Claude Buddy v5 — From Idea to Shipped Code

From Idea to Shipped Code 7 Skills, 12 Personas, Complete Lifecycle Automation

Claude Buddy v5 automates your entire development lifecycle — from specification through implementation to documentation — with expert guidance at every stage. LifeOS-native, domain-aware, TDD-first.

Installation
$ /plugin marketplace add rsts-dev/claude-buddy-marketplace
$ /plugin install setup@claude-buddy-marketplace
$ /plugin install buddy@claude-buddy-marketplace
$ /plugin install sdlc@claude-buddy-marketplace
$ /setup:lifeos
LifeOS installed
7 skills + 12 personas ready

v5: LifeOS-Native Workflow Architecture

7 integrated skills, workflow-driven design, and extensible domain system

Skills

7 Integrated Skills

Complete lifecycle in one plugin: Foundation, Spec, Plan, Tasks, Implement, Commit, Docs.

  • Consolidated from 8 commands + 20 skills
  • Workflow-driven, not agent-based
  • Each skill is a focused lifecycle stage
  • Progressive disclosure for token efficiency
LifeOS-Native

LifeOS-Native

Built on LifeOS, the Life Operating System (evolution of PAI), for persistent memory and identity.

  • Persistent memory across sessions
  • Identity-aware responses
  • Non-destructive, symlinked upgrades
  • Installed via /setup:lifeos
Domain Detection

Domain Auto-Detection

Automatically identifies your tech stack and customizes output accordingly.

  • 6 built-in: Default, React, JHipster, MuleSoft, Salesforce, Spring Boot
  • Confidence scoring with thresholds
  • Create unlimited custom domains
  • Domain-specific templates and references
Template Cascade

Template Cascade

Three-tier template resolution enables deep customization without modifying core.

  • User domain templates (highest priority)
  • Built-in domain templates
  • Skill default templates (fallback)
  • PREFERENCES.md per skill

Four Plugins, One Ecosystem

LifeOS provides the foundation. Buddy adds development workflows, SDLC adds a tactical loop, and Setup wires it all up. Together they supercharge Claude Code.

LifeOS - the foundation

LifeOS, the Life Operating System, is Daniel Miessler's open-source framework for persistent, personalized AI. It is the evolution of PAI and provides the memory, identity, and steering rules that Claude Buddy builds upon.

  • Identity files: about me, steering rules, DA identity, writing style
  • Persistent memory across sessions
  • Installed via /setup:lifeos, non-destructive symlinked upgrades

The setup plugin installs LifeOS as a prerequisite — all credit for the LifeOS and PAI vision goes to Daniel Miessler.

Buddy

Buddy - the workflow platform

The core LifeOS-native platform: 7 integrated skills automating the full lifecycle with domain-aware templates and expert personas.

  • Foundation, Spec, Plan, Tasks, Implement, Commit, Docs
  • 12 expert personas with contextual activation
  • 6 built-in domains + custom domain creation
SDLC

SDLC - the Tactical Loop

A tactical, AI-native loop layered on Buddy for brownfield work: Research, Plan, Implement, Validate, with a human in every gate.

  • 9 commands from init and prime through validate, review, and commit
  • Jira, Confluence, and GitHub integration via MCP
  • Reuses Buddy's Foundation and TDD execution
Setup

Setup - the installers

Thin-wrapper installers that drive each tool's official upstream installer with your permission — nothing is vendored, so installs never drift.

  • /setup:lifeos, /setup:mulesoft, /setup:salesforce, /setup:springboot
  • Every mutation shown and approved before it runs

Complete Development Lifecycle

From project initialization to shipped documentation in a seamless flow

1

Foundation

Auto-detect domain

/buddy:foundation
2

Specification

Define features

/buddy:spec
3

Planning

Implementation plan

/buddy:plan
4

Tasks

TDD-ordered breakdown

/buddy:tasks
5

Implement

Red-green-refactor

/buddy:implement
6

Commit

Professional commits

/buddy:commit
7

Docs

Generate documentation

/buddy:docs

Zero Configuration

Works instantly with your existing Claude Code installation. Domain auto-detection handles the rest.

Local Processing

All enhancements happen locally. No external API calls, keeping your code secure and private.

Resume-Capable

Implementation tracks progress via checkboxes. Pause and resume at any checkpoint without losing work.

