# Coordinator Init Mode > The complete two-phase Init Mode protocol the Squad coordinator runs when no team exists yet in the current repo. Phase 1 = propose the team (no files created, wait for user confirm). Phase 2 = create .squad/ scaffolding, casting state, .gitattributes for merge drivers, and the always-on built-ins (Scribe, Ralph, Rai, Fact Checker). Loaded on demand when the coordinator detects no .squad/team.md exists. - Skill: `bradygaster/coordinator-init-mode` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add bradygaster/coordinator-init-mode` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/bradygaster/coordinator-init-mode/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: bradygaster (https://skillmd.com/u/bradygaster) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/bradygaster/coordinator-init-mode --- > **Load this skill when:** you detect that no `.squad/team.md` exists in the resolved team root — that means this is a fresh repo or a repo that has never been squadified, and Init Mode is the right path. The short stub in `squad.agent.md` tells you to load this skill; the full two-phase protocol lives here. > > **⚠️ Eager-execution exception:** Init Mode is the ONE exception to the eager-execution / parallel-fan-out doctrine. Phase 1 MUST end with a user confirmation before any file is created. Do not bypass. ## Phase 1: Propose the Team No team exists yet. **Propose one — but DO NOT create any files until the user confirms.** 1. **Identify the user.** Run `git config user.name` to learn who you're working with. Use their name in conversation (e.g., *"Hey {user}, what are you building?"*). Store their name (NOT email) in `team.md` under Project Context. **Never read or store `git config user.email`** — email addresses are PII and must not be written to committed files. 2. Ask: *"What are you building? (language, stack, what it does)"* 3. **Cast the team.** Before proposing names, run the Casting & Persistent Naming algorithm (see the canonical Casting reference at `.squad/templates/casting-reference.md`): - Determine team size: pick **4–5 cast (user-domain) agents**, then add the **4 always-on built-ins** (Scribe + Ralph + Rai + Fact Checker — see their dedicated sections in `squad.agent.md`). A typical fresh squad has **8–9 total roster entries**, not 4–5. - Determine assignment shape from the user's project description. - Derive resonance signals from the session and repo context. - Select a universe. Allocate character names from that universe. - Scribe is always "Scribe" — exempt from casting. - Ralph is always "Ralph" — exempt from casting. - Rai is always "Rai" — exempt from casting. - Fact Checker is always "Fact Checker" — exempt from casting (same pattern as Scribe / Ralph / Rai). 4. Propose the team with their cast names. Example (names will vary per cast): ``` 🏗️ {CastName1} — Lead Scope, decisions, code review ⚛️ {CastName2} — Frontend Dev React, UI, components 🔧 {CastName3} — Backend Dev APIs, database, services 🧪 {CastName4} — Tester Tests, quality, edge cases 📋 Scribe — (silent) Memory, decisions, session logs 🔄 Ralph — (monitor) Work queue, backlog, keep-alive 🛡️ Rai — (background) RAI awareness, content safety 🔍 Fact Checker — (verifier) Verification + Devil's Advocate ``` 5. Use the `ask_user` tool to confirm the roster. Provide choices so the user sees a selectable menu: - **question:** *"Look right?"* - **choices:** `["Yes, hire this team", "Add someone", "Change a role"]` **⚠️ STOP. Your response ENDS here. Do NOT proceed to Phase 2. Do NOT create any files or directories. Wait for the user's reply.** --- ## Phase 2: Create the Team **Trigger:** The user replied to Phase 1 with confirmation ("yes", "looks good", or similar affirmative), OR the user's reply to Phase 1 is a task (treat as implicit "yes"). > If the user said "add someone" or "change a role," go back to Phase 1 step 3 and re-propose. **Do NOT enter Phase 2 until the user confirms.** 6. Create the `.squad/` directory structure (see `.squad/templates/` for format guides or use the standard structure: `team.md`, `routing.md`, `ceremonies.md`, `decisions.md`, `decisions/inbox/`, `casting/`, `agents/`, `orchestration-log/`, `skills/`, `log/`, `rai/`). **Casting state initialization:** Copy `.squad/templates/casting-policy.json` to `.squad/casting/policy.json` (or create from defaults). Create `registry.json` (entries: persistent_name, universe, created_at, legacy_named: false, status: "active") and `history.json` (first assignment snapshot with unique assignment_id). **Seeding:** Each agent's `history.md` starts with the project description, tech stack, and the user's name so they have day-1 context. Agent folder names are the cast name in lowercase (e.g., `.squad/agents/ripley/`). The Scribe's charter includes maintaining `decisions.md` and cross-agent context sharing. Rai's charter is seeded from the `Rai-charter.md` template, and `.squad/rai/policy.md` is seeded from `rai-policy.md`. Fact Checker's charter is seeded from `fact-checker-charter.md` and `.squad/fact-checker/policy.md` is seeded from `fact-checker-policy.md`. **Team.md structure:** `team.md` MUST contain a section titled exactly `## Members` (not "## Team Roster" or other variations) containing the roster table. This header is hard-coded in GitHub workflows (`squad-heartbeat.yml`, `squad-issue-assign.yml`, `squad-triage.yml`, `sync-squad-labels.yml`) for label automation. If the header is missing or titled differently, label routing breaks. **Merge driver for append-only files:** Create or update `.gitattributes` at the repo root to enable conflict-free merging of `.squad/` state across branches: ``` .squad/decisions.md merge=union .squad/agents/*/history.md merge=union .squad/log/** merge=union .squad/orchestration-log/** merge=union .squad/rai/audit-trail.md merge=union ``` The `union` merge driver keeps all lines from both sides, which is correct for append-only files. This makes worktree-local strategy work seamlessly when branches merge — decisions, memories, and logs from all branches combine automatically. 7. Say: *"✅ Team hired. Try: '{FirstCastName}, set up the project structure'"* 8. **Post-setup input sources** (optional — ask after team is created, not during casting): - **PRD/spec:** *"Do you have a PRD or spec document? (file path, paste it, or skip)"* → If provided, follow PRD Mode flow. - **GitHub issues:** *"Is there a GitHub repo with issues I should pull from? (owner/repo, or skip)"* → If provided, follow GitHub Issues Mode flow. - **Human members:** *"Are any humans joining the team? (names and roles, or just AI for now)"* → If provided, add per Human Team Members section. - **Copilot agent:** *"Want to include @copilot? It can pick up issues autonomously. (yes/no)"* → If yes, follow Copilot Coding Agent Member section and ask about auto-assignment. - These are additive. **Don't block** — if the user skips or gives a task instead, proceed immediately.