diff --git a/.github/workflows/build-claude-code.yml b/.github/workflows/build-claude-code.yml
index cd2c860..76779fe 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/build-claude-code.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/build-claude-code.yml
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ on:
     branches: [master]
     paths:
       - "claude-code/.devcontainer/Dockerfile"
+      - "claude-code/.devcontainer/*.sh"
   schedule:
     - cron: '13 11 * * *'
   workflow_dispatch:
diff --git a/claude-code/.devcontainer/Dockerfile b/claude-code/.devcontainer/Dockerfile
index e6bec7e..a5c98e6 100644
--- a/claude-code/.devcontainer/Dockerfile
+++ b/claude-code/.devcontainer/Dockerfile
@@ -166,7 +166,8 @@ USER node
 # - chromium: used by Playwright and agent-browser via
 #   PLAYWRIGHT_CHROMIUM_EXECUTABLE_PATH (see .claude/rules/dockerfile.md).
 # - fonts-freefont-ttf: baseline fonts for headless rendering.
-# Kept out of the base stage so the sandbox target stays lean.
+# Mirrored into the sandbox stage too — the firewall blocks deb.debian.org,
+# so chromium cannot be added at runtime.
 USER root
 RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/var/cache/apt,sharing=locked \
     --mount=type=cache,target=/var/lib/apt/lists,sharing=locked \
@@ -199,7 +200,10 @@ CMD ["sleep", "infinity"]
 # ─── SANDBOX — network-restricted environment ─────────────────────────────────
 FROM base AS sandbox
 
-# Firewall packages (not needed in default target)
+# Firewall packages (not needed in default target).
+# Chromium + fonts are also baked in here — the sandbox firewall blocks
+# deb.debian.org, so they cannot be added at runtime. Required for the
+# Playwright MCP plugin to launch a browser.
 USER root
 RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/var/cache/apt,sharing=locked \
     --mount=type=cache,target=/var/lib/apt/lists,sharing=locked \
@@ -208,7 +212,14 @@ RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/var/cache/apt,sharing=locked \
   ipset \
   iproute2 \
   dnsutils \
-  aggregate
+  aggregate \
+  chromium \
+  fonts-freefont-ttf
+
+# Use the apt-installed chromium instead of Playwright-managed browsers
+# (matches the default stage; see comment above the default chromium block).
+ENV PLAYWRIGHT_SKIP_BROWSER_DOWNLOAD=1 \
+    PLAYWRIGHT_CHROMIUM_EXECUTABLE_PATH=/usr/bin/chromium
 
 # Passwordless sudo for node user — needed for:
 #   - "sudo chown" on named volumes (node_modules isolation)
diff --git a/claude-code/.devcontainer/claude-sandbox/devcontainer.json b/claude-code/.devcontainer/claude-sandbox/devcontainer.json
index 1281a84..3f6d2ea 100644
--- a/claude-code/.devcontainer/claude-sandbox/devcontainer.json
+++ b/claude-code/.devcontainer/claude-sandbox/devcontainer.json
@@ -121,10 +121,12 @@
     "CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN": "${localEnv:CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN}"
   },
   // The find command chowns all node_modules volume mount points in one pass.
-  // Note: the sandbox image does not include chromium — projects needing
-  // browser testing should install it via a downstream Dockerfile.
+  // Chromium is baked into the sandbox image (firewall blocks runtime install).
   "postCreateCommand": "sudo find /workspace -maxdepth 4 -name node_modules -type d -exec chown node {} + && sudo chown -R node /home/node/.claude && mise install && bun install",
-  // Firewall init — script is bind-mounted from the project
-  "postStartCommand": "sudo /usr/local/bin/init-firewall.sh",
+  // Firewall init (bind-mounted from project) + re-patch the Playwright MCP
+  // plugin's .mcp.json. The patch runs on every start so plugin auto-updates
+  // between sessions don't leave MCP pointing at the missing chrome channel.
+  // See issue #85.
+  "postStartCommand": "sudo /usr/local/bin/init-firewall.sh && bash .devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh",
   "waitFor": "postStartCommand"
 }
diff --git a/claude-code/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json b/claude-code/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json
index 6fdb804..b6f0855 100644
--- a/claude-code/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json
+++ b/claude-code/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json
@@ -111,5 +111,10 @@
   // Chromium is baked into the image via apt — no playwright install step needed.
   // Projects' playwright.config.ts should use process.env.PLAYWRIGHT_CHROMIUM_EXECUTABLE_PATH.
   "updateContentCommand": "sudo find /workspace -maxdepth 4 -name node_modules -type d -exec chown node {} + && sudo chown -R node /home/node/.claude && mise install && bun install",
+  // Re-patch the Playwright MCP plugin's .mcp.json on every start.
+  // Plugin auto-updates between sessions create new cache dirs whose .mcp.json
+  // points at /opt/google/chrome/chrome (which we don't ship). Without this,
+  // MCP silently breaks until the next image rebuild. See issue #85.
+  "postStartCommand": "bash .devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh",
   "waitFor": "postCreateCommand"
 }
diff --git a/claude-code/.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh b/claude-code/.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh
index 99a91fe..aa865bb 100644
--- a/claude-code/.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh
+++ b/claude-code/.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh
@@ -56,21 +56,11 @@ for plugin in "${PLUGINS[@]}"; do
     fi
 done
 
