Label Governance Reference

Version: 2.0 Last Updated: February 6, 2026 Next Review: May 6, 2026 Classification: PUBLIC

This document is the authoritative reference for all labels across the Fused Gaming organization. It maps every label to its definition source, auto-labeling rules, and downstream workflow effects.

Label Architecture
Label Sources & Sync
Complete Label Reference
Auto-Labeling Rules
Downstream Workflow Effects
Known Conflicts & Gaps
Maintenance & Application

1. Label Architecture

How Labels Flow

labels.yml (104 definitions)
       |
       v
sync-labels.yml ──> Creates/syncs labels across all org repos (weekly Monday 00:00 UTC)

Issue/PR Created or Edited
       |
       v
auto-label-issues.yml ──> Applies labels based on title/body keywords + PR file types
       |
       v
milestone-task-enforcement.yml ──> Auto-applies M*/T* labels, enforces on strategic items
       |
       v
add-to-milestone.yml ──> Strategic items → "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
       |
       v
goal-alignment-check.yml ──> Strategic items → goal alignment check comment
       |
       v
quarterly-okr-tracker.yml ──> Quarter-labeled items → OKR progress reports

Label Definition Sources

Source	Count	Purpose	Used By
`.github/labels.yml`	104	Primary - org-wide label definitions	`sync-labels.yml` (weekly sync to all repos)
`labels.json`	27	Legacy - shell script application	`apply-labels.sh`, `apply-labels-gh.sh`
`auto-label-issues.yml`	0	All previously implicit labels now added to `labels.yml`	N/A

Note: All 27 labels in labels.json are duplicated in labels.yml. The labels.json file and its shell scripts are a legacy mechanism predating the sync-labels.yml workflow.

2. Label Sources & Sync

Primary: `.github/labels.yml`

Synced to all org repos by sync-labels.yml every Monday at 00:00 UTC, when labels.yml is modified, or via manual trigger. Prune mode is disabled (repos keep extra labels).

Legacy: `labels.json`

Applied via apply-labels.sh (GitHub API with token) or apply-labels-gh.sh (GitHub CLI). These scripts are manual, one-time application tools. All labels in labels.json are already included in labels.yml.

Implicit: Workflow-Created Labels - RESOLVED

Previously, five type: labels were applied by workflows but not defined in labels.yml. These have now been added to labels.yml and will sync org-wide. See "Type Labels (Workflow-Applied)" in Section 3.

3. Complete Label Reference

Priority Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`🚨Priority:CRITICAL`	`#ed0e6e`	Yes	Title: `[critical]`, `[urgent]`, `🚨`; Body: `priority: critical`, `p0`	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; Goal alignment check
`🔴Priority:HIGH`	`#76020c`	Yes	Title: `[high]`, `🔴`; Body: `priority: high`, `p1`	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; Goal alignment check; OKR at-risk if stale
`🟠Priority:MEDIUM`	`#d8bb2f`	Yes	Title: `[medium]`, `🟠`; Body: `priority: medium`, `p2`	None
`🟢Priority:LOW`	`#0e8a16`	No	Manual only	None
`ℹ️Priority:INFO`	`#3e0aae`	Yes	Title: `[low]`, `ℹ️`; Body: `priority: low`, `p4`	None

Project Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`☕DRIFT`	`#6f4e37`	Yes	Title/body: `drift`	None
`💎GAMBAREWARDS`	`#b9f2ff`	Yes	Title/body: `gambarewards`	None
`🔫GAMBARELOAD`	`#ff6b6b`	Yes	Title/body: `gambareload`	None
`🔬VLN`	`#00d2ff`	Yes	Title/body: `vln`	None
`🏆LEADERBOARDS`	`#ffd700`	Yes	Title/body: `leaderboard`	None

Team / Role Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`👷DEV`	`#1f77b4`	No	Manual only	None
`💉DEVOPS`	`#ff7f0e`	Yes	Body: `devops`, `ci/cd`, `deployment`	None
`🎨DESIGN`	`#e377c2`	Yes	Body: `design`, `ui/ux`	None
`🌐DOMAIN`	`#8c564b`	No	Manual only	None
`⚖️LEGAL`	`#7f7f7f`	No	Manual only	None
`💰STAKE-HOLDERS`	`#bcbd22`	No	Manual only	None

