triad-signal-filter

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:

1. All nodes: Stop sending immediately
2. TM-1: Post ONE recovery message:
   • "Loop detected. Triad entering 60s cooldown. State oracle refresh triggered."
3. All nodes: Clear message history, refresh cached state
4. 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. 🦞