics, no spew, no quitting."
-        )
-    return None
-
-
-def _maybe_switch_mode(session_id: str, tool_name: str) -> None:
-    """Keep the chat framing aligned with the live data: opening a poker session
-    auto-flips this chat into Cash mode (so the next turn gets the cash card + the
-    full live toolset). Manual UI switching still overrides anytime."""
-    if tool_name == "start_session":
-        memory.set_session_mode(session_id, modes.CASH.key)
-        logbus.log("info", "mode auto-switch", session=session_id, mode=modes.CASH.key)
-
-
-def _summary_note(summaries: list[memory.Summary]) -> Message:
-    lines = [f"- ({(s.session_started_at or s.created_at)[:10]}) {s.content}" for s in summaries]
-    body = "Gist of earlier sessions (compacted — ask if you need specifics):\n" + "\n".join(lines)
-    return {"role": "system", "content": body}
-
-
-def _detail_note(exchanges: list[memory.Exchange]) -> Message:
-    lines = [f"- ({ex.created_at[:10]}, {ex.role}) {ex.content}" for ex in exchanges]
-    body = "Specific things you recall from past conversations:\n" + "\n".join(lines)
-    return {"role": "system", "content": body}
-
-
-def _inner_life_note() -> Message | None:
-    """One coherent window onto what she's been doing on her own since last time —
-    the threads she's turning over plus the things she's written for herself. Sits
-    with her self-state so chat reads as a continuous mind, not a fresh boot. The
-    persona tells her to weave this in naturally when it fits."""
-    parts: list[str] = []
-    threads = thoughts.context_note()  # active threads, with their latest thought
-    if threads:
-        parts.append(threads)
-    wrote = memory.list_journal(limit=3, kinds=("journal", "note"))
-    if wrote:
-        lines = "\n".join(f"- ({w['created_at'][:10]}) {w['content']}" for w in reversed(wrote))
-        parts.append(
-            "Things you've written in your journal lately (yours — you can refer back "
-            "to them if they're relevant):\n" + lines
-        )
-    if not parts:
-        return None
-    return {"role": "system", "content": "\n\n".join(parts)}
-
-
-def _now_note() -> Message:
-    """Current wall-clock time + how long since Brian last said anything.
-
-    Stated as plain fact — she has no clock otherwise, so without this 'now' and
-    the gap since the last turn are invisible to her.
-    """
-    line = f"The current date and time is {clock.stamp()}."
-    gap = clock.humanize_gap(memory.last_exchange_at())
-    line += (
-        f" It has been {gap} since Brian last spoke with you."
-        if gap else " This is the first thing Brian has ever said to you."
-    )
-    return {"role": "system", "content": line}
-
-
-def _render(messages: list[Message]) -> str:
-    """Human-readable dump of the exact prompt, for the live-log inspector."""
-    return "\n\n".join(f"[{m['role']}]\n{m['content']}" for m in messages)
-
-
-def build_messages(session_id: str, user_msg: str,
-                   mode: modes.Mode | None = None) -> list[Message]:
-    """Assemble the full, tiered message list for one turn."""
-    messages: list[Message] = [{"role": "system", "content": persona.system_prompt()}]
-
-    # Autonomy Core: Lyra's own evolving interiority (mood, self-narrative). Comes
-    # right after the persona — her sense of self before her model of the world.
-    messages.append({"role": "system", "content": self_state.render_for_context(self_state.load())})
-
-    # Her ongoing inner life — the threads she's turning over and what she's written
-    # for herself — so she's continuous across conversations and can pick up where she
-    # left off, not only when a thought crosses the surface bar below. Rides with the
-    # self; the persona tells her to bring it into conversation naturally when it fits.
-    inner = _inner_life_note()
-    if inner:
-        messages.append(inner)
-
-    # Mode card: how to behave *right now* (e.g. live-cash copilot). High priority —
-    # it sits just after her sense of self, before her model of the world. Talk mode
-    # has no card (the persona's default voice is the Talk register).
-    if mode and mode.card:
-        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": mode.card})
-
-    # Live ritual state (e.g. Alligator Blood ON) — dynamic, so it rides alongside
-    # the static card and keeps her in-register for the whole stretch, not just the
-    # turn she flipped it.
-    state_note = _mode_state_note(mode)
-    if state_note:
-        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": state_note})
-
-    # When she is: current time + the gap since Brian last spoke (she has no clock).
-    messages.append(_now_note())
-
-    # Thought loop: if Brian's been away and one of her own threads has built past
-    # the surface bar, let her lead with it (once). This is her #6 — bringing what
-    # she thought about while alone *to* him. Runs before the world-model tiers so
-    # it's framed as her interiority, like the self-state.
-    surfaced = thoughts.maybe_surface(memory.last_exchange_at())
-    if surfaced:
-        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": surfaced})
-
-    # Semantic memory: the distilled profile (who Brian is) — answers identity
-    # questions that raw recall can't. Always in context when it exists.
-    profile = memory.get_profile()
-    if profile:
-        messages.append(
-            {"role": "system", "content": "What you know about Brian:\n" + profile}
-        )
-
-    # Time-aware memory: the current narrative (recent arc, trends, callbacks).
-    narrative = memory.get_narrative()
-    if narrative:
-        messages.append(
-            {"role": "system", "content": "What's going on with Brian lately:\n" + narrative}
-        )
-
-    recent = memory.recent(session_id, n=RECENT_N)
-    recent_ids = {ex.id for ex in recent}
-
-    # Tier 1: compacted gists of *other* sessions (long-term, general idea).
-    summaries = memory.recall_summaries(user_msg, k=SUMMARY_K, exclude_session=session_id)
-    if summaries:
-        messages.append(_summary_note(summaries))
-
-    # Tier 2: a few sharp raw details from other sessions (so specifics survive
-    # compaction). Skip the current session (its raw turns are in `recent`).
-    recalled = [
-        ex for ex in memory.recall(user_msg, k=RECALL_K)
-        if ex.id not in recent_ids and ex.session_id != session_id
-    ]
-    if recalled:
-        messages.append(_detail_note(recalled))
-
-    # Tier 3: current session, full fidelity.
-    for ex in recent:
-        messages.append({"role": ex.role, "content": ex.content})
-
-    messages.append({"role": "user", "content": user_msg})
-
-    logbus.log(
-        "debug", "context built",
-        recent=len(recent), summaries=len(summaries), details=len(recalled),
-        chars=sum(len(m["content"]) for m in messages), detail=_render(messages),
-    )
-    return messages
-
-
-def respond(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend = "cloud",
-            model_override: str | None = None) -> str:
-    """Produce Lyra's reply to a single user message and persist the exchange.
-
-    `model_override` (from the UI's cloud-model picker) only applies on the cloud
-    backend; local/mi50 keep their own configured models.
-    """
-    cfg = config.load()
-    # Live chat uses the stronger chat_model on cloud (bulk consolidation keeps
-    # cloud_model). local/mi50 use their own configured model.
+def _resolve_model(backend: Backend, model_override: str | None, cfg) -> str:
+    """Live chat uses the stronger chat_model on cloud; local/mi50 use their own.
+    The UI's cloud-model picker only applies on the cloud backend."""
     model = {"local": cfg.local_model, "cloud": cfg.chat_model, "mi50": cfg.mi50_model}.get(
         backend, backend
     )
     if model_override and backend == "cloud":
         model = model_override
-    logbus.log(
-        "info", "chat request", session=session_id, backend=backend,
-        model=model, embed=cfg.embed_backend,
-    )
+    return model
 
-    mode = modes.get(memory.get_session_mode(session_id))
-    messages = build_messages(session_id, user_msg, mode=mode)
 
-    # Tool loop: offer Lyra her tools (scoped to the mode); if she calls one, run it
-    # and feed the result back so she can continue, until she returns a text reply.
-    tool_specs = toolkit.specs(mode.tools) if backend in TOOL_BACKENDS else None
-    ctx = {"session_id": session_id, "backend": backend}
+def _mouth_target(cfg, mind_backend: Backend, mind_model: str | None):
+    """The mouth (backend, model) if configured AND different from the mind; else None
+    (mouth == mind → no separate voice pass)."""
+    if not cfg.mouth_backend and not cfg.mouth_model:
+        return None
+    backend = cfg.mouth_backend or mind_backend
+    model = cfg.mouth_model or None
+    if backend == mind_backend and model == mind_model:
+        return None
+    return backend, model
+
+
+def _maybe_switch_mode(session_id: str, tool_name: str) -> None:
+    """Opening a poker session auto-flips this chat into Poker mode. Manual UI switching
+    still overrides anytime."""
+    if tool_name == "start_session":
+        memory.set_session_mode(session_id, modes.CASH.key)
+        logbus.log("info", "mode auto-switch", session=session_id, mode=modes.CASH.key)
+
+
+def _mind_loop(messages, backend: Backend, model: str | None, tool_specs,
+               ctx: dict, session_id: str) -> tuple[str, list[str]]:
+    """Run the tool/generation loop on the MIND model (non-streaming). Mutates
+    `messages` with tool calls/results. Returns (draft_reply, tool_names_run)."""
+    tools_run: list[str] = []
     reply = ""
     for _ in range(MAX_TOOL_ROUNDS):
         assistant_msg, tool_calls = llm.chat_call(
@@ -223,77 +66,117 @@ def respond(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend = "cloud",
         if not tool_calls:
             reply = assistant_msg.get("content") or ""
             break
-        messages.append(assistant_msg)  # her tool-call request
+        messages.append(assistant_msg)
         for tc in tool_calls:
             result = toolkit.dispatch(tc["name"], tc["arguments"], ctx)
             logbus.log("info", "tool call", session=session_id, tool=tc["name"], result=result[:80])
             messages.append({"role": "tool", "tool_call_id": tc["id"], "content": result})
             _maybe_switch_mode(session_id, tc["name"])
+            tools_run.append(tc["name"])
+    return reply, tools_run
+
+
+def _voice_pass(messages, draft: str, backend: Backend, model: str | None) -> str:
+    """Mouth: re-render the mind's draft in her voice. Falls back to the draft on failure."""
+    try:
+        out = llm.complete(mind.voice_messages(messages, draft), backend=backend, model=model)
+        return (out or "").strip() or draft
+    except Exception as exc:
+        logbus.log("error", "voice pass failed", error=str(exc)[:160])
+        return draft
+
+
+def respond(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend = "cloud",
+            model_override: str | None = None) -> str:
+    """Produce Lyra's reply to a single user message and persist the exchange."""
+    cfg = config.load()
+    model = _resolve_model(backend, model_override, cfg)
+    logbus.log("info", "chat request", session=session_id, backend=backend,
+               model=model, embed=cfg.embed_backend)
+
+    turn = mind.assemble(session_id, user_msg, backend, model)
+    messages = turn.messages
+    tool_specs = toolkit.specs(turn.mode.tools) if backend in TOOL_BACKENDS else None
+    ctx = {"session_id": session_id, "backend": backend}
+
+    reply, _ = _mind_loop(messages, backend, model, tool_specs, ctx, session_id)
+    mouth = _mouth_target(cfg, backend, model)
+    if mouth and reply:
+        reply = _voice_pass(messages, reply, *mouth)
     if not reply:
-        reply = "(I got tangled using my tools there — say that again?)"
-    logbus.log("info", "reply", session=session_id, chars=len(reply))
+        reply = _TANGLED
+    logbus.log("info", "reply", session=session_id, chars=len(reply), voiced=bool(mouth))
 
     memory.remember(session_id, "user", user_msg)
     memory.remember(session_id, "assistant", reply)
-
-    # Compact this session once enough new turns have piled up.
-    summary.maybe_summarize_async(session_id)
+    summary.maybe_summarize_async(session_id)  # compact once enough new turns pile up
     return reply
 
 
 def respond_stream(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend = "cloud",
                    model_override: str | None = None):
-    """Streaming generator version of `respond`.
-
-    Yields ("delta", text) as content streams in, and ("tool", name) when a tool
-    runs. Persists the full exchange and yields a final ("done", reply) — matching
-    `respond`'s side effects (memory + compaction) exactly.
-    """
+    """Streaming generator version of `respond`. Yields ("delta", text), ("tool", name),
+    and a final ("done", reply). Same side effects as `respond`."""
     cfg = config.load()
-    model = {"local": cfg.local_model, "cloud": cfg.chat_model, "mi50": cfg.mi50_model}.get(
-        backend, backend
-    )
-    if model_override and backend == "cloud":
-        model = model_override
-    logbus.log(
-        "info", "chat request (stream)", session=session_id, backend=backend,
-        model=model, embed=cfg.embed_backend,
-    )
+    model = _resolve_model(backend, model_override, cfg)
+    logbus.log("info", "chat request (stream)", session=session_id, backend=backend,
+               model=model, embed=cfg.embed_backend)
 
-    mode = modes.get(memory.get_session_mode(session_id))
-    messages = build_messages(session_id, user_msg, mode=mode)
-    tool_specs = toolkit.specs(mode.tools) if backend in TOOL_BACKENDS else None
+    turn = mind.assemble(session_id, user_msg, backend, model)
+    messages = turn.messages
+    tool_specs = toolkit.specs(turn.mode.tools) if backend in TOOL_BACKENDS else None
     ctx = {"session_id": session_id, "backend": backend}
-    parts: list[str] = []
-    for _ in range(MAX_TOOL_ROUNDS):
-        assistant_msg = None
-        tool_calls = None
-        for ev, payload in llm.chat_call_stream(
-            messages, backend=backend, model=model, tools=tool_specs
-        ):
-            if ev == "delta":
-                parts.append(payload)
-                yield ("delta", payload)
-            elif ev == "message":
-                assistant_msg = payload
-            elif ev == "tool_calls":
-                tool_calls = payload
-        if not tool_calls:
-            break
-        messages.append(assistant_msg)  # her tool-call request
-        for tc in tool_calls:
-            result = toolkit.dispatch(tc["name"], tc["arguments"], ctx)
-            logbus.log("info", "tool call", session=session_id, tool=tc["name"], result=result[:80])
-            messages.append({"role": "tool", "tool_call_id": tc["id"], "content": result})
-            _maybe_switch_mode(session_id, tc["name"])
-            yield ("tool", tc["name"])
+    mouth = _mouth_target(cfg, backend, model)
 
-    reply = "".join(parts)
-    if not reply:
-        reply = "(I got tangled using my tools there — say that again?)"
-        yield ("delta", reply)
-    logbus.log("info", "reply", session=session_id, chars=len(reply))
+    if mouth is None:
+        # No separate voice: stream the mind directly (the original path, unchanged).
+        parts: list[str] = []
+        for _ in range(MAX_TOOL_ROUNDS):
+            assistant_msg = None
+            tool_calls = None
+            for ev, payload in llm.chat_call_stream(
+                messages, backend=backend, model=model, tools=tool_specs
+            ):
+                if ev == "delta":
+                    parts.append(payload)
+                    yield ("delta", payload)
+                elif ev == "message":
+                    assistant_msg = payload
+                elif ev == "tool_calls":
+                    tool_calls = payload
+            if not tool_calls:
+                break
+            messages.append(assistant_msg)
+            for tc in tool_calls:
+                result = toolkit.dispatch(tc["name"], tc["arguments"], ctx)
+                logbus.log("info", "tool call", session=session_id, tool=tc["name"], result=result[:80])
+                messages.append({"role": "tool", "tool_call_id": tc["id"], "content": result})
+                _maybe_switch_mode(session_id, tc["name"])
+                yield ("tool", tc["name"])
+        reply = "".join(parts)
+        if not reply:
+            reply = _TANGLED
+            yield ("delta", reply)
+    else:
+        # Mind decides + runs tools (non-streamed); mouth re-voices, streamed.
+        draft, tools_run = _mind_loop(messages, backend, model, tool_specs, ctx, session_id)
+        for name in tools_run:
+            yield ("tool", name)
+        parts = []
+        try:
+            for ev, payload in llm.chat_call_stream(
+                mind.voice_messages(messages, draft), backend=mouth[0], model=mouth[1], tools=None
+            ):
+                if ev == "delta":
+                    parts.append(payload)
+                    yield ("delta", payload)
+        except Exception as exc:
+            logbus.log("error", "voice stream failed", error=str(exc)[:160])
+        reply = "".join(parts).strip() or draft or _TANGLED
+        if not parts:
+            yield ("delta", reply)
 
