diff --git a/src/actors/conversation/agent.ts b/src/actors/conversation/agent.ts
index 9e8501d..657d5a9 100644
--- a/src/actors/conversation/agent.ts
+++ b/src/actors/conversation/agent.ts
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ export type ConversationRuntimeContext = {
   missionId?: string;
   stageId?: string;
   source?: string;
+  systemAddendum?: string;
 };
 
 function normalizeModel(model: string): string {
@@ -51,7 +52,9 @@ export function getConversationModel() {
   return conversationProvider.chat(normalizeModel(modelId));
 }
 
-export function buildModelMessages(messages: ConversationMessage[]) {
+type ModelConversationMessage = Pick<ConversationMessage, "role" | "content">;
+
+export function buildModelMessages(messages: ModelConversationMessage[]) {
   return messages.map((message) => ({
     role: message.role,
     content: message.content,
@@ -232,18 +235,30 @@ function buildConversationTools(ctx: ConversationRuntimeContext = {}) {
   };
 }
 
-export function streamConversationResponse(messages: ConversationMessage[], context: ConversationRuntimeContext = {}) {
+export function streamConversationResponse(messages: ModelConversationMessage[], context: ConversationRuntimeContext = {}) {
+  const system = [SYSTEM_PROMPT, context.systemAddendum].filter(Boolean).join("\n\n");
   if (context.source === "daily-mission-start") {
     return streamText({
       model: getConversationModel(),
-      system: SYSTEM_PROMPT,
+      system,
       messages: buildModelMessages(messages),
     });
   }
 
   return streamText({
     model: getConversationModel(),
-    system: SYSTEM_PROMPT,
+    system,
+    messages: buildModelMessages(messages),
+    tools: buildConversationTools(context),
+    stopWhen: stepCountIs(5),
+  });
+}
+
+export async function generateConversationResponse(messages: ModelConversationMessage[], context: ConversationRuntimeContext = {}) {
+  const system = [SYSTEM_PROMPT, context.systemAddendum].filter(Boolean).join("\n\n");
+  return generateText({
+    model: getConversationModel(),
+    system,
     messages: buildModelMessages(messages),
     tools: buildConversationTools(context),
     stopWhen: stepCountIs(5),
diff --git a/src/v1/curator/curator-agent.ts b/src/v1/curator/curator-agent.ts
index e3be31a..cc1bf10 100644
--- a/src/v1/curator/curator-agent.ts
+++ b/src/v1/curator/curator-agent.ts
@@ -1,8 +1,7 @@
-import { generateObject, generateText, stepCountIs } from "ai";
+import { generateObject } from "ai";
 import { z } from "zod";
 import { addMessagePg, createConversationPg, ensureMissionConversationPg, listMessagesPg } from "../../grow/persistence.js";
-import { getConversationModel } from "../../actors/conversation/agent.js";
-import { buildCuratorTools } from "./curator-tools.js";
+import { generateConversationResponse, getConversationModel } from "../../actors/conversation/agent.js";
 import { buildCuratorTasks, todayIsoDate } from "./curator-store.js";
 import { emitCuratorEvent } from "./curator-events.js";
 import type { CuratorChatResponse } from "./curator-types.js";
@@ -28,8 +27,91 @@ function sanitize(text: string) {
     .trim();
 }
 
