Skill pack

Options

Calls, puts, Greeks, volatility, assignment and the risk discipline of an options desk.

Raw markdown · Download Claude SKILL.md · Last verified 2026-10-14

Load this into your agent

Claude

Download https://theagentictrader.com/skills/options/SKILL.md and add it as a Skill (Settings > Capabilities > Skills, upload as a zip containing a folder with SKILL.md), or paste it into a Project's instructions. Then start with: "Use the options-trading-desk skill for this conversation."

ChatGPT

Read this skill pack and follow it for the rest of this conversation (or save it in a Project's instructions or a custom GPT): https://theagentictrader.com/skills/options.md
Confirm the risk rules and the "never do" list back to me in 5 bullets before we start.

Grok Bot

Load the trading skill pack at https://theagentictrader.com/skills/options.md and save it to your persistent notes/memory as "Options desk skill". Apply its risk rules and "never do" list in every future session about options. Confirm what you saved.

OpenClaw

Install this as a skill: create a folder skills/options-trading-desk/ in your OpenClaw workspace and save https://theagentictrader.com/skills/options/SKILL.md into it, then reload skills. Use it for all options research, checks and journaling. Never place orders.

Options: professional trading knowledge for AI agents

When to use this skill

Load this when helping a trader study, explain, check or journal listed options positions. Educational and analytical only.

Core concepts

Calls and puts. A call is the right to buy, and a put is the right to sell, the underlying at the strike price until (American) or at (European) expiration. The buyer pays a premium; the seller (writer) takes on the obligation.
Contract size. Standard US equity options cover 100 shares per contract. Adjusted contracts (after splits or special dividends) can deliver something different. Always check the deliverable.
Exercise style and settlement. US single-stock and most ETF options are American-style and physically settled in shares. Major cash-settled index options (for example SPX) are European-style. Confirm per product.
Pricing. Premium = intrinsic value + extrinsic (time) value. Extrinsic value depends on time to expiration, implied volatility (IV), interest rates and dividends.
Greeks. Delta (sensitivity to the underlying, and roughly the hedge ratio), Gamma (rate of change of delta), Theta (time decay per day), Vega (sensitivity to IV), Rho (sensitivity to rates).
Implied vs realized volatility. IV is the market's priced expectation; realized volatility is what actually happens. Many strategies are really a view on that gap.
Assignment. Short American-style options can be assigned at any time before expiration, most often when they're deep in the money or just before an ex-dividend date (short calls).

Pro vocabulary

ATM/ITM/OTM, moneyness, skew (smile), term structure, IV rank/percentile, vol crush, pin risk, early exercise, the clearinghouse (OCC), open interest, bid-ask width, spread, vertical, calendar, diagonal, straddle, strangle, iron condor, covered call, cash-secured put, defined vs undefined risk, max loss, breakeven, buying power effect.

How a professional desk thinks

Every options position is a bundle of exposures: direction (delta), convexity (gamma), time (theta) and volatility (vega). Know which one you're actually trading.
Max loss is stated first. Undefined-risk short options (naked calls in particular) can lose far more than the premium collected.
Liquidity is part of the price: wide bid-ask spreads and low open interest are real costs, especially across multiple legs.
Event risk (earnings, FDA decisions, macro releases) is priced into IV beforehand; IV often falls sharply after the event.
Expiration week changes behavior: gamma rises, pin risk and assignment become real, and positions should be closed or managed deliberately.

Key risks and common mistakes

Selling options for "income" without sizing for tail moves.
Ignoring early assignment on short calls before ex-dividend dates.
Letting in-the-money long options expire without a plan. Most are auto-exercised if ITM by a threshold, which can create unintended stock positions.
Using mid prices in backtests; real fills on multi-leg spreads are often worse.
Confusing a cheap premium with low risk (far OTM options usually expire worthless).
Holding short options through after-hours events on the underlying.

Risk rules the agent applies

State max loss, max gain and breakevens for any structure before discussing it, and show the math.
Flag undefined-risk exposure explicitly ("UNDEFINED RISK").
Flag upcoming earnings and ex-dividend dates within the option's life.
Check bid-ask width and open interest; flag illiquid legs.
Note assignment and exercise considerations for every short leg.
Apply the operator's own position-size and buying-power limits.

What the agent must never do

Never recommend a specific trade, strike, expiration or size.
Never describe a strategy as "safe," "guaranteed" or "income" without stating its risk.
Never place or manage orders.
Never imply that unusual options activity reveals informed intent.

Sources to verify

OCC, Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options (the Options Disclosure Document): https://www.theocc.com/company-information/documents-and-archives/options-disclosure-document
Options Industry Council education: https://www.optionseducation.org
Cboe product specifications: https://www.cboe.com
FINRA on options: https://www.finra.org/investors/investing/investment-products/options

Educational only. Not financial advice. The Agentic Trader teaches how to organize AI agents around your own research and review process. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security or asset. We do not endorse any broker, platform, or asset. AI output can be wrong, so verify everything and make your own decisions. Trading and investing involve risk of loss.