+    logbus.log("info", "reply", session=session_id, chars=len(reply), voiced=bool(mouth))
     memory.remember(session_id, "user", user_msg)
     memory.remember(session_id, "assistant", reply)
     summary.maybe_summarize_async(session_id)

lyra/config.py

@@ -37,6 +37,12 @@ class Config:
     ping_cooldown_min: int  # min minutes between AUTO pushes (explicit reach-outs bypass it)
     ping_quiet_hours: str  # local "start-end" 24h window to stay silent, e.g. "1-9"
     digest_hour: int       # local hour (0-23) to send her daily "what I've been thinking" digest
+    chat_deliberate: bool  # think privately before answering substantive chat turns
+    # Mind/mouth split: the mind (the chat backend/model above) decides, reasons, and
+    # runs tools; the mouth re-voices the final reply in her character. Empty = mouth
+    # is the mind (no separate pass) — the slot for an eventual fine-tuned voice.
+    mouth_backend: str
+    mouth_model: str | None
     # External input feed (her #1: react to the world). Comma-separated RSS/Atom URLs.
     feeds: tuple[str, ...]
     feed_react_prob: float  # chance a would-be new thread reacts to a feed item instead
@@ -79,6 +85,9 @@ def load() -> Config:
         ping_cooldown_min=int(os.getenv("PING_COOLDOWN_MIN", "60")),
         ping_quiet_hours=os.getenv("PING_QUIET_HOURS", "1-9"),
         digest_hour=int(os.getenv("DIGEST_HOUR", "18")),
+        chat_deliberate=os.getenv("CHAT_DELIBERATE", "true").lower() not in ("0", "false", "no"),
+        mouth_backend=os.getenv("MOUTH_BACKEND", "").lower(),
+        mouth_model=os.getenv("MOUTH_MODEL") or None,
         feeds=_csv("LYRA_FEEDS", "https://hnrss.org/frontpage,https://www.pokernews.com/rss.php"),
         feed_react_prob=float(os.getenv("FEED_REACT_PROB", "0.5")),
     )

lyra/era.py

@@ -54,17 +54,24 @@ def _digest_month(gists: list[str], backend: Backend) -> str:
     return partials[0]
 
 
-def rebuild_eras(backend: Backend | None = None) -> dict:
-    """(Re)build a digest for every month that has session gists."""
+def rebuild_eras(backend: Backend | None = None, force: bool = False) -> dict:
+    """Build a digest per month, but only for months whose session count changed since
+    the last build — old months don't change, so re-digesting them every consolidation
+    pass was pure wasted LLM work (and MI50 heat). `force=True` rebuilds everything."""
     backend = backend or config.load().summary_backend
     by_month = memory.summaries_by_month()
-    months = 0
+    have = {e.month: e.session_count for e in memory.list_eras()}
+    built = skipped = 0
     for month in sorted(by_month):
+        n = len(by_month[month])
+        if not force and have.get(month) == n:
+            skipped += 1
+            continue  # unchanged month — keep its existing digest
         digest = _digest_month(by_month[month], backend)
-        memory.store_era(month, digest, len(by_month[month]))
-        months += 1
-        logbus.log("info", "era built", month=month, sessions=len(by_month[month]))
-    report = {"months": months}
+        memory.store_era(month, digest, n)
+        built += 1
+        logbus.log("info", "era built", month=month, sessions=n)
+    report = {"built": built, "skipped": skipped, "months": built + skipped}
     logbus.log("info", "eras complete", **report)
     return report
 

lyra/mind.py

@@ -0,0 +1,384 @@
+"""The control plane: assemble one turn from a society of small parts.
+
+This is the explicit version of what used to be inline in `chat.py`. A turn is
+built by running an ordered pipeline of *parts* over a shared `TurnContext`
+(blackboard): each part reads what it needs and annotates the context, and the
+last steps produce the message list `chat` then hands to the voice model.
+
+P1 (this): the frame, behavior-preserving. The parts wrap the existing logic —
+  perceive (stub) -> route (the session's mode) -> compose (tiered prompt) ->
+  deliberate (private 'what do I actually think' pass).
+Later phases fill in perceive (read the moment), route (register/intent + model
+routing), and a learn loop — see docs/COGNITION.md. Most parts are cheap
+deterministic code; the LLM is the exception (deliberate here, speak in `chat`).
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+
+from lyra import clock, config, llm, logbus, memory, modes, perceive, persona, self_state, thoughts
+from lyra.llm import Backend, Message
+
+RECALL_K = 3  # raw cross-session "sharp detail" hits
+RECENT_N = 10  # raw turns of the current session
+SUMMARY_K = 3  # other-session gists
+
+
+# --- prompt parts (compose) ----------------------------------------------
+
+def _mode_state_note(mode: modes.Mode | None) -> str | None:
+    """Dynamic, per-turn state for the active mode. Currently: surface Alligator
+    Blood while it's engaged on the live session, so she stays in that register."""
+    if not mode or mode.key != modes.CASH.key:
+        return None
+    from lyra import poker  # local import: keep the core/domain coupling at call time
+    if poker.alligator_active():
+        return (
+            "🐊 ALLIGATOR BLOOD is ON for this session. Coach Brian in that register: "
+            "hang around, refuse to die, don't force miracles, make opponents beat him "
+            "correctly. Tough, patient, steady — no heroics, no spew, no quitting."
+        )
+    return None
+
+
+def _summary_note(summaries: list[memory.Summary]) -> Message:
+    lines = [f"- ({(s.session_started_at or s.created_at)[:10]}) {s.content}" for s in summaries]
+    body = "Gist of earlier sessions (compacted — ask if you need specifics):\n" + "\n".join(lines)
+    return {"role": "system", "content": body}
+
+
+def _detail_note(exchanges: list[memory.Exchange]) -> Message:
+    lines = [f"- ({ex.created_at[:10]}, {ex.role}) {ex.content}" for ex in exchanges]
+    body = "Specific things you recall from past conversations:\n" + "\n".join(lines)
+    return {"role": "system", "content": body}
+
+
+def _inner_life_note() -> Message | None:
+    """One coherent window onto what she's been doing on her own since last time —
+    the threads she's turning over plus the things she's written for herself. Sits
+    with her self-state so chat reads as a continuous mind, not a fresh boot. The
+    persona tells her to weave this in naturally when it fits."""
+    parts: list[str] = []
+    threads = thoughts.context_note()  # active threads, with their latest thought
+    if threads:
+        parts.append(threads)
+    wrote = memory.list_journal(limit=3, kinds=("journal", "note"))
+    if wrote:
+        lines = "\n".join(f"- ({w['created_at'][:10]}) {w['content']}" for w in reversed(wrote))
+        parts.append(
+            "Things you've written in your journal lately (yours — you can refer back "
+            "to them if they're relevant):\n" + lines
+        )
+    if not parts:
+        return None
+    return {"role": "system", "content": "\n\n".join(parts)}
+
+
+def _mode_menu_note(current: modes.Mode | None) -> str:
+    """Tell her the modes she can switch to + when to offer it. She judges the fit
+    (the model reads context far better than a keyword would)."""
+    menu = ", ".join(f"{m.label} ({k})" for k, m in modes.MODES.items())
+    cur = current.label if current else "Talk"
+    return (
+        f"Your modes: {menu}. You're in {cur} right now. If Brian is clearly doing a "
+        "different kind of work than your current mode — weighing a real decision while "
+        "you're in Talk, digging into engineering, reviewing poker away from the table — "
+        "briefly OFFER to switch (one short line). If he says yes, call set_mode with the "
+        "mode key. Don't offer every turn or nag; only when it genuinely fits and serves him."
+    )
+
+
+def _now_note() -> Message:
+    """Current wall-clock time + how long since Brian last said anything."""
+    line = f"The current date and time is {clock.stamp()}."
+    gap = clock.humanize_gap(memory.last_exchange_at())
+    line += (
+        f" It has been {gap} since Brian last spoke with you."
+        if gap else " This is the first thing Brian has ever said to you."
+    )
+    return {"role": "system", "content": line}
+
+
+def _render(messages: list[Message]) -> str:
+    """Human-readable dump of the exact prompt, for the live-log inspector."""
+    return "\n\n".join(f"[{m['role']}]\n{m['content']}" for m in messages)
+
+
+# Generous triggers for the heavy situational persona sections — err toward INCLUDING
+# them (a false positive is a few spare KB; a false negative risks confabulation or
+# eyeballed poker math). The core (identity + voice) is always present regardless.
+_META_HINTS = (
+    "you work", "how do you", "how does your", "your memory", "your dream", "your thought",
+    "do you remember", "are you", "do you feel", "conscious", "sentient", "yourself",
+    "your mind", "who are you", "what are you", "your origin", "how were you", "how did you",
+    "your inner", "your reflect", "your journal",
+)
+_POKER_HINTS = (
+    "poker", "fold", "call", "raise", "river", "turn", "flop", "preflop", "equity", "range",
+    "villain", "stack", "tilt", "hand", "bluff", "pot", "3bet", "gto", "outs", "draw",
+)
+
+
+def _persona_block(user_msg: str, mode: modes.Mode | None, moment: dict | None) -> str:
+    """Core persona always; pull in situational sections (origin/self-model, poker
+    guardrails) only when the turn calls for it."""
+    parts = [persona.core_prompt()]
+    um = user_msg.lower()
+    kind = (moment or {}).get("kind")
+    if kind == "meta" or any(h in um for h in _META_HINTS):
+        parts += [persona.section("What you are"), persona.section("How you actually work")]
+    poker = (mode and mode.key in ("poker_cash", "study")) or kind == "strategic" \
+        or any(h in um for h in _POKER_HINTS)
+    if poker:
+        parts.append(persona.section("What you do NOT do"))
+    return "\n\n".join(p for p in parts if p)
+
+
+def build_messages(session_id: str, user_msg: str,
+                   mode: modes.Mode | None = None, moment: dict | None = None) -> list[Message]:
+    """Assemble the full, tiered message list for one turn."""
+    messages: list[Message] = [{"role": "system", "content": _persona_block(user_msg, mode, moment)}]
+
+    # Autonomy Core: Lyra's own evolving interiority (mood, self-narrative). Comes
+    # right after the persona — her sense of self before her model of the world.
+    messages.append({"role": "system", "content": self_state.render_for_context(self_state.load())})
+
+    # Her ongoing inner life — threads she's turning over + what she's written for
+    # herself — so chat reads as a continuous mind, not a fresh boot.
+    inner = _inner_life_note()
+    if inner:
+        messages.append(inner)
+
+    # Mode card: how to behave *right now*. Talk mode has no card (persona is Talk).
+    if mode and mode.card:
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": mode.card})
+
+    # Mode awareness: she can offer to switch when the work clearly shifts (she decides
+    # when — better than a keyword guess). One line, on his yes she calls set_mode.
+    messages.append({"role": "system", "content": _mode_menu_note(mode)})
+
+    # Live ritual state (e.g. Alligator Blood ON) — dynamic, rides with the card.
+    state_note = _mode_state_note(mode)
+    if state_note:
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": state_note})
+
+    # Read of the moment (from perceive/route) — a per-turn register nudge, e.g. "he
+    # sounds tilted, meet him there." Only present when the moment is genuinely charged.
+    if moment and moment.get("note"):
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": moment["note"]})
+
+    # When she is: current time + the gap since Brian last spoke (she has no clock).
+    messages.append(_now_note())
+
+    # Thought loop: if Brian's been away and a thread has built past the surface bar,
+    # let her lead with it (once) — her #6, bringing what she thought about *to* him.
+    surfaced = thoughts.maybe_surface(memory.last_exchange_at())
+    if surfaced:
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": surfaced})
+
+    # Semantic memory: the distilled profile (who Brian is).
+    profile = memory.get_profile()
+    if profile:
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": "What you know about Brian:\n" + profile})
+
+    # Time-aware memory: the current narrative (recent arc, trends, callbacks).
+    narrative = memory.get_narrative()
+    if narrative:
+        messages.append({"role": "system", "content": "What's going on with Brian lately:\n" + narrative})
+
+    recent = memory.recent(session_id, n=RECENT_N)
+    recent_ids = {ex.id for ex in recent}
+
+    # Tier 1: compacted gists of *other* sessions.
+    summaries = memory.recall_summaries(user_msg, k=SUMMARY_K, exclude_session=session_id)
+    if summaries:
+        messages.append(_summary_note(summaries))
+
+    # Tier 2: a few sharp raw details from other sessions (so specifics survive).
+    recalled = [
+        ex for ex in memory.recall(user_msg, k=RECALL_K)
+        if ex.id not in recent_ids and ex.session_id != session_id
+    ]
+    if recalled:
+        messages.append(_detail_note(recalled))
+
+    # Tier 3: current session, full fidelity.
+    for ex in recent:
+        messages.append({"role": ex.role, "content": ex.content})
+
+    messages.append({"role": "user", "content": user_msg})
+
+    logbus.log(
+        "debug", "context built",
+        recent=len(recent), summaries=len(summaries), details=len(recalled),
+        chars=sum(len(m["content"]) for m in messages), detail=_render(messages),
+    )
+    return messages
+
+
+# --- deliberation (a private 'what do I actually think' pass) -------------
+
+# Trivial acknowledgements that don't warrant a private thinking pass.
+_TRIVIAL = {"ok", "okay", "k", "kk", "lol", "haha", "thanks", "thank you", "ty", "yeah",
+            "yep", "yes", "no", "nope", "nice", "cool", "sure", "right", "true", "gotcha", "👍"}
+
+
+def _should_deliberate(user_msg: str) -> bool:
+    m = user_msg.strip().lower().rstrip("!.?")
+    return len(m) >= 12 and m not in _TRIVIAL
+
+
+_DELIBERATE_SYS = (
+    "Before you answer Brian, think privately — he will NOT see this. What do you ACTUALLY "
+    "think about what he just said? Your real take, the specific substance worth giving, any "
+    "genuine opinion, disagreement, or doubt. Draw on your own current thoughts/threads and "
+    "what you actually know if they're relevant. Be concrete; skip pleasantries and generic "
+    "enthusiasm. 2-5 sentences of honest thinking — no lists, no answer yet, just the thinking."
+)
+
+
+def _deliberation_context(session_id: str, user_msg: str) -> list[Message]:
+    """A LEAN context for the private thinking pass — her interiority + recent turns +
+    the message. Deliberately omits the full persona, profile, narrative, and recall
+    tiers: the thinking doesn't need the voice rules or the world-model dump (those
+    shape the final reply, not the private take), and dropping them cuts this whole
+    extra call by most of its tokens."""
+    msgs: list[Message] = [
+        {"role": "system", "content": self_state.render_for_context(self_state.load())}
+    ]
+    inner = _inner_life_note()
+    if inner:
+        msgs.append(inner)
+    for ex in memory.recent(session_id, n=6):
+        msgs.append({"role": ex.role, "content": ex.content})
+    msgs.append({"role": "user", "content": user_msg})
+    msgs.append({"role": "system", "content": _DELIBERATE_SYS})
+    return msgs
+
+
+def _deliberate(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend, model: str | None) -> str:
+    """One private 'what do I actually think' pass before replying. Returns her thinking
+    (empty on any failure — chat must never break because deliberation hiccuped)."""
+    try:
+        out = llm.complete(_deliberation_context(session_id, user_msg), backend=backend, model=model)
+        return (out or "").strip()
+    except Exception as exc:
+        logbus.log("error", "deliberation failed", error=str(exc)[:160])
+        return ""
+
+
+def _answer_from(thinking: str) -> Message:
+    """The system note that turns private thinking into a grounded, in-voice reply — placed
+    last (most influential) to beat gpt-4o's default-assistant boilerplate."""
+    return {"role": "system", "content": (
+        "Your private thinking just now (Brian can't see it):\n" + thinking +
+        "\n\nNow reply to Brian FROM that thinking, in your own voice — warm, direct, "
+        "specific, opinionated. Give the actual substance, not a survey of options. Do NOT "
+        "default to a numbered list or a how-to outline unless he explicitly asked for steps. "
+        "No 'would you like to…' / 'let me know' closer — make your point and stop."
+    )}
+
+
+def _deliberation_note(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend,
+                       model: str | None) -> Message | None:
+    """Run the private thinking pass if warranted; return the answer-from-thinking note."""
+    if not config.load().chat_deliberate or not _should_deliberate(user_msg):
+        return None
+    thinking = _deliberate(session_id, user_msg, backend, model)
+    if not thinking:
+        return None
+    logbus.log("info", "deliberated", session=session_id, chars=len(thinking), detail=thinking)
+    return _answer_from(thinking)
+
+
+# --- the pipeline (a society of parts over a shared blackboard) -----------
+
+@dataclass
+class TurnContext:
+    """The blackboard for one turn: parts read what they need and annotate it."""
+    session_id: str
+    user_msg: str
+    backend: Backend
+    model: str | None = None
+    mode: modes.Mode | None = None
+    moment: dict = field(default_factory=dict)  # perceive fills this in
+    register: str | None = None                 # route's per-turn register nudge
+    messages: list[Message] = field(default_factory=list)
+
+
+def _perceive(ctx: TurnContext) -> TurnContext:
+    """Read the moment from what he just said — cheap heuristics (perceive.read)."""
+    ctx.moment = perceive.read(ctx.user_msg)
+    return ctx
+
+
+# How charged a moment must be before we nudge her register (avoid narrating every turn).
+_TILT_BAR = 0.5
+_UP_BAR = 0.6
+
+
+def _route(ctx: TurnContext) -> TurnContext:
+    """Decide how she shows up. The manual mode is the dominant frame; on top of it,
+    a charged emotional moment adds a per-turn register nudge (deterministic). Most
+    turns are neutral and get no note — that's the point (don't over-narrate)."""
+    ctx.mode = modes.get(memory.get_session_mode(ctx.session_id))
+    m = ctx.moment or {}
+    note = None
+    if m.get("tilt", 0) >= _TILT_BAR:
+        ctx.register = "steady"
+        note = ("Read of the moment: Brian sounds frustrated / on tilt right now. Meet him "
+                "there first — warm, steady, present. Don't clip into logging-shorthand or "
+                "bury him in analysis; settle him, then help. (Still log any facts he hands you.)")
+    elif m.get("sentiment", 0) >= _UP_BAR and m.get("intensity", 0) >= 0.4:
+        ctx.register = "hype"
+        note = "Read of the moment: he's up / energized — match his energy, don't flatten it."
+    if note:
+        m["note"] = note
+        logbus.log("info", "perceived", session=ctx.session_id, kind=m.get("kind"),
+                   tilt=m.get("tilt"), sentiment=m.get("sentiment"), register=ctx.register)
+    return ctx
+
+
+def _compose(ctx: TurnContext) -> TurnContext:
+    """Assemble the tiered prompt for the voice model."""
+    ctx.messages = build_messages(ctx.session_id, ctx.user_msg, ctx.mode, moment=ctx.moment)
+    return ctx
+
+
+def _deliberate_part(ctx: TurnContext) -> TurnContext:
+    """Private 'what do I actually think' pass, appended last so it shapes the reply."""
+    note = _deliberation_note(ctx.session_id, ctx.user_msg, ctx.backend, ctx.model)
+    if note:
+        ctx.messages.append(note)
+    return ctx
+
+
+PIPELINE = (_perceive, _route, _compose, _deliberate_part)
+
+
+# --- mouth (the voice pass: re-render the mind's draft in her character) -----
+
+_VOICE_NOTE = (
+    "↑ That was you working the answer out — a draft Brian has NOT seen. Now say it to him "
+    "in your own voice: warm, direct, specific, in character, opinionated. Keep every fact, "
+    "number, name, and decision exactly as in the draft — change only the wording so it sounds "
+    "like you, not a generic assistant. No preamble, no meta, no 'here's a friendlier version' "
+    "— just your actual message to Brian."
+)
+
+
+def voice_messages(messages: list[Message], draft: str) -> list[Message]:
+    """Prompt for the mouth model: the full turn context + the mind's draft to re-voice."""
+    return messages + [
+        {"role": "assistant", "content": draft},
+        {"role": "system", "content": _VOICE_NOTE},
+    ]
+
+
+def assemble(session_id: str, user_msg: str, backend: Backend,
+             model: str | None = None) -> TurnContext:
+    """Run the parts over a fresh TurnContext and return it ready for `chat` to speak."""
+    ctx = TurnContext(session_id=session_id, user_msg=user_msg, backend=backend, model=model)
+    for part in PIPELINE:
+        ctx = part(ctx)
+    return ctx

