diff --git a/scripts/operators_entry_retire.py b/scripts/operators_entry_retire.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..032971e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/operators_entry_retire.py
@@ -0,0 +1,196 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+"""Attended, silent retirement of the deprecated operators/nextcloud entry.
+
+Founder decision 2026-10-10: ``operators/nextcloud`` (the base entry, not
+``operators/nextcloud/backup``) is a deprecated credential and is removed. The
+operators mount is deliberately delete-free for ``operator-custody`` and absent
+from ``platform-admin`` (openbao/policies/operator-custody.hcl: "destroying a
+version is a separate, deliberate act under a broader identity"). This helper is
+that act, and it grants nothing standing:
+
+1. As platform-admin (warden attended envelope), write one-shot policy
+   ``operators-retire-nextcloud``: ``delete`` and ``read`` on
+   ``operators/metadata/nextcloud``, ``read`` on
+   ``operators/metadata/nextcloud/backup``, ``revoke-self``, nothing else.
+2. Mint an orphan token with only that policy (60s, 8 uses, no default policy).
+3. With that token: prove the entry exists (record its version count) and that
+   ``nextcloud/backup`` exists; metadata-delete ``operators/nextcloud``; prove it
+   is absent and that ``nextcloud/backup`` is unchanged.
+4. Revoke the token and delete the one-shot policy, on every path.
+
+No value is read. Run from a railiance-platform checkout:
+
+  BAO_ADDR=http://127.0.0.1:18200 VAULT_ADDR=http://127.0.0.1:18200 \\
+  warden access openbao-platform-admin-login --exec -- \\
+    python3 scripts/operators_entry_retire.py \\
+      --confirm 'RETIRE operators/nextcloud' --receipt "$HOME/operators-nextcloud-retire.json"
+
+``--dry-run`` runs steps 1, 2 and the existence checks, deletes nothing, and
+cleans up. The process prints nothing; the receipt (0600, refused if it exists)
+holds versions, booleans and an outcome code.
+
+Exit codes: 0 retired / dry-run clean / already absent; 1 contained internal
+error; 2 precondition refused; 4 policy, token or delete failure; 5 verification
+failure (entry still present, or the sibling changed).
+"""
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import argparse
+import json
+import os
+from pathlib import Path
+import subprocess
+import sys
+import tempfile
+
+ENTRY = 'nextcloud'
+SIBLING = 'nextcloud/backup'
+POLICY = 'operators-retire-nextcloud'
+CONFIRM = 'RETIRE operators/nextcloud'
+SCHEMA = 'platform.operators-entry-retire.v1'
+POLICY_HCL = f'''# One-shot: {CONFIRM} (founder decision 2026-10-10). Deleted after use.
+path "operators/metadata/{ENTRY}" {{
+  capabilities = ["read", "delete"]
+}}
+path "operators/metadata/{SIBLING}" {{
+  capabilities = ["read"]
+}}
+path "auth/token/revoke-self" {{
+  capabilities = ["update"]
+}}
+'''
+
+
+class Exit(Exception):
+    def __init__(self, code: int, reason: str):
+        super().__init__(reason)
+        self.code = code
+        self.reason = reason
+
+
+def bao(args, token=None):
+    env = dict(os.environ)
+    if token is not None:
+        env['BAO_TOKEN'] = env['VAULT_TOKEN'] = token
+    return subprocess.run(['bao', *args], env=env, capture_output=True, timeout=60)
+
+
+def meta(path, token):
+    """Version count of a KV metadata entry, None if provably absent."""
