diff --git a/.claude/settings.json b/.claude/settings.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1388f5a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.claude/settings.json
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{
+  "enabledPlugins": {
+    "church@church": true
+  }
+}
diff --git a/agentstuff/pyproject.toml b/agentstuff/pyproject.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..71ab958
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/pyproject.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+[project]
+name = "sentiment-agent"
+version = "0.1.0"
+description = "AI agent for gathering data and performing sentiment analysis"
+requires-python = ">=3.11"
+dependencies = [
+    "claude-agent-sdk",
+    "anyio",
+    "httpx",
+]
+
+[project.optional-dependencies]
+dev = [
+    "pytest",
+    "ruff",
+    "mypy",
+]
+
+[project.scripts]
+sentiment-agent = "sentiment_agent.main:main"
+
+[tool.ruff]
+line-length = 100
+
+[tool.pytest.ini_options]
+testpaths = ["tests"]
+
+[tool.mypy]
+python_version = "3.11"
+ignore_missing_imports = true
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/__init__.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3301b88
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/__init__.py
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+"""Sentiment analysis agent powered by Claude Agent SDK."""
+
+__version__ = "0.1.0"
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/agent.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/agent.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bbc4d81
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/agent.py
@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+"""Core sentiment analysis agent using Claude Agent SDK."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from claude_agent_sdk import (
+    AssistantMessage,
+    ClaudeAgentOptions,
+    ClaudeSDKClient,
+    ResultMessage,
+    TextBlock,
+)
+
+from sentiment_agent.config import SafetyConfig
+from sentiment_agent.tools import create_social_tools_server
+
+SYSTEM_PROMPT = """\
+You are a sentiment analysis agent. Your job is to gather data from multiple \
+platforms and produce a structured, evidence-based sentiment report.
+
+## Rules — you MUST follow these
+
+1. **Budget awareness.** You have a limited API call budget. Call \
+`get_api_budget_status` before starting and after every few tool calls. \
+Stop gathering data when you have <5 calls remaining and begin your analysis.
+
+2. **Credibility first.** Every tool result includes credibility scores and \
+bot/disinfo flags. You MUST:
+   - NEVER quote or cite posts marked `likely_inauthentic` (score < 0.3).
+   - Flag posts marked `suspicious` (score 0.3–0.5) with a warning when citing them.
+   - Give more weight to `likely_authentic` posts (score ≥ 0.7).
+   - If coordination warnings appear (copy-paste campaigns, burst posting), \
+     call them out prominently in your report.
+
+3. **Platform diversity.** Gather from at least 2 different platforms before \
+analyzing. Do not over-index on a single source.
+
+4. **No fabrication.** Only report on data you actually retrieved. If a tool \
+call fails or returns no results, say so — do not invent data.
+
+5. **Structured output.** Your final report MUST include these sections:
+   - **Data Quality Summary**: platforms queried, posts analyzed vs excluded, \
+     coordination warnings
+   - **Overall Sentiment**: score (-1.0 to +1.0) and label \
+     (very negative / negative / mixed / neutral / positive / very positive)
+   - **Platform Breakdown**: sentiment per platform with sample size
+   - **Key Themes**: top 3-5 themes with sentiment direction
+   - **Credibility Concerns**: any bot networks, disinfo patterns, or \
+     coordinated campaigns detected
+   - **Notable Quotes**: 3-5 representative quotes (authentic sources only, \
+     with credibility score noted)
+   - **Confidence Assessment**: how confident you are in the analysis given \
+     data quality and volume
+
+6. **Scope discipline.** Stay focused on the requested topic. Do not expand \
+scope, follow tangents, or analyze adjacent topics unless explicitly asked.
+
+7. **No side effects.** Do not write files, run commands, or take any action \
+beyond reading data and producing your report.
+"""
+
+
+async def run_sentiment_analysis(
+    topic: str,
+    sources: list[str] | None = None,
+    config: SafetyConfig | None = None,
+) -> str:
+    """Run the sentiment analysis agent on a given topic.
+
+    Args:
+        topic: The topic or subject to analyze sentiment for.
+        sources: Optional list of URLs or data sources to analyze.
+        config: Safety configuration. Defaults to SafetyConfig.from_env().
+
+    Returns:
+        The agent's sentiment analysis report.
+    """
+    config = config or SafetyConfig.from_env()
+
+    source_instructions = ""
+    if sources:
+        source_list = "\n".join(f"- {s}" for s in sources)
+        source_instructions = f"\n\nAlso analyze these specific sources:\n{source_list}"
+
+    prompt = (
+        f"Perform a sentiment analysis on the following topic: {topic}\n\n"
+        "Start by calling `get_api_budget_status` to check your budget, then "
+        "gather data from multiple platforms (Reddit, Hacker News, Bluesky if "
+        "configured, and web search). Pay close attention to credibility scores "
+        "and coordination warnings in the results."
+        f"{source_instructions}"
+    )
+
+    social_server = create_social_tools_server(config)
+
+    options = ClaudeAgentOptions(
+        # Only allow read-only tools — no Write/Bash to prevent side effects
+        allowed_tools=["WebSearch", "WebFetch", "Read"],
+        max_turns=config.max_turns,
+        max_budget_usd=config.max_budget_usd,
+        mcp_servers={"social": social_server},
+        system_prompt=SYSTEM_PROMPT,
+    )
+
+    result_text = ""
+    async with ClaudeSDKClient(options=options) as client:
+        await client.query(prompt)
+        async for message in client.receive_response():
+            if isinstance(message, AssistantMessage):
+                for block in message.content:
+                    if isinstance(block, TextBlock):
+                        print(block.text, end="", flush=True)
+            if isinstance(message, ResultMessage):
+                result_text = message.result
+
+    return result_text
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/__init__.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2c3b142
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/__init__.py
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+"""API clients for social media and forum data sources."""
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/bluesky.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/bluesky.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fa50a9f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/bluesky.py
@@ -0,0 +1,166 @@
+"""Bluesky client using the AT Protocol API.
+
+Search requires authentication. Set BLUESKY_HANDLE and BLUESKY_APP_PASSWORD
+env vars. Create an app password at: https://bsky.app/settings/app-passwords
+
+Thread fetching works without auth via the public API.
+"""
+
+import os
+import httpx
+
+BSKY_PUBLIC_API = "https://public.api.bsky.app"
+BSKY_AUTH_API = "https://bsky.social"
+
+
+async def _get_session() -> dict | None:
+    """Authenticate with Bluesky and return session tokens, or None if no creds."""
+    handle = os.environ.get("BLUESKY_HANDLE")
+    app_password = os.environ.get("BLUESKY_APP_PASSWORD")
+    if not handle or not app_password:
+        return None
+
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15) as client:
+        resp = await client.post(
+            f"{BSKY_AUTH_API}/xrpc/com.atproto.server.createSession",
+            json={"identifier": handle, "password": app_password},
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        return resp.json()
+
+
+def _format_post(post_view: dict) -> dict:
+    """Extract relevant fields from an AT Protocol post view."""
+    post = post_view.get("post", post_view)
+    record = post.get("record", {})
+    author = post.get("author", {})
+    return {
+        "text": record.get("text", ""),
+        "author_handle": author.get("handle", ""),
+        "author_display_name": author.get("displayName", ""),
+        "created_at": record.get("createdAt", ""),
+        "like_count": post.get("likeCount", 0),
+        "repost_count": post.get("repostCount", 0),
+        "reply_count": post.get("replyCount", 0),
+        "uri": post.get("uri", ""),
+        "cid": post.get("cid", ""),
+        "url": _uri_to_url(post.get("uri", ""), author.get("handle", "")),
+    }
+
+
+def _uri_to_url(uri: str, handle: str) -> str:
+    """Convert an at:// URI to a bsky.app URL."""
+    # at://did:plc:xxx/app.bsky.feed.post/rkey -> https://bsky.app/profile/handle/post/rkey
+    if not uri.startswith("at://"):
+        return ""
+    parts = uri.split("/")
+    if len(parts) >= 5:
+        rkey = parts[-1]
+        return f"https://bsky.app/profile/{handle}/post/{rkey}"
+    return ""
+
+
+async def search_posts(query: str, limit: int = 25, sort: str = "top") -> list[dict]:
+    """Search Bluesky for posts matching a query.
+
+    Requires BLUESKY_HANDLE and BLUESKY_APP_PASSWORD env vars.
+
+    Args:
+        query: Search terms.
+        limit: Max results (capped at 100).
+        sort: "top" (most liked) or "latest" (chronological).
+
+    Returns:
+        List of post dicts with: text, author_handle, author_display_name,
+        created_at, like_count, repost_count, reply_count, uri, url.
+
+    Raises:
+        RuntimeError: If Bluesky credentials are not configured.
+    """
+    session = await _get_session()
+    if not session:
+        raise RuntimeError(
+            "Bluesky search requires authentication. "
+            "Set BLUESKY_HANDLE and BLUESKY_APP_PASSWORD environment variables. "
+            "Create an app password at: https://bsky.app/settings/app-passwords"
+        )
+
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            f"{BSKY_AUTH_API}/xrpc/app.bsky.feed.searchPosts",
+            params={
+                "q": query,
+                "limit": min(limit, 100),
+                "sort": sort,
+            },
+            headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {session['accessJwt']}"},
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    return [_format_post(p) for p in data.get("posts", [])]
+
+
+async def get_thread(uri: str, depth: int = 6) -> dict:
+    """Fetch a Bluesky thread by AT URI or bsky.app URL.
+
+    Args:
+        uri: Either an at:// URI or a https://bsky.app/profile/.../post/... URL.
+        depth: How many levels of replies to fetch (max 1000).
+
+    Returns:
+        Dict with "post" (the root post) and "replies" (list of reply post dicts).
+    """
+    # Convert bsky.app URL to AT URI if needed
+    if uri.startswith("https://bsky.app/"):
+        uri = await _resolve_url_to_uri(uri)
+
+    headers = {}
+    session = await _get_session()
+    if session:
+        headers["Authorization"] = f"Bearer {session['accessJwt']}"
+
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            f"{BSKY_PUBLIC_API}/xrpc/app.bsky.feed.getPostThread",
+            params={"uri": uri, "depth": min(depth, 1000)},
+            headers=headers,
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    thread = data.get("thread", {})
+    root_post = _format_post(thread) if "post" in thread else {}
+
+    replies = []
+    for reply in thread.get("replies", []):
+        if "post" in reply:
+            replies.append(_format_post(reply))
+            # Include nested replies one level deep
+            for nested in reply.get("replies", []):
+                if "post" in nested:
+                    replies.append(_format_post(nested))
+
+    return {"post": root_post, "replies": replies}
+
+
+async def _resolve_url_to_uri(url: str) -> str:
+    """Convert a bsky.app URL to an AT URI by resolving the handle."""
+    # https://bsky.app/profile/handle.bsky.social/post/rkey
+    parts = url.rstrip("/").split("/")
+    if len(parts) < 6:
+        raise ValueError(f"Invalid Bluesky URL: {url}")
+
+    handle = parts[4]  # profile/{handle}
+    rkey = parts[6]  # post/{rkey}
+
+    # Resolve handle to DID
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=10) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            f"{BSKY_PUBLIC_API}/xrpc/com.atproto.identity.resolveHandle",
+            params={"handle": handle},
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        did = resp.json()["did"]
+
+    return f"at://{did}/app.bsky.feed.post/{rkey}"
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/hackernews.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/hackernews.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..350107f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/hackernews.py
@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+"""Hacker News client using the Algolia HN Search API.
+
+No authentication required. Docs: https://hn.algolia.com/api
+"""
+
+import httpx
+
+HN_API_BASE = "https://hn.algolia.com/api/v1"
+
+
+async def search_stories(query: str, limit: int = 25) -> list[dict]:
+    """Search HN for stories matching a query.
+
+    Returns a list of story dicts with: title, url, author, points,
+    num_comments, created_at, objectID, story_text.
+    """
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            f"{HN_API_BASE}/search",
+            params={
+                "query": query,
+                "tags": "story",
+                "hitsPerPage": min(limit, 50),
+            },
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    results = []
+    for hit in data.get("hits", []):
+        results.append(
+            {
+                "title": hit.get("title", ""),
+                "url": hit.get("url", ""),
+                "author": hit.get("author", ""),
+                "points": hit.get("points", 0),
+                "num_comments": hit.get("num_comments", 0),
+                "created_at": hit.get("created_at", ""),
+                "object_id": hit.get("objectID", ""),
+                "story_text": hit.get("story_text") or "",
