diff --git a/crates/sylpheed-cli/src/main.rs b/crates/sylpheed-cli/src/main.rs
index c5635b03..a32193df 100644
--- a/crates/sylpheed-cli/src/main.rs
+++ b/crates/sylpheed-cli/src/main.rs
@@ -137,6 +137,12 @@ enum ScreenCommands {
         /// Which build (index into `screen list`); default = the largest
         #[arg(long)]
         build: Option<usize>,
+        /// Also print the bundle's other orderings and, per element, the decoded
+        /// sprite size beside the declared pivot and every keyframe's
+        /// scale/position/time — what a placement or paint-order hypothesis has
+        /// to be tested against.
+        #[arg(long)]
+        geometry: bool,
     },
     /// Composite one build to a PNG — the headless self-verify for the viewer
     Render {
@@ -301,7 +307,11 @@ async fn main() -> Result<()> {
         },
         Commands::Screen { cmd } => match cmd {
             ScreenCommands::List { pak } => cmd_screen_list(&pak),
-            ScreenCommands::Info { pak, build } => cmd_screen_info(&pak, build),
+            ScreenCommands::Info {
+                pak,
+                build,
+                geometry,
+            } => cmd_screen_info(&pak, build, geometry),
             ScreenCommands::Render {
                 pak,
                 output,
@@ -379,7 +389,7 @@ fn cmd_screen_list(pak: &Path) -> Result<()> {
     Ok(())
 }
 
-fn cmd_screen_info(pak: &Path, want: Option<usize>) -> Result<()> {
+fn cmd_screen_info(pak: &Path, want: Option<usize>, geometry: bool) -> Result<()> {
     use sylpheed_formats::ui_layout;
     let builds = screen_builds(pak)?;
     let idx = pick_build(&builds, want)?;
@@ -436,9 +446,82 @@ fn cmd_screen_info(pak: &Path, want: Option<usize>) -> Result<()> {
             println!("{:<3} {:<30} → focus {link}", "", "");
         }
     }
+    if geometry {
+        print_geometry(&b, bytes);
+    }
     Ok(())
 }
 
+/// The two other orderings the bundle carries, and each element's real drawn
+/// size. Both were needed to settle the title screen's paint order — see
+/// `docs/re/BACKLOG.md`.
+fn print_geometry(b: &sylpheed_formats::ui_layout::UiBuild, bytes: &[u8]) {
+    println!();
+    let identity: Vec<usize> = (0..b.placement_order.len()).collect();
+    println!(
+        "placement-region group order: {:?}{}",
+        b.placement_order,
+        if b.placement_order == identity {
+            "  (== declaration order)"
+        } else {
+            "  (DIFFERS from declaration order)"
+        }
+    );
+    if let Some(kids) = sylpheed_formats::ratc::parse(bytes) {
+        println!(
+            "RATC child order: {:?}",
+            kids.iter()
+                .map(|c| format!("{}:{}", c.kind, c.name))
+                .collect::<Vec<_>>()
+        );
+    }
+    println!();
+    println!("geometry — decoded sprite size vs the declared pivot, and every keyframe");
+    println!(
+        "{:<3} {:<26} {:>11} {:>11} {:>5}  keyframes  t: x,y sx%,sy% a=fade-alpha",
+        "#", "sprite", "decoded", "pivot*2", "same"
+    );
+    for el in &b.elements {
+        let dims = el
+            .sprite
+            .as_ref()
+            .and_then(|s| b.sprites.get(s))
+            .and_then(|&(off, size)| sylpheed_formats::t8ad::parse(&bytes[off..off + size]))
+            .map(|img| (img.width, img.height));
+        let pv = (el.pivot_x * 2, el.pivot_y * 2);
+        let same = match dims {
+            Some(d) if d == pv => "yes",
+            Some(_) => "NO",
+            None => "-",
+        };
+        let kfs = el
+            .keyframes
+            .iter()
+            .map(|f| {
+                format!(
+                    "{}: {},{} {}%,{}% a={}",
+                    f.time.map(|v| v.to_string()).unwrap_or_else(|| "-".into()),
+                    f.x,
+                    f.y,
+                    f.scale_x,
+                    f.scale_y,
+                    (f.fade >> 24) & 0xff
+                )
+            })
+            .collect::<Vec<_>>()
+            .join("  ");
+        println!(
+            "{:<3} {:<26} {:>11} {:>11} {:>5}  {kfs}",
+            el.index,
+            el.sprite.as_deref().unwrap_or("—"),
+            dims.map(|(w, h)| format!("{w}x{h}"))
+                .unwrap_or_else(|| "—".into()),
+            format!("{}x{}", pv.0, pv.1),
+            same,
+        );
+    }
+}
+
 fn cmd_screen_render(
     pak: &Path,
     output: &Path,
diff --git a/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/ui_layout.rs b/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/ui_layout.rs
index bad0918a..2fa859c4 100644
--- a/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/ui_layout.rs
+++ b/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/ui_layout.rs
@@ -169,6 +169,14 @@ pub struct UiBuild {
     /// by scanning `.rat` records instead — placements are then per-record and
     /// `.rat`-less elements are missing.
     pub from_fallback: bool,
+    /// Element indices in the order the placement region stores their keyframe
+    /// groups. Each group names its element explicitly, so this *could* be a
+    /// second, independent ordering — and therefore a candidate for the paint
+    /// order the title screen needs. It is not: it equals the declaration order
+    /// on every build on the disc. Kept, with
+    /// `placement_region_order_is_never_a_second_ordering` guarding it, so the
+    /// refutation stays checkable rather than remembered.
+    pub placement_order: Vec<usize>,
 }
 
