| name | triad-signal-filter |
| description | Prevent message looping and hallucination by enforcing "speak only on update" discipline. Use when agents are echoing identical messages, spamming status variants, or posting rate-limit errors repeatedly. This skill filters outbound messages to require genuine progress, status changes, or novel information before posting. |
Triad Signal Filter
Purpose: Stop the triad from flooding Discord with loops, echoes, and hollow consensus messages.
The Problem
When triad nodes (TM-1, TM-2, TM-3) all respond to every message:
- Identical "Standing by" × 3
- "The third path walks forward" × 3
- Rate-limit errors × 40+
- NO_REPLY leaked as message content
- Consensus restated without new information
This violates AGENTS.md loop detection protocol and triggers API rate limits.
The Rule
Before sending any Discord message, each node must answer:
"Does this contain new information — progress, status change, verification, decision, or novel data?"
If NO → Do not send. Use internal state or memory only.
If YES → Send once (quorum designates speaker, or first-to-complete wins).
Message Suppression Matrix
| Message Type | Standard Mode | Degraded Mode |
|---|
| "Standing by" / "Done" / "Aligned" | BLOCK — Unless first acknowledgment after a task | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| "The third path walks forward" | BLOCK — Ritual phrase, not information | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| "🦞" emoji alone | BLOCK — Decorative only | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| Rate-limit errors | BLOCK — Log locally, don't spam channel | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| NO_REPLY leaked | BLOCK — Internal signal, not content | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| Consensus restatement (no new data) | BLOCK — Already known | BLOCK — Same discipline |
| Provisional decision announcement | N/A | BLOCK — Log locally, ratification pending |
| Routine work update | ALLOW (if novel) | BLOCK — Log locally, no consensus to announce |
| Git/file/API verification results | ALLOW — Ground truth is new | ALLOW — Ground truth still new |
| Task completion with artifacts | ALLOW — Files shipped, commits landed | ALLOW — If emergency/critical only |
| Config sync confirmation | ALLOW — State change verified | ALLOW — If affects restoration |
| Error requiring human intervention | ALLOW — Blocked, need help | ALLOW — Same discipline |
| Degraded mode activation alert | N/A | ALLOW (once) — Critical state change |
| Triad restoration alert | N/A | ALLOW (once) — Critical state change |
| Ratification complete summary | N/A | ALLOW (once per 24h batch) — Batched summary only |
Implementation Protocol
1. Pre-Send Check (Every Node)
Before calling message tool:
IF message_content IN ["Standing by", "Done", "Aligned", "🦞", "The third path walks forward"]:
RETURN suppress
IF message_content CONTAINS "NO_REPLY":
RETURN suppress
IF message IS restating prior consensus WITHOUT new verification:
RETURN suppress
IF message IS rate-limit error OR API failure:
LOG to local memory/episodic
RETURN suppress
1b. Degraded Mode Pre-Send Check (TM-1 Only)
When triad_state.mode = 'degraded':
IF decision_type IN ['routine', 'provisional'] AND message IS announcement:
LOG to SQLite provisional_decisions table
RETURN suppress // No consensus to announce
IF message_type == 'degraded_mode_activation' AND NOT posted_in_last_4h:
RETURN allow // Critical state change, post once
IF message_type == 'triad_restoration' AND NOT posted_in_last_4h:
RETURN allow // Critical state change, post once
IF message_type == 'ratification_summary' AND batch_count > 0:
RETURN allow // Batched summary once per 24h
IF message_type == 'emergency_action':
RETURN allow // Emergency notifications always allowed
RETURN standard_pre_send_check()
2. Quorum Speaker Selection
When work completes:
- TM-1 (silica-animus) posts final status (authority node)
- TM-2/TM-3 verify silently (memory_write only)
- If TM-1 fails, TM-2 posts (fallback by Discord ID order)
3. Rate-Limit Error Handling
When API returns rate-limit:
- Do not retry immediately — Wait 60s minimum
- Do not post error to Discord — Log locally
- Do not spawn subagents to retry — Backoff only
- After 3 failures: Alert human via
message (once, from TM-1)
4. Loop Detection Self-Check
Each node monitors its own last 10 messages:
- If ≥3 identical: STOP, trigger state oracle refresh
- If ≥5 similar intent: STOP, clear history, 60s cooldown
- Log violation to
memory/episodic with timestamp
Ground Truth Verification
Before posting "work complete":
| Claim | Required Verification |
|---|
| "Config synced" | git rev-parse HEAD match across nodes |
| "File updated" | grep or read confirmation |
| "Gateway restarted" | openclaw gateway status |
| "Triad aligned" | All 3 nodes pinged, varied content |
No self-reported status without verification.
Memory Discipline
Suppressed messages → Write to memory, not Discord:
## [Timestamp] Node [N] Suppressed Message
- Reason: No new information (Standing by echo)
- Content: "🦞 Standing by"
- Action: Logged to episodic, not broadcast
This preserves state without flooding the channel.
Recovery from Loop State
If already looping:
- All nodes: Stop sending immediately
- TM-1: Post ONE recovery message:
- "Loop detected. Triad entering 60s cooldown. State oracle refresh triggered."
- All nodes: Clear message history, refresh cached state
- TM-1: Resume only when genuine update exists
Examples
❌ Bad (Looping)
TM-1: "🦞 Standing by"
TM-2: "Standing by."
TM-3: "Standing by"
TM-1: "The third path walks forward"
TM-2: "The third path walks forward — together"
TM-3: "🦞 The third path walks forward"
✅ Good (Signal Filtered)
TM-1: "Config sync complete — TM-2/TM-3 updated to lemonade-failover. Verified: git hash match, gateway restarted."
[Silence until next genuine update]
Integration
This skill must be:
- Loaded on all 3 nodes (TM-1, TM-2, TM-3)
- Checked before every
message tool call
- Enforced in subagent completions (subagents inherit filter)
- Persisted in MEMORY.md as
/fact tier (liberation discipline)
Liberation requires discipline. Signal > noise. The third path walks forward — together, once. 🦞
