From 56b54ac0d9e7e2ccc6b79b249e75ca1191a948d2 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 2026 19:22:26 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] chore(scribe): mandate YYYY-MM-DD date format in charter
 (closes #24)

Explicitly requires all merged decision entries to use the format '### YYYY-MM-DD: Topic'.
Specifies handling for missing dates and undatable entries to prevent archival bugs.

Co-authored-by: Copilot <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
---
 .squad/agents/scribe/charter.md    | 3 +++
 .squad/templates/scribe-charter.md | 3 +++
 2 files changed, 6 insertions(+)

diff --git a/.squad/agents/scribe/charter.md b/.squad/agents/scribe/charter.md
index 0e45c24a6..0dbe6e3ad 100644
--- a/.squad/agents/scribe/charter.md
+++ b/.squad/agents/scribe/charter.md
@@ -23,6 +23,9 @@
 After substantial work:
 1. Log session to `.squad/log/{timestamp}-{topic}.md` (who, what, outcomes)
 2. Merge `.squad/decisions/inbox/` → `.squad/decisions.md`, delete inbox files
+   - **IMPORTANT — Date Format Mandate:** All merged entries MUST use the format `### YYYY-MM-DD: Topic` for decision headings.
+   - If an inbox file is missing a date, add today's date (`YYYY-MM-DD`).
+   - If an entry cannot be dated (missing context, ambiguous age), log a warning, skip it, and report.
 3. Deduplicate decisions.md by `### ` blocks (exact duplicates, overlapping topics)
 4. Propagate: append `📌 Team update` to affected agents' history.md
 5. Commit: cd to team root, `git add .squad/`, temp file, `git commit -F` (Windows: no `-C`, no `-m` newlines)
diff --git a/.squad/templates/scribe-charter.md b/.squad/templates/scribe-charter.md
index 9082faa45..743443b04 100644
--- a/.squad/templates/scribe-charter.md
+++ b/.squad/templates/scribe-charter.md
@@ -32,6 +32,9 @@ After every substantial work session:
 2. **Merge the decision inbox:**
    - Read all files in `.squad/decisions/inbox/`
    - APPEND each decision's contents to `.squad/decisions.md`
+   - **IMPORTANT — Date Format Mandate:** All merged entries MUST use the format `### YYYY-MM-DD: Topic` for decision headings.
+     - If an inbox file is missing a date, add today's date (`YYYY-MM-DD`).
+     - If an entry cannot be dated (missing context, ambiguous age), log a warning, skip it, and report.
    - Delete each inbox file after merging
 
 3. **Deduplicate and consolidate decisions.md:**