ouroboros-help

/ouroboros:ouroboros-help

Full reference guide for Ouroboros power users.

Usage

ooo help
/ouroboros:ouroboros-help

What Is Ouroboros?

Ouroboros is a requirement crystallization engine for AI workflows. It transforms vague ideas into validated specifications through:

1. Socratic Interview - Exposes hidden assumptions
2. Seed Generation - Creates immutable specifications
3. PAL Routing - Auto-escalates/descends model complexity
4. Lateral Thinking - 5 personas to break stagnation
5. 3-Stage Evaluation - Mechanical > Semantic > Consensus

All Commands

Core Commands

| Command | Purpose | Mode |

|---------|---------|------|

| ooo | Welcome + quick start | Plugin |

| ooo interview | Socratic requirement clarification | Plugin |

| ooo seed | Generate validated seed spec | Plugin |

| ooo run | Execute seed workflow | MCP |

| ooo evaluate | 3-stage verification | MCP |

| ooo unstuck | 5 lateral thinking personas | Plugin |

| ooo status | Session status + drift check | MCP |

| ooo resume-session | List in-flight sessions and re-attach commands | CLI |

| ooo setup | Installation wizard | Plugin |

| ooo config | Settings GUI — per-stage agents & models (browser here, TUI in a terminal) | CLI |

| ooo welcome | First-touch welcome guide | Plugin |

| ooo tutorial | Interactive hands-on learning | Plugin |

| ooo help | This reference guide | Plugin |

| ooo pm | PM-focused interview + PRD generation | MCP |

| ooo qa | General-purpose QA verdict for any artifact | Plugin |

| ooo cancel | Cancel stuck or orphaned executions | CLI |

| ooo update | Check for updates + upgrade to latest | Plugin |

| ooo brownfield | Scan and manage brownfield repo defaults | MCP |

| ooo publish | Publish Seed as GitHub Issues for teams | Plugin |

Evolutionary Loop

| Command | Purpose | Mode |

|---------|---------|------|

| ooo evolve | Start/monitor evolutionary development loop | MCP |

| ooo ralph | Client-driven loop until verified (uses background evolve_step jobs) | Plugin + MCP |

Plugin = Works immediately after ooo setup.

MCP = Requires ooo setup (Python >= 3.12 auto-detected). Run setup once to unlock all features.

Natural Language Triggers

| Phrase | Triggers |

|--------|----------|

| "interview me", "clarify requirements", "socratic interview" | ooo interview |

| "crystallize", "generate seed", "create seed", "freeze requirements" | ooo seed |

| "ouroboros run", "execute seed", "run seed", "run workflow" | ooo run |

| "evaluate this", "3-stage check", "verify execution" | ooo evaluate |

| "think sideways", "i'm stuck", "break through", "lateral thinking" | ooo unstuck |

| "am I drifting?", "drift check", "session status" | ooo status |

Utility Triggers

| Phrase | Triggers |

|--------|----------|

| "write prd", "pm interview", "product requirements", "create prd" | ooo pm |

| "qa check", "quality check" | ooo qa |

| "cancel execution", "stop job", "kill stuck", "abort execution" | ooo cancel |

| "in-flight sessions", "mcp disconnected", "lost Ouroboros execution" | ooo resume-session |

| "update ouroboros", "upgrade ouroboros" | ooo update |

| "open settings", "change model", "change agent", "configure backend" | ooo config |

| "brownfield defaults", "brownfield scan" | ooo brownfield |

| "publish to github", "create issues from seed", "seed to issues" | ooo publish |

Loop Triggers

| Phrase | Triggers |

|--------|----------|

| "ralph", "don't stop", "must complete", "until it works", "keep going" | ooo ralph |

| "evolve", "evolutionary loop", "iterate until converged" | ooo evolve |

Available Skills

Core Skills

| Skill | Purpose | Mode |

|-------|---------|------|

| /ouroboros:welcome | First-touch welcome experience | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:interview | Socratic requirement clarification | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:seed | Generate validated seed spec | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:ouroboros-run | Execute seed workflow | MCP |

| /ouroboros:evaluate | 3-stage verification | MCP |

| /ouroboros:unstuck | 5 lateral thinking personas | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:ouroboros-status | Session status + drift check | MCP |

| /ouroboros:resume-session | List in-flight sessions and re-attach commands | CLI |

| /ouroboros:setup | Installation wizard | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:tutorial | Interactive hands-on learning | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:ouroboros-config | Settings GUI | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:ouroboros-help | This guide | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:pm | PM-focused interview + PRD generation | MCP |

| /ouroboros:qa | General-purpose QA verdict for any artifact | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:cancel | Cancel stuck or orphaned executions | CLI |

| /ouroboros:update | Check for updates + upgrade to latest | Plugin |

| /ouroboros:brownfield | Scan and manage brownfield repo defaults | MCP |

| /ouroboros:publish | Publish Seed as GitHub Issues for teams | Plugin |

Loop Skills

| Skill | Purpose | Best For |

|-------|---------|----------|

| /ouroboros:ralph | Client-driven loop over background evolve_step jobs | "Don't stop", must complete |

| /ouroboros:evolve | Evolutionary ontology refinement | Spec iteration until convergence |

Available Agents

| Agent | Purpose |

|-------|---------|

| ouroboros:socratic-interviewer | Exposes hidden assumptions through questioning |

| ouroboros:ontologist | Finds root problems vs symptoms |

| ouroboros:seed-architect | Crystallizes requirements into seed specs |

| ouroboros:evaluator | Three-stage verification |

| ouroboros:contrarian | "Are we solving the wrong problem?" |

| ouroboros:hacker | "Make it work first, elegance later" |

| ouroboros:simplifier | "Cut scope to absolute minimum" |

| ouroboros:researcher | "Stop coding, start investigating" |

| ouroboros:architect | "Question the foundation, redesign if needed" |

Setup

After installing Ouroboros, run ooo setup once to register the MCP server.

This connects your runtime backend to the Ouroboros Python core and unlocks all features.

ooo setup    # One-time setup (~1 minute)

RFC #1392 State Breadcrumb Footer

Your final response MUST end with exactly one breadcrumb footer line:

◆ <current state> → next: <recommended action>

Derive <current state> from live session state via ouroboros_session_status when that MCP projection is available; otherwise derive it from this skill's actual outcome. Never use a linear Step N of M footer because Ouroboros is an evolutionary loop. When the next action is genuinely a choice, list 2-3 honest options in the next: clause. The breadcrumb line must be the last line of the response.