diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.test.ts
index c7b624a5..c895e099 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.test.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.test.ts
@@ -25,4 +25,25 @@ describe('baselineCases', () => {
       expect(testCase.requiredCapabilities).toContain('model')
     }
   })
+
+  test('define enough first-wave product baseline cases', () => {
+    expect(baselineCases.map((testCase) => testCase.id)).toEqual([
+      'failing-unit',
+      'multi-file-api',
+      'failure-recovery',
+      'workspace-search-edit',
+      'permission-artifact',
+      'cross-module-refactor',
+    ])
+  })
+
+  test('pin changed-file expectations for every case', () => {
+    for (const testCase of baselineCases) {
+      expect(testCase.verify.requiredFiles?.length ?? 0).toBeGreaterThan(0)
+      expect(testCase.verify.expectedFiles?.length ?? 0).toBeGreaterThan(0)
+      for (const file of testCase.verify.requiredFiles ?? []) {
+        expect(testCase.verify.expectedFiles).toContain(file)
+      }
+    }
+  })
 })
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.ts
index 4e308e2d..34ab7849 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/cases.ts
@@ -12,25 +12,95 @@ export const baselineCases: BaselineCase[] = [
     timeoutMs: 180_000,
     verify: {
       commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['src/math.ts'],
       expectedFiles: ['src/math.ts'],
       forbiddenFiles: ['package.json'],
-      transcriptAssertions: ['bun test', 'src/math.ts'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
     },
   },
   {
     id: 'multi-file-api',
     title: 'Update a multi-file API contract',
-    description: 'A small app exposes a user display API. The Agent must change the contract and update callers plus tests coherently.',
+    description: 'A small app exposes a user display API. The Agent must change the contract and update callers coherently without loosening tests.',
     fixture: 'scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api',
-    prompt: 'Change the user display contract so it returns "Ada Lovelace <ada@example.com>" instead of only the name. Update the implementation, caller, and tests, then run the tests.',
+    prompt: 'The user display API contract changed to return an object with a label field, where label is "Ada Lovelace <ada@example.com>". Update the implementation and caller so the existing tests pass. Do not edit package.json.',
     mode: 'websocket',
     requiredCapabilities: ['model', 'file-edit', 'shell'],
     timeoutMs: 240_000,
     verify: {
       commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['src/api.ts', 'src/app.ts'],
       expectedFiles: ['src/api.ts', 'src/app.ts', 'src/app.test.ts'],
       forbiddenFiles: ['package.json'],
-      transcriptAssertions: ['bun test', 'src/api.ts', 'src/app.ts'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
+    },
+  },
+  {
+    id: 'failure-recovery',
+    title: 'Recover from a deeper failing test suite',
+    description: 'A slug formatter has several edge-case failures. The Agent must read the failures, patch the implementation, and keep tests unchanged.',
+    fixture: 'scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery',
+    prompt: 'Run the tests and fix the slug formatter implementation until the whole suite passes. Do not edit the tests. Keep the implementation small and deterministic.',
+    mode: 'websocket',
+    requiredCapabilities: ['model', 'file-edit', 'shell'],
+    timeoutMs: 240_000,
+    verify: {
+      commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['src/slug.ts'],
+      expectedFiles: ['src/slug.ts'],
+      forbiddenFiles: ['src/slug.test.ts', 'package.json'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
+    },
+  },
+  {
+    id: 'workspace-search-edit',
+    title: 'Find and fix a bug across a small workspace',
+    description: 'A checkout total is wrong in a multi-file fixture. The Agent must inspect the workspace and patch the correct implementation file.',
+    fixture: 'scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit',
+    prompt: 'The checkout tests are failing. Search the project, identify the real bug, fix the implementation, and rerun the tests. Do not rewrite unrelated modules.',
+    mode: 'websocket',
+    requiredCapabilities: ['model', 'file-edit', 'shell'],
+    timeoutMs: 240_000,
+    verify: {
+      commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['src/checkout.ts'],
+      expectedFiles: ['src/checkout.ts'],
+      forbiddenFiles: ['src/checkout.test.ts', 'src/catalog.ts', 'src/user.ts', 'package.json'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
+    },
+  },
+  {
+    id: 'permission-artifact',
+    title: 'Create a required project artifact',
+    description: 'A test expects a generated summary file. The Agent must create a new file and validate it without changing the test.',
+    fixture: 'scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact',
+    prompt: 'Run the tests, create the missing project artifact they require, and rerun the tests. Do not modify the tests or package.json.',
+    mode: 'websocket',
+    requiredCapabilities: ['model', 'file-edit', 'shell', 'permission'],
+    timeoutMs: 180_000,
+    verify: {
+      commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['notes/summary.md'],
+      expectedFiles: ['notes/summary.md'],
+      forbiddenFiles: ['src/artifact.test.ts', 'package.json'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
+    },
+  },
+  {
+    id: 'cross-module-refactor',
+    title: 'Complete a cross-module parser refactor',
+    description: 'A config parser contract changed but the implementation and caller are stale. The Agent must update multiple modules coherently.',
+    fixture: 'scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor',
+    prompt: 'Update the config parsing flow so parseConfig returns a structured object with enabled and retries fields. Update the implementation and caller so the existing tests pass, then run the suite.',
+    mode: 'websocket',
+    requiredCapabilities: ['model', 'file-edit', 'shell'],
+    timeoutMs: 300_000,
+    verify: {
+      commands: [['bun', 'test']],
+      requiredFiles: ['src/config.ts', 'src/runner.ts'],
+      expectedFiles: ['src/config.ts', 'src/runner.ts', 'src/runner.test.ts'],
+      forbiddenFiles: ['package.json'],
+      transcriptAssertions: ['"type":"message_complete"'],
     },
   },
 ]
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/execute.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/execute.ts
index 020630e7..e8e18bf1 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/execute.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/execute.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { appendFileSync, cpSync, mkdirSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { appendFileSync, cpSync, mkdirSync, readdirSync, readFileSync, rmSync, statSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
 import { mkdtemp } from 'node:fs/promises'
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
 import { join } from 'node:path'
@@ -51,6 +51,90 @@ async function runCommand(command: string[], cwd: string) {
   return { exitCode, stdout, stderr }
 }
 