+    result = bao(['read', '-format=json', f'operators/metadata/{path}'], token=token)
+    if result.returncode != 0:
+        if b'404' in result.stderr or b'No value found' in result.stderr:
+            return None
+        raise Exit(2, 'metadata_read_failed')
+    try:
+        data = json.loads(result.stdout)['data']
+        return {'current_version': data['current_version'], 'versions': len(data.get('versions') or {})}
+    except (ValueError, KeyError, TypeError):
+        raise Exit(2, 'metadata_unparseable') from None
+
+
+def run(args, receipt, state):
+    if args.confirm != CONFIRM:
+        raise Exit(2, 'exact_confirmation_required')
+    if (Path.home().parent.name != '.warden-attended-login'
+            or os.environ.get('BAO_TOKEN') or os.environ.get('VAULT_TOKEN')):
+        raise Exit(2, 'attended_warden_envelope_required')
+    ident = bao(['token', 'lookup', '-format=json'])
+    if ident.returncode != 0:
+        raise Exit(2, 'identity_lookup_failed')
+    policies = (json.loads(ident.stdout).get('data') or {}).get('policies') or []
+    if 'platform-admin' not in policies or 'root' in policies:
+        raise Exit(2, 'attended_platform_admin_required')
+
+    with tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as tmp:
+        hcl = Path(tmp) / 'policy.hcl'
+        hcl.write_text(POLICY_HCL)
+        if bao(['policy', 'write', POLICY, str(hcl)]).returncode != 0:
+            raise Exit(4, 'policy_write_failed')
+    state['policy'] = True
+    created = bao(['token', 'create', '-orphan', f'-policy={POLICY}', '-no-default-policy',
+                   '-ttl=60s', '-explicit-max-ttl=60s', '-use-limit=8', '-format=json'])
+    if created.returncode != 0:
+        raise Exit(4, 'token_create_failed')
+    try:
+        state['token'] = json.loads(created.stdout)['auth']['client_token']
+    except (ValueError, KeyError, TypeError):
+        raise Exit(4, 'token_create_failed') from None
+    token = state['token']
+
+    before = meta(ENTRY, token)
+    sibling_before = meta(SIBLING, token)
+    receipt['entry_before'] = before
+    receipt['sibling_before'] = sibling_before
+    if sibling_before is None:
+        raise Exit(2, 'sibling_absent_refusing_to_guess_layout')
+    if before is None:
+        return 'already_absent'
+    if args.dry_run:
+        return 'dry_run_would_retire'
+
+    if bao(['delete', f'operators/metadata/{ENTRY}'], token=token).returncode != 0:
+        raise Exit(4, 'delete_failed')
+    if meta(ENTRY, token) is not None:
+        raise Exit(5, 'entry_still_present')
+    sibling_after = meta(SIBLING, token)
+    receipt['sibling_after'] = sibling_after
+    if sibling_after != sibling_before:
+        raise Exit(5, 'sibling_changed')
+    receipt['entry_deleted'] = True
+    return 'retired'
+
+
+def cleanup(receipt, state):
+    if state.get('token'):
+        receipt['token_revoked'] = bao(['token', 'revoke', '-self'], token=state['token']).returncode == 0
+    if state.get('policy'):
+        receipt['policy_deleted'] = bao(['policy', 'delete', POLICY]).returncode == 0
+
+
+def main(argv=None):
+    devnull = os.open(os.devnull, os.O_WRONLY)
+    os.dup2(devnull, 1)
+    os.dup2(devnull, 2)
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description=__doc__)
+    parser.add_argument('--confirm', default='')
+    parser.add_argument('--receipt', type=Path)
+    parser.add_argument('--dry-run', action='store_true')
+    try:
+        args = parser.parse_args(argv)
+    except SystemExit:
+        return 2
+    receipt = {'schema': SCHEMA, 'mode': 'dry-run' if args.dry_run else 'retire',
+               'entry': f'operators/{ENTRY}', 'sibling': f'operators/{SIBLING}', 'value_reads': 0}
+    fd = None
+    if args.receipt is not None:
+        try:
+            fd = os.open(args.receipt, os.O_WRONLY | os.O_CREAT | os.O_EXCL | os.O_NOFOLLOW, 0o600)
+        except OSError:
+            return 2
+    state = {}
+    try:
+        receipt['outcome'] = run(args, receipt, state)
+        code = 0
+    except Exit as exc:
+        receipt['outcome'] = exc.reason
+        code = exc.code
+    except Exception:
+        receipt['outcome'] = 'contained_internal_error'
+        code = 1
+    try:
+        cleanup(receipt, state)
+    except Exception:
+        receipt['cleanup_error'] = True
+    if code == 0 and state.get('policy') and not receipt.get('policy_deleted'):
+        receipt['outcome'] += '_policy_cleanup_failed'
+        code = 4
+    receipt['exit_code'] = code
+    if fd is not None:
+        os.write(fd, (json.dumps(receipt, indent=2, sort_keys=True) + '\n').encode())
+        os.close(fd)
+    return code
+
+
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    sys.exit(main())
diff --git a/tests/test_operators_entry_retire.py b/tests/test_operators_entry_retire.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..34aa45a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_operators_entry_retire.py
@@ -0,0 +1,130 @@
+"""Offline tests for the operators/nextcloud retirement helper against a fake ``bao``."""
+import json
+import os
+from pathlib import Path
+import subprocess
+import sys
+import tempfile
+import textwrap
+import unittest
+
+ROOT = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1]
+SCRIPT = ROOT / 'scripts/operators_entry_retire.py'
+CONFIRM = 'RETIRE operators/nextcloud'
+ONE_SHOT = 'hvs.oneshot-' + 'K3l4' * 6
+
+# KV calls are refused unless they carry the one-shot token and its policy exists.
