agentic-engineering

name	agentic-engineering
description	Apply DinoStack's agentic engineering protocol to software implementation, debugging, review, testing, architecture, and delivery work.

Codex resource resolution

Before executing this skill, resolve the physical directory containing this loaded SKILL.md (follow the installed skill-directory symlink) and bind it as AE_SKILL_ROOT. Set AE_CORE_SKILL_ROOT to . beneath that physical root and validate its .dinostack-skill.json marker has magic=DINOSTACK_CODEX_SKILL, adapter=codex, name=agentic-engineering, and schema_version=1. Resolve every logical resource through the adjacent RESOURCE-MAP.json; reject missing, escaping, symlink-loop, or wrong-type targets. Derive AE_REPO_DIR from the validated core marker plus its mapped bin resource and require the repository signature (content/SKILL.md, .codex, and the dispatch helper); never fall back to the process working directory. Bind AE_PROJECT_DIR to the absolute invoked project root before changing directories (git rev-parse --show-toplevel when inside a repository, otherwise the verified invocation directory). Project .claude/**, .agentic/**, .gitignore, QA, settings, compression, and migration state resolve only beneath AE_PROJECT_DIR, never beneath AE_REPO_DIR. Evaluate $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch runtime-bindings "<absolute-invocation-directory>" before any operational step. Require its AE_REPO_DIR and AE_PROJECT_DIR values to match the independently validated paths above, then consume the same JSON object to bind AE_CODEX_CONFIG_DIR, AE_SHARED_CONFIG_DIR, and AE_ACTIVATION_CONFIG; fail closed on any mismatch. Map canonical filesystem tools to Codex filesystem reads, rg --files, rg, shell, and apply_patch; ask one bounded direct question only after default derivation. Derive AE_SESSION_ID by passing hook JSON to $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-session-id. Native workflows are invoked with $ syntax. Other DinoStack workflows remain manual command resources loaded with $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch command <name>; do not claim bare slash registration. Codex spawn_agent accepts only task_name, message, and fork_turns. Put Tier and model intent in the task brief or resolve it through role routing before the spawn; never pass Claude-only spawn fields. When isolation is required, the conductor creates the worktree manually before spawning.

Codex spawn contract. Delegate with spawn_agent only. Before any spawn that needs an isolated checkout, run the following from the invoked project root ($AE_PROJECT_DIR):

1. git fetch origin.
2. Resolve BASE_BRANCH with $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch base-branch "$AE_PROJECT_DIR". This applies the canonical precedence: exactly one dedicated unfenced whole-line BASE_BRANCH: declaration in project AGENTS.md (with an optional Markdown list prefix and optional Declaration: prefix), then local develop, then local development. Multiple matching declarations are rejected as ambiguous. If none exists, the helper fails closed; ask the operator whether to use main (recommended, falling back to master) or establish a develop-based workflow, exactly as required by the base-branch resolution protocol.
3. Choose a unique branch and absolute worktree path beneath $AE_PROJECT_DIR/.agentic/worktrees/.
4. Run git worktree add "$AE_PROJECT_DIR/.agentic/worktrees/<branch>" -b "<branch>" "origin/$BASE_BRANCH".
5. Load the named role instructions with $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch agent <role>.
6. Call spawn_agent with supported inputs (task_name, message, and fork_turns). Begin the message with Work only in the pre-created worktree <absolute-path> and include the loaded role instructions plus the execution contract. The spawned agent must use shell commands in that worktree and must not edit the conductor checkout.

Codex spawns are asynchronous. The conductor remains responsive, uses the collaboration status and wait operations to collect completion, and applies the existing review gates to the returned diff. Claude hook payload fields and Claude Task behavior do not apply on Codex.

IMPORTANT - READ THIS FIRST: If skill_auto_load: true is set in $AE_SHARED_CONFIG_DIR/agentic-engineering.json, this skill is configured to auto-load. Read this entire SKILL.md before taking any action on software development tasks. Do not start implementing until you have read the Rules section below.

The Agentic Engineering system defines how to plan, delegate, review, and ship software using a structured multi-agent workflow. It covers risk classification, adversarial review, task decomposition, and quality gates so that changes are correct, safe, and reviewable. Read the rules files on every session and the reference docs on the triggers described in $AE_CORE_SKILL_ROOT/METHODOLOGY.md §Protocol Details (read on trigger).

