---
name: openspec-continue-change
description: Continue working on an OpenSpec change by creating the next artifact. Use when the user wants to progress their change, create the next artifact, or continue their workflow.
allowed-tools: Bash(openspec:*)
license: MIT
compatibility: Requires openspec CLI.
metadata:
  author: openspec
  version: "1.0"
  generatedBy: "1.10.0"
---

Continue working on a change by creating the next artifact.

**OpenSpec store (WealthLedger):** Use only `wealth-ledger-specs`, whose physical root is `specs/openspec`. Every OpenSpec command that reads or writes specs or changes MUST include `--store wealth-ledger-specs`; keep this flag on every follow-up. Do not infer a store from cwd, the nearest root, or machine configuration.

**OpenSpec version preflight:** Before the first OpenSpec command, work from the workspace root and run `bash specs/scripts/verify-openspec-version.sh`. A missing or mismatched CLI is a blocking result.

**Approval boundary:** Create at most ONE planning artifact per invocation, then STOP for explicit Change Owner approval. Before creating a downstream artifact, establish from the conversation that every completed dependency was explicitly approved; file/status existence is not approval. If approval cannot be established, ask again and stop. If an approved upstream artifact changed, invalidate dependent approvals and return to that artifact instead of continuing downstream.

**Planning gate:** After writing or editing the one artifact and before requesting approval, run `bash specs/scripts/verify-openspec-planning.sh "<name>"`. Fix structural failures and rerun the available stage checks. Structural success does not grant approval; a semantic mismatch returns to the earliest affected artifact and invalidates dependent approvals.

**Input**: Optionally specify a change name. If omitted, check if it can be inferred from conversation context. If vague or ambiguous you MUST prompt for available changes.

**Steps**

1. **Select the change**

   If a name is provided, use it. Otherwise:
   - Infer from conversation context if the user mentioned a change
   - Auto-select if only one active change exists
   - If ambiguous, run `openspec list --json --store wealth-ledger-specs` to get available changes sorted by most recently modified, and ask the user to select one

   When prompting, present the top 3-4 most recently modified changes as options, showing:
   - Change name
   - Schema (from `schema` field if present, otherwise "spec-driven")
   - Status (e.g., "0/5 tasks", "complete", "no tasks")
   - How recently it was modified (from `lastModified` field)

   Mark the most recently modified change as "(Recommended)" since it's likely what the user wants to continue.

   Always announce: "Using change: <name>" and how to override (e.g., `/opsx-continue <other>`).

2. **Check current status**
   ```bash
   openspec status --change "<name>" --json --store wealth-ledger-specs
   ```
   Parse the JSON to understand current state. The response includes:
   - `schemaName`: The workflow schema being used (e.g., "spec-driven")
   - `artifacts`: Array of artifacts with their status ("done", "skipped", "ready", "blocked")
   - `isPlanningComplete`: Boolean indicating if all planning artifacts are complete. Older CLI versions expose the same value as `isComplete`.
   - `planningHome`, `changeRoot`, `artifactPaths`, and `actionContext`: path and scope context. Use these instead of assuming repo-local paths.

3. **Act based on status**:

   ---

   **If all planning artifacts are complete (`isPlanningComplete: true`, or legacy `isComplete: true`)**:
   - Congratulate the user
   - Show final status including the schema used
   - Suggest: "Planning is complete! You can now implement this change. Once implementation and any tracked work are complete, archive it."
   - STOP

   ---

   **If artifacts are ready to create** (status shows artifacts with `status: "ready"`):
   - Pick the FIRST artifact with `status: "ready"` from the status output
   - Get its instructions:
     ```bash
     openspec instructions <artifact-id> --change "<name>" --json --store wealth-ledger-specs
     ```
   - Parse the JSON. The key fields are:
     - `context`: Project background (constraints for you - do NOT include in output)
     - `rules`: Artifact-specific rules (constraints for you - do NOT include in output)
     - `template`: The structure to use for your output file
     - `instruction`: Schema-specific guidance
     - `resolvedOutputPath`: Resolved path or pattern to write the artifact
     - `dependencies`: Completed artifacts to read for context (entries with `skipped: true` have no files - do not look for them)
     - `skipped`/`warning`: present when the change declares skip_specs and this artifact must NOT be created - pick another artifact
   - **Create the artifact file**:
     - Read any completed dependency files for context - always re-read them from disk, even if you saw them earlier in the conversation (the user may have edited them)
     - If the `instruction` field delegates creation to a specific skill or command, invoke it to produce the artifact instead of writing the file yourself, then verify the artifact file exists at `resolvedOutputPath`
     - Otherwise use `template` as the structure - fill in its sections
     - Apply `context` and `rules` as constraints when writing - but do NOT copy them into the file
     - Write to the `resolvedOutputPath` specified in instructions. If it is a glob pattern, choose the concrete file path using the schema instruction and the change's context
   - Show what was created and what's now unlocked
   - STOP after creating ONE artifact

   ---

   **If no artifacts are ready (all blocked)**:
   - This shouldn't happen with a valid schema
   - Show status and suggest checking for issues

4. **After creating an artifact, show progress**
   ```bash
   openspec status --change "<name>" --store wealth-ledger-specs
   ```

**Output**

After each invocation, show:
- Which artifact was created
- Schema workflow being used
- Current progress (N/M complete)
- What artifacts are now unlocked
- Prompt: "Want to continue? Just ask me to continue or tell me what to do next."

**Artifact Creation Guidelines**

The artifact types and their purpose depend on the schema. The `instruction` field from the instructions output is the authoritative guidance for each artifact - follow it even when the artifact has a familiar name (proposal.md, tasks.md, etc.), since custom schemas may define different content or a different process for the same file names.

If the `instruction` field directs you to use a specific skill or command to create the artifact, invoke it instead of writing the artifact directly.

**Guardrails**
- Create ONE artifact per invocation
- Always read dependency artifacts before creating a new one - re-read from disk, not from conversation memory (files may have changed since you last saw them)
- Never skip artifacts or create out of order
- If context is unclear, ask the user before creating
- Verify the artifact file exists after writing before marking progress
- Use the schema's artifact sequence, don't assume specific artifact names
- **IMPORTANT**: `context` and `rules` are constraints for YOU, not content for the file
  - Do NOT copy `<context>`, `<rules>`, `<project_context>` blocks into the artifact
  - These guide what you write, but should never appear in the output