diff --git a/docs/release-gate.md b/docs/release-gate.md
index 7294156d..4283c74f 100644
--- a/docs/release-gate.md
+++ b/docs/release-gate.md
@@ -88,9 +88,3 @@ Do not edit lock files by hand. To make an intentional dependency change:
    dotnet restore AcDream.slnx --locked-mode --force-evaluate
    pwsh ./tools/run-release-gate.ps1
    ```
-
-The one site-scoped `xUnit1025` suppression in
-`MotionInterpreterTests.ContactAllowsMove_GroundedPosture_StillAllowsMove`
-preserves a known redundant historical input until R3. It is deliberately not
-in the central warning policy, so any new duplicate theory row still fails the
-build.
diff --git a/docs/reviews/2026-08-18-r3-test-truth-ledger.md b/docs/reviews/2026-08-18-r3-test-truth-ledger.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..67c5b3fb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/reviews/2026-08-18-r3-test-truth-ledger.md
@@ -0,0 +1,132 @@
+# R3 test-truth and cleanup ledger
+
+Status: **active**
+
+Branch: `codex/release-stabilization`
+
+Starting commit: `8e884679e0b6ce3dc1c84004ba9c5c8e3ff91d2a`
+
+This is the cross-session authority for R3. The historical all-file audit remains
+in [`test-quality-audit.md`](test-quality-audit.md); this ledger reconciles that
+baseline against current source and records each cleanup decision before code is
+removed. R3 does not change product behavior.
+
+## Current executable baseline
+
+The clean R2 gate at implementation commit `c38f6b88` built all 44 maintained
+projects with zero warnings and ran every default test assembly once:
+
+- 12 test assemblies;
+- 14,742 passed;
+- 77 reported skipped;
+- 0 failed; and
+- one redundant Core theory row discarded by xUnit discovery before the totals.
+
+The six-case reduction from the earlier 14,748-pass headline is understood:
+seven launcher editor-focus theory rows were consolidated into one fact that
+still executes all seven variants in a single Avalonia application session.
+
+## Exact 77-skip reconciliation
+
+The latest clean-gate TRX files account for every reported skip:
+
+| Classification | Count | Current source | R3 decision |
+|---|---:|---|---|
+| Installed retail DAT lane | 73 | `InstalledDatFactAttribute` across nine files | Retain the contracts, replace the campaign-specific shared reason with prerequisite- and suite-specific identity, and report this lane separately. |
+| Manual fixture generation | 2 | `ChatLayoutFixtureGenerator.GenerateChatFixture`; `RadarLayoutFixtureGenerator.GenerateRadarFixture` | Remove from default discovery and expose documented explicit generator commands. |
+| Empty future scaffold | 1 | `PvsConformanceTests.Pvs_CottageInterior_MatchesRetailCellDrawList` | Delete the test. Preserve its retail oracle and capture recipe here and in the existing P0 plan. |
+| Known product failure | 1 | `TowerAscentReplayTests.TowerAscent_StaircaseStaysConeVisible_EveryStep` | Do not pretend this is unavailable coverage. Keep the oracle and move it to an explicitly reported known-failure/non-blocking lane until #119 is fixed. |
+
+Installed-DAT skip distribution:
+
+| Test class | Count |
+|---|---:|
+| `ChargenPreviewControllerTests` | 10 |
+| `CharacterCreationLiveDatTests` | 42 |
+| `CharacterManagementLiveDatTests` | 3 |
+| `DatStringEscapeSweepTests` | 1 |
+| `LayoutImporterMediaBearingChildSweepTests` | 3 |
+| `MapHousePanelLiveDatMountTests` | 1 |
+| `MapNoteLiveDatTests` | 3 |
+| `TooltipLiveDatTests` | 7 |
+| `UiButtonCorpusSweepTests` | 3 |
+
+There are also 11 source sites that throw `SkipException.ForSkip` conditionally.
+They are not part of the current 77 because their prerequisites happened to be
+available on the R2 gate machine. R3 must retain their per-test reason and
+assign them to the installed-DAT, prepared-package, system-font, or other
+explicit prerequisite lane; a future machine may report them as additional
+skips.
+
+## Finding disposition
+
+| Finding | Current disposition | Evidence / next action |
+|---|---|---|
+| T-001 launcher lock inversion | resolved in R1 | Deterministic captured-callback regression and bounded full gate. |
+| T-002 physics tautology | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Compare old-model and new-model reflection decisions, as the surrounding contract states. |
+| T-003 duplicate theory row | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Remove literal `0x41000012`, which is identical to `MotionCommand.Crouch`; remove the temporary analyzer suppression. |
+| T-004 warning mismatches | resolved in R2 | Clean rebuild is zero-warning with repository-wide warnings-as-errors. |
+| T-005 unreachable panel stack | requires production reachability proof | Do not delete 52 meaningful tests until the dead presentation surface and any supported plugin compatibility promise are verified together. |
