Smart Ralph

Core skill for all Ralph plugins. Defines common arguments, execution modes, and shared behaviors.

Common Arguments

All Ralph commands support these standard arguments:

Argument Parsing Rules

Priority Order (highest to lowest):
1. --no-commit (explicit disable)
2. --commit (explicit enable)
3. --quick mode default (false)
4. Normal mode default (true)

Parsing Logic

commitSpec = true  // default

if "--no-commit" in args:
  commitSpec = false
else if "--commit" in args:
  commitSpec = true
else if "--quick" in args:
  commitSpec = false  // quick mode defaults to no commit
// else keep default (true)

Execution Modes

Normal Mode (Interactive)

• User reviews artifacts between phases
• Phase transitions require explicit commands
• Each phase sets awaitingApproval: true
• Commits spec files by default

Quick Mode (--quick)

• Skips all interactive prompts and interviews
• Auto-generates all artifacts in sequence
• Immediately starts execution after generation
• Does NOT commit by default (use --commit to override)
• Still delegates to subagents (delegation is mandatory)

State File Structure

All Ralph plugins use a state file with common fields:

{
  "phase": "research|requirements|design|tasks|execution",
  "taskIndex": 0,
  "totalTasks": 0,
  "taskIteration": 1,
  "maxTaskIterations": 5,
  "awaitingApproval": false
}

Plugins may extend with additional fields.

Commit Behavior

When commitSpec is true:

1. Stage spec/feature files after generation
2. Commit with message: chore(<plugin>): commit spec files before implementation
3. Push to current branch

When commitSpec is false:

• Files remain uncommitted
• User can manually commit later

Execution Loop (Self-Contained)

The execution loop is self-contained via the built-in stop-hook. No external plugins are required.

1. Coordinator outputs task delegation prompt
2. Stop-hook detects task completion signals
3. Stop-hook outputs continuation prompt for next task
4. Loop ends when coordinator outputs ALL_TASKS_COMPLETE

Coordinator Prompt

The implement command includes the coordinator prompt inline. The stop-hook (hooks/scripts/stop-watcher.sh) reads .speckit-state.json to determine continuation behavior.

Task Completion Protocol

Executor Signals

Coordinator Signals

Error Handling

Max Retries

When taskIteration exceeds maxTaskIterations:

1. Output error with task index and attempt count
2. Include last failure reason
3. Suggest manual intervention
4. Do NOT output ALL_TASKS_COMPLETE
5. Do NOT continue execution

State Corruption

If state file missing or invalid:

1. Output error with state file path
2. Suggest re-running the implement command
3. Do NOT continue execution

Branch Management

All Ralph plugins follow consistent branch strategy:

1. Check current branch before starting
2. If on default branch (main/master): prompt for branch strategy
3. If on feature branch: offer to continue or create new
4. Quick mode: auto-create branch, no prompts