I think I finally got it!

After flat loaf after flat loaf, looking through some of these posts made me realize I was waterlogging, underproofing, and lazily folding and shaping my dough. First good sign for me was a killer batch of less-hydrated-than-usual discard pancakes. My less hydrated dough was less sticky and easier to work with, and as soon as I saw how well my first loaf sprang, I got a little more adventurous with my slashing, and there are the results.

1000/700/200/20

Dough from Bob’s Red Mill bread flour, starter mostly KAF bread flour

Autolysed while my starter refreshed, about 3 hours. Used to do 75% hydration, went down to 70%. Mixed in starter and salt — actually weighed out the salt, because for a while I was just eyeballing it and using too little, and I didn’t add any extra water when adding the salt either. Used a stretch-in motion to incorporate the starter and salt, then did 4 sets of true stretches and folds over the course of two hours, the last one being more of a slap and fold so I could get the seam underneath and a smooth top. Bulk fermented for 2.5 more hours (had been neglecting this step) until about 1.5x. Rolled out, split, shaped (rolling much more tightly than I have been). Bench rested for half an hour, re-shaped, let the seams seal a bit, then popped them in the baskets. Left those out for about an hour and a half before wrapping and chilling for about 18 hours. Another great sign for me was that my slash didn’t just deflate my bread like it had before. Baked each loaf at 450, 20 minutes covered, 25 minutes uncovered. Second loaf is pictured; while I was proud of my first, it was no contest.