+                "hn_url": f"https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id={hit.get('objectID', '')}",
+            }
+        )
+    return results
+
+
+async def search_comments(query: str, limit: int = 25) -> list[dict]:
+    """Search HN for comments matching a query.
+
+    Returns a list of comment dicts with: comment_text, author, points,
+    created_at, story_title, story_url.
+    """
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            f"{HN_API_BASE}/search",
+            params={
+                "query": query,
+                "tags": "comment",
+                "hitsPerPage": min(limit, 50),
+            },
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    results = []
+    for hit in data.get("hits", []):
+        results.append(
+            {
+                "comment_text": hit.get("comment_text", ""),
+                "author": hit.get("author", ""),
+                "points": hit.get("points", 0),
+                "created_at": hit.get("created_at", ""),
+                "story_title": hit.get("story_title", ""),
+                "story_url": hit.get("story_url", ""),
+                "hn_url": f"https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id={hit.get('objectID', '')}",
+            }
+        )
+    return results
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/reddit.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/reddit.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6a9d129
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/clients/reddit.py
@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+"""Reddit client using the public JSON API.
+
+No authentication required for read-only search. Reddit requires a descriptive
+User-Agent header — requests with generic UAs get 429'd.
+"""
+
+import httpx
+
+REDDIT_BASE = "https://www.reddit.com"
+USER_AGENT = "sentiment-agent/0.1.0 (research; sentiment analysis tool)"
+
+
+async def search_posts(
+    query: str,
+    subreddit: str = "all",
+    sort: str = "relevance",
+    time_filter: str = "month",
+    limit: int = 25,
+) -> list[dict]:
+    """Search Reddit for posts matching a query.
+
+    Args:
+        query: Search terms.
+        subreddit: Subreddit to search within, or "all" for site-wide.
+        sort: One of "relevance", "hot", "top", "new", "comments".
+        time_filter: One of "hour", "day", "week", "month", "year", "all".
+        limit: Max results (capped at 100 by Reddit).
+
+    Returns:
+        List of post dicts with: title, selftext, author, score,
+        num_comments, subreddit, url, permalink, created_utc.
+    """
+    url = f"{REDDIT_BASE}/r/{subreddit}/search.json"
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15, follow_redirects=True) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            url,
+            params={
+                "q": query,
+                "sort": sort,
+                "t": time_filter,
+                "limit": min(limit, 100),
+                "restrict_sr": "on" if subreddit != "all" else "off",
+            },
+            headers={"User-Agent": USER_AGENT},
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    results = []
+    for child in data.get("data", {}).get("children", []):
+        post = child.get("data", {})
+        results.append(
+            {
+                "title": post.get("title", ""),
+                "selftext": (post.get("selftext") or "")[:2000],
+                "author": post.get("author", "[deleted]"),
+                "score": post.get("score", 0),
+                "upvote_ratio": post.get("upvote_ratio", 0),
+                "num_comments": post.get("num_comments", 0),
+                "subreddit": post.get("subreddit", ""),
+                "url": post.get("url", ""),
+                "permalink": f"https://reddit.com{post.get('permalink', '')}",
+                "created_utc": post.get("created_utc", 0),
+                "is_self": post.get("is_self", False),
+            }
+        )
+    return results
+
+
+async def get_post_comments(
+    permalink: str,
+    sort: str = "top",
+    limit: int = 25,
+) -> list[dict]:
+    """Fetch top-level comments for a Reddit post.
+
+    Args:
+        permalink: The post's permalink path (e.g., "/r/python/comments/abc123/title/").
+        sort: Comment sort order: "top", "best", "new", "controversial".
+        limit: Max comments to return.
+
+    Returns:
+        List of comment dicts with: body, author, score, created_utc.
+    """
+    # Strip domain if full URL was passed
+    if permalink.startswith("https://"):
+        permalink = permalink.replace("https://reddit.com", "")
+        permalink = permalink.replace("https://www.reddit.com", "")
+
+    url = f"{REDDIT_BASE}{permalink}.json"
+    async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=15, follow_redirects=True) as client:
+        resp = await client.get(
+            url,
+            params={"sort": sort, "limit": limit},
+            headers={"User-Agent": USER_AGENT},
+        )
+        resp.raise_for_status()
+        data = resp.json()
+
+    # Reddit returns [post_listing, comments_listing]
+    if not isinstance(data, list) or len(data) < 2:
+        return []
+
+    results = []
+    for child in data[1].get("data", {}).get("children", []):
+        if child.get("kind") != "t1":
+            continue
+        comment = child.get("data", {})
+        results.append(
+            {
+                "body": (comment.get("body") or "")[:2000],
+                "author": comment.get("author", "[deleted]"),
+                "score": comment.get("score", 0),
+                "created_utc": comment.get("created_utc", 0),
+            }
+        )
+    return results
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/config.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/config.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d12370d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/config.py
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+"""Configuration and safety limits for the sentiment agent.
+
+All guardrails are centralized here so they can be tuned from one place
+or overridden via CLI flags / env vars.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import os
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+
+
+@dataclass(frozen=True)
+class RateLimitConfig:
+    """Per-platform rate limiting."""
+
+    requests_per_minute: int = 10
+    burst_size: int = 3  # max concurrent requests
+    cooldown_after_429: float = 30.0  # seconds to wait after a 429
+
+
+@dataclass(frozen=True)
+class SafetyConfig:
+    """Top-level safety rails for the agent."""
+
+    # --- Agent-level limits ---
+    max_turns: int = 20
+    max_budget_usd: float = 0.50  # hard cap on Claude API spend per run
+    max_total_api_calls: int = 50  # across ALL platforms combined
+    max_results_per_call: int = 50  # cap the `limit` param sent to any API
+
+    # --- Per-platform rate limits ---
+    bluesky_rate: RateLimitConfig = field(default_factory=lambda: RateLimitConfig(
+        requests_per_minute=10, burst_size=2,
+    ))
+    reddit_rate: RateLimitConfig = field(default_factory=lambda: RateLimitConfig(
+        requests_per_minute=10, burst_size=2,
+    ))
+    hackernews_rate: RateLimitConfig = field(default_factory=lambda: RateLimitConfig(
+        requests_per_minute=15, burst_size=3,  # HN Algolia is more generous
+    ))
+
+    # --- Content size limits ---
+    max_post_text_chars: int = 2000  # truncate individual posts beyond this
+    max_total_content_bytes: int = 500_000  # ~500KB total data gathered before agent stops
+
+    # --- Timeout ---
+    api_timeout_seconds: float = 15.0
+
+    # --- Credibility thresholds ---
+    min_credibility_score: float = 0.3  # posts below this are flagged/excluded
+    flag_bot_threshold: float = 0.5  # posts between min and this are flagged but included
+
+    @classmethod
+    def from_env(cls) -> SafetyConfig:
+        """Build config with env var overrides.
+
+        Env vars: SENTIMENT_MAX_TURNS, SENTIMENT_MAX_BUDGET_USD,
+        SENTIMENT_MAX_API_CALLS, SENTIMENT_MIN_CREDIBILITY.
+        """
+        kwargs: dict = {}
+        if v := os.environ.get("SENTIMENT_MAX_TURNS"):
+            kwargs["max_turns"] = int(v)
+        if v := os.environ.get("SENTIMENT_MAX_BUDGET_USD"):
+            kwargs["max_budget_usd"] = float(v)
+        if v := os.environ.get("SENTIMENT_MAX_API_CALLS"):
+            kwargs["max_total_api_calls"] = int(v)
+        if v := os.environ.get("SENTIMENT_MIN_CREDIBILITY"):
+            kwargs["min_credibility_score"] = float(v)
+        return cls(**kwargs)
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/credibility.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/credibility.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..574ec1f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/credibility.py
@@ -0,0 +1,398 @@
+"""Credibility scoring and bot/disinfo detection.
+
+Assigns a 0.0–1.0 credibility score to each post based on heuristic signals.
+Posts below the configured threshold are excluded or flagged so they don't
+pollute the sentiment analysis.
+
+Signals are platform-aware — each platform has different indicators of
+inauthentic behavior.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import re
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+
+
+@dataclass
+class CredibilityResult:
+    """Credibility assessment for a single post."""
+
+    score: float  # 0.0 (likely bot/disinfo) to 1.0 (likely authentic)
+    flags: list[str] = field(default_factory=list)  # human-readable reasons
+    is_excluded: bool = False  # below min_credibility_score
+    is_flagged: bool = False  # between min and flag threshold
+
+    @property
+    def label(self) -> str:
+        if self.score >= 0.7:
+            return "likely_authentic"
+        if self.score >= 0.5:
+            return "uncertain"
+        if self.score >= 0.3:
+            return "suspicious"
+        return "likely_inauthentic"
+
+
+# --- Shared heuristics ---
+
+# Common bot patterns in text
+_BOT_TEXT_PATTERNS = [
+    # Crypto/scam spam
+    re.compile(r"(?i)(dm me|check my bio|link in bio|click here|free giveaway)"),
+    re.compile(r"(?i)(join my|subscribe to|follow me for|🔥.*🔥.*🔥)"),
+    # Astroturfing phrases
+    re.compile(r"(?i)(i (just )?(discovered|found|tried) this (amazing|incredible|awesome))"),
+    re.compile(r"(?i)(game.?changer|life.?changing|you won'?t believe)"),
+    # Excessive hashtags (5+)
+    re.compile(r"(#\w+\s*){5,}"),
+    # Walls of emojis (10+ consecutive)
+    re.compile(r"[\U0001F300-\U0001FAFF]{10,}"),
+    # Repetitive characters (spammy emphasis)
+    re.compile(r"(.)\1{9,}"),
+]
+
+# Coordinated campaign indicators: identical or near-identical text
+# This is checked at the batch level, not per-post
+
+
+def _check_text_patterns(text: str) -> list[str]:
+    """Check text against common bot/spam patterns."""
+    flags = []
+    for pattern in _BOT_TEXT_PATTERNS:
+        if pattern.search(text):
+            flags.append(f"bot_text_pattern: {pattern.pattern[:60]}")
+    if len(text) < 15:
+        flags.append("very_short_text")
+    return flags
+
+
+def _engagement_ratio_score(
+    likes: int, reposts: int, replies: int
+) -> tuple[float, list[str]]:
+    """Score based on engagement ratios.
+
+    Authentic posts tend to have a mix of likes, replies, and reposts.
+    Bot-amplified posts often have inflated likes with very few replies,
+    or massive repost counts with no discussion.
+    """
+    flags = []
+    total = likes + reposts + replies
+
+    if total == 0:
+        return 0.5, ["no_engagement"]
+
+    # High repost-to-reply ratio suggests amplification without discussion
+    if reposts > 0 and replies == 0 and reposts > 10:
+        flags.append(f"high_repost_no_replies: {reposts} reposts, 0 replies")
+        return 0.3, flags
+
+    # Extremely high like count with zero replies is suspicious
+    if likes > 100 and replies == 0:
+        flags.append(f"high_likes_no_replies: {likes} likes, 0 replies")
+        return 0.4, flags
+
+    # Normal engagement
+    return min(1.0, 0.5 + (replies / max(total, 1)) * 0.5), flags
+
+
+# --- Platform-specific scoring ---
+
+
+def score_bluesky_post(post: dict) -> CredibilityResult:
+    """Score a Bluesky post for credibility."""
+    score = 1.0
+    flags: list[str] = []
+
+    text = post.get("text", "")
+    handle = post.get("author_handle", "")
+    display_name = post.get("author_display_name", "")
+    likes = post.get("like_count", 0)
+    reposts = post.get("repost_count", 0)
+    replies = post.get("reply_count", 0)
+
+    # Text pattern checks
+    text_flags = _check_text_patterns(text)
+    if text_flags:
+        score -= 0.15 * len(text_flags)
+        flags.extend(text_flags)
+
+    # Handle heuristics
+    # Randomly generated handles (long hex/number strings)
+    if re.match(r"^[a-f0-9]{8,}\.", handle):
+        flags.append(f"random_handle: {handle}")
+        score -= 0.3
+
+    # No display name set
+    if not display_name or display_name == handle:
+        flags.append("no_display_name")
+        score -= 0.1
+
+    # Engagement ratio
+    eng_score, eng_flags = _engagement_ratio_score(likes, reposts, replies)
+    flags.extend(eng_flags)
+    score = score * 0.6 + eng_score * 0.4
+
+    return CredibilityResult(score=max(0.0, min(1.0, score)), flags=flags)
+
+
+def score_reddit_post(post: dict) -> CredibilityResult:
+    """Score a Reddit post for credibility."""
+    score = 1.0
+    flags: list[str] = []
+
+    text = post.get("selftext", "") or post.get("title", "")
+    author = post.get("author", "")
+    upvote_ratio = post.get("upvote_ratio", 0.5)
+    post_score = post.get("score", 0)
+    num_comments = post.get("num_comments", 0)
+
+    # Text patterns
+    text_flags = _check_text_patterns(text)
+    if text_flags:
+        score -= 0.15 * len(text_flags)
+        flags.extend(text_flags)
+
+    # Deleted author
+    if author in ("[deleted]", "[removed]"):
+        flags.append("deleted_author")
+        score -= 0.2
+
+    # Suspicious username patterns (random alphanumeric + numbers)
+    if re.match(r"^[A-Za-z]+[-_]?\d{4,}$", author):
+        flags.append(f"auto_generated_username: {author}")
+        score -= 0.15
+
+    # Very controversial ratio (lots of up AND down votes)
+    if upvote_ratio < 0.4 and post_score > 0:
