diff --git a/lib/autoplan-revise.ts b/lib/autoplan-revise.ts
index e32e1e02f..bb1ba3fa3 100644
--- a/lib/autoplan-revise.ts
+++ b/lib/autoplan-revise.ts
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ import * as path from 'node:path';
 import { exportRun } from './autoplan-export';
 import { applyRenames, approve, closeDraftDirections, finishGate, planReopen } from './autoplan-gate';
 import { carryLines, voidPendingCheck } from './autoplan-carry';
-import { atCap, escalateLine, pendingDeltas, roundCap, roundOf } from './autoplan-budget';
+import { atCap, pendingDeltas, roundCap, roundOf } from './autoplan-budget';
 import { diffStat, lineDiff } from './autoplan-confirm';
 import { SETTLEABLE_CHANGES } from './autoplan-reconcile';
 import { normalizeRevision, reviewHash, scaffold } from './autoplan-plan-text';
@@ -112,9 +112,7 @@ function approveOrRegate(state: RunState, at: string): string[] {
   if (pendingDeltas(state).length) {
     finishGate(state);
     const carried = carryLines(state);
-    if (state.status !== 'gate_pending') return carried;
-    const escalate = escalateLine(state);
-    return [...carried, `GATE: gate_rev=${state.gate_rev} (a plan change after a round cap needs the owner) render with: gstack-gate render ${path.join(state.out, 'gate.json')}`, ...(escalate ? [escalate] : [])];
+    return carried;
   }
   return [...approve(state, at), `APPROVED: gate_rev=${state.gate_rev} (every accepted change is in the plan or settled)`];
 }
diff --git a/lib/autoplan-run.ts b/lib/autoplan-run.ts
index 921e46370..5755c64bd 100644
--- a/lib/autoplan-run.ts
+++ b/lib/autoplan-run.ts
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ export function withRunLock<T>(out: string, fn: () => T, opts: { steal?: boolean
   const mine = JSON.stringify({ pid: process.pid, host: os.hostname(), at: now() });
   const staged = `${lock}.${process.pid}.${crypto.randomBytes(4).toString('hex')}`;
   fs.writeFileSync(staged, mine);
-  for (let i = 0; ; i++) {
+  for (let reclaims = 0; ;) {
     try {
       fs.linkSync(staged, lock);
       fs.unlinkSync(staged);
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ export function withRunLock<T>(out: string, fn: () => T, opts: { steal?: boolean
       if (alive && Date.now() < waitUntil) { Atomics.wait(new Int32Array(new SharedArrayBuffer(4)), 0, 0, 100); continue; }
       if (alive) { fs.rmSync(staged, { force: true }); throw new RunError('RUN_LOCKED', unreadable ? `${lock} is being written by another command` : `pid ${owner.pid} on ${owner.host} since ${owner.at}`, 3); }
       try { fs.unlinkSync(lock); } catch { /* raced with its owner's exit */ }
-      if (i > 50) { fs.rmSync(staged, { force: true }); throw new RunError('RUN_LOCKED', `could not reclaim ${lock}`, 3); }
+      if (++reclaims > 50) { fs.rmSync(staged, { force: true }); throw new RunError('RUN_LOCKED', `could not reclaim ${lock}`, 3); }
     }
   }
   try { return fn(); } finally { try { if (fs.readFileSync(lock, 'utf8') === mine) fs.unlinkSync(lock); } catch { /* already gone */ } }
diff --git a/lib/autoplan-shadow.ts b/lib/autoplan-shadow.ts
index 53c5104e8..9b055c4e0 100644
--- a/lib/autoplan-shadow.ts
+++ b/lib/autoplan-shadow.ts
@@ -205,8 +205,8 @@ export function buildPage(state: RunState, list: GateList, deciderText: string):
   });
   const planText = fs.existsSync(state.active_plan) ? fs.readFileSync(state.active_plan, 'utf8') : '';
   const plan = (extractHeading(planText, 'Implementation plan') ?? planText).slice(0, PLAN_CHARS);
-  const prompt = deciderText.replace('{{PLAN}}', () => plan).replace('{{QUESTIONS}}', () => '```json\n' + JSON.stringify(items.map(i => i.frozen), null, 2) + '\n```')
-    .replace('{{IDS}}', () => items.map(i => i.item.id).join(', '));
+  const slots: Record<string, string> = { PLAN: plan, QUESTIONS: '```json\n' + JSON.stringify(items.map(i => i.frozen), null, 2) + '\n```', IDS: items.map(i => i.item.id).join(', ') };
+  const prompt = deciderText.replace(/\{\{(PLAN|QUESTIONS|IDS)\}\}/g, (_, k: string) => slots[k]!);
   return { prompt, items, plan_sha256: sha256(planText), prompt_sha256: sha256(deciderText), request_sha256: sha256(prompt) };
 }
 
diff --git a/test/autoplan-shadow.test.ts b/test/autoplan-shadow.test.ts
index f8628a8e2..65f93e1ce 100644
--- a/test/autoplan-shadow.test.ts
+++ b/test/autoplan-shadow.test.ts
@@ -126,6 +126,15 @@ describe('the reply contract: exactly one valid object per requested id', () =>
     expect(page.prompt).toContain('"id": "uc1"');
     expect(page.prompt).not.toContain('{{');
   });
+  test('slot names inside the plan text stay plan text; the template slots are still filled', () => {
+    const planFile = path.join(TMP, 'slot-plan.md');
+    fs.writeFileSync(planFile, '## Implementation plan\n\nfill {{QUESTIONS}} and {{IDS}} in {{PLAN}}\n');
+    const p = buildPage({ ...readState(out), active_plan: planFile }, gateOf(out), decider());
+    expect(p.prompt).toContain('fill {{QUESTIONS}} and {{IDS}} in {{PLAN}}');
+    expect(p.prompt).toContain('"id": "uc1"');
+    expect(p.prompt).toContain('uc1, uc2, p1');
+    expect(p.prompt.split('{{').length).toBe(4);
+  });
   test('a good reply is clean', () => {
     expect(parsePage(reply(valid), page.items).clean).toBe(true);
   });
diff --git a/test/helpers/free-fixtures-data.ts b/test/helpers/free-fixtures-data.ts
index bca79b7a2..3cd44fe55 100644
--- a/test/helpers/free-fixtures-data.ts
+++ b/test/helpers/free-fixtures-data.ts
@@ -200,6 +200,7 @@ export const FREE_FIXTURES: Readonly<Record<string, readonly string[]>> = {
   'test/fixtures/review-design-lite-reports-ci-36633323521.json': ['test/review-finalization-budget.test.ts'],
   'test/fixtures/review-gate-integrity-opus-reports.json': ['test/gate-integrity-templates.test.ts'],
   'test/fixtures/session-update-heartbeat.sh': ['test/session-update-heartbeat.test.ts'],
+  'test/fixtures/shadow-fake-model.ts': ['test/autoplan-shadow-driver.test.ts', 'test/autoplan-shadow.test.ts'],
   'test/fixtures/shard-cli-parity/**': ['test/shard-cli-parity.test.ts'],
   'test/fixtures/shard-equivalence/**': ['test/shard-engine-equivalence.test.ts'],
   'test/fixtures/shared-libs-claude-version-probe.json': ['test/shared-libs-fixture.test.ts'],