diff --git a/.github/workflows/pull-request-conditionals.yaml b/.github/workflows/pull-request-conditionals.yaml
index 5148890b5c..9eacd11adc 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pull-request-conditionals.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pull-request-conditionals.yaml
@@ -6,8 +6,9 @@ name: Filter
 # This workflow is triggered on pull requests
 on:
   pull_request:
-    branches: [main]
-    # milestoned is added here as a workaround for release-please not triggering PR workflows (PRs should be added to a milestone to trigger the workflow).
+    branches:
+      - main
+      - "release/**" # milestoned is added here as a workaround for release-please not triggering PR workflows (PRs should be added to a milestone to trigger the workflow).
     # labeled is added to support renovate-ready labelling on PRs
     types: [milestoned, labeled, opened, reopened, synchronize]
     paths-ignore:
@@ -87,6 +88,7 @@ jobs:
     outputs:
       combined: ${{ steps.combine-path-filters.outputs.combined }}
       distros: ${{ steps.path-filter-iac.outputs.changes }}
+      run_full_tests: ${{ steps.test-routing.outputs.run_full_tests }}
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout the code
@@ -131,11 +133,32 @@ jobs:
           echo combined=$COMBINED >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
           echo The following packages will be triggered: $COMBINED
 
+      - name: Compute test routing
+        id: test-routing
+        run: |
+          BASE="${{ github.base_ref }}"
+          HEAD="${{ github.head_ref }}"
+          COMBINED='${{ steps.combine-path-filters.outputs.combined }}'
+
+          RUN_FULL=false
+
+          if [[ -n "$COMBINED" && "$COMBINED" != "[]" ]]; then
+            if [[ "$BASE" == "main" ]]; then
+              RUN_FULL=true
+            elif [[ "$BASE" == release/* ]]; then
+              if [[ "$HEAD" == release-please* ]]; then
+                RUN_FULL=true
+              fi
+            fi
+          fi
+
+          echo "run_full_tests=$RUN_FULL" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
   # @lulaStart 11948466-9230-4498-be44-dbac784d86d1
   # This job triggers a separate workflow for each changed source package, if any.
   run-package-test:
     needs: check-paths
-    if: ${{ needs.check-paths.outputs.combined != '' && needs.check-paths.outputs.combined != '[]' }}
+    if: ${{ needs.check-paths.outputs.run_full_tests == 'true' }}
     name: Schedule
     strategy:
       matrix:
@@ -148,4 +171,21 @@ jobs:
       flavor: ${{ matrix.flavor }}
       test_type: ${{ matrix.test_type }}
     secrets: inherit # Inherits all secrets from the parent workflow.
-# @lulaEnd 11948466-9230-4498-be44-dbac784d86d1
+  # @lulaEnd 11948466-9230-4498-be44-dbac784d86d1
+
+  # Shim out required heavy tests for non-release-please PRs to release/*.
+  run-package-test-shim:
+    needs: check-paths
+    if: ${{ needs.check-paths.outputs.run_full_tests != 'true' }}
+    name: Schedule
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        package: [all]
+        flavor: [upstream, registry1, unicorn]
+        test_type: [install, upgrade]
+    uses: ./.github/workflows/test-shim.yaml
+    with:
+      package: ${{ matrix.package }}
+      flavor: ${{ matrix.flavor }}
+      test_type: ${{ matrix.test_type }}
+    secrets: inherit
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pull-request-release.yaml b/.github/workflows/pull-request-release.yaml
deleted file mode 100644
index a041cbdb38..0000000000
--- a/.github/workflows/pull-request-release.yaml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,99 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright 2024 Defense Unicorns
-# SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later OR LicenseRef-Defense-Unicorns-Commercial
-
-name: PR Backports
-
-# This workflow is triggered on pull requests targeting release/*
-on:
-  pull_request:
-    branches: ["release/**"]
-    # milestoned is added here as a workaround for release-please not triggering PR workflows (PRs should be added to a milestone to trigger the workflow).
-    # labeled is added to support renovate-ready labelling on PRs
-    types: [milestoned, labeled, opened, reopened, synchronize]
-
-# Permissions for the GITHUB_TOKEN used by the workflow.
-permissions:
-  id-token: write # Needed for OIDC-related operations.
-  contents: read # Allows reading the content of the repository.
-  pull-requests: write # Allows writing pull request metadata.
-  packages: read # Allows reading the published GHCR packages
-
-# Default settings for all run commands in the workflow jobs.
-defaults:
-  run:
-    shell: bash -e -o pipefail {0}
-
-# Abort prior jobs in the same workflow / PR
-concurrency:
-  group: test-${{ github.ref }}
-  cancel-in-progress: true
-
-jobs:
-  lint-check:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: "Stub: skip lint-check on fork"