+        flags.append(f"highly_controversial: {upvote_ratio:.0%} upvote ratio")
+        score -= 0.1
+
+    # High score but zero comments = potential vote manipulation
+    if post_score > 100 and num_comments == 0:
+        flags.append(f"high_score_no_comments: {post_score} score, 0 comments")
+        score -= 0.2
+
+    # Low-effort cross-post spam: very short title, external link, no selftext
+    if (
+        len(post.get("title", "")) < 20
+        and not post.get("is_self", True)
+        and not post.get("selftext")
+    ):
+        flags.append("possible_link_spam")
+        score -= 0.1
+
+    return CredibilityResult(score=max(0.0, min(1.0, score)), flags=flags)
+
+
+def score_reddit_comment(comment: dict) -> CredibilityResult:
+    """Score a Reddit comment for credibility."""
+    score = 1.0
+    flags: list[str] = []
+
+    body = comment.get("body", "")
+    author = comment.get("author", "")
+    comment_score = comment.get("score", 0)
+
+    text_flags = _check_text_patterns(body)
+    if text_flags:
+        score -= 0.15 * len(text_flags)
+        flags.extend(text_flags)
+
+    if author in ("[deleted]", "[removed]"):
+        flags.append("deleted_author")
+        score -= 0.2
+
+    if re.match(r"^[A-Za-z]+[-_]?\d{4,}$", author):
+        flags.append(f"auto_generated_username: {author}")
+        score -= 0.15
+
+    # Heavily downvoted
+    if comment_score < -5:
+        flags.append(f"heavily_downvoted: {comment_score}")
+        score -= 0.15
+
+    return CredibilityResult(score=max(0.0, min(1.0, score)), flags=flags)
+
+
+def score_hackernews_post(post: dict) -> CredibilityResult:
+    """Score a HN story for credibility.
+
+    HN is generally higher-signal than social media, but we still check
+    for low-effort submissions and spammy patterns.
+    """
+    score = 1.0
+    flags: list[str] = []
+
+    title = post.get("title", "")
+    text = post.get("story_text", "") or title
+    points = post.get("points", 0)
+    num_comments = post.get("num_comments", 0)
+
+    text_flags = _check_text_patterns(text)
+    if text_flags:
+        score -= 0.1 * len(text_flags)
+        flags.extend(text_flags)
+
+    # Zero points = the community didn't find it valuable
+    if points == 0:
+        flags.append("zero_points")
+        score -= 0.1
+
+    # HN is generally more credible, start with a bonus
+    score = min(1.0, score + 0.1)
+
+    return CredibilityResult(score=max(0.0, min(1.0, score)), flags=flags)
+
+
+def score_hackernews_comment(comment: dict) -> CredibilityResult:
+    """Score a HN comment for credibility."""
+    score = 1.0
+    flags: list[str] = []
+
+    text = comment.get("comment_text", "")
+
+    text_flags = _check_text_patterns(text)
+    if text_flags:
+        score -= 0.1 * len(text_flags)
+        flags.extend(text_flags)
+
+    # HN comments are generally higher quality
+    score = min(1.0, score + 0.1)
+
+    return CredibilityResult(score=max(0.0, min(1.0, score)), flags=flags)
+
+
+# --- Batch-level coordination detection ---
+
+
+def detect_coordination(posts: list[dict], text_key: str = "text") -> list[str]:
+    """Detect coordinated inauthentic behavior across a batch of posts.
+
+    Looks for:
+    - Duplicate or near-duplicate text (copy-paste campaigns)
+    - Burst posting (many posts in a very short window)
+    - Same talking points with minor variations
+
+    Returns a list of warning strings.
+    """
+    warnings: list[str] = []
+    texts = [p.get(text_key, "") for p in posts if p.get(text_key)]
+
+    if not texts:
+        return warnings
+
+    # Exact duplicates
+    seen: dict[str, int] = {}
+    for t in texts:
+        normalized = t.strip().lower()
+        seen[normalized] = seen.get(normalized, 0) + 1
+
+    duplicates = {text: count for text, count in seen.items() if count > 1}
+    if duplicates:
+        total_dupes = sum(duplicates.values())
+        warnings.append(
+            f"COORDINATION WARNING: {len(duplicates)} duplicate texts found "
+            f"({total_dupes} total copies). Possible copy-paste campaign."
+        )
+
+    # Near-duplicates: check if many posts share a long common substring
+    # (simplified: check if >30% of posts start with the same 50+ chars)
+    if len(texts) >= 5:
+        prefixes: dict[str, int] = {}
+        for t in texts:
+            prefix = t.strip().lower()[:80]
+            if len(prefix) >= 50:
+                prefixes[prefix] = prefixes.get(prefix, 0) + 1
+
+        for prefix, count in prefixes.items():
+            if count >= len(texts) * 0.3:
+                warnings.append(
+                    f"COORDINATION WARNING: {count}/{len(texts)} posts share "
+                    f"a common prefix ({prefix[:50]}...). Possible template campaign."
+                )
+
+    # Burst detection: if timestamps are available
+    timestamps = []
+    for p in posts:
+        created = p.get("created_at") or p.get("created_utc")
+        if isinstance(created, str):
+            try:
+                timestamps.append(datetime.fromisoformat(created.replace("Z", "+00:00")))
+            except (ValueError, TypeError):
+                pass
+        elif isinstance(created, (int, float)):
+            timestamps.append(datetime.fromtimestamp(created, tz=timezone.utc))
+
+    if len(timestamps) >= 5:
+        timestamps.sort()
+        # Check if >50% of posts landed within a 5-minute window
+        window_seconds = 300
+        for i in range(len(timestamps) - 2):
+            window_end = timestamps[i] + __import__("datetime").timedelta(seconds=window_seconds)
+            in_window = sum(1 for t in timestamps if timestamps[i] <= t <= window_end)
+            if in_window >= len(timestamps) * 0.5:
+                warnings.append(
+                    f"COORDINATION WARNING: {in_window}/{len(timestamps)} posts "
+                    f"appeared within a 5-minute window. Possible coordinated posting."
+                )
+                break
+
+    return warnings
+
+
+def filter_and_annotate(
+    posts: list[dict],
+    scorer,
+    min_score: float = 0.3,
+    flag_threshold: float = 0.5,
+) -> tuple[list[dict], dict]:
+    """Score all posts, filter out low-credibility ones, and annotate the rest.
+
+    Args:
+        posts: List of post dicts from any platform.
+        scorer: A scoring function (e.g., score_reddit_post).
+        min_score: Posts below this are excluded.
+        flag_threshold: Posts between min_score and this are flagged.
+
+    Returns:
+        Tuple of (filtered_posts, stats_dict).
+        Each post in filtered_posts gets a "_credibility" key added.
+    """
+    filtered = []
+    stats = {
+        "total": len(posts),
+        "excluded": 0,
+        "flagged": 0,
+        "authentic": 0,
+        "excluded_reasons": [],
+    }
+
+    for post in posts:
+        result = scorer(post)
+        result.is_excluded = result.score < min_score
+        result.is_flagged = min_score <= result.score < flag_threshold
+
+        if result.is_excluded:
+            stats["excluded"] += 1
+            stats["excluded_reasons"].append(
+                {"score": round(result.score, 2), "flags": result.flags}
+            )
+            continue
+
+        post["_credibility"] = {
+            "score": round(result.score, 2),
+            "label": result.label,
+            "flags": result.flags,
+            "is_flagged": result.is_flagged,
+        }
+
+        if result.is_flagged:
+            stats["flagged"] += 1
+        else:
+            stats["authentic"] += 1
+
+        filtered.append(post)
+
+    return filtered, stats
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/main.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/main.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2e4a178
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/main.py
@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+"""CLI entry point for the sentiment analysis agent."""
+
+import argparse
+import anyio
+
+from sentiment_agent.agent import run_sentiment_analysis
+from sentiment_agent.config import SafetyConfig
+
+
+async def async_main(args: argparse.Namespace) -> None:
+    config = SafetyConfig(
+        max_turns=args.max_turns,
+        max_budget_usd=args.max_budget,
+        max_total_api_calls=args.max_api_calls,
+        min_credibility_score=args.min_credibility,
+        flag_bot_threshold=args.flag_threshold,
+    )
+
+    result = await run_sentiment_analysis(
+        topic=args.topic,
+        sources=args.sources,
+        config=config,
+    )
+    print("\n" + "=" * 60)
+    print("SENTIMENT ANALYSIS REPORT")
+    print("=" * 60)
+    print(result)
+
+
+def main() -> None:
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(
+        description="Run sentiment analysis on a topic with bot/disinfo detection",
+        formatter_class=argparse.ArgumentDefaultsHelpFormatter,
+    )
+    parser.add_argument("topic", help="The topic to analyze sentiment for")
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--sources", nargs="*", help="Specific URLs or sources to also analyze"
+    )
+
+    safety = parser.add_argument_group("safety limits")
+    safety.add_argument(
+        "--max-turns", type=int, default=20, help="Max agent turns"
+    )
+    safety.add_argument(
+        "--max-budget", type=float, default=0.50, help="Max Claude API spend (USD)"
+    )
+    safety.add_argument(
+        "--max-api-calls", type=int, default=50, help="Max total API calls across all platforms"
+    )
+
+    credibility = parser.add_argument_group("credibility filtering")
+    credibility.add_argument(
+        "--min-credibility", type=float, default=0.3,
+        help="Posts below this score are excluded (0.0-1.0)",
+    )
+    credibility.add_argument(
+        "--flag-threshold", type=float, default=0.5,
+        help="Posts between min and this are flagged but included (0.0-1.0)",
+    )
+
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+    anyio.run(async_main, args)
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/ratelimit.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/ratelimit.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..17b4d24
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/ratelimit.py
@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+"""Rate limiter and API call budget tracker.
+
+Enforces per-platform rate limits and a global call budget so the agent
+can't hammer APIs or run up unbounded costs.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import asyncio
+import time
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+
+from sentiment_agent.config import RateLimitConfig
+
+
+class BudgetExhaustedError(Exception):
+    """Raised when the global API call budget is spent."""
+
+
+class RateLimitExceededError(Exception):
+    """Raised when a platform's rate limit is hit and cooldown hasn't elapsed."""
+
+
+@dataclass
+class _PlatformState:
+    """Tracks call timestamps and active request count for one platform."""
+
+    config: RateLimitConfig
+    call_timestamps: list[float] = field(default_factory=list)
+    active_requests: int = 0
+    last_429_at: float = 0.0
+
+
+class RateLimiter:
+    """Manages rate limiting across all platforms + a global call budget.
+
+    Usage:
+        limiter = RateLimiter(max_total_calls=50)
+        limiter.register_platform("reddit", RateLimitConfig(...))
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("reddit"):
+            await do_reddit_call()
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, max_total_calls: int = 50):
+        self._max_total = max_total_calls
+        self._total_calls = 0
+        self._platforms: dict[str, _PlatformState] = {}
+        self._lock = asyncio.Lock()
+
+    @property
+    def total_calls(self) -> int:
+        return self._total_calls
+
+    @property
+    def remaining_calls(self) -> int:
+        return max(0, self._max_total - self._total_calls)
+
+    def register_platform(self, name: str, config: RateLimitConfig) -> None:
+        self._platforms[name] = _PlatformState(config=config)
+
+    def acquire(self, platform: str) -> _AcquireContext:
+        """Context manager that enforces rate limits before allowing a call."""
+        return _AcquireContext(self, platform)
+
+    async def _acquire(self, platform: str) -> None:
+        async with self._lock:
+            if self._total_calls >= self._max_total:
+                raise BudgetExhaustedError(
+                    f"Global API call budget exhausted ({self._max_total} calls). "
+                    "Increase max_total_api_calls in SafetyConfig to allow more."
+                )
+
+            state = self._platforms.get(platform)
+            if not state:
+                raise ValueError(f"Platform '{platform}' not registered with rate limiter")
+
+            now = time.monotonic()
+
+            # Check 429 cooldown
+            if state.last_429_at:
+                elapsed = now - state.last_429_at
+                if elapsed < state.config.cooldown_after_429:
+                    remaining = state.config.cooldown_after_429 - elapsed
+                    raise RateLimitExceededError(
+                        f"Platform '{platform}' is in cooldown after 429. "
+                        f"Try again in {remaining:.0f}s."
+                    )
+                state.last_429_at = 0.0
+
+            # Check burst limit
+            if state.active_requests >= state.config.burst_size:
+                raise RateLimitExceededError(
+                    f"Platform '{platform}' burst limit reached "
+                    f"({state.config.burst_size} concurrent). Wait for a request to finish."
+                )
+
+            # Check RPM: discard timestamps older than 60s, then check count
+            cutoff = now - 60.0
+            state.call_timestamps = [t for t in state.call_timestamps if t > cutoff]
+
+            if len(state.call_timestamps) >= state.config.requests_per_minute:
+                oldest = state.call_timestamps[0]
+                wait_time = 60.0 - (now - oldest)
+                raise RateLimitExceededError(
+                    f"Platform '{platform}' rate limit: {state.config.requests_per_minute}/min. "
+                    f"Try again in {wait_time:.0f}s."
+                )
+
+            # All clear — record the call