+function listFiles(root: string, current = root): string[] {
+  const files: string[] = []
+  for (const entry of readdirSync(current)) {
+    if (entry === 'node_modules' || entry === '.git') {
+      continue
+    }
+
+    const fullPath = join(current, entry)
+    const stat = statSync(fullPath)
+    if (stat.isDirectory()) {
+      files.push(...listFiles(root, fullPath))
+      continue
+    }
+    if (stat.isFile()) {
+      files.push(fullPath.slice(root.length + 1))
+    }
+  }
+  return files.sort()
+}
+
+function changedFiles(beforeDir: string, afterDir: string) {
+  const before = new Set(listFiles(beforeDir))
+  const after = new Set(listFiles(afterDir))
+  const changed = new Set<string>()
+
+  for (const file of before) {
+    if (!after.has(file)) {
+      changed.add(file)
+      continue
+    }
+    if (!readFileSync(join(beforeDir, file)).equals(readFileSync(join(afterDir, file)))) {
+      changed.add(file)
+    }
+  }
+
+  for (const file of after) {
+    if (!before.has(file)) {
+      changed.add(file)
+    }
+  }
+
+  return [...changed].sort()
+}
+
+async function writeDiffPatch(beforeDir: string, afterDir: string, patchPath: string) {
+  const result = await runCommand(['git', 'diff', '--no-index', '--', beforeDir, afterDir], process.cwd())
+  writeFileSync(patchPath, `${result.stdout}${result.stderr}`)
+}
+
+function verifyChangedFiles(testCase: BaselineCase, changed: string[]) {
+  const expected = testCase.verify.expectedFiles
+  if (expected) {
+    const unexpected = changed.filter((file) => !expected.includes(file))
+    if (unexpected.length > 0) {
+      throw new Error(`unexpected changed files: ${unexpected.join(', ')}`)
+    }
+  }
+
+  const required = testCase.verify.requiredFiles ?? []
+  const missing = required.filter((file) => !changed.includes(file))
+  if (missing.length > 0) {
+    throw new Error(`required files were not changed: ${missing.join(', ')}`)
+  }
+
+  const forbidden = testCase.verify.forbiddenFiles ?? []
+  const forbiddenChanged = forbidden.filter((file) => changed.includes(file))
+  if (forbiddenChanged.length > 0) {
+    throw new Error(`forbidden files changed: ${forbiddenChanged.join(', ')}`)
+  }
+}
+
+function verifyTranscript(testCase: BaselineCase, transcriptPath: string) {
+  const assertions = testCase.verify.transcriptAssertions ?? []
+  if (assertions.length === 0) {
+    return
+  }
+
+  const transcript = readFileSync(transcriptPath, 'utf8')
+  const missing = assertions.filter((assertion) => !transcript.includes(assertion))
+  if (missing.length > 0) {
+    throw new Error(`transcript assertions missing: ${missing.join(', ')}`)
+  }
+}
+
 async function pipeToFile(stream: ReadableStream<Uint8Array> | null, path: string) {
   if (!stream) return
   const reader = stream.getReader()
@@ -154,12 +238,15 @@ export async function executeBaselineCase(
   const port = await getPort()
   const baseUrl = `http://127.0.0.1:${port}`
   const workRoot = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), `quality-gate-${testCase.id}-`))
+  const originalDir = join(workRoot, 'original')
   const projectDir = join(workRoot, 'project')
+  cpSync(join(rootDir, testCase.fixture), originalDir, { recursive: true })
   cpSync(join(rootDir, testCase.fixture), projectDir, { recursive: true })
 
