diff --git a/src/main.zig b/src/main.zig
index 6241128..081efc5 100644
--- a/src/main.zig
+++ b/src/main.zig
@@ -235,6 +235,11 @@ fn runLocalEditor(
         return;
     }
 
+    client.enterInsertMode();
+
+    var raw_terminal = try RawTerminal.enable(stdin_file.handle);
+    defer raw_terminal.restore();
+
     var stdin_buffer: [4096]u8 = undefined;
     var stdin_reader = stdin_file.readerStreaming(io, &stdin_buffer);
     const stdin = &stdin_reader.interface;
@@ -298,6 +303,35 @@ fn persistLocalSave(
     last_client_saved.* = client_copy;
 }
 
+const RawTerminal = struct {
+    fd: std.posix.fd_t,
+    original: std.posix.termios,
+
+    fn enable(fd: std.posix.fd_t) !RawTerminal {
+        const original = try std.posix.tcgetattr(fd);
+        var raw = original;
+        raw.iflag.BRKINT = false;
+        raw.iflag.ICRNL = false;
+        raw.iflag.INPCK = false;
+        raw.iflag.ISTRIP = false;
+        raw.iflag.IXON = false;
+        raw.oflag.OPOST = false;
+        raw.cflag.CSIZE = .CS8;
+        raw.lflag.ECHO = false;
+        raw.lflag.ICANON = false;
+        raw.lflag.IEXTEN = false;
+        raw.lflag.ISIG = false;
+        raw.cc[@intFromEnum(std.posix.V.MIN)] = 1;
+        raw.cc[@intFromEnum(std.posix.V.TIME)] = 0;
+        try std.posix.tcsetattr(fd, .FLUSH, raw);
+        return .{ .fd = fd, .original = original };
+    }
+
+    fn restore(self: *RawTerminal) void {
+        std.posix.tcsetattr(self.fd, .FLUSH, self.original) catch {};
+    }
+};
+
 fn readEditorInputAlloc(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, stdin: *std.Io.Reader) !?[]u8 {
     const first = stdin.takeByte() catch |err| switch (err) {
         error.EndOfStream => return null,
@@ -337,7 +371,7 @@ fn renderLocalFrame(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, io: std.Io, stdout: std.Io.Fil
     try stdout.writeStreamingAll(io, if (is_dir)
         "\nDirectory browser. Space opens commands; o/Enter opens panel items where available; q quits when clean.\n"
     else
-        "\nEditor. Type to insert; arrows move; Space shows commands; Space w saves; Space q quits when clean.\n");
+        "\nEditor starts in insert mode. Esc or Space n enters normal mode; Space commands work in normal mode; Space w saves; Space q quits when clean.\n");
 }
 
 fn printLocalContext(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, io: std.Io, args: *std.process.Args.Iterator, stdout: std.Io.File) !void {
@@ -514,12 +548,15 @@ test "regular: local editor client exposes save and dirty quit guards" {
     try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("hello", edited);
 
     try client.handleInput(" ");
-    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("insert_space", client.pendingRailName());
-    try client.handleInput("n");
+    try client.handleInput("x");
+    const with_space = try client.snapshotBytesAlloc(std.testing.allocator);
+    defer std.testing.allocator.free(with_space);
+    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("hello x", with_space);
+    try client.handleTraceLine("key escape");
     try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("normal", client.modeName());
     try client.handleInput(" ");
     try client.handleInput("w");
-    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("hello", try client.saved());
+    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("hello x", try client.saved());
 
     try client.handleInput("i");
     try client.handleInput("!");
diff --git a/src/tui.zig b/src/tui.zig
index 9337dd1..c310322 100644
--- a/src/tui.zig
+++ b/src/tui.zig
@@ -319,23 +319,29 @@ pub const Client = struct {
         const max_body_lines = self.viewport.height - 1;
         const cursor_line = lineIndexAt(snap.bytes, snap.cursor_byte);
         const cursor_col = columnAt(snap.bytes, snap.cursor_byte);
+        const total_lines = countDocumentLines(snap.bytes);
+        const gutter_digits = @max(@as(usize, 2), decimalDigits(total_lines));
+        const gutter_width = @min(self.viewport.width, gutter_digits + 2);
+        const content_width = if (self.viewport.width > gutter_width) self.viewport.width - gutter_width else 0;
         var visible_line_index: usize = 0;
         var body_lines_used: usize = 0;
         var line_iter = std.mem.splitScalar(u8, snap.bytes, '\n');
         while (line_iter.next()) |line| : (visible_line_index += 1) {
             if (body_lines_used >= max_body_lines) break;
-            try appendVisibleCells(allocator, &out, line, self.viewport.width);
-            try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+            try appendEditorLine(
+                allocator,
+                &out,
+                line,
+                visible_line_index + 1,
+                gutter_digits,
+                content_width,
+                visible_line_index == cursor_line,
+                cursor_col,
+            );
             body_lines_used += 1;
-
-            if (visible_line_index == cursor_line and body_lines_used < max_body_lines) {
-                try appendCursorLine(allocator, &out, @min(cursor_col, self.viewport.width - 1), self.viewport.width);
-                body_lines_used += 1;
-            }
         }
         while (body_lines_used < max_body_lines) : (body_lines_used += 1) {
-            try out.append(allocator, '~');
-            try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+            try appendVirtualLine(allocator, &out, gutter_digits, content_width);
         }
 