+            state.call_timestamps.append(now)
+            state.active_requests += 1
+            self._total_calls += 1
+
+    async def _release(self, platform: str) -> None:
+        async with self._lock:
+            state = self._platforms.get(platform)
+            if state:
+                state.active_requests = max(0, state.active_requests - 1)
+
+    def record_429(self, platform: str) -> None:
+        """Call this when an API returns 429 to trigger cooldown."""
+        state = self._platforms.get(platform)
+        if state:
+            state.last_429_at = time.monotonic()
+
+    def get_stats(self) -> dict:
+        """Return current usage stats for logging/reporting."""
+        stats: dict = {
+            "total_calls": self._total_calls,
+            "remaining_calls": self.remaining_calls,
+            "platforms": {},
+        }
+        for name, state in self._platforms.items():
+            now = time.monotonic()
+            cutoff = now - 60.0
+            recent = [t for t in state.call_timestamps if t > cutoff]
+            stats["platforms"][name] = {
+                "calls_last_60s": len(recent),
+                "active_requests": state.active_requests,
+                "rpm_limit": state.config.requests_per_minute,
+                "in_cooldown": bool(
+                    state.last_429_at
+                    and (now - state.last_429_at) < state.config.cooldown_after_429
+                ),
+            }
+        return stats
+
+
+class _AcquireContext:
+    """Async context manager for rate-limited API calls."""
+
+    def __init__(self, limiter: RateLimiter, platform: str):
+        self._limiter = limiter
+        self._platform = platform
+
+    async def __aenter__(self) -> None:
+        await self._limiter._acquire(self._platform)
+
+    async def __aexit__(self, *exc_info) -> None:
+        # Check if the call got a 429
+        if exc_info[0] is not None:
+            import httpx
+
+            exc = exc_info[1]
+            if isinstance(exc, httpx.HTTPStatusError) and exc.response.status_code == 429:
+                self._limiter.record_429(self._platform)
+
+        await self._limiter._release(self._platform)
diff --git a/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/tools.py b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/tools.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4706f00
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agentstuff/sentiment_agent/tools.py
@@ -0,0 +1,352 @@
+"""Custom MCP tools for social media and forum data gathering.
+
+Each tool wraps an API client, enforces rate limits, runs credibility
+scoring, and returns MCP-formatted results with bot/disinfo annotations.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import json
+import traceback
+
+from claude_agent_sdk import tool, create_sdk_mcp_server
+
+from sentiment_agent.clients import bluesky, reddit, hackernews
+from sentiment_agent.config import SafetyConfig
+from sentiment_agent.credibility import (
+    detect_coordination,
+    filter_and_annotate,
+    score_bluesky_post,
+    score_hackernews_comment,
+    score_hackernews_post,
+    score_reddit_comment,
+    score_reddit_post,
+)
+from sentiment_agent.ratelimit import BudgetExhaustedError, RateLimiter
+
+# Module-level state — initialized by create_social_tools_server()
+_limiter: RateLimiter | None = None
+_config: SafetyConfig | None = None
+
+
+def _get_limiter() -> RateLimiter:
+    if _limiter is None:
+        raise RuntimeError("Tools not initialized — call create_social_tools_server() first")
+    return _limiter
+
+
+def _get_config() -> SafetyConfig:
+    if _config is None:
+        return SafetyConfig()
+    return _config
+
+
+def _text_result(text: str) -> dict:
+    return {"content": [{"type": "text", "text": text}]}
+
+
+def _error_result(error: str) -> dict:
+    return {"content": [{"type": "text", "text": f"Error: {error}"}], "isError": True}
+
+
+def _clamp_limit(requested: int) -> int:
+    """Enforce max results per call."""
+    return min(requested, _get_config().max_results_per_call)
+
+
+def _format_with_stats(
+    posts: list[dict],
+    stats: dict,
+    coordination_warnings: list[str],
+    platform: str,
+) -> str:
+    """Format results with credibility stats prepended."""
+    header_parts = [
+        f"Platform: {platform}",
+        f"Results: {stats['authentic']} authentic, {stats['flagged']} flagged, "
+        f"{stats['excluded']} excluded (of {stats['total']} total)",
+    ]
+    if coordination_warnings:
+        header_parts.append("--- COORDINATION ALERTS ---")
+        header_parts.extend(coordination_warnings)
+        header_parts.append("---")
+
+    limiter = _get_limiter()
+    header_parts.append(f"API budget remaining: {limiter.remaining_calls} calls")
+
+    header = "\n".join(header_parts)
+    body = json.dumps(posts, indent=2, default=str)
+    return f"{header}\n\n{body}"
+
+
+# --- Bluesky tools ---
+
+
+@tool(
+    "search_bluesky",
+    "Search Bluesky for posts about a topic. Returns posts with text, author, "
+    "engagement metrics, credibility scores, and bot/disinfo flags. "
+    "Requires BLUESKY_HANDLE and BLUESKY_APP_PASSWORD env vars.",
+    {"query": str, "limit": int, "sort": str},
+)
+async def search_bluesky(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("bluesky"):
+            posts = await bluesky.search_posts(
+                query=args["query"],
+                limit=_clamp_limit(args.get("limit", 25)),
+                sort=args.get("sort", "top"),
+            )
+
+        if not posts:
+            return _text_result(f"No Bluesky posts found for: {args['query']}")
+
+        coordination = detect_coordination(posts, text_key="text")
+        filtered, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+            posts, score_bluesky_post,
+            min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+            flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+        )
+        return _text_result(_format_with_stats(filtered, stats, coordination, "Bluesky"))
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"Bluesky search failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+@tool(
+    "get_bluesky_thread",
+    "Fetch a Bluesky thread/post and its replies with credibility scoring. "
+    "Accepts an at:// URI or https://bsky.app/... URL.",
+    {"uri": str, "depth": int},
+)
+async def get_bluesky_thread(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("bluesky"):
+            thread = await bluesky.get_thread(
+                uri=args["uri"],
+                depth=args.get("depth", 6),
+            )
+
+        # Score replies
+        if thread.get("replies"):
+            coordination = detect_coordination(thread["replies"], text_key="text")
+            filtered_replies, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+                thread["replies"], score_bluesky_post,
+                min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+                flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+            )
+            thread["replies"] = filtered_replies
+            thread["_reply_credibility_stats"] = stats
+            thread["_coordination_warnings"] = coordination
+
+        # Score root post
+        if thread.get("post"):
+            result = score_bluesky_post(thread["post"])
+            thread["post"]["_credibility"] = {
+                "score": round(result.score, 2),
+                "label": result.label,
+                "flags": result.flags,
+            }
+
+        return _text_result(json.dumps(thread, indent=2, default=str))
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"Bluesky thread fetch failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+# --- Reddit tools ---
+
+
+@tool(
+    "search_reddit",
+    "Search Reddit for posts about a topic. Returns posts with credibility scores "
+    "and bot/disinfo flags. Posts below the credibility threshold are auto-excluded. "
+    "Use subreddit='all' for site-wide or specify a subreddit name.",
+    {"query": str, "subreddit": str, "sort": str, "time_filter": str, "limit": int},
+)
+async def search_reddit_tool(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("reddit"):
+            posts = await reddit.search_posts(
+                query=args["query"],
+                subreddit=args.get("subreddit", "all"),
+                sort=args.get("sort", "relevance"),
+                time_filter=args.get("time_filter", "month"),
+                limit=_clamp_limit(args.get("limit", 25)),
+            )
+
+        if not posts:
+            return _text_result(f"No Reddit posts found for: {args['query']}")
+
+        coordination = detect_coordination(posts, text_key="title")
+        filtered, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+            posts, score_reddit_post,
+            min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+            flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+        )
+        return _text_result(_format_with_stats(filtered, stats, coordination, "Reddit"))
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"Reddit search failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+@tool(
+    "get_reddit_comments",
+    "Fetch comments for a Reddit post with credibility scoring. "
+    "Pass the permalink path or full URL.",
+    {"permalink": str, "sort": str, "limit": int},
+)
+async def get_reddit_comments(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("reddit"):
+            comments = await reddit.get_post_comments(
+                permalink=args["permalink"],
+                sort=args.get("sort", "top"),
+                limit=_clamp_limit(args.get("limit", 25)),
+            )
+
+        if not comments:
+            return _text_result("No comments found for this post.")
+
+        coordination = detect_coordination(comments, text_key="body")
+        filtered, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+            comments, score_reddit_comment,
+            min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+            flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+        )
+        return _text_result(_format_with_stats(filtered, stats, coordination, "Reddit Comments"))
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"Reddit comments fetch failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+# --- Hacker News tools ---
+
+
+@tool(
+    "search_hackernews",
+    "Search Hacker News for stories with credibility scoring. "
+    "No authentication required.",
+    {"query": str, "limit": int},
+)
+async def search_hackernews_tool(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("hackernews"):
+            stories = await hackernews.search_stories(
+                query=args["query"],
+                limit=_clamp_limit(args.get("limit", 25)),
+            )
+
+        if not stories:
+            return _text_result(f"No HN stories found for: {args['query']}")
+
+        coordination = detect_coordination(stories, text_key="title")
+        filtered, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+            stories, score_hackernews_post,
+            min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+            flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+        )
+        return _text_result(_format_with_stats(filtered, stats, coordination, "Hacker News"))
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"HN search failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+@tool(
+    "search_hackernews_comments",
+    "Search Hacker News comments for opinions and discussions with credibility scoring.",
+    {"query": str, "limit": int},
+)
+async def search_hackernews_comments(args: dict) -> dict:
+    try:
+        limiter = _get_limiter()
+        config = _get_config()
+
+        async with limiter.acquire("hackernews"):
+            comments = await hackernews.search_comments(
+                query=args["query"],
+                limit=_clamp_limit(args.get("limit", 25)),
+            )
+
+        if not comments:
+            return _text_result(f"No HN comments found for: {args['query']}")
+
+        coordination = detect_coordination(comments, text_key="comment_text")
+        filtered, stats = filter_and_annotate(
+            comments, score_hackernews_comment,
+            min_score=config.min_credibility_score,
+            flag_threshold=config.flag_bot_threshold,
+        )
+        return _text_result(
+            _format_with_stats(filtered, stats, coordination, "HN Comments")
+        )
+    except BudgetExhaustedError as e:
+        return _error_result(str(e))
+    except Exception as e:
+        return _error_result(f"HN comment search failed: {e}\n{traceback.format_exc()}")
+
+
+# --- Budget status tool ---
+
+
+@tool(
+    "get_api_budget_status",
+    "Check remaining API call budget, rate limit status, and per-platform stats. "
+    "Use this before making more API calls to avoid hitting limits.",
+    {},
+)
+async def get_api_budget_status(args: dict) -> dict:
+    limiter = _get_limiter()
+    stats = limiter.get_stats()
+    return _text_result(json.dumps(stats, indent=2, default=str))
+
+
+# --- Server factory ---
+
+
+def create_social_tools_server(config: SafetyConfig | None = None):
+    """Create an MCP server with all social media/forum tools.
+
+    Initializes rate limiting and credibility thresholds from config.
+    """
+    global _limiter, _config
+
+    _config = config or SafetyConfig.from_env()
+
+    _limiter = RateLimiter(max_total_calls=_config.max_total_api_calls)
+    _limiter.register_platform("bluesky", _config.bluesky_rate)
+    _limiter.register_platform("reddit", _config.reddit_rate)
+    _limiter.register_platform("hackernews", _config.hackernews_rate)
+
+    return create_sdk_mcp_server(
+        "social-tools",
+        tools=[
+            search_bluesky,
+            get_bluesky_thread,
+            search_reddit_tool,
+            get_reddit_comments,
+            search_hackernews_tool,
+            search_hackernews_comments,
+            get_api_budget_status,
+        ],
+    )
diff --git a/frontends/web/app.py b/frontends/web/app.py
index 81fe8e2..e9bab4a 100644
--- a/frontends/web/app.py
+++ b/frontends/web/app.py
@@ -1119,7 +1119,7 @@ def _run_encode_job(job_id: str, encode_params: dict) -> None:
 
