diberry · Mar 28, 2026
@@ -499,7 +499,7 @@ The `sql` tool is **CLI-only**. It does not exist on VS Code, JetBrains, or GitH
 
 MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers extend Squad with tools for external services — Trello, Aspire dashboards, Azure, Notion, and more. The user configures MCP servers in their environment; Squad discovers and uses them.
 
-> **Full patterns:** Read `.squad/skills/mcp-tool-discovery/SKILL.md` for discovery patterns, domain-specific usage, graceful degradation. Read `.squad/templates/mcp-config.md` for config file locations, sample configs, and authentication notes.
+> **Full patterns:** Read `.copilot/skills/mcp-tool-discovery/SKILL.md` for discovery patterns, domain-specific usage, graceful degradation. Read `.squad/templates/mcp-config.md` for config file locations, sample configs, and authentication notes.
 
 #### Detection
 
@@ -822,7 +822,7 @@ prompt: |
   2. If you made a team-relevant decision, write to:
      .squad/decisions/inbox/{name}-{brief-slug}.md
   3. SKILL EXTRACTION: If you found a reusable pattern, write/update
-     .squad/skills/{skill-name}/SKILL.md (read templates/skill.md for format).
+     .copilot/skills/{skill-name}/SKILL.md (read templates/skill.md for format).
 
   ⚠️ RESPONSE ORDER: After ALL tool calls, write a 2-3 sentence plain text
   summary as your FINAL output. No tool calls after this summary.
@@ -910,7 +910,7 @@ Ceremonies are structured team meetings where agents align before or after work.
 
 If the user says "I need a designer" or "add someone for DevOps":
 1. **Allocate a name** from the current assignment's universe (read from `.squad/casting/history.json`). If the universe is exhausted, apply overflow handling (see Casting & Persistent Naming → Overflow Handling).
-2. **Check plugin marketplaces.** If `.squad/plugins/marketplaces.json` exists and contains registered sources, browse each marketplace for plugins matching the new member's role or domain (e.g., "azure-cloud-development" for an Azure DevOps role). Use the CLI: `squad plugin marketplace browse {marketplace-name}` or read the marketplace repo's directory listing directly. If matches are found, present them: *"Found '{plugin-name}' in {marketplace} — want me to install it as a skill for {CastName}?"* If the user accepts, copy the plugin content into `.squad/skills/{plugin-name}/SKILL.md` or merge relevant instructions into the agent's charter. If no marketplaces are configured, skip silently. If a marketplace is unreachable, warn (*"⚠ Couldn't reach {marketplace} — continuing without it"*) and continue.
+2. **Check plugin marketplaces.** If `.squad/plugins/marketplaces.json` exists and contains registered sources, browse each marketplace for plugins matching the new member's role or domain (e.g., "azure-cloud-development" for an Azure DevOps role). Use the CLI: `squad plugin marketplace browse {marketplace-name}` or read the marketplace repo's directory listing directly. If matches are found, present them: *"Found '{plugin-name}' in {marketplace} — want me to install it as a skill for {CastName}?"* If the user accepts, copy the plugin content into `.copilot/skills/{plugin-name}/SKILL.md` or merge relevant instructions into the agent's charter. If no marketplaces are configured, skip silently. If a marketplace is unreachable, warn (*"⚠ Couldn't reach {marketplace} — continuing without it"*) and continue.
 3. Generate a new charter.md + history.md (seeded with project context from team.md), using the cast name. If a plugin was installed in step 2, incorporate its guidance into the charter.
 4. **Update `.squad/casting/registry.json`** with the new agent entry.
 5. Add to team.md roster.
@@ -933,7 +933,7 @@ If the user wants to remove someone:
 **Core rules (always loaded):**
 - Check `.squad/plugins/marketplaces.json` during Add Team Member flow (after name allocation, before charter)
 - Present matching plugins for user approval
-- Install: copy to `.squad/skills/{plugin-name}/SKILL.md`, log to history.md
+- Install: copy to `.copilot/skills/{plugin-name}/SKILL.md`, log to history.md
 - Skip silently if no marketplaces configured
 
 ---

@@ -38,73 +38,83 @@ export class LocalSkillSource implements SkillSource {
     this.priority = priority;
   }
 
