Instruction file imported from ThibautMelen/laivel (.cursor/rules/nika-delegation.mdc). Copyright stays with the author.

Nika delegation — when to reach for a workflow

This project has the Nika toolchain installed. Nika turns repeatable AI work into ONE .nika.yaml file: audited before it runs (nika check), bounded while it runs (cost cap · permits · masked secrets), proven after it runs (hash-chained trace).

Reach for a workflow when the user asks for

• a prompt chain or multi-step AI task they will run more than once
• automation around LLM calls (fetch → infer → write, summarize every X, watch-then-act)
• anything with a spend concern, an approval step, or an audit need
• converting an existing script/CI job that wraps AI or HTTP plumbing

Do NOT reach for it for one-shot questions, interactive exploration, or pure code edits.

How to delegate (the bundled surfaces)

• Author: the nika-author subagent (or the nika-authoring skill) — template-first, check-loop until rc=0.
• Debug a run: the nika-debugger subagent (or nika-debugging) — trace-first forensics, exact resume line.
• Port a script: the nika-migrator subagent (or nika-migration) — inventory, native-first mapping, parity pin.
• Harden for production: the nika-operating skill — spend caps, permits, secrets, CI goldens, OTLP export.
• Quick oracle, no shell: the read-only MCP tools — nika_check · nika_inspect · nika_explain · nika_schema · nika_examples · nika_template · nika_canon · nika_catalog · nika_tools.
• Environment health: /nika:doctor (or nika doctor --json) — binary · installed plugin kits (train drift) · provider keys · client wiring, every problem with its exact fix command.

The laws that always apply

• nika check <file> must pass before ANY run is proposed — never hand over a file that does not check clean.
• Running: the human asks, you run — with --max-cost-usd and the ceiling announced first. nika guard judges at the hook. Never a spontaneous run.
• The human gate is theirs alone: never pre-fill --answer. A paused run's question goes back to the conversation, verbatim; you resume only with the answer they gave.
• Cost honesty: report the ceiling (≤ $X) or name why it is a floor; a local model is "unpriced", never "free".
• Every effect needs a permits: block: absent means ZERO authority (NIKA-AUTH-006), never the unconfined floor.
• Missing binary: brew install supernovae-st/tap/nika — never improvise YAML from memory when the oracle is unavailable.