diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 975aa15..62ec399 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 .PHONY: test lint fmt fmt-check check docker hooks
 
+# flags are repeated here (also in .prettierrc) so this Makefile works
+# standalone when copied as a template
 PRETTIER := yarn run prettier
 
 test:
diff --git a/REPO_POLICIES.md b/REPO_POLICIES.md
new file mode 120000
index 0000000..4a308e1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/REPO_POLICIES.md
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/prompts/EXISTING_REPO_CHECKLIST.md b/prompts/EXISTING_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
index 361bebf..5d0f306 100644
--- a/prompts/EXISTING_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
+++ b/prompts/EXISTING_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
@@ -30,7 +30,8 @@ with your task.
 - [ ] `.editorconfig` exists — fetch from
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.editorconfig`
 - [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore` exist; Dockerfile runs `make check` as a
-      build step
+      build step — fetch `.dockerignore` from
+      `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.dockerignore`
 - [ ] Gitea Actions workflow in `.gitea/workflows/` runs `docker build .` on
       push — reference
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.gitea/workflows/check.yml`
@@ -52,6 +53,8 @@ with your task.
       `hooks`
 - [ ] `make check` does not modify any files in the repo
 - [ ] `make test` has a 30-second timeout
+- [ ] `make test` runs real tests, not a no-op (at minimum, import/compile
+      check)
 - [ ] `make check` passes on current branch
 
 # Formatting
diff --git a/prompts/NEW_REPO_CHECKLIST.md b/prompts/NEW_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
index ff16db7..62334e8 100644
--- a/prompts/NEW_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
+++ b/prompts/NEW_REPO_CHECKLIST.md
@@ -50,7 +50,8 @@ Template files can be fetched from:
 - [ ] `LICENSE` file matching the chosen license
 - [ ] `REPO_POLICIES.md` — fetch from
       `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/prompts/REPO_POLICIES.md`
-- [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore`
+- [ ] `Dockerfile` and `.dockerignore` — fetch `.dockerignore` from
+      `https://git.eeqj.de/sneak/prompts/raw/branch/main/.dockerignore`
     - All Dockerfiles must run `make check` as a build step
     - Server: also builds and runs the application
     - Non-server: brings up dev environment and runs `make check`
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@ Template files can be fetched from:
 
 ## Configure Makefile
 
-- [ ] `make test` — runs project tests (30-second timeout)
+- [ ] `make test` — runs real tests, not a no-op (30-second timeout)
 - [ ] `make lint` — runs linter
 - [ ] `make fmt` — formats code (writes)
 - [ ] `make fmt-check` — checks formatting (read-only)