+| T-006 misleading installed-DAT reason | open | Replace the LA8-specific shared attribute reason with truthful suite/prerequisite identity. |
+| T-007 271 silent passing gates | open | Re-run the syntax inventory against current source, then convert each to a hermetic fixture, explicit prerequisite skip, or non-default lane. |
+| T-008 incapable-of-failing diagnostics | batch A plus diagnostic lane work | Delete the literal wiring smoke test; repair the GPU contract tautology; later re-home output-only apparatus. |
+| T-009 wall-clock double-click tests | open | Introduce a behavior-preserving injectable monotonic clock and deterministic fake time. |
+| T-010 two useless cases | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Delete `SmokeTest.TestProject_IsWired` and `ChaseCameraTests.ImplementsICamera`; compilation already proves both claims. |
+| T-011 51 output-only methods | open | Validate the historical 51-method list against current source; add stable oracles or move them outside default discovery. |
+| T-012 source-text freezes | requires semantic replacement map | Retain whole-tree dependency rules; remove exact-text freezes only when an equivalent semantic/behavioral guard is identified. |
+| T-013 controller self-comparison | high-confidence cleanup batch A | Capture the first controller next to the first body and compare every retry with that reference. |
+| T-014 seven load-sensitive tests | open | Reproduce and classify each mechanism; no retries or blanket tolerances. |
+| T-015 four non-prerequisite skips | batch A plus lane work | Delete the PVS scaffold now; move two generators and the known failure in later focused batches. |
+| T-016 historical test taxonomy | open | Rename/re-home only after each test's durable owner and oracle are established. |
+| T-017 Avalonia ownership | resolved in R2 | All seven editor variants now execute in one owned application session; 11 focused passes plus the complete gate. |
+| T-018 stderr observer race | resolved in R2 | Live reader shares writes/deletes; 25 focused repetitions plus the complete gate. |
+
+## Preserved rationale for removals in batch A
+
+### PVS scaffold
+
+The empty PVS fact has no executable oracle and must not remain a permanent
+skip. Its useful note is preserved here: retail
+`PView::ConstructView(CEnvCell*)` at `0x005a57b0` produces the ordered
+`cell_draw_list` for a `(viewer_cell, eye)` input. A future conformance test
+requires a retail trace captured around `PView::DrawCells`/`cell_draw_list`.
+The intended invariants were: the PVS root equals `physics CurrCell.Id`; a cell
+seen through two portals appears once per slice; and dungeon
+`outside_view == 0`. The complete original scaffold and capture plan remain in
+`docs/superpowers/plans/2026-06-03-p0-conformance-apparatus.md`.
+
+### Compile-only smoke cases
+
+`SmokeTest.TestProject_IsWired` contains only `Assert.True(true)`.
+`ChaseCameraTests.ImplementsICamera` assigns `ChaseCamera` to `ICamera` and
+calls `ToString()` without an oracle. Removing them discards no runtime
+contract: the test project build and the remaining camera behavior tests are
+strictly stronger evidence.
+
+## Batch protocol
+
+Each cleanup batch must:
+
+1. update this ledger before or with the change;
+2. preserve useful historical rationale in a plan, issue, or this ledger;
+3. run the directly affected test projects without retries;
+4. run a clean warning-as-error build when analyzer/discovery shape changes;
+5. commit one coherent classification/fix group; and
+6. run the complete local Release gate before R3 closeout.
+
+Ambiguous cases stay open in this ledger and are presented to the user rather
+than being deleted by inference.
+
+## Batch A verification
+
+The first high-confidence batch was verified before commit:
+
+- complete non-incremental Release rebuild: 44 projects, 0 warnings, 0 errors;
+- Core: 4,795 passed / 0 skipped / 0 failed;
+- App: 5,511 passed / 76 skipped / 0 failed; and
+- Runtime: 1,756 passed / 0 skipped / 0 failed.
+
+The count delta is intentional and classified: Core removed the two useless
+compile-only cases and the skipped PVS scaffold; App gained one case by
+splitting the old mixed/tautological depth-stencil test into two independently
+named contracts. Core emitted no duplicate-case discovery warning.
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.App.Tests/Rendering/Gpu/GpuContractTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.App.Tests/Rendering/Gpu/GpuContractTests.cs
index ed7c1a90..02334fba 100644
--- a/tests/AcDream.App.Tests/Rendering/Gpu/GpuContractTests.cs
+++ b/tests/AcDream.App.Tests/Rendering/Gpu/GpuContractTests.cs
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ using System.Numerics;
 using System.Runtime.CompilerServices;
 using System.Runtime.InteropServices;
 using AcDream.App.Rendering.Gpu;
+using AcDream.App.Rendering.Gpu.Vk;
 
