Copilot Instructions

# Copilot Instructions

## Em Dash Ban

**Never use em dashes (—) in any generated content.** This is a hard, non-negotiable rule.

Use these alternatives instead:
- **Colons** for explanations or elaboration
- **Commas** for parenthetical asides
- **Periods** for emphasis (start a new sentence)
- **Parentheses** for supplementary information
- **Semicolons** for joining related independent clauses

Every em dash in output is a lint failure. No exceptions.

The only context where an em dash character may appear is inside agent instruction files (`.agent.md`) when the purpose of that text is to explicitly ban agents from using em dashes. Even in that narrow case, prefer spelling out "em dash" rather than using the character itself where possible.

## Agent Authoring

All `.agent.md` files in this repository **must** include an explicit em dash ban in their instructions. If an agent file does not contain a rule prohibiting em dashes in its output, it is incomplete. The ban should be stated clearly and unambiguously, for example:

> Em dashes (—) are banned from all output. Use commas, colons, semicolons, periods, or parentheses instead.