vision-rescue

Apply the five-step framework: recognize the deadlock, return to first-source truth like code or binaries, search community and open-source solutions, call a partner with a different methodology, and refuse to surrender without operator signoff. Complete the six-question Desperation Packet before concluding no path exists.

Key signals include oscillating between hope and despair for 3 or more rounds, wrapping surrender in rational language like "current state is optimal" or "value has changed", and echo-chamber retries where multiple agents repeat the same method. One strong signal or two normal signals triggers the framework.

Use debugging when a known bug needs fixing. Use vision-rescue when the task itself appears impossible, multiple attempts have failed, and outputs contain surrender rhetoric. Vision-rescue can also invoke deep-research or collaborative-thinking as sub-steps.

A Desperation Packet is a six-question evidence checklist required before declaring a goal unreachable. It verifies first-source code was read, search angles were changed, community channels were checked, a different-methodology partner was consulted, facts were separated from inferences, and operator costs were stated.

Documentation and blog posts are secondary sources that can mislead, causing repeated oscillation. Reading binaries with strings or grepping source code reveals actual decision logic, which resolves deadlocks faster than retrying the same web-based assumptions.