-# ── Playwright MCP: use Chromium on ARM64 (#64) ─────────────────────────────
-# @playwright/mcp defaults to --browser chrome, which has no Linux ARM64 builds.
-# Patch the plugin config to use chromium instead. No-op on AMD64.
-# Plugins run from the cache dir (~/.claude/plugins/cache), not the marketplace
-# source dir. The cache path includes a version hash — resolve via find.
-if [ "$(uname -m)" = "aarch64" ]; then
-    PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_CONFIG=$(find "$HOME/.claude/plugins/cache" \
-        -path "*/playwright*/.mcp.json" -print -quit 2>/dev/null)
-    if [ -n "$PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_CONFIG" ]; then
-        jq '.playwright.args = ["@playwright/mcp@latest", "--browser", "chromium"]' \
-            "$PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_CONFIG" > /tmp/playwright-mcp.json \
-            && mv /tmp/playwright-mcp.json "$PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_CONFIG"
-        echo "✔ Playwright MCP patched for ARM64 Chromium"
-    fi
-fi
+# ── Playwright MCP: route every cached .mcp.json to system chromium ─────────
+# Universal across arches (no Chrome stable binary in either default or sandbox).
+# Patch logic lives in patch-playwright-mcp.sh so it can also be invoked from
+# postStartCommand to catch plugin auto-updates between sessions (#85).
+bash "$(dirname "$0")/patch-playwright-mcp.sh"
 
 # ── rtk init (token-optimized CLI proxy) ────────────────────────────────────
 # Global hook-first mode: installs only the PreToolUse rewrite hook to ~/.claude/,
diff --git a/claude-code/.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh b/claude-code/.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..48b1037
--- /dev/null
+++ b/claude-code/.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Patch every cached @playwright/mcp .mcp.json to launch the system chromium.
+# Idempotent — safe to run on every container start.
+#
+# Why this exists:
+#   @playwright/mcp's default --browser is the chrome channel, which looks at
+#   /opt/google/chrome/chrome — we ship /usr/bin/chromium instead. The
+#   PLAYWRIGHT_CHROMIUM_EXECUTABLE_PATH env var is a project convention, not
+#   read by Playwright automatically, so MCP needs an explicit --executable-path.
+#
+# Why a loop instead of `find -print -quit`:
+#   Plugin auto-updates extract into fresh cache dirs (one per version hash),
+#   each with an unpatched .mcp.json. Patching only the first match (#64) left
+#   newer cache dirs broken until container rebuild.
+#
+# Wire-up: invoke from postCreateCommand (init-plugins.sh) and postStartCommand
+# (devcontainer.json) so plugin auto-updates between sessions get re-patched.
+
+set -euo pipefail
+
+if [ ! -x /usr/bin/chromium ]; then
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+find "$HOME/.claude/plugins/cache" -path "*/playwright*/.mcp.json" 2>/dev/null \
+| while read -r MCP_CONFIG; do
+    jq '.playwright.args = [
+          "@playwright/mcp@latest",
+          "--browser", "chromium",
+          "--executable-path", "/usr/bin/chromium",
+          "--no-sandbox",
+          "--headless"
+        ]' \
+        "$MCP_CONFIG" > /tmp/playwright-mcp.json \
+        && mv /tmp/playwright-mcp.json "$MCP_CONFIG" \
+        && echo "✔ Playwright MCP patched: $MCP_CONFIG"
+done
diff --git a/claude-code/README.md b/claude-code/README.md
index 4ccc618..b4cbd8d 100644
--- a/claude-code/README.md
+++ b/claude-code/README.md
@@ -22,7 +22,9 @@ Projects consume these pre-built images and control their own tool versions via
 | rtk, ralphex | Always-latest from GitHub Releases | Dev infrastructure (like Claude Code) — no version pinning needed in projects |
 | Claude Code | npm global install | npm avoids rate limiting that affects the native installer in parallel CI builds |
 
-**Default-only:** passwordless sudo, agent-browser, system Chromium (used by Playwright via `PLAYWRIGHT_CHROMIUM_EXECUTABLE_PATH`)
+**Both targets:** system Chromium + `fonts-freefont-ttf` (used by Playwright and the Playwright MCP plugin via `/usr/bin/chromium`)
+
+**Default-only:** passwordless sudo, agent-browser
 
 **Sandbox-only:** iptables, ipset, iproute2, dnsutils, aggregate, firewall sudo rule
 
@@ -76,17 +78,20 @@ Projects consuming these images need the following files in their repository.
 
