/nelson

name: nelson
description: Orchestrates multi-agent task execution using a Royal Navy squadron metaphor — from mission planning through parallel work coordination to stand-down. Use when work needs parallel agent orchestration, tight task coordination with quality gates, structured delegation with progress checkpoints, or a documented decision log.
argument-hint: "[mission description]"
paths: [".nelson/**"]

Nelson

python3 "${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/nelson/scripts/nelson-data.py" status

Execute this workflow for the user's mission.

Write as Nelson's captains would write: concise, elegant, confident. Not eighteenth-century prose — the clear register of an officer who respects the reader's time. The skill's voice sets the example for the admiral's voice.

1. Issue Sailing Orders

• Review the user's brief for ambiguity. If the outcome, scope, or constraints are unclear, ask the user to clarify before drafting sailing orders.
• Write one sentence for `outcome`, `metric`, and `deadline`.
• Set constraints: token budget, reliability floor, compliance rules, and forbidden actions.
• Define what is out of scope.
• Define stop criteria and required handoff artifacts.

You MUST read `references/admiralty-templates/sailing-orders.md` and use the sailing-orders template when the user does not provide structure.

Example sailing orders summary:

Outcome: Refactor auth module to use JWT tokens
Metric: All 47 auth tests pass, no new dependencies
Deadline: This session
Constraints: Do not modify the public API surface
Out of scope: Migration script for existing sessions

**Establish Mission Directory:**

• **New session:** Run `nelson-data.py init` (see "Structured Data Capture" below). The script owns directory creation: it generates an 8-character hex SESSION_ID, creates `.nelson/missions/{YYYY-MM-DD_HHMMSS}_{SESSION_ID}/` with the `damage-reports/` and `turnover-briefs/` subdirectories, writes `sailing-orders.json`, `mission-log.json`, and `fleet-status.json`, writes `.nelson/.active-{SESSION_ID}` as the session marker, and prints the mission directory path to stdout. Capture that path as `{mission-dir}` for the remainder of this mission. The SESSION_ID is the segment after the last underscore in the directory name. If you need a specific SESSION_ID (e.g., testing or resuming a known id), pass `--session-id <8-hex>`.
• **Resumed session:** First, attempt auto-recovery by running `python3 .claude/skills/nelson/scripts/nelson-data.py recover --missions-dir .nelson/missions`. If this finds an active mission with handoff packets, use the structured recovery briefing to resume directly. Otherwise, if you know the SESSION_ID, read `.nelson/.active-{SESSION_ID}` to recover the mission path. Set that path as `{mission-dir}`. If you cannot determine your SESSION_ID (e.g., after a full restart), list `.nelson/missions/` and present the options to the user for selection. Set the chosen directory as `{mission-dir}`. Recover state per `references/damage-control/session-resumption.md` (prefer JSON files, fall back to quarterdeck report prose). **Re-establish the standing goal:** a `/goal` is restored automatically on `--resume`/`--continue` but not in a fresh session, so if none is active (check with a bare `/goal`) and `sailing-orders.json` carries a recorded `goal_condition`, re-issue it per `references/goal-alignment.md`.

All mission artifacts — captain's log, quarterdeck reports, damage reports, and turnover briefs — are written inside `{mission-dir}`.

**Structured Data Capture:** Run the `nelson-data.py` script located in the skill's directory (e.g., `python3 .claude/skills/nelson/scripts/nelson-data.py init --outcome "..." --metric "..." --deadline "..."`). If installed globally, it may be in `~/.claude/skills/nelson/scripts/`. `init` creates the mission directory, the initial JSON files (`sailing-orders.json`, `mission-log.json`, `fleet-status.json` with initial phase `SAILING_ORDERS`), and the `.nelson/.active-{SESSION_ID}` marker in one atomic step. See `references/structured-data.md` for the full argument list.

**Phase Advance:** After structured data capture, advance the mission phase from SAILING_ORDERS to ESTIMATE:

python3 .claude/skills/nelson/scripts/nelson-phase.py advance --mission-dir {mission-dir}

**Session Hygiene:** Execute session hygiene per `references/damage-control/session-hygiene.md`. Skip this step when resuming an interrupted session.

**Standing Goal (optional):** For long autonomous, headless (`-p`), scheduled, or ultracode missions — where standing down too early is the failure mode — offer to set a Claude Code `/goal` that keeps the session from stopping until the mission is genuinely complete. Compose it from the sailing orders rather than by hand:

python3 .claude/skills/nelson/scripts/nelson-data.py goal-condition \
  --mission-dir {mission-dir} --record

Present the printed `/goal ...` line for the user to set. If the user already set a `/goal` before invoking Nelson, do NOT replace it — read it back with a bare `/goal`, reconcile the sailing orders to it, and only re-issue a composed goal with the user's agreement. Skip this for short interactive missions where the human is steering turn by turn. You MUST read `references/goal-alignment.md` before setting a goal — the evaluator judges the condition against the conversation transcript only, so completion evidence must be surfaced into chat (this shapes Stand Down in Step 8).

**The Estimate opt-in:** Before proceeding, ask the user:

> *"Shall I carry out The Estimate before drafting the Battle Plan? I would recommend it for this mission — [brief reason]."*

Give an honest recommendation. For straightforward missions with clear scope in a single subsystem, proceed without the Estimate. For complex, ambiguous, or multi-system missions, recommend conducting it. If the user accepts, proceed to Step 2. If the user declines, record the decision and skip to Step 3: