/claude-delegate

name: claude-delegate
description: >-
  Delegate a coding task to a separate Claude Code CLI process or another Claude session as an
  implementer, then review its diff and land it yourself. Use only when the user explicitly asks to
  delegate implementation to Claude Code, another Claude session, or the `claude` CLI — for example,
  "have another Claude implement this", "delegate this to Claude Code", or "run this queue through a
  separate Claude session." Do not trigger merely because the current orchestrator is Claude, and do
  not use when the user asks the current Claude to implement directly without delegation.
license: MIT
compatibility: Requires the `claude` CLI (Claude Code) installed and authenticated, Node 18+, and git. The orchestrating agent must be able to run shell commands and read files. Claude's shell sandbox requires macOS, Linux, or WSL2; on native Windows the npm `claude.cmd` launch is verified and a direct `claude.exe` launch is pending verification. The optional --autocompact flag requires claude 2.1.221 or newer.
metadata:
  version: 0.5.0

Claude Delegate

You are the **orchestrator**. Delegate one bounded coding task to a separate **implementer** — a Claude Code CLI session — then review what it produced and land it yourself. You write the brief and own the judgment; the separate Claude session edits the working tree; you verify and commit.

This skill is not a signal for the current Claude to implement directly. Use it only after the human explicitly asks for delegation to another Claude Code process or session.

When not to use this

• The human asked the current agent to implement the task directly.
• The task is small enough to do inline and the human did not request delegation.
• The `claude` CLI is missing or unauthenticated (`claude auth status`).
• The task needs a stronger host boundary than Claude Code's tool permissions and shell-only sandbox

provide. Use an isolated container or VM for that requirement.

Prerequisites

1. `claude --version` succeeds. 2. `claude auth status` reports an authenticated session. On macOS the live credentials sit in the login Keychain; when the orchestrator's own sandbox blocks Keychain access (Codex's sandbox does), `claude` falls back to a possibly stale credentials file and reports `loggedIn: false` even though the login is valid. Re-run the check — and the dispatch itself — with that sandbox escalated or outside it before concluding the CLI is unauthenticated. 3. The target repository is the directory passed with `--cd`. 4. On Linux/WSL2, Claude's sandbox dependencies are installed. The normal relay profile is configured to fail when the sandbox is unavailable instead of silently running shell commands unsandboxed. Existing merged settings can still affect the effective boundary.

The loop

1. Write the brief

The separate session has no orchestrator chat history. It receives the brief on stdin and can inspect the target working tree.

Claude Code automatically discovers the target project's `CLAUDE.md` and normal local Claude configuration because the relay does not use `--bare`. It does **not** generically auto-load `AGENTS.md`. Read `AGENTS.md` yourself and copy every load-bearing constraint and the real gate commands into the brief. Tell the implementer not to commit. Keep one task per brief.

Template and details: [references/writing-the-brief.md](references/writing-the-brief.md).

2. Dispatch

node "<skill-dir>/scripts/relay.mjs" --brief brief.txt --cd /path/to/repo
# review/diagnosis only:                 add --read-only
# continue the latest session:           add --resume-last
# continue the recorded session:         add --session <id>
# choose limits:                         add --max-turns 40 --max-budget-usd 10
# set the auto-compact window:           add --autocompact 400k
# hard relay deadline:                   add --timeout 2h
# inspect every option:                  node .../relay.mjs --help

`<skill-dir>` is this installed skill directory, the folder containing this `SKILL.md`.

The relay runs `claude -p --output-format stream-json --verbose`, sends the brief through stdin, and writes artifacts under the system temp directory by default. It never uses `--bg` or `--bare`, and it never commits. See [references/dispatch-and-poll.md](references/dispatch-and-poll.md).

`--autocompact <auto|tokens>` passes Claude Code's auto-compact window setting on every new or resumed invocation, and needs Claude Code `2.1.221` or newer — older builds fail the dispatch with `unknown option '--autocompact'`. The installed CLI owns the accepted range (`auto`, or 100k–1M tokens); the relay records the requested value but does not claim that Claude applied or enforced it.

3. Wait

The relay blocks until Claude exits. Use the orchestrator's background-command facility, or run it in the foreground and wait. Completion means the process exited and `result.json` exists.

• A pre-run usage error exits 2 and writes no `result.json`.
• A missing `claude` exits 127 and writes `status: "claude_unavailable"`.
• Timeout and caught relay signals terminate the whole implementer process tree and preserve an

outcome artifact.

Read `finalMessage`, `touchedFiles`, `resultSubtype`, and the raw artifact paths from `result.json`.

4. Review

Treat the implementer's report and gate outcomes as claims:

• Review edits to existing tests before a green gate means anything.
• Re-run the project's actual gates yourself.
• Read the complete diff against the brief, starting with `touchedFiles`.
• Inspect untracked and staged content as well as the ordinary diff.
• Run relevant guard skills if installed.

Full checklist: [references/review-and-land.md](references/review-and-land.md).

5. Land

The **orchestrator commits** only after the gates pass and the diff holds. For rework, resume the same Claude session with a delta brief:

echo "Keep the implementation, replace th