-function fallbackReply(task: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof buildCuratorTasks>>[number] | undefined, latest: string) {
+type CuratorMessage = Awaited<ReturnType<typeof listMessagesPg>>[number];
+
+function visibleCuratorMessages(messages: CuratorMessage[]) {
+  return messages.filter((message) => {
+    if (message.role !== "assistant") return true;
+    return !/what should i capture/i.test(message.content);
+  });
+}
+
+function usefulUserMessages(messages: CuratorMessage[]) {
+  return messages
+    .filter((message) => message.role === "user")
+    .map((message) => message.content.trim())
+    .filter((content) => content && !/^start$/i.test(content) && !content.toLowerCase().includes("i opened "));
+}
+
+function targetRoleState(messages: CuratorMessage[], latest: string) {
+  const userMessages = usefulUserMessages(messages);
+  const all = [...userMessages, latest.trim()].filter(Boolean);
+  const lowerAll = all.join("\n").toLowerCase();
+  const shortAnswers = all.filter((content) => content.length <= 80);
+  const targetRole = shortAnswers.find((content) => {
+    const lower = content.toLowerCase();
+    return /manager|engineer|designer|analyst|developer|product|marketing|sales|founder|consultant|operator|lead|head|director/.test(lower);
+  });
+  const currentBackground = all.find((content) => {
+    const lower = content.toLowerCase();
+    return lower.includes("currently") || lower.includes("right now") || lower.includes("i am ") || lower.includes("i'm ") || lower.includes("my background") || lower.includes("experience");
+  });
+  const constraints = all.find((content) => {
+    const lower = content.toLowerCase();
+    return lower.includes("month") || lower.includes("week") || lower.includes("salary") || lower.includes("remote") || lower.includes("location") || lower.includes("visa") || lower.includes("timeline");
+  });
+  return {
+    targetRole,
+    currentBackground,
+    constraints,
+    hasAskedCurrent: lowerAll.includes("current background") || lowerAll.includes("current role") || lowerAll.includes("where you are starting"),
+    hasAskedConstraints: lowerAll.includes("constraint") || lowerAll.includes("timeline"),
+  };
+}
+
+function curatorSystemAddendum(input: {
+  date: string;
+  taskId?: string;
+  task?: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof buildCuratorTasks>>[number];
+}) {
+  return [
+    "You are currently speaking as the GrowQR V1 Curator through the Conversation Actor.",
+    "The V1 Curator owns 30 day direction, streak continuity, and service handoff decisions.",
+    "Carry state from the conversation history. If the user gives a short answer like a role name, accept it and ask for the next missing slot.",
+    "Do not ask the same question twice. Do not output checklist items as separate baked chat messages.",
+    "For target-role tasks, collect target role, current background, constraints, then offer a resume or interview handoff.",
+    "For service work, use Conversation Actor tools to prepare handoffs. Do not mark work complete unless a service or platform event exists.",
+    "Never say: What should I capture next. Ask a concrete conversational question tied to the task.",
+    `Date: ${input.date}`,
+    `Curator task id: ${input.taskId ?? "none"}`,
+    `Curator task title: ${input.task?.title ?? "General curator chat"}`,
+    `Curator task context: ${input.task?.contextNarrative ?? "none"}`,
+    `Curator task subtasks: ${input.task?.subtasks.join(" | ") ?? "none"}`,
+    `Curator service: ${input.task?.serviceName ?? "none"}`,
+    `Expected completion events: ${input.task?.completionEvents.join(", ") ?? "none"}`,
+  ].join("\n");
+}
+
+function fallbackReply(task: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof buildCuratorTasks>>[number] | undefined, latest: string, history: CuratorMessage[] = []) {
   const lower = latest.toLowerCase();
+  const taskText = `${task?.title ?? ""} ${task?.subtitle ?? ""} ${task?.contextNarrative ?? ""} ${task?.subtasks.join(" ") ?? ""}`.toLowerCase();
+  const isTargetRoleTask = taskText.includes("target role") || taskText.includes("career transition") || taskText.includes("transition thesis");
+  if (isTargetRoleTask) {
+    const state = targetRoleState(history, latest);
+    if (!state.targetRole && (lower.includes("opened") || lower.includes("target role") || lower.includes("role you want"))) {
+      return "Which role are you aiming for next?";
+    }
+    if (!state.targetRole) return "What target role are you considering next?";
+    if (!state.currentBackground) return `Got it, ${state.targetRole} is the direction. What are you doing now, and what background should I factor in?`;
+    if (!state.constraints) return "Good, that gives me the direction and starting point. What constraints should I plan around, like timeline, location, salary, or industry?";
+    return "I have the target role, current background, and constraints. Should I shape the resume plan first or set up interview practice for this direction?";
+  }
+  if (taskText.includes("main goal") || taskText.includes("30 days") || taskText.includes("onboarding")) {
+    if (latest.trim().length > 1 && latest.trim().length < 120) {
+      return `Got it. What is blocking you from ${latest.trim()} right now, and which service should help first: resume, interview, or roleplay?`;
+    }
+    return "What outcome do you want in the next 30 days, and what is blocking you right now?";
+  }
   if (task?.serviceId === "resume-service") {
     if (lower.includes("target role") || lower.includes("goal")) {
       return "What target role are you aiming for, and what kind of resume change would help most right now: stronger proof, clearer skills, or better role fit?";
@@ -56,7 +138,7 @@ function fallbackReply(task: Awaited<ReturnType<typeof buildCuratorTasks>>[numbe
     if (lower.includes("outcome") || lower.includes("tone")) return "What outcome do you want, and what tone should you practice?";
     return "Tell me who you are speaking with and what makes this conversation difficult.";
   }
-  return `What should I capture next for ${task?.title ?? "this curator task"}?`;
+  return "Tell me where you are starting from and the outcome you want next. I will use that to choose the right service handoff.";
 }
 
