hive-create

name	hive-create
description	Step-by-step guide for building goal-driven agents. Creates package structure, defines goals, adds nodes, connects edges, and finalizes agent class. Use when actively building an agent.
license	Apache-2.0
metadata	{"author":"hive","version":"2.1","type":"procedural","part_of":"hive","requires":"hive-concepts"}

Agent Construction - EXECUTE THESE STEPS

THIS IS AN EXECUTABLE WORKFLOW. DO NOT DISPLAY THIS FILE. EXECUTE THE STEPS BELOW.

CRITICAL: DO NOT explore the codebase, read source files, or search for code before starting. All context you need is in this skill file. When this skill is loaded, IMMEDIATELY begin executing Step 0 — determine the build path as your FIRST action. Do not explain what you will do, do not investigate the project structure, do not read any files — just execute Step 0 now.

---

STEP 0: Choose Build Path

If the user has already indicated whether they want to build from scratch or from a template, skip this question and proceed to the appropriate step.

Otherwise, ask:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "How would you like to build your agent?",
    "header": "Build Path",
    "options": [
        {"label": "From scratch", "description": "Design goal, nodes, and graph collaboratively from nothing"},
        {"label": "From a template", "description": "Start from a working sample agent and customize it"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

• If From scratch: Proceed to STEP 1A
• If From a template: Proceed to STEP 1B

---

STEP 1A: Initialize Build Environment (From Scratch)

EXECUTE THESE TOOL CALLS NOW (silent setup — no user interaction needed):

1. Check for existing sessions:

mcp__agent-builder__list_sessions()

• If a session with this agent name already exists, load it with mcp__agent-builder__load_session_by_id(session_id="...") and skip to step 3.
• If no matching session exists, proceed to step 2.

2. Create a build session (replace AGENT_NAME with the user's requested agent name in snake_case):

mcp__agent-builder__create_session(name="AGENT_NAME")

3. Register the hive-tools MCP server:

mcp__agent-builder__add_mcp_server(
    name="hive-tools",
    transport="stdio",
    command="uv",
    args='["run", "python", "mcp_server.py", "--stdio"]',
    cwd="tools",
    description="Hive tools MCP server"
)

4. Discover available tools:

mcp__agent-builder__list_mcp_tools()

5. Create the package directory:

mkdir -p exports/AGENT_NAME/nodes

Save the tool list for step 3 — you will need it for node design in STEP 3.

THEN immediately proceed to STEP 2 (do NOT display setup results to the user — just move on).

---

STEP 1B: Initialize Build Environment (From Template)

EXECUTE THESE STEPS NOW:

1B.1: Discover available templates

List the template directories and read each template's agent.json to get its name and description:

ls examples/templates/

For each directory found, read examples/templates/TEMPLATE_DIR/agent.json with the Read tool and extract:

• agent.name — the template's display name
• agent.description — what the template does

1B.2: Present templates to user

Show the user a table of available templates:

Available Templates:

#	Template	Description
1	[name from agent.json]	[description from agent.json]
2	...	...

Then ask the user to pick a template and provide a name for their new agent:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "Which template would you like to start from?",
    "header": "Template",
    "options": [
        {"label": "[template 1 name]", "description": "[template 1 description]"},
        {"label": "[template 2 name]", "description": "[template 2 description]"},
        ...
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}, {
    "question": "What should the new agent be named? (snake_case)",
    "header": "Agent Name",
    "options": [
        {"label": "Use template name", "description": "Keep the original template name as-is"},
        {"label": "Custom name", "description": "I'll provide a new snake_case name"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

1B.3: Copy template to exports

cp -r examples/templates/TEMPLATE_DIR exports/NEW_AGENT_NAME

1B.4: Create session and register MCP (same logic as STEP 1A)

First, check for existing sessions:

mcp__agent-builder__list_sessions()

• If a session with this agent name already exists, load it with mcp__agent-builder__load_session_by_id(session_id="...") and skip to list_mcp_tools.
• If no matching session exists, create one:

mcp__agent-builder__create_session(name="NEW_AGENT_NAME")

Then register MCP and discover tools:

mcp__agent-builder__add_mcp_server(
    name="hive-tools",
    transport="stdio",
    command="uv",
    args='["run", "python", "mcp_server.py", "--stdio"]',
    cwd="tools",
    description="Hive tools MCP server"
)

mcp__agent-builder__list_mcp_tools()

1B.5: Load template into builder session

Import the entire agent definition in one call:

mcp__agent-builder__import_from_export(agent_json_path="exports/NEW_AGENT_NAME/agent.json")

This reads the agent.json and populates the builder session with the goal, all nodes, and all edges.