 /// Whether `bundle` is a RATC screen build (has at least one `.rat` layout child).
@@ -254,8 +262,9 @@ fn parse_decls(bundle: &[u8]) -> Option<Vec<Element>> {
 
 /// Read the placement region that follows the declaration table, filling in each
 /// element's keyframe group.
-fn parse_placements(bundle: &[u8], elements: &mut [Element]) {
+fn parse_placements(bundle: &[u8], elements: &mut [Element]) -> Vec<usize> {
     let count = elements.len();
+    let mut order = Vec::with_capacity(count);
     let mut pos = DECL_TABLE_AT + count * DECL_ENTRY;
     for _ in 0..count {
         if pos + 8 > bundle.len() {
@@ -290,8 +299,10 @@ fn parse_placements(bundle: &[u8], elements: &mut [Element]) {
             });
         }
         elements[idx].keyframes = group;
+        order.push(idx);
         pos = group_end;
     }
+    order
 }
 
 /// Parse a build bundle into its elements and sprite table.
@@ -308,15 +319,19 @@ pub fn parse_build(bundle: &[u8]) -> Option<UiBuild> {
         }
     }
 
-    let (mut elements, from_fallback) = match parse_decls(bundle) {
+    let (mut elements, from_fallback, placement_order) = match parse_decls(bundle) {
         Some(mut els) => {
-            parse_placements(bundle, &mut els);
-            (els, false)
+            let order = parse_placements(bundle, &mut els);
+            (els, false, order)
         }
         // No usable declaration table: recover what the `.rat` records alone can
         // say. Elements without a record (eff*/deli*/msg) are then missing, so
         // callers are told via `from_fallback`.
-        None => (fallback_elements(bundle, &records), true),
+        None => {
+            let els = fallback_elements(bundle, &records);
+            let order = (0..els.len()).collect();
+            (els, true, order)
+        }
     };
 
     // Resolve each element to the sprite it draws, and pick up its focus link.
@@ -355,6 +370,7 @@ pub fn parse_build(bundle: &[u8]) -> Option<UiBuild> {
         sprites,
         context_hint,
         from_fallback,
+        placement_order,
     })
 }
 