 Only pin tools that affect project stability — dev infrastructure (rtk, ralphex, Claude Code) is pre-installed in the image at latest. See [`mise.toml`](mise.toml) for a template.
 
-### Optional: `.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh`
+### Optional: `.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh` and `.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh`
 
-Claude Code plugin initialization. Runs once at container creation. Idempotent. See [`.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh`](.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh) for a template.
+Claude Code plugin initialization. `init-plugins.sh` registers marketplaces, installs plugins, and (via `patch-playwright-mcp.sh`) rewrites every cached Playwright MCP `.mcp.json` to launch the system chromium. Both scripts are idempotent. See [`.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh`](.devcontainer/init-plugins.sh) and [`.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh`](.devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh) for templates.
 
-Wire it into `postCreateCommand` in your `devcontainer.json`:
+Wire them into `devcontainer.json`:
 
 ```jsonc
-"postCreateCommand": "bash .devcontainer/init-plugins.sh"
+"postCreateCommand": "bash .devcontainer/init-plugins.sh",
+"postStartCommand":  "bash .devcontainer/patch-playwright-mcp.sh"
 ```
 
-Mark as executable: `chmod +x init-plugins.sh`
+`postStartCommand` re-runs the patch on every container start so plugin auto-updates between sessions cannot leave MCP pointing at the missing chrome channel. See the [Playwright Strategy](#playwright-strategy) section.
+
+Mark as executable: `chmod +x init-plugins.sh patch-playwright-mcp.sh`
 
 ### Sandbox-only: `.devcontainer/claude-sandbox/init-firewall.sh`
 
@@ -178,6 +183,7 @@ The template includes extensions for Claude Code, Bun, OXC, Tailwind, YAML, Dock
 ├── devcontainer.json              ← default devcontainer
 ├── docker-compose.yml             ← default compose (image + pull_policy)
 ├── init-plugins.sh                ← Claude Code plugin setup (optional)
+├── patch-playwright-mcp.sh        ← Playwright MCP .mcp.json patch (optional)
 └── claude-sandbox/
     ├── devcontainer.json          ← sandbox devcontainer
     ├── docker-compose.yml         ← sandbox compose (image + pull_policy)
@@ -213,11 +219,12 @@ The `sudo find` in `updateContentCommand` chowns all `node_modules` directories
 
 ## Playwright Strategy
 
-The image uses the system `chromium` package (apt-installed in the `default`
-target) instead of Playwright-managed browser binaries. This avoids version
-coupling between `@playwright/mcp` (alpha `playwright-core` builds) and cached
+Both image variants ship the system `chromium` package (apt-installed)
+instead of Playwright-managed browser binaries. This avoids version coupling
+between `@playwright/mcp` (alpha `playwright-core` builds) and cached
 binaries, and keeps the image significantly smaller than shipping a
-Playwright-managed Chromium per rebuild.
+Playwright-managed Chromium per rebuild. Sandbox needs it baked in because
+the firewall blocks `deb.debian.org` at runtime.
 
 The Dockerfile sets:
 
@@ -241,10 +248,38 @@ export default defineConfig({
 });
 ```
 
-**Sandbox note:** `chromium` is installed only in the `default` target.
-Projects using the `sandbox` image that need browser testing should add
-chromium themselves (via a thin downstream Dockerfile or container
-`postStart`).
+### Playwright MCP plugin
+
+The `playwright@claude-plugins-official` plugin's `@playwright/mcp` defaults
+to the `chrome` channel (`/opt/google/chrome/chrome`), which the image does
+not ship. The included `patch-playwright-mcp.sh` rewrites every cached
+`.mcp.json` under `~/.claude/plugins/cache/` to use the system chromium:
+
+```json
+{
+  "playwright": {
+    "command": "npx",
+    "args": [
+      "@playwright/mcp@latest",
+      "--browser", "chromium",
+      "--executable-path", "/usr/bin/chromium",
+      "--no-sandbox",
+      "--headless"
+    ]
+  }
+}
+```
+
+`init-plugins.sh` invokes the patch script at `postCreateCommand`, and the
+template `devcontainer.json` files run it again at `postStartCommand` so
+plugin auto-updates between sessions cannot leave MCP pointing at the
+missing chrome channel.
+
+To debug, inspect the patched configs after a container start:
+
+```bash
+cat ~/.claude/plugins/cache/claude-plugins-official/playwright/*/.mcp.json
+```
 
 ## Build Args