Components

A component is a self-contained capability Forge can add to your agents — memory, a workflow, an MCP server, a persona layer, a security overlay, or visual polish. forge install reads a catalog of these components and writes only the ones you select into every detected agent. You pick components directly, or pick a preset that bundles a curated set. A persona and an SDD mode layer on top, shaping how the agent speaks and how the workflow runs.

One catalog, one install

Components, skills, personas, and SDD mode are all resolved by a single forge install pass. The install is idempotent — run it again and it converges to the same state. Preview any selection with --dry-run before you write anything.

Every knob below maps to a flag on forge install, a terminal command:

forge install --component engram,sdd,skills   # explicit components
forge install --skill sdd-init,go-testing      # explicit skills
forge install --preset forge-full              # a bundled set
forge install --persona forge                  # conversation tone
forge install --sdd-mode multi                 # per-phase sub-agents
forge install --scope workspace                # this project only
forge install --channel stable                 # release channel
forge install --dry-run                        # preview, write nothing

The singular and plural forms are interchangeable — --component and --components, --agent and --agents, --skill and --skills — and each accepts a comma-separated list.

The components

Ten components make up the catalog. Each is opt-in and independently installable.

Component	ID	What it adds
Engram	engram	Persistent cross-session memory
SDD	sdd	Spec-driven development workflow
Skills	skills	Curated coding skill library
Context7	context7	Latest framework and library docs (MCP)
Persona	persona	Managed agent behavior and conversation tone
Permissions	permissions	Security-first defaults and guardrails
GGA	gga	AI provider switcher (the external gga tool)
OpenCode Theme	opencode-theme	Visual polish: OpenCode color theme
Claude Code Theme	claude-code-theme	Visual polish: Claude Code color theme
OpenCode Logo	opencode-logo	Visual polish: OpenCode home logo plugin

Engram

Engram gives your agent memory that survives across sessions. It stores observations, searches them full-text, and recalls project context on demand — so an agent picks up where the last session left off instead of starting cold. Forge drives it through forge memory and forge recall.

External binary

Memory features shell out to the Engram binary. It degrades gracefully when absent, but forge memory and forge recall will not work until Engram is on your PATH. See Memory.

SDD

SDD installs the spec-driven development workflow — the canonical phase spine from explore through archive, plus its entry and cross-cutting commands. This is the component that turns Forge from a config tool into a development methodology. Pair it with the Skills component to get the SDD skill files that back each phase. See The Workflow.

Skills

Skills injects a curated library of skill files into your agent's skills directory. These are the SDD, workflow, and security skills catalogued below — embedded in the binary and written out at install time. Narrow the set with --skill <list> or take the whole library.

Context7

Context7 wires in an MCP server that serves live, version-current framework and library documentation. When your agent needs the current API for a dependency instead of a stale training snapshot, it queries Context7. It runs as a Model Context Protocol server, so agents with MCP support consume it natively.

Persona

Persona is the managed layer that controls agent behavior and conversation tone. Installing this component is what lets --persona take effect — it injects the selected persona's voice into your agent's configuration. See Personas for the available voices and the artifacts-vs-replies distinction.

Permissions

Permissions installs security-first defaults and guardrails — a sensitive-path deny list and safe defaults that stop an agent from reading secrets or credential files. The overlay applies to the adapters that support a permissions layer (Claude Code and OpenCode). Sensitive paths such as ~/.ssh/**, **/*.pem, **/*.key, **/.env*, and ~/.aws/credentials are denied by default.

Security posture, not just a flag

Permissions covers the install-time guardrails. To define your project's broader security posture as a first-class artifact, use the /forge.security agent skill and see Review.

GGA

GGA is an AI provider switcher — the external gga tool. Installing the component provisions the gga binary globally on your machine. It does not run project-level hook setup automatically; that stays an explicit per-repo decision. After the global install, enable it inside a project yourself:

gga init
gga install

Visual polish

Three components are pure cosmetics — install them for a coherent look, skip them with no functional loss.

Component	Applies to	Effect
opencode-theme	OpenCode	Color theme overlay
claude-code-theme	Claude Code	Color theme overlay
opencode-logo	OpenCode	Home logo plugin

Presets

A preset is a named bundle of components. Pick one with --preset instead of enumerating components by hand. Persona is chosen separately and applied independently of the preset.

Preset	ID	What it bundles
Dev Stack + Polish	forge-full	Every component — the full catalog plus all skills
Dev Stack	ecosystem-only	Core components (Engram, SDD, Skills, Context7, GGA) plus all skills, no visual polish
Memory Only	minimal	Engram plus the SDD skills — nothing else
Custom	custom	You choose components and skills by hand; existing persona and settings stay unmanaged

Start from the preset closest to what you want, then add or drop individual components on the same command line. Explicit --component and --skill flags compose with the preset — the preset seeds the selection, the flags adjust it.

forge install --preset ecosystem-only --component opencode-theme
forge install --preset custom --component engram,sdd,skills,permissions

Personas

A persona controls how the agent talks. The distinction that matters is where the voice applies: to your conversation (replies, status, clarifying questions) versus to generated artifacts (specs, designs, tasks, code comments, UI copy).