Status Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`✅COMPLETED`	`#0e8a16`	No	Manual only	None
`🗺️PLANNED`	`#c5def5`	Yes	Body: `planned`; Title: `planned`, `🗺️`	None
`🐌BLOCKED`	`#b60205`	Yes	Body: `blocked`; Title: `[blocked]`, `🐌`	None
`🎯IN-PROGRESS`	`#c2e0c6`	No	Manual only	None
`⏳WAITING`	`#fef2c0`	No	Manual only	None
`status: needs-triage`	`#ededed`	Yes	Unassigned issues (no assignee)	None
`status: in-review`	`#fbca04`	No	Manual only	None
`status: approved`	`#0e8a16`	No	Manual only	None

Governance Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`❎GOVERNANCE`	`#5319e7`	Yes	Title: `[governance]`, `❎`; Body: `type: governance`, `governance`	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; Goal alignment check
`🙋‍♂️VOTE = YEA`	`#0e8a16`	No	Manual only (voting)	None
`🙅‍♂️VOTE = NAY`	`#d73a4a`	No	Manual only (voting)	None

Type Labels (Proposals)

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`type: goal-proposal`	`#7057ff`	Yes	Title: `[goal]`, `goal:`; Body: `type: goal-proposal`	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; Goal alignment check; Welcome comment
`type: project-proposal`	`#8b5cf6`	Yes	Title: `[project]`; Body: `type: project-proposal`	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; Goal alignment check; Welcome comment

Type Labels (PR File Detection - PRs Only)

These are applied by auto-label-issues.yml Step 2 based on changed files in PRs.

Label	Color	Trigger (File Pattern)	Defined in `labels.yml`?
`type: documentation`	N/A	Files matching `.md` or `README`	No
`type: infrastructure`	N/A	Files matching `.yml`, `.yaml`, or `.github/workflows`	No
`type: test`	N/A	Files matching `test` or `spec`	No
`type: governance`	N/A	Files matching `GOVERNANCE` or `CONTRIBUTING`	No
`type: security`	N/A	Files matching `SECURITY`	No

Standard GitHub Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`bug`	`#d73a4a`	Yes	Title: `bug`, `fix`, `error`, `issue`	None
`documentation`	`#0075ca`	Yes	Title: `docs`, `documentation`, `readme`	None
`enhancement`	`#a2eeef`	Yes	Title: `enhance`, `improve`, `update`	None
`question`	`#d876e3`	Yes	Title: `question`, `help`, `how to`	None
`duplicate`	`#cfd3d7`	No	Manual only	None
`wontfix`	`#ffffff`	No	Manual only	None
`invalid`	`#e4e669`	No	Manual only	None

Size Labels (Estimation)

All auto-applied based on body content or body length.

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Rule
`size: XS`	`#c2e0c6`	Yes	Body contains `size: xs` OR body.length < 200
`size: S`	`#bfdadc`	Yes	Body contains `size: s` OR body.length 200-499
`size: M`	`#fef2c0`	Yes	Body contains `size: m` OR body.length 500-999
`size: L`	`#fad8c7`	Yes	Body contains `size: l` OR body.length 1000-1999
`size: XL`	`#f7c6c7`	Yes	Body contains `size: xl` OR body.length >= 2000

Milestone Labels (Roadmap Tracking)

Maps to the organizational milestones defined in MILESTONES_OVERVIEW.md. Auto-applied by milestone-task-enforcement.yml when title/body contains milestone references.

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`milestone: M0`	`#6f42c1`	Yes	`M0`, `milestone 0`, `investor readiness`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M1`	`#7c3aed`	Yes	`M1`, `milestone 1`, `project visibility`, `documentation milestone`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M2`	`#8b5cf6`	Yes	`M2`, `milestone 2`, `onboarding`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M3`	`#a78bfa`	Yes	`M3`, `milestone 3`, `community activation`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M4`	`#c4b5fd`	Yes	`M4`, `milestone 4`, `technical foundation`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M5`	`#ddd6fe`	Yes	`M5`, `milestone 5`, `community growth`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing
`milestone: M6`	`#ede9fe`	Yes	`M6`, `milestone 6`, `product milestones`	Enforcement comment if strategic but missing

Task Sequence Labels

Track task order within milestones. Auto-applied by milestone-task-enforcement.yml when title/body contains task references (e.g., T1, task 3).

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords
`task: T1`	`#0d419d`	Yes	`T1`, `task 1`
`task: T2`	`#1d5cbf`	Yes	`T2`, `task 2`
`task: T3`	`#2e77e0`	Yes	`T3`, `task 3`
`task: T4`	`#4f91f5`	Yes	`T4`, `task 4`
`task: T5`	`#6ba5f7`	Yes	`T5`, `task 5`
`task: T6`	`#89bbf9`	Yes	`T6`, `task 6`
`task: T7`	`#a6d0fb`	Yes	`T7`, `task 7`
`task: T8`	`#c3e0fd`	Yes	`T8`, `task 8`
`task: T9`	`#dfeffe`	Yes	`T9`, `task 9`

Type Labels (Workflow-Applied)

Previously missing from labels.yml (Conflict 2 resolved). Now synced org-wide.

