markoblogo Recovery Loop 3-Strike
Bound retries so failure handling becomes diagnostic instead of repetitive.
Use When
- a verification step fails and the cause is not yet clear;
- the task is long enough that repeated blind retries are likely;
- you need an explicit escalation path for autonomous or semi-autonomous work.
Core Rules
- Failure one is for learning, not denial.
- Each retry must add new evidence or a narrower hypothesis.
- After two failed passes, stop improvising and write a focused fix plan.
- After the third failure, hand off honestly instead of pretending the loop is still productive.
Workflow
- First failure:
- capture the exact failing signal;
- state the most likely cause;
- retry once with one concrete probe or adjustment.
- Second failure:
- write a compact fix spec for the same phase or task slice;
- constrain the change to the verified failure mode;
- execute the fix and re-run verification.
- Third failure:
- stop;
- mark the task or phase blocked;
- hand off with probe history, attempted fixes, and best next action.
Required Failure Record
For each strike, preserve:
- failing command or acceptance criterion;
- observed output or symptom;
- hypothesis tested;
- action taken;
- result.
Anti-Patterns
- Do not spend all three strikes on the same unmodified action.
- Do not escalate to a large rewrite unless the evidence points there.
- Do not hide a blocker behind optimistic language.
Final Report
State which strike resolved the issue, or provide a clean blocked handoff with evidence.