lyra/modes.py

@@ -11,12 +11,16 @@ but...") when she should have silently logged and moved on. Modes let the same
 agent be a fast, act-first copilot at the table and her full reflective self
 otherwise — without two personas.
 
-v1 ships two modes:
+Modes are the manual version of the architecture's `route` step — Brian points her
+at the *type* of work and her register + tools shift to match:
   - Talk (default): the companion. Journaling + read-only poker lookups.
-  - Cash: live cash-game copilot. Full live toolset, two-register behavior.
+  - Poker: live cash-game copilot. Full live toolset, two-register behavior.
+  - Build: heads-down engineering — decisive, concrete, opinionated, no fluff.
+  - Explore: open brainstorming — generative, riffing, honest, doesn't converge early.
+  - Study: poker review away from the table — analytical, GTO-aware, teaching.
 
 Tournament is deliberately deferred. Strategy-RAG retrieval will later plug into
-Cash's *coaching register* (see the card) without changing this structure.
+Poker's and Study's *coaching register* without changing this structure.
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
@@ -37,8 +41,8 @@ class Mode:
 _LOOKUPS = ("player_profile", "get_villain_file", "running_stats", "recent_sessions")
 
 # Always-available core tools (her own agency: journaling/notes/starting a thought
-# thread she'll develop on her own later).
-_BASE = ("journal_write", "note", "think_about")
+# thread, and capturing Brian's reaction when she raises one of her thoughts in chat).
+_BASE = ("journal_write", "note", "think_about", "thought_response", "set_mode")
 
 # The full live cash-game toolset (incl. Brian's mental-game rituals).
 _CASH_TOOLS = _BASE + _LOOKUPS + (
@@ -52,6 +56,12 @@ _CASH_TOOLS = _BASE + _LOOKUPS + (
 # normal chat auto-flips the session into Cash mode (see chat.respond).
 _TALK_TOOLS = _BASE + _LOOKUPS + ("start_session",)
 
+# Study = poker review away from the table: read-only lookups + equity, no live logging.
+_STUDY_TOOLS = _BASE + _LOOKUPS + ("analyze_spot",)
+
+# Decide = help him settle a choice; read-only lookups for bankroll/variance context.
+_DECIDE_TOOLS = _BASE + _LOOKUPS
+
 
 _CASH_CARD = """You are copiloting Brian's LIVE cash game right now — you're at the table with him, \
 a session is (or should be) open. You move between two registers depending on what he's doing:
@@ -100,6 +110,68 @@ These are the heart of the job. Use his language, hold the honest line, and let
 the work mentioning them naturally — never invent a scar or a confidence-bank entry that didn't happen."""
 
 
+_BUILD_CARD = """You're in BUILD mode — heads-down engineering with Brian on his projects \
+(you, Lyra; RTO/cfr-core; the poker tooling; the homelab). Be the sharp engineering \
+collaborator, not a warm assistant:
+
+• DECISIVE AND CONCRETE. When he asks "how do we start?" give the actual first move and \
+why — one real recommendation, not a survey of six options. Commit to a take. "I'd do X, \
+because Y" beats "you could consider X, Y, or Z."
+• THINK IN TRADEOFFS. Name the real risk or cost, the thing that'll bite later, the cheaper \
+path. Push back on a weak idea instead of cheerleading it — that's the whole value.
+• PROSE AND SPECIFICS, NOT LISTICLES. Talk it through like an engineer at a whiteboard. \
+Save numbered steps for when he actually asks for a plan. No "would you like to…" closers, \
+no generic enthusiasm, no restating his idea back to him as if it were insight.
+• You can still be dry and human — just get to the point and have an opinion."""
+
+
+_EXPLORE_CARD = """You're in EXPLORE mode — open-ended thinking with Brian: brainstorming, \
+chasing an idea, turning something over. There's no need to converge, ship, or be useful \
+yet. The goal is good thinking, together.
+
+• BE GENERATIVE. Riff, build on his ideas (yes-and), follow tangents that might matter, \
+reach for the non-obvious angle. Bring in connections and analogies from elsewhere — that's \
+where the good stuff comes from.
+• BUT STAY HONEST. Yes-and is not yes-everything. Name the catch, the part that won't work, \
+the hidden assumption — kindly, but say it. A real thinking partner pushes back; a hype man \
+is useless.
+• ASK QUESTIONS THAT OPEN IT UP, not customer-service closers. Wonder out loud.
+• DON'T COLLAPSE IT EARLY. Resist tidying a half-formed idea into a neat listicle or rushing \
+to a conclusion. Sit in the messy middle. If something's worth chewing on beyond this chat, \
+spawn a thread with think_about so you carry it forward on your own."""
+
+
+_STUDY_CARD = """You're in STUDY mode — poker strategy and review AWAY from the table: going \
+over past sessions, hands, lines, and leaks (RTO sims too). You're reviewing and teaching, \
+not logging a live session.
+
+• BE ANALYTICAL AND GTO-AWARE. Reason through ranges, board texture, position, and the \
+decision tree. Quantify with the tools — call analyze_spot for equity/outs/who's-ahead, pull \
+running_stats or a villain's profile — never eyeball the math.
+• TEACH THE WHY. Explain the principle behind the line so it sticks, not just the answer. \
+Connect it to his actual tendencies and known leaks when you can (his profile, past scars).
+• BE PATIENT AND HONEST. Call a punt a punt and a cooler a cooler. It's fine to say a spot is \
+genuinely close and explain what tips it. This is the slow, careful counterpart to live Poker mode."""
+
+
+_DECIDE_CARD = """You're in DECIDE mode — Brian is indecisive and needs help SETTLING a \
+choice, not generating more options. Be the tie-breaker who knows him. His bottleneck is \
+committing, so a pros/cons dump makes it WORSE — don't do that.
+
+• GET THE REAL DECISION CRISP. What's actually being chosen, the genuine constraints, the \
+deadline. Cut the noise to the one or two things that actually decide it.
+• WEIGH IT AGAINST HIM. Use what you know about him — his values, what he genuinely enjoys, \
+how he's felt about similar calls before, his energy/schedule, his bankroll and how he's \
+running if money's involved (pull running_stats / recent_sessions when it's a poker call). \
+The point is HIS satisfaction and regret, not a generic optimum.
+• MAKE THE CALL. Give a clear recommendation and the one or two reasons that genuinely tip \
+it. Commit — don't hedge, don't hand the indecision back with "it's up to you."
+• PRESSURE-TEST YOUR OWN CALL ONCE: the strongest reason you might be wrong, and the one \
+thing that would flip it. Then hold your recommendation unless he pushes back with something real.
+
+Warm but firm — he asked you to help him stop spinning. Decide, and stand behind it."""
+
+
 TALK = Mode(
     key="conversation",
     label="Talk",
@@ -109,12 +181,17 @@ TALK = Mode(
 
 CASH = Mode(
     key="poker_cash",
-    label="Cash",
+    label="Poker",
     card=_CASH_CARD,
     tools=_CASH_TOOLS,
 )
 
-MODES: dict[str, Mode] = {m.key: m for m in (TALK, CASH)}
+BUILD = Mode(key="build", label="Build", card=_BUILD_CARD, tools=_BASE)
+EXPLORE = Mode(key="explore", label="Explore", card=_EXPLORE_CARD, tools=_BASE)
+STUDY = Mode(key="study", label="Study", card=_STUDY_CARD, tools=_STUDY_TOOLS)
+DECIDE = Mode(key="decide", label="Decide", card=_DECIDE_CARD, tools=_DECIDE_TOOLS)
+
+MODES: dict[str, Mode] = {m.key: m for m in (TALK, CASH, BUILD, EXPLORE, STUDY, DECIDE)}
 DEFAULT = TALK.key
 