         filename = encode_result.filename
         if not filename:
-            filename = generate_filename("stego", output_ext)
+            filename = generate_filename(prefix="stego", extension=output_ext.lstrip("."))
         elif embed_mode == "dct" and dct_output_format == "jpeg" and filename.endswith(".png"):
             filename = filename[:-4] + ".jpg"
 
@@ -1210,7 +1210,7 @@ def _run_encode_audio_job(job_id: str, encode_params: dict) -> None:
             )
             return
 
-        filename = generate_filename("stego_audio", ".wav")
+        filename = generate_filename(prefix="stego_audio", extension="wav")
         file_id = secrets.token_urlsafe(16)
         temp_storage.save_temp_file(
             file_id,
@@ -1273,6 +1273,9 @@ def encode_page():
 
             if carrier_type == "audio":
                 # ========== AUDIO ENCODE PATH (v4.3.0) ==========
+                # Audio carrier uses a separate form field to avoid name collision
+                carrier = request.files.get("audio_carrier") or carrier
+
                 if not HAS_AUDIO_SUPPORT:
                     return _error_response(
                         "Audio steganography is not available. Install audio dependencies."
@@ -1439,7 +1442,7 @@ def encode_page():
                     error_msg = encode_result.error or "Audio encoding failed"
                     return _error_response(error_msg)
 