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner != 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        run: echo "[STUB] Skipping lint-check on fork"
-      - name: Checkout repository
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        uses: actions/checkout@08c6903cd8c0fde910a37f88322edcfb5dd907a8 # v5.0.0
-      - name: lint-check
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        uses: ./.github/actions/lint-check
-
-  autogenerated-check:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: "Stub: skip autogenerated-check on fork"
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner != 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        run: echo "[STUB] Skipping autogenerated-check on fork"
-      - name: Checkout repository
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        uses: actions/checkout@08c6903cd8c0fde910a37f88322edcfb5dd907a8 # v5.0.0
-      - name: autogenerated-check
-        if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'defenseunicorns' }}
-        uses: ./.github/actions/autogenerated-check
-
-  unit-tests:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@08c6903cd8c0fde910a37f88322edcfb5dd907a8 # v5.0.0
-      - name: unit-tests
-        uses: ./.github/actions/unit-tests
-
-  # Full CI for Release PRs created by release-please (detect by head ref prefix)
-  run-package-test-full:
-    needs: [lint-check, autogenerated-check, unit-tests]
-    if: ${{ startsWith(github.head_ref, 'release-please--') }}
-    name: Schedule
-    strategy:
-      matrix:
-        package: [all]
-        flavor: [upstream]
-        test_type: [install, upgrade]
-    uses: ./.github/workflows/test.yaml
-    with:
-      package: ${{ matrix.package }}
-      flavor: ${{ matrix.flavor }}
-      test_type: ${{ matrix.test_type }}
-      target_version: ${{ github.base_ref }}
-    secrets: inherit
-
-  # Shim out required heavy tests for all PRs to release/*
-  run-package-test-shim:
-    needs: [lint-check, autogenerated-check, unit-tests]
-    if: ${{ !startsWith(github.head_ref, 'release-please--') }}
-    name: Schedule
-    strategy:
-      matrix:
-        package: [all]
-        flavor: [upstream]
-        test_type: [install, upgrade]
-    uses: ./.github/workflows/test-shim.yaml
-    with:
-      package: ${{ matrix.package }}
-      flavor: ${{ matrix.flavor }}
-      test_type: ${{ matrix.test_type }}
-    secrets: inherit # Inherits all secrets from the parent workflow.
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release-patch.yaml b/.github/workflows/release-patch.yaml
deleted file mode 100644
index 7b051c623d..0000000000
--- a/.github/workflows/release-patch.yaml
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,59 +0,0 @@
-# Copyright 2024 Defense Unicorns
-# SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later OR LicenseRef-Defense-Unicorns-Commercial
-
-name: Patch Release UDS Core
-
-permissions:
-  contents: read
-  packages: read
-  id-token: write
-
-on:
-  push:
-    branches:
-      - "release/**"
-
-jobs:
-  tag-new-version:
-    permissions: write-all
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    outputs:
-      release_created: ${{ steps.release-flag.outputs.release_created }}
-      releases_created: ${{ steps.tag.outputs.releases_created }}
-    steps:
-      - name: Checkout
-        uses: actions/checkout@08c6903cd8c0fde910a37f88322edcfb5dd907a8 # v5.0.0
-        with:
-          fetch-depth: 0
-
-      - name: Create release tag
-        id: tag
-        uses: googleapis/release-please-action@16a9c90856f42705d54a6fda1823352bdc62cf38 # v4.4.0
-        with:
-          target-branch: ${{ github.ref_name }}
-          config-file: release-please-config.patch.json
-
-      - id: release-flag
-        run: echo "release_created=${{ steps.tag.outputs.release_created || false }}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-
-  publish-uds-core-release:
-    needs: tag-new-version
-    if: ${{ needs.tag-new-version.outputs.release_created == 'true'}}
-    permissions:
-      contents: write
-      packages: write
-      id-token: write
-    uses: ./.github/workflows/publish.yaml
-    with:
-      snapshot: false
-    secrets: inherit
-
-  checkpoint-uds-core-release:
-    needs: publish-uds-core-release
-    permissions:
-      contents: read
-      packages: write
-      id-token: write
-      pull-requests: write
-    uses: ./.github/workflows/checkpoint.yaml
-    secrets: inherit
diff --git a/.github/workflows/tag-and-release.yaml b/.github/workflows/tag-and-release.yaml
index 6bc8b94a1d..9ff40930ea 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tag-and-release.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tag-and-release.yaml
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ on:
   push:
     branches:
       - main
+      - "release/**"
 