 namespace AcDream.App.Tests.Rendering.Gpu;
 
@@ -242,19 +243,28 @@ public sealed class GpuContractTests
     }
 
     [Fact]
-    public void TheDepthStencilAttachmentFormatCarriesAStencilAspect()
+    public void BackbufferClear_ClearsDepthAndStencil()
     {
-        // The punch has nowhere to mark without one. The V5 capability gate
-        // prefers D32_SFLOAT_S8_UINT and falls back to D24_UNORM_S8_UINT rather
-        // than taking a depth-only format for exactly this reason, and the
-        // backbuffer pass clears both aspects through one ClearDepthStencil.
         GpuPassDescription pass = GpuPassDescription.BackbufferClear(
             "world",
             Vector4.Zero,
             sampleCount: 4);
         Assert.Equal(0u, pass.Depth!.Value.ClearStencil);
+        Assert.Equal(1f, pass.Depth.Value.ClearDepth);
         Assert.Equal(GpuLoadOp.Clear, pass.Depth!.Value.Load);
-        Assert.Equal(GpuTextureFormat.Depth24Stencil8, GpuTextureFormat.Depth24Stencil8);
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void DepthStencilTextureFormat_MapsToDepthAndStencilAspects()
+    {
+        // The punch has nowhere to mark without a stencil aspect. The V5
+        // capability gate prefers D32_SFLOAT_S8_UINT and falls back to
+        // D24_UNORM_S8_UINT rather than accepting a depth-only format.
+        Silk.NET.Vulkan.ImageAspectFlags aspects =
+            VulkanTextureFormatMapping.AspectOf(GpuTextureFormat.Depth24Stencil8);
+
+        Assert.True(aspects.HasFlag(Silk.NET.Vulkan.ImageAspectFlags.DepthBit));
+        Assert.True(aspects.HasFlag(Silk.NET.Vulkan.ImageAspectFlags.StencilBit));
     }
 
     [Fact]
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Conformance/PvsConformanceTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Conformance/PvsConformanceTests.cs
deleted file mode 100644
index a11718ec..00000000
--- a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Conformance/PvsConformanceTests.cs
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,24 +0,0 @@
-using Xunit;
-
-namespace AcDream.Core.Tests.Conformance;
-
-/// <summary>
-/// PVS (portal-visibility) conformance — P0 scaffold. The render visible-set
-/// golden. Retail oracle: PView::ConstructView(CEnvCell*) @ 0x005a57b0
-/// (pc:433750) produces the ordered cell_draw_list for a given (viewer_cell,
-/// eye); see docs/research/2026-06-02-retail-render-pipeline-full-reference.md §3.
-///
-/// FILLED IN P4, not P0: a retail cell_draw_list trace is a P3/P4-coupled
-/// capture (a new cdb script breakpointing PView::DrawCells / cell_draw_list,
-/// sibling to find-cell-list-capture.cdb), and the PVS code itself
-/// (PortalVisibilityBuilder) is REPLACED by the ConstructView port in P4. The
-/// scaffold exists now so the structure + retail anchor are in place; P4 adds
-/// the capture + the golden assertion (PVS root id == physics CurrCell.Id;
-/// a cell seen through two portals appears once per slice; dungeon
-/// outside_view==0).
-/// </summary>
-public class PvsConformanceTests
-{
-    [Fact(Skip = "P0 scaffold — filled in P4 with a captured retail cell_draw_list trace")]
-    public void Pvs_CottageInterior_MatchesRetailCellDrawList() { }
-}
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/Issue265SteepSlopeCaptureBisectTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/Issue265SteepSlopeCaptureBisectTests.cs
index aefacc55..bc04f05d 100644
--- a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/Issue265SteepSlopeCaptureBisectTests.cs
+++ b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/Issue265SteepSlopeCaptureBisectTests.cs
@@ -917,7 +917,9 @@ public class Issue265SteepSlopeCaptureBisectTests
         // HandleAllCollisions's OWN decision (captured before the toggle can
         // touch it) must be identical regardless of the #265/#166 fix -- the
         // fix does not change the reflection math or its inputs.
-        Assert.Equal(newModelVelocityBeforeToggle.Z > 0.01f, newModelVelocityBeforeToggle.Z > 0.01f);
+        Assert.Equal(
+            oldModelVelocity.Z > 0.01f,
+            newModelVelocityBeforeToggle.Z > 0.01f);
 
