Ralph Prompt Generator: Complete Project

Overview

Generates comprehensive prompts for building entire projects from scratch using the Ralph Wiggum technique. These prompts structure development into architectural phases (design, implementation, testing, documentation) with clear milestones and incremental completion.

Best For:

• Building complete REST APIs from scratch
• Creating CLI tools
• Developing libraries/packages
• Building web applications
• Creating automation tools
• Greenfield projects with clear requirements

Real-World Success:

• Geoffrey Huntley used Ralph to create the "cursed" programming language over 3 months
• Y Combinator hackathon: 6 repositories generated overnight
• $50k contract completed for $297 in API costs

Ralph Philosophy: These successes work because Ralph embraces that failures are deterministic and fixable. Each iteration learns from the previous. Don't fear failures—they're expected and provide data for improvement through prompt tuning, not tool changes.

Quick Start

Input Required:

1. Project description (what to build)
2. Technical requirements (language, framework, features)
3. Success criteria (what makes it complete)
4. Final completion promise

Generate prompt with:

Generate a Ralph project prompt for:
Project: [Project description]
Tech stack: [Language, framework, tools]
Features: [List of required features]
Promise: [COMPLETION_PHRASE]

Prompt Generation Workflow

Step 1: Define Project Scope

Project Definition Template:

PROJECT: [Project Name]
PURPOSE: [One sentence explaining what it does]
TECH STACK: [Languages, frameworks, tools]
TARGET USERS: [Who will use this]

CORE FEATURES:
1. [Feature 1]
2. [Feature 2]
3. [Feature 3]

NON-GOALS (Out of scope):
- [What this project will NOT do]
- [Explicit exclusions]

SUCCESS DEFINITION:
[Measurable, verifiable completion criteria]

Step 2: Map Project Phases

Standard project phases:

Step 3: Define Milestones

Each phase needs concrete milestones:

Good Milestones:

• Verifiable by running commands
• Binary (complete or not)
• Independent of subjective judgment

Examples:

• "Project builds without errors" (verifiable)
• "All tests pass" (verifiable)
• "CLI help command works" (verifiable)

Step 4: Structure the Prompt

Use this template:

# Project: [Project Name]

## Vision
[2-3 sentences describing what this project is and why it exists]

## Technical Specifications
- **Language**: [e.g., TypeScript, Python, Go]
- **Framework**: [e.g., Express, FastAPI, none]
- **Database**: [e.g., PostgreSQL, SQLite, none]
- **Testing**: [e.g., Jest, pytest, go test]
- **Build**: [e.g., npm, poetry, go build]

## Core Features
1. [Feature 1]: [Brief description]
2. [Feature 2]: [Brief description]
3. [Feature 3]: [Brief description]
[...]

## Non-Goals
- [Explicit exclusion 1]
- [Explicit exclusion 2]

---

## Phase 0: Project Setup (Foundation)

### Objective
Initialize project structure with all dependencies and configuration.

### Tasks
1. Initialize project structure
2. Set up package management
3. Configure development tools (linting, formatting)
4. Create initial directory structure
5. Add basic configuration files

### Deliverables
- [ ] Project directory created
- [ ] Dependencies installed
- [ ] Linting configured and passing
- [ ] Basic structure in place
- [ ] README with setup instructions

### Verification
```bash
# Project builds
[build command]

# Lint passes
[lint command]

# Basic structure exists
ls -la [expected directories]

Phase 0 Checkpoint

PHASE 0 COMPLETE:
- Project initialized: [path]
- Dependencies: Installed
- Lint: Passing

→ Continue to Phase 1

---

Phase 1: Architecture & Design

Objective

Establish core architecture, interfaces, and patterns.

Tasks

1. Define main interfaces/types
2. Create directory structure following chosen pattern
3. Implement core utilities
4. Set up error handling patterns
5. Create configuration management

Deliverables

• Core types/interfaces defined
• Directory structure matches architecture
• Utility functions implemented
• Error handling pattern established
• Configuration loading works

Verification

# Types compile
[typecheck command]

# Config loads
[test config command]

Phase 1 Checkpoint

PHASE 1 COMPLETE:
- Architecture: [pattern used]
- Types: Defined and compiling
- Config: Loading correctly

→ Continue to Phase 2

---

Phase 2: Core Implementation

Objective

Implement the primary functionality that defines this project.

Tasks

[

...