Everything that matters.

one-liners (recommended)

curl -fsSL \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/rick-cli/rick/main/scripts/install.sh | bash
# installs to ~/.local/bin — then, if needed:
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

$base = "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/rick-cli/rick/main"
irm "$base/scripts/Install-Rick.ps1" | iex
# installs rick.exe to %LOCALAPPDATA%\Rick\bin + adds it to user PATH

manual download

Grab a binary straight from the latest release: rick-windows-amd64.exe · rick-linux-amd64 / -arm64 · rick-darwin-amd64 (Intel) / -arm64 (Apple Silicon).

from source

git clone https://github.com/rick-cli/rick.git && cd rick
go build -o rick ./cmd/rick
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...
./rick

leader key — ctrl+x (configurable)

Every slash command opens an interactive numbered menu — pick by number, arrow keys or mouse. Typed args still work for power users.

custom commands

Drop .rick/commands/<name>.md in your project (or a command block in rick.json). $ARGUMENTS is substituted with whatever follows the command.

Lead with the interactive command — it applies instantly, no restart.

/theme                    # interactive picker
/theme rick-black         # switch directly
/theme add ./cool.json    # install from a file
/theme add https://…/x.json  # install from a URL
/theme list               # show everything installed

built-in themes (5)

your own

Drop JSON files in ~/.config/rick/themes/ or .rick/themes/. A defs block holds reusable colour tokens; each role may be a bare colour or {"dark": …, "light": …}. Persist the active choice via tui.json {"theme": "rick-black"}.

Runtime behaviour: providers, model, permissions, tools, MCP, agents, commands, instructions. Accepts // comments and trailing commas (JSONC).

precedence — later wins, merged key by key

A project file overriding permission.edit keeps every default bash pattern — tiers merge, they don't replace.

example

{
  "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929",
  "small_model": "anthropic/claude-3-5-haiku-20241022",

  "provider": {
    "openrouter": { "apiKey": "{env:OPENROUTER_API_KEY}" },
    "local":      { "baseUrl": "http://localhost:11434/v1" }
  },

  "permission": {
    "edit": "ask",
    "bash": {
      "*": "ask",
      "go test*": "allow",
      "git push*": "ask",
      "sudo*": "deny"
    }
  },

  "instructions": ["docs/conventions.md"],

  "mcp": {
    "docs": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": ["npx", "-y", "@modelcontextprotocol/server-filesystem", "."]
    }
  }
}

Presentation only: theme, keybinds, diff layout, notifications. Same JSONC rules, same layered precedence as rick.json.

{
  "theme": "rick-black",          // persist the /theme choice
  "leader": "ctrl+x",            // leader key
  "diff_layout": "split",        // or "inline"
  "notifications": { "sound": false }
}

Set the theme once with /theme <name> and persist it here if you want it everywhere.

Every tool call resolves to allow, ask or deny. Manage it live from /permissions; persist with the permission block in rick.json.

how resolution works

• Bash patterns are globs matched against each sub-command of a compound line — git status && sudo reboot resolves to the strictest level of its parts.
• The most specific pattern wins; exact matches beat wildcards.
• File writes outside the project root are upgraded allow → ask automatically.
• "Allow for this session" grants the pattern for the rest of the run only — nothing is written to disk.

modes

16 built-ins, plus every tool from connected MCP servers (registered as <server>_<tool>).

build (all tools) and plan (edit/write/bash default to ask) ship built in; tab toggles them. Define more in .rick/agents/<name>.md.

---
description: Reviews code for defects
mode: subagent
model: anthropic/claude-haiku-4-5
temperature: 0.2
tools:
  write: false
  edit: false
permission:
  bash: ask
---
You are a meticulous code reviewer. Report only real defects.

built-in subagent types

The agent spawns them with the task tool; you can invoke one directly: @explore where is auth handled. subagent_depth (default 1) caps recursion.

Coordinate multiple rick workers over a chosen topology for parallel or staged work.

Swarm activity renders in-place in the TUI so you can watch workers spin up, run and settle.

Lead with the live menu — no restart needed.

/mcp        # add (name → local/remote → command/URL), toggle, remove — live
/plugins    # manage hook plugins

Persist servers in the mcp block of rick.json (see §06). Local servers run over stdio, remote over HTTP. Every server tool lands next to the built-ins as <server>_<tool>.

Sessions persist to ~/.local/share/rick/sessions/ (%LOCALAPPDATA%\rick\ on Windows) and resume automatically per directory. /sessions lists them.

undo is git-backed (but never touches your git)

A shadow git repository snapshots the work tree before each mutating tool. It lives entirely outside your project and never touches your real history, branches or index. /undo and /redo walk those snapshots.

compaction

/compact summarises the conversation with the small model and keeps the last two exchanges verbatim — the run keeps its bearings without ballooning context.

Flags for the interactive launcher are in §02.

160+ providers — a curated catalogue plus a generated models.dev snapshot. Anthropic, OpenAI, OpenRouter, local Ollama and many more.

• Plain API keys via {env:VAR} in rick.json, or interactively with /auth.
• OAuth device-code flow for ChatGPT and Copilot — no key wrangling.
• Bring your own OpenAI-compatible endpoint with baseUrl.

/auth          # interactive provider setup (recommended)
/models        # pick from the live model list

Hand-editing the credential file is the fallback; the interactive flow probes and persists the real model list for you.