         // Document (not silently assert away) whether retail's OWN ported
         // logic reflects this synthetic case. This is evidence for the
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/MotionInterpreterTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/MotionInterpreterTests.cs
index e25596af..e62e1065 100644
--- a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/MotionInterpreterTests.cs
+++ b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Physics/MotionInterpreterTests.cs
@@ -488,16 +488,12 @@ public sealed class MotionInterpreterTests
     // links). Verified against the live retail-observer trace
     // (RetailObserverTraceConformanceTests, 183/183 dispatch conformant).
 
-    // R3 owns removal of the known redundant row. Keep this one historical
-    // input unchanged during R2 while ensuring any new duplicate still fails.
-#pragma warning disable xUnit1025
     [Theory]
     [InlineData(MotionCommand.Fallen)]
     [InlineData(MotionCommand.Dead)]
     [InlineData(MotionCommand.Crouch)]
     [InlineData(MotionCommand.Sitting)]
     [InlineData(MotionCommand.Sleeping)]
-    [InlineData(0x41000012u)] // inside the crouch range (0x41000011, 0x41000015)
     public void ContactAllowsMove_GroundedPosture_StillAllowsMove(uint postureCommand)
     {
         var body   = MakeGrounded();
@@ -508,7 +504,6 @@ public sealed class MotionInterpreterTests
 
         Assert.True(allowed);
     }
-#pragma warning restore xUnit1025
 
     [Fact]
     public void ContactAllowsMove_AirborneCreature_AcceptsFallingAndTurns_BlocksWalk()
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Rendering/ChaseCameraTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Rendering/ChaseCameraTests.cs
index bd1ebfec..a91b3001 100644
--- a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Rendering/ChaseCameraTests.cs
+++ b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/Rendering/ChaseCameraTests.cs
@@ -54,11 +54,4 @@ public class ChaseCameraTests
 
         Assert.True(z2 > z1, "Increasing pitch should raise the camera");
     }
-
-    [Fact]
-    public void ImplementsICamera()
-    {
-        ICamera camera = new ChaseCamera { Aspect = 16f / 9f };
-        camera.ToString();  // just proves interface is implemented
-    }
 }
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/SmokeTest.cs b/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/SmokeTest.cs
deleted file mode 100644
index 3f711017..00000000
--- a/tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/SmokeTest.cs
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,11 +0,0 @@
-// tests/AcDream.Core.Tests/SmokeTest.cs
-namespace AcDream.Core.Tests;
-
-public class SmokeTest
-{
-    [Fact]
-    public void TestProject_IsWired()
-    {
-        Assert.True(true);
-    }
-}
diff --git a/tests/AcDream.Runtime.Tests/Gameplay/RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests.cs b/tests/AcDream.Runtime.Tests/Gameplay/RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests.cs
index f76387cb..913a9048 100644
--- a/tests/AcDream.Runtime.Tests/Gameplay/RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests.cs
+++ b/tests/AcDream.Runtime.Tests/Gameplay/RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests.cs
@@ -425,6 +425,7 @@ public sealed class RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests
     {
         using var fixture = new Fixture(residentWorld: false);
         PhysicsBody? body = null;
+        PlayerMovementController? controller = null;
 
         for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++)
         {
@@ -435,7 +436,10 @@ public sealed class RuntimeLocalPlayerFirstEntryStateTests
             Assert.Equal(1, fixture.Publication.CaptureOwnership().PendingActivationCount);
             body ??= fixture.Record.PhysicsBody;
             Assert.Same(body, fixture.Record.PhysicsBody);
-            Assert.Same(fixture.Movement.Controller, fixture.Movement.Controller);
+            PlayerMovementController currentController =
+                Assert.IsType<PlayerMovementController>(fixture.Movement.Controller);
+            controller ??= currentController;
+            Assert.Same(controller, currentController);
         }
     }