AGENTS/skills/basecamp/SKILL.md

name, description, compatibility

name	description	compatibility
basecamp	Use when: (1) Managing Basecamp projects, (2) Working with Basecamp todos and tasks, (3) Reading/updating message boards and campfire, (4) Managing card tables (kanban), (5) Handling email forwards/inbox, (6) Setting up webhooks for automation. Triggers: 'Basecamp', 'project', 'todo', 'card table', 'campfire', 'message board', 'webhook', 'inbox', 'email forwards'.	opencode

Basecamp

Basecamp 3 project management integration via MCP server. Provides comprehensive access to projects, todos, messages, card tables (kanban), campfire, inbox, documents, and webhooks.

Core Workflows

Finding Projects and Todos

List all projects:

# Get all accessible Basecamp projects
get_projects

Get project details:

# Get specific project information including status, tools, and access level
get_project --project_id <id>

Explore todos:

# Get all todo lists in a project
get_todolists --project_id <id>

# Get all todos from a specific todo list (handles pagination automatically)
get_todos --recording_id <todo_list_id>

# Search across projects for todos/messages containing keywords
search_basecamp --query <search_term>

Managing Card Tables (Kanban)

Card tables are Basecamp's kanban-style workflow management tool.

Explore card table:

# Get card table for a project
get_card_table --project_id <id>

# Get all columns in a card table
get_columns --card_table_id <id>

# Get all cards in a specific column
get_cards --column_id <id>

Manage columns:

# Create new column (e.g., "In Progress", "Done")
create_column --card_table_id <id> --title "Column Name"

# Update column title
update_column --column_id <id> --title "New Title"

# Move column to different position
move_column --column_id <id> --position 3

# Update column color
update_column_color --column_id <id> --color "red"

# Put column on hold (freeze work)
put_column_on_hold --column_id <id>

# Remove hold from column (unfreeze work)
remove_column_hold --column_id <id>

Manage cards:

# Create new card in a column
create_card --column_id <id> --title "Task Name" --content "Description"

# Update card details
update_card --card_id <id> --title "Updated Title" --content "New content"

# Move card to different column
move_card --card_id <id> --to_column_id <new_column_id>

# Mark card as complete
complete_card --card_id <id>

# Mark card as incomplete
uncomplete_card --card_id <id>

Manage card steps (sub-tasks):

# Get all steps for a card
get_card_steps --card_id <id>

# Create new step
create_card_step --card_id <id> --content "Sub-task description"

# Update step
update_card_step --step_id <id> --content "Updated description"

# Delete step
delete_card_step --step_id <id>

# Mark step as complete
complete_card_step --step_id <id>

# Mark step as incomplete
uncomplete_card_step --step_id <id>

Working with Messages and Campfire

Message board:

# Get message board for a project
get_message_board --project_id <id>

# Get all messages from a project
get_messages --project_id <id>

# Get specific message
get_message --message_id <id>

Campfire (team chat):

# Get recent campfire lines (messages)
get_campfire_lines --campfire_id <id>

Comments:

# Get comments for any Basecamp item (message, todo, card, etc.)
get_comments --recording_id <id>

# Create a comment
create_comment --recording_id <id> --content "Your comment"

Managing Inbox (Email Forwards)

Inbox handles email forwarding to Basecamp projects.

Explore inbox:

# Get inbox for a project (email forwards container)
get_inbox --project_id <id>

# Get all forwarded emails from a project's inbox
get_forwards --project_id <id>

# Get specific forwarded email
get_forward --forward_id <id>

# Get all replies to a forwarded email
get_inbox_replies --forward_id <id>

# Get specific reply
get_inbox_reply --reply_id <id>

Manage forwards:

# Move forwarded email to trash
trash_forward --forward_id <id>

Documents

Manage documents:

# List documents in a vault
get_documents --vault_id <id>

# Get specific document
get_document --document_id <id>

# Create new document
create_document --vault_id <id> --title "Document Title" --content "Document content"

# Update document
update_document --document_id <id> --title "Updated Title" --content "New content"

# Move document to trash
trash_document --document_id <id>

Webhooks and Automation

Webhooks enable automation by triggering external services on Basecamp events.

Manage webhooks:

# List webhooks for a project
get_webhooks --project_id <id>

# Create webhook
create_webhook --project_id <id> --callback_url "https://your-service.com/webhook" --types "TodoCreated,TodoCompleted"

# Delete webhook
delete_webhook --webhook_id <id>

Daily Check-ins

Project check-ins:

# Get daily check-in questions for a project
get_daily_check_ins --project_id <id>

# Get answers to daily check-in questions
get_question_answers --question_id <id>

Attachments and Events

Upload and track:

# Upload file as attachment
create_attachment --recording_id <id> --file_path "/path/to/file"

# Get events for a recording
get_events --recording_id <id>

Integration with Other Skills

Hermes (Work Communication)

Hermes loads this skill when working with Basecamp projects. Common workflows:

User Request	Hermes Action	Basecamp Tools Used
"Create a task in Marketing project"	Create card/todo	create_card, get_columns, create_column
"Check project updates"	Read messages/campfire	get_messages, get_campfire_lines, get_comments
"Update my tasks"	Move cards, update status	move_card, complete_card, update_card
"Add comment to discussion"	Post comment	create_comment, get_comments
"Review project inbox"	Check email forwards	get_inbox, get_forwards, get_inbox_replies

Workflow Patterns

Project setup:

1. Use get_projects to find existing projects
2. Use get_project to verify project details
3. Use get_todolists or get_card_table to understand project structure

Task management:

1. Use get_todolists or get_columns to find appropriate location
2. Use create_card or todo creation to add work
3. Use move_card, complete_card to update status
4. Use get_card_steps and create_card_step for sub-task breakdown

Communication:

1. Use get_messages or get_campfire_lines to read discussions
2. Use create_comment to contribute to existing items
3. Use search_basecamp to find relevant content

Automation:

1. Use get_webhooks to check existing integrations
2. Use create_webhook to set up external notifications

Tool Organization by Category

Projects & Lists:

• get_projects, get_project, get_todolists, get_todos, search_basecamp

Card Table (Kanban):

• get_card_table, get_columns, get_column, create_column, update_column, move_column, update_column_color, put_column_on_hold, remove_column_hold, watch_column, unwatch_column, get_cards, get_card, create_card, update_card, move_card, complete_card, uncomplete_card, get_card_steps, create_card_step, get_card_step, update_card_step, delete_card_step, complete_card_step, uncomplete_card_step

Messages & Communication:

• get_message_board, get_messages, get_message, get_campfire_lines, get_comments, create_comment

Inbox (Email Forwards):

• get_inbox, get_forwards, get_forward, get_inbox_replies, get_inbox_reply, trash_forward

Documents:

• get_documents, get_document, create_document, update_document, trash_document

Webhooks:

• get_webhooks, create_webhook, delete_webhook

Other:

• get_daily_check_ins, get_question_answers, create_attachment, get_events

Common Queries

Finding the right project:

# Use search to find projects by keyword
search_basecamp --query "marketing"
# Then inspect specific project
get_project --project_id <id>

Understanding project structure:

# Check which tools are available in a project
get_project --project_id <id>
# Project response includes tools: message_board, campfire, card_table, todolists, etc.

Bulk operations:

# Get all todos across a project (pagination handled automatically)
get_todos --recording_id <todo_list_id>
# Returns all pages of results

# Get all cards across all columns
get_columns --card_table_id <id>
get_cards --column_id <id>  # Repeat for each column