diff --git a/ui/e2e/telegram.spec.ts b/ui/e2e/telegram.spec.ts
index 8a1188a..dbc3e00 100644
--- a/ui/e2e/telegram.spec.ts
+++ b/ui/e2e/telegram.spec.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,23 @@ test('Telegram launch auto-authenticates into the lobby and applies the theme',
     .toBe('#101418');
 });
 
+test('a Telegram launch fragment in the URL still lands on the lobby and normalises the hash', async ({
+  page,
+}) => {
+  await page.addInitScript((stub) => {
+    Object.assign(window, stub);
+  }, webAppStub());
+  // Telegram appends its launch params to the URL fragment on a cold launch; the router must
+  // not treat that as a route (it parsed as notfound, which re-keyed the pane and slid the
+  // lobby in as if returning from another screen).
+  await page.goto(
+    '/#tgWebAppData=query_id%3Dtest%26user%3D%257B%2522id%2522%253A1%257D&tgWebAppVersion=7.0&tgWebAppPlatform=ios',
+  );
+  await expect(page.getByText('Your turn')).toBeVisible();
+  // The lobby is the root: bootstrap normalised the launch-param fragment to '#/'.
+  await expect.poll(() => new URL(page.url()).hash).toBe('#/');
+});
+
 test('tg-fullscreen header keeps a constant native-nav gap as the font scales', async ({ page }) => {
   await page.goto('/');
   await page.getByRole('button', { name: /guest/i }).click();
diff --git a/ui/src/App.svelte b/ui/src/App.svelte
index 3917034..9e42fb6 100644
--- a/ui/src/App.svelte
+++ b/ui/src/App.svelte
@@ -32,9 +32,8 @@
 
   // Screen transitions: the lobby is the navigation root. Entering a screen from the
   // lobby slides it in from the right (forward); returning to the lobby slides the
-  // screen out to the right and reveals the lobby (back). The first pane shown after boot
-  // does not slide (the `started` gate below), and transitions collapse to nothing under
-  // reduce-motion.
+  // screen out to the right and reveals the lobby (back). Transitions are local, so
+  // they do not play on the initial mount, and collapse to nothing under reduce-motion.
   // Slide direction by route depth: going deeper (lobby → game → chat/check) slides forward,
   // returning to a shallower screen slides back. A plain "lobby is back" rule slid the chat/check
   // back-to-the-game the wrong way. dir is read with the previous depth (the effect updates it
@@ -53,15 +52,7 @@
   const enterSign = $derived(dir === 'forward' ? 1 : -1);
   const leaveSign = $derived(dir === 'forward' ? -1 : 1);
   const routeKey = $derived(router.route.name + (router.route.params.id ?? ''));
-  // The first pane shown once the app is ready must not slide: it would look like the app
-  // was navigated into rather than launched. The pane is a local transition inside a {#key}
-  // block, so it plays on that block's own first mount anyway — hold the duration at 0 until
-  // just after that mount (the effect runs post-render), then animate every later change.
-  let started = $state(false);
-  $effect(() => {
-    if (app.ready) started = true;
-  });
-  const animMs = $derived(!started || app.reduceMotion ? 0 : 260);
+  const animMs = $derived(app.reduceMotion ? 0 : 260);
 