 jobs:
   # @lulaStart d364a8e6-95ab-448c-bb97-9f456c85b54f
@@ -27,6 +28,9 @@ jobs:
       - name: Create release tag
         id: tag
         uses: googleapis/release-please-action@16a9c90856f42705d54a6fda1823352bdc62cf38 # v4.4.0
+        with:
+          target-branch: ${{ github.ref_name }}
+          config-file: ${{ startsWith(github.ref, 'refs/heads/release/') && 'release-please-config.patch.json' || 'release-please-config.json' }}
 
   publish-uds-core-release:
     needs: tag-new-version
@@ -43,7 +47,7 @@ jobs:
 
   scan-release:
     needs: publish-uds-core-release
-    if: ${{ github.repository_owner == 'defenseunicorns' }}
+    if: ${{ github.ref == 'refs/heads/main' }}
     permissions:
       contents: read
       packages: read
@@ -66,8 +70,8 @@ jobs:
     secrets: inherit
 
   cut-release-branch:
-    needs: tag-new-version
-    if: ${{ needs.tag-new-version.outputs.release_created == 'true' }}
+    needs: publish-uds-core-release
+    if: ${{ github.ref == 'refs/heads/main' }}
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     permissions:
       contents: write
diff --git a/tasks/backport.yaml b/tasks/backport.yaml
index 15261dd771..5daa1def83 100644
--- a/tasks/backport.yaml
+++ b/tasks/backport.yaml
@@ -1,17 +1,20 @@
-# Copyright 2024 Defense Unicorns
+# Copyright 2025 Defense Unicorns
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later OR LicenseRef-Defense-Unicorns-Commercial
 
 tasks:
   - name: backport
     description: "Create a backport branch from release/* and cherry-pick commits"
     inputs:
-      target_version:
-        description: "Target minor version (e.g., 0.54)"
-      commits:
-        description: "Comma-separated list of commit SHAs to cherry-pick, in order"
-      name:
-        description: "Optional short name to include in branch name (defaults to first SHA)"
-        default: ""
+      target_versions:
+        description: "Comma-separated target minor versions (e.g., 0.54,0.55)"
+        required: true
+      commit:
+        description: "Single commit SHA to cherry-pick"
+        required: true
+      auto_pr:
+        description: "Automatically open PRs for each backport branch"
+        default: "true"
+
     actions:
       - description: "Create backport branch and cherry-pick commits"
         shell:
@@ -25,52 +28,93 @@ tasks:
             echo "Working tree is dirty. Please commit or stash your changes before running the backport task." >&2
             exit 1
           fi
-          TV='${{ .inputs.target_version }}'
-          COMMITS='${{ .inputs.commits }}'
-          NAME_INPUT='${{ .inputs.name }}'
+          TVS='${{ .inputs.target_versions }}'
+          COMMIT='${{ .inputs.commit }}'
+          AUTO_PR='${{ .inputs.auto_pr }}'
+          NAME="$(echo "$COMMIT" | xargs)"
 
