diff --git a/hive-ag3nt/src/forge_notify.rs b/hive-ag3nt/src/forge_notify.rs
index 21977f7..c9969a1 100644
--- a/hive-ag3nt/src/forge_notify.rs
+++ b/hive-ag3nt/src/forge_notify.rs
@@ -104,8 +104,6 @@ pub async fn run(socket: PathBuf, is_manager: bool) {
         debug!(%own_login, "forge_notify: own login resolved");
     }
 
-    info!(forge_url = %forge_url, "forge_notify: polling started");
-
     let mut interval = tokio::time::interval(Duration::from_secs(POLL_INTERVAL_SECS));
     interval.set_missed_tick_behavior(tokio::time::MissedTickBehavior::Delay);
     // First tick fires immediately — skip it so we don't race the broker
@@ -118,6 +116,29 @@ pub async fn run(socket: PathBuf, is_manager: bool) {
         .map(|v| v == "1" || v.eq_ignore_ascii_case("true"))
         .unwrap_or(false);
 
+    // Optional reason drop-list. `HIVE_FORGE_NOTIFY_SKIP_REASONS` is a
+    // comma-separated list of Forgejo notification `reason` values to
+    // suppress (e.g. `subscribed,participating`). Notifications with
+    // those reasons are marked read and silently dropped; everything
+    // else -- including notifications with a null/unrecognised reason --
+    // is delivered. Drop-list is safer than an allow-list: it kills the
+    // firehose without risking silent misses of directed signals
+    // (review_requested, assigned) or future unknown reason strings.
+    // Configurable per-agent via `hyperhive.forge.skipNotifyReasons` in agent.nix.
+    let skip_reasons: Vec<String> = std::env::var("HIVE_FORGE_NOTIFY_SKIP_REASONS")
+        .unwrap_or_default()
+        .split(',')
+        .map(str::trim)
+        .filter(|s| !s.is_empty())
+        .map(str::to_owned)
+        .collect();
+
+    if skip_reasons.is_empty() {
+        info!(forge_url = %forge_url, "forge_notify: polling started (all reasons)");
+    } else {
+        info!(forge_url = %forge_url, skip = ?skip_reasons, "forge_notify: polling started");
+    }
+
     // Repos we have already unsubscribed this process lifetime. Persists
     // across polls so we don't hammer DELETE on every cycle.
     let mut unsubbed_repos: HashSet<String> = HashSet::new();
@@ -133,6 +154,7 @@ pub async fn run(socket: PathBuf, is_manager: bool) {
             keep_subscriptions,
             &mut unsubbed_repos,
             &own_login,
+            &skip_reasons,
         )
         .await;
     }
@@ -444,6 +466,7 @@ async fn poll_once(
     keep_subscriptions: bool,
     unsubbed_repos: &mut HashSet<String>,
     own_login: &str,
+    skip_reasons: &[String],
 ) {
     let url = format!("{forge_url}/api/v1/notifications?all=false&limit=50");
     let resp = match client
@@ -481,6 +504,18 @@ async fn poll_once(
     for notif in &notifications {
         let Some(id) = notif["id"].as_u64() else { continue };
 
+        // Reason drop-list: suppress noisy reasons (subscribed/participating).
+        // null/unknown reasons pass through — directed signals are never
+        // silently dropped even if Forgejo returns an unexpected value.
+        if !skip_reasons.is_empty() {
+            let reason = notif["reason"].as_str().unwrap_or("");
+            if !reason.is_empty() && skip_reasons.iter().any(|r| r == reason) {
+                debug!(%id, %reason, "forge_notify: skipping (reason in drop-list)");
+                mark_read(client, forge_url, token, id).await;
+                continue;
+            }
+        }
+
         let body_opt = format_notification(client, token, notif, own_login).await;
 
         // None means self-echo — mark read silently, no delivery.
diff --git a/nix/templates/harness-base.nix b/nix/templates/harness-base.nix
index 62d7fe3..a1948ac 100644
--- a/nix/templates/harness-base.nix
+++ b/nix/templates/harness-base.nix
@@ -173,6 +173,31 @@
     '';
   };
 
+  options.hyperhive.forge.skipNotifyReasons = lib.mkOption {
+    type = lib.types.listOf lib.types.str;
+    default = [ ];
+    example = [
+      "subscribed"
+      "participating"
+    ];
+    description = ''
+      Forgejo notification `reason` values to suppress in the forge
+      notification poller. Notifications with these reasons are marked
+      read and silently dropped; all others — including notifications
+      with a null or unrecognised reason — are delivered.
+
+      Drop-list is safer than an allow-list: directed signals
+      (`review_requested`, `assigned`, `mention`) are never silently
+      missed even if Forgejo returns an unexpected reason string.
+
+      Empty list (the default) delivers all notifications. Set to
+      `[ "subscribed" "participating" ]` for agents like the manager
+      that want only direct mentions and reviews, not the full repo
+      firehose. Rendered to the `HIVE_FORGE_NOTIFY_SKIP_REASONS`
+      environment variable consumed by the harness poller at runtime.
+    '';
+  };
+
   options.hyperhive.dashboardLinks = lib.mkOption {
     type = lib.types.listOf (lib.types.submodule {
       options = {
@@ -332,6 +357,8 @@
       HIVE_COMPACT_WATERMARK_TOKENS = "0";
     } // lib.optionalAttrs config.hyperhive.forge.keepSubscriptions {
       HIVE_FORGE_KEEP_SUBSCRIPTIONS = "1";
+    } // lib.optionalAttrs (config.hyperhive.forge.skipNotifyReasons != [ ]) {
+      HIVE_FORGE_NOTIFY_SKIP_REASONS = lib.concatStringsSep "," config.hyperhive.forge.skipNotifyReasons;
     };
 
     boot.isNspawnContainer = true;
diff --git a/nix/templates/manager.nix b/nix/templates/manager.nix
index c040cae..5a4544c 100644
--- a/nix/templates/manager.nix
+++ b/nix/templates/manager.nix
@@ -2,9 +2,15 @@
 {
   imports = [ ./harness-base.nix ];
 
-  # Manager auto-unsubscribes from repo watches (uses mention-only filtering
-  # via HIVE_FORGE_NOTIFY_REASONS). Sub-agents default to keepSubscriptions=true.
+  # Manager auto-unsubscribes from repo watches and skips the subscription/
+  # participation firehose — only direct mentions, reviews, and assignments
+  # land in the inbox. Sub-agents default to keepSubscriptions=true and
+  # skipNotifyReasons=[].
   hyperhive.forge.keepSubscriptions = false;
+  hyperhive.forge.skipNotifyReasons = [
+    "subscribed"
+    "participating"
+  ];
 
   # HIVE_PORT/HIVE_LABEL/gitconfig are also injected by the generated
   # `applied/hm1nd/flake.nix` (see `lifecycle::setup_applied`); the values