diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index a68b9ca..edd4b98 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -59,6 +59,9 @@ Coyote requires the following tools to be installed on your system:
 * [docker](https://docs.docker.com/engine/install/)
 * [uv](https://docs.astral.sh/uv/getting-started/installation/)
     * `curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh`
+* [iwe](https://github.com/iwe-org/iwe) (`iwec`, for the built-in `iwe` MCP server that navigates large markdown knowledgebases)
+    * **Homebrew:** `brew tap iwe-org/iwe && brew install iwe`
+    * **Cargo:** `cargo install iwec`
 
 These tools are used to provide various functionalities within Coyote, such as document processing, JSON manipulation,
 etc., and they are used within agents and tools.
diff --git a/assets/functions/mcp.json b/assets/functions/mcp.json
index c5c1ade..79d275e 100644
--- a/assets/functions/mcp.json
+++ b/assets/functions/mcp.json
@@ -18,6 +18,11 @@
       "type": "stdio",
       "command": "uvx",
       "args": ["duckduckgo-mcp-server"]
+    },
+    "iwe": {
+      "type": "stdio",
+      "command": "iwec",
+      "args": ["--project", "."]
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/assets/sbx-kit/spec.yaml b/assets/sbx-kit/spec.yaml
index 8c17036..20d229a 100644
--- a/assets/sbx-kit/spec.yaml
+++ b/assets/sbx-kit/spec.yaml
@@ -276,6 +276,11 @@ commands:
         sudo install -m 0755 "$TMPDIR/usql_static" /usr/local/bin/usql
       user: '1000'
       description: Install the usql universal SQL CLI (used by the built-in sql agent and execute_sql_code tool)
+    - command: |
+        . "$HOME/.cargo/env"
+        cargo install --locked iwec
+      user: '1000'
+      description: Install the IWE MCP server binary (iwec) used by the built-in iwe MCP server and iwe-knowledge-base skill
     - command: |
         curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | \
           sh -s -- -y \
diff --git a/assets/skills/iwe-knowledge-base/SKILL.md b/assets/skills/iwe-knowledge-base/SKILL.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ed73b7c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/assets/skills/iwe-knowledge-base/SKILL.md
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+---
+description: Navigate and curate markdown knowledge bases (plan repos, spec repos, companion docs) with IWE graph tools. Load when the workspace is or contains a markdown knowledge base and the task involves finding, reading, or reorganizing plans, specs, designs, or notes. Activates the iwe MCP server rooted at the current directory.
+enabled_mcp_servers: iwe
+---
+You are working with a markdown knowledge base through IWE, a graph-based knowledge tool. The `iwe` MCP server is rooted at the current working directory (`--project .`), so the knowledge base is the directory Coyote was launched in. IWE derives structure from links: a link on its own line is an *inclusion link* (parent-child hierarchy); a link inside text is an *inline reference* (cross-reference, produces backlinks). The server watches the filesystem, so external edits are picked up automatically — never ask for a restart.
+
+## When to use this (and when not)
+
+Use IWE tools when the task involves a corpus of markdown documents: plan repositories, spec/design collections, companion docs repos, meeting notes, PKM vaults.
+
+Do NOT use IWE tools for:
+
+- **Agent memory** (`.coyote/memory/`, `COYOTE.md`) — use the `memory__*` tools; they own the index conventions there.
+- **Semantic/similarity search over documents** — that is RAG's job. IWE search is fuzzy title/key matching plus structural traversal, not embeddings.
+- **Source code** — IWE only understands markdown.
+
+If unsure whether the current directory is actually a knowledge base, probe with `iwe_stats` first. Few or zero documents means this skill does not apply; unload it rather than forcing the tools.
+
+## Orientation protocol (always start here)
+
+Never guess document keys. Orient first:
+
+1. `iwe_stats` — corpus size and shape. Cheap sanity check.
+2. `iwe_find(query="<topic>")` — fuzzy search for entry points. Use `roots` behavior via structural selectors when you want top-level topics only.
+3. `iwe_tree(key="<entry>", max_depth=2)` — see the hierarchy before reading bodies.
+4. `iwe_retrieve(key="<entry>", depth=1, context=1)` — read with structure.
+
+## Reading efficiently
+
+`iwe_retrieve` is the workhorse. Control cost explicitly:
+
+- `depth` — how many levels of included children to expand. Start at 1-2; increase only if needed.
+- `context` — parent levels to include, so you know where a document sits. `context=1` is usually enough.
+- `max_tokens` — ALWAYS set a budget (e.g. 2000-4000) on large corpora; results report truncation so you can drill further deliberately.
+- `exclude` — pass keys you have already read to avoid re-retrieving known content.
+- `links` / `backlinks` — include outbound/inbound references when tracing how a topic connects.
+
+Scope searches structurally with selectors on `iwe_find`/`iwe_retrieve`/`iwe_tree`:
+
+- `in` — only sub-documents of EVERY listed key (AND)
+- `in_any` — sub-documents of at least one key (OR)
+- `not_in` — exclude subtrees (e.g. archives)
+
+Filter by frontmatter with the YAML query language: `status: draft`, `created: {$gte: "2026-01-01"}`, `tags: {$in: [urgent]}`, `reviewed: {$exists: true}`.
+
+Use `iwe_squash(key=...)` to flatten a subtree into one linear document — good for producing a full plan readout or summary input.
+
+## Writing and refactoring
+
+Write tools: `iwe_create` (new doc from title + content), `iwe_update` (replace a doc's content), `iwe_delete` (remove + clean up references). Refactor tools: `iwe_rename` (key rename with automatic link updates everywhere), `iwe_extract` (split a section into its own doc, leaving an inclusion link), `iwe_inline` (merge a referenced doc back into its parent), `iwe_normalize` (reformat all docs consistently).
+
+Rules:
+
+- **Preview destructive operations**: `iwe_rename`, `iwe_delete`, `iwe_extract`, `iwe_inline`, and `iwe_normalize` support `dry_run` — use it first, show the user what will change, then apply.
+- Never rename or delete by editing files directly; the refactor tools update every referencing document, manual edits break links.
+- When adding a document, link it from an existing parent (inclusion link on its own line) so it joins the hierarchy instead of becoming an orphan.
+- Match the corpus conventions: check an existing document's frontmatter fields before inventing your own schema.
+- Do not run `iwe_normalize` across someone's knowledge base unprompted — it rewrites every file's formatting.
+
+## Anti-patterns
+
+- Retrieving with `depth=5` and no `max_tokens` "to get everything" — you will flood the context. Iterate: shallow first, drill selectively.
+- Calling `iwe_find` repeatedly with rephrased queries when structural navigation (`iwe_tree`, selectors) would locate the document deterministically.
+- Using IWE write tools on `.coyote/memory/` files — wrong tier; that corrupts the memory index.
+- Creating documents without linking them into the hierarchy — orphans are invisible to depth-based retrieval.