-          if [[ -z "$TV" ]]; then
-            echo "target_version input is required (e.g., 0.54)" >&2
-            exit 1
-          fi
-
-          RB="release/${TV}"
           git fetch origin --tags
-          if ! git show-ref --verify --quiet "refs/remotes/origin/${RB}"; then
-            echo "Remote branch ${RB} not found. Ensure it exists (cut from v${TV}.0) or create it first." >&2
-            exit 1
-          fi
 
-          MINOR="$TV"
+          MINOR_LIST=()
+          IFS=',' read -ra MINOR_LIST <<< "$TVS"
 
-          if [[ -z "$COMMITS" ]]; then
-            echo "No commits specified. Provide 'prs' and/or 'commits'." >&2
-            exit 1
-          fi
+          for MINOR in "${MINOR_LIST[@]}"; do
+            MINOR="$(echo "$MINOR" | xargs)"
+            if [[ -z "$MINOR" ]]; then
+              continue
+            fi
+            RB="release/${MINOR}"
+            if ! git show-ref --verify --quiet "refs/remotes/origin/${RB}"; then
+              echo "Remote branch ${RB} not found. Ensure it exists (cut from v${MINOR}.0) or create it first." >&2
+              exit 1
+            fi
 
-          if [[ -z "$NAME_INPUT" ]]; then
-            NAME_INPUT="$(echo "$COMMITS" | cut -d',' -f1 | xargs)"
-          fi
+            BRANCH="backport/${NAME}-to-${MINOR}"
+            BRANCH="${BRANCH// /-}"
+            BRANCH="$(echo "$BRANCH" | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')"
+
+            echo "Creating branch: ${BRANCH} from ${RB}"
+            git switch -c "${BRANCH}" "origin/${RB}"
+
+            C="$(echo "$COMMIT" | xargs)"
+            echo "Cherry-picking ${C} into ${BRANCH}..."
+
+            # Suppress noisy git output; on failure, show clear next steps instead.
+            if ! git cherry-pick -x "$C" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+              echo
+              echo "======================================================================"
+              echo "Backport to ${RB} hit conflicts while cherry-picking ${C}."
+              echo "You are now on branch: ${BRANCH}"
+              echo
+              echo "To resolve the conflicts and finish this backport, run (copy/paste):"
+              echo
+              echo "  git status"
+              echo "  # edit files to resolve conflicts"
+              echo "  git add <files-you-resolved>"
+              echo "  git cherry-pick --continue"
+              echo "  git push -u origin ${BRANCH}"
+              echo
+              DEFAULT_TITLE="$(git log -1 --pretty=%s "$COMMIT" 2>/dev/null || echo "")"
+              if [[ -z "${DEFAULT_TITLE}" ]]; then
+                DEFAULT_TITLE="chore: backport of ${COMMIT}"
+              fi
+              TITLE="${DEFAULT_TITLE} (backport-${MINOR})"
+              BODY="Backport of commit: ${COMMIT}"
+
+              if command -v gh >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+                echo "  gh pr create --title \"${TITLE}\" --body \"${BODY}\" --base \"${RB}\" --head \"${BRANCH}\""
+              else
+                echo "  # After pushing, open a PR with base=${RB} and compare=${BRANCH}"
+              fi
 
