diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-browse/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-browse/SKILL.md
index 6f634f129..f41a62ef9 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-browse/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-browse/SKILL.md
@@ -25,6 +25,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -125,6 +127,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-design-consultation/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-design-consultation/SKILL.md
index 8d018781c..95789df3b 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-design-consultation/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-design-consultation/SKILL.md
@@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -126,6 +128,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-design-review/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-design-review/SKILL.md
index 2a7d26b23..65fb06211 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-design-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-design-review/SKILL.md
@@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -126,6 +128,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-document-release/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-document-release/SKILL.md
index 9249b0be8..a404785af 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-document-release/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-document-release/SKILL.md
@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -124,6 +126,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-investigate/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-investigate/SKILL.md
index 39f5910ea..b38960922 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-investigate/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-investigate/SKILL.md
@@ -27,6 +27,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -127,6 +129,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-office-hours/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-office-hours/SKILL.md
index c843d9086..3f9625de1 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-office-hours/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-office-hours/SKILL.md
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -128,6 +130,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
index dfb1c937d..1bebfd5a0 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
@@ -27,6 +27,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -127,6 +129,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-design-review/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-design-review/SKILL.md
index 92a5dc568..db5deffac 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-design-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-design-review/SKILL.md
@@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -126,6 +128,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-eng-review/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
index 492bf9f83..642c0cf07 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
@@ -25,6 +25,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -125,6 +127,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-qa-only/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-qa-only/SKILL.md
index 6a6f8a7d4..a29d8119c 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-qa-only/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-qa-only/SKILL.md
@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -124,6 +126,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-qa/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-qa/SKILL.md
index 0617c447a..c14129fe1 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-qa/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-qa/SKILL.md
@@ -27,6 +27,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -127,6 +129,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-retro/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-retro/SKILL.md
index 2a30b5273..c65ae2643 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-retro/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-retro/SKILL.md
@@ -24,6 +24,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -124,6 +126,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-review/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-review/SKILL.md
index 0253dcac2..8a1e6fbcf 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-review/SKILL.md
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -123,6 +125,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
index 34f95391c..8b10ef289 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -123,6 +125,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack-ship/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack-ship/SKILL.md
index da20fd262..ed8147ce8 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack-ship/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack-ship/SKILL.md
@@ -21,6 +21,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -121,6 +123,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
@@ -237,7 +251,7 @@ You are running the `/ship` workflow. This is a **non-interactive, fully automat
 **Only stop for:**
 - On the base branch (abort)
 - Merge conflicts that can't be auto-resolved (stop, show conflicts)
-- Test failures (stop, show failures)
+- In-branch test failures (pre-existing failures are triaged, not auto-blocking)
 - Pre-landing review finds ASK items that need user judgment
 - MINOR or MAJOR version bump needed (ask — see Step 4)
 - Greptile review comments that need user decision (complex fixes, false positives)
@@ -521,7 +535,101 @@ wait
 
 After both complete, read the output files and check pass/fail.
 