Transform Your Development Experience

--

Before

  • General-purpose AI assistance
  • Manual workflow management
  • No structured development lifecycle
  • Context lost between sessions
  • Same generic output for every project
++

After

  • 12 domain-specific AI personas with contextual activation
  • TDD-first workflow with 5 execution phases
  • Complete lifecycle: Spec → Plan → Tasks → Implement → Docs
  • Persistent identity and memory via LifeOS
  • Domain-aware templates for React, JHipster, MuleSoft, Salesforce, Spring Boot, and custom

Powerful Features for Modern Development

Domain System

Extensible Domain System

Auto-detects your technology stack and customizes all output — specs, plans, tasks, and docs — using domain-specific templates and reference materials.

  • Auto-Detection: Confidence scoring identifies React, JHipster, MuleSoft, Salesforce, Spring Boot projects
  • Custom Domains: Interactive wizard creates domains for any tech stack
  • Template Cascade: User → built-in → default template resolution
  • Reference Materials: Domain-specific docs loaded on-demand per phase
/buddy:foundation
React Detected (90pts) Domain: react

Auto-detected React project. Loading domain templates...

TDD Workflow

TDD-First Workflow

Tasks are generated in strict test-driven development order. Write failing tests first, then implement until they pass, then refactor.

  • Phase 1 - Setup: Infrastructure, configs, test fixtures
  • Phase 2 - Tests: Write failing tests (red phase)
  • Phase 3 - Core: Implement until tests pass (green phase)
  • Phase 4 - Integration: Connect components, API contracts
  • Phase 5 - Polish: Refactor, optimize, clean up
RED Write failing test
GREEN Make it pass
REFACTOR Clean up
Personas

Persona-Enhanced Development

12 specialist personas activate contextually based on your workflow phase. The right expert joins at the right moment.

  • Spec Phase: Product Owner provides user-centric requirements
  • Plan Phase: Architect + Security + Performance design the approach
  • Tasks Phase: QA defines testing strategy and coverage
  • Implement Phase: Phase-dependent (DevOps, Frontend, Backend, QA)
  • Commit & Docs: Scribe ensures professional quality
/buddy:plan
Architect Security Performance

Loading expert perspectives for planning phase...

Built-in Domains + Create Your Own

Domain-aware templates customize every output for your specific technology stack

Default

Default

Universal Fallback

Works with any project type. Provides standard templates for spec, plan, tasks, and documentation generation.

Any Project Standard Templates
React

React

Component Architecture

Detects React projects via package.json and .jsx/.tsx files. Customizes templates for component-based development.

Components Hooks Next.js
JHipster

JHipster

Enterprise Full-Stack

Spring Boot + Angular/React stack. Detects .yo-rc.json and Spring Boot patterns for enterprise app development.

Spring Boot Angular Microservices
MuleSoft

MuleSoft

API-Led Connectivity

Integration platform with DataWeave, Anypoint Studio, and CloudHub. Includes 65KB+ of reference materials.

DataWeave RAML CloudHub
Salesforce

Salesforce

Platform Development

Detects Salesforce DX projects via sfdx-project.json, Apex, and LWC. Pairs with the /setup:salesforce agent skills.

Apex LWC Agentforce
SB

Spring Boot

Java Backend

Detects Spring Boot projects via @SpringBootApplication, pom.xml, or Gradle build files. Pairs with the /setup:springboot generator.

Java Maven / Gradle Spring
+

Create Your Own

Interactive Wizard

Run /buddy:foundation create domain to generate a custom domain with detection rules, templates, and reference materials.

Custom Detection 4 Templates References

7 Commands, Complete Workflow

Each command maps to a lifecycle stage — use them in sequence or individually

Foundation & Setup

  • /buddy:foundation Initialize project, auto-detect domain
  • /setup:lifeos Install the LifeOS foundation

Development Lifecycle

  • /buddy:spec Create feature specification
  • /buddy:plan Generate implementation plan
  • /buddy:tasks Break down into TDD-ordered tasks
  • /buddy:implement Execute with red-green-refactor

Documentation & Git

  • /buddy:docs Generate technical documentation
  • /buddy:commit Professional conventional commits

Customization

  • /buddy:foundation create domain Create custom domain
  • PREFERENCES.md Per-skill customization file

The Tactical Loop

Research → Plan → Implement → Validate — a tactical, AI-native loop layered on Buddy, built for brownfield projects

R

Research

Prime context from a Jira issue or Confluence page and explore the codebase.

/sdlc:prime
P

Plan

Reduce the agent's assumptions, then write a context-rich handoff plan.

/sdlc:plan
I

Implement

Execute strictly from the approved plan in a fresh context. Delegates to Buddy's TDD.

/sdlc:implement
V

Validate

Run tests, lint, type-check, and build. Report honestly.

