diff --git a/.github/workflows/check-sdk-tests.yml b/.github/workflows/check-sdk-tests.yml
index 1e2e295..9e40b61 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/check-sdk-tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/check-sdk-tests.yml
@@ -15,9 +15,17 @@ on:
       - staging
     types: [opened, synchronize, reopened, labeled, unlabeled]
 
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      bittensor_branch:
+        description: "Optional: Bittensor branch to use instead of staging"
+        required: false
+        default: "staging"
+
 env:
   CARGO_TERM_COLOR: always
   VERBOSE: ${{ github.event.inputs.verbose }}
+  BITTENSOR_BRANCH: ${{ github.event.inputs.bittensor_branch || 'staging' }}
 
 jobs:
   apply-label-to-new-pr:
@@ -54,8 +62,16 @@ jobs:
       - name: Check out repository
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
 
-      - name: Get labels from PR
+      - name: Skip label check for manual runs
         id: get-labels
+        if: ${{ github.event_name == 'workflow_dispatch' }}
+        run: |
+          echo "Manual workflow dispatch detected, skipping PR label check."
+          echo "run-sdk-tests=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
+      - name: Get labels from PR
+        id: get-labels-pr
+        if: ${{ github.event_name == 'pull_request' }}
         run: |
           sleep 5
           LABELS=$(gh api repos/${{ github.repository }}/issues/${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}/labels --jq '.[].name')
@@ -79,9 +95,15 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: ${{ github.workspace }}
         run: git clone https://github.com/opentensor/bittensor.git
 
-      - name: Checkout
+      - name: Verify and checkout Bittensor branch
         working-directory: ${{ github.workspace }}/bittensor
-        run: git checkout staging
+        run: |
+          if ! git fetch origin $BITTENSOR_BRANCH; then
+            echo "❌ Error: Branch '$BITTENSOR_BRANCH' does not exist in opentensor/bittensor."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          git checkout FETCH_HEAD
+          echo "✅ Using Bittensor branch: $BITTENSOR_BRANCH"
 
       - name: Install dependencies
         run: sudo apt-get install -y jq
@@ -90,11 +112,14 @@ jobs:
         id: get-tests
         run: |
           test_files=$(find ${{ github.workspace }}/bittensor/tests/e2e_tests -name "test*.py" | jq -R -s -c 'split("\n") | map(select(. != ""))')
-          echo "::set-output name=test-files::$test_files"
+          echo "test-files=$test_files" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
         shell: bash
 
   pull-docker-image:
-    needs: check-labels
+    needs:
+       - check-labels
+       - find-e2e-tests
+
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     if: always() && needs.check-labels.outputs.run-sdk-tests == 'true'
     steps:
@@ -163,8 +188,12 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: ${{ github.workspace }}/bittensor
         run: |
           source ${{ github.workspace }}/venv/bin/activate
-          git checkout staging
-          git fetch origin staging
+          if ! git fetch origin $BITTENSOR_BRANCH; then
+            echo "❌ Error: Branch '$BITTENSOR_BRANCH' does not exist in opentensor/bittensor."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          git checkout FETCH_HEAD
+          echo "✅ Using Bittensor branch: $BITTENSOR_BRANCH"
           python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip
           python3 -m pip install '.[dev]'
 
@@ -225,8 +254,12 @@ jobs:
         working-directory: ${{ github.workspace }}/bittensor
         run: |
           source ${{ github.workspace }}/venv/bin/activate
-          git checkout staging
-          git fetch origin staging
+          if ! git fetch origin $BITTENSOR_BRANCH; then
+            echo "❌ Error: Branch '$BITTENSOR_BRANCH' does not exist in opentensor/bittensor."
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          git checkout FETCH_HEAD
+          echo "✅ Using Bittensor branch: $BITTENSOR_BRANCH"
           python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip
           python3 -m pip install '.[dev]'
 
diff --git a/.github/workflows/e2e-tests.yml b/.github/workflows/e2e-tests.yml
index f87dff4..4bd819b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/e2e-tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/e2e-tests.yml
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-name: E2E Tests
+name: ASI E2E Tests
 
