release-patch

release-patch

Patch-release orchestrator. Auto-detects the project type via a manifest cascade. The last step is a hard human gate before push — this skill never pushes.

When to invoke

• A bug fix or hotfix has landed and you need a PATCH bump + changelog.

Do not use for MINOR (new feature/skill) or MAJOR (breaking) bumps — those are governance decisions; bump those manifests by hand with an explicit changelog entry.

At sprint close the close step routes here only for a fixes-only sprint (PATCH); a sprint that shipped new capabilities is a MINOR by-hand bump (it scans plan_commit..HEAD to tell — see step 1).

Mode-detection cascade

First match wins. Priority: plugin > npm > python > cargo > go > flat.

Detected file	Mode	Bump target
.claude-plugin/plugin.json	plugin	lockstep with marketplace.json (both must stay equal)
package.json	npm	version field
pyproject.toml	python	[project] or [tool.poetry] version
Cargo.toml	cargo	[package] version
go.mod	go	tag-based — prompt the user for the tag string
VERSION (flat file)	flat	overwrite with the new semver
none of the above	changelog-only	no manifest — prepend a dated CHANGELOG entry, no version bump (see below)

Steps

1. Diff scan — git diff --name-only HEAD~1 HEAD (or HEAD if uncommitted). At sprint close → scan the whole sprint range plan_commit..HEAD (read plan_commit from the just-closed sprint frontmatter) — else a multi-commit sprint is misjudged by its docs-only close commit. If every changed path is under docs/, abort: [skip] docs-only diff — no version bump. Exit.
2. Mode detect — run the cascade; save the mode + manifest path(s). No manifest → changelog-only mode (below); do not exit.
3. PATCH bump — increment the patch digit per mode. Plugin: verify both files are equal, then bump both. Single-manifest modes: read → bump → write. Go: prompt for the tag string.
4. CHANGELOG entry — detect root CHANGELOG.md (canonical placement, STANDARD §2, ADR-012), else legacy docs/CHANGELOG.md / CHANGES.md / HISTORY.md (default root CHANGELOG.md). Prepend a new block matching the file's existing entry shape; if empty/missing, use Keep-a-Changelog format.
5. Stale-doc clear — any doc with last_updated: frontmatter that appears in the diff → bump it to today (yyyy-MM-dd).
6. HARD STOP — push gate — emit the message below and exit (if docs/deployment/deployment-guide.md exists — legacy docs/DEPLOY.md still matched — point to it for the push / deploy / verify / rollback steps). This skill never invokes git push.