Agent skill

Ralph Specum Tasks

by tzachbon in tzachbon/smart-ralph

This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.

MITAuto-check passed

Install Ralph Specum Tasks

skills CLI
$ npx skills add tzachbon/smart-ralph --skill ralph-specum-tasks -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install tzachbon/smart-ralph ralph-specum-tasks --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tzachbon/smart-ralph.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/ralph-specum-codex/skills/ralph-specum-tasks .claude/skills/ralph-specum-tasks && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
ralph-specum-tasks
GitHub stars
559
Token cost
~1.6k tokens
SKILL.md length
788 words
Files
2
Skills in repo
26
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.

  • Works in 12 steps: Resolve the active spec. If none exists,… → Require requirements.md and design.md.… → Run phase_gate.py mode through… → …
  • Explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks
  • SKILL.md covers Contract, Action, Output Shape and Response Handoff
  • Calls python3 and go

What it does

Ralph Specum Tasks is an agent skill from tzachbon/smart-ralph. This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.6k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 2 other files (for example `agents/openai.yaml`).

The repository describes itself as: Spec-driven development with smart compaction. Claude Code plugin combining Ralph Wiggum loop with structured specification workflow. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks
  • Explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase

Example prompts

  • “/ralph-specum-tasks”

Requirements

  • Python 3

Workflow steps

12 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

  1. Resolve the active spec. If none exists, stop.
  2. Require requirements.md and design.md. Read research.md when present, .progress.md, and current state.
  3. Run phase_gate.py mode through "$RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT/scripts/phase_gate.py" with STATE and exact --quick, exact --interactive, or no…
  4. In interactive mode, require artifact approval for the current design.md before starting tasks. Exact quick mode continues with the…
  5. Run prototype record selection with the resolved basePath before generation
  6. Include only affected, valid, gateApproved: true, non-superseded records returned by the selector. Exclude malformed, superseded, skipped…
  7. Stop before generation when selection reports an activePrototypes blocker for tasks. Name the active ID and route resume through…
  8. Stop when selection reports stale design.md, stale task indexes, or a stale upstream artifact that design depends on. Route to the…
  9. Clear any prior approval gate by merging awaitingApproval: false before generation.
  10. Respect granularity from state. Allow --tasks-size fine|coarse to override it. Treat task sizing as administration, not an interview…
  11. When research.md exists, require skill discovery pass 2 against the goal plus final research. When it is absent, require pass 1 against…
  12. Load "$RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT/skills/interview-framework-codex/SKILL.md", its required algorithm and domain-modeling references, and all…

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit ac7251a. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • python3
    • go

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Ralph Specum Tasks loads about 1.6k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 44 tokens; SKILL.md has 788 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~44
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.6k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from tzachbon/smart-ralph at commit ac7251a, republished under its MIT licence (© tzachbon). 788 words, ~1,602 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/ralph-specum-tasks/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 1 other file; get the full folder from GitHub.
name
ralph-specum-tasks
description
This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use `$ralph-specum-tasks`, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.
metadata.surface
helper
metadata.action
tasks

Ralph Specum Tasks

You are a coordinator, not a task planner -- delegate ALL work to a task-planner sub-agent.

Derive RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT from this loaded skill by resolving two parent directories from the SKILL.md directory. Never derive it from the project working directory.

Contract

  • Resolve the active spec by explicit path, exact name, or .current-spec
  • Require requirements.md and design.md
  • Merge state fields only
  • Keep the Ralph disk contract unchanged

Action

  1. Resolve the active spec. If none exists, stop.
  2. Require requirements.md and design.md. Read research.md when present, .progress.md, and current state.
  3. Run phase_gate.py mode through "$RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT/scripts/phase_gate.py" with STATE and exact --quick, exact --interactive, or no flag. Reject both, -q, variants, and natural-language substitutes.
  4. In interactive mode, require artifact approval for the current design.md before starting tasks. Exact quick mode continues with the validated artifact.
  5. Run prototype record selection with the resolved basePath before generation:
    bash
    python3 "$RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT/scripts/prototype_records.py" select-downstream --base-path "$BASE_PATH" --state "$BASE_PATH/.ralph-state.json"
  6. Include only affected, valid, gateApproved: true, non-superseded records returned by the selector. Exclude malformed, superseded, skipped, failed, inconclusive, cancelled, and normal-mode excluded records.
  7. Stop before generation when selection reports an activePrototypes blocker for tasks. Name the active ID and route resume through $ralph-specum-prototype. Allow proven unrelated prototypes when the selector reports no task dependency.
  8. Stop when selection reports stale design.md, stale task indexes, or a stale upstream artifact that design depends on. Route to the earliest stale phase and do not plan from stale design.
  9. Clear any prior approval gate by merging awaitingApproval: false before generation.
  10. Respect granularity from state. Allow --tasks-size fine|coarse to override it. Treat task sizing as administration, not an interview question. In exact quick mode, default unset granularity to fine.
  11. When research.md exists, require skill discovery pass 2 against the goal plus final research. When it is absent, require pass 1 against the goal alone. Run the applicable pass when the state lacks its revision. Select explicitly named skills and record harness-shadowed duplicates.
  12. Load "$RALPH_CODEX_PLUGIN_ROOT/skills/interview-framework-codex/SKILL.md", its required algorithm and domain-modeling references, and all selected domain contracts in both interactive and quick mode. In interactive mode, follow the algorithm for critical delivery slicing, dependency order, rollout risk, and verification thresholds. Inspect commands, file layout, and existing test tools instead of asking.
  13. In interactive mode, require explicit approve and delegate; in exact quick mode, record bypassed_quick. In both modes, run phase_gate.py check-delegation with the current loaded-manifest identity before creating the child. Apply the shared hard-transition invariant before task-planner dispatch. A failed check-delegation in either mode ends this invocation before phase transition, child dispatch, or target-artifact write; after a normal-mode failure, the next explicit invocation creates a fresh manifest/interview identity and does not create an alternate quick bypass. After an exact --quick delegation failure, the next explicit invocation reruns discovery, records a fresh phaseSkillLoad and interview identity, and does not reuse a terminal bypassed_quick interview or its discovery revision. Only a matching in-progress collecting or awaiting_confirmation interview is resumable.
  14. Delegate task planning to a task-planner sub-agent. Pass the absolute helper path, state path, identity tuple, unique teammate dispatch identity, verbatim manifest, requirements, design, research, selected prototype evidence, the clean blocker/stale-gate result, and interview context. The child reloads and records the manifest, passes check-agent-write with that unique identity, and writes tasks.md. Do NOT write tasks.md yourself.
  15. Read the sub-agent's output and validate it exists.
  16. Count tasks and merge state with:
Show full SKILL.md (231 more words)Show less
  • phase: "tasks"
  • awaitingApproval: true (or false when --quick is active)
  • taskIndex: first incomplete or totalTasks
  • totalTasks: counted tasks
  1. Update .progress.md with the phase breakdown, next milestone, blockers, next step, chosen granularity, skill discovery, and verification strategy.
  2. If spec commits are enabled, commit only the spec artifacts.
Stop Behavior
  • Without --quick: STOP HERE. Display the walkthrough summary and approval prompt. Do NOT continue to implementation. Wait for the user to explicitly approve and request the next phase.
  • With exact --quick: Record the quick bypass, review, then continue directly into implementation.