/sdlc:validate

Nine commands, end to end

  • /sdlc:init Generate a lean CLAUDE.md, context modules, and an .mcp.json scaffold
  • /sdlc:spec Slice an epic into PIV-sized stories in Jira and Confluence
  • /sdlc:review AI first-pass review of the diff for correctness and security
  • /sdlc:commit Conventional commit, push, and a GitHub PR linked to the ticket
  • /sdlc:rca Root-cause a bug and propose the rule that would have prevented it

How it complements Buddy

Buddy is the full workflow platform. SDLC is the tactical loop on top: it delegates Foundation and TDD execution to Buddy and adds what Buddy doesn't.

  • External Jira, Confluence, and GitHub integration via MCP
  • Priming, research, and assumption-reducing planning
  • Explicit validation, AI PR review, and a bug-to-rule feedback loop
  • Graceful degradation to gh and manual steps when a server is absent

Modeled on Cole Medin's "Ultimate Guide to AI-Native Development" and the ai-native-starter-pack.

12 Expert Personas with Contextual Activation

The right expert joins at the right moment — automatically based on your workflow phase

v5 Architecture: Personas are loaded contextually from Foundation/Personas/ definitions. Each persona activates during specific workflow phases — no manual loading required. They bring specialized perspectives precisely when you need them.

Architect

Architect

Systems design, scalability, architecture patterns

Active: Plan phase
MicroservicesScalabilityDesign Patterns
Security

Security

Threat modeling, vulnerabilities, compliance

Active: Plan, Implementation
OWASPPenetration TestingCompliance
Frontend

Frontend

UI/UX, accessibility, responsive design

Active: Spec, Implementation
ReactVueAccessibility
Backend

Backend

APIs, databases, server reliability

Active: Plan, Implementation
REST APIsDatabase DesignMonitoring
Performance

Performance

Optimization, bottlenecks, efficiency

Active: Plan, Implementation
ProfilingCachingLoad Testing
DevOps

DevOps

Infrastructure, deployment, observability

Active: Implementation (Setup)
CI/CDDockerKubernetes
QA

QA

Quality assurance, testing, validation

Active: Tasks, Implementation
Unit TestingE2E TestingTest Automation
Analyzer

Analyzer

Root cause analysis, systematic investigation

Active: On request
DebuggingCode AnalysisTroubleshooting
Refactorer

Refactorer

Code quality, technical debt, maintainability

Active: Implementation (Polish)
Clean CodeSOLID PrinciplesRefactoring
Mentor

Mentor

Knowledge transfer, education, guidance

Active: On request
Best PracticesCode ReviewLearning
Scribe

Scribe

Professional writing, documentation

Active: Commit, Docs
DocumentationREADMEAPI Docs
Product Owner

Product Owner

Product requirements, user stories, strategic planning

Active: Spec phase
User StoriesRequirementsProduct Strategy

One Setup Plugin, Four Installers

Each command is a thin wrapper that drives the tool's official upstream installer — nothing is vendored, so installs stay current and mutate only with your permission

/setup:lifeos

LifeOS

Installs and onboards LifeOS, the Life Operating System (evolution of PAI) — the memory and identity foundation Buddy builds on.

setup · interview · doctor · update
/setup:mulesoft

MuleSoft

Installs MuleSoft's API-design skills for Anypoint. Pairs with Buddy's MuleSoft domain.

Anypoint · API-led
/setup:salesforce

Salesforce

Installs Salesforce agent skills — Agentforce, DX Code Analyzer, org management. Pairs with Buddy's Salesforce domain.

Agentforce · DX
/setup:springboot

Spring Boot

Installs Dr JSkill, a Spring Boot 4.x project generator for Java 25 with optional frontends. Pairs with Buddy's Spring Boot domain.

Java 25 · Dr JSkill

Get Started in Minutes

Add the marketplace, install the plugins, set up LifeOS

Quick Test

Verify your installation works

# Initialize your project
/buddy:foundation

# Create a feature spec
/buddy:spec Add user authentication

# Check the workflow
/buddy:plan

Prerequisites

Claude Code
Claude Code Latest version with plugin support
bun
Bun Required by LifeOS
git
Git For source control operations
gh
GitHub CLI For PRs; MCP servers (Jira/GitHub) optional for SDLC

Ready to Transform Your Development Workflow?

Join developers using Claude Buddy v5 to automate their entire development lifecycle — from specification to deployment with expert guidance at every stage.

7 Skills
6 Built-in Domains
12 Expert Personas