Emperor Queue — pick the next piece of software

WIP=1 — one active task at a time. Do not start a second item while [~] exists; finish or queue done first.

HARD-GATE — reject multi-WIP

queue next already refuses promoting a second [~], but agents who skip the script have no always-fail check. Before claiming parallel / multi-ready work:

scripts/emperor queue --reject-multi-wip   # always exit 1 (iron)
scripts/emperor queue --check-wip          # exit 1 when ledger has >1 [~]
scripts/emperor queue --check-wip <queue.md>

--check-wip counts non-placeholder active [~] lines only. Zero or one active → PASS. Two or more → FAIL with REJECT MULTI WIP.

Local Kanban statuses

Mark	Meaning
[ ]	ready
[~]	active (at most one)
[x]	done
[!]	blocked (optional; listed, never auto-picked)

Python core: scripts/lib/queue.py (thin scripts/queue.sh / queue.ps1). Always-fail --reject-multi-wip / --check-wip enforce WIP=1 on the ledger even when agents skip next. queue list shows ready / active / blocked (skips empty placeholders). queue next returns the existing [~] if present (WIP refuse); otherwise promotes the first real ready [ ] → [~]. Empty queue = comment-only / no checkbox lines — (empty…) and parentheses-only titles are never promoted. queue done <substring> checks off [ ] / [~] / [!].

Optional cycle time: record started / finished ISO timestamps on the task ledger or DONE template when cheap — not required for the script.

1. If the client already named a task, do not hunt. Quote it into the ledger.
2. Else run scripts/emperor queue next and quote the tail.
3. Source order (first hit wins): EMPEROR_QUEUE_SOURCE → gh issue list → Linear (LINEAR_API_KEY set by client) → .emperor/queue.md.
4. One item (WIP=1). Write G0/G1. Out of scope: the rest of the backlog.
5. After G5 + forge, run scripts/emperor queue next again unless the client said rest.
6. If no tracker exists and the client wants one, propose the thinnest adapter (usually gh). Build it only with consent. Do not invent Linear when a markdown queue works.

Never open a public issue or mutate the tracker without consent.