diff --git a/docs/swarm/ui.md b/docs/swarm/ui.md
index 270bb054..3aa7d3b9 100644
--- a/docs/swarm/ui.md
+++ b/docs/swarm/ui.md
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ shut. A dropdown inside a dialog opens above the dialog and the dialog doesn't c
 
 | route                                          | what                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         |
 | ---------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
-| `/`                                            | the start page: the swarm's name over a digital-rain backdrop, plus a paperclip offering to set up an agent while no `ruth` exists (it opens the create form with `ruth` filled in); the swarm name in the header links here                                                                                                                                                 |
+| `/`                                            | the start page: the swarm's name over a digital-rain backdrop, plus a paperclip offering to set up an agent while no `ruth` exists, or her hive declares her destroyed (it opens the create form with `ruth` filled in); the swarm name in the header links here                                                                                                             |
 | `/agents`                                      | every agent, under a folded **hives** card with the hive directory and each hive's last reported status: status, config PR, wanted state, inference settings, resource caps, permissions; create agents (with their permissions, optionally from an [archetype](archetypes.md)), link forge, matrix and GitHub accounts                                                      |
 | `/agents/<name>/terminal`                      | one agent's live terminal                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
 | `/agents/<name>/subagents/<subagent>/terminal` | one of that agent's subagents' live terminal                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |
diff --git a/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/src/shell/ruth-missing.ts b/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/src/shell/ruth-missing.ts
index b09ba5aa..c5c84a60 100644
--- a/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/src/shell/ruth-missing.ts
+++ b/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/src/shell/ruth-missing.ts
@@ -1,8 +1,10 @@
 // Whether the swarm has no agent named `ruth`, from `GET /api/agents/status`.
-// The start page's setup assistant shows only then. It is a nudge, so
-// anything short of a clear "ruth is not in the roster" answers `false`: a
-// failed request or an unreadable list must not tell the operator to set
-// up an agent that may already exist.
+// The start page's setup assistant shows only then: when the roster has no
+// `ruth`, or has one its hive declares `destroyed` (the declaration stays in
+// the roster for good, though the agent is gone). Offline and paused still
+// count as an agent. It is a nudge, so anything short of a clear answer
+// is `false`: a failed request or an unreadable list must not tell the
+// operator to set up an agent that may already exist.
 
 type Fetch = (url: string) => Promise<{
   ok: boolean;
@@ -15,7 +17,10 @@ export async function ruthIsMissing(fetchImpl: Fetch): Promise<boolean> {
     if (!r.ok) return false;
     const rows = await r.json();
     if (!Array.isArray(rows)) return false;
-    return !rows.some((row) => (row as { name?: unknown }).name === "ruth");
+    return !rows.some((row) => {
+      const { name, wanted } = row as { name?: unknown; wanted?: unknown };
+      return name === "ruth" && wanted !== "destroyed";
+    });
   } catch {
     return false;
   }
diff --git a/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/test/ruth-missing.test.mjs b/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/test/ruth-missing.test.mjs
index 0af86895..d8edd77a 100644
--- a/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/test/ruth-missing.test.mjs
+++ b/frontend/packages/swarm-ui/test/ruth-missing.test.mjs
@@ -33,6 +33,20 @@ test("a roster with ruth means she is not missing", async () => {
   );
 });
 
+test("a ruth declared destroyed is missing; a stopped or paused one is not", async () => {
+  assert.equal(
+    await ruthIsMissing(answering([{ name: "ruth", wanted: "destroyed" }])),
+    true,
+  );
+  for (const wanted of ["up", "offline", "paused", null, undefined]) {
+    assert.equal(
+      await ruthIsMissing(answering([{ name: "ruth", wanted }])),
+      false,
+      String(wanted),
+    );
+  }
+});
+
 test("anything but a clear answer is not missing", async () => {
   assert.equal(await ruthIsMissing(answering([], false)), false);
   assert.equal(await ruthIsMissing(answering({ not: "a list" })), false);