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger (Source)
`type: documentation`	`#0075ca`	Yes	PR files: `.md`, `README`; `doc-staleness-audit.yml`
`type: infrastructure`	`#006b75`	Yes	PR files: `.yml`, `.yaml`, `.github/workflows`
`type: test`	`#d4c5f9`	Yes	PR files: `test`, `spec`
`type: governance`	`#5319e7`	Yes	PR files: `GOVERNANCE`, `CONTRIBUTING`; `quarterly-okr-tracker.yml`
`type: security`	`#d93f0b`	Yes	PR files: `SECURITY`

Quarter / Year Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`quarter: Q1`	`#c5def5`	No	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; OKR tracking
`quarter: Q2`	`#bfd4f2`	No	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; OKR tracking
`quarter: Q3`	`#d4c5f9`	No	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; OKR tracking
`quarter: Q4`	`#e99695`	No	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; OKR tracking
`2026`	`#0e8a16`	No	Milestone: Strategic Backlog; OKR tracking
`2027`	`#2ea44f`	No	None (future)

Area / Component Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords
`area: discord`	`#5865F2`	Yes	Title/body: `discord`
`area: web`	`#006b75`	Yes	Title/body: `web`, `website`
`area: bot`	`#1f6feb`	Yes	Title/body: `bot`
`area: api`	`#0969da`	Yes	Title/body: `api`
`area: database`	`#bf4b8a`	No	Manual only

Instruction Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`✔️ALWAYS`	`#0e8a16`	No	None
`❌NEVER`	`#d73a4a`	No	None

Special / Utility Labels

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Trigger Keywords	Downstream Effects
`good first issue`	`#7057ff`	Yes	Title/body: `good first issue`; OR title contains (`simple`/`easy`) AND (`fix`/`update`)	None
`help wanted`	`#008672`	No	Manual only	None
`breaking change`	`#d73a4a`	No	Manual only	None
`dependencies`	`#0366d6`	No	Manual only	None
`🔧TOOLING`	`#fbca04`	No	Manual only	None

Transparency & Communication Labels (from `labels.json`)

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`📢ANNOUNCEMENT`	`#0e8a16`	No	None
`📝CHANGELOG`	`#1d76db`	No	None
`🎮PLAYER-IMPACT`	`#e99695`	No	None
`💥BREAKING-CHANGE`	`#b60205`	No	None

Deployment Labels (from `labels.json`)

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`🚀READY-FOR-DEPLOY`	`#0e8a16`	No	None
`✅PRODUCTION`	`#0e8a16`	No	None
`🔄STAGING`	`#fbca04`	No	None

Security & Trust Labels (from `labels.json`)

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`🔒SECURITY`	`#d93f0b`	No	None
`🛡️AUDIT`	`#5319e7`	No	None
`🔐COMPLIANCE`	`#b60205`	No	None

Quality & Workflow Labels (from `labels.json`)

Label	Color	Auto-Applied	Downstream Effects
`🔍INVESTIGATING`	`#d4c5f9`	No	None
`✨FEATURE`	`#a2eeef`	No	None
`♻️REFACTOR`	`#c5def5`	No	None
`📈IMPROVEMENT`	`#84b6eb`	No	None
`💼BUSINESS-DECISION`	`#d4c5f9`	No	None
`📊REPORTING`	`#bfdadc`	No	None
`💡NEEDS-SPEC`	`#f9d0c4`	No	None
`🧪TESTING`	`#d4c5f9`	No	None
`✅VERIFIED`	`#0e8a16`	No	None
`🐛REGRESSION`	`#ee0701`	No	None
`👀NEEDS-REVIEW`	`#fbca04`	No	None
`🏷️RELEASE`	`#5319e7`	No	None
`💬DISCUSSION`	`#cc317c`	No	None
`🔥HOTFIX`	`#d93f0b`	No	None

4. Auto-Labeling Rules

Workflow: auto-label-issues.yml Triggers: Issues (opened, edited, reopened) and PRs (opened, edited, reopened, synchronized)

Step 1: Title & Body Content Analysis

Rules are evaluated in priority order within each category. For Priority and Type, only the first match applies (else-if chain). For Project, Area, Team, Status, and Special, all matches apply (independent if statements).

