# Decide Card > Record a decision (what + why) on a parked card and lower the human gate from decision or session to none. AUTO-INVOKE on "I decided X", "let's go with Y", "approved", or any resolution of a parked card — the human's one-action handoff so pull-card can resume. - Skill: `zauberzeug/decide-card` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add zauberzeug/decide-card` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/zauberzeug/decide-card/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: zauberzeug (https://skillmd.com/u/zauberzeug) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/zauberzeug/decide-card --- ## Codex GoC Command When this skill says `goc ...`, resolve the executable before running the command: - In the `game-of-cards` source checkout, use `uv run goc ...`. - If `goc` is already on `PATH`, use `goc ...`. - If this skill is loaded from the Game of Cards Codex plugin, use the bundled helper at `/skills/_goc-bootstrap.sh ...`; the plugin root is the parent directory that contains both `skills/` and `bin/`. - If the plugin root is not obvious from the loaded skill path, locate the helper with: ```bash GOC_BOOTSTRAP=$(find "$HOME/.codex/plugins/cache" -path '*/game-of-cards/*/skills/_goc-bootstrap.sh' -type f -perm -111 -exec ls -t {} + 2>/dev/null | head -n 1) test -n "$GOC_BOOTSTRAP" || { echo "GoC Codex plugin bootstrap not found" >&2; exit 127; } "$GOC_BOOTSTRAP" --help ``` Use that helper path in place of bare `goc` for the rest of the skill. Do not edit deck files directly just because `goc` is not on `PATH`. ## When to invoke Invoke when the user says "I decided X", "let's go with Y", "the answer is Z", "go ahead with", "approved", or otherwise resolves a parked card. The Andon-cord lowering action — pull-card raises the gate; this skill is the human's one-action handoff so pull-card can resume. # Decide a card The Andon-cord loop: `Skill(pull-card)` raises `human_gate` (`none → decision` / `session`) when it hits a question only a human can answer; this skill lowers the gate back to `none` in one cheap action. Status stays `open`, so the next `pull-card` claims and implements per the recorded decision. Humans resolve the cause; agents wield the wrench — and an agent that can cite the project rubric MAY decide on its own behalf (lazy Andon, below). **Edge cases live in `reference.md`** — a sibling file in this skill's directory. Read the named section only when the situation actually applies: | Situation | `reference.md` section | |---|---| | Presenting labeled options via AskUserQuestion | Mirroring labeled options | | The decision reverses / re-scopes a stated verdict | Re-scope reconciliation | | An agent recorded a decision it shouldn't have | Rewinding an agent decision | | Why the cord must be cheap to lower | Rationale | ## What this skill does to the card 1. **Body.** Replaces the `## Decision required` section (or appends a fresh `## Decision` section) with: ``` ## Decision *Resolved YYYY-MM-DD:* *Reasoning:* ``` 2. **log.md.** Appends up to two entries, timeline-ordered: first an archive of the prior `## Decision required` content (the options and trade-offs the README rewrite would otherwise lose), then the resolution (` — . Gate → none.`). 3. **Frontmatter.** Flips `human_gate: decision` (or `session`) → `none`. Status is unchanged (`open` stays `open`). 4. **Refuses** if the gate is already `none` or the title doesn't exist. ## Workflow 1. **Read the card body** (`goc show `). Confirm the decision actually answers the parked question: if `## Decision required` enumerates options A/B/C, the user's free-text decision should map onto one (or explicitly reject all and propose D). When eliciting the pick with AskUserQuestion, mirror the body's option labels and order verbatim — do not reorder or rephrase (`reference.md` § Mirroring labeled options). **Then check `advanced_by` for unclosed prerequisites, and read any you find before recording.** An `advances` edge does not record whether it is strict, so the only way to learn that a prerequisite *reframes* this card is to open it. Lowering the gate is what makes the card autonomously pullable, so a decision taken over an unread prerequisite is one an unattended worker may act on before any human sees the card again. `goc decide` prints the same advisory (non-blocking — it names the prerequisites and lowers the gate anyway), but it prints it as the decision lands, which is too late to inform it. 2. **Run the CLI.** ```bash goc decide <title> \ --decision "<one-line what>" \ --because "<one-line why>" ``` 3. **Commit follows repo policy.** `goc decide` honors `.game-of-cards/config.yaml` `workflow.auto_commit` (default `true`), committing body + log + gate flip as `decide: <title> — <decision>`. Override per invocation with `--no-commit` / `--commit`. If the decision **reverses or re-scopes a verdict the card already states**, `goc decide` only writes the `## Decision` block — every other surface still asserting the old verdict is now stale. Reconcile by hand: the `summary:` frontmatter, any `> ⚠` body banner, DoD wording, and mentions in neighbor cards. The CLI prints a reminder on re-scope language and `goc validate` flags `DECISION_CONTRADICTS_VERDICT`. For a true re-scope, prefer supersede + create over an in-place rewrite. Full checklist: `reference.md` § Re-scope reconciliation. ## When an agent invokes this skill (lazy Andon) An agent may decide *on its own* only after consulting the consuming repo's project-specific rubric: !`cat .game-of-cards/hooks/decide-card.md 2>/dev/null || true` 1. **Cite the rubric.** `--because` MUST start with a clause naming the rubric consulted and what it returned (citation form per the hook above). 2. **Cite the primary source** when the answer rests on literature: DOI/PMID, textbook chapter, or project-doc section. 3. **No agent-decide for human-judgement questions** — resource allocation, scope splits, deadlines, stakeholder alignment, taste calls. Raise the gate instead. 4. **Default to human when ambiguous.** If the rubric doesn't give a clean answer, raise the gate; don't guess. A decision recorded in violation of this contract can be rewound — `reference.md` § Rewinding an agent decision. ## When NOT to use this skill - **Card needs implementation, not a decision.** If you're ready to do the work yourself, just do the work. - **Decision changes scope.** "Scope this differently / split / reframe" is not a resolution — use `Skill(advance-card) <title> superseded` + `Skill(create-card)` for the replacement. - **Gate is `session` and the session never happened.** Capturing a real session's outcome is valid; shortcutting a session that never took place is not — schedule the session instead. ## What this skill does NOT do - Does NOT implement the card (that's `pull-card`'s next round). - Does NOT close the card (that's `Skill(finish-card)`'s DoD-gated contract). - Does NOT mutate `status` — the card stays `open`. ## Cross-references - `reference.md` (this skill's directory) — edge cases routed above. - `Skill(scan-deck)` — surfaces parked cards; its "decisions to make" Q&A calls this skill per card. - `Skill(advance-card)` — status machine + `waiting_on` overlay; gate ≠ status. - `Skill(card-schema)` — `human_gate` enum and the `## Decision required` body convention.