charliek · charliek · Aug 24, 2026 · Aug 23, 2026 · Aug 23, 2026
diff --git a/.github/workflows/docs-pr.yml b/.github/workflows/docs-pr.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+name: Docs PR Build
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    paths:
+      - 'docs/**'
+      - 'zensical.toml'
+      - 'pyproject.toml'
+      - 'uv.lock'
+      - '.github/workflows/docs-pr.yml'
+
+permissions:
+  contents: read
+
+concurrency:
+  group: docs-pr-${{ github.ref }}
+  cancel-in-progress: true
+
+jobs:
+  build:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 10
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v7
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+      # setup-uv publishes no moving major tag -- v9 does not resolve.
+      - uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v9.0.0
+      - run: uv python install 3.13
+      - run: uv sync --locked --group docs
+      - run: uv run --locked zensical build --strict
diff --git a/.github/workflows/docs.yml b/.github/workflows/docs.yml
@@ -5,8 +5,9 @@ on:
     branches: [main]
     paths:
       - 'docs/**'
-      - 'mkdocs.yml'
+      - 'zensical.toml'
       - 'pyproject.toml'
+      - 'uv.lock'
       - '.github/workflows/docs.yml'
   workflow_dispatch:
 
@@ -23,13 +24,14 @@ jobs:
   build:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@v6
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v7
         with:
           persist-credentials: false
-      - uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v7
+      # setup-uv publishes no moving major tag -- v9 does not resolve.
+      - uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v9.0.0
       - run: uv python install 3.13
-      - run: uv sync --group docs
-      - run: uv run mkdocs build
+      - run: uv sync --locked --group docs
+      - run: uv run --locked zensical build --strict
       - uses: actions/upload-pages-artifact@v5
         with:
           path: site-build
@@ -41,5 +43,6 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     needs: build
     steps:
-      - id: deployment
+      - name: Deploy to GitHub Pages
+        id: deployment
         uses: actions/deploy-pages@v5
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
@@ -5,6 +5,10 @@
 /build/ghostty-src/
 /site-build/
 
+# Zensical differential-build cache (root only -- the anchor keeps this
+# from also swallowing a nested .cache/ elsewhere in the tree)
+/.cache/
+
 # Rust workspace
 /target/
 **/*.rs.bk

diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -9,6 +9,43 @@ builds the DMG + `.deb`s and publishes to the apt repo. Bump
 `[workspace.package].version` in `Cargo.toml` to match before tagging (the
 release workflow asserts they agree).
 
+## Unreleased
+
+### Changed
+
+- **Docs site migrated from Material for MkDocs to
+  [Zensical](https://zensical.org)**, the successor from the same team.
+  Material entered maintenance mode in November 2025 and now warns on every
+  build that MkDocs 2.0 will remove the plugin and theming systems with no
+  migration path. `mkdocs.yml` is replaced by a native `zensical.toml`;
+  documentation content is unchanged aside from a handful of links that
+  `--strict` now validates (out-of-tree paths became GitHub blob URLs; one
+  stale heading anchor was corrected).
+
+  The look now comes from the shared
+  [stridelabs-docs-theme](https://github.com/charliek/stridelabs-docs-theme)
+  package rather than per-repo config, so restyling every site is a version
+  bump instead of an edit in each repo. Fonts are self-hosted by the theme, so
+  the site no longer requests anything from `fonts.googleapis.com` or
+  `fonts.gstatic.com`.
+
+  Working notes previously withheld via MkDocs `exclude_docs` moved to
+  `discovery/` at the repo root — Zensical has no equivalent, and leaving
+  them under `docs/` would have published them.
+
+  Verified against the pre-migration build: identical 27-page set and all
+  374 heading anchors preserved, so existing deep links still resolve.
+  `docs/appcast.xml` still copies through to the published site. Page
+  `<title>` now derives from the page `<h1>` rather than the nav label, which
+  is the one intentional difference.
+
+### Added
+
+- **`Docs PR Build` workflow.** Docs previously built only on push to `main`,
+  and without `--strict`, so a broken link or heading anchor could land on
+  `main` and be caught at deploy time or not at all. Both workflows now build
+  `--strict` and watch `uv.lock`.
+
 ## v0.0.17 — 2026-07-31
 
 Agents move out of the palette and into the sidebar. Every running agent now

diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -241,6 +241,44 @@ wrapper small.
     and before the single-instance lock, so it never touches a running
     instance.
 