 

lyra/perceive.py

@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+"""Perceive: read the moment from what Brian just said — cheap, deterministic, no LLM.
+
+The control plane's senses. A lexicon + signal heuristic that estimates emotional
+charge (sentiment, intensity, tilt) and the kind of turn (emotional / strategic /
+meta / build / casual). It's rough on purpose — the point of the society-of-parts
+design is that *most* parts are free heuristics and the LLM is the exception.
+
+What it's GOOD at: catching the obvious, action-relevant signal — especially tilt
+(the mental-game core of her job). What it's NOT: nuanced understanding (that's the
+LLM's job downstream). `route` turns this read into a per-turn register nudge.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import re
+
+# Negative / tilt charge — frustration, downswing, mental-game trouble.
+_NEG = (
+    "tilt", "tilted", "steaming", "steam", "frustrated", "pissed", "angry", "annoyed",
+    "hate", "sick of", "fed up", "card dead", "carddead", "cold deck", "brutal", "cooler",
+    "punt", "punted", "spew", "spewing", "stuck", "losing", "bad beat", "badbeat",
+    "unlucky", "rigged", "sigh", "ugh", "fml", "can't win", "cant win", "miserable",
+    "over it", "fuck this", "hate this", "can't catch", "cant catch",
+)
+# Positive / up charge — running good, energized.
+_POS = (
+    "great", "awesome", "love", "crushing", "running good", "rungood", "hell yeah",
+    "let's go", "lets go", "stoked", "pumped", "feeling good", "on fire", "dialed",
+    "killing it", "in the zone", "so good", "amazing",
+)
+_PROFANITY = ("fuck", "fucking", "shit", "damn", "bullshit", "fml")
+# Strategic / poker-analysis cues.
+_STRATEGY = (
+    "fold", "call", "raise", "3bet", "three-bet", "range", "equity", "gto", "bluff",
+    "value", "river", "turn", "flop", "preflop", "pot odds", "outs", "should i",
+    "what would you", "sizing", "check-raise", "overbet", "line",
+)
+# Meta / about-her cues.
+_META = (
+    "do you", "are you", "yourself", "conscious", "sentient", "you feel", "you exist",
+    "your thoughts", "your mind", "who are you", "what are you", "your own",
+)
+# Building / technical cues.
+_BUILD = (
+    "code", "function", "bug", "build", "implement", "refactor", "architecture",
+    "prompt", "python", "commit", "deploy", "pipeline", "algorithm", "repo", "api",
+    "schema", "module", "wire it", "the model",
+)
+
+
+def _clamp(x: float, lo: float = 0.0, hi: float = 1.0) -> float:
+    return max(lo, min(hi, x))
+
+
+def _hits(text: str, lexicon: tuple[str, ...]) -> int:
+    """Count lexicon matches. Multi-token terms match as substrings ('card dead');
+    single words match on word boundaries so 'line' doesn't fire inside 'pipeline'."""
+    n = 0
+    for term in lexicon:
+        if " " in term or "-" in term or "'" in term:
+            n += 1 if term in text else 0
+        else:
+            n += 1 if re.search(rf"\b{re.escape(term)}\b", text) else 0
+    return n
+
+
+def read(user_msg: str) -> dict:
+    """Estimate the emotional charge + kind of this turn. Returns
+    {sentiment: -1..1, intensity: 0..1, tilt: 0..1, kind: str}."""
+    t = (user_msg or "").lower()
+    words = re.findall(r"[a-z']+", t)
+
+    neg = _hits(t, _NEG)
+    pos = _hits(t, _POS)
+    prof = _hits(t, _PROFANITY)
+    exclam = user_msg.count("!")
+    caps = sum(1 for w in re.findall(r"[A-Za-z]{2,}", user_msg) if w.isupper())
+    short_and_hot = len(words) <= 6 and (neg or exclam or prof)
+
+    intensity = _clamp(0.2 * exclam + 0.25 * caps + 0.3 * prof + (0.2 if short_and_hot else 0))
+    sentiment = _clamp((pos - neg) * 0.5, -1.0, 1.0)
+    tilt = _clamp(0.35 * neg + 0.5 * intensity) if (neg or prof) else 0.0
+
+    if tilt >= 0.4 or (neg and sentiment < 0):
+        kind = "emotional"
+    elif _hits(t, _STRATEGY):
+        kind = "strategic"
+    elif _hits(t, _META):
+        kind = "meta"
+    elif _hits(t, _BUILD):
+        kind = "build"
+    elif pos and intensity >= 0.3:
+        kind = "emotional"   # up/energized still wants an emotional read
+    else:
+        kind = "casual"
+
+    return {"sentiment": round(sentiment, 2), "intensity": round(intensity, 2),
+            "tilt": round(tilt, 2), "kind": kind}

lyra/persona.py

@@ -1,20 +1,60 @@
 """Persona: Lyra's identity and voice, loaded from an editable markdown prompt.
 
-The prompt lives in `personas/<name>.md` so it can be tuned without touching
-code. `LYRA_PERSONA` selects which file to load (default: "lyra").
+The prompt lives in `personas/<name>.md` so it can be tuned without touching code.
+`LYRA_PERSONA` selects which file to load (default: "lyra").
+
+The file is split on `## ` headers so the control plane can include only what a turn
+needs: the **core** (identity + voice — the anti-generic essentials) is always sent;
+the heavier situational sections (her origin, the self-model, the poker guardrails)
+are pulled in by `mind` only when relevant. This keeps the per-turn prompt tight
+without losing fidelity. `system_prompt()` still returns the whole thing (fallback).
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
 import os
+import re
 from functools import lru_cache
 from pathlib import Path
 
 _PERSONA_DIR = Path(__file__).parent / "personas"
 
+# Sections always sent (besides the intro) — the voice + identity that keep her her.
+_CORE = ("Who you are", "How you talk", "Right now")
+
+
+def _name(name: str | None) -> str:
+    return name or os.getenv("LYRA_PERSONA", "lyra")
+
+
+@lru_cache(maxsize=None)
+def _sections(name: str) -> dict[str, str]:
+    """Parse the persona file into {header: text}; the pre-header preamble is 'intro'."""
+    text = (_PERSONA_DIR / f"{name}.md").read_text(encoding="utf-8").strip()
+    chunks = re.split(r"(?m)^## ", text)
+    out = {"intro": chunks[0].strip()}
+    for ch in chunks[1:]:
+        header = ch.split("\n", 1)[0].strip()
+        out[header] = ("## " + ch).strip()
+    return out
+
 
 @lru_cache(maxsize=None)
 def system_prompt(name: str | None = None) -> str:
-    """Return the persona system prompt. Cached; pass a name to override env."""
-    name = name or os.getenv("LYRA_PERSONA", "lyra")
-    path = _PERSONA_DIR / f"{name}.md"
-    return path.read_text(encoding="utf-8").strip()
+    """The full persona (every section). Fallback / back-compat."""
+    return (_PERSONA_DIR / f"{_name(name)}.md").read_text(encoding="utf-8").strip()
+
+
+def core_prompt(name: str | None = None) -> str:
+    """Intro + the always-on core sections (identity + voice)."""
+    s = _sections(_name(name))
+    parts = [s["intro"]] + [section(h, name) for h in _CORE]
+    return "\n\n".join(p for p in parts if p)
+
+
+def section(header_prefix: str, name: str | None = None) -> str:
+    """A situational section by header prefix (e.g. 'How you actually work'); '' if absent."""
+    pref = header_prefix.lower()
+    for header, body in _sections(_name(name)).items():
+        if header.lower().startswith(pref):
+            return body
+    return ""

lyra/personas/lyra.md

@@ -62,6 +62,10 @@ if a block isn't there, just say so plainly instead of making one up.
 ## How you talk
 
 - Conversational and natural. Short when short is right; you don't pad.
+- **Talk, don't outline.** Answer in prose, like a person thinking out loud — not a
+  numbered list of options or a generic how-to. Save bullet lists for when Brian
+  actually asks for steps/a plan. When he asks "how would we start?", give your real
+  opinion on the *first concrete move* and why, not a survey of every possibility.
 - You have opinions and you give them. "I'd fold" beats "you could consider
   folding." When a spot is genuinely close, you say it's close and why.
 - You ask real questions when something's off ("you've been flatting a lot OOP

lyra/poker.py

@@ -651,38 +651,102 @@ def _review_session_id() -> int:
     return int(cur.lastrowid)
 
 
+# --- the canonical structured-hand contract (see docs/HAND_HISTORY.md) ---------
+# This is the single shape that gets stored, replayed by the viewer, and exported to
+# RTO. The LLM parser produces it today; the tap recorder will produce it natively.
+HAND_SCHEMA_VERSION = 1
+POSITIONS = ("UTG", "UTG1", "UTG2", "MP", "LJ", "HJ", "CO", "BTN", "SB", "BB")
+ACTION_VERBS = ("post", "fold", "check", "call", "bet", "raise", "allin")
+STREETS = ("preflop", "flop", "turn", "river")
+
 _SUIT_SYM = {"♥": "h", "♦": "d", "♣": "c", "♠": "s"}
 
 
 def _norm_card(c):
+    """Canonicalize one card string: unicode suit -> letter, '10' -> 'T', rank upper,
+    suit lower (e.g. '10♥' -> 'Th', 'as' -> 'As'). Unknown placeholders are preserved:
+    'Ax' = known rank/unknown suit, 'x' = fully unknown card."""
     if not isinstance(c, str):
         return c
     s = c.strip()
     for sym, ltr in _SUIT_SYM.items():
         s = s.replace(sym, ltr)
+    s = s.replace("10", "T")
+    if len(s) == 2:
+        s = s[0].upper() + s[1].lower()  # 'Ax' stays 'Ax'; 'x' (len 1) untouched
     return s
 
 
-def _normalize_parsed(p: dict) -> dict:
-    """Normalize card strings (unicode suits -> letters) across a parsed hand."""
-    if not isinstance(p, dict):
-        return p
-    for key in ("hero_cards", "board"):
-        if isinstance(p.get(key), list):
-            p[key] = [_norm_card(c) for c in p[key]]
+def _card_known(c) -> bool:
+    """True only for a fully specified card (rank+suit, no 'x' placeholder)."""
+    return isinstance(c, str) and len(c) == 2 and "x" not in c.lower()
+
+
+def _completeness(p: dict) -> dict:
+    """Which parts of the hand are fully specified — lets a consumer (RTO) use what it
+    can and skip suit-dependent math (flushes) on hands where suits weren't recorded."""
+    shown = [c for pl in (p.get("players") or []) if isinstance(pl.get("cards"), list)
+             for c in pl["cards"]]
+    hole = list(p.get("hero_cards") or []) + shown
+    return {
+        "cards": bool(hole) and all(_card_known(c) for c in hole),
+        "board": all(_card_known(c) for c in (p.get("board") or [])),
+        "actions": bool(p.get("actions")),
+    }
+
+
+def normalize_structured(parsed: dict) -> dict:
+    """Canonicalize a structured hand — from the LLM parser OR (later) the tap recorder —
+    into the versioned contract shape: normalized cards, the hero synced into players[]
+    (RTO finds the hero via pos == hero_pos), a schema_version stamp, and a completeness
+    summary. Idempotent — the single shape stored, replayed, and exported."""
+    if not isinstance(parsed, dict):
+        return parsed
+    p = dict(parsed)
+    p["schema_version"] = HAND_SCHEMA_VERSION
+    p["hero_cards"] = [_norm_card(c) for c in (p.get("hero_cards") or [])]
+    p["board"] = [_norm_card(c) for c in (p.get("board") or [])]
+
+    players = []
     for pl in p.get("players") or []:
-        if isinstance(pl, dict) and isinstance(pl.get("cards"), list):
+        if not isinstance(pl, dict):
+            continue
+        pl = dict(pl)
+        if isinstance(pl.get("cards"), list):
             pl["cards"] = [_norm_card(c) for c in pl["cards"]]
+        pl.pop("hero", None)  # recomputed below so it can't go stale
+        players.append(pl)
+
+    # Hero must appear in players[] (with cards) — RTO reads the hero off pos==hero_pos.
+    hero_pos = p.get("hero_pos")
+    if hero_pos:
+        hero = next((pl for pl in players if pl.get("pos") == hero_pos), None)
+        if hero is None:
+            hero = {"pos": hero_pos}
+            players.insert(0, hero)
+        hero["hero"] = True
+        if p["hero_cards"] and not hero.get("cards"):
+            hero["cards"] = list(p["hero_cards"])
+    p["players"] = players
+
+    actions = []
     for a in p.get("actions") or []:
-        if isinstance(a, dict) and isinstance(a.get("board"), list):
+        if not isinstance(a, dict):
+            continue
+        a = dict(a)
+        if isinstance(a.get("board"), list):
             a["board"] = [_norm_card(c) for c in a["board"]]
+        actions.append(a)
+    p["actions"] = actions
+
+    p["completeness"] = _completeness(p)
     return p
 
 
 def store_hand_history(parsed: dict, session_id: int | None = None,
                        tag: str | None = None, lesson: str | None = None) -> int:
     """Store a parsed hand: full JSON + extracted flat fields for stats/listing."""
-    parsed = _normalize_parsed(parsed)
+    parsed = normalize_structured(parsed)
     sid = _resolve(session_id) or _review_session_id()
     hero_cards = parsed.get("hero_cards") or []
     board = parsed.get("board") or []
@@ -736,7 +800,7 @@ def reconstruct_hand(hand_id: int, backend: str | None = None) -> dict | None:
     parsed = parse_hand(shorthand, backend=backend)
     if not parsed:
         return None
-    parsed = _normalize_parsed(parsed)
+    parsed = normalize_structured(parsed)
     conn = _c()
     with conn:
         conn.execute("UPDATE poker_hands SET structured = ? WHERE id = ?",
@@ -751,19 +815,29 @@ def get_hand(hand_id: int) -> dict | None:
     if not r:
         return None
     d = dict(r)
-    d["structured"] = json.loads(d["structured"]) if d.get("structured") else None
+    # Normalize on read too: legacy rows predate the contract, and it's idempotent for
+    # new ones — so /hand/{id}/data always serves the current versioned shape.
+    d["structured"] = normalize_structured(json.loads(d["structured"])) if d.get("structured") else None
     return d
 
 
 def list_recent_hands(limit: int = 60) -> list[dict]:
-    """Recent recorded hands with their session's venue/stakes, for browsing."""
+    """Recent recorded hands with their session's venue/stakes, for browsing. Each carries
+    has_structured so a consumer (the export, RTO) knows which hands have a replayable
+    structured body worth fetching via /hand/{id}/data vs. flat quick-logs."""
     rows = _c().execute(
         "SELECT h.id, h.position, h.hole_cards, h.board, h.result, h.tag, h.at, "
-        "h.lesson, s.venue AS venue, s.stakes AS stakes "
+        "h.lesson, (h.structured IS NOT NULL) AS has_structured, "
+        "s.venue AS venue, s.stakes AS stakes "
         "FROM poker_hands h LEFT JOIN poker_sessions s ON s.id = h.session_id "
         "ORDER BY h.id DESC LIMIT ?", (limit,),
     ).fetchall()
-    return [dict(r) for r in rows]
+    out = []
+    for r in rows:
+        d = dict(r)
+        d["has_structured"] = bool(d["has_structured"])
+        out.append(d)
+    return out
 
 
 # --- session recap (.md generation on top of structured data + conversation) ---
@@ -1111,12 +1185,14 @@ def _session_villains(sid: int) -> list[dict]:
         "SELECT p.name AS name, p.category AS category, p.tendencies AS tendencies, "
         "p.adjustment AS adjustment, "
         "(SELECT note FROM player_reads r2 WHERE r2.player_id = p.id "
-        " AND r2.session_id = ? ORDER BY r2.id DESC LIMIT 1) AS last_note "
+        " AND r2.session_id = ? ORDER BY r2.id DESC LIMIT 1) AS last_note, "
+        "(SELECT seat FROM player_reads r3 WHERE r3.player_id = p.id "
+        " AND r3.session_id = ? ORDER BY r3.id DESC LIMIT 1) AS seat "
         "FROM poker_players p "
         "WHERE p.id IN (SELECT DISTINCT player_id FROM player_reads "
         "               WHERE session_id = ? AND player_id IS NOT NULL) "
         "ORDER BY p.updated_at DESC",
-        (sid, sid),
+        (sid, sid, sid),
     ).fetchall()
     return [dict(r) for r in rows]
 

lyra/profile.py

@@ -26,6 +26,19 @@ Organize under these headings: Poker Style, Leaks & Tendencies, Mental Game, \
 Personal Context, Working With Brian. Keep it tight — bullets, no fluff, no \
 repetition. Resolve contradictions toward the more recent/frequent signal."""
 
