diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 2634db1c34..a5df6c6d61 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Report head reachability
         run: node scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs --report
       - run: node --test scripts/check-test-reachability.test.mjs
-      - run: node scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs --base origin/main
+      - run: node scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs
 
   changes:
     name: Detect changes
diff --git a/scripts/check-no-main-deletions.mjs b/scripts/check-no-main-deletions.mjs
index ab62efce9c..cfef68febc 100644
--- a/scripts/check-no-main-deletions.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-no-main-deletions.mjs
@@ -40,6 +40,10 @@ const STORYBOARD_VIEW_REASON =
   "owner-directed removal of the Studio storyboard view; its only readers were deleted with it";
 
 export const ALLOWED_DELETIONS = new Map([
+  [
+    "scripts/test-reachability-baseline.json",
+    "Reachability now requires zero orphans and rejects baseline files.",
+  ],
   [
     "packages/studio/src/player/hooks/useTimelineRowElements.ts",
     "D-834 removes the duplicate row-source hook; manifest elements are now the single timeline row owner",
diff --git a/scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs b/scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs
index 4028cd3867..95dcd2d788 100644
--- a/scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-test-reachability.mjs
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-import { execFileSync } from "node:child_process";
 import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
 import { readFileSync, existsSync } from "node:fs";
 import { posix, resolve } from "node:path";
@@ -399,46 +398,13 @@ export function audit(files, read, manifest) {
   return issues;
 }
 
-function baselineIssues(file, count, current, previous) {
-  const errors = [];
-  if (![Number.isInteger(count), count > 0, count <= previous].every(Boolean))
-    errors.push(`${file}: baseline may only shrink`);
-  if (current < count) errors.push(`${file}: lower baseline to ${current}`);
-  return errors;
-}
-
-export function ratchet(issues, baseline, previous = baseline) {
-  const errors = Object.entries(issues).flatMap(([file, failures]) => {
-    return failures.length > (baseline.files[file] ?? 0) ? [`${file}: ${failures.join("; ")}`] : [];
-  });
-  const budgetErrors = Object.entries(baseline.files).flatMap(([file, count]) =>
-    baselineIssues(file, count, issues[file]?.length ?? 0, previous.files[file] ?? 0),
+export function verdict(issues, baselinePresent = false) {
+  const errors = Object.entries(issues).map(
+    ([file, failures]) => `${file}: ${failures.join("; ")}`,
   );
-  if (baseline.total !== Object.values(baseline.files).reduce((sum, n) => sum + n, 0))
-    errors.push("Incorrect baseline total");
-  return [...errors, ...budgetErrors];
-}
-
-function baseArgument(index) {
-  const base = process.argv[index + 1];
-  if (!base || base.startsWith("-")) throw new Error("--base needs a Git ref");
-  return base;
-}
-
-function previousBaseline(baseline) {
-  const index = process.argv.indexOf("--base");
-  let previous = baseline;
-  if (index !== -1) {
-    const base = baseArgument(index);
-    const paths = execFileSync("git", ["ls-tree", "--name-only", base, "--", BASELINE], {
-      encoding: "utf8",
-    });
-    if (paths.trim())
-      previous = JSON.parse(
-        execFileSync("git", ["show", `${base}:${BASELINE}`], { encoding: "utf8" }),
-      );
-  }
-  return previous;
+  if (baselinePresent)
+    errors.push("Test reachability baseline is forbidden; every test must be reachable.");
+  return errors;
 }
 
 function main() {
@@ -451,13 +417,10 @@ function main() {
     console.log(JSON.stringify(issues, null, 2));
     return;
   }
-  const baseline = JSON.parse(read(BASELINE));
-  const previous = previousBaseline(baseline);
-  const errors = ratchet(issues, baseline, previous);
+  const errors = verdict(issues, existsSync(resolve(root, BASELINE)));
   if (errors.length) {
     console.error(errors.join("\n"));
     process.exitCode = 1;
-  } else
-    console.log(`Test reachability verified: ${Object.keys(issues).length} baselined test files.`);
+  } else console.log("Test reachability verified: zero orphan tests.");
 }
 if (process.argv[1] && resolve(process.argv[1]) === fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)) main();
diff --git a/scripts/check-test-reachability.test.mjs b/scripts/check-test-reachability.test.mjs
index 23c6919b09..9d78a6dc7f 100644
--- a/scripts/check-test-reachability.test.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-test-reachability.test.mjs
@@ -1,6 +1,11 @@
 import assert from "node:assert/strict";
 import { test } from "node:test";
-import { audit, digest, pinnedSource, ratchet } from "./check-test-reachability.mjs";
+import { execFileSync, spawnSync } from "node:child_process";
+import { mkdtempSync, mkdirSync, writeFileSync, rmSync } from "node:fs";
+import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
+import { dirname, join } from "node:path";
+import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
+import { audit, digest, pinnedSource, verdict } from "./check-test-reachability.mjs";
 