-**If any test fails:** Show the failures and **STOP**. Do not proceed.
+**If any test fails:** Do NOT immediately stop. Apply the Test Failure Ownership Triage:
+
+## Test Failure Ownership Triage
+
+When tests fail, do NOT immediately stop. First, determine ownership:
+
+### Step T1: Classify each failure
+
+For each failing test:
+
+1. **Get the files changed on this branch:**
+   ```bash
+   git diff origin/<base>...HEAD --name-only
+   ```
+
+2. **Classify the failure:**
+   - **In-branch** if: the failing test file itself was modified on this branch, OR the test output references code that was changed on this branch, OR you can trace the failure to a change in the branch diff.
+   - **Likely pre-existing** if: neither the test file nor the code it tests was modified on this branch, AND the failure is unrelated to any branch change you can identify.
+   - **When ambiguous, default to in-branch.** It is safer to stop the developer than to let a broken test ship. Only classify as pre-existing when you are confident.
+
+   This classification is heuristic — use your judgment reading the diff and the test output. You do not have a programmatic dependency graph.
+
+### Step T2: Handle in-branch failures
+
+**STOP.** These are your failures. Show them and do not proceed. The developer must fix their own broken tests before shipping.
+
+### Step T3: Handle pre-existing failures
+
+Check `REPO_MODE` from the preamble output.
+
+**If REPO_MODE is `solo`:**
+
+Use AskUserQuestion:
+
+> These test failures appear pre-existing (not caused by your branch changes):
+>
+> [list each failure with file:line and brief error description]
+>
+> Since this is a solo repo, you're the only one who will fix these.
+>
+> RECOMMENDATION: Choose A — fix now while the context is fresh. Completeness: 9/10.
+> A) Investigate and fix now (human: ~2-4h / CC: ~15min) — Completeness: 10/10
+> B) Add as P0 TODO — fix after this branch lands — Completeness: 7/10
+> C) Skip — I know about this, ship anyway — Completeness: 3/10
+
+**If REPO_MODE is `collaborative` or `unknown`:**
+
+Use AskUserQuestion:
+
+> These test failures appear pre-existing (not caused by your branch changes):
+>
+> [list each failure with file:line and brief error description]
+>
+> This is a collaborative repo — these may be someone else's responsibility.
+>
+> RECOMMENDATION: Choose B — assign it to whoever broke it so the right person fixes it. Completeness: 9/10.
+> A) Investigate and fix now anyway — Completeness: 10/10
+> B) Blame + assign GitHub issue to the author — Completeness: 9/10
+> C) Add as P0 TODO — Completeness: 7/10
+> D) Skip — ship anyway — Completeness: 3/10
+
+### Step T4: Execute the chosen action
+
+**If "Investigate and fix now":**
+- Switch to /investigate mindset: root cause first, then minimal fix.
+- Fix the pre-existing failure.
+- Commit the fix separately from the branch's changes: `git commit -m "fix: pre-existing test failure in <test-file>"`
+- Continue with the workflow.
+
+**If "Add as P0 TODO":**
+- If `TODOS.md` exists, add the entry following the format in `review/TODOS-format.md` (or `.agents/skills/gstack/review/TODOS-format.md`).
+- If `TODOS.md` does not exist, create it with the standard header and add the entry.
+- Entry should include: title, the error output, which branch it was noticed on, and priority P0.
+- Continue with the workflow — treat the pre-existing failure as non-blocking.
+
+**If "Blame + assign GitHub issue" (collaborative only):**
+- Find who last modified the failing area:
+  ```bash
+  git log --format="%an (%ae)" -1 -- <failing-test-file>
+  ```
+- Create a GitHub issue assigned to that person:
+  ```bash
+  gh issue create \
+    --title "Pre-existing test failure: <test-name>" \
+    --body "Found failing on branch <current-branch>. Failure is pre-existing.\n\n**Error:**\n```\n<first 10 lines>\n```\n\n**Last modified by:** <author>\n**Noticed by:** gstack /ship on <date>" \
+    --assignee "<github-username>"
+  ```
+- If `gh` is not available or `--assignee` fails (user not in org, etc.), create the issue without assignee and note who should look at it in the body.
+- Continue with the workflow.
+
+**If "Skip":**
+- Continue with the workflow.
+- Note in output: "Pre-existing test failure skipped: <test-name>"
+
+**After triage:** If any in-branch failures remain unfixed, **STOP**. Do not proceed. If all failures were pre-existing and handled (fixed, TODOed, assigned, or skipped), continue to Step 3.25.
 