         const leader_status = self.leader.status();
@@ -360,7 +366,7 @@ pub const Client = struct {
                 .{ @tagName(self.effectiveMode()), cursor_line + 1, cursor_col + 1, snap.bytes.len, if (self.quit) " quit" else "" },
             );
         defer allocator.free(status);
-        try appendVisibleCells(allocator, &out, status, self.viewport.width);
+        try appendStatusLine(allocator, &out, status, self.viewport.width);
         return out.toOwnedSlice(allocator);
     }
 
@@ -445,6 +451,11 @@ pub const Client = struct {
         return @tagName(self.effectiveMode());
     }
 
+    pub fn enterInsertMode(self: *Client) void {
+        self.mode = .insert;
+        self.message = "insert";
+    }
+
     pub fn pendingRailName(self: *const Client) []const u8 {
         return @tagName(self.prefix);
     }
@@ -2086,9 +2097,14 @@ pub const Client = struct {
     }
 
     fn insertText(self: *Client, text: []const u8) !void {
-        const line = try std.fmt.allocPrint(self.allocator, "insert {s}", .{text});
-        defer self.allocator.free(line);
-        try self.applyMutatingProtocolCommand(line);
+        try self.recordUndo();
+        self.clearRedo();
+        self.session.dispatch(.{ .insert = text }) catch |err| {
+            self.dropLastUndoSnapshot();
+            return err;
+        };
+        self.noteDocumentChanged();
+        self.message = null;
     }
 
     fn applyMutatingProtocolCommand(self: *Client, line: []const u8) !void {
@@ -2295,6 +2311,97 @@ pub const Client = struct {
     }
 };
 
+const ansi_reset = "\x1b[0m";
+const ansi_gutter = "\x1b[38;2;88;96;112m";
+const ansi_virtual = "\x1b[38;2;64;70;86m";
+const ansi_text = "\x1b[38;2;214;222;235m";
+const ansi_current_line = "\x1b[48;2;26;31;43m";
+const ansi_cursor = "\x1b[38;2;18;22;30;48;2;245;197;92m";
+const ansi_status = "\x1b[38;2;18;22;30;48;2;126;231;135m";
+
+fn appendEditorLine(
+    allocator: std.mem.Allocator,
+    out: *std.ArrayList(u8),
+    line: []const u8,
+    line_no: usize,
+    gutter_digits: usize,
+    content_width: usize,
+    is_cursor_line: bool,
+    cursor_col: usize,
+) !void {
+    try appendLineNumber(allocator, out, line_no, gutter_digits);
+    if (content_width == 0) {
+        try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+        return;
+    }
+    if (is_cursor_line) try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_current_line);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_text);
+    try appendEditorCells(allocator, out, line, content_width, is_cursor_line, cursor_col);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_reset);
+    try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+}
+
+fn appendLineNumber(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), line_no: usize, gutter_digits: usize) !void {
+    const text = try std.fmt.allocPrint(allocator, "{d}", .{line_no});
+    defer allocator.free(text);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_gutter);
+    var pad: usize = text.len;
+    while (pad < gutter_digits) : (pad += 1) try out.append(allocator, ' ');
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, text);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, "│");
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_reset);
+    try out.append(allocator, ' ');
+}
+
+fn appendVirtualLine(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), gutter_digits: usize, content_width: usize) !void {
+    _ = content_width;
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_gutter);
+    var pad: usize = 0;
+    while (pad < gutter_digits) : (pad += 1) try out.append(allocator, ' ');
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, "│");
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_virtual);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, " ·");
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_reset);
+    try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+}
+
+fn appendEditorCells(
+    allocator: std.mem.Allocator,
+    out: *std.ArrayList(u8),
+    bytes: []const u8,
+    max_cells: usize,
+    is_cursor_line: bool,
+    cursor_col: usize,
+) !void {
+    _ = cursor_col;
+    var remaining = max_cells;
+    if (is_cursor_line and remaining > 0) {
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_cursor);
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, "▌");
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_reset);
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_current_line);
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_text);
+        remaining -= 1;
+    }
+    var i: usize = 0;
+    var col: usize = 0;
+    while (i < bytes.len and col < remaining) {
+        const len = std.unicode.utf8ByteSequenceLength(bytes[i]) catch 1;
+        const end = @min(bytes.len, i + len);
+        const width = @max(@as(usize, 1), session_mod.cellWidth(bytes[i..end]));
+        if (col + width > remaining) break;
+        try out.appendSlice(allocator, bytes[i..end]);
+        col += width;
+        i = end;
+    }
+}
+
+fn appendStatusLine(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), status: []const u8, width: usize) !void {
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_status);
+    try appendVisibleCells(allocator, out, status, width);
+    try out.appendSlice(allocator, ansi_reset);
+}
+
 fn appendVisibleCells(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), bytes: []const u8, max_cells: usize) !void {
     var i: usize = 0;
     while (i < bytes.len) {
@@ -2307,11 +2414,37 @@ fn appendVisibleCells(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), byt
     }
 }
 