Priority (first match wins)

[critical] OR [urgent] OR 🚨 in title, OR "priority: critical" OR "p0" in body → 🚨Priority:CRITICAL
[high] OR 🔴 in title, OR "priority: high" OR "p1" in body                   → 🔴Priority:HIGH
[low] OR ℹ️ in title, OR "priority: low" OR "p4" in body                     → ℹ️Priority:INFO
[medium] OR 🟠 in title, OR "priority: medium" OR "p2" in body               → 🟠Priority:MEDIUM

Type (first match wins)

[goal] OR "goal:" in title, OR "type: goal-proposal" in body → type: goal-proposal
[project] in title, OR "type: project-proposal" in body      → type: project-proposal
[governance] OR ❎ in title, OR "governance" in body          → ❎GOVERNANCE
"bug" OR "fix" OR "error" OR "issue" in title                 → bug
"docs" OR "documentation" OR "readme" in title                → documentation
"enhance" OR "improve" OR "update" in title                   → enhancement
"question" OR "help" OR "how to" in title                     → question

Project (all matches)

"drift" in title/body           → ☕DRIFT
"gambarewards" in title/body    → 💎GAMBAREWARDS
"gambareload" in title/body     → 🔫GAMBARELOAD
"vln" in title/body             → 🔬VLN
"leaderboard" in title/body     → 🏆LEADERBOARDS

Area (all matches)

"discord" in title/body         → area: discord
"web" OR "website" in title     → area: web
"bot" in title/body             → area: bot
"api" in title/body             → area: api

Team (all matches)

"devops" OR "ci/cd" OR "deployment" in body  → 💉DEVOPS
"design" OR "ui/ux" in body                  → 🎨DESIGN

Status

Issue has no assignee           → status: needs-triage
"blocked" in body OR title      → 🐌BLOCKED
"planned" in body OR title      → 🗺️PLANNED

Size (always applied, first match wins)

"size: xs" in body OR body < 200 chars   → size: XS
"size: s" in body OR body < 500 chars    → size: S
"size: m" in body OR body < 1000 chars   → size: M
"size: l" in body OR body < 2000 chars   → size: L
"size: xl" in body OR body >= 2000 chars → size: XL

Special

"good first issue" in title/body, OR ("simple"/"easy" AND "fix"/"update") in title → good first issue

Step 2: PR File Detection (PRs Only)

File Pattern	Label Applied
`.md` or `README`	`type: documentation`
`.yml`, `.yaml`, `.github/workflows`	`type: infrastructure`
`test` or `spec`	`type: test`
`GOVERNANCE` or `CONTRIBUTING`	`type: governance`
`SECURITY`	`type: security`

5. Downstream Workflow Effects

`add-to-milestone.yml` - Strategic Backlog Assignment

Triggers: Issues/PRs opened, reopened, or labeled

Labels that trigger milestone assignment (uses .includes() matching):

Label Pattern	Effect
Any label containing `goal-proposal`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
Any label containing `project-proposal`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
Any label containing `GOVERNANCE`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
Any label containing `Priority:CRITICAL`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
Any label containing `Priority:HIGH`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone + welcome comment
Any label containing `quarter:`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone
Any label containing `2026`	Assigned to "Strategic Backlog" milestone

`goal-alignment-check.yml` - Strategic Alignment

Triggers: Issues/PRs opened, edited, labeled; Daily at 9:00 UTC

Labels that trigger alignment check (uses .includes() matching):

Label Pattern	Effect
Any label containing `goal`	Checks if body/title references GOALS.md goals; comments if not aligned
Any label containing `project-proposal`	Same alignment check
Any label containing `governance`	Same alignment check
Any label containing `priority: critical`	Same alignment check
Any label containing `priority: high`	Same alignment check

`quarterly-okr-tracker.yml` - OKR Progress

Triggers: Monthly on 1st at 10:00 UTC

Label	Role in OKR Tracking
`quarter: Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4`	Identifies items belonging to current quarter
`2026`	Combined with quarter label for OKR search
`type:*` labels	Categorizes items in progress report by type
`status: blocked`	Flags items as "at-risk" in monthly report
`priority: high`	Combined with stale detection (>14 days) for at-risk alerts

`milestone-task-enforcement.yml` - Milestone & Task Tracking

Triggers: Issues/PRs opened, edited, labeled; PRs to main/master

Label Pattern	Effect
`milestone: M0` through `milestone: M6`	Auto-applied from title/body keywords; strategic items without milestone get enforcement comment
`task: T1` through `task: T9`	Auto-applied from title/body keywords
Strategic labels without milestone	Comment prompting author to add milestone label

PR-specific: Checks linked issues for milestone labels and reports milestone coverage in workflow summary.

