diff --git a/index.html b/index.html
index 4ee96a0..9f5f9c3 100644
--- a/index.html
+++ b/index.html
@@ -355,7 +355,8 @@ if (location.hostname !== 'splatter-tennis.wuwi.one' && !window.Capacitor?.isNat
             grid-template-areas: "crest league" "crest level" "bar bar" "xp xp" "career career"; }
   /* THE CREST STANDS BESIDE THE LEAGUE (2026-08-31, Oliver: on its own row it pushed the text
      down), so the two things that say WHERE YOU ARE share a line instead of stacking. */
-  #cdBadge { grid-area: crest; width: 56px; image-rendering: pixelated; align-self: center; }
+  #cdBadge { grid-area: crest; width: 56px; image-rendering: pixelated; align-self: center;
+             filter: drop-shadow(0 2px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.5)); }
   #cdLeague { grid-area: league; align-self: end; font: 700 10px/1.5 Silkscreen, monospace;
               text-decoration: none; letter-spacing: 1.5px; }
   #cdLeague i { display: block; font-style: normal; font-size: 9px; opacity: 0.85; }
@@ -387,13 +388,15 @@ if (location.hostname !== 'splatter-tennis.wuwi.one' && !window.Capacitor?.isNat
   #cdBadges img { height: 46px; image-rendering: pixelated; }
   #cdBadges .badge u { font: 700 7px Silkscreen, monospace; color: var(--acid); letter-spacing: 0.5px;
                        text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; }
-  #cdBadges .badge.dark img { filter: grayscale(1) brightness(0.3); }
+  /* AN UNEARNED SLOT IS DEAD (2026-08-31): the grey sits on the CELL, not the image, so nothing
+     can animate over it — the breathing halo used to, because `filter` in a keyframe outranks a
+     static one, and a stale `img:not(.dark)` selector (from when the class hung on the image) was
+     handing that halo to every shield on the row, lit or not. That is why the dark slots glowed
+     in colour instead of standing grey and still. */
+  #cdBadges .badge.dark { filter: grayscale(1) brightness(0.38); }
   #cdBadges .badge.dark u { color: #3f4d45; }
-  #cdBadges img.dark { filter: grayscale(1) brightness(0.3); }
-  /* earned badges BREATHE — a subtle gold halo, CSS-only (the menu parks the game loop, CSS
-     animations do not care). The dark slots stay dead, which is the point of them. */
-  #cdBadges .badge:not(.dark) img, #cdBadges img:not(.dark), #cdBadge {
-    animation: badgeGlow 2.6s ease-in-out infinite; }
+  /* ...and the halo itself is GONE from this row (Oliver): the glints do that job now, and a
+     permanent breathing glow under an occasional flash was two effects saying the same thing. */
   @keyframes badgeGlow {
     0%, 100% { filter: drop-shadow(0 0 2px rgba(232, 178, 58, 0.25)); }
     50%      { filter: drop-shadow(0 0 7px rgba(232, 178, 58, 0.75)); } }
@@ -1077,6 +1080,6 @@ if (location.hostname !== 'splatter-tennis.wuwi.one' && !window.Capacitor?.isNat
     </div>
   </div>
 </div>
-<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=344"></script>
+<script type="module" src="src/main.js?v=345"></script>
 </body>
 </html>