 async function ensureCuratorConversation(input: { userId: string; taskId?: string; date: string }) {
@@ -97,6 +179,7 @@ export async function runCuratorChat(input: {
     sender: "User",
     content: latest,
   });
+  const conversationHistory = visibleCuratorMessages(await listMessagesPg(input.userId, conversation.id));
 
   let reply = "";
   try {
@@ -113,34 +196,24 @@ export async function runCuratorChat(input: {
       payload: { taskId: input.taskId, extract: extract.object },
     });
 
-    const result = await generateText({
-      model: getConversationModel(),
-      system: [
-        "You are the GrowQR V1 Curator Agent.",
-        "You own 30 day task direction, streak continuity, and service handoffs.",
-        "Use the supplied tools to read tasks, Q-score, service capabilities, reports, and to prepare handoffs.",
-        "Do not claim a task is completed unless a valid service or platform event exists.",
-        "Ask a task-specific question, not the same generic question for every task.",
-        "If the user just opened a task, ask one warm next question based on the exact subtask and available context.",
-        "Do not list all three subtasks as baked messages. Keep the conversation natural.",
-        "Keep the answer under 80 words. Use ASCII punctuation only. Do not use em dash or en dash.",
-      ].join("\n"),
-      prompt: [
-        `Date: ${date}`,
-        `Task id: ${input.taskId ?? "none"}`,
-        `Task title: ${task?.title ?? "General curator chat"}`,
-        `Task context: ${task?.contextNarrative ?? "none"}`,
-        `Task subtasks: ${task?.subtasks.join(" | ") ?? "none"}`,
-        `Service: ${task?.serviceName ?? "none"}`,
-        `Completion events: ${task?.completionEvents.join(", ") ?? "none"}`,
-        `User message: ${latest}`,
-      ].join("\n"),
-      tools: buildCuratorTools({ userId: input.userId, date, conversationId: conversation.id, taskId: input.taskId }),
-      stopWhen: stepCountIs(6),
+    const result = await generateConversationResponse(conversationHistory.map((message) => ({
+      role: message.role,
+      content: message.content,
+    })), {
+      userId: input.userId,
+      conversationId: conversation.id,
+      missionInstanceId: task?.missionInstanceId,
+      missionId: task?.missionId,
+      stageId: task?.stageId,
+      source: "curator-v1",
+      systemAddendum: curatorSystemAddendum({ date, taskId: input.taskId, task }),
     });
     reply = sanitize(result.text);
+    if (/what should i capture next/i.test(reply) || !reply) {
+      reply = fallbackReply(task, latest, conversationHistory);
+    }
   } catch (error) {
-    reply = fallbackReply(task, latest);
+    reply = fallbackReply(task, latest, conversationHistory);
   }
 
   await addMessagePg(input.userId, {
@@ -155,6 +228,6 @@ export async function runCuratorChat(input: {
     conversationId: conversation.id,
     taskId: input.taskId,
     reply,
-    messages: await listMessagesPg(input.userId, conversation.id),
+    messages: visibleCuratorMessages(await listMessagesPg(input.userId, conversation.id)),
   };
 }
diff --git a/src/v1/curator/curator-store.ts b/src/v1/curator/curator-store.ts
index b217bdc..01b349e 100644
--- a/src/v1/curator/curator-store.ts
+++ b/src/v1/curator/curator-store.ts
@@ -59,6 +59,24 @@ function cleanTitle(text: string) {
     .trim();
 }
 