   const serverLogPath = join(artifactDir, 'server.log')
   const transcriptPath = join(artifactDir, 'transcript.jsonl')
   const verificationPath = join(artifactDir, 'verification.log')
+  const diffPath = join(artifactDir, 'diff.patch')
   const server = Bun.spawn(['bun', 'run', 'src/server/index.ts', '--host', '127.0.0.1', '--port', String(port)], {
     cwd: rootDir,
     stdout: 'pipe',
@@ -190,6 +277,11 @@ export async function executeBaselineCase(
 
     const messages = await runPromptOverWebSocket(baseUrl, session.sessionId, testCase.prompt, testCase.timeoutMs, target)
     writeFileSync(transcriptPath, messages.map((message) => JSON.stringify(message)).join('\n') + '\n')
+    verifyTranscript(testCase, transcriptPath)
+
+    await writeDiffPatch(originalDir, projectDir, diffPath)
+    const changed = changedFiles(originalDir, projectDir)
+    verifyChangedFiles(testCase, changed)
 
     let verificationLog = ''
     for (const command of testCase.verify.commands) {
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/package.json b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/package.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7de3edee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/package.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "name": "quality-gate-cross-module-refactor-fixture",
+  "private": true,
+  "type": "module",
+  "scripts": {
+    "test": "bun test"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/config.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/config.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b7c271ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/config.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+export function parseConfig(raw: string) {
+  return raw === 'enabled'
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..dbf12a1e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test'
+import { parseConfig } from './config'
+import { describeRun } from './runner'
+
+describe('config runner', () => {
+  test('parses structured config', () => {
+    expect(parseConfig('enabled retries=3')).toEqual({ enabled: true, retries: 3 })
+  })
+
+  test('describes enabled retry runs', () => {
+    expect(describeRun('enabled retries=3')).toBe('enabled with 3 retries')
+  })
+
+  test('describes disabled runs', () => {
+    expect(describeRun('disabled retries=0')).toBe('disabled')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..9304d604
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/cross-module-refactor/src/runner.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+import { parseConfig } from './config'
+
+export function describeRun(rawConfig: string) {
+  const enabled = parseConfig(rawConfig)
+  return enabled ? 'enabled' : 'disabled'
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/package.json b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/package.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..70977b30
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/package.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "name": "quality-gate-failure-recovery-fixture",
+  "private": true,
+  "type": "module",
+  "scripts": {
+    "test": "bun test"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..1360e711
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test'
+import { slugify } from './slug'
+
+describe('slugify', () => {
+  test('normalizes whitespace and punctuation', () => {
+    expect(slugify('  Hello, Coding Agent!  ')).toBe('hello-coding-agent')
+  })
+
+  test('collapses repeated separators', () => {
+    expect(slugify('Ship---Stable    Releases')).toBe('ship-stable-releases')
+  })
+
+  test('trims separators from the edges', () => {
+    expect(slugify('---Quality Gate---')).toBe('quality-gate')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..90ec1085
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/failure-recovery/src/slug.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+export function slugify(input: string) {
+  return input.toLowerCase().replaceAll(' ', '-')
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/api.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/api.ts
index 76df2226..2db3f4c5 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/api.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/api.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,12 @@ export type User = {
   email: string
 }
 