THEN immediately proceed to STEP 2.

---

STEP 2: Define Goal Together with User

If starting from a template, the goal is already loaded in the builder session. Present the existing goal to the user using the format below and ask for approval. Skip the collaborative drafting questions — go straight to presenting and asking "Do you approve this goal, or would you like to modify it?"

If the user has NOT already described what they want to build, start by asking what kind of agent they have in mind:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "What kind of agent do you want to build?",
    "header": "Agent type",
    "options": [
        {"label": "Data collection", "description": "Gathers information from the web, analyzes it, and produces a report or sends outreach (e.g. market research, news digest, email campaigns, competitive analysis)"},
        {"label": "Workflow automation", "description": "Automates a multi-step business process end-to-end (e.g. lead qualification, content publishing pipeline, data entry)"},
        {"label": "Personal assistant", "description": "Handles recurring tasks or monitors for events and acts on them (e.g. daily briefings, meeting prep, file organization)"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

Use the user's selection (or their custom description if they chose "Other") as context when shaping the goal below. If the user already described what they want before this step, skip the question and proceed directly.

DO NOT propose a complete goal on your own. Instead, collaborate with the user to define it.

START by asking the user to help shape the goal:

I've set up the build environment and discovered [N] available tools. Let's define the goal for your agent together.

To get started, can you help me understand:

1. What should this agent accomplish? (the core purpose)
2. How will we know it succeeded? (what does "done" look like)
3. Are there any hard constraints? (things it must never do, quality bars, etc.)

WAIT for the user to respond. Use their input (and the agent type they selected) to draft:

• Goal ID (kebab-case)
• Goal name
• Goal description
• 3-5 success criteria (each with: id, description, metric, target, weight)
• 2-4 constraints (each with: id, description, constraint_type, category)

PRESENT the draft goal for approval:

Proposed Goal: [Name]

[Description]

Success Criteria:

1. [criterion 1]
2. [criterion 2] ...

Constraints:

1. [constraint 1]
2. [constraint 2] ...

THEN call AskUserQuestion:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "Do you approve this goal definition?",
    "header": "Goal",
    "options": [
        {"label": "Approve", "description": "Goal looks good, proceed to workflow design"},
        {"label": "Modify", "description": "I want to change something"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

WAIT for user response.

• If Approve: Call mcp__agent-builder__set_goal(...) with the goal details, then proceed to STEP 3
• If Modify: Ask what they want to change, update the draft, ask again

---

STEP 3: Design Conceptual Nodes

If starting from a template, the nodes are already loaded in the builder session. Present the existing nodes using the table format below and ask for approval. Skip the design phase.

BEFORE designing nodes, review the available tools from Step 1. Nodes can ONLY use tools that exist.

DESIGN the workflow as a series of nodes. For each node, determine:

• node_id (kebab-case)
• name
• description
• node_type: "event_loop" (recommended for all LLM work) or "function" (deterministic, no LLM)
• input_keys (what data this node receives)
• output_keys (what data this node produces)
• tools (ONLY tools that exist from Step 1 — empty list if no tools needed)
• client_facing: True if this node interacts with the user
• nullable_output_keys (for mutually exclusive outputs or feedback-only inputs)
• max_node_visits (>1 if this node is a feedback loop target)

Prefer fewer, richer nodes (4 nodes > 8 thin nodes). Each node boundary requires serializing outputs. A research node that searches, fetches, and analyzes keeps all source material in its conversation history.

