diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9cfc811b985
--- /dev/null
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+# CLAUDE.md
+
+This file provides guidance to Claude Code (claude.ai/code) when working with code in this repository.
+
+## Repository context
+
+This is a personal fork of `nvim-lua/kickstart.nvim`. Two remotes exist:
+- `origin` → `bhendo/kickstart.nvim` (the fork)
+- `upstream` → `nvim-lua/kickstart.nvim` (kickstart's canonical repo)
+
+**PRs ALWAYS target origin (the fork), NEVER upstream.** When using `gh pr create`, pass `--repo bhendo/kickstart.nvim` explicitly so it can't auto-select upstream.
+
+The fork uses `vim.pack` (Neovim's built-in plugin manager), not `lazy.nvim`. Both this fork and upstream independently migrated; the migrations converged.
+
+## Architecture
+
+The config is split into two layers:
+
+**`init.lua`** — kept as close to upstream as possible to minimize merge conflicts. Currently differs from `upstream/master` by 4 lines only:
+- `vim.g.have_nerd_font = true`
+- `vim.o.relativenumber = true`
+- blink.cmp `preset = 'super-tab'`
+- `require 'custom.plugins'` uncommented (the upstream-provided extension hook)
+
+When editing `init.lua`, prefer extracting the change to a custom plugin over modifying `init.lua` directly. The first three lines above only stay in `init.lua` because `have_nerd_font` is read inline by mini.icons during init, `relativenumber`/blink preset would be slightly awkward to override post-init, and the loader line is the intended hook. New customizations should go to `lua/custom/plugins/`.
+
+**`lua/custom/plugins/`** — all personal customizations. The loader at `lua/custom/plugins/init.lua` requires each file in a deliberate order (kickstart enables → LSP/mason extras → formatting/completion overrides → editor → language-specific → keymaps). Order matters: later files can depend on plugins set up earlier.
+
+Each custom plugin file is self-contained and follows the same pattern as `lua/kickstart/plugins/*.lua`:
+1. `vim.pack.add { ... }` to declare plugin source
+2. `require('plugin').setup { ... }` (or equivalent) to configure
+3. Any related keymaps/autocmds inline
+
+`conform.setup` and other plugins that use `tbl_deep_extend` can be re-called in custom files to merge with `init.lua`'s base config (see `lua/custom/plugins/conform.lua`).
+
+`lua/kickstart/plugins/*.lua` are kickstart's *optional* plugin enables. Adding one to the loader in `lua/custom/plugins/init.lua` opts into it without modifying `init.lua`.
+
+## Common commands
+
+Smoke-test the config (used to verify after merges/refactors):
+```sh
+nvim --headless "+lua print('config loaded ok')" "+qa"
+```
+
+Format Lua files (stylua config in `.stylua.toml`, uses 160-col width):
+```sh
+stylua init.lua lua/
+```
+
+Plugin management (run inside nvim):
+- `:lua vim.pack.update(nil, { offline = true })` — inspect plugin state
+- `:lua vim.pack.update()` — fetch updates (`:write` applies, `:quit` cancels)
+- `:checkhealth` — diagnose config issues
+
+## Working with upstream
+
+To pull in upstream changes, create a `merge/upstream-YYYY-MM` branch off `master`, run `git merge upstream/master`, and resolve conflicts. The conflicts are typically:
+- `init.lua` — keep `HEAD` on the 4 personal lines, accept upstream elsewhere
+- `lua/custom/plugins/init.lua` — keep `HEAD` (our ordered loader)
+- `.gitignore` — keep `HEAD` (has `.worktrees/`)
+- `README.md` — usually auto-merges
+
+After resolving, run the headless smoke-test before committing.
+
+## Conventions
+
+- Stylua: 160-col, single quotes, no parens on single-arg calls, collapse simple statements.
+- Comments in custom plugin files explain *why* something is done a certain way (e.g., load-order dependencies, why a setup is re-called); they are not docstrings of *what* the code does.
+- New custom plugins are added by creating `lua/custom/plugins/<name>.lua` and adding a `require 'custom.plugins.<name>'` line in the appropriate section of `lua/custom/plugins/init.lua`.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 093e42a6dd9..7c62e907134 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -69,9 +69,9 @@ fork to your machine using one of the commands below, depending on your OS.
 > Your fork's URL will be something like this:
 > `https://github.com/<your_github_username>/kickstart.nvim.git`
 
-You likely want to remove `lazy-lock.json` from your fork's `.gitignore` file
-too - it's ignored in the kickstart repo to make maintenance easier, but it's
-[recommended to track it in version control](https://lazy.folke.io/usage/lockfile).
+You likely want to remove `nvim-pack-lock.json` from your fork's `.gitignore`
+file too - it's ignored in the kickstart repo to make maintenance easier, but
+it's recommended to track it in version control (see `:help vim.pack-lockfile`).
 
