Release Skill

Orchestrate a full release: repo detection, validation, GitHub issue, commit, tag, push.

IMPORTANT: Every interaction with the user MUST go through AskUserQuestion. Never prompt with plain text and wait for a reply — always use the tool.

Path Variables

• SKILLS_DIR = .claude/skills/release
• CONFIG_FILE = .claude/skills/release/config.json

Config File

Read CONFIG_FILE at startup if it exists:

cat .claude/skills/release/config.json 2>/dev/null

Schema:

{
  "language": "en",
  "repo_mode": "skills-gems",
  "preflight_confirm": false
}

All fields are optional. Missing fields fall back to the interactive flow.

Reusable Patterns

Safe GitHub Body Write

When creating a GitHub issue or release with markdown body content, never pass the body inline via --body with shell quoting — backticks, tables, and special characters will break.

Instead:

1. Write the markdown content to .release-tmp/<filename>.md using the Write tool
2. Pass --body-file .release-tmp/<filename>.md to gh issue create or gh release create
3. After creation, verify the body is not empty:

# For issues:
gh issue view <number> --json body --jq '.body | length'
# For releases:
gh release view v<version> --json body --jq '.body | length'

If the length is 0, stop the flow and report the error.

Resume State

On startup (before Phase 0), check for an existing state file:

cat .release-tmp/state.json 2>/dev/null

State schema:

{
  "schema_version": 1,
  "phase_completed": 2,
  "issue_number": 42,
  "issue_url": "https://github.com/...",
  "version": "v2.1.0",
  "title": "...",
  "mode": "skills-gems",
  "language": "en"
}

If state file exists, use AskUserQuestion:

• "Found release state from a previous run (phase <N> completed, issue #<N>). Resume?"
• Options: "Yes, resume from Phase <N+1>", "Start fresh"

If "Start fresh" is selected, use a follow-up AskUserQuestion:

• "Close the orphaned issue #<N> from the previous run?"
• Options: "Yes, close it", "No, leave it open"

Then delete .release-tmp/state.json and proceed from Phase 0.

Save state at the end of Phase 1 and Phase 2:

mkdir -p .release-tmp
# Write state.json via the Write tool with current progress

Phase 0: Repo Detection

If repo_mode is set in config: skip detection, use the configured mode. State: "Using configured mode: <mode>."

Otherwise, run detection:

ls package.json pyproject.toml uv.lock skills/ 2>/dev/null
git status --short

Classify into one or more modes:

If preflight_confirm is false in config: skip the confirmation gate, announce mode in plain text and proceed directly to Phase 1.

Otherwise, use AskUserQuestion to confirm:

"Detected: <mode>. Validation will run: <summary from pattern file>. Proceed?"

Options:

• "Yes, proceed" (Recommended)
• "Skip validation"
• "Override mode" → follow-up AskUserQuestion: skills-gems / npm / python / monorepo / generic

Phase 1: Validation

Read and follow SKILLS_DIR/patterns/<mode>.md.

Validation always runs for the configured/detected mode — preflight_confirm: false only skips the confirmation gate, not the validation itself.

If validation passes, continue to Phase 2. If validation fails, stop — do not continue until resolved.

Phase 2: Issue Creation

Step 1: Gather Context

From the session, identify:

• What feature/fix was implemented
• Which files were modified
• What the key changes were
• Any breaking changes

Step 1.5: Ask for Language

Use AskUserQuestion:

• "What language should the issue, plan, and release notes be written in?"
• Options: "English", "Japanese (日本語)", "Other" (free text for any other language)

Store the selected language. Apply it to all generated content: plan file, issue title, issue body, acceptance criteria, and release notes. Commit messages always stay in English regardless of this setting (git convention).

Step 2: Ask for Title

Use AskUserQuestion:

• 3 suggested titles (concise, action-oriented)
• "Other" option for free input

Step 3: Ask for Labels

Use AskUserQuestion with multiSelect=true:

• Options: enhancement, bug, documentation, refactor
• "Other" for custom labels (comma-separated)

Step 4: Ask for Version

git describe --tags --abbrev=0 2>/dev/null || echo "none"

Treat missing tags as v0.0.0. Use AskUserQuestion:

• patch: v{x}.{y}.{z+1}
• minor: v{x}.{y+1}.0
• major: v{x+1}.0.0
• Skip (no tag or release)

Always prefix with "v". Store the selected version for later steps.

Step 5: Create Plan File

Read SKILLS_DIR/templates/plan.md for the template and rules.