 **If all pass:** Continue silently — just note the counts briefly.
 
diff --git a/.agents/skills/gstack/SKILL.md b/.agents/skills/gstack/SKILL.md
index 3b4f93b52..9e13bfd21 100644
--- a/.agents/skills/gstack/SKILL.md
+++ b/.agents/skills/gstack/SKILL.md
@@ -56,6 +56,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.codex/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -156,6 +158,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/SKILL.md b/SKILL.md
index fe66b6180..89316789b 100644
--- a/SKILL.md
+++ b/SKILL.md
@@ -62,6 +62,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -162,6 +164,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/browse/SKILL.md b/browse/SKILL.md
index 8782ccbf5..db7edbd62 100644
--- a/browse/SKILL.md
+++ b/browse/SKILL.md
@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -131,6 +133,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/codex/SKILL.md b/codex/SKILL.md
index 19a341dd6..cf9493f00 100644
--- a/codex/SKILL.md
+++ b/codex/SKILL.md
@@ -32,6 +32,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -132,6 +134,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/design-consultation/SKILL.md b/design-consultation/SKILL.md
index cc21fa7e4..288cc800f 100644
--- a/design-consultation/SKILL.md
+++ b/design-consultation/SKILL.md
@@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -136,6 +138,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/design-review/SKILL.md b/design-review/SKILL.md
index cbc0d5e87..c61a90898 100644
--- a/design-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/design-review/SKILL.md
@@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -136,6 +138,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/document-release/SKILL.md b/document-release/SKILL.md
index d71d5d3be..3d02fad9e 100644
--- a/document-release/SKILL.md
+++ b/document-release/SKILL.md
@@ -33,6 +33,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -133,6 +135,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/investigate/SKILL.md b/investigate/SKILL.md
index eccce870c..10efe9e63 100644
--- a/investigate/SKILL.md
+++ b/investigate/SKILL.md
@@ -46,6 +46,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -146,6 +148,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/office-hours/SKILL.md b/office-hours/SKILL.md
index ff0aeafa1..143da2d1c 100644
--- a/office-hours/SKILL.md
+++ b/office-hours/SKILL.md
@@ -37,6 +37,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -137,6 +139,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md b/plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
index 68b234d61..ffbe1561b 100644
--- a/plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/plan-ceo-review/SKILL.md
@@ -34,6 +34,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -134,6 +136,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/plan-design-review/SKILL.md b/plan-design-review/SKILL.md
index 6abd69481..2303bd9ec 100644
--- a/plan-design-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/plan-design-review/SKILL.md
@@ -34,6 +34,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -134,6 +136,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/plan-eng-review/SKILL.md b/plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
index 45ac15d0d..27fabcc91 100644
--- a/plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/plan-eng-review/SKILL.md
@@ -33,6 +33,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -133,6 +135,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/qa-only/SKILL.md b/qa-only/SKILL.md
index 1d2479d17..b6eacda7f 100644
--- a/qa-only/SKILL.md
+++ b/qa-only/SKILL.md
@@ -30,6 +30,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -130,6 +132,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/qa/SKILL.md b/qa/SKILL.md
index 92799a0d0..c3d6f7358 100644
--- a/qa/SKILL.md
+++ b/qa/SKILL.md
@@ -37,6 +37,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -137,6 +139,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/retro/SKILL.md b/retro/SKILL.md
index bc1f5f329..022276401 100644
--- a/retro/SKILL.md
+++ b/retro/SKILL.md
@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -131,6 +133,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/review/SKILL.md b/review/SKILL.md
index 013738755..6f4baeacc 100644
--- a/review/SKILL.md
+++ b/review/SKILL.md
@@ -32,6 +32,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -132,6 +134,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md b/setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
index ac2d873cb..a6af28998 100644
--- a/setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
+++ b/setup-browser-cookies/SKILL.md
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -128,6 +130,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
diff --git a/ship/SKILL.md b/ship/SKILL.md
index a4eb4d80f..692bcb754 100644
--- a/ship/SKILL.md
+++ b/ship/SKILL.md
@@ -31,6 +31,8 @@ _PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null
 _BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
 echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
 echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
+source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || REPO_MODE=unknown
+echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
 _LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
 echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
 _TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
@@ -131,6 +133,18 @@ AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you p
 - BAD: "Let's defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
 - BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")
 
+## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something
+
+`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:
+
+- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch's changes (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
+- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch's changes, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else's responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
+- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).
+
+**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.
+
+Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.
+
 ## Contributor Mode
 
 If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You're a gstack user who also helps make it better.
@@ -247,7 +261,7 @@ You are running the `/ship` workflow. This is a **non-interactive, fully automat
 **Only stop for:**
 - On the base branch (abort)
 - Merge conflicts that can't be auto-resolved (stop, show conflicts)
-- Test failures (stop, show failures)
+- In-branch test failures (pre-existing failures are triaged, not auto-blocking)
 - Pre-landing review finds ASK items that need user judgment
 - MINOR or MAJOR version bump needed (ask — see Step 4)
 - Greptile review comments that need user decision (complex fixes, false positives)
@@ -531,7 +545,101 @@ wait
 
 After both complete, read the output files and check pass/fail.
 
