diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index 60f58a824..d3bbde764 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -258,7 +258,9 @@ pad item unblock <source> <target>
 pad collection list           # List collections
 pad collection create "Name" --fields "key:type[:opts]; ..."  # compact DSL for simple schemas
 pad collection create "Name" --schema '<json>'                # full CollectionSchema (terminal_options, defaults, computed, relations)
-pad item edit <ref>           # Open in $EDITOR
+pad item edit <ref> [--force] # Open in $EDITOR. The save is guarded by the seq it was seeded from (a conflict or failed
+                              # save writes your text to a recovery file and prints its path); refuses a stale body
+                              # (content_state) unless --force (BUG-3035)
 pad workspace init [--template X]  # Create workspace
 pad agent install [tool]      # Install /pad skill for AI tools
 # Workspace onboarding: run `/pad onboard` from an agent session inside the
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 45416d801..84caab495 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -498,7 +498,7 @@ pad item open <ref>                   Open item in web UI
 pad item update <ref>                 Update item fields
 pad item delete <ref>                 Delete item
 pad item move <ref> <collection>      Move item between collections
-pad item edit <ref>                   Open item in $EDITOR
+pad item edit <ref> [--force]         Open item in $EDITOR (guarded save; see --help)
 pad item search "query"               Full-text search across all items
 pad item comment <ref> "text"         Add comment to an item
 pad item comments <ref>               View item comments
diff --git a/cmd/pad/bug3035_edit_guard_test.go b/cmd/pad/bug3035_edit_guard_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..85307fd79
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/pad/bug3035_edit_guard_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,322 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/PerpetualSoftware/pad/internal/models"
+)
+
+// BUG-3035: `pad item edit` is a read-modify-write over the whole body. It now
+// (1) refuses to open the editor on a stale-body read unless --force, (2) sends
+// the seq that seeded the editor as expected_seq, (3) re-reads before saving and
+// refuses if the body went stale meanwhile, and (4) preserves the edited text in
+// a recovery file whenever the save does not land.
+
+const editSentinel = "EDITOR-RAN-HERE"
+
+// editFixture is a REAL item's shape — ref parts, seq, updated_at and fields —
+// because a stub missing what real data always has hides the branch real use
+// takes (a field-less, ref-less stub already hid one bug on this surface, #1416).
+func editFixture(content, contentState string, seq int64) map[string]any {
+	it := map[string]any{
+		"id": "i1", "slug": "fix-the-thing", "title": "Fix the thing",
+		"collection_slug": "tasks", "collection_prefix": "TASK", "item_number": 5,
+		"ref": "TASK-5", "fields": `{"status":"open","priority":"high"}`,
+		"content": content, "seq": seq, "updated_at": "2026-09-21T22:53:52Z",
+	}
+	if contentState != "" {
+		it["content_state"] = contentState
+	}
+	return it
+}
+
+type editStub struct {
+	mu      sync.Mutex
+	gets    []map[string]any // one per GET, last one repeats
+	nGet    int
+	patches []map[string]any
+	// patchStatus: 0/200 answers the item; 409 answers a seq conflict; other
+	// codes answer a plain error envelope.
+	patchStatus int
+}
+
+func (s *editStub) handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	s.mu.Lock()
+	defer s.mu.Unlock()
+	if r.Method == http.MethodPatch {
+		raw, _ := io.ReadAll(r.Body)
+		var body map[string]any
+		_ = json.Unmarshal(raw, &body)
+		s.patches = append(s.patches, body)
+		switch s.patchStatus {
+		case 0, http.StatusOK:
+			c, _ := body["content"].(string)
+			_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(editFixture(c, "", 42))
+		case http.StatusConflict:
+			w.WriteHeader(http.StatusConflict)
+			_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(map[string]any{"error": map[string]any{
+				"code": "update_conflict", "message": "Item was modified by another writer",
+				"details": map[string]any{"ref": "TASK-5", "expected_seq": 41, "actual_seq": 43, "conflict_type": "seq"},
+			}})
+		default:
+			w.WriteHeader(s.patchStatus)
+			_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(map[string]any{"error": map[string]any{
+				"code": "internal_error", "message": "boom"}})
+		}
+		return
+	}
+	i := s.nGet
+	if i >= len(s.gets) {
+		i = len(s.gets) - 1
+	}
+	s.nGet++
+	_ = json.NewEncoder(w).Encode(s.gets[i])
+}
+
+// runEdit runs `pad item edit TASK-5 [extra...]` against the stub with a fake
+// editor that announces itself on stderr and appends a line. It returns stdout,
+// stderr, the command error, and the directory recovery files land in.
