diff --git a/.story_kit/project.toml b/.story_kit/project.toml
index d22b6e9..93fd585 100644
--- a/.story_kit/project.toml
+++ b/.story_kit/project.toml
@@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ Read CLAUDE.md first, then .story_kit/README.md to understand the dev process.
   - URL to visit in the browser
   - Things to check in the UI
   - curl commands to exercise relevant API endpoints
-- Kill the test server when done: `pkill -f story-kit || true`
+- Kill the test server when done: `pkill -f 'target.*story-kit' || true` (NEVER use `pkill -f story-kit` — it kills the vite dev server)
 
 ### 4. Produce Structured Report
 Print your QA report to stdout before your process exits. The server will automatically run acceptance gates. Use this format:
@@ -179,7 +179,7 @@ Read CLAUDE.md first, then .story_kit/README.md to understand the dev process.
   - URL to visit in the browser
   - Things to check in the UI
   - curl commands to exercise relevant API endpoints
-- Kill the test server when done: `pkill -f story-kit || true`
+- Kill the test server when done: `pkill -f 'target.*story-kit' || true` (NEVER use `pkill -f story-kit` — it kills the vite dev server)
 
 ### 4. Produce Structured Report
 Print your QA report to stdout before your process exits. The server will automatically run acceptance gates. Use this format: