Task Management with Wicked Kanban

Persistent task management through Python scripts and a web UI, providing visual kanban boards and cross-session task tracking.

Overview

Wicked Kanban provides AI-native task management that persists across Claude Code sessions. Use the kanban.py script via Bash for CRUD operations, and the web UI for visual management.

Key benefit: Tasks created with TodoWrite are automatically synced to the kanban board via PostToolUse hook, but using the kanban script directly provides richer features (dependencies, priorities, sprints).

Using the Kanban Script

The script is located at ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py. Execute commands via Bash.

Viewing Tasks

List all projects:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py list-projects

Get full project state (swimlanes + tasks):

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py get-project PROJECT_ID

Creating Tasks

Create a project first:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py create-project "Project Name" -d "Description"

Create a task (need swimlane_id from project):

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py create-task PROJECT_ID "Task Name" SWIMLANE_ID -p P1 -d "Description"

Priority levels: P0 (Critical), P1 (High), P2 (Normal), P3 (Low)

Updating Tasks

Update task status (move to different swimlane):

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py update-task PROJECT_ID TASK_ID --swimlane NEW_SWIMLANE_ID

Update task priority:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py update-task PROJECT_ID TASK_ID --priority P0

Comments and Commits

Add comment to task:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py add-comment PROJECT_ID TASK_ID "Comment text"

Link commit to task:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py add-commit PROJECT_ID TASK_ID abc123

Searching

Search tasks across projects:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py search "search query"

Search within a specific project:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py search "search query" --project PROJECT_ID

When to Use Script vs TodoWrite

Prefer Kanban Script For

•Tasks that should persist across sessions
•Work items requiring priorities or organization
•Tasks the user wants to track visually on the board
•Project-level task management

TodoWrite Still Works

TodoWrite calls are automatically synced to a "Claude Tasks" project on the kanban board via the PostToolUse hook. Tasks are organized into session-based sprints for better organization.

Session Naming: Use /wicked-kanban:name-session "Feature Name" to give the current session a descriptive name. This creates sprints like "Session: Feature Name - a1b2c3d4" instead of generic date-based names.

Sprint Organization: Each Claude Code session gets its own sprint, so you can filter the board by session to see what was worked on.

Web UI

Access the visual kanban board at http://localhost:18888. The web UI provides:

•Drag-and-drop task management
•Visual dependency graphs
•Sprint planning views
•Search across all projects

The server auto-starts with the Claude Code session. To start manually:

bash

cd ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT} && uv run wicked-kanban

Workflow Example

Starting Work on a Feature

•Create a project:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py create-project "Auth Feature"

•Get the project to see swimlane IDs:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py get-project PROJECT_ID

•Create tasks in "To Do" swimlane:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py create-task PROJECT_ID "Design auth flow" SWIMLANE_ID

•Move tasks to "In Progress" when starting:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py update-task PROJECT_ID TASK_ID --swimlane IN_PROGRESS_ID

•Add comments documenting progress:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py add-comment PROJECT_ID TASK_ID "Implemented JWT validation"

•Move to "Done" when complete:

bash

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/kanban.py update-task PROJECT_ID TASK_ID --swimlane DONE_ID

Quick Reference

Action	Command
List projects	`list-projects`
Get project	`get-project PROJECT_ID`
Create project	`create-project "Name" -d "Desc"`
Create task	`create-task PROJECT_ID "Name" SWIMLANE_ID`
Update task	`update-task PROJECT_ID TASK_ID --swimlane ID`
Add comment	`add-comment PROJECT_ID TASK_ID "Text"`
Link commit	`add-commit PROJECT_ID TASK_ID HASH`
Add artifact	`add-artifact PROJECT_ID TASK_ID "Name" --type file`
Project comment	`add-project-comment PROJECT_ID "Text"`
Project artifact	`add-project-artifact PROJECT_ID "Name" --url URL`
Search	`search "query"`
List sprints	`list-sprints PROJECT_ID`
Create sprint	`create-sprint PROJECT_ID "Name" --start DATE`
Update sprint	`update-sprint PROJECT_ID SPRINT_ID --status active`
Delete sprint	`delete-sprint PROJECT_ID SPRINT_ID`

Data Storage

Tasks are stored as JSON files in ~/.something-wicked/wicked-kanban/projects/. Each project has its own file containing swimlanes, tasks, sprints, and metadata.

Additional Resources

Reference Files

For detailed patterns and workflows:

•references/api-reference.md - Core script commands (projects, tasks, search)
•references/api-advanced.md - Advanced features (sprints, artifacts, data model)
•references/workflow-patterns.md - Common workflow examples