+func runEdit(t *testing.T, stub *editStub, extra ...string) (string, string, error, string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(stub.handler))
+	t.Cleanup(srv.Close)
+	setTempHomeMain(t)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_URL", srv.URL)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_TOKEN", "pad_testtoken")
+
+	tmp := t.TempDir()
+	t.Setenv("TMPDIR", tmp)
+
+	editorPath := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "fake-editor")
+	script := "#!/bin/sh\necho " + editSentinel + " >&2\necho edited >> \"$1\"\n"
+	if err := os.WriteFile(editorPath, []byte(script), 0o755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write fake editor: %v", err)
+	}
+	t.Setenv("EDITOR", editorPath)
+
+	origWS, origFormat := workspaceFlag, formatFlag
+	t.Cleanup(func() { workspaceFlag, formatFlag = origWS, origFormat })
+	workspaceFlag, formatFlag = "ws", ""
+
+	cmd := editCmd()
+	cmd.SetArgs(append([]string{"TASK-5"}, extra...))
+	var execErr error
+	var stdout string
+	stderr := captureStderr(t, func() {
+		stdout = captureStdout(t, func() { execErr = cmd.Execute() })
+	})
+	return stdout, stderr, execErr, tmp
+}
+
+func recoveryFiles(t *testing.T, dir string) []string {
+	t.Helper()
+	m, err := filepath.Glob(filepath.Join(dir, "pad-edit-*.md"))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	return m
+}
+
+func TestEditRefusesStaleSeed(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{
+		editFixture("the previous content", models.ContentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush, 41)}}
+	_, stderr, err, _ := runEdit(t, stub)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("a stale-body read must refuse without --force")
+	}
+	if strings.Contains(stderr, editSentinel) {
+		t.Fatal("the editor opened on a body the server reported stale; the refusal must come BEFORE it")
+	}
+	if len(stub.patches) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("a refused edit sent %d PATCH(es)", len(stub.patches))
+	}
+	for _, want := range []string{"TASK-5", "browser tab", "--force", "after the tab that caused it has closed"} {
+		if !strings.Contains(err.Error(), want) {
+			t.Errorf("the refusal must name %q: %v", want, err)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// CONTROL for the refusal: a current row opens the editor and saves. Without
+// this leg a command that refused EVERYTHING would pass the test above.
+func TestEditCurrentRowSavesWithTheSeedSeq(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 41)}}
+	stdout, stderr, err, tmp := runEdit(t, stub)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("edit: %v\n%s", err, stderr)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(stderr, editSentinel) {
+		t.Fatal("the editor never ran")
+	}
+	if len(stub.patches) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("want exactly one PATCH, got %d", len(stub.patches))
+	}
+	p := stub.patches[0]
+	if p["content"] != "body"+"edited\n" {
+		t.Fatalf("PATCH content = %q", p["content"])
+	}
+	if p["expected_seq"] != float64(41) {
+		t.Fatalf("the save must carry the seq that SEEDED the editor (41); got %v", p["expected_seq"])
+	}
+	if _, has := p["expected_updated_at"]; has {
+		t.Fatalf("with a seq available the weak token must not be sent too: %v", p)
+	}
+	if stub.nGet != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("want the seed read plus one pre-save re-read (2 GETs), got %d", stub.nGet)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(stdout, `Updated TASK-5 "Fix the thing"`) {
+		t.Fatalf("success line: %q", stdout)
+	}
+	if f := recoveryFiles(t, tmp); len(f) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("a successful save must not leave a recovery file: %v", f)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEditFallsBackToUpdatedAtWhenNoSeq(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 0)}}
+	if _, stderr, err, _ := runEdit(t, stub); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("edit: %v\n%s", err, stderr)
+	}
+	p := stub.patches[0]
+	if _, has := p["expected_seq"]; has {
+		t.Fatalf("a seq the server never issued (0) must not be sent: %v", p)
+	}
+	if p["expected_updated_at"] != "2026-09-21T22:53:52Z" {
+		t.Fatalf("with no seq the save must still be guarded by updated_at; got %v", p["expected_updated_at"])
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEditForceOpensAStaleSeedAndStillSendsTheToken(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{
