diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index e229098..7fa3828 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -18,11 +18,22 @@
   `input-spec.md`). They are architecturally independent. Do not introduce
   dependencies between them.
 
+- Specs describe what _is_. No "current", "earlier", or "planned" language;
+  differences from prior versions go in commits and PR descriptions.
+
+- No code change lands with its spec out of date.
+
 - Each test file tests exactly one spec. Do not put tests for one spec into
   another spec's test file.
 
+- Layout tests assert ASCII pictures of the grid
+  (`expect(trim(print(ansi, w, h))).toEqual(...)`), not raw bytes.
+
 ## Commit and PR conventions
 
+Before opening a PR, check the change against `docs/review-patterns.md` and run
+`deno task fmt`.
+
 Do not include any agent marketing material (e.g. "Generated with...",
 "Co-Authored-By: \<agent>") in commits, pull requests, issues, or comments.
 
@@ -38,6 +49,9 @@ Do not include any agent marketing material (e.g. "Generated with...",
 - Each frame is a complete snapshot. The renderer carries no UI tree state
   between frames — only cell buffers for diffing.
 
+- Public API values are string literals (`"center-center"`), not numeric
+  constants or enums. Use functions when a value is parameterized.
+
 - Directives are plain objects. No classes, no methods, no prototype chains. The
   flat array pattern is normative.
 
@@ -46,3 +60,10 @@ Do not include any agent marketing material (e.g. "Generated with...",
 - No global mutable state. All state belongs on a struct instance (e.g.
   `Clayterm`). Use Clay's `userData` pointer or similar mechanisms to route
   callbacks back to the owning instance.
+
+- Renderer state (e.g. capabilities) lives in native state. Do not copy it
+  across the JS/WASM boundary on every call.
+
+- Never fabricate a default for unknown input. On overflow, keep structures
+  balanced and report through the error channel; never silently corrupt or
+  truncate.
diff --git a/docs/review-patterns.md b/docs/review-patterns.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f6c55a2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/review-patterns.md
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+# Review patterns
+
+Recurring maintainer review feedback, distilled from past PRs. Hard rules live
+in `AGENTS.md`; these are the judgment calls. Check a change against this list
+before opening a PR. PR numbers point at the original discussion.
+
+## Specs
+
+- Specify edge-case policy (timeouts, capacity exhaustion, overflow) before
+  writing tests that prescribe an outcome (#85, #132).
+- Use the spec's vocabulary: directives (`open`/`close`/`text`), not
+  "descriptors" (#5).
+- Don't externalize internal helpers into the spec just to unit-test them. A
+  `Term` does no IO, so test through the public API (#130).
+- Spec'd C functions state how errors are represented (#130). Reference links
+  are complete URLs, not bare domains (#130).
+- Facts that will never change belong in the normative section, not in
+  implementation notes (#5).
+
+## Native first
+
+- Prefer encoding new declarations in the binary format and resolving them
+  during rendering, as `text({ caret })` does, over re-scanning ops in
+  TypeScript. A snapshot stays a snapshot (#137).
+- Logic that any host language would need belongs in C, so non-JS frameworks get
+  the same behavior (#116).
+- Follow Clay's intended mechanisms. Don't build a parallel code path to an
+  algorithm Clay already owns (e.g. text measurement) (#30). Link upstream Clay
+  issues for local workarounds so they can be removed later (#85).
+
+## API shape
+
+- Collapse type variants: one event union, one array-taking signature, no
+  overloads that only tests use (#133).
+- Names carry constraints: `id` when it must be unique, not `name` (#5).
+- Static facts are fixed at `createTerm()`; dynamic changes arrive as events via
+  `term.update()`, which returns the bytes to write. Don't defer work to the
+  next `render()` (#106).
+- Front-load configuration at creation so each paint stays one
+  `write(result.output)` (#101).
+
+## C and WASM correctness
+
+- Don't record side effects for operations that may no-op. `setcell()` returns
+  early outside the clip rect (#114).
+- When growing WASM memory, account for every region (parser state, transfer
+  buffer, tables). Keep a comment describing the memory layout (#132).
+- Check return values (e.g. `trie_add()` exhaustion) (#132).
+- Preserve signals in public functions (`wcwidth()` returns `-1` for
+  unprintable) (#49).
+- Prefix C constants and put them in the header (`TERMINFO_*` in `terminfo.h`)
+  unless they mirror an external name (#131).
+
+## Tests
+
+- One spec per test file; put tests in the matching file (e.g. color behavior in
+  `test/color.test.ts`) (#93).
+- Build input with named helpers (`arrowUp()`, `mousePress()`) instead of byte
+  arrays annotated by comments (#91).
+- Keep fixtures minimal; drop wrappers the assertion doesn't need (#87).
+- Parsers need adversarial coverage: incomplete and invalid input, every
+  byte-boundary split, conflicting replies in either order, capacity exhaustion,
+  numeric overflow, and recovery of the following key (#132).
+
+## Performance
+
+- Split unambiguous wins from trade-offs into separate PRs. Size-vs-speed
+  changes (`-Oz`, compression) need a benchmark showing the cost (#35, #50).
+- Benchmark only APIs that matter: `createTerm()`, `render()`, `createInput()`.
+  Startup belongs in a fresh process (#52).
+- Distrust regressions in benches the diff can't reach; investigate noise before
+  reacting (#56, #85, #102).
+
+## Hygiene
+
+- Run `deno task fmt` before opening a PR (#6, #28, #102).
+- Add a changeset for user-facing changes (#114).
+- Commits must be signed (#42). Follow the org PR template (#29).
+- Don't add build workarounds (PATH hacks, shims) for local-only environment
+  issues when CI builds clean (#6, #32).
+- Examples: `main()` at the top, helpers below (#48). Annotate raw escape
+  sequences (`// SGR reset`) (#48).