 function fixture(command = "bun run test:scripts", filter = '"scripts/**"') {
   return {
@@ -28,11 +33,10 @@ jobs:
 }
 const check = (tree, manifest = { guards: {}, runners: [] }) =>
   audit(Object.keys(tree), (path) => tree[path], manifest);
-const empty = { total: 0, files: {} };
 
 test("planted guard-filter hole fails and adding its directory passes", () => {
   const tree = fixture();
-  assert.match(ratchet(check(tree), empty)[0], /CI filters exclude skills\/lib/);
+  assert.match(verdict(check(tree))[0], /CI filters exclude skills\/lib/);
   tree[".github/workflows/ci.yml"] = tree[".github/workflows/ci.yml"].replace(
     '"scripts/**"',
     '"scripts/**"\n              - "skills/**"',
@@ -115,13 +119,13 @@ test("custom runner mappings require matching commands and unchanged producer so
   assert.throws(() => check(tree, manifest), /mapping needs review/);
 });
 
-test("baselines accept existing debt, reject new debt and cannot be raised", () => {
-  const issues = { "a.test.ts": ["orphan"] };
-  const baseline = { total: 1, files: { "a.test.ts": 1 } };
-  assert.deepEqual(ratchet(issues, baseline), []);
-  assert.match(ratchet({ ...issues, "new.test.ts": ["orphan"] }, baseline)[0], /new.test.ts/);
-  assert.match(ratchet(issues, baseline, empty)[0], /only shrink/);
-  assert.match(ratchet({}, baseline)[0], /lower baseline/);
+test("zero orphans passes and any orphan fails", () => {
+  assert.deepEqual(verdict({}), []);
+  assert.deepEqual(verdict({ "a.test.ts": ["orphan"] }), ["a.test.ts: orphan"]);
+});
+
+test("a baseline file is forbidden even with zero orphans", () => {
+  assert.match(verdict({}, true)[0], /baseline is forbidden/);
 });
 
 test("conditions in the first step key are never credited", () => {
@@ -226,3 +230,31 @@ test("a missing pinned package gives the runner mapping diagnostic", () => {
     /Runner mapping needs review: missing\/package.json#script#test/,
   );
 });
+
+test("report CLI prints diagnostics without applying the gate verdict", (t) => {
+  const cwd = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), "reachability-"));
+  t.after(() => rmSync(cwd, { recursive: true, force: true }));
+  const tree = fixture("node --test scripts/parity.test.mjs", '"**"');
+  tree["scripts/test-reachability.json"] = JSON.stringify({ guards: {}, runners: [] });
+  for (const [path, text] of Object.entries(tree)) {
+    mkdirSync(dirname(join(cwd, path)), { recursive: true });
+    writeFileSync(join(cwd, path), text);
+  }
+  execFileSync("git", ["init", "--quiet"], { cwd });
+  execFileSync("git", ["add", "."], { cwd });
+  const script = fileURLToPath(new URL("./check-test-reachability.mjs", import.meta.url));
+  const run = () => spawnSync(process.execPath, [script, "--report"], { cwd, encoding: "utf8" });
+  const clean = run();
+  assert.equal(clean.status, 0, clean.stderr);
+  const baseline = join(cwd, "scripts/test-reachability-baseline.json");
+  writeFileSync(baseline, '{"total":0,"files":{}}');
+  const restored = run();
+  assert.equal(restored.status, 0, restored.stderr);
+  assert.deepEqual(JSON.parse(restored.stdout), {});
+  rmSync(baseline);
+  writeFileSync(join(cwd, "scripts/orphan.test.mjs"), "");
+  execFileSync("git", ["add", "."], { cwd });
+  const orphan = run();
+  assert.equal(orphan.status, 0, orphan.stderr);
+  assert.match(orphan.stdout, /orphan.test.mjs/);
+});
diff --git a/scripts/test-reachability-baseline.json b/scripts/test-reachability-baseline.json
deleted file mode 100644
index 612672504a..0000000000
--- a/scripts/test-reachability-baseline.json
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1 +0,0 @@
-{ "total": 0, "files": {} }