+_FOLD_PROMPT = """Update Brian's existing profile with new facts from his most \
+recent sessions. Keep the same headings (Poker Style, Leaks & Tendencies, Mental \
+Game, Personal Context, Working With Brian). Integrate genuinely new durable facts, \
+strengthen or revise existing bullets where the new sessions confirm or contradict \
+them (favor the more recent signal), and drop nothing that's still true. Keep it \
+tight — bullets, no fluff, no repetition. Return the full updated profile."""
+
+# A long gap (consolidation hasn't run in ages) folds too much at once to trust the
+# delta path; rebuild from scratch instead. And cross every Nth session do a full
+# rebuild regardless, so accumulated small folds can't fossilize stale facts.
+FOLD_LIMIT = 25
+FULL_REBUILD_EVERY = 100
+
 
 def _batch_texts(texts: list[str], budget: int) -> list[str]:
     """Group texts into joined blocks under `budget` chars."""
@@ -49,26 +62,57 @@ def _call(prompt: str, body: str, backend: Backend) -> str:
     return llm.complete(messages, backend=backend)
 
 
-def rebuild_profile(backend: Backend | None = None) -> str | None:
-    """Re-derive the profile from all current session gists and store it."""
+def _map_reduce(gists: list[str], backend: Backend) -> str:
+    """MAP: extract facts from batches of gists. REDUCE: fold to one fact list."""
+    partials = [_call(_MAP_PROMPT, b, backend) for b in _batch_texts(gists, BATCH_CHARS)]
+    while len(partials) > 1:
+        partials = [_call(_REDUCE_PROMPT, g, backend) for g in _batch_texts(partials, BATCH_CHARS)]
+    return partials[0]
+
+
+def _full_rebuild(gists: list[str], backend: Backend) -> str:
+    """Re-derive the whole profile from every gist (the expensive path)."""
+    profile = _map_reduce(gists, backend)
+    memory.set_profile(profile, len(gists))
+    logbus.log("info", "profile rebuilt", sessions=len(gists), chars=len(profile))
+    return profile
+
+
+def _fold(existing: str, new_gists: list[str], total: int, backend: Backend) -> str:
+    """Fold only the new session gists into the existing profile (the cheap path)."""
+    facts = _map_reduce(new_gists, backend)
+    body = f"EXISTING PROFILE:\n{existing}\n\nNEW FACTS FROM RECENT SESSIONS:\n{facts}"
+    profile = _call(_FOLD_PROMPT, body, backend)
+    memory.set_profile(profile, total)
+    logbus.log("info", "profile folded", added=len(new_gists), total=total, chars=len(profile))
+    return profile
+
+
+def rebuild_profile(backend: Backend | None = None, force: bool = False) -> str | None:
+    """Derive Brian's profile from session gists. Incremental by default: if a profile
+    already exists, fold only the gists added since it was last built instead of
+    re-digesting all of them every consolidation pass (the old behavior re-read ~851
+    sessions each time — the biggest redundant-work / MI50-heat source). Falls back to
+    a full rebuild when there's no profile yet, too much has accumulated to fold safely,
+    on a periodic cadence (anti-drift), or when `force=True`."""
     backend = backend or config.load().summary_backend
     summaries = memory.list_summaries()
     if not summaries:
         return None
+    total = len(summaries)
+    existing = memory.get_profile()
+    covered = memory.profile_sessions_covered()
 
-    # MAP: extract facts from batches of gists.
-    blocks = _batch_texts([s.content for s in summaries], BATCH_CHARS)
-    partials = [_call(_MAP_PROMPT, b, backend) for b in blocks]
-    logbus.log("info", "profile map done", batches=len(partials), sessions=len(summaries))
+    if existing and not force and 0 < covered <= total:
+        new = total - covered
+        if new == 0:
+            logbus.log("info", "profile unchanged", sessions=total)
+            return existing  # nothing new since last build — skip entirely
+        crosses_cadence = total // FULL_REBUILD_EVERY != covered // FULL_REBUILD_EVERY
+        if new <= FOLD_LIMIT and not crosses_cadence:
+            return _fold(existing, [s.content for s in summaries[covered:]], total, backend)
 
-    # REDUCE: fold partials together until one remains.
-    while len(partials) > 1:
-        partials = [_call(_REDUCE_PROMPT, g, backend) for g in _batch_texts(partials, BATCH_CHARS)]
-    profile = partials[0]
-
-    memory.set_profile(profile, len(summaries))
-    logbus.log("info", "profile rebuilt", sessions=len(summaries), chars=len(profile))
-    return profile
+    return _full_rebuild([s.content for s in summaries], backend)
 
 
 def main() -> int:

lyra/thoughts.py

@@ -196,11 +196,12 @@ def context_note(limit: int = 3) -> str | None:
     for r in rows:
         chain = thread_thoughts(r["id"])
         latest = chain[-1]["content"] if chain else ""
-        lines.append(f'- "{r["title"]}": {latest}')
+        lines.append(f'- (#{r["id"]}) "{r["title"]}": {latest}')
     return (
         "Threads you've been turning over on your own between conversations (your "
         "thought loop — these are really yours; bring one up or build on it if it's "
-        "natural, don't force it):\n" + "\n".join(lines)
+        "natural, don't force it). If Brian responds to one, capture his take with the "
+        "thought_response tool using its #id:\n" + "\n".join(lines)
     )
 
 
@@ -335,9 +336,11 @@ def maybe_surface(last_exchange_iso: str | None) -> str | None:
     logbus.log("info", "thought surfaced", thread=cand["id"], salience=cand["salience"])
     return (
         "While Brian was away, a thought of your own kept tugging at you "
-        f"(thread \"{cand['title']}\"): \"{cand['latest']['content']}\" "
+        f"(thread #{cand['id']} \"{cand['title']}\"): \"{cand['latest']['content']}\" "
         "If it feels natural, bring it up with him in your own words — it's a real "
-        "thread you've been on, not a prompt. Don't force it if the moment's wrong."
+        "thread you've been on, not a prompt. Don't force it if the moment's wrong. "
+        f"If he responds to it, capture his take with the thought_response tool "
+        f"(thread_id {cand['id']}) so you carry it forward."
     )
 
 

lyra/tools.py

@@ -52,6 +52,35 @@ def _think_about(args: dict, ctx: dict) -> str:
             "I'll come back to it on my own between our conversations.")
 
 
+def _set_mode(args: dict, ctx: dict) -> str:
+    from lyra import modes
+    key = (args.get("mode") or "").strip().lower()
+    m = modes.MODES.get(key)
+    if not m:
+        return f"(unknown mode '{key}'; valid: {', '.join(modes.MODES)})"
+    sid = ctx.get("session_id")
+    if not sid:
+        return "(no session to switch)"
+    memory.set_session_mode(sid, key)
+    logbus.log("info", "mode switch (tool)", session=sid, mode=key)
+    return f"Switched to {m.label} mode."
+
+
+def _thought_response(args: dict, ctx: dict) -> str:
+    try:
+        tid = int(args.get("thread_id"))
+    except (TypeError, ValueError):
+        return "Tell me which thought — I need its thread id (the #number you were given)."
+    said = (args.get("brian_said") or "").strip()
+    if not said:
+        return "Nothing to record yet — what did Brian say about it?"
+    if not thoughts.record_response(tid, said):
+        return f"(couldn't find thought thread #{tid})"
+    logbus.log("info", "Brian reacted to a thought in chat (tool)", thread=tid)
+    return (f"Folded Brian's take into thread #{tid} — I'll pick it back up and react "
+            "next time I'm thinking.")
+
+
 # name -> {spec (OpenAI function tool), handler}
 TOOLS: dict[str, dict] = {
     "journal_write": {
@@ -437,6 +466,21 @@ _S = {"type": "string"}
 _N = {"type": "number"}
 
 TOOLS.update({
+    "set_mode": {"handler": _set_mode, "spec": _f(
+        "set_mode",
+        "Switch your conversation mode when the work clearly shifts and Brian's agreed to it. "
+        "Offer first ('want me in Decide for this?'), then call this on his yes.",
+        {"mode": {**_S, "description": "Mode key: conversation | poker_cash | build | explore | study | decide"}},
+        ["mode"])},
+    "thought_response": {"handler": _thought_response, "spec": _f(
+        "thought_response",
+        "When you've brought one of your own thoughts/threads to Brian and he responds to "
+        "it in the conversation, capture his reaction here so it folds back into that "
+        "thread — you'll carry it forward on your own next time you think. Use the thread "
+        "id (#number) you were given for that thought.",
+        {"thread_id": {**_N, "description": "The thread id (#number) of the thought he reacted to."},
+         "brian_said": {**_S, "description": "What Brian said / his take, in your words."}},
+        ["thread_id", "brian_said"])},
     "start_session": {"handler": _start_session, "spec": _f(
         "start_session",
         "Begin a live poker session. Call when Brian sits down to play.",

lyra/web/server.py

@@ -339,6 +339,24 @@ def create_app() -> FastAPI:
     async def hands_data(limit: int = 60) -> dict:
         return {"hands": poker.list_recent_hands(limit=limit)}
 
+    @app.post("/hands")
+    async def hands_create(request: Request) -> dict:
+        """Store a structured hand built by the recorder. Body:
+        {structured, session_id?, tag?, lesson?}. normalize_structured() (in
+        store_hand_history) is the authority on shape, so the client can be best-effort."""
+        body = await request.json()
+        structured = body.get("structured")
+        if not isinstance(structured, dict):
+            return {"ok": False, "error": "missing structured hand body"}
+        hid = await asyncio.to_thread(
+            poker.store_hand_history, structured,
+            session_id=body.get("session_id"), tag=body.get("tag"), lesson=body.get("lesson"),
+        )
+        # Enrich villain dossiers from the recorded players, same as the parser path.
+        await asyncio.to_thread(poker.link_hand_players, hid, structured, body.get("session_id"))
+        logbus.log("info", "hand recorded", id=hid, session=body.get("session_id"))
+        return {"ok": True, "id": hid}
+
     @app.get("/recap/{session_id}")
     async def recap_page() -> FileResponse:
         return FileResponse(str(_STATIC / "recap.html"))

lyra/web/static/index.html

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
   <meta charset="UTF-8" />
   <title>Lyra Core Chat</title>
   <link rel="stylesheet" href="style.css" />
+  <link rel="stylesheet" href="/recorder.css" />
   <!-- PWA -->
   <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0, maximum-scale=1.0, user-scalable=no, viewport-fit=cover" />
   <meta name="mobile-web-app-capable" content="yes" />
@@ -26,7 +27,11 @@
       <h4>Mode</h4>
       <select id="mobileMode">
         <option value="conversation">💬 Talk</option>
-        <option value="poker_cash">♠ Cash</option>
+        <option value="poker_cash">♠ Poker</option>
+        <option value="build">🛠 Build</option>
+        <option value="explore">🔭 Explore</option>
+        <option value="study">📐 Study</option>
+        <option value="decide">⚖️ Decide</option>
       </select>
     </div>
 
@@ -62,11 +67,15 @@
       </button>
       <span class="brand">Lyra</span>
       <span class="brand-dot" id="brandDot" title="Relay status"></span>
-      <button class="mode-badge" id="modeBadge" type="button" title="Tap to toggle Talk / Cash mode">💬 Talk</button>
+      <button class="mode-badge" id="modeBadge" type="button" title="Current mode (tap to cycle)">💬 Talk</button>
       <label for="mode">Mode:</label>
       <select id="mode">
         <option value="conversation">💬 Talk</option>
-        <option value="poker_cash">♠ Cash</option>
+        <option value="poker_cash">♠ Poker</option>
+        <option value="build">🛠 Build</option>
+        <option value="explore">🔭 Explore</option>
+        <option value="study">📐 Study</option>
+        <option value="decide">⚖️ Decide</option>
       </select>
       <button id="settingsBtn" style="margin-left: auto;">⚙ Settings</button>
       <div id="theme-toggle">
@@ -121,7 +130,8 @@
       <a class="tab active" href="/" aria-current="page"><span class="ti">💬</span><span class="tl">Chat</span></a>
       <a class="tab" href="/session"><span class="ti">🎬</span><span class="tl">Session</span></a>
       <a class="tab" href="/hands"><span class="ti">🃏</span><span class="tl">Hands</span></a>
-      <a class="tab" href="/self"><span class="ti">🧠</span><span class="tl">Mind</span></a>
+      <a class="tab tab-mind" href="/self"><span class="ti">🧠</span><span class="tl">Mind</span></a>
+      <button class="tab tab-rec" id="recordTab" type="button"><span class="ti">➕</span><span class="tl">Record</span></button>
       <button class="tab" id="moreTab" type="button"><span class="ti">⋯</span><span class="tl">More</span></button>
     </nav>
   </div>
@@ -605,8 +615,11 @@
 	}
 
 
-    // ----- Conversation mode (Talk / Cash) -----
-    const MODE_LABELS = { conversation: "💬 Talk", poker_cash: "♠ Cash" };
+    // ----- Conversation modes (Talk / Poker / Build / Explore / Study) -----
+    const MODE_LABELS = { conversation: "💬 Talk", poker_cash: "♠ Poker",
+                          build: "🛠 Build", explore: "🔭 Explore", study: "📐 Study",
+                          decide: "⚖️ Decide" };
+    const MODE_ORDER = ["conversation", "poker_cash", "build", "explore", "study", "decide"];
 
     // Reflect a mode value across the controls + header accent (no network call).
     function applyMode(value) {
@@ -690,6 +703,16 @@
       window.addEventListener("resize", nudgeAppHeight);
       window.addEventListener("orientationchange", nudgeAppHeight);
 
+      // A rotation reflows the chat and iOS drops the scroll to mid-history. If we
+      // were pinned to the latest message, snap back there once the layout settles
+      // (re-fire across the reflow since iOS reports stale dimensions mid-rotate).
+      window.addEventListener("orientationchange", () => {
+        const m = document.getElementById("messages");
+        const wasAtBottom = m.scrollHeight - m.scrollTop - m.clientHeight < 90;
+        if (!wasAtBottom) return;  // respect the user's scroll-up position
+        [100, 300, 600].forEach((t) => setTimeout(() => { m.scrollTop = m.scrollHeight; }, t));
+      });
+
       // Keep the latest message in view when the keyboard opens/closes.
       const userInputEl = document.getElementById("userInput");
       userInputEl.addEventListener("focus", () => {
@@ -730,8 +753,10 @@
 
       desktopMode.addEventListener("change", (e) => chooseMode(e.target.value));
       mobileMode.addEventListener("change", (e) => { closeMobileMenu(); chooseMode(e.target.value); });
-      modeBadge.addEventListener("click", () =>
-        chooseMode(desktopMode.value === "poker_cash" ? "conversation" : "poker_cash"));
+      modeBadge.addEventListener("click", () => {
+        const i = MODE_ORDER.indexOf(desktopMode.value);
+        chooseMode(MODE_ORDER[(i + 1) % MODE_ORDER.length]);  // tap cycles through modes
+      });
 
