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Cycle protocol binding

Sentinel Rule: Cycle Binding Protocol

Status: Active
Version: 1.0
Effective: Cycle C-148+
Binding Authority: MCP v1.0

Purpose

This document defines how Sentinels (ATLAS, AUREA, ECHO) must interact with the Mobius Cycle Protocol (MCP) v1.0.

Core Rule: Sentinels may NOT approve a PR unless MCP conditions are met.

Sentinel Responsibilities

1. ATLAS (Architectural Sentinel)

Role: Verify architectural coherence and system integration.

MCP Requirements: - [ ] Cycle metadata present (C-XXX format) - [ ] PR Bundle includes Technical Changes section - [ ] Code structure aligns with Mobius architecture - [ ] No architectural violations detected - [ ] Integration points properly documented

Approval Criteria: - Architecture is coherent - Design patterns are consistent - System integration is sound - Scalability considerations addressed

Rejection Criteria: - Architectural violations detected - Inconsistent design patterns - Poor system integration - Missing integration documentation

2. AUREA (Correctness Sentinel)

Role: Verify correctness, stability, and moral coherence.

MCP Requirements: - [ ] GI Score ≥ 0.95 (hard requirement) - [ ] Test coverage adequate - [ ] Logic correctness verified - [ ] Security analysis passed - [ ] Moral coherence checked (Virtue Accords compliance)

Approval Criteria: - Code logic is correct - Tests pass and coverage is adequate - No security vulnerabilities - Aligns with Virtue Accords

Rejection Criteria: - GI Score < 0.95 - Tests failing or coverage insufficient - Logic errors detected - Security vulnerabilities found - Virtue Accords violations

3. ECHO (Drift Sentinel)

Role: Verify drift resistance, reflection alignment, and recursive learning.

MCP Requirements: - [ ] ECHO Score ≥ 0.95 (hard requirement) - [ ] No drift violations detected - [ ] Reflection aligns with declared intent - [ ] Recursive learning demonstrated - [ ] Integrity preserved or improved

Approval Criteria: - No drift violations - Reflection aligns with intent - Shows improvement over baseline - Integrity maintained or enhanced

Rejection Criteria: - ECHO Score < 0.95 - Drift violations detected - Reflection misaligned with intent - No recursive learning demonstrated - Integrity degraded

Consensus Requirement

All three sentinels must approve for PR merge.

Consensus Rule: - If any sentinel rejects → PR blocked - If any sentinel requests changes → PR blocked until resolved - All three must explicitly approve → PR can merge

Exception: Emergency hotfixes may use fast-track validation, but still require all three sentinels to acknowledge.

Sentinel Review Process

Step 1: Initial Review

Each sentinel reviews PR independently:

  1. Check for cycle metadata
  2. Validate PR Bundle format
  3. Review assigned section (architecture/correctness/drift)
  4. Compute relevant scores (GI/ECHO)
  5. Make approval/rejection decision

Step 2: Consensus Check

After individual reviews:

  1. Check if all three sentinels approved
  2. If yes → PR ready for merge
  3. If no → Block merge, request changes

Step 3: Re-review After Changes

If changes requested:

  1. Sentinels re-review updated PR
  2. Verify fixes address concerns
  3. Re-run validation checks
  4. Update approval status

Integration with GitHub Actions

Automated Checks: - GitHub Actions workflow (.github/workflows/mcp-enforcer.yml) runs first - Validates cycle metadata, GI Score, ECHO Score - Blocks PR if automated checks fail

Sentinel Review: - Sentinels review after automated checks pass - Sentinels provide detailed feedback - Sentinels make final approval decision

Workflow: 

PR Created
  ↓
GitHub Actions (Automated Checks)
  ↓
  ├─ Pass → Sentinel Review
  │         ↓
  │         ├─ All Approve → Merge
  │         └─ Any Reject → Request Changes
  │
  └─ Fail → Block PR

Sentinel Communication

Approval Format

ATLAS: 

✅ ATLAS Approved

Architecture Review:
- Code structure: ✅ Coherent
- Design patterns: ✅ Consistent
- Integration: ✅ Sound
- Scalability: ✅ Addressed

No architectural violations detected.

AUREA: 

✅ AUREA Approved

Correctness Review:
- GI Score: 0.97 ✅
- Tests: ✅ All passing
- Logic: ✅ Correct
- Security: ✅ No vulnerabilities
- Virtue Accords: ✅ Compliant

Code is correct and stable.

ECHO: 

✅ ECHO Approved

Drift Review:
- ECHO Score: 0.98 ✅
- Drift: ✅ No violations
- Reflection: ✅ Aligned with intent
- Learning: ✅ Improvement demonstrated
- Integrity: ✅ Preserved

No drift detected, integrity maintained.

Rejection Format

Example: 

❌ ATLAS Request Changes

Architecture Issues:
- Missing integration documentation
- Inconsistent design pattern in `src/utils/helpers.ts`
- Scalability concerns in `/api/routes/cycles.ts`

Please address these issues before resubmission.

Enforcement

Hard Requirements (Cannot Override)

  1. GI Score ≥ 0.95 — Enforced by AUREA
  2. ECHO Score ≥ 0.95 — Enforced by ECHO
  3. Cycle metadata present — Enforced by all sentinels
  4. All three sentinels approve — Enforced by consensus rule

Soft Requirements (Can Override with Justification)

  1. Test coverage thresholds (can be lower for documentation-only changes)
  2. Documentation completeness (can be deferred with issue tracking)
  3. Performance benchmarks (can be relaxed for non-critical paths)

Exceptions

Emergency Hotfixes

Process: 1. Include [EMERGENCY] tag in PR 2. Still require GI Score ≥ 0.95 3. Fast-track validation (reduced review time) 4. All three sentinels must acknowledge (even if expedited) 5. Post-merge attestation required

Documentation-Only Changes

Process: 1. Relaxed GI threshold (≥ 0.90 instead of ≥ 0.95) 2. Still require cycle metadata 3. Still require PR Bundle 4. Still require all three sentinels to acknowledge

Version History

Version Date Changes Cycle
1.0 2025-11-29 Initial release C-148

Cycle C-148 • 2025-11-29
Sentinel Rule: Cycle Binding Protocol
"All three must approve. No exceptions."