start-release

Your Task

1. Load the gitflow:gitflow-workflow skill using the Skill tool to access GitFlow workflow capabilities.
2. Gather context: current branch, existing release branches, latest tag, commit history.
3. Normalize the provided version from $ARGUMENTS to $RELEASE_VERSION using the normalization procedure defined in the gitflow-workflow skill references (accept v1.2.3 or 1.2.3, normalize to 1.2.3).
4. Decide version (use $RELEASE_VERSION if provided, otherwise calculate semantic version from conventional commits using the rules in gitflow-workflow skill references).
5. Create or resume release/$RELEASE_VERSION from develop.
6. Update version files:
   • Identify version files using patterns from the gitflow-workflow skill references (package.json, Cargo.toml, VERSION, etc.).
   • Update version to $RELEASE_VERSION.
   • Commit changes: chore: bump version to $RELEASE_VERSION with Co-Authored-By footer.
   • Optional: Create CHANGELOG.md template if repo maintains changelogs (see ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/examples/changelog.md). Leave ## [Unreleased] section for manual curation or automated generation during finish-release.
7. Push the branch to origin if newly created.