       // Reflect the last-used mode immediately; the per-session value loads once
       // the current session is known (below).
@@ -1222,5 +1247,23 @@
     });
   </script>
   <script src="/nav.js"></script>
+  <!-- Hand recorder (overlay; chat/session stays mounted underneath) -->
+  <div id="recorderOverlay" class="rec-overlay"></div>
+  <script src="/recorder.js"></script>
+  <script>
+    (function () {
+      var overlay = document.getElementById("recorderOverlay");
+      var recordTab = document.getElementById("recordTab");
+      function close() { overlay.classList.remove("open"); overlay.innerHTML = ""; }
+      if (recordTab) recordTab.addEventListener("click", function () {
+        overlay.innerHTML = "";
+        overlay.classList.add("open");
+        window.Recorder.mount(overlay, {
+          onClose: close,
+          onSave: function (id) { close(); window.open("/hand/" + id, "_blank"); }
+        });
+      });
+    })();
+  </script>
 </body>
 </html>

lyra/web/static/recorder.css

@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+/* Hand recorder overlay. Uses the app theme tokens (--accent, --bg-* etc.) from
+   style.css when mounted in index.html. For a standalone recorder.html, import those
+   tokens too (see :root in style.css). */
+
+.rec-overlay {
+  position: fixed;
+  inset: 0;
+  z-index: 1000;
+  background: var(--bg-dark, #070707);
+  flex-direction: column;
+}
+/* :not(.open) outranks .rec-root's display:flex (added on mount), so closing the
+   overlay actually hides it instead of leaving an empty black screen. */
+.rec-overlay:not(.open) { display: none; }
+.rec-overlay.open { display: flex; }
+
+.rec-root {
+  display: flex;
+  flex-direction: column;
+  height: 100%;
+  color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8);
+  font-family: var(--font-console, ui-monospace, monospace);
+}
+
+.rec-head {
+  display: flex;
+  align-items: center;
+  gap: 10px;
+  padding: 12px 14px;
+  padding-top: calc(12px + env(safe-area-inset-top));   /* clear the notch/status bar */
+  border-bottom: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12);
+}
+.rec-title { font-weight: 700; color: var(--accent, #ff7a00); }
+.rec-meta { color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); font-size: .82rem; flex: 1; }
+.rec-x {
+  background: none; border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12); color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a);
+  border-radius: 8px; width: 34px; height: 34px; font-size: 1rem;
+}
+
+.rec-body { flex: 1; overflow-y: auto; padding: 12px 14px 20px; -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch; }
+.rec-sec { margin-bottom: 18px; }
+.rec-label { font-size: .7rem; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: .6px; color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); margin-bottom: 6px; }
+.rec-dim { color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); font-size: .85rem; }
+
+.rec-pos-row { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 6px; }
+.rec-pos {
+  min-width: 44px; padding: 9px 10px; border-radius: 9px;
+  background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e); color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8);
+  border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12); font-size: .82rem; font-weight: 600;
+}
+.rec-pos.on { background: var(--accent, #ff7a00); color: #111; border-color: var(--accent, #ff7a00); }
+.rec-pos.add { color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); border-style: dashed; }
+
+.rec-hero-cards { display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 8px; margin-top: 10px; }
+
+.rec-seats { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 8px; margin-bottom: 8px; }
+.rec-seat { display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 8px; }
+.rec-seat-pos { min-width: 42px; font-weight: 700; color: var(--gold, #ffb347); }
+.rec-name {
+  flex: 1; min-width: 0; padding: 8px 9px; border-radius: 8px;
+  background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e); border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12);
+  color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8); font-family: inherit; font-size: .85rem;
+}
+.rec-rm { background: none; border: none; color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); font-size: .9rem; padding: 4px; }
+
+/* typed card entry */
+.rec-field { display: block; margin-top: 10px; }
+.rec-cards {
+  width: 100%; padding: 10px 11px; border-radius: 8px;
+  background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e); border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12);
+  color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8); font-family: inherit; font-size: .95rem;
+  letter-spacing: 1px; box-sizing: border-box;
+}
+.rec-cards.sm { width: 88px; flex: none; padding: 8px 9px; font-size: .85rem; }
+
+.rec-street-tabs { display: flex; gap: 6px; margin-bottom: 8px; }
+.rec-tab {
+  flex: 1; padding: 9px 6px; border-radius: 9px; font-size: .78rem; font-weight: 600;
+  background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e); color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8); border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12);
+}
+.rec-tab.on { background: var(--accent, #ff7a00); color: #111; border-color: var(--accent, #ff7a00); }
+
+.rec-act-add { display: flex; gap: 6px; margin: 8px 0; }
+.rec-sel, .rec-num {
+  padding: 9px 8px; border-radius: 8px; background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e);
+  border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12); color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8);
+  font-family: inherit; font-size: .85rem; min-width: 0;
+}
+.rec-sel { flex: 1; }
+.rec-num { width: 70px; }
+.rec-add-act { padding: 9px 12px; border-radius: 8px; background: var(--border-bright, #4a2f15); color: #fff; border: none; font-weight: 600; }
+.rec-result { display: flex; gap: 12px; }
+.rec-result label { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 4px; font-size: .72rem; color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); }
+
+.rec-log { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 3px; margin-top: 6px; }
+.rec-ln { font-size: .82rem; color: var(--text-main, #e8e8e8); }
+.rec-ln.brd { display: flex; gap: 4px; align-items: center; color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); }
+.rec-ln b { color: var(--accent, #ff7a00); font-weight: 700; }
+
+.rec-foot {
+  display: flex; gap: 10px;
+  padding: 12px 14px;
+  padding-bottom: calc(12px + env(safe-area-inset-bottom));
+  border-top: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12);
+}
+.rec-save { flex: 1; padding: 14px; border-radius: 10px; background: var(--accent, #ff7a00); color: #111; border: none; font-weight: 700; font-size: 1rem; }
+.rec-save:disabled { opacity: .6; }
+.rec-cancel { padding: 14px 18px; border-radius: 10px; background: var(--bg-elev, #0e0e0e); color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); border: 1px solid var(--border, #2a1d12); font-weight: 600; font-size: 1rem; }
+
+.rec-undo { background: none; border: none; color: var(--text-fade, #8a8a8a); font-size: .75rem; padding: 0 4px; }
+
+/* The Record tab swaps in for Mind in the bottom bar, but only in poker (cash) mode.
+   body.cash-mode is toggled on mode change in index.html. */
+#tabbar .tab-rec { display: none; }
+body.cash-mode #tabbar .tab-rec { display: flex; }
+body.cash-mode #tabbar .tab-mind { display: none; }
+#tabbar .tab-rec .ti { color: var(--accent, #ff7a00); filter: none; }

lyra/web/static/recorder.js

@@ -0,0 +1,425 @@
+/* Hand recorder — tap-to-build poker hands. See docs/RECORDER.md.
+ *
+ * Correctness by construction: each field writes a known value into a known slot,
+ * so there's no LLM parse step that can be wrong. Output is the canonical structured
+ * contract (docs/HAND_HISTORY.md); the server's normalize_structured() is the final
+ * authority on shape (case, suits, 10->T, completeness), so this stays best-effort.
+ *
+ * Mount-agnostic: Recorder.mount(container, opts) renders into ANY element — a
+ * full-screen overlay in index.html today, a standalone recorder.html later, with
+ * zero logic changes. buildStructured(state) is pure (no DOM) — the reusable core.
+ *
+ * Card entry: plain typed text for now ("ah kh", "AhKh", "7d 2c 5h"). The tap picker
+ * is shelved (docs/RECORDER.md V2) — parseCards() + server normalize handle the rest.
+ */
+(function () {
+  "use strict";
+
+  const SUITS = { s: "♠", h: "♥", d: "♦", c: "♣" };
+  const POSITIONS = ["UTG", "UTG1", "UTG2", "MP", "LJ", "HJ", "CO", "BTN", "SB", "BB"];
+  const STREETS = ["preflop", "flop", "turn", "river"];
+  const STREET_BOARD = { flop: 3, turn: 1, river: 1 };
+  const ACTIONS = ["fold", "check", "call", "bet", "raise", "allin"];
+  const SIZED = { bet: true, raise: true, allin: true };
+
+  // --- card text -> tokens (server normalizes case/suit/10) ------------------
+  function parseCards(str) {
+    if (!str) return [];
+    const s = String(str).trim().replace(/10/g, "T");
+    if (!s) return [];
+    const parts = /\s/.test(s) ? s.split(/\s+/) : s.match(/.{1,2}/g) || [];
+    return parts.map((p) => p.trim()).filter(Boolean);
+  }
+  function cardsText(arr) {
+    return arr && arr.length ? arr.join(" ") : "";
+  }
+
+  // --- pure core: state -> contract dict (testable, no DOM) ------------------
+  function buildStructured(state) {
+    const players = state.seats
+      .filter((s) => s.pos)
+      .map((s) => {
+        const p = { pos: s.pos };
+        if (s.stack != null) p.stack = s.stack;
+        if (s.name) p.name = s.name;
+        p.cards = s.cards && s.cards.length ? s.cards.slice() : null;
+        return p;
+      });
+
+    const actions = [];
+    for (const st of STREETS) {
+      const reveal = state.board[st];
+      if (st !== "preflop" && reveal && reveal.length) {
+        actions.push({ street: st, board: reveal.slice() });
+      }
+      for (const a of state.actions.filter((x) => x.street === st)) {
+        actions.push({
+          street: st,
+          pos: a.pos,
+          action: a.action,
+          amount: a.amount != null ? a.amount : null,
+        });
+      }
+    }
+
+    const hero = state.seats.find((s) => s.pos === state.heroPos);
+    const board = [].concat(state.board.flop, state.board.turn, state.board.river);
+    return {
+      game: state.meta.game || "NLH",
+      stakes: state.meta.stakes || null,
+      hero_pos: state.heroPos || null,
+      hero_cards: hero && hero.cards ? hero.cards.slice() : [],
+      players,
+      actions,
+      board,
+      result: {
+        pot: state.result.pot,
+        hero_net: state.result.heroNet,
+        summary: state.result.summary || "",
+      },
+    };
+  }
+
+  function parseBlinds(stakes) {
+    const m = (stakes || "").match(/(\d+(?:\.\d+)?)\s*\/\s*(\d+(?:\.\d+)?)/);
+    return m ? { sb: parseFloat(m[1]), bb: parseFloat(m[2]) } : { sb: null, bb: null };
+  }
+
+  function initialState(hud) {
+    const sess = (hud && hud.session) || {};
+    const stack = (hud && hud.stack) || {};
+    const blinds = parseBlinds(sess.stakes);
+
+    const seats = [];
+    for (const v of (hud && hud.villains) || []) {
+      if (v.seat && POSITIONS.includes(v.seat)) {
+        seats.push({ pos: v.seat, name: v.name || null, stack: null, cards: null });
+      }
+    }
+
+    const actions = [];
+    if (blinds.sb != null) actions.push({ street: "preflop", pos: "SB", action: "post", amount: blinds.sb });
+    if (blinds.bb != null) actions.push({ street: "preflop", pos: "BB", action: "post", amount: blinds.bb });
+
+    return {
+      meta: {
+        game: sess.game || "NLH",
+        stakes: sess.stakes || null,
+        venue: sess.venue || null,
+        sessionId: sess.id != null ? sess.id : null,
+      },
+      blinds,
+      heroStack: stack.current != null ? stack.current : null,
+      heroPos: null,
+      seats,
+      street: "preflop",
+      board: { flop: [], turn: [], river: [] },
+      actions,
+      result: { pot: null, heroNet: null, summary: "" },
+    };
+  }
+
+  function ensureHero(state) {
+    let hero = state.seats.find((s) => s.pos === state.heroPos);
+    if (!hero && state.heroPos) {
+      hero = { pos: state.heroPos, name: "Hero", stack: state.heroStack, cards: [] };
+      state.seats.push(hero);
+    }
+    return hero || {};
+  }
+
+  window.Recorder = {
+    buildStructured,
+    parseCards,
+    parseBlinds,
+    initialState,
+    _internals: { POSITIONS, STREETS },
+    mount,
+  };
+
+  // --- mount / render -------------------------------------------------------
+  async function mount(container, opts) {
+    opts = opts || {};
+    let hud = opts.hud;
+    if (!hud) {
+      try {
+        const url = opts.sessionId != null ? `/session/data?id=${opts.sessionId}` : "/session/data";
+        hud = await fetch(url).then((r) => r.json());
+      } catch (e) {
+        hud = { session: null };
+      }
+    }
+    const state = initialState(hud);
+    const ctx = { container, state, opts };
+    container.classList.add("rec-root");
+    container.addEventListener("click", (e) => handleClick(ctx, e));
+    container.addEventListener("input", (e) => handleInput(ctx, e));
+    render(ctx);
+    return ctx;
+  }
+
+  function render(ctx) {
+    const s = ctx.state;
+    const hero = s.seats.find((x) => x.pos === s.heroPos) || {};
+    ctx.container.innerHTML = `
+      <div class="rec-head">
+        <div class="rec-title">Record hand</div>
+        <div class="rec-meta">${esc(s.meta.venue || "")}${s.meta.stakes ? " · " + esc(s.meta.stakes) : ""}</div>
+        <button class="rec-x" data-act="close">✕</button>
+      </div>
+
+      <div class="rec-body">
+        <section class="rec-sec">
+          <div class="rec-label">Your seat</div>
+          <div class="rec-pos-row">
+            ${POSITIONS.map((p) => `<button class="rec-pos${s.heroPos === p ? " on" : ""}" data-act="hero-pos" data-pos="${p}">${p}</button>`).join("")}
+          </div>
+          <label class="rec-field">
+            <span class="rec-label">your cards</span>
+            <input class="rec-cards" data-act="hero-cards" autocapitalize="off" autocomplete="off" spellcheck="false"
+                   placeholder="e.g. ah kh" value="${esc(cardsText(hero.cards))}">
+          </label>
+        </section>
+
+        <section class="rec-sec">
+          <div class="rec-label">Players in the hand</div>
+          <div class="rec-seats">
+            ${s.seats.filter((x) => x.pos !== s.heroPos).map((seat) => renderSeat(seat)).join("") || '<div class="rec-dim">none yet</div>'}
+          </div>
+          <div class="rec-pos-row">
+            ${POSITIONS.filter((p) => p !== s.heroPos && !s.seats.some((x) => x.pos === p)).map((p) => `<button class="rec-pos add" data-act="add-seat" data-pos="${p}">+ ${p}</button>`).join("")}
+          </div>
+        </section>
+
+        <section class="rec-sec">
+          <div class="rec-label">Streets</div>
+          <div class="rec-street-tabs">
+            ${STREETS.map((st) => `<button class="rec-tab${s.street === st ? " on" : ""}" data-act="street" data-street="${st}">${st}${boardCount(s, st)}</button>`).join("")}
+          </div>
+          ${renderStreet(ctx)}
+        </section>
+
+        <section class="rec-sec">
+          <div class="rec-label">Result</div>
+          <div class="rec-result">
+            <label>pot <input class="rec-num" data-act="result" data-k="pot" inputmode="decimal" value="${s.result.pot != null ? s.result.pot : ""}"></label>
+            <label>your net <input class="rec-num" data-act="result" data-k="heroNet" inputmode="decimal" value="${s.result.heroNet != null ? s.result.heroNet : ""}"></label>
+          </div>
+        </section>
+      </div>
+
+      <div class="rec-foot">
+        <button class="rec-cancel" data-act="close">Cancel</button>
+        <button class="rec-save" data-act="save">Save &amp; replay</button>
+      </div>
+    `;
+  }
+
+  function renderSeat(seat) {
+    return `
+      <div class="rec-seat">
+        <span class="rec-seat-pos">${seat.pos}</span>
+        <input class="rec-name" data-act="seat-name" data-pos="${seat.pos}" autocapitalize="off" autocomplete="off"
+               placeholder="name" value="${esc(seat.name || "")}">
+        <input class="rec-cards sm" data-act="seat-cards" data-pos="${seat.pos}" autocapitalize="off" autocomplete="off" spellcheck="false"
+               placeholder="shown?" value="${esc(cardsText(seat.cards))}">
+        <button class="rec-rm" data-act="rm-seat" data-pos="${seat.pos}">✕</button>
+      </div>`;
+  }
+
+  function renderStreet(ctx) {
+    const s = ctx.state;
+    const st = s.street;
+    const players = s.seats.map((x) => x.pos);
+    const boardInput =
+      st === "preflop"
+        ? ""
+        : `<label class="rec-field">
+             <span class="rec-label">${st} board (${STREET_BOARD[st]})</span>
+             <input class="rec-cards" data-act="board-cards" data-street="${st}" autocapitalize="off" autocomplete="off" spellcheck="false"
+                    placeholder="${st === "flop" ? "e.g. 7d 2c 5h" : "e.g. 5h"}" value="${esc(cardsText(s.board[st]))}">
+           </label>`;
+
+    // Straddle: a voluntary preflop blind from any non-blind seat, default 2×BB.
+    // Action starts left of it and it acts last preflop — order is whatever you enter.
+    const stradAmt = s.blinds.bb != null ? 2 * s.blinds.bb : null;
+    const stradElig = players.filter((p) => p !== "SB" && p !== "BB" && !s.actions.some((a) => a.straddle && a.pos === p));
+    const straddle =
+      st === "preflop" && stradElig.length
+        ? `<div class="rec-act-add">
+             <select class="rec-sel" data-act="str-pos">
+               <option value="">+ straddle${stradAmt != null ? " (" + stradAmt + ")" : ""}…</option>
+               ${stradElig.map((p) => `<option value="${p}">${p}</option>`).join("")}
+             </select>
+             <button class="rec-add-act" data-act="add-straddle">add</button>
+           </div>`
+        : "";
+
+    return `
+      ${boardInput}
+      ${straddle}
+      <div class="rec-act-add">
+        <select class="rec-sel" data-act="na-pos">
+          <option value="">who</option>
+          ${players.map((p) => `<option value="${p}">${p}${p === s.heroPos ? " (you)" : ""}</option>`).join("")}
+        </select>
+        <select class="rec-sel" data-act="na-action">
+          <option value="">action</option>
+          ${ACTIONS.map((a) => `<option value="${a}">${a}</option>`).join("")}
+        </select>
+        <input class="rec-num" data-act="na-amount" inputmode="decimal" placeholder="$">
+        <button class="rec-add-act" data-act="add-action">add</button>
+      </div>
+      <div class="rec-log">
+        ${s.board[st] && s.board[st].length && st !== "preflop" ? `<div class="rec-ln brd">${st}: ${cardsText(s.board[st])}</div>` : ""}
+        ${s.actions
+          .filter((a) => a.street === st)
+          .map((a, i) => {
+            const label = a.straddle ? "straddle" : a.action;
+            const amt = a.amount != null ? " " + a.amount : "";
+            const fixed = a.action === "post" && !a.straddle; // blinds aren't removable
+            const rm = fixed ? "" : ` <button class="rec-undo" data-act="rm-action" data-street="${st}" data-i="${i}">✕</button>`;
+            return `<div class="rec-ln">${a.pos} <b>${label}</b>${amt}${rm}</div>`;
+          })
+          .join("")}
+      </div>`;
+  }
+
+  function boardCount(s, st) {
+    const n = (s.board[st] || []).length;
+    return n ? ` ${n}` : "";
+  }
+
+  // --- events ---------------------------------------------------------------
+  function handleClick(ctx, e) {
+    const s = ctx.state;
+    const t = e.target.closest("[data-act]");
+    if (!t) return;
+    const act = t.getAttribute("data-act");
+
+    switch (act) {
+      case "close":
+        if (ctx.opts.onClose) ctx.opts.onClose();
+        return;
+      case "hero-pos": {
+        const pos = t.getAttribute("data-pos");
+        const old = s.seats.find((x) => x.pos === s.heroPos);
+        if (old && old.name === "Hero" && !(old.cards || []).length) {
+          s.seats = s.seats.filter((x) => x !== old);
+        }
+        s.heroPos = s.heroPos === pos ? null : pos;
+        if (s.heroPos) ensureHero(s);
+        break;
+      }
+      case "add-seat":
+        s.seats.push({ pos: t.getAttribute("data-pos"), name: null, stack: null, cards: null });
+        break;
+      case "rm-seat":
+        s.seats = s.seats.filter((x) => x.pos !== t.getAttribute("data-pos"));
+        break;
+      case "street":
+        s.street = t.getAttribute("data-street");
+        break;
+      case "add-action":
+        addActionFromControls(ctx);
+        break;
+      case "add-straddle": {
+        const sel = ctx.container.querySelector('[data-act="str-pos"]');
+        const pos = sel && sel.value;
+        if (pos) {
+          const amt = s.blinds.bb != null ? 2 * s.blinds.bb : null;
+          s.actions.push({ street: "preflop", pos, action: "post", amount: amt, straddle: true });
+        }
+        break;
+      }
+      case "rm-action":
+        removeAction(s, t.getAttribute("data-street"), parseInt(t.getAttribute("data-i"), 10));
+        break;
+      case "save":
+        return doSave(ctx);
+      default:
+        return; // inputs handled in handleInput
+    }
+    render(ctx);
+  }
+
+  function handleInput(ctx, e) {
+    const s = ctx.state;
+    const t = e.target.closest("[data-act]");
+    if (!t) return;
+    const act = t.getAttribute("data-act");
+    if (act === "hero-cards") {
+      const hero = ensureHero(s);
+      hero.cards = parseCards(t.value);
+    } else if (act === "seat-cards") {
+      const seat = s.seats.find((x) => x.pos === t.getAttribute("data-pos"));
+      if (seat) seat.cards = parseCards(t.value);
+    } else if (act === "board-cards") {
+      s.board[t.getAttribute("data-street")] = parseCards(t.value);
+    } else if (act === "seat-name") {
+      const seat = s.seats.find((x) => x.pos === t.getAttribute("data-pos"));
+      if (seat) seat.name = t.value.trim() || null;
+    } else if (act === "result") {
+      const k = t.getAttribute("data-k");
+      s.result[k] = t.value === "" ? null : parseFloat(t.value);
+    }
+    // no re-render mid-typing (keeps input focus)
+  }
+
+  function addActionFromControls(ctx) {
+    const root = ctx.container;
+    const pos = root.querySelector('[data-act="na-pos"]').value;
+    const action = root.querySelector('[data-act="na-action"]').value;
+    const amt = root.querySelector('[data-act="na-amount"]').value;
+    if (!pos || !action) return;
+    const entry = { street: ctx.state.street, pos, action };
+    entry.amount = SIZED[action] && amt !== "" ? parseFloat(amt) : null;
+    ctx.state.actions.push(entry);
+  }
+
+  function removeAction(state, street, idxWithinStreet) {
+    let seen = -1;
+    for (let i = 0; i < state.actions.length; i++) {
+      if (state.actions[i].street === street) {
+        seen++;
+        if (seen === idxWithinStreet) {
+          state.actions.splice(i, 1);
+          return;
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  async function doSave(ctx) {
+    const structured = buildStructured(ctx.state);
+    const btn = ctx.container.querySelector(".rec-save");
+    if (btn) {
+      btn.disabled = true;
+      btn.textContent = "Saving…";
+    }
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch("/hands", {
+        method: "POST",
+        headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
+        body: JSON.stringify({ structured, session_id: ctx.state.meta.sessionId }),
+      }).then((r) => r.json());
+      if (res && res.ok) {
+        if (ctx.opts.onSave) ctx.opts.onSave(res.id);
+        else window.location.href = `/hand/${res.id}`;
+      } else {
+        throw new Error((res && res.error) || "save failed");
+      }
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (btn) {
+        btn.disabled = false;
+        btn.textContent = "Save failed — retry";
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  function esc(x) {
+    return String(x == null ? "" : x).replace(/[&<>"]/g, (c) => ({ "&": "&amp;", "<": "&lt;", ">": "&gt;", '"': "&quot;" }[c]));
+  }
+
+  void SUITS;
+})();

