directive

Cut a v0.X.Y release of the deft framework safely. Use when the user says "release", "cut release", "v0.X.Y", or "publish release" -- to walk an 8-phase workflow that pre-flights, runs an end-to-end rehearsal against a temp repo, lands a draft GitHub release (npm ships irrevocably at tag push), optionally QA's draft assets, then publishes the GitHub release or rolls back. Re-uses the deft-directive-swarm Phase 6 Step 5 Slack announcement template.

Build a project from scope xBRIEFs following Deft Directive framework standards. Use after deft-directive-setup has generated the project definition, or when the user has story xBRIEFs in xbrief/active/ ready to implement. Handles scaffolding, implementation, testing, and quality checks phase by phase.

Conversational refinement session. Ingests external work items into xBRIEF proposed/ scope, deduplicates via origin references, evaluates proposals with the user, reconciles stale origins, and promotes/demotes scopes through the lifecycle using deterministic task commands.

Triage-cache hygiene and "what's next?" work selection (ordered plan or ranked queue) -- the agent-facing playbook for syncing the triage cache, classifying candidates, presenting a ranked queue or binding to an active plan-sequence, walking per-item decisions (accept / reject / defer / needs-ac / mark-duplicate), and auditing the session. Use when the operator asks what to work on next, wants to build a cohort, work the cache, or run a triage hygiene pass.

Parallel local agent orchestration. Use when running multiple agents on story-level xBRIEFs simultaneously — to scan active/ for allocatable work, set up isolated worktrees, launch agents with proven prompts, monitor progress, handle stalled review cycles, and close out PRs cleanly.

Greptile / bot reviewer response and PR-shepherding workflow. Use when running a review cycle or babysitting a PR to merge-ready -- audit process prerequisites, fetch bot findings, fix all issues in a single batch commit, and exit cleanly when no P0 or P1 issues remain. Supersedes Cursor global babysit on Deft-managed repos (#2261).

Set up a new project with Deft Directive framework standards. Use when the user wants to bootstrap user preferences, configure a project, or generate a project specification. Walks through setup conversationally — no separate CLI needed.

Iterative pre-PR quality improvement loop. Use before pushing a branch for PR creation -- after completing implementation but before task check. Cycles through Read-Write-Lint-Diff until a full pass produces zero changes.

Batched session-end gap escalation for directive consumers. Collects friction/gap reports, drafts deduped framework-gap issues against deftai/directive, and files upstream only after explicit operator confirmation. Gated on plan.policy.valueFeedback upstreamPrompt.

Explore a codebase for architectural improvement opportunities -- deepen shallow modules, generate competing interface designs in parallel via sub- agents, and file a refactor RFC as a GitHub Issue. Use when improving architecture, finding refactoring opportunities, or making a codebase more testable and AI-navigable. Requires the GitHub CLI (gh).

Batched session-end gap escalation for directive consumers. Collects friction/gap reports, drafts deduped framework-gap issues against deftai/directive, and files upstream only after explicit operator confirmation.

Convert approved specification/phase/epic scope xBRIEFs into swarm-ready story xBRIEFs before concurrent agent allocation.

Break a SPECIFICATION.md, PRD, or plan into independently-grabbable GitHub Issues using tracer-bullet vertical slices. Use after spec generation, when the user wants to create implementation tickets, or when breaking work into parallel-assignable issues. Requires the GitHub CLI (gh).

Session-start framework sync skill. Pulls latest deft submodule, validates xBRIEF lifecycle structure, checks folder/status consistency, detects stale origins (RFC D12), and summarizes changes.

Evaluate an article, paper, or post for lessons that could improve directive. Analyzes two axes: how concepts improve directive's own implementation, and how they improve the projects directive creates. Produces filtered suggestions, iterates with the user, and optionally creates GitHub issues on the directive repo. Use when evaluating an article, paper, post, or URL for directive improvements, or when the user says "analyze this article", "evaluate this article", or "what can we learn from this for directive".

Pre-build cost & budget transparency phase. Use after the project SPECIFICATION is approved and before the build skill kicks off, to produce a plain-English COST-ESTIMATE.md the user can read, react to, and explicitly accept, rescope, no-build, or skip with a recorded reason. Audience is non- technical users; voice is dollars and whole-number bands, not spreadsheets.

Systematic, evidence-based root-cause investigation. Use when the user asks "why did X break / slow down / regress?", wants to debug a failure, run a forensic investigation, or find the root cause of a bug -- to enter a sustained investigation MODE with a claim ledger, mandatory falsification before any conclusion, a chat answer-embargo until evidence closes, and a deterministic validator gate. Triggers: "debug", "root cause", "investigate", "why did X break", "why is X slow", "systematic debugging", "forensic".

Deterministic structured Q&A interview loop. Use when any skill needs to gather structured input from the user through a series of focused questions with numbered options, stated defaults, and a confirmation gate before artifact generation. Interview output targets xBRIEF narratives — not PRD.md.

