diff --git a/docs/buzz-help.md b/docs/buzz-help.md
index 690d0767b6..1f85af9ae1 100644
--- a/docs/buzz-help.md
+++ b/docs/buzz-help.md
@@ -254,6 +254,9 @@ revokes all of them, and a pairing unused for 30 days expires.
   stopped reading, or at the latest message once you had caught up. You and
   the person asking may have different channel access. A link alone never
   grants access.
+- **Offline**: when Buzz can't reach a community, it shows the conversations
+  saved on this device. Once Buzz reconnects, you can load messages older than
+  those, and the top of the conversation says so.
 - **Finding channels**: search's **Channels** tab lists the community's open
   channels you can join, with their member counts; typing also matches channels
   you're in. Opening an unjoined channel shows a preview with **Join**. Private
diff --git a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.test.tsx b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.test.tsx
index c0b074a11d..6be063ff2d 100644
--- a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.test.tsx
+++ b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.test.tsx
@@ -129,6 +129,7 @@ function setup({
   status = "ready" as ChannelWindow["status"],
   blocked = undefined as boolean | undefined,
   session = undefined as RelaySession | undefined,
+  continuityKey = undefined as string | undefined,
   historyControl = "button" as "button" | "scroll",
   hasMore = false,
   loadingOlder = false,
@@ -264,7 +265,7 @@ function setup({
       olderReads();
     }
   });
-  const queries =
+  let queries =
     session ??
     ({
       channels: { loadOlder, window: snapshot },
@@ -304,6 +305,7 @@ function setup({
       historyControl,
       scope: "scope",
       queries,
+      continuityKey,
       window: session?.channels.window(channelId) ?? {
         channelId,
         status,
@@ -413,6 +415,21 @@ function setup({
       }>;
       return edge.props.children.some((child) => child?.type === Button);
     },
+    /** The edge's plain caption text, if any (not its alert or status). */
+    caption() {
+      const edge = section.props.children[0] as ReactElement<{
+        children: ReactElement<{ role?: string; children: unknown }>[];
+      }>;
+      return edge.props.children.find(
+        (child) => child?.type === "span" && !child.props.role,
+      )?.props.children;
+    },
+    /** Replaces the session, as reconnecting does under a stable continuityKey. */
+    swap(next: RelaySession) {
+      session = next;
+      queries = next;
+      render();
+    },
     retry() {
       const edge = section.props.children[0] as ReactElement<{
         children: ReactElement[];
@@ -1408,6 +1425,117 @@ it.each(["held head", "live handoff", "disconnected"])(
   },
 );
 
+it("offline top-edge input reads nothing, and the connected session pages once it verifies", async () => {
+  const relay = keypair(),
+    viewer = keypair();
+  const event = message(viewer, "channel", "saved", 20);
+  const head = [
+    event,
+    bounds(relay, "channel", "head", {
+      has_more: true,
+      next_cursor: { created_at: 20, id: event.id },
+    }),
+  ];
+  const saved = {
+    read: async () => [
+      { channelId: "channel", savedAt: Date.now(), events: head, profiles: [] },
+    ],
+    write: async () => {},
+    retain: async () => {},
+    remove: async () => {},
+    clear: async () => {},
+    close: () => {},
+  };
+  // Both sessions share one transport, so every older read is counted here.
