Ultrawork

State Management

Use the CLI-first state surface (omx state ... --json) for ultrawork lifecycle state. If explicit MCP compatibility tools are already available, equivalent omx_state calls are optional compatibility, not the default.

• On start: omx state write --input '{"mode":"ultrawork","active":true,"reinforcement_count":1,"started_at":"<now>"}' --json
• On each reinforcement/loop step: omx state write --input '{"mode":"ultrawork","reinforcement_count":<current>}' --json
• On completion: omx state write --input '{"mode":"ultrawork","active":false}' --json
• On cancellation/cleanup: run $cancel (which should call omx state clear --input '{"mode":"ultrawork"}' --json)

Direct-tool lane:

• update skills/ultrawork/SKILL.md

Background evidence lane:

• use /prompts:test-engineer for this scoped task

Why good: Context is grounded first, acceptance criteria are explicit, and the direct-tool lane runs alongside a bounded evidence lane.
</Good>

<Good>
Correct use of self-vs-delegate judgment:

Shared-file edit in progress across src/scripts/codex-native-hook.ts and its test -> keep implementation local. Independent regression mapping for keyword-detector coverage -> delegate to a test-engineer lane.

Why good: Shared-file work stays local; independent evidence work fans out.
</Good>

<Bad>
Parallelizing before the task is grounded:

use /prompts:executor for this scoped task use /prompts:test-engineer for this scoped task

Why bad: No context snapshot, no pass/fail target, and delegation starts before the work is shaped.
</Bad>

<Bad>
Claiming success without evidence or manual QA:

Made the changes. Ultrawork should be updated now.

Why bad: No verification output, no acceptance evidence, and no manual QA note when the behavior is user-visible.
</Bad>
</Examples>

<Escalation_And_Stop_Conditions>
- When ultrawork is invoked directly, apply lightweight verification only -- build/typecheck passes when relevant, affected tests pass, and manual QA notes are captured when needed.
- Ultrawork does not own persistence, durable ledgers, architect verification, deslop, full QA, or the full verified-completion promise. Do not claim those guarantees from direct ultrawork alone.
- Escalate to `ultragoal` when the work needs durable goal state, story checkpoints, or resume across implementation steps.
- Escalate to `team` when the work needs coordinated tmux workers, shared task state, or durable multi-worker lifecycle control.
- Escalate to explicitly requested `ralph` only for the supported legacy single-owner persistence/verification fallback.
- Ralph owns persistence, architect verification, deslop, and the full verified-completion promise only when explicitly selected as the supported legacy fallback; direct ultrawork does not own those guarantees.
- If a task fails repeatedly across retries, report the issue rather than retrying indefinitely.
- Escalate to the user when tasks have unclear dependencies, conflicting requirements, or a materially branching acceptance target.
</Escalation_And_Stop_Conditions>

<Final_Checklist>
- [ ] Task intent and constraints were grounded before editing
- [ ] Pass/fail acceptance criteria were stated before execution
- [ ] Parallel lanes were used only for independent work
- [ ] Build/typecheck passes when relevant
- [ ] Affected tests pass
- [ ] Manual QA notes recorded when behavior is user-visible
- [ ] No new errors introduced
- [ ] Completion claim stays inside ultrawork's lightweight-verification boundary
</Final_Checklist>

<Advanced>
## Relationship to Other Modes

ultrawork (this skill) -- provides: in-session parallel execution discipline + lightweight evidence

ultragoal (durable goal execution) -- owns: goal ledger, checkpoints, resume across stories, final gate discipline -- may use: team for parallel lanes when a story benefits from coordinated workers

team (tmux coordinated execution) -- owns: worker panes, shared task state, mailbox/dispatch, lifecycle control -- can return: checkpoint-ready evidence to an Ultragoal leader

autopilot (strict autonomous delivery loop) -- default flow: deep-interview -> ralplan -> ultragoal -> code-review -> ultraqa -- may use: team only when an Ultragoal story needs parallel execution

ralph (supported legacy explicit fallback) -- owns: single-owner persistence loop + architect verification when intentionally selected

ecomode (deprecated compatibility-only) -- do not route users there from ultrawork; it is not the current model-selection path

Ultrawork is the parallelism and execution-discipline layer. Ultragoal is the current default durable goal/ledger follow-up. Team is the coordinated tmux parallel runtime, often nested under an Ultragoal story when durable work needs multiple lanes. Autopilot orchestrates the full default lifecycle through deep-interview, ralplan, ultragoal, code-review, and ultraqa. Ralph remains active as an explicit legacy fallback for persistent single-owner verification, but it is not the recommended default durable path. Ecomode is deprecated compatibility-only and should not be advertised as the ultrawork model-selection route.
</Advanced>