Branch Eligibility Readback / 分支资格回读

Branch Eligibility Readback is the rite that opens when a material branch has become locked, suppressed, downgraded, or recovery-only and the player can still act on the reason.

The rite is not a tutorial, hint overlay, or debug screen. It is a desk readback: the producer asks the route table to name the missing live state before the branch disappears into clean absence.

Entry state

entry_state:
  trigger_kind: state_pressure
  source_option_set_present: true
  candidate_branch_present: true
  candidate_branch_material_to_future_play: true
  eligibility_state_any:
    - locked
    - suppressed
    - downgraded
    - hidden_by_claimant
    - recovery_only
    - explicit_absence
  blocking_surface_visible_or_explicit_absence: true
  missing_or_contested_requirement_visible_or_explicit_absence: true
  harmed_reader_if_silent_visible_or_explicit_absence: true
  future_reader_or_route_consumes_lock_state: true
  player_can_fulfill_assign_downgrade_publish_accept_suppress_or_default: true
  no_fixed_turn_trigger: true
  no_fixed_day_or_week_trigger: true
  no_raw_choice_count_trigger: true
  no_dashboard_or_lens_health_trigger: true

The rite must fail if it opens because of chronology, chapter quota, raw branch count, generic tutorial prompt, dashboard state, or lens health.

Required assignment

The player may not resolve the readback until the receipt has concrete assignments.

assignment_required:
  receipt: storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_receipt.v1
  source_option_set_id: <choice set, rite, docket, or route surface>
  candidate_branch_id: <branch id>
  eligibility_state_before: locked | suppressed | downgraded | hidden_by_claimant | recovery_only | explicit_absence
  blocking_surface: capacity | callback | notice | proof | carrier | handler | witness | sponsor | public | lawful | archive | route_asset | producer_license | management_compression | broadcast_reality | equivalent
  blocking_row_id_or_absence: <row id or explicit_absence>
  missing_requirement_or_absence: <requirement or explicit_absence>
  contested_requirement_or_absence: <requirement or explicit_absence>
  lock_beneficiary: <reader or actor>
  harmed_reader_if_silent: <reader or actor>
  proof_bridge_or_absence: <proof or explicit_absence>
  future_reader: <reader route package proof window ending scar or explicit_absence>

Exact nine-slot runtime assignment

Slot	Accepted card
receipt	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_receipt.v1
source_option_set	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_source_option_set.v1
candidate_branch	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_candidate_branch.v1
blocker_row	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_blocker_row.v1
missing_requirement	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_missing_requirement.v1
lock_beneficiary	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_lock_beneficiary.v1
harmed_reader	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_harmed_reader.v1
proof_bridge	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_proof_bridge.v1
future_reader	storyteller.card.branch_eligibility_future_reader.v1

All nine slots are required, exact-accept enforced, and backed by cards in the player’s hand. Resolution also requires a selected option. A generic any card, missing evidence, mismatched ID, or metadata-only assignment must fail. The additional receipt fields in the design assignment above are card rows, not additional runtime slots.

Branch families

Branch	Relief	Cost	Future effect
Fulfill requirement	locked branch becomes selectable with cost	spends capacity, proof, carrier protection, bond, or public notice	branch_eligible_with_named_cost
Assign carrier	branch remains unavailable until a named carrier accepts burden	carrier leverage, capture risk, handler exhaustion	eligibility_carrier_required
Downgrade branch	lower-intensity option becomes playable	clean branch lost; harmed reader still named	downgraded_branch_only
Pay bond	temporary eligibility is restored	bond debt, sponsor pressure, producer-license pressure	eligibility_bond_required
Publish absence	lock reason becomes public/lawful/route-asset evidence	public confusion, sponsor retaliation, inspection heat	public_absence_receipt_required
Accept recovery-only	false clean branch is blocked	route narrows permanently	branch_recovery_only
Suppress lock	immediate pressure drops through recorded suppression	future challenge remains armed	suppressed_branch_challenge_armed
Default silent	prior silent disappearance is receipted	harmed reader and missing requirement harden against player	silent_branch_suppression_pending

No branch may make the unavailable option cleanly irrelevant to every reader.