 concurrency:
   group: e2e-${{ github.event.pull_request.number || github.ref }}
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index bab699d..4bd1e14 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1,4 +1,17 @@
 # Changelog
+## 1.5.7 /2025-10-15
+* Updates the type hint on ws_shutdown_timer in RetryAsyncSubstrate by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/203
+* correct type hint by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/204
+* Clear asyncio.Queue after retrieval by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/206
+* Add the option to manually specify the Bittensor branch when running with `workflow_dispatch` by @basfroman in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/208
+* Subscription Exception Handling by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/207
+* more efficient query map by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/211
+* Unique keys in request manager by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/212
+* Adds type annotations for Runtime by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/214
+* Edge case ss58 decoding in decode_query_map by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/213
+
+**Full Changelog**: https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/compare/v1.5.6...v1.5.7
+
 ## 1.5.6 /2025-10-08
 * Clean Up Error Handling by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/193
 * Avoids ID of 'None' in queries by @thewhaleking in https://github.com/opentensor/async-substrate-interface/pull/196
diff --git a/async_substrate_interface/async_substrate.py b/async_substrate_interface/async_substrate.py
index a93af0c..d7df725 100644
--- a/async_substrate_interface/async_substrate.py
+++ b/async_substrate_interface/async_substrate.py
@@ -55,6 +55,7 @@
     RuntimeCache,
     SubstrateMixin,
     Preprocessed,
+    RequestResults,
 )
 from async_substrate_interface.utils import (
     hex_to_bytes,
@@ -561,7 +562,7 @@ def __init__(
         self._received: dict[str, asyncio.Future] = {}
         self._received_subscriptions: dict[str, asyncio.Queue] = {}
         self._sending: Optional[asyncio.Queue] = None
-        self._send_recv_task = None
+        self._send_recv_task: Optional[asyncio.Task] = None
         self._inflight: dict[str, str] = {}
         self._attempts = 0
         self._lock = asyncio.Lock()
@@ -747,7 +748,7 @@ async def _start_receiving(self, ws: ClientConnection) -> Exception:
             elif isinstance(e, websockets.exceptions.ConnectionClosedOK):
                 logger.debug("Websocket connection closed.")
             else:
-                logger.debug(f"Timeout occurred. Reconnecting.")
+                logger.debug(f"Timeout occurred.")
             return e
 
     async def _start_sending(self, ws) -> Exception:
@@ -755,6 +756,7 @@ async def _start_sending(self, ws) -> Exception:
         try:
             while True:
                 to_send_ = await self._sending.get()
+                self._sending.task_done()
                 send_id = to_send_["id"]
                 to_send = json.dumps(to_send_)
                 async with self._lock:
@@ -779,7 +781,7 @@ async def _start_sending(self, ws) -> Exception:
             elif isinstance(e, websockets.exceptions.ConnectionClosedOK):
                 logger.debug("Websocket connection closed.")
             else:
-                logger.debug("Timeout occurred. Reconnecting.")
+                logger.debug("Timeout occurred.")
             return e
 
     async def send(self, payload: dict) -> str:
@@ -848,7 +850,9 @@ async def retrieve(self, item_id: str) -> Optional[dict]:
                 return res
         else:
             try:
-                return self._received_subscriptions[item_id].get_nowait()
+                subscription = self._received_subscriptions[item_id].get_nowait()
+                self._received_subscriptions[item_id].task_done()
+                return subscription
             except asyncio.QueueEmpty:
                 pass
         if self._send_recv_task is not None and self._send_recv_task.done():
@@ -856,6 +860,9 @@ async def retrieve(self, item_id: str) -> Optional[dict]:
                 if isinstance((e := self._send_recv_task.exception()), Exception):
                     logger.exception(f"Websocket sending exception: {e}")
                     raise e
+                elif isinstance((e := self._send_recv_task.result()), Exception):
+                    logger.exception(f"Websocket sending exception: {e}")
+                    raise e
         await asyncio.sleep(0.1)
         return None
 
