diff --git a/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts b/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
index 1d63cf97deb..9219733ef0c 100644
--- a/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
+++ b/src/main/ipc/worktree-remote.ts
@@ -134,17 +134,14 @@ import {
 } from '../project-runtime-git-options'
 import {
   getBranchNameOverrideCandidate,
-  getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate,
-  getWorktreeCreateCandidate,
-  isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName,
   WORKTREE_CREATE_MAX_SUFFIX_ATTEMPTS
 } from '../worktree-create-candidates'
+import { planWorktreeCreateNames } from '../worktree-create-name-plan'
 import {
   failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement,
   getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo,
   retireGeneratedWorktreeName
 } from '../worktree-name-retirement'
-import { createRetiredNameLookup } from '../../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
 
 const SSH_WORKTREE_CREATE_FETCH_FRESHNESS_MS = 30_000
 const SSH_WORKTREE_CREATE_FETCH_CACHE_MAX = 512
@@ -1589,29 +1586,20 @@ export async function createRemoteWorktree(
   let selectedExistingLocalBranchName: string | null = null
   let lastBranchConflictKind: 'local' | 'remote' | null = null
   let remotePathResolved = false
-  const shouldRetireGeneratedName =
-    args.nameWasGenerated === true && isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName(sanitizedName)
-  const retiredNameRegistry = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-    ? await getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(store, repo, store.getRepos(), settings)
-    : null
-  const isRetiredName = retiredNameRegistry ? createRetiredNameLookup(retiredNameRegistry) : null
+  const namePlan = await planWorktreeCreateNames({
+    sanitizedName,
+    requestedName: args.name,
+    nameWasGenerated: args.nameWasGenerated,
+    loadRetiredNames: () => getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(store, repo, store.getRepos(), settings)
+  })
   // Why: duplicate PR/MR checkouts still need a workspace; suffix branch/path while preserving review metadata and push target.
   for (let suffix = 1, attempts = 0; attempts < WORKTREE_CREATE_MAX_SUFFIX_ATTEMPTS; suffix += 1) {
-    effectiveSanitizedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-      ? getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate(
-          sanitizedName,
-          suffix,
-          retiredNameRegistry?.exhaustedTiers
-        )
-      : getWorktreeCreateCandidate(sanitizedName, suffix)
-    effectiveRequestedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-      ? effectiveSanitizedName
-      : args.name.trim()
-        ? getWorktreeCreateCandidate(args.name, suffix)
-        : effectiveSanitizedName
-    if (isRetiredName?.(effectiveSanitizedName)) {
+    const nameCandidate = namePlan.candidateAt(suffix)
+    if (!nameCandidate) {
       continue
     }
+    effectiveSanitizedName = nameCandidate.sanitizedName
+    effectiveRequestedName = nameCandidate.requestedName
     attempts += 1
     branchName = await resolveCreateBranchNameSsh(
       provider,
@@ -1813,7 +1801,7 @@ export async function createRemoteWorktree(
       } catch (rollbackError) {
         console.warn('[worktree-create] Failed to roll back remote sparse worktree:', rollbackError)
       }
-      if (!rollbackSucceeded && shouldRetireGeneratedName) {
+      if (!rollbackSucceeded && namePlan.retiresCreatedName) {
         await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
       }
       throw err
@@ -1821,7 +1809,7 @@ export async function createRemoteWorktree(
   }
 
   // Why: fallible metadata work after creation must not leave a real workspace name reusable.
-  if (shouldRetireGeneratedName) {
+  if (namePlan.retiresCreatedName) {
     await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
   }
 