-**If any test fails:** Show the failures and **STOP**. Do not proceed.
+**If any test fails:** Do NOT immediately stop. Apply the Test Failure Ownership Triage:
+
+## Test Failure Ownership Triage
+
+When tests fail, do NOT immediately stop. First, determine ownership:
+
+### Step T1: Classify each failure
+
+For each failing test:
+
+1. **Get the files changed on this branch:**
+   ```bash
+   git diff origin/<base>...HEAD --name-only
+   ```
+
+2. **Classify the failure:**
+   - **In-branch** if: the failing test file itself was modified on this branch, OR the test output references code that was changed on this branch, OR you can trace the failure to a change in the branch diff.
+   - **Likely pre-existing** if: neither the test file nor the code it tests was modified on this branch, AND the failure is unrelated to any branch change you can identify.
+   - **When ambiguous, default to in-branch.** It is safer to stop the developer than to let a broken test ship. Only classify as pre-existing when you are confident.
+
+   This classification is heuristic — use your judgment reading the diff and the test output. You do not have a programmatic dependency graph.
+
+### Step T2: Handle in-branch failures
+
+**STOP.** These are your failures. Show them and do not proceed. The developer must fix their own broken tests before shipping.
+
+### Step T3: Handle pre-existing failures
+
+Check `REPO_MODE` from the preamble output.
+
+**If REPO_MODE is `solo`:**
+
+Use AskUserQuestion:
+
+> These test failures appear pre-existing (not caused by your branch changes):
+>
+> [list each failure with file:line and brief error description]
+>
+> Since this is a solo repo, you're the only one who will fix these.
+>
+> RECOMMENDATION: Choose A — fix now while the context is fresh. Completeness: 9/10.
+> A) Investigate and fix now (human: ~2-4h / CC: ~15min) — Completeness: 10/10
+> B) Add as P0 TODO — fix after this branch lands — Completeness: 7/10
+> C) Skip — I know about this, ship anyway — Completeness: 3/10
+
+**If REPO_MODE is `collaborative` or `unknown`:**
+
+Use AskUserQuestion:
+
+> These test failures appear pre-existing (not caused by your branch changes):
+>
+> [list each failure with file:line and brief error description]
+>
+> This is a collaborative repo — these may be someone else's responsibility.
+>
+> RECOMMENDATION: Choose B — assign it to whoever broke it so the right person fixes it. Completeness: 9/10.
+> A) Investigate and fix now anyway — Completeness: 10/10
+> B) Blame + assign GitHub issue to the author — Completeness: 9/10
+> C) Add as P0 TODO — Completeness: 7/10
+> D) Skip — ship anyway — Completeness: 3/10
+
+### Step T4: Execute the chosen action
+
+**If "Investigate and fix now":**
+- Switch to /investigate mindset: root cause first, then minimal fix.
+- Fix the pre-existing failure.
+- Commit the fix separately from the branch's changes: `git commit -m "fix: pre-existing test failure in <test-file>"`
+- Continue with the workflow.
+
+**If "Add as P0 TODO":**
+- If `TODOS.md` exists, add the entry following the format in `review/TODOS-format.md` (or `.claude/skills/review/TODOS-format.md`).
+- If `TODOS.md` does not exist, create it with the standard header and add the entry.
+- Entry should include: title, the error output, which branch it was noticed on, and priority P0.
+- Continue with the workflow — treat the pre-existing failure as non-blocking.
+
+**If "Blame + assign GitHub issue" (collaborative only):**
+- Find who last modified the failing area:
+  ```bash
+  git log --format="%an (%ae)" -1 -- <failing-test-file>
+  ```
+- Create a GitHub issue assigned to that person:
+  ```bash
+  gh issue create \
+    --title "Pre-existing test failure: <test-name>" \
+    --body "Found failing on branch <current-branch>. Failure is pre-existing.\n\n**Error:**\n```\n<first 10 lines>\n```\n\n**Last modified by:** <author>\n**Noticed by:** gstack /ship on <date>" \
+    --assignee "<github-username>"
+  ```
+- If `gh` is not available or `--assignee` fails (user not in org, etc.), create the issue without assignee and note who should look at it in the body.
+- Continue with the workflow.
+
+**If "Skip":**
+- Continue with the workflow.
+- Note in output: "Pre-existing test failure skipped: <test-name>"
+
+**After triage:** If any in-branch failures remain unfixed, **STOP**. Do not proceed. If all failures were pre-existing and handled (fixed, TODOed, assigned, or skipped), continue to Step 3.25.
 
 **If all pass:** Continue silently — just note the counts briefly.