   // slideX slides a pane horizontally by a full width. sign>0 enters from / exits to
   // the right; sign<0 the left. Percentage keeps it viewport-relative without reading
diff --git a/ui/src/lib/routeparse.test.ts b/ui/src/lib/routeparse.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..14f5383
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/src/lib/routeparse.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { parse } from './routeparse';
+
+describe('parse', () => {
+  it('maps the empty hash and the root to the lobby', () => {
+    expect(parse('').name).toBe('lobby');
+    expect(parse('#/').name).toBe('lobby');
+  });
+
+  it('maps known paths to their routes', () => {
+    expect(parse('#/login').name).toBe('login');
+    expect(parse('#/new').name).toBe('new');
+    expect(parse('#/settings').name).toBe('settings');
+    expect(parse('#/stats').name).toBe('stats');
+    expect(parse('#/game/abc')).toEqual({ name: 'game', params: { id: 'abc' } });
+    expect(parse('#/game/abc/chat')).toEqual({ name: 'gameChat', params: { id: 'abc' } });
+    expect(parse('#/game/abc/check')).toEqual({ name: 'gameCheck', params: { id: 'abc' } });
+  });
+
+  it('maps an unknown path and a game without an id to notfound', () => {
+    expect(parse('#/bogus').name).toBe('notfound');
+    expect(parse('#/game').name).toBe('notfound');
+  });
+
+  it('treats a Telegram launch fragment as the lobby root, not notfound', () => {
+    // Telegram appends its Mini App launch params to the URL fragment on a cold launch; they
+    // are launch metadata, not a route. Parsing them as notfound made bootstrap's navigate('/')
+    // re-key the route pane (notfound -> lobby) and slide the lobby in on launch.
+    expect(parse('#tgWebAppData=query_id%3Dx&tgWebAppVersion=7.0&tgWebAppPlatform=ios').name).toBe(
+      'lobby',
+    );
+    expect(parse('#tgWebAppStartParam=foo').name).toBe('lobby');
+  });
+});
diff --git a/ui/src/lib/routeparse.ts b/ui/src/lib/routeparse.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8e4146b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/src/lib/routeparse.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+// Pure hash-path -> Route parsing for the router. Kept dependency-free and free of any
+// reactive state so it unit-tests in the node environment; router.svelte.ts wraps it with
+// the reactive route rune and navigation.
+
+export type RouteName =
+  | 'login'
+  | 'lobby'
+  | 'new'
+  | 'game'
+  | 'gameChat'
+  | 'gameCheck'
+  | 'profile'
+  | 'settings'
+  | 'about'
+  | 'friends'
+  | 'stats'
+  | 'notfound';
+
+export interface Route {
+  name: RouteName;
+  params: Record<string, string>;
+}
+
+/**
+ * parse maps a location hash to a Route. An empty hash is the lobby root. A Telegram Mini
+ * App cold launch appends its launch params to the URL fragment (#tgWebAppData=...&
+ * tgWebAppVersion=...); those are launch metadata, not a route, so the fragment is treated
+ * as the lobby root. Otherwise it would parse as notfound, and bootstrap's navigate('/')
+ * would then re-key the route pane (notfound -> lobby), sliding the lobby in on launch as if
+ * returning from another screen.
+ */
+export function parse(hash: string): Route {
+  const raw = hash.replace(/^#/, '');
+  if (raw === '' || raw.startsWith('tgWebApp')) return { name: 'lobby', params: {} };
+  const path = raw.split('?')[0];
+  const seg = path.split('/').filter(Boolean);
+  if (seg.length === 0) return { name: 'lobby', params: {} };
+  switch (seg[0]) {
+    case 'login':
+      return { name: 'login', params: {} };
+    case 'new':
+      return { name: 'new', params: {} };
+    case 'game':
+      if (!seg[1]) return { name: 'notfound', params: {} };
+      if (seg[2] === 'chat') return { name: 'gameChat', params: { id: seg[1] } };
+      if (seg[2] === 'check') return { name: 'gameCheck', params: { id: seg[1] } };
+      return { name: 'game', params: { id: seg[1] } };
+    case 'profile':
+      return { name: 'profile', params: {} };
+    case 'settings':
+      return { name: 'settings', params: {} };
+    case 'about':
+      return { name: 'about', params: {} };
+    case 'friends':
+      return { name: 'friends', params: {} };
+    case 'stats':
+      return { name: 'stats', params: {} };
+    default:
+      return { name: 'notfound', params: {} };
+  }
+}
diff --git a/ui/src/lib/router.svelte.ts b/ui/src/lib/router.svelte.ts
index 2d90df4..3e62dde 100644
--- a/ui/src/lib/router.svelte.ts
+++ b/ui/src/lib/router.svelte.ts
@@ -1,54 +1,11 @@
 // Minimal dependency-free hash router. Hash routing survives a reload and works on
 // a file:// origin (Capacitor native packaging), where there is no server to honour
-// deep paths. The route is a reactive rune so screens re-render on navigation.
+// deep paths. The route is a reactive rune so screens re-render on navigation. The pure
+// hash->Route parsing lives in routeparse.ts (unit-tested without a DOM).
 
-export type RouteName =
-  | 'login'
-  | 'lobby'
-  | 'new'
-  | 'game'
-  | 'gameChat'
-  | 'gameCheck'
-  | 'profile'
-  | 'settings'
-  | 'about'
-  | 'friends'
-  | 'stats'
-  | 'notfound';
+import { parse, type Route, type RouteName } from './routeparse';
 
-export interface Route {
-  name: RouteName;
-  params: Record<string, string>;
-}
-
-function parse(hash: string): Route {
-  const path = (hash.replace(/^#/, '') || '/').split('?')[0];
-  const seg = path.split('/').filter(Boolean);
-  if (seg.length === 0) return { name: 'lobby', params: {} };
-  switch (seg[0]) {
-    case 'login':
-      return { name: 'login', params: {} };
-    case 'new':
-      return { name: 'new', params: {} };
-    case 'game':
-      if (!seg[1]) return { name: 'notfound', params: {} };
-      if (seg[2] === 'chat') return { name: 'gameChat', params: { id: seg[1] } };
-      if (seg[2] === 'check') return { name: 'gameCheck', params: { id: seg[1] } };
-      return { name: 'game', params: { id: seg[1] } };
-    case 'profile':
-      return { name: 'profile', params: {} };
-    case 'settings':
-      return { name: 'settings', params: {} };
-    case 'about':
-      return { name: 'about', params: {} };
-    case 'friends':
-      return { name: 'friends', params: {} };
-    case 'stats':
-      return { name: 'stats', params: {} };
-    default:
-      return { name: 'notfound', params: {} };
-  }
-}
+export type { Route, RouteName };
 
 export const router = $state<{ route: Route }>({
   route: parse(typeof location !== 'undefined' ? location.hash : ''),