@@ -2165,29 +2153,20 @@ export async function createLocalWorktree(
   let lastBranchConflictKind: 'local' | 'remote' | null = null
   let lastExistingPR: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof getPRForBranch>> | null = null
   let lastExistingReviewNumber: number | null = null
-  const shouldRetireGeneratedName =
-    args.nameWasGenerated === true && isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName(sanitizedName)
-  const retiredNameRegistry = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-    ? await getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(store, repo, store.getRepos(), settings)
-    : null
-  const isRetiredName = retiredNameRegistry ? createRetiredNameLookup(retiredNameRegistry) : null
+  const namePlan = await planWorktreeCreateNames({
+    sanitizedName,
+    requestedName,
+    nameWasGenerated: args.nameWasGenerated,
+    loadRetiredNames: () => getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(store, repo, store.getRepos(), settings)
+  })
   // Why: a create-from-review branch override may already exist locally; suffix both branch and path instead of blocking the user.
   for (let suffix = 1, attempts = 0; attempts < WORKTREE_CREATE_MAX_SUFFIX_ATTEMPTS; suffix += 1) {
-    effectiveSanitizedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-      ? getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate(
-          sanitizedName,
-          suffix,
-          retiredNameRegistry?.exhaustedTiers
-        )
-      : getWorktreeCreateCandidate(sanitizedName, suffix)
-    effectiveRequestedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-      ? effectiveSanitizedName
-      : requestedName.trim()
-        ? getWorktreeCreateCandidate(requestedName, suffix)
-        : effectiveSanitizedName
-    if (isRetiredName?.(effectiveSanitizedName)) {
+    const nameCandidate = namePlan.candidateAt(suffix)
+    if (!nameCandidate) {
       continue
     }
+    effectiveSanitizedName = nameCandidate.sanitizedName
+    effectiveRequestedName = nameCandidate.requestedName
     attempts += 1
     lastExistingReviewNumber = null
 
@@ -2450,14 +2429,14 @@ export async function createLocalWorktree(
             )
       })) ?? {}
   } catch (error) {
-    if (shouldRetireGeneratedName && failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement(error)) {
+    if (namePlan.retiresCreatedName && failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement(error)) {
       await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
     }
     throw error
   }
 
   // Why: fallible metadata work after creation must not leave a real workspace name reusable.
-  if (shouldRetireGeneratedName) {
+  if (namePlan.retiresCreatedName) {
     await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
   }
 
diff --git a/src/main/ipc/worktrees-ssh-pr-head-fetch.test.ts b/src/main/ipc/worktrees-ssh-pr-head-fetch.test.ts
index 109dca653d3..43c48b01f51 100644
--- a/src/main/ipc/worktrees-ssh-pr-head-fetch.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ipc/worktrees-ssh-pr-head-fetch.test.ts
@@ -464,8 +464,10 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers', () => {
     })
   })
 
-  it('leaves a user-typed name reusable on the SSH create path', async () => {
-    // Why: `nautilus` is retired here, yet the user typed it — it must neither be skipped nor burned.
+  it('keeps a typed name on its retired cwd yet still records it as spent on the SSH create path', async () => {
+    // Why: a name the user typed is a request, so `nautilus` stays `nautilus` even where this host
+    // spent that cwd. The write half is unconditional — otherwise a client that predates the
+    // provenance bit leaves the registry blind and the next generated create collides here.
     const repo = {
       id: 'repo-ssh',
       path: '/remote/repo',
@@ -517,9 +519,70 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers', () => {
       name: 'nautilus'
     })
 
-    expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(store.getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith('repo-ssh', 'nautilus')
     expect(result).toMatchObject({
       worktree: expect.objectContaining({ path: '/remote/repo-nautilus' })
     })
   })
+
+  it('never consults the retirement registry for a name outside the creature pool', async () => {
+    // Why: the pool holds ordinary words, so only pool-shaped names may be redirected. Everything
+    // else must skip the registry entirely — including its backfill scan.
+    const repo = {
+      id: 'repo-ssh',
+      path: '/remote/repo',
+      displayName: 'ssh',
+      badgeColor: '#000',
+      addedAt: 0,
+      connectionId: 'conn-1',
+      worktreeBaseRef: 'origin/main'
+    }
+    const provider = {
+      exec: vi.fn().mockImplementation(async (args: string[]) => {
+        if (args[0] === 'remote') {
+          return { stdout: 'origin\n', stderr: '' }
+        }
+        return { stdout: '', stderr: '' }
+      }),
+      fetchRemoteTrackingRef: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+      addWorktree: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+      listWorktrees: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue([
+        {
+          path: '/remote/repo',
+          head: 'base123',
+          branch: 'refs/heads/main',
+          isBare: false,
+          isMainWorktree: true
+        },
+        {
+          path: '/remote/repo-improve-dashboard',
+          head: 'abc123',
+          branch: 'refs/heads/improve-dashboard',
+          isBare: false,
+          isMainWorktree: false
+        }
+      ]),
+      worktreeIsClean: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ clean: true })
+    }
+    store.getRepos.mockReturnValue([repo])
+    store.getRepo.mockReturnValue(repo)
+    getSshGitProviderMock.mockReturnValue(provider)
+    getActiveMultiplexerMock.mockReturnValue({
+      request: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+      notify: vi.fn()
+    })
+    store.setWorktreeMeta.mockImplementation((_worktreeId, meta) => meta)
+
+    const result = await handlers['worktrees:create'](null, {
+      repoId: 'repo-ssh',
+      name: 'improve-dashboard'
+    })
+
+    expect(store.getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(result).toMatchObject({
+      worktree: expect.objectContaining({ path: '/remote/repo-improve-dashboard' })
+    })
+  })
 })
diff --git a/src/main/ipc/worktrees-windows.test.ts b/src/main/ipc/worktrees-windows.test.ts
index d4b3dde71dc..9bf52d34b2b 100644
--- a/src/main/ipc/worktrees-windows.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/ipc/worktrees-windows.test.ts
@@ -358,9 +358,10 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers – Windows path handling', () => {
     expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith('repo-1', 'nautilus-2')
   })
 