+## Docs
+
+**Not part of `make check` or the `ci-success` gate.** The docs site has
+its own toolchain (uv/Python) and its own CI workflows; the Rust/Swift
+gates do not cover it. Run it for commits touching `docs/`,
+`zensical.toml`, `pyproject.toml`, `uv.lock`, or either docs workflow —
+both workflows trigger on those shared inputs (and each additionally on
+its own file), because a dependency or lockfile change can break the
+build just as easily as a content change:
+
+```bash
+make docs            # uv run --locked zensical build --strict
+make docs-serve      # preview on http://127.0.0.1:7070
+```
+
+The site is [Zensical](https://zensical.org) (not MkDocs — migrated 2026-08),
+configured in `zensical.toml`, built into `site-build/`. `--strict` fails
+on broken links and anchors and is what both CI workflows run, so run it
+locally before pushing docs changes. Note `zensical serve --strict` is
+unsupported; verify strictness via `build`.
+
+The look comes from the shared
+[stridelabs-docs-theme](https://github.com/charliek/stridelabs-docs-theme)
+package, pinned by tag in `pyproject.toml`. Palette, fonts and feature
+toggles live there, not here — do not add `theme.palette`, `theme.features`,
+or a `[project.theme.font]` table to `zensical.toml`. The last is the
+sharp edge: it re-enables Zensical's Google Fonts `<link>` on every page
+while the theme's self-hosted faces keep loading anyway.
+
+Working notes in `discovery/` live outside `docs/` on purpose. Zensical
+has no `exclude_docs` equivalent; files under `docs_dir` are published.
+
+Two gotchas worth knowing: Zensical **silently ignores unknown config
+keys** even under `--strict`, so a green build does not prove a config
+edit did what you meant; and the `pymdownx.emoji` callables live in the
+`zensical.extensions.emoji` namespace — the Material for MkDocs
+`material.extensions.emoji` namespace aborts the build.
+
 ## Build
 
 - libghostty-vt is pinned to a specific Ghostty commit in

diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
@@ -259,11 +259,11 @@ check: fmt-check clippy themes-check test  ## Pre-push gate: fmt-check + clippy
 # ---- docs -------------------------------------------------------------
 
 .PHONY: docs docs-serve
-docs:  ## Build the mkdocs site into site-build/
-	uv sync --group docs && uv run mkdocs build
+docs:  ## Build the docs site into site-build/ (same as CI)
+	uv sync --locked --group docs && uv run --locked zensical build --strict
 
-docs-serve:  ## Serve the docs locally (mkdocs serve)
-	uv sync --group docs && uv run mkdocs serve
+docs-serve:  ## Serve the docs locally with live reload
+	uv sync --locked --group docs && uv run --locked zensical serve
 
 # ---- clean ------------------------------------------------------------
 

diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ cd mac && swift build                 # or: ./mac/scripts/bundle.sh release  →
 
 ## Documentation
 
-The full site lives under `docs/` and builds with `mkdocs-material` (`make docs-serve` → http://127.0.0.1:7070):
+The full site lives under `docs/` and builds with [Zensical](https://zensical.org) (`make docs-serve` → http://127.0.0.1:7070):
 
 - [Installation](docs/getting-started/installation.md) — toolchain + build
 - [First Run](docs/getting-started/first-run.md) — launch behavior + where state lives

diff --git a/RELEASING.md b/RELEASING.md
@@ -176,7 +176,7 @@ Inspect or edit at https://github.com/charliek/roost/rules.
 ## The appcast lives where
 
 The Sparkle appcast is at `docs/appcast.xml`, served by GitHub Pages from
-`https://charliek.github.io/roost/appcast.xml` via `docs.yml`'s mkdocs
+`https://charliek.github.io/roost/appcast.xml` via `docs.yml`'s Zensical
 deploy. The `appcast` job mutates that file in place, commits it as the
 release-bot, and pushes to main; `docs.yml` redeploys Pages shortly after.
 

diff --git a/docs/discovery/README.md → discovery/README.md b/docs/discovery/README.md → discovery/README.md
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 # Discovery notes
 
-Working notes, not product commitments. `mkdocs.yml` lists this
-folder under `exclude_docs`, so it is not in the nav and is not
-built into the public site.
+Working notes, not product commitments. These files live outside
+`docs/` so they are not built into the public site — Zensical has
+no equivalent of MkDocs `exclude_docs`.
 
 | Note | What it is |
 |---|---|

diff --git a/docs/discovery/agent-watching.md → discovery/agent-watching.md b/docs/discovery/agent-watching.md → discovery/agent-watching.md
diff --git a/docs/discovery/host-sessions.md → discovery/host-sessions.md b/docs/discovery/host-sessions.md → discovery/host-sessions.md
diff --git a/docs/development/setup.md b/docs/development/setup.md
@@ -83,16 +83,16 @@ Mac tests are under `mac/Tests/RoostTests/`; they cover the workspace state mach
 
 ## Documentation site
 
-Markdown sources live in `docs/`. mkdocs-material builds them through `uv`:
+Markdown sources live in `docs/`. [Zensical](https://zensical.org) builds them through `uv`:
 
 ```bash
-make docs                # static site under site-build/
+make docs                # static site under site-build/ (`zensical build --strict`)
 make docs-serve          # live-reload server at http://127.0.0.1:7070
 ```
 
-`uv sync --group docs` runs automatically; no global Python install needed beyond the `uv` binary.
+`uv sync --locked --group docs` runs automatically; no global Python install needed beyond the `uv` binary. `zensical serve --strict` is unsupported — verify with `make docs`.
 