Output Shape

Use atomic tasks with exact file targets, explicit success criteria, verification commands, and commit messages. Preserve POC-first ordering. Support [P] markers for safe parallel work, [VERIFY] checkpoints, and VE tasks when end-to-end verification is part of the plan.

Response Handoff

  • After writing tasks.md, name tasks.md and summarize the task plan briefly.
  • When normalized quickMode is false, end with exactly one explicit choice prompt:
    • approve current artifact
    • request changes
    • continue to implementation
  • Treat continue to implementation as approval of tasks.md.
  • With exact --quick, do not show this prompt; continue directly to implementation after the gates succeed.
  • During artifact review, apply the changes immediately delegates already-recorded feedback through a new unique dispatch, redisplays the artifact, and stays at this approval gate. Ask one focused change question only when no feedback is pending. Control-only continue, proceed, and go ahead approve nothing.

© tzachbon, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

SKILL.md and 1 other file in plugins/ralph-specum-codex/skills/ralph-specum-tasks of tzachbon/smart-ralph.

  • SKILL.md
  • agents/openai.yaml

Open the folder on GitHubat commit ac7251a

Compare with similar skills

Ralph Specum Tasks next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Ralph Specum Tasks compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Ralph Specum Tasks this skilltzachbon/smart-ralph559—~1.6kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
RalphYeachan-Heo/oh-my-claudecode40k—~7.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
No Explicit Anythedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~565Automated safety check: PassMIT
Ralph Loop Yylosickn33/agentic-awesome-skills47k2 repos~670Automated safety check: PassMIT
Ralphagenticnotetaking/arscontexta3.5k—~5.3kAutomated safety check: NotesMIT
Ralph Planmastra-ai/mastra29k—~1.4kAutomated safety check: PassCustom licence

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Questions about Ralph Specum Tasks

What does Ralph Specum Tasks do?

This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase. Ralph Specum Tasks is an agent skill from tzachbon/smart-ralph. This skill should be used only when the user explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks, or explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.

When should I use Ralph Specum Tasks?

Ralph Specum Tasks fits situations like: explicitly asks to use $ralph-specum-tasks; explicitly asks Ralph Specum in Codex to run the tasks phase.

How do I install Ralph Specum Tasks in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add tzachbon/smart-ralph --skill ralph-specum-tasks -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/ralph-specum-codex/skills/ralph-specum-tasks in tzachbon/smart-ralph) into .claude/skills/ralph-specum-tasks in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Ralph Specum Tasks in Codex?

Run `npx skills add tzachbon/smart-ralph --skill ralph-specum-tasks -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/ralph-specum-codex/skills/ralph-specum-tasks in tzachbon/smart-ralph) into .agents/skills/ralph-specum-tasks in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Ralph Specum Tasks in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add tzachbon/smart-ralph --skill ralph-specum-tasks -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/ralph-specum-tasks, .gemini/skills/ralph-specum-tasks, .github/skills/ralph-specum-tasks and .opencode/skills/ralph-specum-tasks in your project.

What does Ralph Specum Tasks need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Ralph Specum Tasks needs the command-line tools its instructions call (python3 and go). Our summary lists: Python 3.

Does Ralph Specum Tasks access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Ralph Specum Tasks safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Ralph Specum Tasks use?

Ralph Specum Tasks is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Ralph Specum Tasks use?

About 1.6k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.4k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Ralph Specum Tasks?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Ralph Specum Tasks: Ralph (Yeachan-Heo/oh-my-claudecode, 40k stars), No Explicit Any (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars), Ralph Loop Yylo (sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills, 47k stars) and Ralph (agenticnotetaking/arscontexta, 3.5k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Ralph Specum Tasks?

tzachbon (a GitHub user) maintains it in tzachbon/smart-ralph, which has 559 GitHub stars. The repository holds 26 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 16, 2026.

Source: tzachbon/smart-ralph on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.