-  it('leaves a user-typed name reusable even when the same name is retired', async () => {
-    // Why: the creature pool contains ordinary words ("orca", "runner", "molly"). Silently
-    // renaming a deliberate `nautilus` to `nautilus-2` — and burning it — is the wrong trade.
+  it('keeps a typed name on its retired cwd yet still records it as spent', async () => {
+    // Why: a name the user typed is a request, so `nautilus` stays `nautilus` even where this host
+    // spent that cwd. The write half is unconditional — otherwise a client that predates the
+    // provenance bit leaves the registry blind and the next generated create collides here.
     store.getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry.mockReturnValue({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] })
     computeWorktreePathMock.mockReturnValue('C:\\workspaces\\nautilus')
     ensurePathWithinWorkspaceMock.mockReturnValue('C:\\workspaces\\nautilus')
@@ -383,6 +384,28 @@ describe('registerWorktreeHandlers – Windows path handling', () => {
       'origin/main',
       false
     )
+    expect(store.getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith('repo-1', 'nautilus')
+  })
+
+  it('never consults the retirement registry for a name outside the creature pool', async () => {
+    // Why: the pool holds ordinary words, so only pool-shaped names may be redirected. Everything
+    // else must skip the registry entirely — including its backfill scan.
+    computeWorktreePathMock.mockReturnValue('C:\\workspaces\\fix-login')
+    ensurePathWithinWorkspaceMock.mockReturnValue('C:\\workspaces\\fix-login')
+    listWorktreesMock.mockResolvedValue([
+      {
+        path: 'C:/workspaces/fix-login',
+        head: 'abc123',
+        branch: 'refs/heads/fix-login',
+        isBare: false,
+        isMainWorktree: false
+      }
+    ])
+
+    await handlers['worktrees:create'](null, { repoId: 'repo-1', name: 'fix-login' })
+
+    expect(store.getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
     expect(store.addRetiredWorktreeName).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
   })
 
diff --git a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
index 3688fec9c39..50d2b720180 100644
--- a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
+++ b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.test.ts
@@ -4592,13 +4592,61 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
     expect(addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith(TEST_REPO_ID, 'nautilus')
   })
 