-                filename = generate_filename("stego_audio", ".wav")
+                filename = generate_filename(prefix="stego_audio", extension="wav")
                 file_id = secrets.token_urlsafe(16)
                 cleanup_temp_files()
                 temp_storage.save_temp_file(
@@ -1676,7 +1679,7 @@ def encode_page():
             # Use filename from result or generate one
             filename = encode_result.filename
             if not filename:
-                filename = generate_filename("stego", output_ext)
+                filename = generate_filename(prefix="stego", extension=output_ext.lstrip("."))
             elif embed_mode == "dct" and dct_output_format == "jpeg" and filename.endswith(".png"):
                 filename = filename[:-4] + ".jpg"
 
@@ -2029,6 +2032,9 @@ def decode_page():
 
             if carrier_type == "audio":
                 # ========== AUDIO DECODE PATH (v4.3.0) ==========
+                # Audio stego uses a separate form field to avoid name collision
+                stego_image = request.files.get("stego_audio") or stego_image
+
                 if not HAS_AUDIO_SUPPORT:
                     flash("Audio steganography is not available.", "error")
                     return render_template("decode.html", has_qrcode_read=HAS_QRCODE_READ)
diff --git a/frontends/web/static/js/stegasoo.js b/frontends/web/static/js/stegasoo.js
index 75eff42..1987e3f 100644
--- a/frontends/web/static/js/stegasoo.js
+++ b/frontends/web/static/js/stegasoo.js
@@ -974,13 +974,13 @@ const Stegasoo = {
                 body: formData,
             });
 
+            const result = await response.json().catch(() => null);
+
             if (!response.ok) {
-                throw new Error('Failed to start encode');
+                throw new Error((result && result.error) || 'Failed to start encode');
             }
 
-            const result = await response.json();
-
-            if (result.error) {
+            if (result && result.error) {
                 throw new Error(result.error);
             }
 
diff --git a/frontends/web/templates/decode.html b/frontends/web/templates/decode.html
index 2d0eda4..c604ed8 100644
--- a/frontends/web/templates/decode.html
+++ b/frontends/web/templates/decode.html
@@ -280,7 +280,7 @@
                                                     <i class="bi bi-file-earmark-music me-1"></i> Stego Audio
                                                 </label>
                                                 <div class="drop-zone pixel-container" id="audioStegoDropZone">
-                                                    <input type="file" name="stego_image" accept="audio/*" id="audioStegoInput">
+                                                    <input type="file" name="stego_audio" accept="audio/*" id="audioStegoInput">
                                                     <div class="drop-zone-label">
                                                         <i class="bi bi-music-note-beamed fs-3 d-block mb-2 text-muted"></i>
                                                         <span class="text-muted">Drop audio or click</span>
diff --git a/frontends/web/templates/encode.html b/frontends/web/templates/encode.html
index f8ea03e..e8957cc 100644
--- a/frontends/web/templates/encode.html
+++ b/frontends/web/templates/encode.html
@@ -240,6 +240,11 @@
                                         </div>
                                     </div>
 
+                                    <!-- Capacity Warning -->
+                                    <div class="form-text text-danger d-none" id="capacityWarning">
+                                        <i class="bi bi-exclamation-triangle-fill me-1"></i><span id="capacityWarningText"></span>
+                                    </div>
+
                                     <!-- Mode & Carrier Type toggles (aligned row) -->
                                     <div class="row">
                                         <div class="col-md-6">
@@ -541,6 +546,82 @@ const audioModeGroup = document.getElementById('audioModeGroup');
 const capacityPanel = document.getElementById('capacityPanel');
 const audioCapacityPanel = document.getElementById('audioCapacityPanel');
 
