Cross-tool portability

Cadence is designed to work in Claude Code, but the artifacts it produces are tool-neutral. Anyone using a different AI dev tool can still get most of the value.

What every tool can use

• docs/PATTERNS.md, docs/ADR/*.md — plain markdown. Any agent with file-reading capability can consume them.
• docs/DEFINITION_OF_DONE.md — checklist; any reviewer (human or agent) can walk it.
• docs/RETROSPECTIVE_PROTOCOL.md — the structured table walk; works in any chat-based agent.
• scripts/verify.{sh,ps1} — pure shell, runs from any environment with the configured tooling.
• tool/check_boundaries.py — pure Python, runs anywhere with Python 3.10+.
• cadence.yaml — declarative configuration; not tied to any agent.

What Claude Code adds

• Slash commands (/cadence-init, /cadence-launch, etc.) — quick invocation
• Auto-invoked skills — cadence-framework, cadence-retrospective-helper, cadence-adr-writer activate based on conversation context
• Subagent dispatch — the four roles spawn as separate Claude Code sessions with their own context windows
• Plugin distribution — one-command install and update

Using Cadence in other tools

Codex (OpenAI Codex CLI)

After running npx cadence init (Phase 2 capability), point Codex at CADENCE.md (a root pointer file Cadence creates that references the patterns and DoD). Codex’s repository-level instructions can include:

This project uses the Cadence framework. Read docs/PATTERNS.md and
docs/DEFINITION_OF_DONE.md before making any changes. After completing
work, run scripts/verify.sh and follow docs/RETROSPECTIVE_PROTOCOL.md.

Cursor / Windsurf

Add to .cursorrules / .windsurfrules:

This project uses the Cadence framework (docs/PATTERNS.md). Follow
the patterns there. Run scripts/verify.sh before declaring work done.
For architectural decisions, follow docs/ADR/0000-template.md format
and append to docs/FRAMEWORK_CHANGELOG.md.

Cline / Roo Code / Continue

These tools have modes/roles. The closest match to Cadence’s subagent roles is to define four custom modes (data-engineer, feature-engineer, tester, reviewer) that each load docs/ROLE_SPECS.md and the relevant file-ownership glob.

Aider

Use CONVENTIONS.md (Aider’s convention) to point at Cadence:

# Project conventions

This project uses the Cadence framework. Before changing code:
- Read docs/PATTERNS.md
- Follow the role boundaries in docs/ROLE_SPECS.md

Before declaring work done:
- Run scripts/verify.sh
- Walk docs/DEFINITION_OF_DONE.md
- Run a retrospective per docs/RETROSPECTIVE_PROTOCOL.md

What you lose in degraded mode

Outside Claude Code, you lose:

• One-command install (claude plugins add) — instead, npx cadence init
• Automatic skill activation — agents need to be reminded to consult docs
• Native subagent dispatch — you simulate roles via prompt templates
• Native upgrade flow — manual git pull on your .cadence/ if you vendored it

What you keep:

• The full framework, untouched
• The retrospective protocol
• The verify pipeline
• Compliance reports
• The community improvement loop (open issues / PRs against this repo same as anyone else)