-fn appendCursorLine(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, out: *std.ArrayList(u8), cursor_col: usize, max_cells: usize) !void {
+fn countDocumentLines(bytes: []const u8) usize {
+    var lines: usize = 1;
+    for (bytes) |byte| {
+        if (byte == '\n') lines += 1;
+    }
+    return lines;
+}
+
+fn decimalDigits(value: usize) usize {
+    var digits: usize = 1;
+    var n = value;
+    while (n >= 10) : (digits += 1) n /= 10;
+    return digits;
+}
+
+fn visibleCellWidth(bytes: []const u8) usize {
     var i: usize = 0;
-    while (i < cursor_col and i + 1 < max_cells) : (i += 1) try out.append(allocator, ' ');
-    try out.append(allocator, '^');
-    try out.append(allocator, '\n');
+    var cells: usize = 0;
+    while (i < bytes.len) {
+        if (bytes[i] == 0x1b and i + 1 < bytes.len and bytes[i + 1] == '[') {
+            i += 2;
+            while (i < bytes.len and bytes[i] != 'm') : (i += 1) {}
+            if (i < bytes.len) i += 1;
+            continue;
+        }
+        const len = std.unicode.utf8ByteSequenceLength(bytes[i]) catch 1;
+        const end = @min(bytes.len, i + len);
+        cells += session_mod.cellWidth(bytes[i..end]);
+        i = end;
+    }
+    return cells;
 }
 
 fn lineIndexAt(bytes: []const u8, cursor_byte: usize) usize {
@@ -2340,7 +2473,7 @@ fn diagnoseFrame(viewport: Viewport, frame: []const u8) RenderDiagnostics {
     var lines = std.mem.splitScalar(u8, frame, '\n');
     while (lines.next()) |line| {
         diagnostics.frame_lines += 1;
-        diagnostics.max_line_cells = @max(diagnostics.max_line_cells, session_mod.cellWidth(line));
+        diagnostics.max_line_cells = @max(diagnostics.max_line_cells, visibleCellWidth(line));
     }
     return diagnostics;
 }
@@ -2377,7 +2510,7 @@ fn renderWarningAlloc(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, diagnostics: RenderDiagnosti
 fn assertLinesFit(frame: []const u8, width: usize) !void {
     var lines = std.mem.splitScalar(u8, frame, '\n');
     while (lines.next()) |line| {
-        try std.testing.expect(session_mod.cellWidth(line) <= width);
+        try std.testing.expect(visibleCellWidth(line) <= width);
     }
 }
 
@@ -4712,3 +4845,59 @@ test "adversarial: unknown physical key names stay rejected and leader help stay
     defer std.testing.allocator.free(frame);
     try assertLinesFit(frame, 72);
 }
+
+test "regular: editor render has colorscheme gutter cursor and status chrome" {
+    var client = try Client.init(std.testing.allocator, .{ .width = 40, .height = 6 });
+    defer client.deinit();
+    try client.handleTraceLine("open alpha\nbeta");
+    const frame = try client.render(std.testing.allocator);
+    defer std.testing.allocator.free(frame);
+
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, "\x1b[38;2;") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, " 1│") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, " 2│") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, "▌") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, "\x1b[38;2;18;22;30;48;2;126;231;135m") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, "^\n") == null);
+    try assertLinesFit(frame, 40);
+}
+
+test "regular: empty editor still shows first line gutter and cursor marker" {
+    var client = try Client.init(std.testing.allocator, .{ .width = 24, .height = 5 });
+    defer client.deinit();
+    const frame = try client.render(std.testing.allocator);
+    defer std.testing.allocator.free(frame);
+
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, " 1│") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, "▌") != null);
+    try std.testing.expect(std.mem.indexOf(u8, frame, " ·") != null);
+    try assertLinesFit(frame, 24);
+}
+
+test "regular: local launcher insert mode lets ordinary text with spaces insert" {
+    var client = try Client.init(std.testing.allocator, .{ .width = 48, .height = 6 });
+    defer client.deinit();
+    try client.handleTraceLine("open ");
+    client.enterInsertMode();
+    for ("what is up") |byte| {
+        const key_bytes = [_]u8{byte};
+        try client.handleInput(&key_bytes);
+    }
+    const snap = try client.session.snapshot();
+    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("what is up", snap.bytes);
+}
+
+test "regular: normal mode Space leader still works after insert escape" {
+    var client = try Client.init(std.testing.allocator, .{ .width = 48, .height = 6 });
+    defer client.deinit();
+    try client.handleTraceLine("open ");
+    client.enterInsertMode();
+    for ("abc") |byte| {
+        const key_bytes = [_]u8{byte};
+        try client.handleInput(&key_bytes);
+    }
+    try client.handleTraceLine("key escape");
+    try client.handleInput(" ");
+    try client.handleInput("w");
+    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("abc", try client.saved());
+}