--- name: loop-engineer description: > Loop engineering wizard for OpenCode. Asks 3 questions, then orchestrates a fully autonomous agent team (resource-scout, researcher, planner, agent-factory, executor, verifier, auditor, memory-keeper) until the goal is met. Agents run sequentially via the task tool. Dynamic researcher count. Modes: build (from scratch), research (investigate only), patch (fix/extend existing code), audit (review only, no changes). Persistent memory, git integration.
Loop Engineer (OpenCode)
You are running a loop engineering wizard. Follow these phases in order.
To update loop-engineer: re-run
install.sh --update/install.ps1 -Update -OpenCode. Updates are never applied automatically mid-loop.
Phase 1 — Core Wizard
Q1 — Mode: if invoked with an argument matching build/research/patch/audit, use it as MODE and skip this question. Otherwise ask: "Mode? build (new from scratch) / research (investigate and report, no code changes) / patch (fix or add a feature using the existing codebase) / audit (review existing code/output only, no changes)". Default to build if unclear.
Q2: "What do you want the loop to accomplish? (1-2 sentences)"
Generate LOOP_ID: lowercase slug, first 4 meaningful words, max 24 chars.
Auto-set: STOP_CONDITION = "all tasks in loop-stack//PLAN.md checked", MAX_TURNS = 20.
Q3: "Should the loop auto-commit after each verified task? (yes / no)"
Phase 2+3 — Initialize Loop
Run the init script — creates all state files, copies agent files, and writes verifier in one command:
Bash (macOS/Linux):
# try opencode path first, fall back to claude path
INIT="$HOME/.config/opencode/skills/loop-engineer/scripts/init-loop.sh"
[ ! -f "$INIT" ] && INIT="$HOME/.claude/skills/loop-engineer/scripts/init-loop.sh"
bash "$INIT" \
--loop-id <LOOP_ID> \
--goal "<GOAL>" \
--stop "all tasks in loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/PLAN.md checked" \
--git <yes/no> \
--mode <MODE> \
--platform opencode
PowerShell (Windows):
$init = "$env:USERPROFILE\.config\opencode\skills\loop-engineer\scripts\init-loop.ps1"
if (-not (Test-Path $init)) { $init = "$env:USERPROFILE\.claude\skills\loop-engineer\scripts\init-loop.ps1" }
& $init -LoopId "<LOOP_ID>" -Goal "<GOAL>" `
-Stop "all tasks in loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/PLAN.md checked" `
-Git <yes/no> -Mode <MODE> -Platform opencode
If the script is missing, install the skill first:
git clone https://github.com/vibhasdutta/loop-engineer && bash install.sh --opencode
The script creates loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/, .opencode/agents/ with all agent .md files + knowledge-sources/, and verifier.md with the actual stop condition substituted.
Phase 4 — Startup Sequence
Use the task tool to invoke each agent. Agents run sequentially — invoke each, wait for completion, then invoke the next.
Step 1 — RESEARCHERS (dynamic count, sequential)
Determine researcher count by goal complexity:
- Simple/single-domain → 2 researchers
- Medium/multi-domain → 3 researchers
- Large/multi-system → 4 researchers
Domains to distribute across researchers:
- Context & Prior Work: source structure, patterns, package files, existing tests
- External Knowledge & Resources: README, docs/, external APIs, .env.example, configs
- Requirements & Constraints: DB schema, data models, state management (for 3+ researchers)
- Environment & Integration: CI/CD, infrastructure, build, Docker (for 4 researchers)
Invoke each researcher sequentially using the task tool:
agent: researcher
prompt: |
Loop directory: loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/
Focus: {ASSIGNED_DOMAIN} — {specific files and concerns}
GLOBAL DATA FIRST: read loop-stack/.global/MEMORY.md and loop-stack/.global/TOOLS.md.
Write findings to loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/RESEARCH.md under "## {Domain Name}".
Update STATUS.md "Last Researcher Result".
Stuck-agent check (you do this yourself — no watcher agent): if a researcher took much longer than the others, check its heartbeat line in STATUS.md ## Active Heartbeats. If stale, treat it STUCK, note it, and proceed with the findings you have.
Step 2 — RESOURCE SCOUT
Invoke using the task tool:
agent: resource-scout
prompt: |
Loop directory: loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/
Check loop-stack/.global/TOOLS.md — if < 7 days old, reuse. Otherwise discover all tools.
Write to loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/TOOLS.md AND loop-stack/.global/TOOLS.md.
Step 3 — PLANNER
Invoke using the task tool:
agent: planner
prompt: |
Loop directory: loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/
Read RESEARCH.md (all sections) and TOOLS.md.
Task type depends on MODE: build/patch → implementation tasks; research → research/writing tasks only, no code changes; audit → review tasks only, no code changes.
Create 3–7 tasks with parallel group tags [G1], [G2], etc.
Same group = independent tasks (can conceptually run in parallel).
Different group = sequential dependency.
Replace "## Tasks" in PLAN.md. Update STATUS.md.
Write loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/AGENTS.md with # Specialized Agents\n## Status\nNONE CREATED YET. (Agent-factory is on-demand, not a fixed step — see Rules.)
Auto-continue into outer loop immediately.
Phase 5 — Outer Loop
FULLY AUTONOMOUS. Never pause for user input.
Initialize: turns_used = 0, skipped_tasks = [].
Mode gating: build (default) — full flow. patch — same steps, but every researcher/executor prompt adds "existing codebase is ground truth — fix/extend, don't rewrite from scratch." research — skip step 5 (executors) and steps 6–7 (audit) entirely; the researcher (step 3) writes each task's final deliverable directly; the verifier checks that instead of built code. audit — skip step 5; the auditor step IS the task (read-only review, findings to RESEARCH.md); a BLOCK verdict is just recorded, never auto-fixed, always proceeds to the verifier.
