diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index d19bbf2..fea3ab7 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -9,6 +9,16 @@
 ## [Unreleased]
 
 ### Fixed
+- **Rig bodies are now `top_level` (world-space)** — a character root that writes its
+  transform every physics frame (`CharacterBody3D.move_and_slide()`, nav-driven NPCs)
+  re-teleported every rig body to `parent_xform * local` each frame, silently discarding
+  that frame's physics integration. The visible result: the rig froze solid while the
+  character moved (no animation showing through, no visible hit reactions) and the
+  springs pumped clamp-level velocities into the locked bodies — which released all at
+  once the moment the root stopped moving (e.g. on death), as an explosive ragdoll.
+  Position springs already carry the rig along with the character (their targets move
+  with the skeleton), so parent transform inheritance was never load-bearing. Applies
+  to both runtime-built and baked (RigBaker) rigs.
 - **Hits no longer knock a PERSISTENT ragdoll back to RAGDOLL** — `apply_hit()` only
   guarded `State.RAGDOLL`, so a hit on a held-down body (a corpse, a knockdown) fell
   through to the stagger/ragdoll logic; the resulting RAGDOLL state's settle→recovery
diff --git a/addons/kickback/physics_rig_builder.gd b/addons/kickback/physics_rig_builder.gd
index cf7497e..9b6db7d 100644
--- a/addons/kickback/physics_rig_builder.gd
+++ b/addons/kickback/physics_rig_builder.gd
@@ -96,6 +96,11 @@ func _adopt_baked_rig() -> bool:
 		push_warning("PhysicsRigBuilder: Baked rig is missing %d bones (%s) — falling back to runtime generation" % [missing.size(), ", ".join(missing)])
 		return false
 
+	# Baked rigs predate (or may have been saved without) the world-space
+	# flag — enforce it on adopt, same rationale as _create_body.
+	for body: RigidBody3D in baked_bodies.values():
+		body.top_level = true
+
 	_bodies = baked_bodies
 	_rig_to_bone = baked_bones
 	return true
@@ -118,6 +123,16 @@ func _create_body(bone_def: BoneDefinition, bone_global: Transform3D) -> RigidBo
 	body.gravity_scale = _tuning.gravity_scale
 	body.angular_damp = _tuning.angular_damp
 	body.linear_damp = _tuning.linear_damp
+	# World-space, immune to ancestor transform writes. Without this, a
+	# character root that moves every physics frame (CharacterBody3D
+	# move_and_slide, nav-driven NPCs) re-teleports each body to
+	# parent_xform * local every frame, silently discarding that frame's
+	# integration: the rig visibly freezes while springs pump clamp-level
+	# velocities into it — which then release all at once the moment the
+	# root stops (death), as an explosive ragdoll. The springs are what
+	# carry the rig along with the character (their targets already move
+	# with the skeleton); parent inheritance was never load-bearing.
+	body.top_level = true
 
 	# Shape is offset locally along the bone direction (toward child bone)
 	var col_shape := SkeletonDetector.create_collision_shape(bone_def)
diff --git a/test/test_runtime_rig.gd b/test/test_runtime_rig.gd
index d1f6361..4e64902 100644
--- a/test/test_runtime_rig.gd
+++ b/test/test_runtime_rig.gd
@@ -99,6 +99,38 @@ func test_springs_hold_pose_against_gravity():
 		"hips stay upright — springs track the animation orientation")
 
 
+func test_rig_survives_moving_character_root():
+	# Regression: a character root that writes its transform every physics
+	# frame (CharacterBody3D.move_and_slide, nav-driven NPCs) used to
+	# re-teleport every rig body to parent_xform * local each frame,
+	# silently discarding that frame's integration — the rig froze solid
+	# while springs pumped clamp-level velocities into it, which released
+	# as an explosive ragdoll the moment the root stopped (e.g. on death).
+	# Bodies are top_level now, so ancestor writes must not touch them.
+	var h = await _spawn()
+	var leg: RigidBody3D = h.get_body("UpperLeg_L")
+	assert_true(leg.top_level, "rig bodies are top_level (world-space)")
+
+	# Drive the root like a nav NPC (one transform write per physics frame)
+	# while commanding a constant angular velocity, as the spring does. The
+	# body must actually integrate it: pre-fix this measures ~0.000 rad.
+	var travelled := 0.0
+	var prev := leg.global_basis.get_rotation_quaternion()
+	for i in 30:
+		h.global_position.x += 0.002
+		leg.angular_velocity = Vector3(0, 0, 4.0)
+		await wait_physics_frames(1)
+		var q := leg.global_basis.get_rotation_quaternion()
+		travelled += q.angle_to(prev)
+		prev = q
+	# The active spring immediately lerps the commanded velocity back toward
+	# its own (near-zero-error) target, so only a fraction of it integrates —
+	# ~0.17 rad measured. The regression pins ~0.000 rad exactly, so any
+	# clearly-nonzero travel discriminates.
+	assert_gt(travelled, 0.05,
+		"body orientation integrates while the root moves every frame")
+
+
 # ── Hit handling (apply_hit) ────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 func test_apply_hit_reduces_bone_strength():