+		editFixture("the previous content", models.ContentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush, 41)}}
+	_, stderr, err, _ := runEdit(t, stub, "--force")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("edit --force: %v\n%s", err, stderr)
+	}
+	if len(stub.patches) != 1 || stub.patches[0]["expected_seq"] != float64(41) {
+		t.Fatalf("--force skips the stale refusal, not the concurrency guard: %v", stub.patches)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEditConflictPreservesTheEditedText(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 41)}, patchStatus: http.StatusConflict}
+	_, stderr, err, tmp := runEdit(t, stub)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("a 409 must fail the command")
+	}
+	files := recoveryFiles(t, tmp)
+	if len(files) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("want one recovery file, got %v (stderr: %s)", files, stderr)
+	}
+	got, _ := os.ReadFile(files[0])
+	if string(got) != "body"+"edited\n" {
+		t.Fatalf("the recovery file must hold the EDITED text byte for byte; got %q", got)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(err.Error(), files[0]) {
+		t.Errorf("the returned error must carry the path, for a caller that discards stderr: %v", err)
+	}
+	pathAt := strings.Index(stderr, files[0])
+	markerAt := strings.Index(stderr, "pad-structured-error/v1:")
+	if pathAt < 0 || markerAt < 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("stderr must carry both the path and the structured conflict:\n%s", stderr)
+	}
+	if pathAt > markerAt {
+		t.Errorf("the recovery path must print BEFORE the conflict block:\n%s", stderr)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEditAnyFailedSavePreservesTheEditedText(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 41)}, patchStatus: http.StatusInternalServerError}
+	_, _, err, tmp := runEdit(t, stub)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("a 500 must fail the command")
+	}
+	if files := recoveryFiles(t, tmp); len(files) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("a non-conflict failure loses the same text; want one recovery file, got %v", files)
+	}
+}
+
+// A tab starts typing while $EDITOR is open: the op-log moves, the row's seq
+// does not, so only the re-read can see it.
+func TestEditRefusesWhenTheBodyWentStaleWhileEditing(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{
+		editFixture("body", "", 41),
+		editFixture("body", models.ContentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush, 41),
+	}}
+	_, stderr, err, tmp := runEdit(t, stub)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("a body that went stale during editing must refuse the save")
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(stderr, editSentinel) {
+		t.Fatal("premise: the editor must have run (the seed read was current)")
+	}
+	if len(stub.patches) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("the save went out anyway: %v", stub.patches)
+	}
+	if files := recoveryFiles(t, tmp); len(files) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("the refused save must preserve the edit; got %v", files)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestEditNoChangesSendsNothing(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 41)}}
+	// An editor that saves the file untouched.
+	noop := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "noop-editor")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(noop, []byte("#!/bin/sh\nexit 0\n"), 0o755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(stub.handler))
+	t.Cleanup(srv.Close)
+	setTempHomeMain(t)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_URL", srv.URL)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_TOKEN", "pad_testtoken")
+	t.Setenv("EDITOR", noop)
+	origWS := workspaceFlag
+	t.Cleanup(func() { workspaceFlag = origWS })
+	workspaceFlag = "ws"
+	cmd := editCmd()
+	cmd.SetArgs([]string{"TASK-5"})
+	var err error
+	out := captureStdout(t, func() { err = cmd.Execute() })
+	if err != nil || !strings.Contains(out, "No changes.") || len(stub.patches) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("an unchanged edit must say so and send nothing: err=%v out=%q patches=%d", err, out, len(stub.patches))
+	}
+}
+
+// A nonzero editor exit aborts (vim's :cq), even after the file was written:
+// nothing is sent, and the error says nothing was saved (codex round 1 P2 —
+// dispositioned as abort semantics, not a lost save).