Persona	ID	Replies	Generated artifacts
Forge	forge	Mentor voice	Mentor voice
Forge, neutral artifacts	forge-neutral-artifacts	Mentor voice	Neutral
Neutral	neutral	Plain	Neutral
Custom	custom	User-supplied	Unmanaged

• forge — the mentor voice everywhere. Warm, direct, opinionated in both conversation and the files it writes.
• forge-neutral-artifacts — keeps the mentor voice in replies but writes neutral artifacts. Use this when you want the coaching tone in chat but plain, register-neutral specs and comments in the repo.
• neutral — plain voice in both places. No persona flavor in replies or artifacts.
• custom — you supply the persona; Forge leaves it unmanaged and does not overwrite your existing voice configuration.

Persona needs its component

--persona takes effect only when the Persona component is installed. Under the custom preset the persona layer stays unmanaged, so your own voice configuration is preserved.

forge install --persona forge-neutral-artifacts

Legacy names still work

The persona forge was previously gentleman (and forge-neutral-artifacts was gentleman-neutral-artifacts), and the forge-full preset was full-gentleman. The old names are still accepted as aliases, so existing scripts and configs keep working — but the forge* names are canonical now.

SDD modes

The SDD mode decides how the workflow phases execute.

Mode	Flag	Execution
Single	--sdd-mode single	All phases run in one conversation thread
Multi	--sdd-mode multi	Each phase runs in its own sub-agent

• single runs the whole spine — explore, propose, spec, design, tasks, implement, verify, archive — inside a single thread. Simplest, works on every agent.
• multi dispatches each phase to a dedicated sub-agent, keeping one thin coordinating thread and isolating each phase's context. It compresses long workflows but requires an agent that supports sub-agents.

Multi needs sub-agent support

--sdd-mode multi only applies to agents that can spawn sub-agents — Claude Code, OpenCode, Kilo Code, Kiro IDE, and Pi. Other agents fall back to single-thread execution. See Agents.

forge install --sdd-mode multi --agents claude-code,opencode

The bundled skill library

The Skills component ships a fixed library, embedded in the binary and written into your agent's skills directory. Skills are grouped by category and carry a priority — p0 skills install first, p1 skills follow. Take the whole library, or narrow it with --skill <list>.

SDD skills

The phase engine behind the SDD workflow — one skill per phase, plus init, onboard, and the fast-forward helpers.

Skill	Priority
sdd-init	p0
sdd-explore	p0
sdd-propose	p0
sdd-spec	p0
sdd-design	p0
sdd-tasks	p0
sdd-apply	p0
sdd-verify	p0
sdd-archive	p0
sdd-onboard	p0

Workflow skills

Testing, review, PR and issue hygiene, documentation, and commit discipline.

Skill	Priority
go-testing	p0
skill-creator	p0
skill-improver	p0
judgment-day	p0
branch-pr	p0
issue-creation	p0
skill-registry	p0
chained-pr	p0
cognitive-doc-design	p0
comment-writer	p0
work-unit-commits	p0

Security skills

Guardrails, audits, and supply-chain checks that back the /forge.security agent skill and the forge secscan command.

Skill	Priority
security-framework-mappings	p1
llm-guardrails	p1
security-headers-audit	p1
serverless-security	p1
terraform-security-audit	p1
sbom-supply-chain	p1
api-rate-limiting	p1
devsecops-pipeline-scanning	p1
secrets-management	p1

After installing skills, forge skill-registry refresh rebuilds the index of installed skills — triggers, scopes, and exact paths. See Skills.

Install scope and channel

Two flags decide where the configuration lands and which release you track.

Scope — --scope global|workspace:

• global (default) writes agent configuration to your user-level agent directories, so every project on the machine sees the Forge command set.
• workspace writes for the current project only, keeping the configuration local to this repository.

Channel — --channel stable|beta|nightly:

Channel	Cadence	Use it for
stable	Released	Day-to-day work
beta	Pre-release	Early testing of upcoming changes
nightly	Bleeding edge	Latest builds, least tested

forge install --scope workspace --channel stable
forge install --scope global --channel beta

Scope is settable per install and also in .forge/config.yaml under agents. The flag wins for a single run; the config value is the standing default. See Configuration.

Next steps

• Commands — the command set every component's install writes.
• Agents — which agents receive the configuration.
• Configuration — set standing defaults for scope and personas.
• Memory — how the Engram component persists context.
• Skills — the skill library in depth.