OpenClaw Developer Reports Context Compaction Issues During Driftwatch V3 Build

A developer working on the Driftwatch V3 build with OpenClaw's Bub agent completed three sprints in a single session but encountered significant issues with context management and delegation.

Build Progress and Issues

The developer started sprint 2 with $87 credits and finished in about 15 minutes, but noted an unexpected $10 cost for what was expected to be a quick session. The main problem identified was that Bub "still isn't delegating properly" and has been running everything on Opus 4.6.

During sprint 3, a major issue occurred when "context compaction wiped some of Bub's memory mid-session." After finishing sprint 3, the agent suddenly thought it was halfway through sprint 2 and would have restarted completed work if not caught by the developer.

Workarounds and Solutions

The developer's "end of sprint recaps in my spec template saved us" when compaction hit. By copying and pasting those recaps, the agent was able to get back on track. The developer noted this approach "saved us from possibly losing all the instructions during compaction."

Other debugging techniques mentioned include exporting Telegram chat history and running it through Opus to identify where conversations break down.

Current Status and Next Steps

All planned features for sprints 2-4 have been built, but the site now needs a layout redesign to accommodate new features. The developer plans to QA after layout changes and is sticking with a batch QA approach to reduce back-and-forth and cut costs.

Cost for this session was approximately $30 ($10 per sprint), bringing total spending to around $40 so far.

Key Learnings

• Opus doesn't seem reliable for delegating tasks to sub-agents
• Context compaction remains a problem despite protocols being in place
• Short end-of-sprint summaries built into project specs help recover from memory loss
• Keeping specs in accessible folders prevents instruction loss during compaction
• Bub is "okay with web design, but could be much better with some skills"

The developer expressed frustration with the compaction issue but is prioritizing completing V3 before fixing Bub's configuration problems.