> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.spike.sh/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.spike.sh/playbooks/introduction-to-playbooks.md).

# Playbooks

A Playbook is a sequence of response steps Spike runs on an incident. Set one up once, then trigger it manually or configure it to run automatically.

{% hint style="info" %}
Actions run in the exact order you define. Spike does not reorder them.
{% endhint %}

## What Playbooks can do

* Add responders based on severity or incident type
* Set incident priority and severity
* Create war rooms for team collaboration
* Generate tickets in Jira, Linear, or ClickUp
* Create support tickets in Zendesk or Freshdesk
* Trigger external workflows via outbound webhooks

## How Playbooks run

### Manual runs

Run any Playbook from an incident with a single click. Use this when you need to kick off a response sequence on demand.

### Automatic runs

Set conditions on a Playbook and Spike runs it automatically on every incident that matches. Conditions can target severity, integration, or other incident properties.

## Permissions

All team members can create, edit, and delete Playbooks by default. Advanced permission settings are available for teams that need granular control over read, write, and execution rights.

## Example use cases

* **Critical incident response:** Add a response team, assign severity, and create a ticket in one click.
* **Low severity management:** Set the incident to low priority and resolve it automatically.
* **External communication:** Create a status page incident and notify subscribers automatically.
* **Custom integrations:** Trigger scripts or external processes via outbound webhooks.
* **Ticket triage:** Assign incidents to the right responders and set priorities based on keywords.
* **Security breach:** Acknowledge the incident, open a high-priority support ticket, and trigger isolation protocols via webhook.