-  it('neither skips nor retires a name the user typed', async () => {
-    // Why: the pool contains ordinary words. Retirement only ever applies to generated names.
+  it('retires a pool-shaped name a failed create left behind even with no provenance bit', async () => {
+    // Why: the failure paths are where a blind registry bites hardest — the directory survives the
+    // rollback, so a later generated create that reuses it inherits the previous agent history.
+    // Recording is shape-decided, so it must fire here for a client that never sent the bit.
     const addRetiredWorktreeName = vi.fn()
+    const runtime = new OrcaRuntimeService({ ...store, addRetiredWorktreeName })
+    computeWorktreePathMock.mockReturnValue('/tmp/workspaces/nautilus')
+    ensurePathWithinWorkspaceMock.mockReturnValue('/tmp/workspaces/nautilus')
+    vi.mocked(addSparseWorktree).mockRejectedValueOnce(
+      Object.assign(new Error('sparse setup failed'), { cleanupFailed: true })
+    )
+
+    await expect(
+      runtime.createManagedWorktree({
+        repoSelector: 'id:repo-1',
+        name: 'nautilus',
+        sparseCheckout: { directories: ['packages/web'] }
+      })
+    ).rejects.toThrow('sparse setup failed')
+
+    expect(addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith(TEST_REPO_ID, 'nautilus')
+  })
+
+  it('leaves a coined name unrecorded when a create fails', async () => {
+    // Why: the shape gate has to hold on the failure paths too, or a failed `fix-login` burns a
+    // name the generator could never have produced.
+    const addRetiredWorktreeName = vi.fn()
+    const runtime = new OrcaRuntimeService({ ...store, addRetiredWorktreeName })
+    computeWorktreePathMock.mockReturnValue('/tmp/workspaces/fix-login')
+    ensurePathWithinWorkspaceMock.mockReturnValue('/tmp/workspaces/fix-login')
+    vi.mocked(addSparseWorktree).mockRejectedValueOnce(
+      Object.assign(new Error('sparse setup failed'), { cleanupFailed: true })
+    )
+
+    await expect(
+      runtime.createManagedWorktree({
+        repoSelector: 'id:repo-1',
+        name: 'fix-login',
+        sparseCheckout: { directories: ['packages/web'] }
+      })
+    ).rejects.toThrow('sparse setup failed')
+
+    expect(addRetiredWorktreeName).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
+
+  it('keeps a typed name on its retired cwd yet still records it as spent', async () => {
+    // Why: a name the user typed is a request, so `nautilus` stays `nautilus` even where this host
+    // spent that cwd. The write half is unconditional — otherwise a client that predates the
+    // provenance bit leaves the registry blind and the next generated create collides here.
+    const addRetiredWorktreeName = vi.fn()
+    const getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry = vi.fn(() => ({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] }))
     const runtime = new OrcaRuntimeService({
       ...store,
       addRetiredWorktreeName,
-      getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry: () => ({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] })
+      getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry
     })
     const createdWorktree = {
       path: '/tmp/workspaces/nautilus',
@@ -4619,6 +4667,43 @@ describe('OrcaRuntimeService', () => {
     })
 
     expect(result.worktree.path).toBe(createdWorktree.path)
+    expect(computeWorktreePathMock).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+      'nautilus',
+      expect.anything(),
+      expect.anything()
+    )
+    expect(getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(addRetiredWorktreeName).toHaveBeenCalledWith(TEST_REPO_ID, 'nautilus')
+  })
+
+  it('never consults the retirement registry for a name outside the creature pool', async () => {
+    // Why: the pool contains ordinary words, so only pool-shaped names may be redirected. A name
+    // the user coined must not even pay for the registry read, which can hit disk.
+    const addRetiredWorktreeName = vi.fn()
+    const getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry = vi.fn(() => ({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] }))
+    const runtime = new OrcaRuntimeService({
+      ...store,
+      addRetiredWorktreeName,
+      getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry
+    })
+    const createdWorktree = {
+      path: '/tmp/workspaces/fix-login',
+      head: 'def',
+      branch: 'fix-login',
+      isBare: false,
+      isMainWorktree: false
+    }
+    computeWorktreePathMock.mockReturnValue(createdWorktree.path)
+    ensurePathWithinWorkspaceMock.mockReturnValue(createdWorktree.path)
+    vi.mocked(listWorktrees).mockResolvedValue([...MOCK_GIT_WORKTREES, createdWorktree])
+
+    const result = await runtime.createManagedWorktree({
+      repoSelector: 'id:repo-1',
+      name: 'fix-login'
+    })
+
+    expect(result.worktree.path).toBe(createdWorktree.path)
+    expect(getRetiredWorktreeNameRegistry).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
     expect(addRetiredWorktreeName).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
   })
 