-  private get skillsDir(): string {
+  /** Returns all existing skill directories, .copilot/skills/ first (highest priority). */
+  private get skillsDirs(): string[] {
+    const dirs: string[] = [];
     const copilotDir = path.join(this.basePath, '.copilot', 'skills');
-    if (fs.existsSync(copilotDir)) return copilotDir;
-    // Backward compat: fall back to legacy location
-    return path.join(this.basePath, '.squad', 'skills');
+    const squadDir = path.join(this.basePath, '.squad', 'skills');
+    if (fs.existsSync(copilotDir)) dirs.push(copilotDir);
+    if (fs.existsSync(squadDir)) dirs.push(squadDir);
+    return dirs;
   }
 
   async listSkills(): Promise<SkillManifest[]> {
-    if (!fs.existsSync(this.skillsDir)) return [];
-    let entries: fs.Dirent[];
-    try {
-      entries = fs.readdirSync(this.skillsDir, { withFileTypes: true });
-    } catch {
-      return [];
+    const seen = new Map<string, SkillManifest>();
+    for (const dir of this.skillsDirs) {
+      let entries: fs.Dirent[];
+      try {
+        entries = fs.readdirSync(dir, { withFileTypes: true });
+      } catch {
+        continue;
+      }
+      for (const entry of entries) {
+        if (!entry.isDirectory()) continue;
+        if (seen.has(entry.name)) continue; // first dir wins on conflicts
+        const skillFile = path.join(dir, entry.name, 'SKILL.md');
+        if (!fs.existsSync(skillFile)) continue;
+        try {
+          const raw = fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf-8');
+          const { meta } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
+          seen.set(entry.name, {
+            id: entry.name,
+            name: typeof meta.name === 'string' ? meta.name : entry.name,
+            domain: typeof meta.domain === 'string' ? meta.domain : 'general',
+            source: 'local',
+          });
+        } catch {
+          // skip malformed
+        }
+      }
     }
+    return Array.from(seen.values());
+  }
 
-    const manifests: SkillManifest[] = [];
-    for (const entry of entries) {
-      if (!entry.isDirectory()) continue;
-      const skillFile = path.join(this.skillsDir, entry.name, 'SKILL.md');
+  async getSkill(id: string): Promise<SkillDefinition | null> {
+    for (const dir of this.skillsDirs) {
+      const skillFile = path.join(dir, id, 'SKILL.md');
       if (!fs.existsSync(skillFile)) continue;
       try {
         const raw = fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf-8');
-        const { meta } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
-        manifests.push({
-          id: entry.name,
-          name: typeof meta.name === 'string' ? meta.name : entry.name,
+        const { meta, body } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
+        if (!body) continue;
+        return {
+          id,
+          name: typeof meta.name === 'string' ? meta.name : id,
           domain: typeof meta.domain === 'string' ? meta.domain : 'general',
-          source: 'local',
-        });
+          content: body,
+          triggers: Array.isArray(meta.triggers) ? meta.triggers : [],
+          agentRoles: Array.isArray(meta.roles) ? meta.roles : [],
+        };
       } catch {
-        // skip malformed
+        continue;
       }
     }
-    return manifests;
-  }
-
-  async getSkill(id: string): Promise<SkillDefinition | null> {
-    const skillFile = path.join(this.skillsDir, id, 'SKILL.md');
-    if (!fs.existsSync(skillFile)) return null;
-    try {
-      const raw = fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf-8');
-      const { meta, body } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
-      if (!body) return null;
-      return {
-        id,
-        name: typeof meta.name === 'string' ? meta.name : id,
-        domain: typeof meta.domain === 'string' ? meta.domain : 'general',
-        content: body,
-        triggers: Array.isArray(meta.triggers) ? meta.triggers : [],
-        agentRoles: Array.isArray(meta.roles) ? meta.roles : [],
-      };
-    } catch {
-      return null;
-    }
+    return null;
   }
 
   async getContent(id: string): Promise<string | null> {
-    const skillFile = path.join(this.skillsDir, id, 'SKILL.md');
-    if (!fs.existsSync(skillFile)) return null;
-    try {
-      const raw = fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf-8');
-      const { body } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
-      return body || null;
-    } catch {
-      return null;
+    for (const dir of this.skillsDirs) {
+      const skillFile = path.join(dir, id, 'SKILL.md');
+      if (!fs.existsSync(skillFile)) continue;
+      try {
+        const raw = fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf-8');
+        const { body } = parseFrontmatter(raw);
+        if (body) return body;
+      } catch {
+        continue;
+      }
     }
+    return null;
   }
 }
 

@@ -59,22 +59,27 @@ function readSkills(squadDir: string): Array<{ name: string; content: string }>
     { dir: path.join(squadDir, 'skills'), layout: 'nested' as const },
     { dir: path.join(projectDir, '.ai-team', 'skills'), layout: 'flat' as const },
   ];
-  const source = candidateDirs.find(({ dir }) => fs.existsSync(dir));
-  if (!source) return [];
 
+  const seen = new Set<string>();
   const skills: Array<{ name: string; content: string }> = [];
-  try {
-    for (const entry of fs.readdirSync(source.dir)) {
-      const skillFile = source.layout === 'nested'
-        ? path.join(source.dir, entry, 'SKILL.md')
-        : path.join(source.dir, entry);
-      if (fs.existsSync(skillFile)) {
+
+  for (const source of candidateDirs) {
+    if (!fs.existsSync(source.dir)) continue;
+    try {
+      for (const entry of fs.readdirSync(source.dir)) {
+        const skillFile = source.layout === 'nested'
+          ? path.join(source.dir, entry, 'SKILL.md')
+          : path.join(source.dir, entry);
         const name = source.layout === 'nested' ? entry : path.basename(entry, '.md');
-        skills.push({ name, content: fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf8') });
+        if (seen.has(name)) continue; // first dir wins on conflicts
+        if (fs.existsSync(skillFile)) {
+          skills.push({ name, content: fs.readFileSync(skillFile, 'utf8') });
+          seen.add(name);
+        }
       }
+    } catch {
+      // Graceful degradation — continue to next candidate dir
     }
-  } catch {
-    // Graceful degradation — return what we found
   }
   return skills;
 }