+function stageIntent(input: {
+  missionTitle: string;
+  stageTitle: string;
+  stageDescription: string;
+}) {
+  const raw = `${input.missionTitle} ${input.stageTitle} ${input.stageDescription}`.toLowerCase();
+  if (raw.includes("target role") || raw.includes("role recommendation") || raw.includes("career transition") || raw.includes("transition thesis")) {
+    return "target-role";
+  }
+  if (raw.includes("goal") || raw.includes("achieve") || raw.includes("onboarding")) {
+    return "goal-setup";
+  }
+  if (raw.includes("resume")) return "resume";
+  if (raw.includes("interview")) return "interview";
+  if (raw.includes("roleplay")) return "roleplay";
+  return "general";
+}
+
 function taskCopy(input: {
   missionTitle: string;
   stageTitle: string;
@@ -67,6 +85,7 @@ function taskCopy(input: {
 }) {
   const mission = input.missionTitle;
   const stage = cleanTitle(input.stageTitle);
+  const intent = stageIntent(input);
   if (input.serviceId === "resume-service") {
     return {
       title: stage.toLowerCase().includes("resume") ? stage : "Shape your resume around your goal",
@@ -115,15 +134,39 @@ function taskCopy(input: {
       contextNarrative: `This step is about direction before execution. The curator is collecting role preferences and constraints for ${mission}, so future resume, interview, and pathway suggestions can be grounded in what the user actually wants.`,
     };
   }
+  if (intent === "target-role") {
+    return {
+      title: "Clarify your target role",
+      subtitle: "Tell the curator where you are starting from, which role you want next, and what constraints matter.",
+      subtasks: [
+        "Share your current role or background",
+        "Name the target role you want next",
+        "Add constraints like timeline, location, or salary",
+      ],
+      contextNarrative: `This is the direction-setting step for ${mission}. The curator should collect the user's current background, target role, reason for the transition, and constraints before opening resume, interview, or roleplay. The goal is to create a clear transition thesis, not to ask the same generic planning question repeatedly.`,
+    };
+  }
+  if (intent === "goal-setup") {
+    return {
+      title: "Tell the curator your main goal",
+      subtitle: "Start with the outcome you want, why it matters, and what help you need from GrowQR.",
+      subtasks: [
+        "Describe the outcome you want in 30 days",
+        "Add what is blocking you right now",
+        "Choose the first service that should help",
+      ],
+      contextNarrative: `This is the goal setup step for ${mission}. The curator should understand what the user wants to achieve, what is blocking progress, and which GrowQR service should help first. It should turn the onboarding context into a useful next action, not a generic checklist.`,
+    };
+  }
   return {
     title: stage || "Clarify the next useful action",
     subtitle: input.stageDescription || `Continue ${mission} with the next useful action.`,
     subtasks: [
-      "Tell the curator what you want to achieve",
-      "Add the missing context for this step",
-      "Confirm the next service action",
+      "Describe where you are starting from",
+      "Tell the outcome you want next",
+      "Confirm the best service to open",
     ],
-    contextNarrative: `This step belongs to ${mission}. The curator is collecting enough user context to decide the next useful action and avoid generic tasks. Completion should come from a real platform or service event, not from simply clicking through the checklist.`,
+    contextNarrative: `This step belongs to ${mission}. The curator should ask for the user's starting point, desired outcome, and missing context so it can route to a useful service. Completion should come from a real platform or service event, not from simply clicking through the checklist.`,
   };
 }