+  const scripted = scriptedTransport(viewer.pubkey, relay.pubkey);
+  const older = () =>
+    scripted.pending.filter((read) => read.filters[0]?.until !== undefined);
+  const offline = createRelaySession(scripted.transport, {
+    prepared: true,
+    cachedOnly: true,
+    persistence: {
+      ...saved,
+      readStartup: async () => ({
+        discovery: {
+          savedAt: Date.now(),
+          relayAuthor: relay.pubkey,
+          events: [
+            roster(relay, "channel", [viewer.pubkey]),
+            metadata(relay, "channel", "Channel"),
+          ],
+        },
+      }),
+    },
+  });
+  let online: ReturnType<typeof createRelaySession> | undefined;
+  await offline.restore();
+  offline.session.channels.ensure("channel");
+  await vi.waitFor(() =>
+    expect(offline.session.channels.window("channel")).toMatchObject({
+      status: "ready",
+      freshness: "cached",
+      hasMore: true,
+    }),
+  );
+  const h = setup({
+    session: offline.session,
+    continuityKey: "relay:1",
+    historyControl: "scroll",
+    initial: { offset: 0, bottom: false },
+  });
+  h.element.scrollTop = 0;
+  try {
+    h.gesture();
+    h.render();
+    expect(h.caption()).toBe(
+      "You can load older messages once Buzz reconnects.",
+    );
+    await flush();
+    expect(older()).toHaveLength(0);
+    online = createRelaySession(
+      {
+        ...scripted.transport,
+        subscribe: () => ({ update() {}, retry() {}, dispose() {} }),
+      },
+      { prepared: true, persistence: saved },
+    );
+    const channels = online.session.channels;
+    channels.ensureList();
+    scripted
+      .next()
+      .respond([
+        roster(relay, "channel", [viewer.pubkey]),
+        metadata(relay, "channel", "Channel"),
+      ]);
+    await flush();
+    channels.ensure("channel");
+    await vi.waitFor(() =>
+      expect(channels.window("channel").freshness).toBe("cached"),
+    );
+    const held = scripted.next();
+    // A handoff to a cached head is not verification: the gesture waits.
+    h.swap(online.session);
+    expect(h.caption()).toBeUndefined();
+    expect(older()).toHaveLength(0);
+    held.respond(head);
+    await vi.waitFor(() =>
+      expect(channels.window("channel").freshness).toBe("verified"),
+    );
+    h.render();
+    await vi.waitFor(() => expect(older()).toHaveLength(1));
+    expect(older()[0]?.filters[0]).toMatchObject({
+      until: 20,
+      before_id: event.id,
+    });
+    h.render();
+    expect(older()).toHaveLength(1);
+  } finally {
+    h.unmount();
+    offline.dispose();
+    online?.dispose();
+  }
+});
+
 it("cached rerenders do not reissue a blocked attempt", () => {
   const h = setup({ hasMore: true, freshness: "cached" });
   h.element.scrollTop = 0;
diff --git a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.tsx b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.tsx
index b3f99a71d5..4b2689b4b0 100644
--- a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.tsx
+++ b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.tsx
@@ -1807,6 +1807,8 @@ function Timeline({
         {window.error && <span role="alert">{window.error}</span>}
         {window.historyLimited ? (
           <span>History window limit reached</span>
+        ) : window.hasMore && queries.channels.cachedOnly ? (
+          <span>You can load older messages once Buzz reconnects.</span>
         ) : window.hasMore && (historyControl === "button" || window.error) ? (
           <Button
             type="button"
diff --git a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.viewport.test.tsx b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.viewport.test.tsx
index 8952f37a27..d90614bb24 100644
--- a/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.viewport.test.tsx
+++ b/src/features/messages/ChannelTimeline.viewport.test.tsx
@@ -848,6 +848,81 @@ it("hides the owner's starting agents only in a complete personal chat", () => {
   }
 });
 
+it("offline, says older messages can be loaded once Buzz reconnects instead of offering an inert Load older", () => {
+  vi.spyOn(HTMLElement.prototype, "clientWidth", "get").mockReturnValue(800);
+  vi.spyOn(HTMLElement.prototype, "clientHeight", "get").mockReturnValue(600);
+  vi.stubGlobal(
+    "ResizeObserver",
+    class {
+      observe() {}
+      disconnect() {}
+    },
+  );
+  const viewer = keypair(),
+    relay = keypair();
+  // The relay service's saved-conversations session and the connected
+  // session that replaces it share one identity and scope.