`cross-repo-milestone-sync.yml` - Organization-Wide Enforcement

Triggers: Daily at 8:00 UTC; manual with optional target repo and dry-run

Action	Effect
Fetches all org repos (public + private)	Enumerates via `gh repo list` with `GH_PAT`
Scans all open issues/PRs per repo	Checks title/body for M/T patterns
Auto-applies milestone/task labels	Adds `milestone: M0`-`M6`, `task: T1`-`T9`
Generates per-repo report	Summary with items checked, labels applied

This workflow ensures milestone/task labels are enforced across all org repos, not just .github.

`doc-staleness-audit.yml` - Document Review

Triggers: Weekly Monday at 9:00 UTC

Action	Labels Used
Creates issues for stale docs	Applies `type: documentation` + `status: needs-triage`

6. Known Conflicts & Gaps

CONFLICT 1: Priority LOW vs INFO Mismatch

labels.yml defines 🟢Priority:LOW (manual only) but auto-label-issues.yml maps [low]/p4 keywords to ℹ️Priority:INFO instead. Users saying "low priority" get ℹ️Priority:INFO, never 🟢Priority:LOW.

Resolution needed: Decide which label represents P3/P4 and update either labels.yml or the auto-labeling rules for consistency.

CONFLICT 2: Missing Type Labels in `labels.yml` - RESOLVED

Five type: labels were applied by workflows but not defined in labels.yml. Fixed: All five labels (type: documentation, type: infrastructure, type: test, type: governance, type: security) have been added to labels.yml and will sync org-wide on next Monday or manual trigger.

CONFLICT 3: Blocked Status Name Mismatch

quarterly-okr-tracker.yml searches for status: blocked but the actual label in labels.yml is 🐌BLOCKED (different name). The at-risk OKR detection will never find blocked items.

Resolution needed: Either update quarterly-okr-tracker.yml to search for 🐌BLOCKED, or add status: blocked to labels.yml as an alias, or rename the label.

CONFLICT 4: Priority Label Case Mismatch in Goal Alignment

goal-alignment-check.yml checks for priority: critical and priority: high (lowercase, with space after colon) using .includes(). The actual labels are 🚨Priority:CRITICAL and 🔴Priority:HIGH (uppercase, no space). The .includes() on lowercase label names will match because the comparison is against l.name which contains the mixed-case emoji labels and .includes('priority: critical') won't match 🚨Priority:CRITICAL.

Resolution needed: Update goal-alignment-check.yml to match actual label names (e.g., Priority:CRITICAL) or use case-insensitive comparison.

GAP 1: `labels.json` Redundancy

All 27 labels in labels.json are duplicated in labels.yml. The shell scripts (apply-labels.sh, apply-labels-gh.sh) are now redundant since sync-labels.yml handles org-wide sync.

Resolution needed: Deprecate labels.json and shell scripts, or document them as "initial setup" tools only.

GAP 2: No Auto-Labeling for Database

area: database is defined in labels.yml but has no auto-labeling rule in auto-label-issues.yml. Consider adding keywords like database, db, migration, schema.

GAP 3: Quarter Labels Are Manual Only

Quarter labels (quarter: Q1, etc.) and year labels (2026) are never auto-applied. All OKR tracking depends on maintainers manually adding these labels. Consider adding template-driven auto-application for issues created from goal/project proposal templates.

7. Maintenance & Application

Editing Labels

To add or modify a label:

Edit .github/labels.yml (the authoritative source)
The sync-labels.yml workflow will automatically sync to all repos on next Monday, on push to labels.yml, or via manual trigger
Update this document (LABELS_README.md) in the same PR

Editing Auto-Labeling Rules

To change which keywords trigger which labels:

Edit .github/workflows/auto-label-issues.yml
Update the corresponding entry in this document (Section 4)
Update .github/workflows/README.md
Test on a draft issue before merging

Adding a New Label

Checklist for adding a new label:

Add to .github/labels.yml with name, description, and color
If auto-applied: add rules to auto-label-issues.yml
If it triggers downstream workflows: verify add-to-milestone.yml, goal-alignment-check.yml, quarterly-okr-tracker.yml handle it correctly
Update this document with the new label entry
Run sync-labels.yml manually or wait for next Monday sync

Manual Application

For repos that need labels before the next sync:

# Using GitHub CLI (recommended)
gh label create "LABEL-NAME" --description "Description" --color "hexcolor" --repo Fused-Gaming/REPO

# Or trigger sync manually
gh workflow run sync-labels.yml --repo Fused-Gaming/.github

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