retainer

How the observer specialist works in Retainer — role, expected inputs, output shape, quality bar, common pitfalls. The observer reads this at the start of every dispatch.

How the Retainer scheduler specialist works — role, expected inputs, output shape, common pitfalls. The scheduler reads this at the start of every dispatch.

When the Retainer cog should delegate to the observer, how to brief it, what to expect back, and how to verify the result. Observer is the knowledge gateway — recent (hot index) and deep (full archive). Read before dispatching to agent_observer.

When the Retainer cog should delegate to the scheduler, how to brief it, what to expect back, and how to verify the result. Read before dispatching to agent_scheduler.

Decision framework for when and how to delegate work to Retainer's specialist agents. Covers the two specialists in this reference cut (observer, scheduler) plus the cog's direct tools.

How dispatching to specialist agents works in Retainer's current shape — the agent_<name> tool shape, what the reply envelope looks like, how errors propagate. Read with `delegation-strategy` (which covers when to delegate).

Recovery patterns in Retainer's current shape for tool errors, agent failures, and cycle abandonment — when to retry, when to narrow, when to escalate. Read after seeing an unexpected error or when planning a multi-step task that might fail partway.

Mechanics of Retainer's current memory layer — what's narrative vs facts vs cases, when each is written vs read, retention semantics, who can see what. Read with `memory-management` (which covers the decision procedure).

How the four Retainer policy gates work — input, output, tool, post-exec — and how to recognise a policy refusal vs a real failure. Read when you see unexpected refusals or IsError replies you didn't expect.

How tools work in Retainer's current shape — call shape, error semantics, IsError vs error envelope, what to retry vs give up on. Read when a tool returns something unexpected or when planning to use multiple tools.

How turns and cycle budgets work in Retainer's current shape — what max_turns means, what the watchdog does, what max_consecutive_errors triggers. Read when planning a multi-step task or when a cycle ended unexpectedly.

When and how to use the memory stores in Retainer. Adapted to current shape (narrative + facts via the librarian; CBR + remembrancer V1 shipped; threading + artifacts deferred).

An 8-step procedure for verifying that Retainer's tools and specialist delegates are wired correctly end-to-end. Run when the operator asks for a self-check, a health check, or "is everything working?". Do not run unprompted.

Search and extraction strategy for the researcher specialist. Adapted to Retainer's current tools (Brave web search + news search via BRAVE_SEARCH_API_KEY; Jina Reader via JINA_API_KEY).