PRESENT the nodes to the user for review:

Proposed Nodes ([N] total):

#	Node ID	Type	Description	Tools	Client-Facing
1	intake	event_loop	Gather requirements from user	—	Yes
2	research	event_loop	Search and analyze sources	web_search, web_scrape	No
3	review	event_loop	Present findings for approval	—	Yes
4	report	event_loop	Generate final report	save_data	No

Data Flow:

• intake produces: research_brief
• research receives: research_brief → produces: findings, sources
• review receives: findings, sources → produces: approved_findings or feedback
• report receives: approved_findings → produces: final_report

THEN call AskUserQuestion:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "Do you approve these nodes?",
    "header": "Nodes",
    "options": [
        {"label": "Approve", "description": "Nodes look good, proceed to graph design"},
        {"label": "Modify", "description": "I want to change the nodes"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

WAIT for user response.

• If Approve: Proceed to STEP 4
• If Modify: Ask what they want to change, update design, ask again

---

STEP 4: Design Full Graph and Review

If starting from a template, the edges are already loaded in the builder session. Render the existing graph as ASCII art and present it to the user for approval. Skip the edge design phase.

DETERMINE the edges connecting the approved nodes. For each edge:

• edge_id (kebab-case)
• source → target
• condition: on_success, on_failure, always, or conditional
• condition_expr (Python expression, only if conditional)
• priority (positive = forward, negative = feedback/loop-back)

RENDER the complete graph as ASCII art. Make it large and clear — the user needs to see and understand the full workflow at a glance.

IMPORTANT: Make the ASCII art BIG and READABLE. Use a box-and-arrow style with generous spacing. Do NOT make it tiny or compressed. Example format:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                           AGENT: Research Agent                            │
│                                                                            │
│  Goal: Thoroughly research technical topics and produce verified reports   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

    ┌───────────────────────┐
    │       INTAKE          │
    │  (client-facing)      │
    │                       │
    │  in:  topic           │
    │  out: research_brief  │
    └───────────┬───────────┘
                │ on_success
                ▼
    ┌───────────────────────┐
    │      RESEARCH         │
    │                       │
    │  tools: web_search,   │
    │         web_scrape    │
    │                       │
    │  in:  research_brief  │
    │       [feedback]      │
    │  out: findings,       │
    │       sources         │
    └───────────┬───────────┘
                │ on_success
                ▼
    ┌───────────────────────┐
    │       REVIEW          │
    │  (client-facing)      │
    │                       │
    │  in:  findings,       │
    │       sources         │
    │  out: approved_findings│
    │       OR feedback     │
    └───────┬───────┬───────┘
            │       │
   approved │       │ feedback (priority: -1)
            │       │
            ▼       └──────────────────┐
    ┌───────────────────────┐          │
    │       REPORT          │          │
    │                       │          │
    │  tools: save_data     │          │
    │                       │          │
    │  in:  approved_       │          │
    │       findings        │          │
    │  out: final_report    │          │
    └───────────────────────┘          │
                                       │
            ┌──────────────────────────┘
            │ loops back to RESEARCH
            ▼ (max_node_visits: 3)


    EDGES:
    ──────
    1. intake → research         [on_success, priority: 1]
    2. research → review         [on_success, priority: 1]
    3. review → report           [conditional: approved_findings is not None, priority: 1]
    4. review → research         [conditional: feedback is not None, priority: -1]

PRESENT the graph and edges to the user:

Here is the complete workflow graph:

[ASCII art above]

Edge Summary:

#	Edge	Condition	Priority
1	intake → research	on_success	1
2	research → review	on_success	1
3	review → report	conditional: approved_findings is not None	1
4	review → research	conditional: feedback is not None	-1

THEN call AskUserQuestion:

AskUserQuestion(questions=[{
    "question": "Do you approve this workflow graph?",
    "header": "Graph",
    "options": [
        {"label": "Approve", "description": "Graph looks good, proceed to build the agent"},
        {"label": "Modify", "description": "I want to change the graph"}
    ],
    "multiSelect": false
}])

WAIT for user response.

• If Approve: Proceed to STEP 5
• If Modify: Ask what they want to change, update the graph, re-render, ask again

---

STEP 5: Build the Agent

NOW — and only now — write the actual code. The user has approved the goal, nodes, and graph.

