The contradiction (surfaced 2026-08-05/06 by two AIR runs)
protocols/air/protocol.md (both trees): comparison table says AIR consultation is 'Optional (builder decides)'; PR-phase step 3 says 'Optionally run CMAP consultation if the builder judges the complexity warrants it.'CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md (PIR section): describes PIR's consult footprint as matching 'BUGFIX/AIR's one-consult-at-PR pattern' — implying AIR consults at PR as standard.lessons-critical.md (hot tier, injected into every phase): 'Trust the protocol — never skip CMAP/consultation.'
Field consequence: air-1352's builder skipped consult per the protocol doc; the architect held the gate citing the lessons-tier rule; the builder accepted a 'misread' that wasn't one (corrected on PR #1355). air-1357 then did the same thing — correctly, per the doc. Enforcement is currently whichever surface the architect read last.
Evidence for the decision
air-1352's architect-requested consult on a 'trivial' build-script change caught two real stale arch.md build-wiring lines that both the builder's sweep and the architect's review missed — consistent with the hot-tier lesson's claim that consultation catches what solo review misses, even on small changes.
Options
A. Make AIR's consult mandatory-at-PR (align to BUGFIX's 'PR phase only'). Rationale: AIR is small features, BUGFIX small fixes — AIR being LIGHTER on review rigor than BUGFIX is inverted; the pass is one 2-way CMAP, cheap; it removes the ambiguity and matches CLAUDE.md's existing description and the lessons-tier rule. Cost: adds one consult (~1-3 min) to every AIR.
B. Keep builder-discretion and fix the other surfaces: correct CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md's characterization, and qualify the lessons-critical line ('…where the protocol mandates it'). Cost: preserves a standing trap where the always-injected hot-tier lesson contradicts the protocol a builder is running, and leaves architects without a consistent gate-check expectation.
Recommendation: A. Whichever is chosen, align ALL FOUR surfaces in the same PR: protocols/air/protocol.md (both trees), the porch AIR protocol.json if it encodes consultation, CLAUDE.md+AGENTS.md, and — if B — lessons-critical.md (hot-cap displacement rules apply).
AIR-sized if option A (table row + step wording + porch config); BUGFIX-sized docs-only if option B.
The contradiction (surfaced 2026-08-05/06 by two AIR runs)
protocols/air/protocol.md(both trees): comparison table says AIR consultation is 'Optional (builder decides)'; PR-phase step 3 says 'Optionally run CMAP consultation if the builder judges the complexity warrants it.'CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md(PIR section): describes PIR's consult footprint as matching 'BUGFIX/AIR's one-consult-at-PR pattern' — implying AIR consults at PR as standard.lessons-critical.md(hot tier, injected into every phase): 'Trust the protocol — never skip CMAP/consultation.'Field consequence: air-1352's builder skipped consult per the protocol doc; the architect held the gate citing the lessons-tier rule; the builder accepted a 'misread' that wasn't one (corrected on PR #1355). air-1357 then did the same thing — correctly, per the doc. Enforcement is currently whichever surface the architect read last.
Evidence for the decision
air-1352's architect-requested consult on a 'trivial' build-script change caught two real stale arch.md build-wiring lines that both the builder's sweep and the architect's review missed — consistent with the hot-tier lesson's claim that consultation catches what solo review misses, even on small changes.
Options
A. Make AIR's consult mandatory-at-PR (align to BUGFIX's 'PR phase only'). Rationale: AIR is small features, BUGFIX small fixes — AIR being LIGHTER on review rigor than BUGFIX is inverted; the pass is one 2-way CMAP, cheap; it removes the ambiguity and matches CLAUDE.md's existing description and the lessons-tier rule. Cost: adds one consult (~1-3 min) to every AIR.
B. Keep builder-discretion and fix the other surfaces: correct CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md's characterization, and qualify the lessons-critical line ('…where the protocol mandates it'). Cost: preserves a standing trap where the always-injected hot-tier lesson contradicts the protocol a builder is running, and leaves architects without a consistent gate-check expectation.
Recommendation: A. Whichever is chosen, align ALL FOUR surfaces in the same PR:
protocols/air/protocol.md(both trees), the porch AIR protocol.json if it encodes consultation,CLAUDE.md+AGENTS.md, and — if B —lessons-critical.md(hot-cap displacement rules apply).AIR-sized if option A (table row + step wording + porch config); BUGFIX-sized docs-only if option B.