resume

name	resume
description	Resume a completed or blocked iterative research loop by collecting answers and relaunching.
disable-model-invocation	true

Context

• Current branch: !git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null

Resume a Ralph Research Loop

Review the state of a completed or blocked ralph loop, collect answers to blocking questions, update progress.md, and relaunch the loop.

Usage

• /ralph:resume <project-path> - Resume a specific project (e.g., docs/staged-learnings/claude-skills-best-practices-v2)
• /ralph:resume - List available projects and prompt for selection

Instructions

1. Locate the project

• If $ARGUMENTS provided, use as the project path
• Otherwise, list directories under docs/staged-learnings/ and ask the operator to pick one
• If the path exists locally (on the current branch), read from the filesystem
• If not, check for a research/<basename> branch:
  • Extract the basename from the path (e.g., claude-skills-best-practices-v2 from docs/staged-learnings/claude-skills-best-practices-v2)
  • Check if a research/<basename> branch exists via git branch -a --list *research/<basename>*
  • If found, note to the operator: "📡 Project lives on branch research/<basename>. You'll need to check out that branch or use a worktree before relaunching."
  • If neither local nor branch, error: "Project not found locally or on a research branch."

2. Read state

Read these files to understand the current state:

• progress.md — status, completed/pending tasks, questions, completion signal
• spec.md — topic scope (for context)

3. Present status

Output a status summary:

# Resume: <Project Name>

## Current State
- **Status**: <COMPLETE | BLOCKED_ON_USER | IN_PROGRESS>
- **Completion signal**: <present | not present>
- **Tasks**: <N completed, M pending>
- **Iterations**: <N>

## Pending Tasks
- [ ] <task 1>
- [ ] <task 2>
- ...

## Blocking Questions
<List unanswered questions from "Questions Requiring User Input" — those WITHOUT **ANSWER:** prefix>

If no blocking questions: "No blocking questions — loop can resume as-is."

💡 *Need to review the research before answering? Run `/ralph:brief <project-path>` first.*

4. Collect answers

If there are unanswered questions:

• Present each question and ask the operator for an answer
• The operator may also:
  • Skip a question (leave unanswered)
  • Add new pending tasks
  • Remove or reorder existing pending tasks
  • Provide general notes for the next iteration

5. Update progress.md

Apply changes to progress.md:

• For each answered question, add **ANSWER:** prefix inline (e.g., - How should X work? **ANSWER:** It should do Y)
• Remove WOOT_COMPLETE_WOOT from the end of the file if present
• Add/remove/reorder pending tasks if the operator requested changes
• Update "Notes for Next Iteration" if the operator provided notes
• Update "Status" to IN_PROGRESS

6. Relaunch the loop

After updating progress.md:

Ready to resume. Run:
bash ~/.claude/ralph/research/wiggum.sh <project-path>

If the operator confirms, execute the command. If the project is on a remote branch (not local), remind the operator they need to check out that branch first or use a worktree:

The project lives on branch research/<basename>. To resume:

Option A — checkout the branch:
  git checkout research/<basename>
  bash ~/.claude/ralph/research/wiggum.sh <project-path>

Option B — use a worktree:
  git worktree add .research-worktree research/<basename>
  cd .research-worktree
  bash ~/.claude/ralph/research/wiggum.sh <project-path>

Design Notes

• Follows question tracking convention — uses **ANSWER:** inline prefix, not section header changes. This keeps the "Questions Requiring Operator Input" header stable for agents to append new questions.
• Doesn't auto-launch — presents the command and waits for confirmation, since the operator may want to review changes to progress.md first.
• Branch-aware — ralph loops often run on research/<topic> branches via worktrees. The skill handles this gracefully rather than assuming files are on the current branch.