Git Branch Create

Make + checkout new branch. No confirm.

Flow

0. User named an issue (#42, "the oauth issue", "start 42") -> stop, this is git-issue-start's flow: it assigns the issue, derives the type from its type: * label, and branches using the naming rules below. Why -> branching from an issue without assigning it leaves the tracker claiming nobody picked the work up
1. Parallel: git status + git branch --show-current
2. Dirty tree -> stop. Tell user to stash or commit first. Why -> checkout -b carries staged + unstaged changes into the new branch silently, mixing them with future work
3. Pick base:
   • Detect, don't assume: git symbolic-ref --short refs/remotes/origin/HEAD -> strip the origin/. Ref missing (never fetched) -> git remote set-head origin -a, re-read. No remote -> main, fall back master. Why -> a repo based on develop or trunk gets branched off the wrong parent otherwise, and the mistake surfaces at PR time as a diff full of other people's commits
   • Base = the detected default branch unless the user explicitly says "off this branch" / "from here" -> then use current. Skip step 4's fetch; go to step 5 "off current" variant. Being on a feature branch alone is not that signal
4. Exists? git show-ref --verify --quiet refs/heads/<name> -> 0 = stop, surface conflict, no overwrite. Why -> checkout -b errors anyway, but check early so message is clean + no half-state
5. Create:
   • Off <base> (default): git fetch origin <base> + git checkout -b <name> origin/<base>
   • No remote -> git checkout -b <name> <base> (local ref; skip the fetch). Local <base> absent too (unborn repo) -> git checkout -b <name> off HEAD
   • Off current: git checkout -b <name> (no fetch, no remote ref - current HEAD is the base)
6. Print branch + base

Naming

<type>/<short-kebab-desc> or <type>/<scope>-<short-kebab-desc>.

Whole name ≤ 60 chars.

Type

Same set + picks as git-commit. See that skill's Type pick + Tiebreakers for disambiguation. Quick list: feat|fix|perf|refactor|docs|test|build|ci|chore.

Desc

• Kebab-case. Not camel / snake
• Imperative present: add, fix, remove. Not added, fixes
• < ~50 chars, and keeps the whole name ≤ 60. Over -> drop the scope segment first, then cut modifiers, then pick a shorter verb. Never truncate mid-word: feat/add-oauth-log reads like a different feature
• No ticket IDs unless asked. Why -> history readable + tool-agnostic; trackers come+go, branches stay. Asked -> suffix: feat/add-auth-middleware-PROJ-123

Examples

• feat/add-oauth-login
• fix/api-timeout-on-retry
• refactor/extract-user-service
• docs/update-readme
• ci/cache-pnpm-store

Rules

• Derive type + desc from intent + diff if avail
• Issue number given -> hand to git-issue-start. Don't branch from an issue here
• User gives name -> verbatim. No rewrite
• Never delete/reset existing branches here
• Never push new branch unless asked
• Branch exists -> stop. Surface conflict. No overwrite