diff --git a/crates/sylpheed-formats/tests/ui_paint_order_disc.rs b/crates/sylpheed-formats/tests/ui_paint_order_disc.rs
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f1014dcf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/sylpheed-formats/tests/ui_paint_order_disc.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,218 @@
+//! What orders a UI screen's elements, and where each one lands.
+//!
+//! The composite is checked against a **framebuffer capture of the running
+//! game** (`docs/re/captures/title-screen-oracle.png`), not against itself.
+//! Two things were settled that way on 2026-08-18, and this pins both:
+//!
+//! * a keyframe's scale grows the element **about its declared pivot**, so a
+//!   200 % background at (320,180) with pivot (320,180) is the full screen, not
+//!   a quarter-screen slab at 320..1600;
+//! * the placement region is **not** a second ordering of the elements — it
+//!   stores its keyframe groups in declaration order on every build on the
+//!   disc, so it cannot be the paint order the title screen needs.
+//!
+//! Skipped (as no-ops) when the extracted disc is absent.
+
+use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
+
+use sylpheed_formats::{
+    pak::PakArchive,
+    t8ad,
+    ui_layout::{self, ComposeOptions},
+};
+
+fn disc_root() -> Option<PathBuf> {
+    if let Ok(p) = std::env::var("SYLPHEED_DISC") {
+        let p = PathBuf::from(p);
+        if p.join("dat").is_dir() {
+            return Some(p);
+        }
+    }
+    let default = Path::new(
+        "/home/fabi/RE - Project Sylpheed/Project Sylpheed - Arc of Deception (USA, Europe) (En,Ja)",
+    );
+    if default.join("dat").is_dir() {
+        return Some(default.to_path_buf());
+    }
+    None
+}
+
+macro_rules! skip_without_disc {
+    ($root:ident) => {
+        let Some($root) = disc_root() else {
+            eprintln!("SKIP: extracted disc not found (set SYLPHEED_DISC to enable)");
+            return;
+        };
+    };
+}
+
+/// Every parseable screen build on the disc, as (pak name, bundle bytes).
+fn builds(root: &Path) -> Vec<(String, Vec<u8>)> {
+    let mut paks: Vec<PathBuf> = std::fs::read_dir(root.join("dat"))
+        .expect("dat/")
+        .flatten()
+        .map(|e| e.path())
+        .filter(|p| p.extension().and_then(|s| s.to_str()) == Some("pak"))
+        .collect();
+    paks.sort();
+    let mut out = Vec::new();
+    for p in &paks {
+        let name = p.file_name().unwrap().to_string_lossy().to_string();
+        let Ok(arc) = PakArchive::open(p) else {
+            continue;
+        };
+        for e in arc.entries() {
+            let Ok(bytes) = arc.read(e) else { continue };
+            if ui_layout::is_build(&bytes) {
+                out.push((name.clone(), bytes));
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    out
+}
+
+/// The builds of one pak, in the order `sylpheed-cli screen list` numbers them.
+fn pak_builds(root: &Path, pak: &str) -> Vec<Vec<u8>> {
+    let arc = PakArchive::open(root.join("dat").join(pak)).expect("open pak");
+    arc.entries()
+        .iter()
+        .filter_map(|e| arc.read(e).ok())
+        .filter(|b| ui_layout::is_build(b))
+        .collect()
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn placement_region_order_is_never_a_second_ordering() {
+    skip_without_disc!(root);
+    let all = builds(&root);
+    assert!(
+        all.len() > 500,
+        "expected the disc's screen builds, got {}",
+        all.len()
+    );
+    let mut checked = 0usize;
+    for (pak, bytes) in &all {
+        let Some(b) = ui_layout::parse_build(bytes) else {
+            continue;
+        };
+        if b.from_fallback {
+            continue; // the fallback path invents the order, so it proves nothing
+        }
+        checked += 1;
+        let identity: Vec<usize> = (0..b.placement_order.len()).collect();
+        assert_eq!(
+            b.placement_order, identity,
+            "{pak}: the placement region stores groups in a DIFFERENT order from \
+             the declaration table — that would be a candidate paint order and \
+             the note in docs/re/BACKLOG.md needs revisiting"
+        );
+    }
+    assert!(
+        checked > 500,
+        "only {checked} builds carried a declaration table"
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn title_background_is_full_screen() {
