feat: add gates ensuring discuss-phase decisions are translated to plans and verified (closes #2492)

docs/ARCHITECTURE.md

@@ -411,7 +411,9 @@ plan-phase
     ├── Research gate (blocks if RESEARCH.md has unresolved open questions)
     ├── Phase Researcher → RESEARCH.md
     ├── Planner (with reachability check) → PLAN.md files
-    └── Plan Checker → Verify loop (max 3x)
+    ├── Plan Checker → Verify loop (max 3x)
+    ├── Requirements coverage gate (REQ-IDs → plans)
+    └── Decision coverage gate (CONTEXT.md `<decisions>` → plans, BLOCKING — #2492)
     │
     ▼
 state planned-phase → STATE.md (Planned/Ready to execute)
@@ -422,6 +424,7 @@ execute-phase (context reduction: truncated prompts, cache-friendly ordering)
     ├── Executor per plan → code + atomic commits
     ├── SUMMARY.md per plan
     └── Verifier → VERIFICATION.md
+        └── Decision coverage gate (CONTEXT.md decisions → shipped artifacts, NON-BLOCKING — #2492)
     │
     ▼
 verify-work → UAT.md (user acceptance testing)

docs/CONFIGURATION.md

@@ -454,6 +454,60 @@ These keys live under `workflow.*` — that is where the workflows and installer
 
 ---
 
+## Decision Coverage Gates (`workflow.context_coverage_gate`)
+
+When `discuss-phase` writes implementation decisions into CONTEXT.md
+`<decisions>`, two gates ensure those decisions survive the trip into
+plans and shipped code (issue #2492).
+
+| Setting | Type | Default | Description |
+|---------|------|---------|-------------|
+| `workflow.context_coverage_gate` | boolean | `true` | Toggle for both decision-coverage gates. When `false`, both the plan-phase translation gate and the verify-phase validation gate skip silently. |
+
+### What the gates do
+
+**Plan-phase translation gate (BLOCKING).** Runs immediately after the
+existing requirements coverage gate, before plans are committed. For each
+trackable decision in `<decisions>`, it checks that the decision id
+(`D-NN`) or its text appears in at least one plan's `must_haves`,
+`truths`, or body. A miss surfaces the missing decision by id and refuses
+to mark the phase planned.
+
+**Verify-phase validation gate (NON-BLOCKING).** Runs alongside the other
+verify steps. Searches every shipped artifact (PLAN.md, SUMMARY.md, files
+modified, recent commit subjects) for each trackable decision. Misses are
+written to VERIFICATION.md as a warning section but do **not** flip the
+overall verification status. The asymmetry is deliberate — by verify time
+the work is done, and a fuzzy substring miss should not fail an otherwise
+green phase.
+
+### How to write decisions the gates accept
+
+The discuss-phase template already produces `D-NN`-numbered decisions.
+The gate is happiest when:
+
+1. Every plan that implements a decision **cites the id** somewhere —
+   `must_haves.truths: ["D-12: bit offsets exposed"]` or a `D-12:` mention
+   in the plan body. Strict id match is the cheapest, deterministic path.
+2. Soft phrase matching is a fallback for paraphrases — if a 6+-word slice
+   of the decision text appears verbatim in a plan/summary, it counts.
+
+### Opt-outs
+
+A decision is **not** subject to the gates when any of the following
+apply:
+
+- It lives under the `### Claude's Discretion` heading inside `<decisions>`.
+- It is tagged `[informational]`, `[folded]`, or `[deferred]` in its
+  bullet (e.g., `- **D-08 [informational]:** Naming style for internal
+  helpers`).
+
+Use these escape hatches when a decision genuinely doesn't need plan
+coverage — implementation discretion, future ideas captured for the
+record, or items already deferred to a later phase.
+
+---
+
 ## Review Settings
 
 Configure per-CLI model selection for `/gsd-review`. When set, overrides the CLI's default model for that reviewer.

docs/USER-GUIDE.md

@@ -179,6 +179,47 @@ By default, `/gsd-discuss-phase` asks open-ended questions about your implementa
 
 See [docs/workflow-discuss-mode.md](workflow-discuss-mode.md) for the full discuss-mode reference.
 