diff --git a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
index aac73f5e7f4..daa25089e09 100644
--- a/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
+++ b/src/main/runtime/orca-runtime.ts
@@ -1081,21 +1081,16 @@ import {
 } from '../ipc/worktree-remote'
 import {
   getBranchNameOverrideCandidate,
-  getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate,
-  getWorktreeCreateCandidate,
-  isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName,
   WORKTREE_CREATE_MAX_SUFFIX_ATTEMPTS
 } from '../worktree-create-candidates'
 import { WORKTREE_CREATE_DEDUPE_TTL_MS } from '../../shared/new-workspace/worktree-create-retry-policy'
+import { planWorktreeCreateNames } from '../worktree-create-name-plan'
 import {
   failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement,
   getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo,
   retireGeneratedWorktreeName
 } from '../worktree-name-retirement'
-import {
-  createRetiredNameLookup,
-  type RetiredNameRegistry
-} from '../../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
+import type { RetiredNameRegistry } from '../../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
 import { normalizeSparseDirectories } from '../ipc/sparse-checkout-directories'
 import type { PtyBindingSourceExpectation, Store } from '../persistence'
 import { collectLayoutLeafIdsInOrder } from '../persistence/restoring-sessions/terminal-layout-normalization'
@@ -24576,12 +24571,16 @@ export class OrcaRuntimeService {
     let branchConflictKind: 'local' | 'remote' | null = null
     let worktreePath = ''
     let worktreePathResolved = false
-    const shouldRetireGeneratedName =
-      args.nameWasGenerated === true && isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName(sanitizedName)
-    const retiredNameRegistry = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-      ? await getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(this.store, repo, this.store.getRepos(), settings)
-      : null
-    const isRetiredName = retiredNameRegistry ? createRetiredNameLookup(retiredNameRegistry) : null
+    // Why the alias: `this.store` is nullable, and narrowing does not survive into the closure
+    // below — capturing it once here is what keeps `loadRetiredNames` type-safe.
+    const retirementStore = this.store
+    const namePlan = await planWorktreeCreateNames({
+      sanitizedName,
+      requestedName: args.name,
+      nameWasGenerated: args.nameWasGenerated,
+      loadRetiredNames: () =>
+        getRetiredNameRegistryForRepo(retirementStore, repo, retirementStore.getRepos(), settings)
+    })
     // Why: runtime/mobile create-from-review callers should get a new workspace
     // even when the PR branch or review branch name is already in use.
     for (
@@ -24589,21 +24588,12 @@ export class OrcaRuntimeService {
       attempts < WORKTREE_CREATE_MAX_SUFFIX_ATTEMPTS;
       suffix += 1
     ) {
-      effectiveSanitizedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-        ? getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate(
-            sanitizedName,
-            suffix,
-            retiredNameRegistry?.exhaustedTiers
-          )
-        : getWorktreeCreateCandidate(sanitizedName, suffix)
-      effectiveRequestedName = shouldRetireGeneratedName
-        ? effectiveSanitizedName
-        : args.name.trim()
-          ? getWorktreeCreateCandidate(args.name, suffix)
-          : effectiveSanitizedName
-      if (isRetiredName?.(effectiveSanitizedName)) {
+      const nameCandidate = namePlan.candidateAt(suffix)
+      if (!nameCandidate) {
         continue
       }
+      effectiveSanitizedName = nameCandidate.sanitizedName
+      effectiveRequestedName = nameCandidate.requestedName
       attempts += 1
       branchName = await resolveCreateBranchName(
         repo.path,
@@ -24906,14 +24896,14 @@ export class OrcaRuntimeService {
                       settings.refreshLocalBaseRefOnWorktreeCreate
                     ))) ?? {}
     } catch (error) {
-      if (shouldRetireGeneratedName && failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement(error)) {
+      if (namePlan.retiresCreatedName && failedWorktreeCreationNeedsRetirement(error)) {
         await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(this.store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
       }
       throw error
     }
 
     // Why: fallible metadata work after creation must not leave a real workspace name reusable.
-    if (shouldRetireGeneratedName) {
+    if (namePlan.retiresCreatedName) {
       await retireGeneratedWorktreeName(this.store, repo, settings, effectiveSanitizedName)
     }
 
