diff --git a/conductor/directives/presets/current_baseline.md b/conductor/directives/presets/current_baseline.md
index 362919c7..94a18f56 100644
--- a/conductor/directives/presets/current_baseline.md
+++ b/conductor/directives/presets/current_baseline.md
@@ -183,6 +183,8 @@ Read each file below before any action.
 
 ## Notes
 
+**DEPRECATED (2026-07-05):** This preset is the original control group from the `directive_hotswap_harness_20260627` track. It lists all 172 directives indiscriminately. The curated replacement is `baseline.md` (57 BASELINE directives + 4 non-directive context files). Engagement presets (`audit.md`, `fix_tests.md`, etc.) inherit `baseline.md` and add targeted subsets. This file is RETAINED as the original control group for future A/B encoding experiments — do not delete. New agents should warm with `baseline.md` or an engagement preset, not this file.
+
 All v1 (verbatim lifts from current production docs; the initial harvest yielded 51,
 the 2026-07-02 Phase A expansion added 15 more (from docs/AGENTS.md,
 conductor/edit_workflow.md, docs/guide_testing.md, docs/guide_state_lifecycle.md)