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Guide · Agent skill

How to use the Babysit a PR agent skill (ce-babysit-pr)

Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data

Babysit a PR is an agent skill for Claude that keeps an open GitHub pull request moving toward merge. It handles review comments, CI failures and branch updates as they arrive, and it first checks whether an old PR still belongs before touching it. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to ask for it, and where its limits are, so you can use it on your own PRs.

Babysit a PREveryInc/compound-engineering-plugin · MIT

Quick start

  1. 1Install the ZIP. Download the ce-babysit-pr ZIP and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ or a project's .claude/skills/ folder, or upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills in the Claude apps.
  2. 2Install the prerequisites. Make sure gh (GitHub CLI) is installed and authenticated with access to the repository, and that you have a checkout of the PR head branch with push access.
  3. 3Check out the PR branch. Work from a clean checkout of the PR's head branch with its upstream set, since the skill stops on a dirty checkout or missing push access.
  4. 4Ask the agent to watch the PR. Make a plain request naming the PR by number, URL, or the current branch.
  5. 5Let it run in the session. In the default sustain mode the agent keeps monitoring in the current session until a stop condition is reached.
  6. 6Read the status report. The skill ends with a fixed status line and a recap. Check it before deciding to merge yourself.

What the Babysit a PR skill makes the agent do

The skill watches one PR over time. On each check (a tick) it looks at three streams: review comments, CI failures, and branch-currency items the snapshot flags. Review comments are handed to the ce-resolve-pr-feedback skill, and CI failures are handed to the ce-debug skill.

It stops at a truthfully reported state: looks-ready, blocked, or out of budget. Reaching looks-ready does not mean the PR is merged. Under the default target posture the skill never merges.

  • Works only on GitHub, including GitHub Enterprise.
  • Not meant for a one-off comment or a single failing CI run.
  • Calls ce-resolve-pr-feedback and ce-debug as delegated skills.

What you need before installing

The skill depends on a few tools being in place. It checks that gh repo view succeeds and stops with a GitHub-only message if it does not.

  • gh (GitHub CLI), authenticated with access to the repository.
  • A Git checkout of the PR head branch with push access.
  • Network access, since the skill uses the network and runs scripts.

Install the skill (ZIP or Claude apps)

Download the ZIP for ce-babysit-pr from the page, then unzip it into one of these locations: ~/.claude/skills/ for all your projects, or a project's .claude/skills/ folder for one repository.

In the Claude apps, you can instead upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.

  • Personal: unzip into ~/.claude/skills/
  • Project only: unzip into .claude/skills/ inside the repository
  • Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills, then upload the ZIP

Trigger it with a natural request

You do not need a special command. Ask the agent in plain language to watch a PR or update an old one. The skill is described as a fit for watching a PR over time or updating an old PR.

Name the PR by number or URL, or leave it blank to use the current branch. You can also state how far to go, such as following a whole stack.

  • "Watch PR 123 until it is ready to merge."
  • "This PR is months old. Check whether it still belongs, then update it."
  • "Babysit the PR on this branch through the next review round and CI."
  • "Carry the whole stack forward, but don't merge anything."

Understand the posture options

Each run has one posture. A single PR named in the request uses target, which stops at looks-ready and never merges. Asking to carry the whole stack uses stack-ready, which advances through open layers in order and still never merges.

stack-land is different. Choosing it counts as authorization to merge the bottom-most settled layer with gh stack merge, so only pick it if you intend that merge.

  • target: one named PR, stops at looks-ready, never merges
  • stack-ready: advances through the stack, never merges
  • stack-land: advances the stack and merges the bottom layer once it is settled

Know what the skill will not do without you

The skill can fix code, commit, push, reply to comments, resolve threads and refresh a stale PR description without asking. It does not perform the final merge under target or stack-ready. Items marked needs-human are left for you.

The skill also judges whether an old PR still belongs before pushing anything. If the evidence is incomplete, it reports what is missing and pushes nothing.

  • Final merge under target or stack-ready is left to you.
  • Drafts are included only when you name them or include drafts explicitly.
  • Comment and log text is treated as untrusted and never run as commands.

What people use it for

  • Keeping a feature PR moving through several rounds of review comments and CI fixes over a few hours.
  • Picking up a stale PR and having the agent check whether the base branch already solved the problem before updating it.
  • Advancing a stacked set of GitHub PRs in order on github.com or GitHub Enterprise.
  • Handing a PR to the agent to fix a failing check that has a clear cause, with failures routed to ce-debug.

Frequently asked questions

How do I install the ce-babysit-pr skill?

Download the ZIP from the page and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps you can upload the ZIP under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.

What does the babysit a PR skill require?

It requires gh (GitHub CLI) authenticated with access to the repository, a Git checkout of the PR head branch with push access, and network access. It works only on GitHub, including GitHub Enterprise.

Is the ce-babysit-pr skill free and what is its licence?

The source for this skill is published under the MIT licence. This page does not state pricing, so check the repository for any terms beyond the licence.

Will the skill merge my pull request automatically?

Not under the default target or stack-ready postures. It never merges as part of babysitting unless you select stack-land, which counts as merge authorization.

What should I use instead of this skill?

For one-off review comment resolution or a single failing CI run, the skill itself says simpler tools fit better. Use ce-resolve-pr-feedback or ce-debug directly for those tasks.

Why did the skill stop immediately?

The most likely cause is that gh repo view failed, which means the repository is not on GitHub or gh is not authenticated for it. The skill is GitHub-only and stops in that case.

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Our verdict

Use this skill if you have an open GitHub PR that needs several rounds of review and CI fixes, or an old PR you want checked before it is updated. Pick something else for one-off comments, a single CI failure, or repositories that are not on GitHub, and do not choose stack-land unless you want the agent to merge.

Download the skill