+### Decision Coverage Gates
+
+The discuss-phase captures implementation decisions in CONTEXT.md under a
+`<decisions>` block as numbered bullets (`- **D-01:** …`). Two gates — added
+for issue #2492 — ensure those decisions survive into plans and shipped
+code.
+
+**Plan-phase translation gate (blocking).** After planning, GSD refuses to
+mark the phase planned until every trackable decision appears in at least
+one plan's `must_haves`, `truths`, or body. The gate names each missed
+decision by id (`D-07: …`) so you know exactly what to add, move, or
+reclassify.
+
+**Verify-phase validation gate (non-blocking).** During verification, GSD
+searches plans, SUMMARY.md, modified files, and recent commit messages for
+each trackable decision. Misses are logged to VERIFICATION.md as a warning
+section; verification status is unchanged. The asymmetry is deliberate —
+the blocking gate is cheap at plan time but hostile at verify time.
+
+**Writing decisions the gate can match.** Two match modes:
+
+1. **Strict id match (recommended).** Cite the decision id anywhere in a
+   plan that implements it — `must_haves.truths: ["D-12: bit offsets
+   exposed"]`, a bullet in the plan body, a frontmatter comment. This is
+   deterministic and unambiguous.
+2. **Soft phrase match (fallback).** If a 6+-word slice of the decision
+   text appears verbatim in any plan or shipped artifact, it counts. This
+   forgives paraphrasing but is less reliable.
+
+**Opting a decision out.** If a decision genuinely should not be tracked —
+an implementation-discretion note, an informational capture, a decision
+already deferred — mark it one of these ways:
+
+- Move it under the `### Claude's Discretion` heading inside `<decisions>`.
+- Tag it in its bullet: `- **D-08 [informational]:** …`,
+  `- **D-09 [folded]:** …`, `- **D-10 [deferred]:** …`.
+
+**Disabling the gates.** Set
+`workflow.context_coverage_gate: false` in `.planning/config.json` (or via
+`/gsd-settings`) to skip both gates silently. Default is `true`.
+
 ---
 
 ## UI Design Contract

get-shit-done/workflows/plan-phase.md

@@ -1310,6 +1310,72 @@ Options:
 
 If `TEXT_MODE` is true, present as a plain-text numbered list (options already shown in the block above). Otherwise use AskUserQuestion to present the options.
 
+## 13a. Decision Coverage Gate
+
+After the requirements coverage gate passes, verify that every trackable
+decision captured by discuss-phase in CONTEXT.md `<decisions>` is referenced
+by at least one plan. This is the **translation gate** from issue #2492 —
+its job is to refuse to mark a phase planned when a discuss-phase decision
+silently dropped on the way into the plans.
+
+**Skip if** `workflow.context_coverage_gate` is explicitly set to `false`
+(absent key = enabled). Also skip if no CONTEXT.md exists for this phase
+(nothing to translate) or if its `<decisions>` block is empty.
+
+```bash
+GATE_CFG=$(gsd-sdk query config-get workflow.context_coverage_gate 2>/dev/null || echo "true")
+if [ "$GATE_CFG" != "false" ]; then
+  GATE_RESULT=$(gsd-sdk query check.decision-coverage-plan "${PHASE_DIR}" "${CONTEXT_PATH}")
+  # BLOCKING: refuse to mark phase planned when a trackable decision is uncovered.
+  # `passed: true` covers both real-pass and skipped cases (gate disabled / no CONTEXT.md /
+  # no trackable decisions). Verify-phase counterpart deliberately omits this exit-1 — that
+  # gate is non-blocking by design (review finding F15).
+  echo "$GATE_RESULT" | jq -e '.data.passed == true' >/dev/null || {
+    echo "$GATE_RESULT" | jq -r '.data.message'
+    exit 1
+  }
+fi
+```
+
+The handler returns JSON:
+```json
+{
+  "passed": true,
+  "skipped": false,
+  "total":  2,
+  "covered": 2,
+  "uncovered": [ { "id": "D-01", "text": "...", "category": "..." } ],
+  "message": "..."
+}
+```
+
+**If `passed` is true (or `skipped` is true):** Display
+`✓ Decision coverage: {M}/{N} CONTEXT.md decisions covered by plans` (or
+`(skipped — gate disabled)` / `(skipped — no decisions)`) and proceed to
+step 13b.
+
+**If `passed` is false:** Display the handler's `message` block. It already
+names each uncovered decision (`D-NN | category | text`) and tells the user
+what to do — cite the id in a relevant plan's `must_haves` / `truths`, or
+move the decision under `### Claude's Discretion` / tag it `[informational]`
+if it should not be tracked. Then offer:
+
+```text
+Options:
+1. Re-plan to cover missing decisions (recommended)
+2. Edit CONTEXT.md to mark dropped decisions as [informational] / Discretion
+3. Proceed anyway — accept the coverage gap
+```
+
+If `TEXT_MODE` is true, present as a plain-text numbered list. Otherwise use
+AskUserQuestion. Selecting "Proceed anyway" continues to step 13b but
+records the override in STATE.md so verify-phase can re-surface it.
+
+**Why this gate blocks:** failing here is cheap. The plans are the contract
+between discuss-phase and execute-phase; if a decision isn't visible in any
+plan, no executor will implement it. Catching that now beats discovering it
+after thousands of dollars of execution.
+
 ## 13b. Record Planning Completion in STATE.md
 
