diff --git a/cmd/sic/buildchain_test.go b/cmd/sic/buildchain_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6781afc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/sic/buildchain_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+// WP3: buildChain folds wrapHop over the resolved per-hop verbs (verbs[0] outermost) around the
+// innermost v2Frame(cmd, payload). Relational: each want is built from the real v2Frame/wrapHop,
+// so this pins the composition and fold ORDER, not a re-derived byte layout.
+func TestBuildChain(t *testing.T) {
+	cmd := []byte("cat")
+	payload := []byte("hi")
+	cases := []struct {
+		name  string
+		verbs []string
+		want  []byte
+	}{
+		{"zero hops nil = single v2 frame", nil, v2Frame(cmd, payload)},
+		{"zero hops empty slice", []string{}, v2Frame(cmd, payload)},
+		{"one hop", []string{"incus exec c --"},
+			wrapHop("incus exec c --", v2Frame(cmd, payload))},
+		{"two hops, verbs[0] is the OUTERMOST layer", []string{"incus exec c --", "docker exec d"},
+			wrapHop("incus exec c --", wrapHop("docker exec d", v2Frame(cmd, payload)))},
+	}
+	for _, tc := range cases {
+		if got := buildChain(tc.verbs, cmd, payload); !bytes.Equal(got, tc.want) {
+			t.Fatalf("%s:\n got  % x\n want % x", tc.name, got, tc.want)
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/sic/frame.go b/cmd/sic/frame.go
index 4973134..41df077 100644
--- a/cmd/sic/frame.go
+++ b/cmd/sic/frame.go
@@ -33,3 +33,12 @@ func v2Frame(command []byte, payload []byte) []byte {
 func wrapHop(verb string, inner []byte) []byte {
 	return v2Frame([]byte(verb+" sicd"), inner)
 }
+
+// buildChain builds a chain of wrapped frames from verbs, with the innermost being v2Frame(cmd, payload).
+func buildChain(verbs []string, cmd []byte, payload []byte) []byte {
+	frame := v2Frame(cmd, payload)
+	for i := len(verbs) - 1; i >= 0; i-- {
+		frame = wrapHop(verbs[i], frame)
+	}
+	return frame
+}