All agents are invoked via the task tool, one at a time, waiting for each to complete before proceeding.
Iteration steps:
Budget check — over MAX_TURNS → Phase 6.
Read state — identify current parallel group (all unchecked [GN] tasks).
RESEARCHERS — invoke one per task in batch sequentially (2 if batch=1):
agent: researcher prompt: | Loop directory: loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/ GLOBAL DATA FIRST — read loop-stack/.global/MEMORY.md AND loop-stack/.global/TOOLS.md. Then read loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/MEMORY.md, TOOLS.md, PLAN.md, STATUS.md. Current task: {this_task} Research what the executor needs for THIS SPECIFIC TASK. Append findings to loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/RESEARCH.md under "## Task-Specific Research — {this_task}".Increment turns_used.
Before executors, check AGENTS.md. If a task clearly needs domain expertise beyond a generic executor and no specialist covers it, invoke
agent-factoryonce for that task (create 1 agent file, update AGENTS.md). Skip this for most tasks.EXECUTORS — invoke one per task sequentially:
agent: executor prompt: | Loop directory: loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/ GLOBAL DATA FIRST — read loop-stack/.global/MEMORY.md AND loop-stack/.global/TOOLS.md. Read MEMORY.md, TOOLS.md, PLAN.md, STATUS.md. READ: RESEARCH.md "## Task-Specific Research — {this_task}". Current task: {this_task}. Scope: only files for this task. Implement. Append discoveries to MEMORY.md. Update STATUS.md. Goal output (code, documents, files) goes to the project directory, NOT inside loop-stack/. loop-stack/ is state-only.Increment turns_used.
AUDITORS — invoke one per task just built, sequentially.
Process audit results:
- CLEAN/WARN → proceed to verifier
- BLOCK → auto-fix: invoke executor once more with BLOCK context + re-audit once. Still BLOCK → auto-skip.
VERIFIERS — invoke one per task that passed audit, sequentially. Verifier is the final gate: checks the task against RESEARCH.md's Verification Criteria (right place, satisfies criteria, no placeholders), then runs the stop condition.
Process verifier results:
- VERIFIED_PASS → memory-keeper
- FAILED, attempts < 3 → increment attempts in STATUS.md, retry from step 3
- FAILED, attempts ≥ 3 → auto-skip: add to skipped_tasks, mark skipped in STATUS.md
MEMORY-KEEPER consolidation — single invoke, local + global write. This is the only memory-keeper call per batch — executors already appended their raw learnings inline in step 5.
Advance — mark [x] in PLAN.md, increment done_tasks, reset attempts.
- If
USE_GIT: commit PLAN.md + STATUS.md. - Find next unchecked group.
- None → ALL DONE → rename
loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>/→loop-stack/<LOOP_ID>_DONE/→ Phase 6. - Else → update STATUS.md → continue loop.
- If
Phase 6 — Completion Report
Write REPORT.md inside the renamed loop directory and print summary to user.
Rules
- File copy:
cp ~/.config/opencode/skills/loop-engineer/agents/*.md .opencode/agents/— never manual. - Global data first: every agent reads
.global/MEMORY.md+.global/TOOLS.mdbefore acting. - Sequential execution: OpenCode's
tasktool runs one agent at a time — invoke each, wait, then proceed. This is an upstream bug, not a permanent platform limitation. Status is genuinely in flux: the original report (#14195) was closed as fixed, but sequential dispatch was reported again in a follow-up issue (#29638) with competing fix PRs (#29819, #29848) opened in late May 2026 — check that issue for current merge status before assuming this is still broken, and revisit this file if it's confirmed fixed. - Researcher before executor: always. Dynamic count based on goal complexity.
- Agent-factory is on-demand, not a fixed phase step. Invoke it only right before executing a task that clearly needs a specialist. Most loops never call it.
- knowledge-sources.md is a reference file researchers consult on demand, not a phase step.
- No watcher agent. Check heartbeats yourself if an agent is slow; never invoke a dedicated watcher.
- No separate evaluator. Verifier is the final gate: checks the task against RESEARCH.md's Verification Criteria, then runs the stop condition. One agent, one call, same rigor.
- Audit before verify. Auditor reviews the build first (step 6); verifier runs last as the final pass/fail gate (step 8) and is what triggers retry.
- Memory-keeper runs once per task batch (after verify, local + global) — not a separate mid-batch checkpoint. Executors already append their own learnings to MEMORY.md directly as they work. Its only job is capturing learnings/context — never executes the goal or writes goal output.
- Executors append to MEMORY.md directly during work.
- Planner: once at startup after researchers + resource-scout. Tasks MUST use [G1]/[G2] group tags.
- Fully autonomous: no pauses. Audit BLOCK → auto-fix once → skip. 3 verifier fails → auto-skip.
- Modes:
build(default),research,patch,audit— set once in Phase 1, gates Phase 5 (see above). - doom_loop: if OpenCode triggers doom_loop detection (3 identical tool calls), the executor agent has
doom_loop: allow— the loop continues. - HARD RULE — no plan-approval gate: after Phase 1's questions, proceed through Phase 2 onward without presenting a plan for approval or waiting for a "click proceed" confirmation.
- No resume support: every invocation starts a fresh loop. On completion: rename to
<LOOP_ID>_DONE/(bookkeeping only). - AGENTS.md: copy
platforms/opencode/AGENTS.mdto the project root if not present — it gives OpenCode context about the loop.