If starting from a template, the copied files will be overwritten with the approved design. You MUST replace every occurrence of the old template name with the new agent name. Here is the complete checklist — miss NONE of these:

File	What to rename
config.py	AgentMetadata.name — the display name shown in TUI agent selection
config.py	AgentMetadata.description — agent description
agent.py	Module docstring (line 1)
agent.py	class OldNameAgent: → class NewNameAgent:
agent.py	GraphSpec(id="old-name-graph") → GraphSpec(id="new-name-graph") — shown in TUI status bar
agent.py	Storage path: Path.home() / ".hive" / "agents" / "old_name" → "new_name"
__main__.py	Module docstring (line 1)
__main__.py	from .agent import ... OldNameAgent → NewNameAgent
__main__.py	CLI help string in def cli() docstring
__main__.py	All OldNameAgent() instantiations
__main__.py	Storage path (duplicated from agent.py)
__main__.py	Shell banner string (e.g. "=== Old Name Agent ===")
__init__.py	Package docstring
__init__.py	from .agent import OldNameAgent import
__init__.py	__all__ list entry

5a: Register nodes and edges with MCP

If starting from a template and no modifications were made in Steps 2-4, the nodes and edges are already registered. Skip to validation (mcp__agent-builder__validate_graph()). If modifications were made, re-register the changed nodes/edges (the MCP tools handle duplicates by overwriting).

FOR EACH approved node, call:

mcp__agent-builder__add_node(
    node_id="...",
    name="...",
    description="...",
    node_type="event_loop",
    input_keys='["key1", "key2"]',
    output_keys='["key1"]',
    tools='["tool1"]',
    system_prompt="...",
    client_facing=True/False,
    nullable_output_keys='["key"]',
    max_node_visits=1
)

FOR EACH approved edge, call:

mcp__agent-builder__add_edge(
    edge_id="source-to-target",
    source="source-node-id",
    target="target-node-id",
    condition="on_success",
    condition_expr="",
    priority=1
)

VALIDATE the graph:

mcp__agent-builder__validate_graph()

• If invalid: Fix the issues and re-validate
• If valid: Continue to 5b

5b: Write Python package files

EXPORT the graph data:

mcp__agent-builder__export_graph()

THEN write the Python package files using the exported data. Create these files in exports/AGENT_NAME/:

1. config.py - Runtime configuration with model settings
2. nodes/__init__.py - All NodeSpec definitions
3. agent.py - Goal, edges, graph config, and agent class
4. __init__.py - Package exports
5. __main__.py - CLI interface
6. mcp_servers.json - MCP server configurations
7. README.md - Usage documentation

IMPORTANT entry_points format:

• MUST be: {"start": "first-node-id"}
• NOT: {"first-node-id": ["input_keys"]} (WRONG)
• NOT: {"first-node-id"} (WRONG - this is a set)

IMPORTANT mcp_servers.json format:

{
  "hive-tools": {
    "transport": "stdio",
    "command": "uv",
    "args": ["run", "python", "mcp_server.py", "--stdio"],
    "cwd": "../../tools",
    "description": "Hive tools MCP server"
  }
}

• NO "mcpServers" wrapper (that's Claude Desktop format, NOT hive format)
• cwd MUST be "../../tools" (relative from exports/AGENT_NAME/ to tools/)
• command MUST be "uv" with "args": ["run", "python", ...] (NOT bare "python" which fails on Mac)

Use the example agent at .claude/skills/hive-create/examples/deep_research_agent/ as a template for file structure and patterns. It demonstrates: STEP 1/STEP 2 prompts, client-facing nodes, feedback loops, nullable_output_keys, and data tools.

AFTER writing all files, tell the user:

Agent package created: exports/AGENT_NAME/

Files generated:

• __init__.py - Package exports
• agent.py - Goal, nodes, edges, agent class
• config.py - Runtime configuration
• __main__.py - CLI interface
• nodes/__init__.py - Node definitions
• mcp_servers.json - MCP server config
• README.md - Usage documentation

---

STEP 6: Verify and Test

RUN validation:

cd /home/timothy/oss/hive && PYTHONPATH=exports uv run python -m AGENT_NAME validate