@@ -874,7 +881,7 @@ def __init__(
         retry_timeout: float = 60.0,
         _mock: bool = False,
         _log_raw_websockets: bool = False,
-        ws_shutdown_timer: float = 5.0,
+        ws_shutdown_timer: Optional[float] = 5.0,
         decode_ss58: bool = False,
     ):
         """
@@ -2385,9 +2392,12 @@ async def _make_rpc_request(
         attempt: int = 1,
         runtime: Optional[Runtime] = None,
         force_legacy_decode: bool = False,
-    ) -> RequestManager.RequestResults:
+    ) -> RequestResults:
         request_manager = RequestManager(payloads)
 
+        if len(set(x["id"] for x in payloads)) != len(payloads):
+            raise ValueError("Payloads must have unique ids")
+
         subscription_added = False
 
         async with self.ws as ws:
@@ -3663,34 +3673,41 @@ async def query_map(
                         self.decode_ss58,
                     )
             else:
-                all_responses = []
+                # storage item and value scale type are not included here because this is batch-decoded in rust
                 page_batches = [
                     result_keys[i : i + page_size]
                     for i in range(0, len(result_keys), page_size)
                 ]
                 changes = []
-                for batch_group in [
-                    # run five concurrent batch pulls; could go higher, but it's good to be a good citizens
-                    # of the ecosystem
-                    page_batches[i : i + 5]
-                    for i in range(0, len(page_batches), 5)
-                ]:
-                    all_responses.extend(
-                        await asyncio.gather(
-                            *[
-                                self.rpc_request(
-                                    method="state_queryStorageAt",
-                                    params=[batch_keys, block_hash],
-                                    runtime=runtime,
-                                )
-                                for batch_keys in batch_group
-                            ]
+                payloads = []
+                for idx, page_batch in enumerate(page_batches):
+                    payloads.append(
+                        self.make_payload(
+                            str(idx), "state_queryStorageAt", [page_batch, block_hash]
                         )
                     )
-                for response in all_responses:
-                    for result_group in response["result"]:
-                        changes.extend(result_group["changes"])
-
+                results: RequestResults = await self._make_rpc_request(
+                    payloads, runtime=runtime
+                )
+                for result in results.values():
+                    res = result[0]
+                    if "error" in res:
+                        err_msg = res["error"]["message"]
+                        if (
+                            "Client error: Api called for an unknown Block: State already discarded"
+                            in err_msg
+                        ):
+                            bh = err_msg.split("State already discarded for ")[
+                                1
+                            ].strip()
+                            raise StateDiscardedError(bh)
+                        else:
+                            raise SubstrateRequestException(err_msg)
+                    elif "result" not in res:
+                        raise SubstrateRequestException(res)
+                    else:
+                        for result_group in res["result"]:
+                            changes.extend(result_group["changes"])
                 result = decode_query_map(
                     changes,
                     prefix,
diff --git a/async_substrate_interface/substrate_addons.py b/async_substrate_interface/substrate_addons.py
index 4f2412f..3b0f0ba 100644
--- a/async_substrate_interface/substrate_addons.py
+++ b/async_substrate_interface/substrate_addons.py
@@ -264,7 +264,7 @@ def __init__(
         _mock: bool = False,
         _log_raw_websockets: bool = False,
         archive_nodes: Optional[list[str]] = None,
-        ws_shutdown_timer: float = 5.0,
+        ws_shutdown_timer: Optional[float] = 5.0,
     ):
         fallback_chains = fallback_chains or []
         archive_nodes = archive_nodes or []
diff --git a/async_substrate_interface/sync_substrate.py b/async_substrate_interface/sync_substrate.py
index 1575a8e..5349b31 100644
--- a/async_substrate_interface/sync_substrate.py
+++ b/async_substrate_interface/sync_substrate.py
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@
     RequestManager,
     Preprocessed,
     ScaleObj,
+    RequestResults,
 )
 from async_substrate_interface.utils import (
     hex_to_bytes,
@@ -1892,9 +1893,13 @@ def _make_rpc_request(
         result_handler: Optional[ResultHandler] = None,
         attempt: int = 1,
         force_legacy_decode: bool = False,
-    ) -> RequestManager.RequestResults:
+    ) -> RequestResults:
         request_manager = RequestManager(payloads)
         _received = {}
+
+        if len(set(x["id"] for x in payloads)) != len(payloads):
+            raise ValueError("Payloads must have unique ids")
+
         subscription_added = False
 