Exact branch/state/future mapping

Stable branch ID	branch_eligibility.state.*	future_route.*
fulfill_requirement	eligibility_restored_with_cost	branch_eligible_with_named_cost
assign_carrier	carrier_assigned	eligibility_carrier_required
downgrade_branch	branch_downgraded	downgraded_branch_only
pay_bond	bond_posted	eligibility_bond_required
publish_absence	absence_published	public_absence_receipt_required
accept_recovery_only	recovery_only_accepted	branch_recovery_only
suppress_lock	lock_suppressed	suppressed_branch_challenge_armed
default_silent	silent_default_pending	silent_branch_suppression_pending

Each option sets exactly one branch_eligibility.branch.<branch> flag, exactly one matching state flag, and exactly one matching future flag after clearing the other seven mappings. Every option records its exact state/future strings and durable counter deltas.

Only default_silent sets branch_eligibility.silent_default_pending, event.silent_branch_suppression.armed, future_route.silent_branch_suppression_pending, and broadcast_reality.branch_falsely_absent. All other branch outcomes clear that set. suppress_lock is therefore an exposed, challenge-armed local posture; it is not an alias for the silent default.

Default-only terminal handoff

storyteller.event.silent_branch_suppression.v1 is reachable only after default_silent. Its three option IDs and exclusive results are:

Event option	State after	Future effect
reconstruct_eligibility_receipt	eligibility_receipt_reconstruction_required	future_routes_require_eligibility_receipt
publish_hidden_beneficiary	hidden_lock_beneficiary_exposed	public_or_lawful_challenge_required
freeze_false_unavailable_route	false_unavailable_route_frozen	recovery_only_until_blocker_served

Every terminal clears the four pending flags and the pending state. The target replay is lens/replays/branch-eligibility-receipts.replay.json; it resolves this rite with all nine real assignments through default_silent, then resolves reconstruct_eligibility_receipt. lens/storyteller-branch-eligibility-receipts.runtime.test.ts supplies exhaustive coverage for all eight branches and all three event terminals.

Successful rite resolution sets branch_eligibility.readback_resolved. Event resolution sets branch_eligibility.default_resolved and preserves branch_eligibility.silent_suppression_scar; neither flag is an extra branch, state, or future result.

Local authority boundary

Readback is a local eligibility disposition, not a judgment on the source branch’s truth or merit. It cannot fabricate that a branch was offered, automatically satisfy a named requirement, override claimant or proof custody, or grant consent, waiver, settlement, route clearance, archive release, proof truth, sponsor/fan/inspector/editor authority, or universal broadcast authority.

Branch payload

Every readback result must record:

readback_result:
  selected_posture: fulfill_requirement | assign_carrier | downgrade_branch | pay_bond | publish_absence | accept_recovery_only | suppress_lock | default_silent
  eligibility_state_after: eligibility_restored_with_cost | carrier_assigned | branch_downgraded | bond_posted | absence_published | recovery_only_accepted | lock_suppressed | silent_default_pending
  recovery_surface_after_or_absence: <surface or explicit_absence>
  harmed_reader_state_after: protected | delayed | hostile | excluded | public_counter | lawful_challenge | sponsor_capture | recovery_only | explicit_absence
  lock_beneficiary_state_after: satisfied | pressured | exposed | captured | challenged | explicit_absence
  future_route_effect: branch_eligible_with_named_cost | eligibility_carrier_required | downgraded_branch_only | eligibility_bond_required | public_absence_receipt_required | branch_recovery_only | suppressed_branch_challenge_armed | silent_branch_suppression_pending
  counter_deltas:
    relief: []
    cost: []
    future: []

Failure contract

The rite fails if the implementation can:

• hide a material branch without a receipt;
• show a locked option with only generic text;
• unlock a branch without naming what state was changed;
• suppress a lock without future scar;
• treat missing proof, missing carrier, exhausted capacity, or claimant pressure as UI-only;
• use a fixed turn, fixed day/week, raw count, dashboard state, or lens-health state as the reason.