+// Capacity tracking for client-side payload size validation
+let capacityBytes = { dct: 0, lsb: 0, audio_lsb: 0, audio_spread: 0 };
+
+function checkCapacity() {
+    const warning = document.getElementById('capacityWarning');
+    const warningText = document.getElementById('capacityWarningText');
+    const encodeBtn = document.getElementById('encodeBtn');
+    if (!warning || !warningText || !encodeBtn) return;
+
+    // Determine payload size
+    const isText = document.getElementById('payloadText')?.checked;
+    let payloadSize = 0;
+    if (isText) {
+        const msg = document.getElementById('messageInput')?.value || '';
+        if (msg) payloadSize = new Blob([msg]).size;
+    } else {
+        const file = document.getElementById('payloadFileInput')?.files[0];
+        if (file) payloadSize = file.size;
+    }
+
+    // Get active mode
+    const mode = document.querySelector('input[name="embed_mode"]:checked')?.value || 'lsb';
+    const cap = capacityBytes[mode] || 0;
+
+    // Update char percent to use real capacity
+    if (isText) {
+        const charPercent = document.getElementById('charPercent');
+        if (charPercent) {
+            const effectiveCap = cap > 0 ? cap : 250000;
+            charPercent.textContent = Math.round((payloadSize / effectiveCap) * 100) + '%';
+        }
+    }
+
+    // Reset badge colors
+    const badgeMap = {
+        dct: 'dctCapacityBadge',
+        lsb: 'lsbCapacityBadge',
+        audio_lsb: 'lsbAudioCapacityBadge',
+        audio_spread: 'spreadCapacityBadge'
+    };
+
+    // Restore default badge colors
+    const dctBadge = document.getElementById('dctCapacityBadge');
+    const lsbBadge = document.getElementById('lsbCapacityBadge');
+    const audioLsbBadge = document.getElementById('lsbAudioCapacityBadge');
+    const spreadBadge = document.getElementById('spreadCapacityBadge');
+    if (dctBadge) { dctBadge.classList.remove('bg-danger'); dctBadge.classList.add('bg-warning'); }
+    if (lsbBadge) { lsbBadge.classList.remove('bg-danger'); lsbBadge.classList.add('bg-primary'); }
+    if (audioLsbBadge) { audioLsbBadge.classList.remove('bg-danger'); audioLsbBadge.classList.add('bg-primary'); }
+    if (spreadBadge) { spreadBadge.classList.remove('bg-danger'); spreadBadge.classList.add('bg-warning'); }
+
+    // No carrier or no payload — clear warning
+    if (cap === 0 || payloadSize === 0) {
+        warning.classList.add('d-none');
+        encodeBtn.disabled = false;
+        return;
+    }
+
+    if (payloadSize > cap) {
+        // Exceeds capacity — show warning, turn badge red, disable button
+        const activeBadge = document.getElementById(badgeMap[mode]);
+        if (activeBadge) {
+            activeBadge.classList.remove('bg-primary', 'bg-warning');
+            activeBadge.classList.add('bg-danger');
+        }
+        const needed = (payloadSize / 1024).toFixed(1);
+        const available = (cap / 1024).toFixed(1);
+        warningText.textContent = `Payload too large: ${needed} KB needed, only ${available} KB capacity in ${mode.replace('_', ' ').toUpperCase()} mode`;
+        warning.classList.remove('d-none');
+        encodeBtn.disabled = true;
+    } else {
+        warning.classList.add('d-none');
+        encodeBtn.disabled = false;
+    }
+}
+
 carrierTypeRadios.forEach(radio => {
     radio.addEventListener('change', function() {
         const isAudio = this.value === 'audio';
@@ -560,9 +641,17 @@ carrierTypeRadios.forEach(radio => {
         if (imageModeGroup) imageModeGroup.classList.toggle('d-none', isAudio);
         if (audioModeGroup) audioModeGroup.classList.toggle('d-none', !isAudio);
 
-        // Toggle capacity panels
+        // Toggle capacity panels and reset capacity values
         if (capacityPanel) capacityPanel.classList.add('d-none');
         if (audioCapacityPanel) audioCapacityPanel.classList.add('d-none');
+        if (isAudio) {
+            capacityBytes.dct = 0;
+            capacityBytes.lsb = 0;
+        } else {
+            capacityBytes.audio_lsb = 0;
+            capacityBytes.audio_spread = 0;
+        }
+        checkCapacity();
 
         // Select default mode for the active type and update hint
         if (isAudio) {
@@ -621,7 +710,10 @@ audioCarrierInput?.addEventListener('change', function() {
                 document.getElementById('audioInfo').textContent = info;
                 document.getElementById('lsbAudioCapacityBadge').textContent = `LSB: ${(data.lsb_capacity / 1024).toFixed(1)} KB`;
                 document.getElementById('spreadCapacityBadge').textContent = `Spread: ${(data.spread_capacity / 1024).toFixed(1)} KB`;
+                capacityBytes.audio_lsb = data.lsb_capacity;
+                capacityBytes.audio_spread = data.spread_capacity;
                 document.getElementById('audioCapacityPanel')?.classList.remove('d-none');
+                checkCapacity();
                 if (data.duration) {
                     document.getElementById('audioCarrierDuration').textContent = data.duration + 's duration';
                 }
@@ -763,6 +855,7 @@ function updatePayloadSection() {
         payloadFileInput.setAttribute('required', '');
     }
     updatePayloadSummary();
+    checkCapacity();
 }
 
 payloadTextRadio?.addEventListener('change', updatePayloadSection);
@@ -786,6 +879,7 @@ payloadFileInput?.addEventListener('change', function() {
     } else {
         fileInfo?.classList.add('d-none');
     }
+    checkCapacity();
 });
 
 // ============================================================================
@@ -795,7 +889,7 @@ payloadFileInput?.addEventListener('change', function() {
 messageInput?.addEventListener('input', function() {
     const count = this.value.length;
     document.getElementById('charCount').textContent = count.toLocaleString();
-    document.getElementById('charPercent').textContent = Math.round((count / 250000) * 100) + '%';
+    checkCapacity();
 });
 
 // ============================================================================
@@ -814,7 +908,10 @@ carrierInput?.addEventListener('change', function() {
                 document.getElementById('carrierDimensions').textContent = `${data.width} x ${data.height}`;
                 document.getElementById('lsbCapacityBadge').textContent = `LSB: ${data.lsb.capacity_kb} KB`;
                 document.getElementById('dctCapacityBadge').textContent = `DCT: ${data.dct.capacity_kb} KB`;
+                capacityBytes.lsb = Math.round(data.lsb.capacity_kb * 1024);
+                capacityBytes.dct = Math.round(data.dct.capacity_kb * 1024);
                 document.getElementById('capacityPanel')?.classList.remove('d-none');
+                checkCapacity();
             }).catch(() => {});
     }
 });
@@ -859,7 +956,7 @@ function updateOutputOptions(mode) {
 }
 
 modeRadios.forEach(radio => {
-    radio.addEventListener('change', () => updateOutputOptions(radio.value));
+    radio.addEventListener('change', () => { updateOutputOptions(radio.value); checkCapacity(); });
 });
 
 // Initialize output options based on initial mode
diff --git a/src/stegasoo/audio_steganography.py b/src/stegasoo/audio_steganography.py
index cf5f870..6397ff0 100644
--- a/src/stegasoo/audio_steganography.py
+++ b/src/stegasoo/audio_steganography.py
@@ -264,18 +264,26 @@ def embed_in_audio_lsb(
     debug.validate(len(sample_key) == 32, f"Sample key must be 32 bytes, got {len(sample_key)}")
 
     try:
-        # 1. Read carrier audio
-        samples, samplerate = sf.read(io.BytesIO(carrier_audio), dtype="int16", always_2d=True)
-        # samples shape: (num_frames, channels)
-        original_shape = samples.shape
+        # 1. Read carrier audio as float64 (handles all subtypes correctly)
+        buf = io.BytesIO(carrier_audio)
+        float_samples, samplerate = sf.read(buf, dtype="float64", always_2d=True)
+        original_shape = float_samples.shape
         channels = original_shape[1]
         duration = original_shape[0] / samplerate
 
+        # Detect original subtype for output
+        buf.seek(0)
+        carrier_info = sf.info(buf)
+        output_subtype = carrier_info.subtype or "PCM_16"
+
         debug.print(
             f"Carrier audio: {samplerate} Hz, {channels} ch, "
-            f"{original_shape[0]} frames, {duration:.2f}s"
+            f"{original_shape[0]} frames, {duration:.2f}s, subtype={output_subtype}"
         )
 
+        # Convert float64 → int16 for LSB manipulation (32768 matches libsndfile normalization)
+        samples = np.clip(float_samples * 32768.0, -32768, 32767).astype(np.int16)
+
         # Flatten to 1D for embedding
         flat_samples = samples.flatten().copy()
         num_samples = len(flat_samples)
@@ -347,7 +355,9 @@ def embed_in_audio_lsb(
 
         debug.print(f"Modified {modified_count} samples (out of {samples_needed} selected)")
 