@@ -157,6 +157,126 @@ describe('LocalSkillSource', () => {
     expect(skills[0].id).toBe('legacy-skill');
   });
 
+  it('should merge skills from both .copilot/skills/ and .squad/skills/', async () => {
+    // Skill A only in .copilot/skills/
+    const copilotSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills', 'copilot-only');
+    fs.mkdirSync(copilotSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(copilotSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SKILL_MD);
+
+    // Skill B only in .squad/skills/
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'squad-only');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SKILL_MD_MINIMAL);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skills = await source.listSkills();
+
+    expect(skills).toHaveLength(2);
+    const ids = skills.map(s => s.id).sort();
+    expect(ids).toEqual(['copilot-only', 'squad-only']);
+  });
+
+  it('should deduplicate by id with .copilot/skills/ winning on conflicts', async () => {
+    const COPILOT_VERSION = `---\nname: Copilot Version\ndomain: copilot\n---\nCopilot wins.\n`;
+    const SQUAD_VERSION = `---\nname: Squad Version\ndomain: squad\n---\nSquad loses.\n`;
+
+    // Same skill name in both dirs
+    const copilotSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills', 'conflict-skill');
+    fs.mkdirSync(copilotSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(copilotSkill, 'SKILL.md'), COPILOT_VERSION);
+
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'conflict-skill');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SQUAD_VERSION);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skills = await source.listSkills();
+
+    expect(skills).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(skills[0].name).toBe('Copilot Version');
+    expect(skills[0].domain).toBe('copilot');
+  });
+
+  it('should handle empty .copilot/skills/ dir without shadowing .squad/skills/', async () => {
+    // Create empty .copilot/skills/ directory
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills'), { recursive: true });
+
+    // Skill only in .squad/skills/
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'legacy-skill');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SKILL_MD_MINIMAL);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skills = await source.listSkills();
+
+    expect(skills).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(skills[0].id).toBe('legacy-skill');
+  });
+
+  it('should work when only .copilot/skills/ exists', async () => {
+    const copilotSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills', 'copilot-skill');
+    fs.mkdirSync(copilotSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(copilotSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SKILL_MD);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skills = await source.listSkills();
+
+    expect(skills).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(skills[0].id).toBe('copilot-skill');
+  });
+
+  it('getSkill should check .copilot/skills/ first then .squad/skills/', async () => {
+    const COPILOT_CONTENT = `---\nname: Copilot Skill\ndomain: copilot\ntriggers: [copilot]\nroles: [dev]\n---\nCopilot content.\n`;
+    const SQUAD_CONTENT = `---\nname: Squad Skill\ndomain: squad\ntriggers: [squad]\nroles: [ops]\n---\nSquad content.\n`;
+
+    // Same ID in both dirs
+    const copilotSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills', 'shared');
+    fs.mkdirSync(copilotSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(copilotSkill, 'SKILL.md'), COPILOT_CONTENT);
+
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'shared');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SQUAD_CONTENT);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skill = await source.getSkill('shared');
+
+    expect(skill).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(skill!.name).toBe('Copilot Skill');
+    expect(skill!.content).toContain('Copilot content');
+  });
+
+  it('getSkill should find skill in .squad/skills/ when not in .copilot/skills/', async () => {
+    // .copilot/skills/ exists but doesn't have this skill
+    fs.mkdirSync(path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills'), { recursive: true });
+
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'squad-only');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), SKILL_MD_MINIMAL);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const skill = await source.getSkill('squad-only');
+
+    expect(skill).not.toBeNull();
+    expect(skill!.name).toBe('Docker');
+  });
+
+  it('getContent should check both directories with priority', async () => {
+    const copilotSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.copilot', 'skills', 'content-test');
+    fs.mkdirSync(copilotSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(copilotSkill, 'SKILL.md'), `---\nname: test\n---\nCopilot body.\n`);
+
+    const squadSkill = path.join(tempDir, '.squad', 'skills', 'content-test');
+    fs.mkdirSync(squadSkill, { recursive: true });
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(squadSkill, 'SKILL.md'), `---\nname: test\n---\nSquad body.\n`);
+
+    const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir);
+    const content = await source.getContent('content-test');
+
+    expect(content).toContain('Copilot body');
+    expect(content).not.toContain('Squad body');
+  });
+
   it('should support custom priority', () => {
     const source = new LocalSkillSource(tempDir, 10);
     expect(source.priority).toBe(10);