+func TestEditNonzeroEditorExitAbortsWithoutSaving(t *testing.T) {
+	stub := &editStub{gets: []map[string]any{editFixture("body", "", 41)}}
+	abort := filepath.Join(t.TempDir(), "abort-editor")
+	if err := os.WriteFile(abort, []byte("#!/bin/sh\necho edited >> \"$1\"\nexit 1\n"), 0o755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatal(err)
+	}
+	srv := httptest.NewServer(http.HandlerFunc(stub.handler))
+	t.Cleanup(srv.Close)
+	setTempHomeMain(t)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_URL", srv.URL)
+	t.Setenv("PAD_TOKEN", "pad_testtoken")
+	t.Setenv("EDITOR", abort)
+	origWS := workspaceFlag
+	t.Cleanup(func() { workspaceFlag = origWS })
+	workspaceFlag = "ws"
+	cmd := editCmd()
+	cmd.SetArgs([]string{"TASK-5"})
+	var err error
+	_ = captureStderr(t, func() { _ = captureStdout(t, func() { err = cmd.Execute() }) })
+	if err == nil || !strings.Contains(err.Error(), "nothing was saved") {
+		t.Fatalf("an aborted edit must fail and say nothing was saved; got %v", err)
+	}
+	if stub.nGet != 1 || len(stub.patches) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("premise and conclusion: the seed read happened (%d GETs) and nothing was sent (%d PATCHes)", stub.nGet, len(stub.patches))
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/pad/cmd_item.go b/cmd/pad/cmd_item.go
index 6176da8a3..4db0c51d5 100644
--- a/cmd/pad/cmd_item.go
+++ b/cmd/pad/cmd_item.go
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import (
 	"sort"
 	"strconv"
 	"strings"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/fatih/color"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
@@ -3592,14 +3593,33 @@ func searchCmd() *cobra.Command {
 // --- playbook ---
 
 func editCmd() *cobra.Command {
-	return &cobra.Command{
+	var force bool
+	cmd := &cobra.Command{
 		Use:   "edit <ref>",
 		Short: "Open an item's content in $EDITOR",
 		Long: `Open an item's rich content in your default editor. After editing
 and saving, the content is updated in Pad.
 
 Items can be referenced by issue ID (e.g. TASK-5) or slug.
-Set EDITOR or VISUAL env var to choose your editor (default: vi).`,
+Set EDITOR or VISUAL env var to choose your editor (default: vi).
+
+The save is guarded: it is refused if the stored item was written since
+the editor opened. If it is refused, or the save fails for any other
+reason, your edited text is written to a recovery file and its path is
+printed. Exiting the editor with a nonzero status (e.g. vim's :cq) aborts
+without saving, as git does.
+
+One gap remains: the guard sees writes to the STORED item, and a browser
+tab's unsaved typing is not one until the tab writes it back. The command
+checks for such typing when the editor opens and again just before saving,
+but typing that starts in the moment between that last check and the save
+can still be overwritten.
+
+Refuses to open when the stored body is behind the item's live
+collaborative document (an editor in a browser tab holds edits not yet
+written back), because saving would replace those edits. Open the item
+in a browser tab so it flushes, then retry — or pass --force to edit the
+stored body anyway.`,
 		Args: cobra.ExactArgs(1),
 		RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 			client, cfg := getClient()
@@ -3611,13 +3631,26 @@ Set EDITOR or VISUAL env var to choose your editor (default: vi).`,
 				return err
 			}
 
+			// BUG-3035: refuse, don't just warn. The seed would be a body that
+			// predates edits which exist, and the save replaces the WHOLE body.
+			// The concurrency token below cannot catch this: those edits live in
+			// the op-log, not the row, so the row's seq never moved for them.
+			if item.ContentState == models.ContentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush && !force {
+				return staleEditRefusal(item)
+			}
+
 			// BEFORE the editor opens, not after: this is the only point at which
-			// the warning can still change what the user does (BUG-3033).
+			// the warning can still change what the user does (BUG-3033). Reached
+			// only under --force now.
 			warnStaleEditSeed(item)
 
 			edited, err := cli.OpenInEditor(cfg, item.Content, ".md")
 			if err != nil {
-				return err
+				// A nonzero editor exit is the conventional ABORT (vim's :cq,
+				// honoured by git the same way), so nothing is sent and no
+				// recovery file is written. Say so, rather than leaving the
+				// reader to guess whether anything was saved.
+				return fmt.Errorf("%w — nothing was saved", err)
 			}
 
 			if edited == item.Content {
@@ -3625,11 +3658,37 @@ Set EDITOR or VISUAL env var to choose your editor (default: vi).`,
 				return nil
 			}
 
-			updated, err := client.UpdateItem(ws, slug, models.ItemUpdate{
-				Content: &edited,
-			})
+			// A tab that starts typing while $EDITOR is open appends to the
+			// op-log without touching the row, so the seq token cannot see it
+			// either. Re-read and refuse if that happened. This narrows the
+			// window to the gap between this read and the PATCH; it does not
+			// close it (BUG-3035).