+FAKE_BAO = textwrap.dedent(f'''\
+    #!/usr/bin/env python3
+    import json, os, sys
+    sf = os.environ['FAKE_BAO_STATE']
+    st = json.load(open(sf))
+    a = sys.argv[1:]
+    tok = os.environ.get('BAO_TOKEN', 'caller')
+    st['calls'].append({{'args': a, 'token': tok}})
+    def save(): json.dump(st, open(sf, 'w'))
+    def out(obj): save(); print(json.dumps(obj)); sys.exit(0)
+    def deny(): save(); sys.stderr.write('permission denied\\n'); sys.exit(2)
+    if a[:2] == ['token', 'lookup']: out({{'data': {{'policies': st['caller_policies']}}}})
+    if a[:2] == ['policy', 'write']: st['policy'] = open(a[3]).read(); save(); sys.exit(0)
+    if a[:2] == ['policy', 'delete']: st.pop('policy', None); save(); sys.exit(0)
+    if a[:2] == ['token', 'create']:
+        if st.get('fail_create'): save(); sys.exit(2)
+        out({{'auth': {{'client_token': '{ONE_SHOT}'}}}})
+    if a[:2] == ['token', 'revoke']: st['revoked'] = tok; save(); sys.exit(0)
+    if tok != '{ONE_SHOT}' or 'policy' not in st: deny()
+    if a[0] == 'read':
+        rest = a[-1].split('/', 2)[2]
+        if rest not in st['kv']: save(); sys.stderr.write('No value found\\n'); sys.exit(2)
+        n = st['kv'][rest]
+        out({{'data': {{'current_version': n, 'versions': {{str(i + 1): {{}} for i in range(n)}}}}}})
+    if a[0] == 'delete':
+        if st.get('fail_delete'): deny()
+        st['kv'].pop(a[1].split('/', 2)[2], None); save(); sys.exit(0)
+    save(); sys.exit(9)
+''')
+
+
+class Retire(unittest.TestCase):
+    def setUp(self):
+        self.tmp = Path(tempfile.mkdtemp())
+        (self.tmp / 'bin').mkdir()
+        (self.tmp / 'bin/bao').write_text(FAKE_BAO)
+        (self.tmp / 'bin/bao').chmod(0o755)
+        self.home = self.tmp / '.warden-attended-login' / 'session'
+        self.home.mkdir(parents=True)
+        self.state = {'calls': [], 'caller_policies': ['default', 'platform-admin'],
+                      'kv': {'nextcloud': 2, 'nextcloud/backup': 3}}
+
+    def run_helper(self, *extra, confirm=CONFIRM):
+        (self.tmp / 'state.json').write_text(json.dumps(self.state))
+        receipt = self.tmp / f'r{len(list(self.tmp.glob("r*.json")))}.json'
+        env = {k: v for k, v in os.environ.items() if k not in ('BAO_TOKEN', 'VAULT_TOKEN')}
+        env.update(PATH=f'{self.tmp / "bin"}:{env["PATH"]}', HOME=str(self.home),
+                   FAKE_BAO_STATE=str(self.tmp / 'state.json'))
+        proc = subprocess.run([sys.executable, str(SCRIPT), '--confirm', confirm, '--receipt', str(receipt), *extra],
+                              env=env, capture_output=True, text=True)
+        self.assertEqual((proc.stdout, proc.stderr), ('', ''))
+        self.state = json.loads((self.tmp / 'state.json').read_text())
+        text = receipt.read_text()
+        self.assertNotIn(ONE_SHOT, text)
+        return proc.returncode, json.loads(text)
+
+    def assert_cleaned_up(self, receipt):
+        self.assertNotIn('policy', self.state)
+        self.assertTrue(receipt['policy_deleted'])
+        self.assertEqual(self.state.get('revoked'), ONE_SHOT)
+
+    def test_retires_entry_and_leaves_backup_untouched(self):
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper()
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (0, 'retired'))
+        self.assertNotIn('nextcloud', self.state['kv'])
+        self.assertEqual(self.state['kv']['nextcloud/backup'], 3)
+        self.assertEqual(receipt['entry_before'], {'current_version': 2, 'versions': 2})
+        self.assert_cleaned_up(receipt)
+        self.assertFalse(any(c['args'][0] == 'read' and '/data/' in c['args'][-1] for c in self.state['calls']))
+
+    def test_one_shot_policy_is_exact(self):
+        self.run_helper('--dry-run')
+        calls = [c for c in self.state['calls'] if c['args'][:2] == ['token', 'create']]
+        self.assertEqual(len(calls), 1)
+        args = calls[0]['args']
+        for flag in ('-orphan', '-policy=operators-retire-nextcloud', '-no-default-policy', '-ttl=60s'):
+            self.assertIn(flag, args)
+
+    def test_dry_run_deletes_nothing_and_cleans_up(self):
