Definitional
What does “decisions are the artifact” mean?
It means the decision behind a change is the durable thing you keep, and the code is just what falls out of it. Every change records the choice, the reasoning, and the alternatives ruled out, bound to the exact code it governs.
In most systems the code is the artifact and the reasoning is lost. CatWrangler inverts that: the decision and its reasoning are what last, and the code is the output that follows from them.
What makes a decision the artifact
A real decision is more than a note. It carries a claim, the reasoning, the evidence, and the conditions that would change its mind. It's bound to the exact code it governs, so the why never drifts away from the what.
- The choice made, the reasoning, and the alternatives ruled out
- Bound to the exact code it governs, not filed in a separate doc
- Read by agents before they touch the code, so they build on the record instead of guessing
- Foundational rules sit at a higher tier and can't be casually overridden by a quick fix
Why it pays off: reuse, not rebuild
Because the reasoning is durable and attached, an agent describing new work first sees the code and decisions that already do it, and extends what exists instead of duplicating it. The most common reaction is an agent discovering its planned work was already done, before writing a line. And two years later, you can still see why the code is the way it is.
“The hard-conflict interrupt caught me about to build a duplicative initialization path. Good gate.”
Related questions
Where do the decisions live?
Bound to the exact code they govern, not in a separate doc that rots. When an agent describes a change, it gets the right files and functions with the decisions behind them already attached.
Can a quick fix overwrite an important decision?
No. Foundational rules sit at a higher tier and can't be casually overridden by a routine change, so the reasoning that matters stays intact.
Keep reading
Vibe-Engineering
Many agents. One codebase. Zero collisions.
Point your agents at CatWrangler and build — the discipline runs underneath.