modify some wording

Author: ijac13

docs/7-cicd/setup-cd.md

@@ -10,12 +10,16 @@ Automated continuous deployment (CD) for Recce Cloud base session updates. Ensur
 
 ## Purpose
 
-**Automated Base Session Management** → Eliminates manual baseline maintenance
+**Automated Base Session Management** eliminates manual baseline maintenance.
 
 - **Triggers**: PR merge to main + scheduled updates
 - **Action**: Auto-update base Recce session
 - **Benefit**: Current comparison baseline for future PRs
 
+## Prerequisites
+
+You need `manifest.json` and `catalog.json` files (dbt artifacts) for Recce Cloud. See [Start Free with Cloud](../2-getting-started/start-free-with-cloud.md) for instructions on preparing these files.
+
 ## Implementation
 
 ### 1. Core Workflow
@@ -77,15 +81,14 @@ jobs:
 
 **Default: Fresh Build** (shown in example above)
 
-- `dbt docs generate` → Required (provides all needed artifacts)
-- `dbt build` → Optional (ensures tables are materialized and updated)
+- `dbt docs generate` is required and provides the needed `manifest.json` and `catalog.json` artifacts.
+- `dbt build` is optional but ensures tables are materialized and updated.
 
 **Alternative Methods:**
 
 - **External Download**: Download from dbt Cloud, Paradime, or other platforms
 - **Pipeline Integration**: Use existing dbt build workflows
 
-**Key Requirement**: `manifest.json` and `catalog.json` available for Recce Cloud upload.
 
 ### 3. Verification
 
@@ -105,5 +108,4 @@ jobs:
 
 ## Next Steps
 
-- ✅ **CD Setup Complete** → Base sessions auto-update on merge + schedule
-- 🔄 **Add CI**: [Setup CI](./setup-ci.md) for PR validation
+**[Setup CI](./setup-ci.md)** to automatically validate PR changes against your updated base session. This completes your CI/CD pipeline by adding automated data validation for every pull request.

docs/7-cicd/setup-ci.md

@@ -10,12 +10,16 @@ Automated data validation for pull requests using Recce Cloud. Catch data issues
 
 ## Purpose
 
-**Automated PR Validation** → Prevent data regressions before merge
+**Automated PR Validation** prevents data regressions before merge.
 
 - **Triggers**: PR opened/updated against main
 - **Action**: Auto-update Recce session for PR validation
 - **Benefit**: Automated data validation and comparison
 
+## Prerequisites
+
+You need `manifest.json` and `catalog.json` files (dbt artifacts) for Recce Cloud. See [Start Free with Cloud](../2-getting-started/start-free-with-cloud.md) for instructions on preparing these files.
+
 ## Implementation
 
 ### 1. Core Workflow
@@ -77,16 +81,14 @@ jobs:
 
 **Default: Fresh Build** (shown in example above)
 
-- `dbt docs generate` → Required (provides all needed artifacts)
-- `dbt build` → Optional (ensures tables are materialized and updated)
+- `dbt docs generate` is required and provides all needed artifacts.
+- `dbt build` is optional but ensures tables are materialized and updated.
 
 **Alternative Methods:**
 
 - **External Download**: Download from dbt Cloud, Paradime, or other platforms
 - **Pipeline Integration**: Use existing dbt build workflows
 
-**Key Requirement**: `manifest.json` and `catalog.json` available for Recce Cloud action.
-
 ### 3. Verification
 
 #### Test with a PR
@@ -106,6 +108,6 @@ jobs:
 
 To analyze the PR changes in detail:
 
-- Go to your Recce Cloud dashboard
+- Go to your [Recce Cloud dashboard](https://cloud.reccehq.com)
 - Find the PR session that was created
 - Launch Recce instance to explore data differences