+			if !force {
+				latest, rerr := client.GetItem(ws, slug)
+				if rerr != nil {
+					return saveEditRecovery(item, edited, rerr)
+				}
+				if latest.ContentState == models.ContentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush {
+					return saveEditRecovery(item, edited, staleEditRefusal(latest))
+				}
+			}
+
+			input := models.ItemUpdate{Content: &edited}
+			// The token is the seq that SEEDED the editor, so any row write
+			// since — another CLI, an API caller, a tab's flush — is refused
+			// rather than overwritten. seq is never 0 on a live row; a 0 means
+			// the server did not report one, and the weaker timestamp is still
+			// better than an unguarded replace of the whole body.
+			if item.Seq >= 1 {
+				seq := item.Seq
+				input.ExpectedSeq = &seq
+			} else if !item.UpdatedAt.IsZero() {
+				input.ExpectedUpdatedAt = item.UpdatedAt.UTC().Format(time.RFC3339)
+			}
+
+			updated, err := client.UpdateItem(ws, slug, input)
 			if err != nil {
-				return err
+				return saveEditRecovery(item, edited, err)
 			}
 
 			warnUndeclaredFields(updated)
@@ -3644,6 +3703,96 @@ Set EDITOR or VISUAL env var to choose your editor (default: vi).`,
 			return nil
 		},
 	}
+	cmd.Flags().BoolVar(&force, "force", false, "edit even when the stored body is behind the live collaborative document (replaces edits held only there)")
+	return cmd
+}
+
+// staleEditRefusal is the error `pad item edit` returns instead of opening the
+// editor on a body the server reports as behind its live collaborative document
+// (BUG-3035).
+//
+// It names --force as well as the tab, and says why --force is not merely a
+// footgun: the flush that would clear this state is not guaranteed to happen
+// (BUG-3000), and the state can read pending when nothing is (BUG-3124). Without
+// the escape hatch either of those would leave the item permanently uneditable
+// from the CLI.
+func staleEditRefusal(item *models.Item) error {
+	name := cli.ItemRef(*item)
+	if name == "" {
+		name = item.Slug
+	}
+	return fmt.Errorf("refusing to edit %s: its stored content is behind its live collaborative "+
+		"document — an editor holds edits that have not been written back yet, and saving would "+
+		"replace them with a version derived from a state before them. Open the item in a browser "+
+		"tab so those edits are written back, then retry. If no tab holds unsaved work (this state "+
+		"can persist after the tab that caused it has closed), pass --force to edit the stored "+
+		"content anyway", name)
+}
+
+// saveEditRecovery writes the text the user edited to a file and returns an
+// error that carries both the original cause and the file's path (BUG-3035).
+//
+// Without it a refused or failed save lost the edit outright: OpenInEditor
+// removes its temp file on return, so the only copy was this process's memory.
+// It covers EVERY failed save, not only a conflict — a network error loses the
+// same text.
+//
+// The path is printed to stderr BEFORE the cause is rendered, so a long
+// structured conflict block cannot push it off a short terminal, and it is also
+// in the returned error so a caller that discards stderr still gets it.
+func saveEditRecovery(item *models.Item, edited string, cause error) error {
+	name := cli.ItemRef(*item)
+	if name == "" {
+		name = item.Slug
+	}
+	f, ferr := os.CreateTemp("", "pad-edit-"+sanitizeRecoveryName(name)+"-*.md")
+	if ferr == nil {
+		_, ferr = f.WriteString(edited)
+		if cerr := f.Close(); ferr == nil {
+			ferr = cerr
+		}
+	}
+	if ferr != nil {
+		// Nothing else can hold the text now; say so plainly rather than
+		// pointing at a path that may be empty.
+		if f != nil {
+			_ = os.Remove(f.Name())
+		}
+		renderEditSaveError(cause)
+		return fmt.Errorf("save of %s failed and your edit could NOT be written to a recovery file (%v): %w", name, ferr, cause)
+	}
+	path := f.Name()
+	fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "Your edit was NOT saved to %s. It is preserved in %s\n", name, path)
+	renderEditSaveError(cause)
+	return fmt.Errorf("save of %s failed; your edit is preserved in %s: %w", name, path, cause)
+}
+
+// renderEditSaveError prints the structured conflict block for an
+// optimistic-concurrency refusal, the same two-track shape `pad item update`
+// uses (TASK-2022), so the MCP stdio classifier and a human read one payload.