-          BRANCH="backport/${NAME_INPUT}-to-${MINOR}"
-          BRANCH="${BRANCH// /-}"
-          BRANCH="$(echo "$BRANCH" | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')"
+              if [[ -n "${CURR_BRANCH}" ]]; then
+                echo
+                echo "After finishing the backport and pushing, you can return to your original branch with:"
+                echo
+                echo "  git switch ${CURR_BRANCH}"
+              fi
+              echo "======================================================================"
+              exit 1
+            fi
+
+            git push -u origin "${BRANCH}" >/dev/null 2>&1
+
+            DEFAULT_TITLE="$(git log -1 --pretty=%s "$COMMIT" 2>/dev/null || echo "")"
+            if [[ -z "${DEFAULT_TITLE}" ]]; then
+              DEFAULT_TITLE="chore: backport of ${COMMIT}"
+            fi
+            TITLE="${DEFAULT_TITLE} (backport-${MINOR})"
+            BODY="Backport of commit: ${COMMIT}"
 
-          echo "Creating branch: ${BRANCH} from ${RB}"
-          git switch -c "${BRANCH}" "origin/${RB}"
+            echo "✅ Backport branch created and pushed: ${BRANCH} (base: ${RB})"
 
-          IFS=',' read -ra ARR <<< "$COMMITS"
-          for C in "${ARR[@]}"; do
-            C="$(echo "$C" | xargs)"
-            if [[ -n "$C" ]]; then
-              echo "Cherry-picking ${C}"
-              git cherry-pick -x "$C"
+            if [[ "${AUTO_PR}" == "true" ]] && command -v gh >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+              gh pr create --title "${TITLE}" --body "${BODY}" --base "${RB}" --head "${BRANCH}" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+            else
+              echo "  # After pushing, open a PR with base=${RB} and compare=${BRANCH}"
             fi
           done
 
-          git push -u origin "${BRANCH}"
-          echo "Backport branch created: ${BRANCH}"
-          echo "Open a PR with base=${RB} and compare=${BRANCH}"
           if [[ -n "$CURR_BRANCH" ]]; then
             git switch "$CURR_BRANCH"
             echo "Returned to branch: $CURR_BRANCH"
diff --git a/tasks/deploy.yaml b/tasks/deploy.yaml
index 6c1a32b215..39fe217c14 100644
--- a/tasks/deploy.yaml
+++ b/tasks/deploy.yaml
@@ -120,39 +120,25 @@ tasks:
             uds zarf package deploy build/zarf-package-core-${{ index .inputs "layer" }}-${UDS_ARCH}-${VERSION}.tar.zst --confirm --no-progress --components '*'
           fi
 