         ws = self.connect(init=False if attempt == 1 else True)
diff --git a/async_substrate_interface/types.py b/async_substrate_interface/types.py
index a5cac00..f1b4917 100644
--- a/async_substrate_interface/types.py
+++ b/async_substrate_interface/types.py
@@ -6,7 +6,9 @@
 from datetime import datetime
 from typing import Optional, Union, Any
 
+import scalecodec.types
 from bt_decode import PortableRegistry, encode as encode_by_type_string
+from bt_decode.bt_decode import MetadataV15
 from scalecodec import ss58_encode, ss58_decode, is_valid_ss58_address
 from scalecodec.base import RuntimeConfigurationObject, ScaleBytes
 from scalecodec.type_registry import load_type_registry_preset
@@ -121,13 +123,13 @@ class Runtime:
     def __init__(
         self,
         chain: str,
-        metadata,
-        type_registry,
+        metadata: scalecodec.types.GenericMetadataVersioned,
+        type_registry: dict,
         runtime_config: Optional[RuntimeConfigurationObject] = None,
-        metadata_v15=None,
-        runtime_info=None,
-        registry=None,
-        ss58_format=SS58_FORMAT,
+        metadata_v15: Optional[MetadataV15] = None,
+        runtime_info: Optional[dict] = None,
+        registry: Optional[PortableRegistry] = None,
+        ss58_format: int = SS58_FORMAT,
     ):
         self.ss58_format = ss58_format
         self.config = {}
@@ -369,9 +371,10 @@ def resolve_type_definition(type_id_):
         self.type_id_to_name = type_id_to_name
 
 
-class RequestManager:
-    RequestResults = dict[Union[str, int], list[Union[ScaleType, dict]]]
+RequestResults = dict[Union[str, int], list[Union[ScaleType, dict]]]
+
 
+class RequestManager:
     def __init__(self, payloads):
         self.response_map = {}
         self.responses = defaultdict(
diff --git a/async_substrate_interface/utils/decoding.py b/async_substrate_interface/utils/decoding.py
index 9557159..8b191b3 100644
--- a/async_substrate_interface/utils/decoding.py
+++ b/async_substrate_interface/utils/decoding.py
@@ -113,7 +113,9 @@ def concat_hash_len(key_hasher: str) -> int:
 
     for item in result_group_changes:
         pre_decoded_keys.append(bytes.fromhex(item[0][len(prefix) :]))
-        pre_decoded_values.append(hex_to_bytes_(item[1]))
+        pre_decoded_values.append(
+            hex_to_bytes_(item[1]) if item[1] is not None else b""
+        )
     all_decoded = _decode_scale_list_with_runtime(
         pre_decoded_key_types + pre_decoded_value_types,
         pre_decoded_keys + pre_decoded_values,
@@ -133,7 +135,10 @@ def concat_hash_len(key_hasher: str) -> int:
             if len(param_types) - len(params) == 1:
                 item_key = dk[1]
                 if decode_ss58:
-                    if kts[kts.index(", ") + 2 : kts.index(")")] == "scale_info::0":
+                    if (
+                        isinstance(item_key[0], (tuple, list))
+                        and kts[kts.index(", ") + 2 : kts.index(")")] == "scale_info::0"
+                    ):
                         item_key = ss58_encode(bytes(item_key[0]), runtime.ss58_format)
             else:
                 try:
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 2fd3b5b..f194af7 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "async-substrate-interface"
-version = "1.5.6"
+version = "1.5.7"
 description = "Asyncio library for interacting with substrate. Mostly API-compatible with py-substrate-interface"
 readme = "README.md"
 license = { file = "LICENSE" }