PRD Generator (JSON Only)

Create a structured JSON PRD that Ralph can execute deterministically. This PRD is the single source of truth for stories, gates, and status.

This skill ingests PRD markdown written via $create-prd (for example prd.md / prd-overall.md / prds/<slice_id>_<slug>/prd.md) and produces the matching PRD JSON.

Important: Do NOT implement anything. Only generate JSON.

Inputs

Required:

• A PRD markdown file path (one of):
  • prd.md (single-PRD dossier)
  • prd-overall.md (multi-PRD dossier overall/spine)
  • prds/<slice_id>_<slug>/prd.md (multi-PRD dossier slice)
  • (Optional legacy naming) prd-<slug>.md if a dossier uses that pattern

Optional (for "no information loss"):

• Shaping inputs in the same dossier (if present): brief.md, breadboard-pack.md, spike-investigation.md, risk-register.md

If the user only provides a feature description (no PRD markdown), NO-GO: ask them to create prd.md via $create-prd first.

Outputs

• Save the PRD JSON alongside the PRD markdown with the matching basename (per docs/04-projects/AGENTS.md):
  • prd.md -> prd.json
  • prd-overall.md -> prd-overall.json
  • prd-<slug>.md -> prd-<slug>.json
  • prds/<slice_id>_<slug>/prd.md -> prds/<slice_id>_<slug>/prd.json

If the prompt provides an explicit output path, save to that path instead.

The Job

1. Read the PRD markdown and extract all details needed for a deterministic PRD JSON.
2. If required information is missing, invoke $ask-questions-if-underspecified and ask clarifying questions (see below).
3. Always ask about quality gates (commands that must pass).
4. Generate a detailed PRD JSON that follows the structure below and save it to the output path.

Step 1: Clarifying Questions (When Needed)

Only ask questions when the PRD markdown is missing required inputs for the JSON shape. If you need to ask questions, use $ask-questions-if-underspecified and follow its workflow.

Ask 5-10 clarifying questions (with lettered options), in batches of up to 5 at a time (ask 5, wait for answers, then ask the next batch if needed). Focus on:

• Problem/Goal: What problem does this solve?
• Core Functionality: What are the key actions?
• Scope/Boundaries: What should it NOT do?
• Success Criteria: How do we know it's done?
• Stack + Environment: frameworks, hosting, runtime, database, auth approach
• UI + Routes: key screens, navigation, route map, layout constraints
• Data Model + Import Format: entities, relationships, external data shape
• Rules/Calculations: business logic, progression rules, edge cases
• Quality Gates: tests, lint, typecheck, build/dev verification (REQUIRED)

Always ask explicitly:

• Is this a new project or an existing codebase?

Format Questions Like This

1. What quality commands must pass for each story?
   A. pnpm test
   B. pnpm run lint
   C. pnpm run typecheck
   D. Other: [specify]

2. What UI screens/routes are required?
   A. Minimal (1-2 pages)
   B. Basic app shell (dashboard + detail pages)
   C. Full routing map (list all routes)
   D. Other: [specify]

Note: All example questions and options are illustrative only. Do not copy them verbatim into the PRD JSON unless the user explicitly chooses them.

Step 2: JSON Structure (Required)

Output a JSON file with this shape (include detailed top-level fields so the PRD is fully self-contained):

{
  "version": 1,
  "project": "Feature Name",
  "overview": "Short problem + solution summary",
  "goals": [
    "Goal 1",
    "Goal 2"
  ],
  "nonGoals": [
    "Explicitly out of scope items"
  ],
  "successMetrics": [
    "How success is measured"
  ],
  "openQuestions": [
    "Remaining unknowns"
  ],
  "stack": {
    "framework": "TanStack Start",
    "hosting": "Cloudflare",
    "database": "D1",
    "auth": "describe approach"
  },
  "routes": [
    { "path": "/", "name": "Home", "purpose": "..." }
  ],
  "uiNotes": [
    "Layout or component requirements"
  ],
  "dataModel": [
    { "entity": "Workout", "fields": ["id", "userId", "date", "notes"] }
  ],
  "importFormat": {
    "description": "Expected JSON shape",
    "example": { "programName": "..." }
  },
  "rules": [
    "Key business rules / calculations"
  ],
  "qualityGates": ["pnpm test"],
  "stories": [
    {
      "id": "US-001",
      "title": "Short story title",
      "status": "open",
      "dependsOn": [],
      "description": "As a [user], I want [feature] so that [benefit].",
      "acceptanceCriteria": [
        "Specific verifiable criterion",
        "Example: a valid input behaves as expected",
        "Negative case: invalid input returns a safe error"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Story + JSON Rules

• IDs: Sequential (US-001, US-002, ...)
• Status: Always "open" for new stories
• DependsOn: Use IDs only; empty array if none
• Quality Gates: Only at the top-level qualityGates
• Acceptance Criteria: Verifiable, specific, testable
• Every story must include: at least 1 example + 1 negative case
• UI stories: include explicit routes, components, and UI states
• New projects: include initial setup stories (scaffold, env/config, local dev, deploy basics, package installs)
• Dependencies: any new package/library introduced must be called out with install commands in acceptance criteria (for example pnpm add <pkg>), plus any required config or scripts.
• Ordering: if this is a new project, the first story must be setup (scaffold + installs + scripts + env/config). Migrations or data model work come after setup.

No Information Loss (Critical)

Do not drop details from the PRD markdown when producing PRD JSON.

• Map PRD content into the required keys above where it fits.
• If the PRD includes additional sections (for example functional requirements, failure states/UX, verification plan, metrics/logging, rollback/disable path, risks/dependencies, links/sources), preserve them by adding additional top-level keys as needed. Ralph ignores unknown keys; the only hard requirements are qualityGates[] and stories[].

Output Requirements

• Save JSON to the chosen output path.
• The JSON file must contain only JSON (no Markdown PRD, no commentary).

After saving, tell the user: PRD JSON saved to <path>. Close this chat and run \ralph build`.`

Verification

• JSON parses.
• JSON contains required keys: version, project, overview, qualityGates, stories.
• All PRD user stories + acceptance criteria are captured (no loss).
• Each story has:
  • status: "open"
  • dependsOn: [] (or IDs)
  • acceptance criteria including at least 1 example + 1 negative case.