Ticks Workflow

Ticks is an issue tracker designed for AI agents. The tk CLI manages tasks, runs agents in continuous loops, and provides a web-based board for monitoring.

When to Use Ticks vs TodoWrite

Use Ticks (tk) for work that:

• Spans multiple sessions or conversations
• Has dependencies on other tasks
• Is discovered during other work and should be tracked
• Needs human handoff or approval gates
• Benefits from persistent history and notes

Use TodoWrite for:

• Simple single-session tasks
• Work that will be completed in the current conversation
• Tracking progress on immediate work

Don’t over-index on creating ticks for every small thing. Use your judgment.

Skill Workflow

When invoked, follow this workflow:

Step 0: Check Prerequisites

1. Git repository:

git status 2>/dev/null || git init

2. Ticks initialized:

ls .tick/ 2>/dev/null || tk init

3. tk installed:

which tk || echo "Install: curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pengelbrecht/ticks/main/scripts/install.sh | sh"

4. Git tracking (important):

The .tick/ directory should be tracked by git, not gitignored. Ticks are designed to be version-controlled so they sync across machines and team members via normal git workflows.

If you see .tick or .tick/ in the project’s .gitignore, remove it. The only things that should be gitignored are internal/local files, which is handled by .tick/.gitignore (ignores .index.json and logs/).

# Check if .tick is gitignored (should return nothing)
git check-ignore .tick/

# If it returns ".tick/", remove the entry from .gitignore

Step 1: Check for SPEC.md

Look for a SPEC.md (or similar spec file) in the repo root.

If no spec exists: Go to Step 2a (Create Spec) If spec exists but incomplete: Go to Step 2b (Complete Spec) If spec is complete: Skip to Step 3 (Create Ticks)

Step 2a: Create Spec Through Conversation

Have a natural conversation with the user to understand their idea:

1. Let them describe it – Don’t interrupt, let them explain the full vision
2. Ask clarifying questions – Dig into unclear areas through back-and-forth dialogue
3. Optionally use AskUserQuestion – For quick multiple-choice decisions
4. Write SPEC.md – Once you have enough detail, generate the spec

Conversation topics to explore:

• What problem does this solve? Who’s it for?
• Core features vs nice-to-haves
• Technical constraints or preferences
• How will users interact with it?
• What does “done” look like?

Step 2b: Complete Existing Spec

If SPEC.md exists but has gaps:

1. Read the spec – Identify what’s missing or unclear
2. Ask targeted questions – Focus on the gaps, don’t re-ask obvious things
3. Update SPEC.md – Fill in the missing details

Creating Good Tasks

Every task should be an atomic, committable piece of work with tests.

The ideal task:

• Has a clear, single deliverable
• Can be verified by running tests
• Results in demoable software that builds on previous work
• Is completable in 1-3 agent iterations

Good task:

tk create "Add email validation to registration" \
  -d "Validate email format on blur, show error below input.

Test cases:
- valid@example.com -> valid
- invalid@ -> invalid
- @nodomain.com -> invalid

Run: go test ./internal/validation/..." \
  -acceptance "All validation tests pass" \
  -parent <epic-id>

Bad task:

tk create "Add email validation" -d "Make sure emails are valid"
# No test cases, no verification criteria - agent will guess

See references/tick-patterns.md for more patterns.

Step 3: Create Ticks from Spec

Transform the spec into ticks organized by epic.

For phased specs: Focus on creating ticks for the current/next phase only. Don’t create ticks for future phases – they may change based on learnings.

Epic organization:

1. Group related tasks into logical epics (auth, API, UI, etc.)
2. Create tasks with dependencies using -blocked-by
3. Mark human-required tasks with --awaiting work

Designing for parallel execution: Tasks in the same wave (no blocking relationship) may run concurrently. To avoid file conflicts:

• If two tasks edit the same file, make one block the other
• Use tk graph <epic> to visualize waves and verify parallel tasks touch different files
• Example: Task A edits auth.go, Task B edits auth.go → B should block on A

# Create epics
tk create "Authentication" -t epic
tk create "API Endpoints" -t epic

# Create tasks with acceptance criteria
tk create "Add JWT token generation" \
  -d "Implement JWT signing and verification" \
  -acceptance "JWT tests pass" \
  -parent <auth-epic>

tk create "Add login endpoint" \
  -d "POST /api/login with email/password" \
  -acceptance "Login endpoint tests pass" \
  -parent <api-epic> \
  -blocked-by <jwt-task>

# Human-only tasks (skipped by tk next)
tk create "Set up production database" --awaiting work \
  -d "Create RDS instance and configure access"

tk create "Create Stripe API keys" --awaiting work \
  -d "Set up Stripe account and get API credentials"

Step 4: Guide User Through Blocking Human Tasks

If human tasks block automated tasks, guide the user through them before running the agent.