 After plans pass all gates, record that planning is complete so STATE.md reflects the new phase status:

get-shit-done/workflows/verify-phase.md

@@ -183,6 +183,57 @@ grep -E "Phase ${PHASE_NUM}" .planning/REQUIREMENTS.md 2>/dev/null || true
 For each requirement: parse description → identify supporting truths/artifacts → status: ✓ SATISFIED / ✗ BLOCKED / ? NEEDS HUMAN.
 </step>
 
+<step name="verify_decisions">
+**Decision coverage validation gate (issue #2492).**
+
+After requirements coverage, also check that each trackable CONTEXT.md
+`<decisions>` entry shows up somewhere in the shipped artifacts (plans,
+SUMMARY.md, files modified by the phase, or recent commit subjects on the
+phase branch).
+
+This gate is **non-blocking / warning only** by deliberate asymmetry with
+the plan-phase translation gate. The plan-phase gate already blocked at
+translation time, so by the time verification runs every decision has
+either been translated or explicitly deferred. This gate's job is to
+surface decisions that *were* translated but vanished during execution —
+that's a soft signal because "honors a decision" is a fuzzy substring
+heuristic, and we don't want a paraphrase miss to fail an otherwise good
+phase.
+
+**Skip if** `workflow.context_coverage_gate` is explicitly set to `false`
+(absent key = enabled). Also skip cleanly when CONTEXT.md is missing or has
+no `<decisions>` block.
+
+```bash
+GATE_CFG=$(gsd-sdk query config-get workflow.context_coverage_gate 2>/dev/null || echo "true")
+if [ "$GATE_CFG" != "false" ]; then
+  # Discover the phase CONTEXT.md via glob expansion rather than `ls | head`
+  # (review F17 / ShellCheck SC2012). Globs preserve filenames containing
+  # spaces and avoid an extra subprocess.
+  CONTEXT_PATH=""
+  for f in "${PHASE_DIR}"/*-CONTEXT.md; do
+    [ -e "$f" ] && CONTEXT_PATH="$f" && break
+  done
+  DECISION_RESULT=$(gsd-sdk query check.decision-coverage-verify "${PHASE_DIR}" "${CONTEXT_PATH}")
+fi
+```
+
+The handler returns JSON `{ skipped, blocking: false, total, honored,
+not_honored: [...], message }`.
+
+**Reporting:** Append the handler's `message` (a `### Decision Coverage`
+section) to VERIFICATION.md regardless of outcome — even when all
+decisions are honored, recording the count helps reviewers spot drift over
+time. Set `decision_coverage` in the verification result to
+`{honored, total, not_honored: [...]}` so downstream tooling can read it.
+
+**Status impact:** none. The decision gate does NOT influence the
+`gaps_found` / `human_needed` / `passed` decision tree in
+`determine_status`. Its findings are warnings the user reviews and may act
+on by re-opening the phase or by acknowledging the decision was abandoned
+intentionally.
+</step>
+
 <step name="behavioral_verification">
 **Run the project's test suite and CLI commands to verify behavior, not just structure.**
 
@@ -479,6 +530,7 @@ Orchestrator routes: `passed` → update_roadmap | `gaps_found` → create/execu
 - [ ] All artifacts checked at all three levels
 - [ ] All key links verified
 - [ ] Requirements coverage assessed (if applicable)
+- [ ] CONTEXT.md decisions checked against shipped artifacts (#2492 — non-blocking)
 - [ ] Anti-patterns scanned and categorized
 - [ ] Test quality audited (disabled tests, circular patterns, assertion strength, provenance)
 - [ ] Human verification items identified

sdk/src/config.ts

@@ -38,6 +38,13 @@ export interface WorkflowConfig {
   max_discuss_passes: number;
   /** Subagent timeout in ms (matches `get-shit-done/bin/lib/core.cjs` default 300000). */
   subagent_timeout: number;
+  /**
+   * Issue #2492. When true (default), enforces that every trackable decision in
+   * CONTEXT.md `<decisions>` is referenced by at least one plan (translation
+   * gate, blocking) and reports decisions not honored by shipped artifacts at
+   * verify-phase (validation gate, non-blocking). Set false to disable both.
+   */
+  context_coverage_gate: boolean;
 }
 
 export interface HooksConfig {
@@ -98,6 +105,7 @@ export const CONFIG_DEFAULTS: GSDConfig = {
     skip_discuss: false,
     max_discuss_passes: 3,
     subagent_timeout: 300000,
+    context_coverage_gate: true,
   },
   hooks: {
     context_warnings: true,