diff --git a/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.test.ts b/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..ce09e878b44
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,140 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+import { planWorktreeCreateNames } from './worktree-create-name-plan'
+import {
+  EMPTY_RETIRED_NAME_REGISTRY,
+  type RetiredNameRegistry
+} from '../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
+
+function plan(args: {
+  sanitizedName: string
+  requestedName?: string
+  nameWasGenerated?: boolean
+  retired?: RetiredNameRegistry
+}): ReturnType<typeof planWorktreeCreateNames> {
+  return planWorktreeCreateNames({
+    sanitizedName: args.sanitizedName,
+    requestedName: args.requestedName ?? args.sanitizedName,
+    nameWasGenerated: args.nameWasGenerated,
+    loadRetiredNames: async () => args.retired ?? EMPTY_RETIRED_NAME_REGISTRY
+  })
+}
+
+/** The candidate ladder, with retired rungs dropped the way the create loops drop them. */
+function walk(
+  namePlan: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof planWorktreeCreateNames>>,
+  suffixes: number
+): string[] {
+  const taken: string[] = []
+  for (let suffix = 1; suffix <= suffixes; suffix += 1) {
+    const candidate = namePlan.candidateAt(suffix)
+    if (candidate) {
+      taken.push(candidate.sanitizedName)
+    }
+  }
+  return taken
+}
+
+describe('planWorktreeCreateNames', () => {
+  it('steps over a retired cwd for a generated name', async () => {
+    const namePlan = await plan({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      nameWasGenerated: true,
+      retired: { exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] }
+    })
+
+    expect(namePlan.candidateAt(1)).toBeNull()
+    expect(namePlan.candidateAt(2)).toEqual({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus-2',
+      requestedName: 'nautilus-2'
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('hands a typed name the retired cwd it asked for', async () => {
+    // Why: the pool is ordinary English, and people type those words on purpose. Redirecting a
+    // deliberate `nautilus` to `nautilus-2` is a worse surprise than inheriting a spent cwd.
+    const namePlan = await plan({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      nameWasGenerated: false,
+      retired: { exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] }
+    })
+
+    expect(namePlan.candidateAt(1)).toEqual({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      requestedName: 'nautilus'
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('treats a client that omits the provenance bit as having typed the name', async () => {
+    // Why: clients predating `nameWasGenerated` are indistinguishable from a typing user, and
+    // pre-#14350 they kept the cwd. Guessing "generated" would silently redirect real requests.
+    const loadRetiredNames = vi.fn(async () => ({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['nautilus'] }))
+
+    const namePlan = await planWorktreeCreateNames({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      requestedName: 'nautilus',
+      nameWasGenerated: undefined,
+      loadRetiredNames
+    })
+
+    expect(namePlan.candidateAt(1)).toEqual({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      requestedName: 'nautilus'
+    })
+    // The typed path never consults the registry, so it never pays for its backfill scan either.
+    expect(loadRetiredNames).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(namePlan.retiresCreatedName).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  it('never loads the registry for a name the generator could not have produced', async () => {
+    const loadRetiredNames = vi.fn(async () => ({ exhaustedTiers: 0, names: ['fix-login'] }))
+
+    const namePlan = await planWorktreeCreateNames({
+      sanitizedName: 'fix-login',
+      requestedName: 'fix-login',
+      nameWasGenerated: undefined,
+      loadRetiredNames
+    })
+
+    expect(loadRetiredNames).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    expect(namePlan.retiresCreatedName).toBe(false)
+    expect(walk(namePlan, 2)).toEqual(['fix-login', 'fix-login-2'])
+  })
+
+  it('keeps a typed name literal instead of canonicalizing it onto the tier ladder', async () => {
+    // `nautilus-2-3` is a legacy repeat-suffixed spelling. The generated ladder folds it to
+    // `nautilus-4`; a name the user typed must keep the directory it asked for.
+    const typed = await plan({ sanitizedName: 'nautilus-2-3' })
+    const generated = await plan({ sanitizedName: 'nautilus-2-3', nameWasGenerated: true })
+
+    expect(walk(typed, 2)).toEqual(['nautilus-2-3', 'nautilus-2-3-2'])
+    expect(walk(generated, 2)).toEqual(['nautilus-4', 'nautilus-5'])
+  })
+
+  it('suffixes the display name in step with a typed name a path collision pushed along', async () => {
+    const namePlan = await plan({ sanitizedName: 'nautilus', requestedName: 'Nautilus' })
+
+    expect(namePlan.candidateAt(2)).toEqual({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus-2',
+      requestedName: 'Nautilus-2'
+    })
+  })
+
+  it('starts a generated name past the compaction watermark rather than walking every spent tier', async () => {