+func renderEditSaveError(err error) {
+	if apiErr, ok := err.(*cli.APIError); ok {
+		if uc := apiErr.AsUpdateConflict(); uc != nil {
+			cli.WriteUpdateConflictError(os.Stderr, apiErr, uc)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// sanitizeRecoveryName keeps a recovery file name to characters that are safe
+// in a path component on every platform; a slug or ref never needs more.
+func sanitizeRecoveryName(s string) string {
+	var b strings.Builder
+	for _, r := range s {
+		if (r >= 'a' && r <= 'z') || (r >= 'A' && r <= 'Z') || (r >= '0' && r <= '9') || r == '-' || r == '_' {
+			b.WriteRune(r)
+		} else {
+			b.WriteRune('_')
+		}
+	}
+	if b.Len() == 0 {
+		return "item"
+	}
+	return b.String()
 }
 
 // --- utility ---
@@ -4017,10 +4166,9 @@ func warnStaleDerivedText(what string, refs []string, howToSee string) {
 // version derived from a state before them, and neither the person editing nor
 // the person whose tab holds them sees it happen.
 //
-// What this line does NOT do is stop that: it warns and proceeds. Whether the
-// command should refuse, or offer to merge, is a behaviour decision with its own
-// item (BUG-3035) rather than something to settle inside a sweep for missing
-// markers.
+// Since BUG-3035 the command REFUSES on this state by default (staleEditRefusal),
+// so this line is reached only under --force: it is the forced path's reminder of
+// what the user chose to overwrite.
 //
 // It is printed BEFORE the editor is launched. Printed afterwards it would be
 // read, at best, next to a "Updated TASK-5" line — after the damage.
diff --git a/cmd/pad/cmd_playbook_stale_body_test.go b/cmd/pad/cmd_playbook_stale_body_test.go
index b99b68ff6..3274814a2 100644
--- a/cmd/pad/cmd_playbook_stale_body_test.go
+++ b/cmd/pad/cmd_playbook_stale_body_test.go
@@ -181,12 +181,13 @@ func TestWarnPlaybookBodyStaleGating(t *testing.T) {
 // the one whose consequence is not merely a confusing read.
 //
 // `pad item edit` is a read-modify-write over the WHOLE body: it seeds $EDITOR
-// from the row and PATCHes the entire edited text back with no concurrency
-// token. When the row is behind the live document, saving replaces edits that
-// exist and are durable with a version derived from a state before them. The
-// warning does not prevent that — BUG-3035 owns the refuse/prompt/diff decision —
-// so what this test guards is that the signal exists, fires only for the defined
-// value, and says the thing that distinguishes it from an ordinary stale read.
+// from the row and PATCHes the entire edited text back. When the row is behind
+// the live document, saving replaces edits that exist and are durable with a
+// version derived from a state before them. Since BUG-3035 the command refuses
+// that state unless --force (bug3035_edit_guard_test.go), so this warning is the
+// forced path's signal; what this test guards is that the signal exists, fires
+// only for the defined value, and says the thing that distinguishes it from an
+// ordinary stale read.
 func TestWarnStaleEditSeedGating(t *testing.T) {
 	cases := []struct {
 		name string
@@ -297,8 +298,15 @@ func TestEditWarnsBeforeLaunchingTheEditor(t *testing.T) {
 			t.Cleanup(func() { workspaceFlag, formatFlag = origWS, origFormat })
 			workspaceFlag, formatFlag = "ws", ""
 
+			// --force on the stale leg: since BUG-3035 a stale read REFUSES by
+			// default (TestEditRefusesStaleSeed), so the warning is now the
+			// forced path's signal, and this test keeps guarding its ordering.