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper('--dry-run')
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (0, 'dry_run_would_retire'))
+        self.assertIn('nextcloud', self.state['kv'])
+        self.assert_cleaned_up(receipt)
+
+    def test_rerun_reports_already_absent(self):
+        self.state['kv'].pop('nextcloud')
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper()
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (0, 'already_absent'))
+        self.assert_cleaned_up(receipt)
+
+    def test_missing_sibling_refuses(self):
+        self.state['kv'].pop('nextcloud/backup')
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper()
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (2, 'sibling_absent_refusing_to_guess_layout'))
+        self.assertIn('nextcloud', self.state['kv'])
+        self.assert_cleaned_up(receipt)
+
+    def test_delete_failure_still_cleans_up(self):
+        self.state['fail_delete'] = True
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper()
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (4, 'delete_failed'))
+        self.assert_cleaned_up(receipt)
+
+    def test_refuses_without_confirmation_or_platform_admin(self):
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper(confirm='RETIRE')
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (2, 'exact_confirmation_required'))
+        self.state['caller_policies'] = ['operator-custody']
+        code, receipt = self.run_helper()
+        self.assertEqual((code, receipt['outcome']), (2, 'attended_platform_admin_required'))
+        self.assertFalse(any(c['args'][:2] == ['policy', 'write'] for c in self.state['calls']))
+
+
+if __name__ == '__main__':
+    unittest.main()
diff --git a/workplans/ADHOC-2026-10-10.md b/workplans/ADHOC-2026-10-10.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a4dbb61
--- /dev/null
+++ b/workplans/ADHOC-2026-10-10.md
@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+---
+id: RPF-WP-ADHOC-2026-10-10
+type: workplan
+title: "Retire the deprecated operators/nextcloud credential"
+domain: financials
+repo: railiance-platform
+status: active
+owner: claude-code
+topic_slug: railiance
+created: "2026-10-10"
+updated: "2026-10-10"
+---
+
+# RPF-WP-ADHOC-2026-10-10 — retire operators/nextcloud
+
+## Delete the deprecated base entry, keep operators/nextcloud/backup
+
+```task
+id: RPF-WP-ADHOC-2026-10-10-T01
+status: wait
+needs_human: true
+priority: low
+```
+
+The founder confirmed on 2026-10-10 that `operators/nextcloud` (the base entry)
+is a deprecated credential to remove. The live backup account stays at
+`operators/nextcloud/backup`. The delete cannot be done from the UI by design:
+`operator-custody` is delete-free and `platform-admin` has no grant on the
+`operators` mount (openbao/policies/operator-custody.hcl).
+
+`scripts/operators_entry_retire.py` does it without granting anything standing.
+As platform-admin it writes a one-shot policy (`read`/`delete` on
+`operators/metadata/nextcloud`, `read` on the backup sibling's metadata,
+`revoke-self`) and mints a 60s, 8-use orphan token holding only that policy. It
+proves the entry and the sibling exist, then metadata-deletes the entry with that
+token. It then proves the entry is absent and the sibling unchanged, revokes the
+token and deletes the policy on every path. It prints nothing and reads no value.
+7 offline tests.
+
+```bash
+cd ~/railiance-platform && git pull --ff-only
+export BAO_ADDR=http://127.0.0.1:18200 VAULT_ADDR=http://127.0.0.1:18200
+unset BAO_TOKEN VAULT_TOKEN
+W='warden access openbao-platform-admin-login --exec --'
+$W python3 scripts/operators_entry_retire.py --dry-run --confirm 'RETIRE operators/nextcloud' --receipt ~/operators-nextcloud-dry.json
+cat ~/operators-nextcloud-dry.json
+$W python3 scripts/operators_entry_retire.py --confirm 'RETIRE operators/nextcloud' --receipt ~/operators-nextcloud-retire.json
+cat ~/operators-nextcloud-retire.json
+```
+
+**Done when:** the receipt says `retired`, with `sibling_after` equal to
+`sibling_before`, `token_revoked` and `policy_deleted` true; and ops-mason drops
+`operators/nextcloud` from its custody descriptions.