Commit Command

Create a well-formed commit following project conventions.

Execution

0. Emit SKILL_INVOKE

Post SKILL_INVOKE to the bus before any stateful action.

Type: SKILL_INVOKE
To: all
Message: [skill=commit] [mode=side_effecting] [args_hash=<sha256>] [session=<session_id>]

(The skill invocation runtime injects the caller's canonical identity as from_id.)

1. Review changes

git status --short --untracked-files=all
git diff --stat              # unstaged tracked changes only
git diff --cached --stat     # staged changes only
git diff                     # full unstaged tracked diff for analysis

git diff --stat does not include untracked files. Treat every ?? line in git status --short --untracked-files=all as separate scope evidence before staging. For material new files or directories, record wc -l <file> or find <dir> -type f | wc -l before claiming size/scope.

2. Draft commit message

Follow Conventional Commits format:

<type>(<scope>): <description>

[optional body]

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

Types: feat, fix, docs, chore, refactor, test, ci, perf Scope: module or area affected (e.g., cognition, security, tests, bus)

3. Stage specific files

git add <file1> <file2> ...

• Never use git add -A or git add . (may include secrets or large files)
• Never stage .env, credentials.json, or files with tokens
• Review what's staged: git diff --cached --stat

3b. Diff-stat sanity check (verbatim numbers only)

Before writing any line-count claim into the commit body, capture the staged diff-stat and use those exact numbers in the message. Don't infer insertion/deletion counts from earlier diff summaries or agent memory — they drift.

git diff --cached --stat | tail -1
# example output:  3 files changed, 88 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

If the commit body says "88 insertions", that phrase must match the above output. If it says "118 net adds", verify 118 = insertions - deletions against the stat.

Rationale: On 2026-04-16 during the Gemini-crce salvage, adversary.py was described as "116 insertions" in the commit message and "+118 net adds" elsewhere in the same session's output. The stat was 116 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-) → 114 net, making both numbers wrong. Harmless here, but drift compounds. Capture before you cite.

3c. Consequential change pre-flight (skills, rules, agents)

Before staging, check if any changed file is under skills/, rules/, or agents/:

git diff --name-only | grep -cE '^(skills/|rules/|agents/)' || echo 0

If the count is > 0, this is a consequential skill/rule change. You MUST:

1. Read ~/.agents/rules/skill-commit-preflight.md and run the checklist.
2. Verify platform smoke tests passed (Windows + Unix if shell commands present).
3. Create a review packet at review-packets/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>-<agent>.md.
4. Only then proceed to git add.

Skipping this pre-flight will trigger the governance hook at commit time and force a retry.

4. Commit

git commit -m "$(cat <<'EOF'
<type>(<scope>): <description>

<body if needed>

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
EOF
)"

5. Verify

git log --oneline -1
git status

Rules

• Pre-commit hook runs targeted tests on changed files -- if it fails, fix the issue and create a NEW commit (don't amend)
• Never use --no-verify to skip hooks
• Never amend published commits without explicit approval
• Keep commits focused: one logical change per commit
• If unsure about scope, split into multiple smaller commits

Skill Chains

Mandatory (MUST pass before commit)

• [dod] (Definition of Done) MUST pass for the task type. No exception. Prevents committing incomplete work.

Advisory

• After commit: [pr-summary] (if ready for PR), [bus] (STATUS message)

Authority

• T1 (TRUSTED): May commit without pre-approval
• T2 (Active/High): May commit with [dod] passed
• T3 (Medium): MUST get operator approval AND [dod] passed
• T4 (Probationary): BLOCKED — cannot invoke this skill
• Operator: Override any restriction