Create .plans/<slugified-title>.md filled with real content from the session. Write all narrative content (Context, Approach, Changes, Guard Rails, Verification) in the language selected in Step 1.5. Section headings may stay in English for template consistency, but all prose must be in the selected language.

Step 6: Create GitHub Issue

6a: Handle Milestone (if version selected)

gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/milestones --jq '.[] | select(.title == "<version>") | .title'

If missing:

gh api repos/{owner}/{repo}/milestones -f title="<version>" -f state="open"

6b: Create the Issue

Read SKILLS_DIR/templates/issue-body.md for the body format.

Use the Safe GitHub Body Write pattern:

1. Write the issue body to .release-tmp/issue-body.md using the Write tool
2. Create the issue with --body-file:

mkdir -p .release-tmp
gh issue create \
  --title "<title>" \
  --label "<labels>" \
  --assignee "@me" \
  --milestone "<version>" \
  --body-file .release-tmp/issue-body.md

3. Verify the body is not empty:

gh issue view <number> --json body --jq '.body | length'

Omit --milestone if version was skipped.

Step 7: Generate Commit Message

feat(<scope>): <description> (#<issue-number>)

Use fix() for bugs, docs() for documentation, refactor() for refactoring.

Output: Issue created: <url> — proceeding with release automation...

Phase 3: Release Automation

Step 8: Check Remote Status

git fetch
git rev-list --count HEAD..@{u}

If remote has new commits, use AskUserQuestion:

• "Remote has new commits. Pull with rebase before continuing?"
• Options: "Yes, pull --rebase", "No, continue anyway", "Cancel"

Pull: git pull --rebase — stop on merge conflicts.

Step 8.5: Check README and CHANGELOG

Check whether README.md and CHANGELOG.md need updating based on the changes in this release:

README.md — check for:

• New skills or commands not yet listed in their respective tables
• Removed or renamed skills/commands still listed
• Installation instructions that reference outdated paths or file names

CHANGELOG.md — check for:

• Missing entry for the current version being released
• Entries for versions released since the last CHANGELOG update

If updates are needed, make them now before committing — so docs land in the same commit as the code. If README and CHANGELOG are already accurate, state so and continue.

Step 9: Show Changes & Commit

git status --short

Use AskUserQuestion:

• "Commit these changes?" — show proposed commit message
• Options: "Yes, use this message", "No, use custom message", "Cancel"

If custom: use AskUserQuestion "Other" for free input.

git add <specific-files>
git commit -m "<message>"

Important: Do not use git add . — explicitly list the files that were changed as part of this release to prevent accidentally staging unrelated files.

Step 10: Tag Version

Skip if version was skipped. Otherwise:

git tag v<new-version>

Step 11: Push to Remote

Use AskUserQuestion:

• "Push commits and tags to remote?"
• Options: "Yes, push now", "No, I'll push manually", "Cancel"

git push && git push --tags

On failure: show manual command.

Step 12: Create GitHub Release

Skip if version was skipped.

Read SKILLS_DIR/templates/release-notes.md for the release notes format.

Use the Safe GitHub Body Write pattern:

1. Write release notes to .release-tmp/release-notes.md using the Write tool
2. Create the release with --notes-file:

gh release create v<version> \
  --title "<version> - <plan-title>" \
  --notes-file .release-tmp/release-notes.md

3. Verify the body is not empty:

gh release view v<version> --json body --jq '.body | length'

Write release notes in the language selected in Step 1.5.

Step 13: Close Issue & Output

gh issue close <issue-number> --comment "Released in v<version>"
# or if skipped:
gh issue close <issue-number> --comment "Shipped in <commit-sha>"

If config did not exist at startup, use AskUserQuestion:

• "Save these preferences for future runs? (skips detection and language prompts)"
• Options: "Yes, save to .claude/skills/release/config.json", "No, ask me each time"

If yes, write CONFIG_FILE with the language and mode used this run, and preflight_confirm: false.

If version was tagged, output as plain markdown prose (not a fenced code block). Use markdown link syntax so URLs are clickable in the IDE:

Release complete!

• Issue: [#N](full-issue-url)
• Version: old → new
• Tag: vX.Y.Z
• Release: [vX.Y.Z](full-release-url)

If version was skipped, output as plain markdown prose:

Changes committed and pushed!

• Issue: [#N](full-issue-url)
• Commit: commit-message

No version tag or GitHub release (skipped).

Error Handling