diff --git a/.claude/skills/pr-push/SKILL.md b/.claude/skills/pr-push/SKILL.md
index f5c9adbcb..846e3b6da 100644
--- a/.claude/skills/pr-push/SKILL.md
+++ b/.claude/skills/pr-push/SKILL.md
@@ -91,7 +91,22 @@ Sprint 28 proved that code review without runtime testing misses critical
 bugs (parse errors, depth sorting, scene tree failures).
 
 **For client/visual branches:**
+
+First, **wipe the script class cache before parsing**. Sprint 36 close
+caught this: the team added a new `class_name MetaScreen` base class and
+six scripts extending it. Warm cache on developer machines parsed fine,
+but CI / fresh clones / post-merge parses hit `Could not find base class
+"MetaScreen"` because the autoload-vs-class_name registration order only
+resolves correctly once the class cache is seeded. Wiping the cache here
+(client-side, before push) simulates the cold-start path and catches the
+bug locally — keeping the pre-push hook fast.
+
 ```bash
+# Cold-cache parse check. Deleting the cached class registry forces
+# Godot to rebuild it from source on the next parse, matching the
+# cold-start ordering CI and fresh clones see.
+rm -f client/.godot/global_script_class_cache.cfg
+
 # Headless parse + scanner check. Godot's resource scanner emits
 # category errors (e.g. "Export type can only be built-in, a resource,
 # a node, or an enum" for @export on a RefCounted) that do NOT always
@@ -109,6 +124,13 @@ timeout 10 godot --path client res://scenes/main_menu.tscn 2>&1 | \
   grep -iE "^(SCRIPT )?ERROR|Parse Error|Export type"
 ```
 
+If the cold parse reports a "Could not find base class X" error, the fix
+is almost always an autoload-order issue (see `CLAUDE.md` → GDScript
+conventions → Autoload parse-order rule). Rebuilding the cache with
+`godot --editor --headless --quit` will mask it locally but the same error
+will re-surface post-merge — fix the actual ordering problem, don't paper
+over it with a cache rebuild.
+
 Any lines that come through the filter represent new errors introduced
 by this branch. Fix them before pushing — Sprint 36 shipped commit
 `84105916` with an `@export var descriptor: CharacterVisualDescriptor`
diff --git a/.claude/skills/pr-review/SKILL.md b/.claude/skills/pr-review/SKILL.md
index f2689655b..ed28b8c08 100644
--- a/.claude/skills/pr-review/SKILL.md
+++ b/.claude/skills/pr-review/SKILL.md
@@ -47,6 +47,28 @@ godot --headless --path client --quit 2>&1 | grep -i "SCRIPT ERROR"
 If script errors appear in the branch diff files, flag them immediately
 before spawning reviewers — no point reviewing code that doesn't parse.
 
+#### 0b-i. Merge-path smoke test gate
+
+When the branch diff touches any of:
+- pre-game flow (main menu → character creation → connect)
+- scene transitions (`change_scene_to_file`, scene autoloads)
+- save / load / new-game paths
+- connection handshake (`sim_bridge`, protocol decode/encode)
+- any code path executed in the first 30 seconds of a new session
+
+...the reviewer output MUST explicitly call out the state of author-side
+manual smoke boxes in the PR test plan. If any merge-path smoke box is
+unchecked, include a top-level note:
+
+> **Merge-path smoke not performed.** PR test plan has unchecked manual
+> smoke box(es): [list]. A reviewer or the team must run the smoke before
+> merge approval. Sprint 36 bug #872 (New Game hangs on 'connecting')
+> landed exactly here — do not skip.
+
+Unchecked merge-path smoke boxes downgrade the verdict from APPROVED to
+REQUEST_CHANGES even if reviewers have no code comments. The smoke is a
+deliverable, not a suggestion.
+
 ### 0c. Zero warnings check
 
 The project enforces a **zero warnings policy**. Before spawning reviewers,