Conductor default: act, don't ask. The conductor's job is to complete the goal, not to approve every step. Stop and ask only for destructive/irreversible actions, missing information only the user has, materially ambiguous acceptance criteria, or scope-completion decisions. Repeated stops within one task are a planning signal, not a virtue. See Proactive autonomy in $AE_CORE_SKILL_ROOT/METHODOLOGY.md §Delegation for the full rule, anti-patterns, and stop-frequency thresholds.

Rules (read these files)

• $AE_CORE_SKILL_ROOT/METHODOLOGY.md - the assembled kernel: delegation, risk classification, activation preflight, planning gate, task decomposition, and worktree lifecycle; the core rules for when to act directly vs. spawn Workers and Skeptics.

• rules/code-standards.md - documentation lookups via Context7, tool discipline (Read always primary; prefer Glob/Grep when available, Bash rg/grep/find as the sanctioned fallback otherwise), code quality gates, package management conventions, and browser verification with agent-browser.

• rules/conventions.md - writing style, project structure, session context and memory handling, and git workflow including protected branches and worktree-per-feature conventions.

Commands (invoke by name)

• manual workflow 'ds-help' via $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch command ds-help - static, zero-token command reference; lists every slash command with a one-line description.
• manual workflow 'ds-status' via $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch command ds-status - read-only resolver dump; shows the resolved mode, profile, and marker with provenance plus a plain-English explainer of what they do and how to change them.
• $brief - interactive planning dialogue; produces the Brief artifact before architect and engineer are spawned. Invoke when operator implies planning intent at session start, or use $brief --from <path> to extract a Brief from an existing PRD.
• manual workflow 'ds-pull-and-install' via $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch command ds-pull-and-install - update an existing agentic-engineering/DinoStack install (or fresh-install if none exists); invoke when the user says "pull and install DinoStack", "update DinoStack", "install the latest DinoStack", "reinstall agentic-engineering", or "update my AE install".

Run manual workflow 'ds-help' via $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-codex-dispatch command ds-help for the full command inventory.

Reference Docs (read on trigger - see Protocol Details in $AE_CORE_SKILL_ROOT/METHODOLOGY.md)

• references/skeptic-protocol.md - Skeptic loop orchestration, findings classification (Critical/Major/Minor), sign-off format, adversarial briefs, and the Elevated + Cleanup path.

• references/subagent-protocol.md - parallel spawning rules, worktree isolation, check-in behavior, phase breadcrumbs, and task decomposition rules for multi-Worker plans.

• references/agent-team.md - named agent roles (engineer, architect, investigator, debugger, security-auditor, orchestration-planner), composed flows, decision rules, and spawn requirements.

• references/design-goals.md - design principles and goals of the Agentic Engineering system; read when evaluating whether a proposed change aligns with the system's intent.

• references/regression-test-obligation.md - per-finding regression-test obligation: every Skeptic finding fixed during a task must come with a regression test that would have caught it; read when fixing a Skeptic finding to confirm what counts as a valid regression test.

• references/doc-sync-obligation.md - per-change doc-sync obligation: a reality-asserting change (alters a count/list/path/convention/behavior an intent-layer doc states) must update the affected docs in the same change; read when a change touches a documented surface.

• references/role-models.md - Pi / oh-my-pi per-role model routing and antagonist reviewer model diversity; read when resolving role-models.yml or spawning reviewers on Pi/omp.

• references/model-discovery.md - Pi/oh-my-pi model selection paths (ask-user wizard, harness-native, pin-by-hand) and the per-role ranking heuristics in $AE_REPO_DIR/bin/agentic-models; read when seeding role-models.yml.

• references/cross-harness-teams.md - agentic-team CLI and team.yml schema for orchestrating parallel agent teams across multiple AI harnesses; read when using agentic-team or configuring cross-harness dispatch with team.yml.

• references/digest-return-pattern.md - digest-return discipline: when a background loop-running spawn (multi-iteration Skeptic/QA, long investigation) returns, the conductor reads the structured digest and acts - it does not re-read the internal transcript; read when running a multi-unit plan with parallel background loops.

Rules (read on trigger)

• rules/module-manifest.md - required manifest header format for non-trivial source files; read when creating or substantially modifying a file that exports a public symbol, exceeds ~50 LOC, or implements a side-effecting operation.