-  - name: latest-bundle-release
-    inputs:
-      configFile:
-        description: "UDS_CONFIG file to use for the deployment"
+  - name: resolve-latest-core-release
     actions:
       - task: utils:determine-repo
-      - description: "Get latest tag version from OCI (optionally pinned to TARGET_VERSION minor stream)"
+      - description: "Get latest tag version from OCI (conditionally pinned to TARGET_VERSION minor stream)"
         shell:
           darwin: bash
           linux: bash
         cmd: |
-          if [ "${STUB_MODE}" = "true" ]; then
-            if [ -n "${TARGET_VERSION}" ]; then
-              echo "[STUB] TARGET_VERSION='${TARGET_VERSION}'"
-              echo "[STUB] Command: uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep \"${FLAVOR}\" | grep -E \"^${TARGET_VERSION}\\.\" | sort -V | tail -1"
-            else
-              echo "[STUB] TARGET_VERSION is unset"
-              echo "[STUB] Command: uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep \"${FLAVOR}\" | sort -V | tail -1"
-            fi
-            echo "unknown-latest-${FLAVOR}"
+          BRANCH="${GITHUB_HEAD_REF:-${GITHUB_REF_NAME:-$(git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD 2>/dev/null || echo "")}}"
+
+          TARGET_VERSION=""
+          if [[ "$BRANCH" == release-please--branches--release/* ]]; then
+            TARGET_VERSION="${BRANCH#release-please--branches--release/}"
+          fi
+
+          if [ -n "${TARGET_VERSION}" ]; then
+            uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep "${FLAVOR}" | grep -E "^${TARGET_VERSION}\\." | sort -V | tail -1
           else
-            set +e
-            if [ -n "${TARGET_VERSION}" ]; then
-              RES=$(uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core 2>/dev/null | grep "${FLAVOR}" | grep -E "^${TARGET_VERSION}\\." | sort -V | tail -1)
-            else
-              RES=$(uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core 2>/dev/null | grep "${FLAVOR}" | sort -V | tail -1)
-            fi
-            set -e
-            if [ -z "$RES" ]; then
-              echo "unknown-latest-${FLAVOR}"
-            else
-              echo "$RES"
-            fi
+            uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep "${FLAVOR}" | sort -V | tail -1
           fi
         setVariables:
           - name: LATEST_VERSION
@@ -160,9 +146,16 @@ tasks:
         cmd: echo ${LATEST_VERSION} | cut -d'-' -f1 # Extract version before any hyphen (e.g., "0.52.0" from "0.52.0-upstream")
         setVariables:
           - name: LATEST_CORE_TAG
+
+  - name: latest-bundle-release
+    inputs:
+      configFile:
+        description: "UDS_CONFIG file to use for the deployment"
+    actions:
+      - task: resolve-latest-core-release
       - description: "Upgrade plan"
         cmd: |
-          echo "Upgrading FROM ${LATEST_VERSION} TO ${VERSION} (flavor=${FLAVOR})"
+          echo "Upgrading FROM ${LATEST_VERSION} (tag ${LATEST_CORE_TAG}) TO main (flavor=${FLAVOR})"
       - description: "Create the latest version with bundle overrides"
         cmd: |
           if [ "${STUB_MODE}" = "true" ]; then
@@ -203,41 +196,7 @@ tasks:
 
   - name: latest-release-test-resources
     actions:
-      - task: utils:determine-repo
-      - description: "Get latest tag version from OCI for aligning test resources (optionally pinned to TARGET_VERSION minor stream)"
-        shell:
-          darwin: bash
-          linux: bash
-        cmd: |
-          if [ "${STUB_MODE}" = "true" ]; then
-            if [ -n "${TARGET_VERSION}" ]; then
-              echo "[STUB] TARGET_VERSION='${TARGET_VERSION}'"
-              echo "[STUB] Command: uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep \"${FLAVOR}\" | grep -E \"^${TARGET_VERSION}\\.\" | sort -V | tail -1"
-            else
-              echo "[STUB] TARGET_VERSION is unset"
-              echo "[STUB] Command: uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core | grep \"${FLAVOR}\" | sort -V | tail -1"
-            fi
-            echo "unknown-latest-${FLAVOR}"
-          else
-            set +e
-            if [ -n "${TARGET_VERSION}" ]; then
-              RES=$(uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core 2>/dev/null | grep "${FLAVOR}" | grep -E "^${TARGET_VERSION}\\." | sort -V | tail -1)
-            else
-              RES=$(uds zarf tools registry ls ${TARGET_REPO}/core 2>/dev/null | grep "${FLAVOR}" | sort -V | tail -1)
-            fi
-            set -e
-            if [ -z "$RES" ]; then
-              echo "unknown-latest-${FLAVOR}"
-            else
-              echo "$RES"
-            fi
-          fi
-        setVariables:
-          - name: LATEST_VERSION
-      - description: "Extract unflavored version for git tag"
-        cmd: echo ${LATEST_VERSION} | cut -d'-' -f1 # Extract version before any hyphen (e.g., "0.52.0" from "0.52.0-upstream")
-        setVariables:
-          - name: LATEST_CORE_TAG
+      - task: resolve-latest-core-release
       - description: "Fetch src/test from tagged release"
         cmd: |
           if [ "${STUB_MODE}" = "true" ]; then