# Check for blocking human tasks
tk list --awaiting work
tk blocked  # See what's waiting

Walk the user through each blocking task, then close it:

tk close <id> "Completed - connection string in .env"

Step 5: Choose Execution Mode

Ticks supports two execution approaches. If the user hasn’t specified a preference, ask:

Question: "How would you like to execute this epic?"
Header: "Execution"
Options:
  - "tk run" - "Rich monitoring via tickboard, HITL support, cost tracking, git worktree isolation"
  - "Claude Code" - "Native parallel subagents, seamless session execution, direct visibility"

Option A: tk run

Uses the Ticks agent runner with tickboard monitoring.

# Run on specific epic
tk run <epic-id>

# Pool mode - N concurrent workers within single epic
tk run <epic-id> --pool 4

# Pool with custom stale timeout
tk run <epic-id> --pool 4 --stale-timeout 2h

# Run in isolated worktree
tk run <epic-id> --worktree

# Parallel epics (each in own worktree)
tk run <epic-id> --parallel 2

# Combined: parallel epics with pool workers each
tk run epic1 epic2 --parallel 2 --pool 4

# With cost limit
tk run <epic-id> --max-cost 5.00

Monitor: tk board opens local web interface.

Best for: Production epics, rich HITL workflows, long-running tasks, cost tracking.

Option B: Claude Code Native

Uses Claude Code’s Task tool to spawn parallel subagents.

Best for: Quick parallel execution within a Claude session, direct visibility into agents.

See references/claude-runner.md for full documentation including:

• Task tool parameters and options
• Agent naming conventions (epic/tick/wave)
• Wave orchestration algorithm
• Polling strategy to avoid hangs
• HITL-aware state transitions
• Example session

Quick Comparison

Quick Reference

Creating Ticks

tk create "Title" -d "Description" -acceptance "Tests pass"  # Task
tk create "Title" -t epic                                    # Epic
tk create "Title" -parent <epic-id>                          # Under epic
tk create "Title" -blocked-by <task-id>                      # Blocked
tk create "Title" --awaiting work                            # Human task
tk create "Title" --requires approval                        # Needs approval gate

Querying

tk list                      # All open ticks
tk list -t epic              # Epics only
tk list -parent <epic-id>    # Tasks in epic
tk ready                     # Unblocked tasks
tk next <epic-id>            # Next task for agent
tk blocked                   # Blocked tasks
tk list --awaiting           # Tasks awaiting human
tk graph <epic-id>           # Dependency graph with parallelization
tk graph <epic-id> --json    # JSON output for agents

Managing

tk show <id>                 # Show details
tk close <id> "reason"       # Close tick
tk note <id> "text"          # Add note
tk approve <id>              # Approve awaiting tick
tk reject <id> "feedback"    # Reject with feedback

Running Agent (Two Modes)

Mode A: Native tk run

tk run <epic-id>                      # Run on epic
tk run --auto                         # Auto-select epic
tk run <epic-id> --pool 4             # Pool mode (4 concurrent workers)
tk run <epic-id> --pool 4 --stale-timeout 2h  # Custom stale timeout
tk run <epic-id> --worktree           # Use git worktree
tk run <epic-id> --parallel 3         # 3 epics in parallel worktrees
tk run a b --parallel 2 --pool 4      # 2 epics, 4 workers each
tk run <epic-id> --max-iterations 10  # Limit iterations
tk run <epic-id> --max-cost 5.00      # Cost limit
tk run <epic-id> --watch              # Restart when tasks ready
tk board                              # Web interface

Mode B: Claude Code Native

# See references/claude-runner.md for full details

# 1. Get dependency graph
tk graph <epic-id> --json

# 2. Ask user for MAX_AGENTS (1-10)

# 3. For each wave, launch Task agents:
#    Task(subagent_type: "general-purpose",
#         name: "<epic>-w<wave>-<tick>",
#         run_in_background: true,
#         mode: "bypassPermissions")

# 4. Poll for completion, sync to ticks
tk close <tick-id> --reason "Completed via Claude runner"

Planning Parallel Execution

Before running agents, use tk graph to understand parallelization opportunities:

tk graph <epic-id>        # Human-readable wave breakdown
tk graph <epic-id> --json # Machine-readable for planning

The graph shows:

• Waves: Groups of tasks that can run in parallel
• Max parallel: How many workers you could use at once
• Critical path: Minimum sequential steps to complete the epic
• Dependencies: What each task is blocked by

Use this to decide:

• --pool N for N concurrent workers within one epic (recommended)
• --parallel N for N epics in separate worktrees
• Combine both: --parallel 2 --pool 4 for 2 epics with 4 workers each

See references/tk-commands.md for full reference.

Assisting with Awaiting Ticks

When working interactively, help users process awaiting ticks:

tk list --awaiting    # Find ticks awaiting human
tk next --awaiting    # Next one needing attention

Use AskUserQuestion to help users decide, then execute:

# User approves
tk approve <id>

# User rejects
tk reject <id> "feedback here"

# User provides input
tk note <id> "Use sliding window algorithm" --from human
tk approve <id>

Always use --from human when adding notes on behalf of the user.