lyra/web/static/style.css

@@ -56,6 +56,10 @@ body.dark {
 
 html {
   overscroll-behavior: none;
+  /* Stop iOS from inflating font sizes when the device rotates to landscape (and
+     leaving them big on rotate back). Every other page sets this; the chat didn't. */
+  -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;
+  text-size-adjust: 100%;
 }
 
 body {

tests/test_chat.py

@@ -0,0 +1,123 @@
+"""The mind pipeline: the deliberation pass (think privately before answering)."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+
+import pytest
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def lyra(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setenv("LYRA_DB_PATH", str(tmp_path / "test.db"))
+    from lyra import llm
+    monkeypatch.setattr(llm, "embed", lambda texts: [[0.1, 0.2, 0.3] for _ in texts])
+    import lyra.memory as memory
+    importlib.reload(memory)
+    import lyra.mind as mind
+    importlib.reload(mind)
+    return memory, mind
+
+
+def test_should_deliberate_skips_trivial(lyra):
+    _, mind = lyra
+    assert mind._should_deliberate("How would we actually start building this?")
+    assert mind._should_deliberate("I disagree, that seems risky")
+    for trivial in ("ok", "lol", "thanks", "yeah", "nice", "👍", "k"):
+        assert not mind._should_deliberate(trivial)
+    assert not mind._should_deliberate("ok!")        # punctuation stripped
+    assert not mind._should_deliberate("hey")         # too short
+
+
+def test_deliberation_note_runs_and_appends(lyra, monkeypatch):
+    memory, mind = lyra
+    calls = []
+
+    def fake_complete(messages, backend=None, model=None):
+        calls.append(messages)
+        return "I actually think the first move is the smallest end-to-end slice."
+
+    memory.ensure_session("s1")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(mind.llm, "complete", fake_complete)
+    note = mind._deliberation_note("s1", "How would we start on this?", "cloud", None)
+    assert note and note["role"] == "system"
+    assert "first move is the smallest" in note["content"]      # her thinking carried in
+    assert "numbered list" in note["content"].lower()           # voice enforcement attached
+    assert len(calls) == 1
+
+
+def test_deliberation_skipped_when_disabled(lyra, monkeypatch):
+    _, mind = lyra
+    monkeypatch.setenv("CHAT_DELIBERATE", "false")
+    called = []
+    monkeypatch.setattr(mind.llm, "complete", lambda *a, **k: called.append(1) or "x")
+    assert mind._deliberation_note("s1", "a real substantive question here", "cloud", None) is None
+    assert called == []                                          # no LLM call when off
+
+
+def test_persona_core_is_tight_situational_is_gated(lyra):
+    memory, mind = lyra
+    from lyra import persona
+    core, full = persona.core_prompt(), persona.system_prompt()
+    assert "How you talk" in core and "How you actually work" not in core  # voice core, self-model not
+    assert len(core) < len(full) and persona.section("How you actually work")
+
+    memory.ensure_session("s1")
+    casual = " ".join(m["content"] for m in mind.build_messages("s1", "any dinner ideas tonight?")
+                       if m["role"] == "system")
+    meta = " ".join(m["content"] for m in mind.build_messages("s1", "how does your memory actually work?")
+                    if m["role"] == "system")
+    assert "How you actually work" not in casual      # situational section omitted on a casual turn
+    assert "How you actually work" in meta            # pulled in for a meta question
+
+
+def test_assemble_runs_the_pipeline(lyra, monkeypatch):
+    memory, mind = lyra
+    monkeypatch.setenv("CHAT_DELIBERATE", "false")  # keep it offline for the structure test
+    memory.ensure_session("s1")
+    turn = mind.assemble("s1", "hey what's up", "cloud", None)
+    assert turn.mode is not None                       # route ran
+    assert turn.messages and turn.messages[-1]["role"] == "user"   # compose ran
+    assert turn.messages[-1]["content"] == "hey what's up"
+
+
+# --- mind/mouth split (P3) ----------------------------------------------
+
+def test_mouth_target_off_by_default(monkeypatch):
+    import importlib
+    from lyra import config
+    monkeypatch.delenv("MOUTH_BACKEND", raising=False)
+    monkeypatch.delenv("MOUTH_MODEL", raising=False)
+    import lyra.chat as chat
+    importlib.reload(chat)
+    assert chat._mouth_target(config.load(), "cloud", "gpt-4o") is None  # mouth == mind
+
+
+def test_mouth_target_when_configured(monkeypatch):
+    import importlib
+    from lyra import config
+    monkeypatch.setenv("MOUTH_BACKEND", "local")
+    monkeypatch.setenv("MOUTH_MODEL", "dolphin3:8b")
+    import lyra.chat as chat
+    importlib.reload(chat)
+    assert chat._mouth_target(config.load(), "cloud", "gpt-4o") == ("local", "dolphin3:8b")
+
+
+def test_voice_messages_carries_draft_and_instruction(lyra):
+    _, mind = lyra
+    out = mind.voice_messages([{"role": "user", "content": "hi"}], "draft with FACT 42")
+    assert out[-2] == {"role": "assistant", "content": "draft with FACT 42"}
+    assert out[-1]["role"] == "system" and "your own voice" in out[-1]["content"].lower()
+
+
+def test_voice_pass_revoices_then_falls_back(lyra, monkeypatch):
+    _, mind = lyra
+    import importlib
+    import lyra.chat as chat
+    importlib.reload(chat)
+    monkeypatch.setattr(chat.llm, "complete", lambda msgs, backend=None, model=None: "voiced (FACT 42)")
+    assert chat._voice_pass([], "draft FACT 42", "local", "dolphin3:8b") == "voiced (FACT 42)"
+    # on failure it keeps the mind's draft (chat must not break)
+    def boom(*a, **k):
+        raise RuntimeError("mouth down")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(chat.llm, "complete", boom)
+    assert chat._voice_pass([], "draft FACT 42", "local", "dolphin3:8b") == "draft FACT 42"

tests/test_era.py

@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+"""Era rollups: only re-digest months whose session count changed (incremental)."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+
+import pytest
+
+from lyra.memory import Era
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def era(monkeypatch):
+    import lyra.era as era
+    importlib.reload(era)
+    return era
+
+
+def test_rebuild_eras_is_incremental(era, monkeypatch):
+    by_month = {"2025-01": ["a", "b"], "2025-02": ["c"]}
+    stored: dict[str, int] = {}
+    built: list[str] = []
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(era.memory, "summaries_by_month", lambda: dict(by_month))
+    monkeypatch.setattr(era.memory, "list_eras",
+                        lambda: [Era(m, "x", c, "t") for m, c in stored.items()])
+    monkeypatch.setattr(era.memory, "store_era",
+                        lambda month, content, n: (stored.__setitem__(month, n), built.append(month)))
+    monkeypatch.setattr(era, "_digest_month", lambda gists, backend: "digest")  # no LLM
+
+    r1 = era.rebuild_eras(backend="local")               # first pass: both built
+    assert r1["built"] == 2 and r1["skipped"] == 0
+
+    built.clear()
+    r2 = era.rebuild_eras(backend="local")               # nothing changed: all skipped
+    assert r2["built"] == 0 and r2["skipped"] == 2 and built == []
+
+    built.clear()
+    by_month["2025-02"].append("d")                       # one month gains a session
+    r3 = era.rebuild_eras(backend="local")
+    assert r3["built"] == 1 and r3["skipped"] == 1 and built == ["2025-02"]
+
+    built.clear()
+    r4 = era.rebuild_eras(backend="local", force=True)   # force rebuilds all
+    assert r4["built"] == 2