-The voice for new docs is set in `mkdocs.yml`: professional + direct (no marketing), tables for option lists, code blocks with language hints, admonitions only for important notes/warnings, copy-pasteable examples, one topic per page.
+The voice for new docs is set in `zensical.toml`: professional + direct (no marketing), tables for option lists, code blocks with language hints, admonitions only for important notes/warnings, copy-pasteable examples, one topic per page.
 
 ## Bumping the pinned Ghostty SHA
 

diff --git a/docs/development/test-automation.md b/docs/development/test-automation.md
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 # Test automation & scripting architecture (plan)
 
 Status: **largely implemented** (2026-05). The functional E2E harness
-(pytest) is built and headless in CI as [`tools/roosttest/`](../../tools/roosttest/README.md);
+(pytest) is built and headless in CI as [`tools/roosttest/`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/tools/roosttest/README.md);
 the tooling is reorganized into three layers (see
-[`tools/README.md`](../../tools/README.md)); and `tab.dump`, `wait`, and
+[`tools/README.md`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/tools/README.md)); and `tab.dump`, `wait`, and
 the `palette.*` ops shipped. The plan below is kept as the design
 rationale — the "Gap" entries it lists are mostly closed now. The Lua
 scripting layer (§ below) remains the open piece. The north star is
@@ -119,7 +119,7 @@ across both implementations?*
 | IPC surface | `roost-ipc`: tab/project CRUD, set-state, notify, focus, send, resize, reorder, screenshot, claude-hook, identify — **now also `tab.dump` (content), `palette.*` (UI-action), and `roostctl wait`**. | Copy/paste + live `events.subscribe` still unimplemented. |
 | Event stream | UIs consume an **in-process** event bus. `events.subscribe` over the wire is **stubbed not-implemented on both UIs** (`mac/Sources/Roost/IPCHandlerImpl.swift`, `crates/roost-linux/src/ipc.rs`). | External clients can't wait on events yet (the pytest harness condition-waits via polling instead). |
 | Render state | `roost-vt` `RenderState.walk(|cell| …)` yields `Cell { text: String /*grapheme*/, fg, bg }` + cursor; mirrored 1:1 in `mac/Sources/Roost/RenderState.swift`. Both UIs walk it to draw. | **Now exposed over IPC as text via `tab.dump`** (viewport only; scrollback is a follow-up). |
-| Tooling | Three layers (see [`tools/README.md`](../../tools/README.md)): `tools/roosttest/` (pytest, IPC, **in CI**), `tools/screenshot/` (bash + roostctl + pngtool, visual), `tools/input/linux/` (uinput/clipboard, real input). | Real-input (Layer 3) + visual (Layer 2) are local-only; a Mac CGEvent injector is still to come. |
+| Tooling | Three layers (see [`tools/README.md`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/tools/README.md)): `tools/roosttest/` (pytest, IPC, **in CI**), `tools/screenshot/` (bash + roostctl + pngtool, visual), `tools/input/linux/` (uinput/clipboard, real input). | Real-input (Layer 3) + visual (Layer 2) are local-only; a Mac CGEvent injector is still to come. |
 
 This unified design is now realized: the pytest harness (`tools/roosttest/`)
 is Tier 1, and the screenshot + input harnesses are reorganized by layer.
@@ -281,7 +281,7 @@ compat (optional fields). Document each new op in
 ### 5.6 Hermetic runs, harness flags & the skip policy  *(2026-05)*
 
 The pytest harness is parameterized + configured by these knobs (full
-operational detail in [`tools/roosttest/README.md`](../../tools/roosttest/README.md)):
+operational detail in [`tools/roosttest/README.md`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/tools/roosttest/README.md)):
 
 **Make targets.** `make e2e` / `e2e-gtk` / `e2e-mac` are the quick local
 runs (reuse a running UI if present). `make e2e-gtk-ci` / `e2e-mac-ci`
@@ -396,7 +396,7 @@ network in the exposed `roost` table.
 
 **Decision: pytest drives the tests; Lua is a scoped user-scripting
 surface, not the test mechanism** (see
-[vision.md DL-12](vision.md#dl-12-pytest-drives-the-tests-lua-is-a-user-scripting-surface)).
+[vision.md DL-12](vision.md#dl-12-pytest-drives-the-tests-lua-is-a-user-scripting-surface-2026-05-26)).
 The analysis that led there is kept below; the key insight that made it
 low-stakes is that E2E robustness lives in the *affordances*, not the
 runner.

diff --git a/docs/getting-started/installation.md b/docs/getting-started/installation.md
@@ -204,8 +204,8 @@ done (above) and [`nfpm`](https://nfpm.goreleaser.com) on `PATH`:
 ./linux/scripts/build-deb.sh 0.0.1-dev
 ```
 
-See [`linux/README.md`](../../linux/README.md) and
-[`packaging/nfpm.yaml`](../../packaging/nfpm.yaml) for what the
+See [`linux/README.md`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/linux/README.md) and
+[`packaging/nfpm.yaml`](https://github.com/charliek/roost/blob/main/packaging/nfpm.yaml) for what the
 package contains.
 
 ## CLI on PATH