tomevault-io Ralph Autonomous Skill
Encapsulates the 10-step autonomous coding process for the Ralph loop runner.
Context Recovery (Every Session Start)
Fresh context protocol - MANDATORY before any work:
# 1. Verify branch
git branch --show-current
# 2. Read progress notes
cat memory/claude-progress.md
# 3. Read feature list
cat memory/feature_list.json
# 4. Read spec context
cat specs/{branch}/spec.md
# 5. Verify 1-2 passing features still work
npx playwright test tests/{passing-feature}.spec.ts
10-Step Autonomous Process
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ RALPH 10-STEP AUTONOMOUS LOOP │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. ORIENT - Load context from memory/ files │
│ 2. VERIFY - Regression check on previous work │
│ 3. CHOOSE - Select next feature with passes: false │
│ 4. TEST FIRST- Create failing test (TDD Gate 1) │
│ 5. IMPLEMENT - Write minimal code to pass test │
│ 6. VERIFY - Run test to confirm pass (TDD Gate 2) │
│ 7. UPDATE - Mark feature passes: true in feature_list.json │
│ 8. COMMIT - Git commit with descriptive message │
│ 9. PROGRESS - Update claude-progress.md │
│ 10. SIGNAL - Output completion status │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Completion Signals
Output these signals for the external loop runner to detect:
| Signal | Meaning |
|---|---|
FEATURE_COMPLETE: {id} |
Feature done, continue to next |
ALL_FEATURES_COMPLETE |
All features pass, stop loop |
FEATURE_BLOCKED: {reason} |
Cannot proceed, needs human intervention |
ENVIRONMENT_ERROR: {error} |
System issue, stop and report |
State Management
Ralph maintains state in memory/.ralph/state.json:
{
"last_completed_feature": "F003",
"iteration_count": 5,
"last_run": "2026-01-11T10:30:00Z",
"status": "in_progress",
"blocked_features": []
}
Use for resume capability after interruption.
Progress Update Triggers
Update memory/claude-progress.md IMMEDIATELY when:
| Trigger | Required? |
|---|---|
| Feature completed and verified | ✅ Mandatory |
| Bug or issue discovered | ✅ Mandatory |
| Before ending session | ✅ Mandatory |
| After recovering from failure | ✅ Mandatory |
Rule: "If you wouldn't remember it tomorrow, write it down now."
Feature List Rules
The memory/feature_list.json is sacred:
✅ Change passes: false to passes: true when verified
❌ NEVER remove features
❌ NEVER edit descriptions
❌ NEVER modify steps
❌ NEVER reorder features
Failure Recovery
If environment is broken:
- Check git log for recent changes
- Revert problematic commits:
git revert HEAD - Fix the issue before continuing
- Mark affected features as
passes: false - Document in progress notes
Resources
- scripts/context-recovery.sh - Automated context loading (Bash)
- scripts/context-recovery.ps1 - Automated context loading (PowerShell)
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