+  const transport = {
+    viewer: viewer.pubkey,
+    relayAuthor: relay.pubkey,
+    media: () => undefined,
+    query: async () => [],
+  };
+  const offline = createRelaySession(transport, { cachedOnly: true });
+  const online = createRelaySession(transport);
+  // One saved page of a longer history.
+  const window: ChannelWindow = {
+    channelId: "alpha",
+    rows: foldMessages("alpha", relay.pubkey, [
+      message(viewer, "alpha", "Saved message", 100),
+    ]),
+    status: "ready",
+    hasMore: true,
+    loadingOlder: false,
+    freshness: "cached",
+    error: undefined,
+  };
+  const timeline = (
+    owner: typeof offline,
+    historyControl: "button" | "scroll" = "button",
+  ) => (
+    <ChannelTimeline
+      channelId="alpha"
+      scope="offline-history"
+      continuityKey="relay:1"
+      queries={owner.session}
+      window={window}
+      historyControl={historyControl}
+      onOpenLink={() => false}
+    />
+  );
+  const waiting = "You can load older messages once Buzz reconnects.";
+  try {
+    const view = render(timeline(offline));
+    expect(screen.getByText(waiting)).toBeVisible();
+    expect(screen.queryByRole("button", { name: /older messages/ })).toBeNull();
+    // Solo chats page on scroll, which reads nothing offline either.
+    view.rerender(timeline(offline, "scroll"));
+    expect(screen.getByText(waiting)).toBeVisible();
+    // The connected session replaces it without remounting the timeline.
+    const history = screen.getByRole("region", {
+      name: "Channel message history",
+    });
+    view.rerender(timeline(online));
+    expect(
+      screen.getByRole("region", { name: "Channel message history" }),
+    ).toBe(history);
+    expect(
+      screen.getByRole("button", { name: "Load older messages" }),
+    ).toBeEnabled();
+    expect(screen.queryByText(waiting)).toBeNull();
+    view.unmount();
+  } finally {
+    offline.dispose();
+    online.dispose();
+  }
+});
+
 it.each([0, 600])(
   "prepend compensation requires a measured virtualizer viewport (%s)",
   (size) => {
diff --git a/src/features/relay/contracts.ts b/src/features/relay/contracts.ts
index b702cc5a6e..433e8833df 100644
--- a/src/features/relay/contracts.ts
+++ b/src/features/relay/contracts.ts
@@ -331,6 +331,10 @@ export interface ChannelQueries {
    * withheld answers) and when it ends. Absent when no lookup can run, as in
    * a cached-only store. */
   refer?(channelId: string): () => void;
+  /** A cached-only store: saved conversations while Buzz can't reach the
+   * relay. It reads nothing, so `loadOlder` adds no rows, until a connected
+   * session replaces it. */
+  readonly cachedOnly?: true;
   /** Exact re-read of one already-listed channel's roster, merged into the
    * ready list. `resolve` admits channels the list lacks; this confirms a
    * membership change on one it already carries, without a full rediscovery.
diff --git a/src/features/relay/store.ts b/src/features/relay/store.ts
index 1124d58bf1..104203c5e7 100644
--- a/src/features/relay/store.ts
+++ b/src/features/relay/store.ts
@@ -3314,8 +3314,10 @@ export function createChannelStore(
     subscribeDirectory: (listener: Listener) =>
       subscribe(directoryListeners, listener),
     describe: describeReference,
-    // A cached-only store never looks a reference up, so it offers no lookup.
-    ...(options.cachedOnly ? {} : { refer: referChannel }),
+    // A cached-only store reads nothing: it says so, and offers no lookup.
+    ...(options.cachedOnly
+      ? { cachedOnly: true as const }
+      : { refer: referChannel }),
     refreshRoster,
     subscribeList: (listener: Listener) => subscribe(listListeners, listener),
     window: (channelId: string) =>