Adversarial plan stress-testing via relentless one-question-per-turn interrogation. Use when the operator asks to run probe, /deft:run:probe, or wants a plan challenged before committing to it.

Convert phase/epic scope vBRIEFs into swarm-ready story vBRIEFs before swarm allocation. Use when the operator asks to decompose, split stories, or assess swarm readiness.

Adversarial one-question-per-turn plan stress-testing before vBRIEF or plan artifacts. Use when the operator asks to run probe or stress-test a plan.

Evaluate an article, paper, or post for lessons that could improve directive. Analyzes two axes: how concepts improve directive's own implementation, and how they improve the projects directive creates. Produces filtered suggestions, iterates with the user, and optionally creates GitHub issues on the directive repo.

Build a project from scope vBRIEFs following Deft Directive framework standards. Use after deft-directive-setup has generated the project definition, or when the user has story vBRIEFs in vbrief/active/ ready to implement. Handles scaffolding, implementation, testing, and quality checks phase by phase.

Pre-build cost & budget transparency phase. Use after the project SPECIFICATION is approved and before the build skill kicks off, to produce a plain-English COST-ESTIMATE.md the user can read, react to, and explicitly accept, rescope, no-build, or skip with a recorded reason. Audience is non-technical users; voice is dollars and whole-number bands, not spreadsheets.

Systematic, evidence-based root-cause investigation. Use when the user asks "why did X break / slow down / regress?", wants to debug a failure, run a forensic investigation, or find the root cause of a bug -- to enter a sustained investigation MODE with a claim ledger, mandatory falsification before any conclusion, a chat answer-embargo until evidence closes, and a deterministic validator gate. Triggers: "debug", "root cause", "investigate", "why did X break", "why is X slow", "systematic debugging", "forensic".

Explore a codebase for architectural improvement opportunities -- deepen shallow modules, generate competing interface designs in parallel via sub-agents, and file a refactor RFC as a GitHub Issue. Use when improving architecture, finding refactoring opportunities, or making a codebase more testable and AI-navigable. Requires the GitHub CLI (gh).

Break a SPECIFICATION.md, PRD, or plan into independently-grabbable GitHub Issues using tracer-bullet vertical slices. Use after spec generation, when the user wants to create implementation tickets, or when breaking work into parallel-assignable issues. Requires the GitHub CLI (gh).

Extract a DDD-style ubiquitous language glossary from the current conversation, flagging ambiguities and proposing canonical terms. Saves to UBIQUITOUS_LANGUAGE.md. Use when defining domain terms, building a glossary, hardening terminology, or when "domain model" or "DDD" is mentioned.

Deterministic structured Q&A interview loop. Use when any skill needs structured user input through focused questions with defaults and confirmation gate. Interview output targets vBRIEF narratives.

Iterative pre-PR quality improvement loop. Use before pushing a branch for PR creation -- after completing implementation but before task check. Cycles through Read-Write-Lint-Diff until a full pass produces zero changes.

Conversational refinement session. Ingests external work items into vBRIEF proposed/ scope, deduplicates via origin references, evaluates proposals with the user, reconciles stale origins, and promotes/demotes scopes through the lifecycle using deterministic task commands.

Cut a v0.X.Y release of the deft framework safely. Use when the user says "release", "cut release", "v0.X.Y", or "publish release" -- to walk an 8-phase workflow that pre-flights, runs an end-to-end rehearsal against a temp repo, lands a draft on the real repo, gates on user review, then publishes or rolls back. Re-uses the deft-directive-swarm Phase 6 Step 5 Slack announcement template.

Greptile bot reviewer response workflow. Use when running a review cycle on a PR -- to audit process prerequisites, fetch bot findings, fix all issues in a single batch commit, and exit cleanly when no P0 or P1 issues remain. Enables cloud agents to run autonomous PR review cycles.

Set up a new project with Deft Directive framework standards. Use when the user wants to bootstrap user preferences, configure a project, or generate a project specification. Walks through setup conversationally — no separate CLI needed.

Session-start framework sync skill. Pulls latest deft submodule, validates vBRIEF lifecycle structure, checks folder/status consistency, detects stale origins (RFC D12), and summarizes changes.

Triage-cache hygiene and "what's next?" queue selection -- the agent-facing playbook for syncing the triage cache, classifying candidates, presenting a ranked queue, walking per-item decisions, and auditing the session.

Create new deft skills with proper structure, RFC2119 notation, triggers, and progressive disclosure. Use when user wants to create, write, or build a new deft skill.

Apply deft framework standards for AI-assisted development. Use when starting projects, writing code, running tests, making commits, or when the user references deft, project standards, or coding guidelines.

Extract a DDD-style ubiquitous language glossary from the current conversation, flagging ambiguities and proposing canonical terms. Saves to UBIQUITOUS_LANGUAGE.md. Use when defining domain terms, building a glossary, hardening terminology, or when "domain model" or "DDD" is mentioned.

Create new deft skills with proper structure, RFC2119 notation, triggers, and progressive disclosure. Use when user wants to create, write, or build a new deft skill.