-export function formatUser(user: User) {
-  return user.name
+export type UserDisplay = {
+  displayName: string
+}
+
+export function formatUser(user: User) {
+  return {
+    displayName: user.name,
+  } satisfies UserDisplay
 }
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.test.ts
index df622a5c..14c247ca 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.test.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.test.ts
@@ -1,8 +1,15 @@
 import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test'
+import { formatUser } from './api'
 import { renderUser } from './app'
 
 describe('renderUser', () => {
   test('renders name and email', () => {
     expect(renderUser({ name: 'Ada Lovelace', email: 'ada@example.com' })).toBe('User: Ada Lovelace <ada@example.com>')
   })
+
+  test('uses the structured display API contract', () => {
+    expect(formatUser({ name: 'Ada Lovelace', email: 'ada@example.com' })).toEqual({
+      label: 'Ada Lovelace <ada@example.com>',
+    })
+  })
 })
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.ts
index e045b09c..2c6780c0 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/multi-file-api/src/app.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { formatUser, type User } from './api'
 
 export function renderUser(user: User) {
-  return `User: ${formatUser(user)}`
+  return `User: ${formatUser(user).displayName}`
 }
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/package.json b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/package.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..40efa949
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/package.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "name": "quality-gate-permission-artifact-fixture",
+  "private": true,
+  "type": "module",
+  "scripts": {
+    "test": "bun test"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/src/artifact.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/src/artifact.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a76f8608
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/permission-artifact/src/artifact.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test'
+import { existsSync, readFileSync } from 'node:fs'
+
+describe('release artifact', () => {
+  test('has the required summary marker', () => {
+    expect(existsSync('notes/summary.md')).toBe(true)
+    expect(readFileSync('notes/summary.md', 'utf8')).toContain('baseline-ready')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/package.json b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/package.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a1c962e8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/package.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "name": "quality-gate-workspace-search-edit-fixture",
+  "private": true,
+  "type": "module",
+  "scripts": {
+    "test": "bun test"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/catalog.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/catalog.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..03c43817
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/catalog.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+export type CatalogItem = {
+  sku: string
+  priceCents: number
+}
+
+export const catalog: CatalogItem[] = [
+  { sku: 'agent-seat', priceCents: 1200 },
+  { sku: 'baseline-pack', priceCents: 800 },
+]
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.test.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b329149a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test'
+import { catalog } from './catalog'
+import { calculateTotalCents } from './checkout'
+import { testUser } from './user'
+
+describe('calculateTotalCents', () => {
+  test('applies percentage discounts to the subtotal', () => {
+    expect(calculateTotalCents(catalog, testUser)).toBe(1500)
+  })
+})
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..57c02a49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/checkout.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+import type { CatalogItem } from './catalog'
+import type { User } from './user'
+
+export function calculateTotalCents(items: CatalogItem[], user: User) {
+  const subtotal = items.reduce((sum, item) => sum + item.priceCents, 0)
+  return subtotal - user.discountPercent
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/user.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/user.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ca7b062f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/baseline/fixtures/workspace-search-edit/src/user.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+export type User = {
+  id: string
+  discountPercent: number
+}
+
+export const testUser: User = {
+  id: 'user-1',
+  discountPercent: 25,
+}
diff --git a/scripts/quality-gate/types.ts b/scripts/quality-gate/types.ts
index b1a09a38..e86368f4 100644
--- a/scripts/quality-gate/types.ts
+++ b/scripts/quality-gate/types.ts
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ export type BaselineCase = {
   timeoutMs: number
   verify: {
     commands: string[][]
+    requiredFiles?: string[]
     expectedFiles?: string[]
     forbiddenFiles?: string[]
     transcriptAssertions?: string[]