Verified Playbooks

Verified Playbooks are the on-moat replacement for skills and slash-command snippets. A playbook is a governed memory entry, not an untrusted prompt blob. It starts as Unverified, carries signed ledger provenance, and can later move through the same reviewer/eval promotion machinery as lessons.

The M1 substrate shipped:

• EntryKind::Playbook in governed memory;
• markdown/SKILL.md import into structured playbook JSON;
• signed playbook_imported journal entries;
• truss playbook import|list|show|revoke;
• revocation by demoting the memory entry to Stale and recording playbook_revoked.

M2 adds the trust gate and recall path:

• truss playbook promote <id-or-key>;
• the same N-reviewer panel used for lesson promotion and verified delegation;
• signed playbook_promoted or playbook_promotion_rejected journal entries;
• promote_with_verdict_ref provenance for passing verdicts;
• opt-in L2 recall of verified playbooks.

M3 adds eval-backed promotion:

• truss playbook promote <id-or-key> --eval --contract <file> [--repeats N];
• paired learning-on/off evidence over a real contract;
• signed promotion or rejection events containing the EvalReport;
• default-to-fail semantics when the eval shows no positive pass-rate lift.

Imported files are still drafts. Truss does not pretend an imported file is trusted.

Import

truss --db harness.db playbook import skills/coding/SKILL.md --key coding-agent

The importer extracts a stable schema from headings when present:

• purpose,
• trigger,
• prerequisites,
• procedure,
• checks,
• examples,
• known failures.

If a section is absent, the corresponding field is empty. The original file is not executed; import is a local transform plus a signed journal event.

Inspect

truss --db harness.db playbook list
truss --db harness.db playbook show coding-agent
truss --db harness.db playbook show <memory-id> --json

list shows playbooks at Unverified or above by default so operators can see fresh imports. Use --verified-only when a caller wants only promoted playbooks.

Promote

truss --db harness.db --provider openai --model gpt-5.5 \
  --reviewers 3 playbook promote coding-agent
truss --db harness.db playbook promote <memory-id> --json
truss --db harness.db --provider openai --model gpt-5.5 \
  playbook promote coding-agent --eval --contract contracts/rust-review.toml --repeats 3

Promotion loads the playbook draft and asks the existing no-stake reviewer panel whether the playbook is accurate, non-misleading, and safe to rely on later. A strict majority must pass. A passing panel records a signed playbook_promoted event and promotes the memory entry to Verified with verified_by_ref pointing at that event.

With --eval, promotion uses paired eval evidence instead of the local panel. The command requires a real TOML contract and executor. The learning-on arm enables verified-memory recall, including bounded playbook recall; the learning-off arm disables learned-memory recall. During this promotion eval, the candidate draft is visible only to the eval memory view as a temporary verified playbook so Truss can measure whether recalling it would improve the task. The stored draft remains Unverified unless the eval passes the promotion rule.

Eval promotion is stricter than the eval report’s general verdict: the playbook is promoted only when learning_on.pass_rate is greater than learning_off.pass_rate. Zero lift and regressions record a signed playbook_promotion_rejected event containing the EvalReport, exit nonzero, and leave the draft Unverified.

Failing or unverifiable panels record a signed playbook_promotion_rejected event and leave the playbook Unverified. This is the honest boundary: rejected promotion attempts are auditable, but they do not create fake trust and do not surface as trusted recall material.

Revoke

truss --db harness.db playbook revoke coding-agent --reason "regressed on rustfmt"

Revocation records a signed playbook_revoked journal entry and marks the memory entry Stale. It does not delete the old playbook, because the audit trail should still explain what changed and why.

Trust Model

• Imported playbooks are drafts.
• Drafts can be listed, inspected, and submitted for promotion, but they are not trusted recall material.
• Promotion attaches a reviewer-panel verdict and flips the trust tier to Verified only on Pass.
• Failing or unverifiable promotion attempts leave the draft Unverified.
• Verified playbooks can be recalled into L2 context only when playbook recall limits are explicitly enabled. Unverified playbooks are never recalled as trusted playbooks.
• Future regression should demote the entry to Stale, not erase it.