+			editArgs := []string{"TASK-5"}
+			if tc.wantWarning {
+				editArgs = append(editArgs, "--force")
+			}
 			cmd := editCmd()
-			cmd.SetArgs([]string{"TASK-5"})
+			cmd.SetArgs(editArgs)
 			stderr := captureStderr(t, func() {
 				_ = captureStdout(t, func() {
 					if err := cmd.Execute(); err != nil {
diff --git a/internal/server/bug3035_applier_seq_test.go b/internal/server/bug3035_applier_seq_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..92df1515c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/server/bug3035_applier_seq_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+package server
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// BUG-3035: `pad item edit` now round-trips the `seq` that seeded the editor as
+// `expected_seq`, and the whole design rests on one server claim — that the seq
+// guard refuses on the APPLIER path too, BEFORE the content reaches the live
+// document. That is the path the bug is about (an open tab), and the only prior
+// pin of refuse-before-apply used the weak `expected_updated_at` token
+// (TestBUG2840HalfA_RefusedPatchLeavesTheDocumentUntouched).
+//
+// Two legs against one room. The ACCEPT leg is not decoration: it proves this
+// room really routes a content PATCH through the applier (the 200 carries
+// content_outcome=applied_pending_flush), so the refusal leg's 409 is a statement
+// about that path rather than about a direct write that happened to refuse.
+func TestBUG3035_StaleSeqRefusesOnTheApplierPathBeforeApplying(t *testing.T) {
+	srv := testServerWithCollab(t)
+	ts := httptest.NewServer(srv)
+	t.Cleanup(ts.Close)
+	slug := createWSWithCollections(t, srv)
+	item := createTaskWithFields(t, srv, slug, "Item", `{"status":"open"}`)
+
+	conn, resp, err := dialCollab(t, ts.URL, item.ID, nil, "")
+	if err != nil {
+		status := ""
+		if resp != nil {
+			status = resp.Status
+		}
+		t.Fatalf("dialCollab: %v (%s)", err, status)
+	}
+	stop := applierEcho(t, conn)
+	t.Cleanup(stop)
+	waitForApplierPath(t, srv, slug, item.Slug, item.ID)
+
+	seeded, err := srv.store.GetItem(item.ID)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("GetItem: %v", err)
+	}
+	if seeded.Seq < 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("a live row must carry seq >= 1; got %d", seeded.Seq)
+	}
+
+	// ACCEPT leg: the seq the editor was seeded with is current, so the save lands
+	// — through the applier.
+	rr := doRequest(srv, "PATCH", "/api/v1/workspaces/"+slug+"/items/"+item.Slug,
+		map[string]interface{}{"expected_seq": seeded.Seq, "content": "first save"})
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusOK {
+		t.Fatalf("current seq must be accepted; got %d: %s", rr.Code, rr.Body.String())
+	}
+	var ok struct {
+		Warnings map[string]any `json:"warnings"`
+	}
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &ok)
+	if outcome, _ := ok.Warnings["content_outcome"].(string); outcome != contentOutcomeAppliedPendingFlush {
+		t.Fatalf("the accepted save did not take the applier path (content_outcome=%q), so the "+
+			"refusal below would say nothing about it", outcome)
+	}
+
+	// REFUSE leg: a second editor seeded from the SAME read saves after the first.
+	// Its seq is now stale.
+	beforeOps := countOpLog(t, srv, item.ID)
+	rr = doRequest(srv, "PATCH", "/api/v1/workspaces/"+slug+"/items/"+item.Slug,
+		map[string]interface{}{"expected_seq": seeded.Seq, "content": "second save, seeded stale"})
+	if rr.Code != http.StatusConflict {
+		t.Fatalf("a stale seq on the applier path must be refused 409; got %d: %s", rr.Code, rr.Body.String())
+	}
+	var refusal struct {
+		Error struct {
+			Code    string         `json:"code"`
+			Details map[string]any `json:"details"`
+		} `json:"error"`
+	}
+	_ = json.Unmarshal(rr.Body.Bytes(), &refusal)
+	if refusal.Error.Code != "update_conflict" || refusal.Error.Details["conflict_type"] != "seq" {
+		t.Fatalf("want update_conflict on the seq token; got %s", rr.Body.String())
+	}
+	// Nothing reached the document: op-log rows unchanged is what that reduces to
+	// on a dumb relay (see the BUG-2840 test for why the server cannot read the
+	// document itself).
+	if afterOps := countOpLog(t, srv, item.ID); afterOps != beforeOps {
+		t.Fatalf("the refused save left %d op-log row(s) behind; a tab joining later would replay "+
+			"the content the caller was told was refused", afterOps-beforeOps)
+	}
+}