What happens if the ticket type is Sub-task?

The skill inherits the parent’s prefix when possible or falls back to the default feat prefix.

How is the branch name formatted?

The format is {prefix}/{TICKET-NUMBER}-{kebab-case-summary}, with the ticket number kept uppercase and the summary trimmed to about 50 characters.

Can I override the prefix or branch name?

Branch naming is driven by the ticket type mapping; you can manually adjust the branch name after creation if needed.

start-ticket

Scanned

npx machina-cli add skill flurdy/agent-skills/start-ticket --openclaw

Files (1)

SKILL.md

1.7 KB

Start Ticket

Initialize work on a Jira ticket by looking up the ticket details and creating an appropriately named branch.

Usage

/start-ticket AB-123

Instructions

1. Look Up the Jira Ticket

Use the /jira-ticket skill or the Jira MCP tools directly to fetch the ticket details:

mcp__jira__jira_get with:
  path: /rest/api/3/issue/{ticketNumber}
  jq: "{key: key, summary: fields.summary, type: fields.issuetype.name}"

2. Determine the Branch Prefix

Map the Jira issue type to a conventional commit prefix:

Issue Type	Branch Prefix
Story	`feat`
Task	`feat`
Bug	`fix`
Spike	`chore`
Sub-task	inherit from parent, or `feat`
Improvement	`feat`
Technical Debt	`refactor`
Documentation	`docs`
Default	`feat`

3. Generate Branch Name

Format: {prefix}/{TICKET-NUMBER}-{kebab-case-summary}

Rules:

Convert summary to kebab-case (lowercase, hyphens instead of spaces)
Remove special characters except hyphens
Truncate to reasonable length (max ~50 chars for the summary portion)
Keep the ticket number uppercase

Example: For ticket AB-123 with summary "Sanitize Input":

feat/AB-123-sanitize-input

4. Create the Branch

# Ensure we're on main and up to date
git checkout main
git pull origin main

# Create and switch to new branch
git checkout -b {branch-name}

5. Confirm to User

Output the created branch name and ticket summary so the user knows they're ready to start work.

Source

git clone https://github.com/flurdy/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/start-ticket/SKILL.mdView on GitHub

Overview

Start Ticket initializes work on a Jira ticket by fetching the ticket's details and creating a properly named branch. It uses the ticket type to select a conventional commit prefix, ensuring consistent naming and traceability back to Jira.

How This Skill Works

It looks up the Jira ticket via the /jira-ticket flow to fetch key, summary, and type. It then maps the issue type to a branch prefix (e.g., feat for Story/Task, fix for Bug, docs for Documentation) and builds a branch name as prefix/TICKET-NUMBER-{kebab-case-summary}. The skill updates the local main branch, creates and switches to the new branch, and finally reports the branch name and the ticket summary.

When to Use It

Starting work on a Jira ticket (e.g., AB-123)
When you need a prefix based on ticket type (Story/Task -> feat, Bug -> fix, Documentation -> docs, etc.)
When you want a kebab-case, readable branch name
When you must base work on the latest main before branching
When you want a final confirmation of the created branch name

Quick Start

Step 1: Run /start-ticket AB-123
Step 2: The skill fetches ticket details and selects a prefix based on type
Step 3: It creates and switches to the new branch, then reports the result

Best Practices

Verify the Jira ticket key and summary before creating a branch
Rely on the type-to-prefix mapping to maintain consistency
Keep the branch name around 50 characters for readability
Always pull the latest main before creating the branch
Explicitly confirm the created branch name and ticket summary with the user

Example Use Cases

AB-123 Sanitize Input -> feat/AB-123-sanitize-input
AB-124 Fix crash on login -> fix/AB-124-fix-crash-on-login
AB-125 Add API caching -> feat/AB-125-add-api-caching
AB-126 Spike analytics needs -> chore/AB-126-spike-analytics-needs
AB-127 Update README -> docs/AB-127-update-readme

Frequently Asked Questions

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