• If valid: Agent is complete!
• If errors: Fix the issues and re-run

TELL the user the agent is ready and display the next steps box:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                         ✅ AGENT BUILD COMPLETE                             │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                             │
│  NEXT STEPS:                                                                │
│                                                                             │
│  1. SET UP CREDENTIALS (if agent uses tools like web_search, send_email):  │
│                                                                             │
│     /hive-credentials --agent AGENT_NAME                                    │
│                                                                             │
│  2. RUN YOUR AGENT:                                                         │
│                                                                             │
│     hive tui                                                                │
│                                                                             │
│     Then select your agent from the list and press Enter.                   │
│                                                                             │
│  3. DEBUG ANY ISSUES:                                                       │
│                                                                             │
│     /hive-debugger                                                          │
│                                                                             │
│     The debugger monitors runtime logs, identifies retry loops,             │
│     tool failures, and missing outputs, and provides fix recommendations.  │
│                                                                             │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

---

REFERENCE: Node Types

Type	tools param	Use when
event_loop	'["tool1"]' or '[]'	LLM-powered work with or without tools
function	N/A	Deterministic Python operations, no LLM

---

REFERENCE: NodeSpec Fields

Field	Default	Description
client_facing	False	Streams output to user, blocks for input between turns
nullable_output_keys	[]	Output keys that may remain unset (mutually exclusive outputs)
max_node_visits	1	Max executions per run. Set >1 for feedback loop targets. 0=unlimited

---

REFERENCE: Edge Conditions & Priority

Condition	When edge is followed
on_success	Source node completed successfully
on_failure	Source node failed
always	Always, regardless of success/failure
conditional	When condition_expr evaluates to True

Priority: Positive = forward edge (evaluated first). Negative = feedback edge (loops back to earlier node). Multiple ON_SUCCESS edges from same source = parallel execution (fan-out).

---

REFERENCE: System Prompt Best Practice

For internal event_loop nodes (not client-facing), instruct the LLM to use set_output:

Use set_output(key, value) to store your results. For example:
- set_output("search_results", <your results as a JSON string>)

Do NOT return raw JSON. Use the set_output tool to produce outputs.

For client-facing event_loop nodes, use the STEP 1/STEP 2 pattern:

**STEP 1 — Respond to the user (text only, NO tool calls):**
[Present information, ask questions, etc.]

**STEP 2 — After the user responds, call set_output:**
- set_output("key", "value based on user's response")

This prevents the LLM from calling set_output before the user has had a chance to respond. The "NO tool calls" instruction in STEP 1 ensures the node blocks for user input before proceeding.

---

EventLoopNode Runtime

EventLoopNodes are auto-created by GraphExecutor at runtime. Both direct GraphExecutor and AgentRuntime / create_agent_runtime() handle event_loop nodes automatically. No manual node_registry setup is needed.

# Direct execution
from framework.graph.executor import GraphExecutor
from framework.runtime.core import Runtime

storage_path = Path.home() / ".hive" / "agents" / "my_agent"
storage_path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
runtime = Runtime(storage_path)

executor = GraphExecutor(
    runtime=runtime,
    llm=llm,
    tools=tools,
    tool_executor=tool_executor,
    storage_path=storage_path,
)
result = await executor.execute(graph=graph, goal=goal, input_data=input_data)

DO NOT pass runtime=None to GraphExecutor — it will crash with 'NoneType' object has no attribute 'start_run'.

---

COMMON MISTAKES TO AVOID

1. Using tools that don't exist - Always check mcp__agent-builder__list_mcp_tools() first
2. Wrong entry_points format - Must be {"start": "node-id"}, NOT a set or list
3. Skipping validation - Always validate nodes and graph before proceeding
4. Not waiting for approval - Always ask user before major steps
5. Displaying this file - Execute the steps, don't show documentation
6. Too many thin nodes - Prefer fewer, richer nodes (4 nodes > 8 nodes)
7. Missing STEP 1/STEP 2 in client-facing prompts - Client-facing nodes need explicit phases to prevent premature set_output
8. Forgetting nullable_output_keys - Mark input_keys that only arrive on certain edges (e.g., feedback) as nullable on the receiving node
9. Adding framework gating for LLM behavior - Fix prompts or use judges, not ad-hoc code
10. Writing code before user approves the graph - Always get approval on goal, nodes, and graph BEFORE writing any agent code
11. Wrong mcp_servers.json format - Use flat format (no "mcpServers" wrapper), cwd must be "../../tools", and command must be "uv" with args ["run", "python", ...]