diff --git a/.github/workflows/pr-title.yml b/.github/workflows/pr-title.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..de859af
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/pr-title.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+name: PR Title
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+    types: [opened, edited, synchronize, reopened]
+
+permissions:
+  pull-requests: read
+
+jobs:
+  check:
+    name: Validate Conventional Commit Title
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: amannn/action-semantic-pull-request@v5
+        env:
+          GITHUB_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+        with:
+          types: |
+            feat
+            fix
+            chore
+            docs
+            style
+            refactor
+            test
+            ci
+            perf
+            revert
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b841e6d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+name: Release
+
+on:
+  push:
+    tags: ["v*"]
+
+permissions:
+  contents: write
+
+jobs:
+  release:
+    name: Create Release
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - uses: actions/setup-go@v5
+        with:
+          go-version: "1.24"
+
+      - name: Install golangci-lint
+        uses: golangci/golangci-lint-action@v7
+        with:
+          version: v2.10
+          install-mode: binary
+          args: --help
+
+      - name: Run CI
+        run: make ci
+
+      - name: Setup Node.js
+        uses: actions/setup-node@v4
+        with:
+          node-version: "20"
+
+      - name: Generate changelog
+        run: |
+          npx conventional-changelog-cli -p conventionalcommits -r 1 -o RELEASE_NOTES.md
+
+      - name: Create GitHub Release
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+        run: |
+          gh release create ${{ github.ref_name }} \
+            --title "${{ github.ref_name }}" \
+            --notes-file RELEASE_NOTES.md
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 37a911f..01960f5 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -7,11 +7,16 @@ GO      := go
 GOFLAGS := -v
 TIMEOUT := 120s
 
+VERSION := $(shell git describe --tags --always --dirty 2>/dev/null || echo "dev")
+COMMIT  := $(shell git rev-parse --short HEAD 2>/dev/null || echo "none")
+DATE    := $(shell date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)
+LDFLAGS := -X main.version=$(VERSION) -X main.commit=$(COMMIT) -X main.date=$(DATE)
+
 .PHONY: build test lint vet fmt-check fmt ci clean
 
-## build: Compile the questcore binary
+## build: Compile the questcore binary with version info
 build:
-	$(GO) build $(GOFLAGS) -o $(BINARY) ./cmd/questcore
+	$(GO) build $(GOFLAGS) -ldflags "$(LDFLAGS)" -o $(BINARY) ./cmd/questcore
 
 ## test: Run all tests with race detection
 test:
diff --git a/cmd/questcore/main.go b/cmd/questcore/main.go
index 1ae91eb..514288d 100644
--- a/cmd/questcore/main.go
+++ b/cmd/questcore/main.go
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 // QuestCore is a deterministic, data-driven game engine for text adventures.
-// Usage: questcore [--plain] <game_directory>
+// Usage: questcore [--version] [--plain] <game_directory>
 package main
 
 import (
@@ -12,12 +12,22 @@ import (
 	"github.com/nathoo/questcore/tui"
 )
 
+// Set via -ldflags at build time.
+var (
+	version = "dev"
+	commit  = "none"
+	date    = "unknown"
+)
+
 func main() {
 	plain := false
 	var gameDir string
 
 	for _, arg := range os.Args[1:] {
 		switch arg {
+		case "--version":
+			fmt.Printf("questcore %s (commit %s, built %s)\n", version, commit, date)
+			return
 		case "--plain":
 			plain = true
 		default:
@@ -28,7 +38,7 @@ func main() {
 	}
 
 	if gameDir == "" {
-		fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "Usage: questcore [--plain] <game_directory>\n")
+		fmt.Fprintf(os.Stderr, "Usage: questcore [--version] [--plain] <game_directory>\n")
 		os.Exit(1)
 	}
 
diff --git a/docs/plans/release-pipeline.md b/docs/plans/release-pipeline.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..981f1be
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/plans/release-pipeline.md
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+# Release Pipeline Plan
+
+## Goal
+
+Automate versioning, changelog, and GitHub Releases from conventional commits.
+
+## How It Works
+
+1. PRs use conventional commit titles (`feat:`, `fix:`, `chore:`, etc.)
+2. Squash merge with "PR title + commit details" — the PR title becomes the
+   conventional commit message on main
+3. When ready to release, push a semver tag (`git tag v0.1.0 && git push --tags`)
+4. Release workflow runs `make ci`, then generates CHANGELOG via
+   conventional-changelog and creates a GitHub Release
+5. PR title format is enforced by the semantic-pull-request action
+
+## Files
+
+| File | Action |
+|------|--------|
+| `.github/workflows/release.yml` | Create — tag-triggered release workflow |
+| `.github/workflows/pr-title.yml` | Create — enforce conventional commit PR titles |
+| `cmd/questcore/main.go` | Update — version vars + `--version` flag |
+| `Makefile` | Update — ldflags in build target |
+| `package.json` | Create — conventional-changelog dependency |
+
+## Task List
+
+- [ ] Add version vars and `--version` flag to `cmd/questcore/main.go`
+- [ ] Update Makefile build target with ldflags
+- [ ] Create `.github/workflows/pr-title.yml` (semantic-pull-request)
+- [ ] Set up conventional-changelog
+- [ ] Create `.github/workflows/release.yml`
+- [ ] Verify `make ci` passes
+- [ ] Push branch, open PR
diff --git a/docs/TUI_PLAN.md b/docs/plans/tui-roadmap.md
similarity index 100%
rename from docs/TUI_PLAN.md
rename to docs/plans/tui-roadmap.md