+    const namePlan = await plan({
+      sanitizedName: 'nautilus',
+      nameWasGenerated: true,
+      retired: { exhaustedTiers: 3, names: [] }
+    })
+
+    expect(walk(namePlan, 2)).toEqual(['nautilus-4', 'nautilus-5'])
+  })
+
+  it('records a pool-shaped name as spent however the client labelled it', async () => {
+    await expect(plan({ sanitizedName: 'nautilus' })).resolves.toMatchObject({
+      retiresCreatedName: true
+    })
+    await expect(
+      plan({ sanitizedName: 'nautilus', nameWasGenerated: true })
+    ).resolves.toMatchObject({ retiresCreatedName: true })
+  })
+})
diff --git a/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.ts b/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..b57ab496dc5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/worktree-create-name-plan.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+import {
+  getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate,
+  getWorktreeCreateCandidate,
+  isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName
+} from './worktree-create-candidates'
+import type { RetiredNameRegistry } from '../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
+import { createRetiredNameLookup } from '../shared/worktree/retired-name-registry'
+
+export type WorktreeCreateNameCandidate = {
+  /** Filesystem-safe name; drives the workspace path and branch. */
+  sanitizedName: string
+  /** Display name the workspace is labelled with. */
+  requestedName: string
+}
+
+export type WorktreeCreateNamePlan = {
+  /** True when the created name must be recorded as spent once creation commits. */
+  readonly retiresCreatedName: boolean
+  /** Null when this suffix lands on a retired cwd; the caller skips it without spending an attempt. */
+  candidateAt(suffix: number): WorktreeCreateNameCandidate | null
+}
+
+export type WorktreeCreateNamePlanArgs = {
+  sanitizedName: string
+  /** The raw name the caller asked for; empty falls back to the sanitized candidate. */
+  requestedName: string
+  /** `true` only from clients that know the name came from the creature-name generator. Every
+   *  producer strips it when false, so absent means typed — from a current client as much as an
+   *  older one — and must be read that way. */
+  nameWasGenerated: boolean | undefined
+  loadRetiredNames: () => Promise<RetiredNameRegistry>
+}
+
+/** Resolves what a create attempt may call itself, shared by the three create paths (local IPC, SSH,
+ *  runtime) so a retirement rule cannot hold on one and not the others.
+ *
+ *  Two decisions, deliberately split — PR #14350 conflated them, and STA-4471 is the fallout:
+ *
+ *  - *Which cwds a create may land on* follows the client's `nameWasGenerated` bit. A generated name
+ *    is one of ours: nothing was chosen, so folding it onto the canonical tier ladder and stepping
+ *    over cwds this host already spent costs the user nothing and keeps the previous occupant's
+ *    Claude/Codex history out of the new workspace. A name the user typed is a request — it keeps
+ *    its literal spelling, its plain `-2`, `-3` suffixes, and the cwd it asked for even when that
+ *    cwd is retired. Asking for `nautilus` and silently getting `nautilus-2` is the worse surprise.
+ *  - *Whether the created name is recorded as spent* is decided by the host alone, from the name's
+ *    shape. A client that predates the provenance bit still hands back pool-shaped names, and a
+ *    registry that never learns about them lets the next generated create collide with one.
+ *    `addRetiredWorktreeName` self-gates on pool shape, so a coined name (`fix-login`) is never
+ *    recorded — recording is only ever a write, and never redirects anybody.
+ *
+ *  Only the generated ladder reads the registry, so a typed name and a name outside the pool alike
+ *  skip the load — and with it `ensureRetiredWorktreeNamesBackfilled`'s scan (STA-4473). */
+export async function planWorktreeCreateNames(
+  args: WorktreeCreateNamePlanArgs
+): Promise<WorktreeCreateNamePlan> {
+  const isPoolShaped = isGeneratedWorktreeCreateName(args.sanitizedName)
+  const usesGeneratedLadder = args.nameWasGenerated === true && isPoolShaped
+  // Only the generated ladder reads the registry, so a typed name skips the load and its backfill.
+  const registry = usesGeneratedLadder ? await args.loadRetiredNames() : null
+  const isRetiredName = registry ? createRetiredNameLookup(registry) : null
+  const trimmedRequestedName = args.requestedName.trim()
+  return {
+    retiresCreatedName: isPoolShaped,
+    candidateAt(suffix) {
+      // Skipping is pure string math, so a run of retired tiers costs no I/O and no attempt budget.
+      const sanitizedName = usesGeneratedLadder
+        ? getGeneratedWorktreeCreateCandidate(args.sanitizedName, suffix, registry?.exhaustedTiers)
+        : getWorktreeCreateCandidate(args.sanitizedName, suffix)
+      if (isRetiredName?.(sanitizedName)) {
+        return null
+      }
+      return {
+        sanitizedName,
+        requestedName:
+          !usesGeneratedLadder && trimmedRequestedName
+            ? getWorktreeCreateCandidate(args.requestedName, suffix)
+            : sanitizedName
+      }
+    }
+  }
+}