 #### Clone kickstart.nvim
 
@@ -111,8 +111,10 @@ Start Neovim
 nvim
 ```
 
-That's it! Lazy will install all the plugins you have. Use `:Lazy` to view
-the current plugin status. Hit `q` to close the window.
+That's it! `vim.pack` will install all the plugins from your config. Use
+`:lua vim.pack.update(nil, { offline = true })` to inspect plugin state and
+`:lua vim.pack.update()` to fetch updates (`:write` applies updates, `:quit`
+cancels them).
 
 #### Read The Friendly Documentation
 
@@ -146,7 +148,8 @@ examples of adding popularly requested plugins.
     `~/.local/share/nvim-kickstart`. You can apply this approach to any Neovim
     distribution that you would like to try out.
 * What if I want to "uninstall" this configuration:
-  * See [lazy.nvim uninstall](https://lazy.folke.io/usage#-uninstalling) information
+  * Remove your config directory and local data directory (for example,
+    `~/.config/nvim` and `~/.local/share/nvim`).
 * Why is the kickstart `init.lua` a single file? Wouldn't it make sense to split it into multiple files?
   * The main purpose of kickstart is to serve as a teaching tool and a reference
     configuration that someone can easily use to `git clone` as a basis for their own.
@@ -167,17 +170,36 @@ After installing all the dependencies continue with the [Install Kickstart](#ins
 #### Windows Installation
 
 <details><summary>Windows with Microsoft C++ Build Tools and CMake</summary>
-Installation may require installing build tools and updating the run command for `telescope-fzf-native`
+Kickstart's default config is make-only for `telescope-fzf-native.nvim`.
+If `make` is unavailable, the plugin is skipped.
 
-See `telescope-fzf-native` documentation for [more details](https://github.com/nvim-telescope/telescope-fzf-native.nvim#installation)
+Recommended: install `make` (see the chocolatey section below).
 
-This requires:
+If you want a CMake-only setup, customize `init.lua` in two places:
 
-- Install CMake and the Microsoft C++ Build Tools on Windows
+1. Include `telescope-fzf-native.nvim` when `cmake` is available:
 
 ```lua
-{'nvim-telescope/telescope-fzf-native.nvim', build = 'cmake -S. -Bbuild -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release && cmake --build build --config Release && cmake --install build --prefix build' }
+if vim.fn.executable 'make' == 1 or vim.fn.executable 'cmake' == 1 then
+  table.insert(plugins, gh 'nvim-telescope/telescope-fzf-native.nvim')
+end
 ```
+
+2. In the `PackChanged` hook, use CMake when `make` is unavailable:
+
+```lua
+if name == 'telescope-fzf-native.nvim' then
+  if vim.fn.executable 'make' == 1 then
+    run_build(name, { 'make' }, ev.data.path)
+  elseif vim.fn.executable 'cmake' == 1 then
+    run_build(name, { 'cmake', '-S.', '-Bbuild', '-DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release' }, ev.data.path)
+    run_build(name, { 'cmake', '--build', 'build', '--config', 'Release', '--target', 'install' }, ev.data.path)
+  end
+  return
+end
+```
+
+See `telescope-fzf-native` documentation for [build details](https://github.com/nvim-telescope/telescope-fzf-native.nvim#installation).
 </details>
 <details><summary>Windows with gcc/make using chocolatey</summary>
 Alternatively, one can install gcc and make which don't require changing the config,
diff --git a/init.lua b/init.lua
index 5b574f52081..a7fe176d121 100644
--- a/init.lua
+++ b/init.lua
@@ -877,7 +877,7 @@ do
     -- the rust implementation via `'prefer_rust_with_warning'`
     --
     -- See `:help blink-cmp-config-fuzzy` for more information
-    fuzzy = { implementation = 'lua' },
+    fuzzy = { implementation = 'prefer_rust' },
 
     -- Shows a signature help window while you type arguments for a function
     signature = { enabled = true },
diff --git a/lua/custom/plugins/filetypes.lua b/lua/custom/plugins/filetypes.lua
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..62950ee166f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lua/custom/plugins/filetypes.lua
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+-- Filetype registrations Neovim doesn't ship by default.
+--
+-- gotmpl: Go templates (Helm charts, k8s manifests, Hugo). gopls advertises
+-- support but Neovim has no built-in detection rule, so :checkhealth gopls
+-- warns about the unknown filetype.
+
+vim.filetype.add {
+  extension = {
+    gotmpl = 'gotmpl',
+    tpl = 'gotmpl',
+  },
+}
diff --git a/lua/custom/plugins/init.lua b/lua/custom/plugins/init.lua
index 965619ad51f..a05b2d49312 100644
--- a/lua/custom/plugins/init.lua
+++ b/lua/custom/plugins/init.lua
@@ -5,6 +5,10 @@
 -- Order matters here: kickstart enables come first (they install dap, mason
 -- extras, etc.) so later customizations can build on them.
 
+-- Environment / filetype tweaks (no plugin deps; safe to load first)
+require 'custom.plugins.providers'
+require 'custom.plugins.filetypes'
+
 -- Kickstart optional plugins (vim.pack-based)
 require 'kickstart.plugins.debug'
 require 'kickstart.plugins.indent_line'
diff --git a/lua/custom/plugins/markdown.lua b/lua/custom/plugins/markdown.lua
index 8014813f859..9862da4a09c 100644
--- a/lua/custom/plugins/markdown.lua
+++ b/lua/custom/plugins/markdown.lua
@@ -2,4 +2,8 @@
 -- Depends on nvim-treesitter and mini.nvim, both of which init.lua already adds.
 
 vim.pack.add { 'https://github.com/MeanderingProgrammer/render-markdown.nvim' }
-require('render-markdown').setup {}
+require('render-markdown').setup {
+  -- We don't write LaTeX math in markdown; disabling avoids needing the
+  -- latex treesitter parser plus utftex/latex2text on the system.
+  latex = { enabled = false },
+}
diff --git a/lua/custom/plugins/providers.lua b/lua/custom/plugins/providers.lua
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6cde89b49ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lua/custom/plugins/providers.lua
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+-- Disable Neovim's remote plugin host providers we don't use.
+-- Providers host plugins WRITTEN in these languages (e.g. legacy Deoplete in Python);
+-- they are unrelated to LSP support for editing files in those languages.
+-- All our plugins are Lua, so none of these hosts are needed.
+
+vim.g.loaded_node_provider = 0
+vim.g.loaded_perl_provider = 0
+vim.g.loaded_python3_provider = 0
+vim.g.loaded_ruby_provider = 0