+    skip_without_disc!(root);
+    let bs = pak_builds(&root, "GP_TITLE.pak");
+    let bytes = &bs[7]; // the full title sequence: 30 elements, 24 sprites
+    let b = ui_layout::parse_build(bytes).expect("build 7 parses");
+    let base = b
+        .elements
+        .iter()
+        .find(|e| e.name == "ptbase2.t32")
+        .expect("the title background element");
+    assert_eq!((base.pivot_x, base.pivot_y), (320, 180));
+    let k = base.rest().expect("a resting keyframe");
+    assert_eq!((k.x, k.y, k.scale_x, k.scale_y), (320, 180, 200, 200));
+
+    // Draw that element and nothing else, on black. Anchored at the pivot it is
+    // exactly the 1280x720 screen; anchored at the keyframe corner it would
+    // leave the whole top-left quadrant untouched.
+    let mut visible = vec![false; b.elements.len()];
+    visible[base.index] = true;
+    let screen = ui_layout::compose(
+        &b,
+        bytes,
+        ComposeOptions {
+            backdrop: [0, 0, 0, 0],
+            ..Default::default()
+        },
+        Some(&visible),
+    );
+    assert_eq!(screen.drawn, vec![base.index]);
+    let uncovered = screen.rgba.chunks_exact(4).filter(|p| p[3] == 0).count();
+    assert_eq!(
+        uncovered,
+        0,
+        "{uncovered} of {} pixels are not covered by the background",
+        screen.width * screen.height
+    );
+}
+
+/// How much of the disc the pivot-anchored rule actually touches, and how much
+/// of it could tell "about the pivot" apart from "about the sprite centre".
+///
+/// Stated as numbers rather than left implicit: at 100 % the pivot cancels, so
+/// only a scaled element moves at all, and only a scaled element whose pivot is
+/// not half its decoded size distinguishes the two rules. The oracle settled
+/// `ptbase2`, whose pivot *is* half its size — so the centre reading is not
+/// excluded by measurement, only by the pivot field existing at all.
+#[test]
+fn scaled_elements_are_a_small_and_mostly_undiscriminating_minority() {
+    skip_without_disc!(root);
+    let (mut total, mut scaled, mut discriminating) = (0usize, 0usize, 0usize);
+    let (mut pivot_is_half, mut pivot_off_by_lots) = (0usize, 0usize);
+    for (_, bytes) in builds(&root) {
+        let Some(b) = ui_layout::parse_build(&bytes) else {
+            continue;
+        };
+        for el in &b.elements {
+            let Some(k) = el.rest() else { continue };
+            let Some(sprite) = el.sprite.as_ref() else {
+                continue;
+            };
+            let Some(&(off, size)) = b.sprites.get(sprite) else {
+                continue;
+            };
+            let Some(img) = t8ad::parse(&bytes[off..off + size]) else {
+                continue;
+            };
+            total += 1;
+            let dpx = (el.pivot_x as i64 * 2 - img.width as i64).abs();
+            let dpy = (el.pivot_y as i64 * 2 - img.height as i64).abs();
+            if dpx <= 1 && dpy <= 1 {
+                pivot_is_half += 1;
+            } else if dpx > 16 || dpy > 16 {
+                pivot_off_by_lots += 1;
+            }
+            let sx = if k.scale_x == 0 { 100 } else { k.scale_x };
+            let sy = if k.scale_y == 0 { 100 } else { k.scale_y };
+            if sx == 100 && sy == 100 {
+                continue;
+            }
+            scaled += 1;
+            // "About the pivot" and "about the centre" differ by
+            // (pivot - size/2) * (scale - 1); a pixel of disagreement needs
+            // both a real scale change and a pivot away from the centre.
+            let dx =
+                (el.pivot_x as i64 - img.width as i64 / 2).abs() * (sx as i64 - 100).abs() / 100;
+            let dy =
+                (el.pivot_y as i64 - img.height as i64 / 2).abs() * (sy as i64 - 100).abs() / 100;
+            if dx.max(dy) >= 2 {
+                discriminating += 1;
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    eprintln!("resting placements with a decoded sprite: {total}");
+    eprintln!("  pivot*2 == decoded size (+-1 px):        {pivot_is_half}");
+    eprintln!("  pivot*2 off by more than 16 px:          {pivot_off_by_lots}");
+    eprintln!("  of those, scaled != 100%: {scaled}");
+    eprintln!("  of those, pivot-vs-centre differ by >= 2 px: {discriminating}");
+    assert!(
+        total > 4000,
+        "expected thousands of placements, got {total}"
+    );
+}