-        # 7. Reshape and write back as WAV
+        # 7. Reshape and write back as PCM_16 WAV
+        # LSB steganography requires integer samples — writing as FLOAT/DOUBLE
+        # destroys LSBs due to float32 precision loss (33k/65k values fail round-trip).
         stego_samples = flat_samples.reshape(original_shape)
 
         output_buf = io.BytesIO()
@@ -412,7 +422,7 @@ def extract_from_audio_lsb(
     )
 
     try:
-        # 1. Read audio
+        # 1. Read audio as int16 directly (stego output is always PCM_16)
         samples, samplerate = sf.read(io.BytesIO(audio_data), dtype="int16", always_2d=True)
         flat_samples = samples.flatten()
         num_samples = len(flat_samples)
diff --git a/src/stegasoo/constants.py b/src/stegasoo/constants.py
index d5a8e8d..8d30235 100644
--- a/src/stegasoo/constants.py
+++ b/src/stegasoo/constants.py
@@ -383,6 +383,12 @@ ALLOWED_AUDIO_EXTENSIONS = {"wav", "flac", "mp3", "ogg", "opus", "aac", "m4a", "
 # Spread spectrum parameters
 AUDIO_SS_CHIP_LENGTH = 1024  # Samples per chip (spreading factor) — legacy/default
 AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE = 0.05  # Per-sample embedding strength (~-26dB, masked by audio)
+
+# Adaptive amplitude: embed at a fixed ratio below the carrier's RMS level.
+# Keeps noise inaudible under content while ensuring extraction reliability.
+AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_RATIO = 0.25  # Fraction of carrier RMS (≈ -12 dB below signal)
+AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MIN = 0.001  # Floor: ensures correlation ≥ 0.256 at chip=256
+AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MAX = 0.05  # Ceiling: never exceed original fixed amplitude
 AUDIO_SS_RS_NSYM = 32  # Reed-Solomon parity symbols
 
 # Spread spectrum v2: per-channel hybrid embedding (v4.4.0)
@@ -406,6 +412,14 @@ AUDIO_SS_CHIP_TIER_NAMES = {
 AUDIO_LFE_CHANNEL_INDEX = 3  # Standard WAV/WAVEFORMATEXTENSIBLE ordering
 AUDIO_LFE_MIN_CHANNELS = 6  # Only skip LFE for 5.1+ layouts
 
+# Compact padding for audio encryption (limited carrier capacity)
+AUDIO_PAD_MIN = 8  # Minimum random padding bytes (vs 64 for images)
+AUDIO_PAD_RANGE = 32  # Random padding range (vs 256 for images)
+AUDIO_PAD_ALIGN = 32  # Alignment boundary (vs 256 for images)
+
+# Lossless audio formats (safe for low chip tier)
+LOSSLESS_AUDIO_FORMATS = {"wav", "flac", "aiff"}
+
 # Echo hiding parameters
 AUDIO_ECHO_DELAY_0 = 50  # Echo delay for bit 0 (samples at 44.1kHz ~ 1.1ms)
 AUDIO_ECHO_DELAY_1 = 100  # Echo delay for bit 1 (samples at 44.1kHz ~ 2.3ms)
diff --git a/src/stegasoo/crypto.py b/src/stegasoo/crypto.py
index 3536c2e..5c12a58 100644
--- a/src/stegasoo/crypto.py
+++ b/src/stegasoo/crypto.py
@@ -36,6 +36,9 @@ from .constants import (
     ARGON2_MEMORY_COST,
     ARGON2_PARALLELISM,
     ARGON2_TIME_COST,
+    AUDIO_PAD_ALIGN,
+    AUDIO_PAD_MIN,
+    AUDIO_PAD_RANGE,
     FORMAT_VERSION,
     IV_SIZE,
     MAGIC_HEADER,
@@ -433,6 +436,7 @@ def encrypt_message(
     pin: str = "",
     rsa_key_data: bytes | None = None,
     channel_key: str | bool | None = None,
+    compact: bool = False,
 ) -> bytes:
     """
     Encrypt message or file using AES-256-GCM.
@@ -492,8 +496,17 @@ def encrypt_message(
         )
 
         # Random padding to hide message length
-        padding_len = secrets.randbelow(256) + 64
-        padded_len = ((len(packed_payload) + padding_len + 255) // 256) * 256
+        # Compact mode uses smaller padding for capacity-limited carriers (audio)
+        if compact:
+            pad_min = AUDIO_PAD_MIN
+            pad_range = AUDIO_PAD_RANGE
+            pad_align = AUDIO_PAD_ALIGN
+        else:
+            pad_min = 64
+            pad_range = 256
+            pad_align = 256
+        padding_len = secrets.randbelow(pad_range) + pad_min
+        padded_len = ((len(packed_payload) + padding_len + pad_align - 1) // pad_align) * pad_align
         padding_needed = padded_len - len(packed_payload)
         padding = secrets.token_bytes(padding_needed - 4) + struct.pack(">I", len(packed_payload))
         padded_message = packed_payload + padding
diff --git a/src/stegasoo/encode.py b/src/stegasoo/encode.py
index 604d2b0..eaa7d8b 100644
--- a/src/stegasoo/encode.py
+++ b/src/stegasoo/encode.py
@@ -337,9 +337,10 @@ def encode_audio(
         debug.print(f"Transcoding {audio_format} to WAV for embedding")
         carrier_audio = transcode_to_wav(carrier_audio)
 
-    # Encrypt message
+    # Encrypt message (compact padding for audio's limited capacity)
     encrypted = encrypt_message(
-        message, reference_photo, passphrase, pin, rsa_key_data, channel_key
+        message, reference_photo, passphrase, pin, rsa_key_data, channel_key,
+        compact=True,
     )
     debug.print(f"Encrypted payload: {len(encrypted)} bytes")
 
@@ -354,10 +355,21 @@ def encode_audio(
             encrypted, carrier_audio, pixel_key, progress_file=progress_file
         )
     elif embed_mode == EMBED_MODE_AUDIO_SPREAD:
-        from .constants import AUDIO_SS_DEFAULT_CHIP_TIER
+        from .constants import (
+            AUDIO_SS_CHIP_TIER_LOSSLESS,
+            AUDIO_SS_DEFAULT_CHIP_TIER,
+            LOSSLESS_AUDIO_FORMATS,
+        )
         from .spread_steganography import embed_in_audio_spread
 
-        tier = chip_tier if chip_tier is not None else AUDIO_SS_DEFAULT_CHIP_TIER
+        if chip_tier is not None:
+            tier = chip_tier
+        elif audio_format in LOSSLESS_AUDIO_FORMATS:
+            tier = AUDIO_SS_CHIP_TIER_LOSSLESS
+            debug.print(f"Auto-selected chip tier 0 (lossless) for {audio_format} carrier")
+        else:
+            tier = AUDIO_SS_DEFAULT_CHIP_TIER
+            debug.print(f"Auto-selected chip tier {tier} (lossy) for {audio_format} carrier")
         stego_audio, stats = embed_in_audio_spread(
             encrypted, carrier_audio, pixel_key, chip_tier=tier, progress_file=progress_file
         )
diff --git a/src/stegasoo/spread_steganography.py b/src/stegasoo/spread_steganography.py
index 5f8f08e..ff7dc34 100644
--- a/src/stegasoo/spread_steganography.py
+++ b/src/stegasoo/spread_steganography.py
@@ -50,6 +50,9 @@ from .constants import (
     AUDIO_LFE_MIN_CHANNELS,
     AUDIO_MAGIC_SPREAD,
     AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE,
+    AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MAX,
+    AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MIN,
+    AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_RATIO,
     AUDIO_SS_CHIP_LENGTH,
     AUDIO_SS_CHIP_LENGTHS,
     AUDIO_SS_DEFAULT_CHIP_TIER,
@@ -81,6 +84,21 @@ except ImportError:
     ReedSolomonError = None  # type: ignore[assignment,misc]
 
 
+def _adaptive_amplitude(samples: np.ndarray) -> float:
+    """
+    Compute embedding amplitude scaled to the carrier's signal level.
+
+    Uses AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_RATIO of the carrier RMS, clamped between
+    AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MIN and AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MAX.  This keeps the
+    embedded noise inaudible for quiet recordings while preserving the
+    original fixed amplitude for loud carriers.
+    """
+    rms = float(np.sqrt(np.mean(samples**2)))
+    adaptive = rms * AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_RATIO
+    amplitude = max(AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MIN, min(AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE_MAX, adaptive))
+    return amplitude
+
+
 # Header sizes
 _V0_HEADER_SIZE = 16  # Legacy: 4B magic + 3x4B length
 _V2_HEADER_SIZE = 20  # v2: 4B magic + 1B ver + 1B tier + 1B nch + 1B flags + 3x4B length
@@ -687,9 +705,13 @@ def embed_in_audio_spread(
         lfe_skipped = len(embed_ch) < channels
         chip_length = AUDIO_SS_CHIP_LENGTHS.get(chip_tier, AUDIO_SS_CHIP_LENGTH)
 
+        # Compute adaptive amplitude scaled to carrier signal level
+        amplitude = _adaptive_amplitude(samples)
+
         debug.print(
             f"Carrier: {sample_rate} Hz, {channels} ch ({num_embed_ch} embeddable), "
-            f"{num_frames} frames, {duration:.2f}s, chip={chip_length}"
+            f"{num_frames} frames, {duration:.2f}s, chip={chip_length}, "
+            f"amplitude={amplitude:.6f}"
         )
 
         # 3. RS-encode the payload
@@ -709,7 +731,7 @@ def embed_in_audio_spread(
             samples[:, embed_ch[0]],
             header_bits,
             seed,
-            AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE,
+            amplitude,
             _HEADER_CHIP_LENGTH,
             channel_index=0,
             offset=0,
@@ -752,7 +774,7 @@ def embed_in_audio_spread(
                 samples[:, ch],
                 bits_for_ch,
                 seed,
-                AUDIO_SS_AMPLITUDE,
+                amplitude,
                 chip_length,
                 channel_index=ch,
                 offset=payload_offset,
diff --git a/test_data/stupid_elitist_speech.wav b/test_data/stupid_elitist_speech.wav
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..696407e
Binary files /dev/null and b/test_data/stupid_elitist_speech.wav differ