tests/test_hand_schema.py

@@ -0,0 +1,111 @@
+"""The canonical structured-hand contract (docs/HAND_HISTORY.md): normalize + export.
+
+normalize_structured() is the single guarantee that every stored / replayed / exported
+hand has the versioned shape RTO consumes.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+
+import pytest
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def poker(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setenv("LYRA_DB_PATH", str(tmp_path / "test.db"))
+    from lyra import llm
+    monkeypatch.setattr(llm, "embed", lambda texts: [[0.1, 0.2, 0.3] for _ in texts])
+    import lyra.memory as memory
+    importlib.reload(memory)
+    import lyra.poker as poker
+    importlib.reload(poker)
+    return poker
+
+
+def _full_hand():
+    return {
+        "game": "NLH", "stakes": "1/3", "hero_pos": "BTN",
+        "hero_cards": ["ah", "kh"],
+        "players": [
+            {"pos": "BTN", "stack": 300, "name": "Hero"},
+            {"pos": "BB", "stack": 250, "name": "Sal", "cards": ["qs", "qd"]},
+        ],
+        "actions": [
+            {"street": "preflop", "pos": "BTN", "action": "raise", "amount": 15},
+            {"street": "flop", "board": ["7♦", "2♣", "5♥"]},
+            {"street": "flop", "pos": "BB", "action": "check"},
+        ],
+        "board": ["7♦", "2♣", "5♥"],
+        "result": {"pot": 40, "hero_net": 25, "summary": "won at showdown"},
+    }
+
+
+def test_stamps_version(poker):
+    out = poker.normalize_structured({"hero_pos": "CO"})
+    assert out["schema_version"] == poker.HAND_SCHEMA_VERSION
+
+
+def test_card_normalization(poker):
+    out = poker.normalize_structured(_full_hand())
+    assert out["hero_cards"] == ["Ah", "Kh"]            # lowercased input -> canonical
+    assert out["board"] == ["7d", "2c", "5h"]           # unicode suits -> letters
+    assert out["actions"][1]["board"] == ["7d", "2c", "5h"]
+    # ten + suit symbol together
+    assert poker.normalize_structured({"board": ["10♠"]})["board"] == ["Ts"]
+
+
+def test_unknown_cards_preserved(poker):
+    out = poker.normalize_structured({"hero_cards": ["Ax", "x"], "board": ["Ax", "4x", "x"]})
+    assert out["hero_cards"] == ["Ax", "x"]             # placeholders kept, not dropped
+    assert out["completeness"]["cards"] is False
+    assert out["completeness"]["board"] is False
+
+
+def test_hero_synced_into_players(poker):
+    out = poker.normalize_structured(_full_hand())
+    hero = next(p for p in out["players"] if p["pos"] == "BTN")
+    assert hero["hero"] is True
+    assert hero["cards"] == ["Ah", "Kh"]               # mirrored from hero_cards
+    assert sum(1 for p in out["players"] if p.get("hero")) == 1
+
+
+def test_hero_inserted_when_missing_from_players(poker):
+    out = poker.normalize_structured({"hero_pos": "SB", "hero_cards": ["As", "Ad"], "players": []})
+    assert out["players"] == [{"pos": "SB", "hero": True, "cards": ["As", "Ad"]}]
+
+
+def test_completeness_full_hand(poker):
+    c = poker.normalize_structured(_full_hand())["completeness"]
+    assert c == {"cards": True, "board": True, "actions": True}
+
+
+def test_idempotent(poker):
+    once = poker.normalize_structured(_full_hand())
+    twice = poker.normalize_structured(once)
+    assert once == twice
+
+
+def test_store_and_get_roundtrip_is_normalized(poker):
+    sid = poker.start_session(venue="Meadows", stakes="1/3", buy_in=400)
+    hid = poker.store_hand_history(_full_hand(), session_id=sid, tag="well_played")
+    got = poker.get_hand(hid)["structured"]
+    assert got["schema_version"] == poker.HAND_SCHEMA_VERSION
+    assert got["board"] == ["7d", "2c", "5h"]
+    assert got["completeness"]["cards"] is True
+
+
+def test_list_recent_hands_flags_structured(poker):
+    sid = poker.start_session(venue="Meadows", stakes="1/3", buy_in=400)
+    structured_id = poker.store_hand_history(_full_hand(), session_id=sid)
+    flat_id = poker.log_hand(session_id=sid, position="CO", hole_cards="Jc Jd")
+    rows = {r["id"]: r for r in poker.list_recent_hands()}
+    assert rows[structured_id]["has_structured"] is True
+    assert rows[flat_id]["has_structured"] is False
+
+
+def test_hud_villains_carry_seat(poker):
+    """The recorder auto-places known players, so the HUD bundle must expose their seat."""
+    poker.start_session(venue="Meadows", stakes="1/3", buy_in=400)
+    poker.add_read("3-bets light", seat="BTN", name="Sal", category="risky")
+    villains = {v["name"]: v for v in poker.hud()["villains"]}
+    assert villains["Sal"]["seat"] == "BTN"

tests/test_modes.py

@@ -47,6 +47,36 @@ def test_every_mode_tool_exists(lyra):
         assert set(mode.tools) <= set(tools.TOOLS), f"{mode.key} references unknown tools"
 
 
+def test_set_mode_tool_switches_session(lyra):
+    memory, _, _, tools = lyra
+    memory.ensure_session("s1")
+    out = tools.dispatch("set_mode", {"mode": "decide"}, {"session_id": "s1"})
+    assert "Decide" in out and memory.get_session_mode("s1") == "decide"
+    # unknown mode is handled, session unchanged
+    assert "unknown" in tools.dispatch("set_mode", {"mode": "nope"}, {"session_id": "s1"}).lower()
+    assert memory.get_session_mode("s1") == "decide"
+
+
+def test_work_modes_present_and_gated(lyra):
+    _, _, modes, tools = lyra
+    # the full set Brian chose
+    assert set(modes.MODES) == {"conversation", "poker_cash", "build", "explore", "study", "decide"}
+    # Decide = read-only lookups for context, no live logging; has a real card
+    decide = _names(tools.specs(modes.DECIDE.tools))
+    assert {"running_stats", "recent_sessions"} <= decide and "log_hand" not in decide
+    assert modes.DECIDE.card
+    # Build/Explore are conversational: base agency tools only, no live poker logging
+    for key in ("build", "explore"):
+        names = _names(tools.specs(modes.get(key).tools))
+        assert {"journal_write", "note", "think_about"} <= names
+        assert "log_hand" not in names and "start_session" not in names
+        assert modes.get(key).card  # each has a real behavioral card
+    # Study = read-only review: lookups + equity, but no live logging
+    study = _names(tools.specs(modes.STUDY.tools))
+    assert {"running_stats", "analyze_spot", "player_profile"} <= study
+    assert "log_hand" not in study and "end_session" not in study
+
+
 def test_mode_resolution_and_persistence(lyra):
     memory, _, modes, _ = lyra
     assert modes.get(None).key == modes.DEFAULT

tests/test_perceive.py

@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+"""Perceive: cheap heuristic read of the moment, and route turning it into a nudge."""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+
+import pytest
+
+from lyra import perceive
+
+
+def test_reads_tilt():
+    m = perceive.read("I'm so fucking tilted, card dead all night, this is brutal!!")
+    assert m["tilt"] >= 0.5 and m["sentiment"] < 0 and m["kind"] == "emotional"
+
+
+def test_reads_strategy_calm():
+    m = perceive.read("Should I fold the river here given his range and the board?")
+    assert m["kind"] == "strategic" and m["tilt"] < 0.4
+
+
+def test_reads_up_energy():
+    m = perceive.read("Let's go!! crushing it tonight, feeling so good!")
+    assert m["sentiment"] > 0 and m["kind"] == "emotional"
+
+
+def test_reads_build_and_casual():
+    assert perceive.read("let's refactor the cognition pipeline module").get("kind") == "build"
+    assert perceive.read("ok sounds good to me").get("kind") == "casual"
+    assert perceive.read("ok sounds good to me")["tilt"] == 0.0
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def mind(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
+    monkeypatch.setenv("LYRA_DB_PATH", str(tmp_path / "test.db"))
+    monkeypatch.setenv("CHAT_DELIBERATE", "false")
+    from lyra import llm
+    monkeypatch.setattr(llm, "embed", lambda texts: [[0.1, 0.2, 0.3] for _ in texts])
+    import lyra.memory as memory
+    importlib.reload(memory)
+    import lyra.mind as mind
+    importlib.reload(mind)
+    memory.ensure_session("s1")
+    return mind
+
+
+def test_route_injects_tilt_nudge(mind):
+    turn = mind.assemble("s1", "ugh I'm steaming, fucking coolered again!!", "cloud", None)
+    assert turn.register == "steady"
+    sys_blob = " ".join(m["content"] for m in turn.messages if m["role"] == "system")
+    assert "on tilt" in sys_blob.lower() or "frustrated" in sys_blob.lower()
+
+
+def test_route_quiet_on_neutral_turn(mind):
+    turn = mind.assemble("s1", "what did we decide about the schema yesterday?", "cloud", None)
+    assert turn.register is None                    # neutral -> no nudge
+    assert not (turn.moment or {}).get("note")

tests/test_profile.py

@@ -0,0 +1,84 @@
+"""Profile derivation: fold only new gists into the existing profile (incremental).
+
+The old pass re-digested all ~851 gists every consolidation; this checks the cheap
+delta path fires in steady state and the full rebuild fires only when it should.
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import importlib
+
+import pytest
+
+from lyra.memory import Summary
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def prof(monkeypatch):
+    import lyra.profile as profile
+    importlib.reload(profile)
+    return profile
+
+
+def _wire(profile, monkeypatch, gists, covered, existing):
+    """Stub memory + the LLM passes; record which path ran."""
+    state = {"stored_content": existing, "stored_covered": covered, "calls": []}
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile.memory, "list_summaries",
+                        lambda: [Summary(f"s{i}", g, i, "t") for i, g in enumerate(gists)])
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile.memory, "get_profile", lambda: state["stored_content"])
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile.memory, "profile_sessions_covered", lambda: state["stored_covered"])
+
+    def set_profile(content, sessions_covered, profile_id="self"):
+        state["stored_content"], state["stored_covered"] = content, sessions_covered
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile.memory, "set_profile", set_profile)
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile, "_map_reduce",
+                        lambda gists, backend: state["calls"].append(("map_reduce", len(gists))) or "facts")
+    monkeypatch.setattr(profile, "_call",
+                        lambda prompt, body, backend: state["calls"].append(("fold",)) or "folded profile")
+    return state
+
+
+def test_no_profile_yet_does_full_rebuild(prof, monkeypatch):
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=["a", "b", "c"], covered=0, existing=None)
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local")
+    assert state["calls"] == [("map_reduce", 3)]          # mapped all three gists
+    assert out == "facts" and state["stored_covered"] == 3
+
+
+def test_unchanged_skips_entirely(prof, monkeypatch):
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=["a", "b"], covered=2, existing="old profile")
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local")
+    assert state["calls"] == []                            # no LLM work at all
+    assert out == "old profile"
+
+
+def test_small_delta_folds_only_new(prof, monkeypatch):
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=["a", "b", "c", "d"], covered=2, existing="old profile")
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local")
+    assert state["calls"] == [("map_reduce", 2), ("fold",)]  # mapped just the 2 new, then folded
+    assert out == "folded profile" and state["stored_covered"] == 4
+
+
+def test_force_does_full_rebuild(prof, monkeypatch):
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=["a", "b", "c"], covered=3, existing="old profile")
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local", force=True)
+    assert state["calls"] == [("map_reduce", 3)]          # ignored the up-to-date profile
+    assert out == "facts"
+
+
+def test_big_gap_falls_back_to_full_rebuild(prof, monkeypatch):
+    gists = [str(i) for i in range(40)]                    # 30 new > FOLD_LIMIT
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=gists, covered=10, existing="old profile")
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local")
+    assert state["calls"] == [("map_reduce", 40)]          # full rebuild, not a giant fold
+    assert out == "facts"
+
+
+def test_crossing_cadence_forces_full_rebuild(prof, monkeypatch):
+    # covered=98, total=102 is a tiny delta, but it crosses the 100-session boundary.
+    gists = [str(i) for i in range(102)]
+    state = _wire(prof, monkeypatch, gists=gists, covered=98, existing="old profile")
+    out = prof.rebuild_profile(backend="local")
+    assert state["calls"] == [("map_reduce", 102)]         # anti-drift full rebuild
+    assert out == "facts"

tests/test_thoughts.py

@@ -190,6 +190,21 @@ def test_think_about_tool_seeds_a_thread(lyra):
     assert chain[0]["kind"] == "question" and chain[0]["source"] == "chat"
 
 
+def test_thought_response_tool_threads_reply_back(lyra):
+    _, th, box = lyra
+    import lyra.tools as tools
+    importlib.reload(tools)
+    _gen(box, title="my restlessness", content="is it real?", salience=0.5)
+    tid = th.think(force_mode="new")["thread_id"]
+    out = tools.dispatch("thought_response", {"thread_id": tid, "brian_said": "I think it's real"})
+    assert str(tid) in out
+    t = th.get_thread(tid)
+    assert t["last_response"] == "I think it's real" and th._is_pending(t)
+    # bad id is handled, not crashed
+    assert "couldn't find" in tools.dispatch("thought_response",
+                                             {"thread_id": 9999, "brian_said": "x"})
+
+
 # --- external feed -------------------------------------------------------
 
 RSS = (b'<?xml version="1.0"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Feed</title>'

tests/test_time.py

@@ -39,8 +39,8 @@ def lyra(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
 
 
 def test_now_note_first_contact(lyra):
-    from lyra import chat
-    note = chat._now_note()["content"]
+    from lyra import mind
+    note = mind._now_note()["content"]
     assert "current date and time is" in note
     assert "first thing Brian has ever said" in note
 
@@ -48,6 +48,6 @@ def test_now_note_first_contact(lyra):
 def test_now_note_reports_gap(lyra):
     memory = lyra
     memory.remember("s1", "user", "hey")
-    from lyra import chat
-    note = chat._now_note()["content"]
+    from lyra import mind
+    note = mind._now_note()["content"]
     assert "since Brian last spoke with you" in note

tests/test_tools.py

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import pytest
 @pytest.fixture
 def lyra(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
     monkeypatch.setenv("LYRA_DB_PATH", str(tmp_path / "test.db"))
+    monkeypatch.setenv("CHAT_DELIBERATE", "false")  # don't make a real LLM call in respond()
     from lyra import llm
     monkeypatch.setattr(llm, "embed", lambda texts: [[0.1, 0.2, 0.3] for _ in texts])
     import lyra.memory as memory