Event Context Reference

Event context provides access to all information about the event that triggered your workflow. You can use this data throughout your workflow using template variables like {{trigger.issue.title}} or {{trigger.repository.fullName}}.

All event properties are platform-agnostic—they work consistently whether your event comes from GitHub, GitLab, Jira, Bitbucket, or Azure DevOps. Overcut automatically normalizes platform-specific data into this standardized format.

Template Variable Syntax

Access event context properties using double curly braces:

{{trigger.issue.title}}
{{trigger.repository.fullName}}
{{trigger.pullRequest.headBranch}}
{{trigger.actor.login}}

You can use these template variables in:

Agent instructions
Action parameters
Conditional logic
Step outputs

Base Event Properties

These properties are available for all event types:

Event Metadata

trigger.eventType

string

The standardized event type that triggered the workflow (e.g., issue_opened, pull_request_merged, mention).Example: {{trigger.eventType}}

trigger.triggerObjectName

string

Human-readable name of the object that triggered the event.Example: {{trigger.triggerObjectName}}

trigger.triggerObjectNumber

string

Number or identifier of the triggering object (issue number, PR number, etc.).Example: {{trigger.triggerObjectNumber}}

trigger.triggerObjectUrl

string

Direct URL to the triggering object in the source platform.Example: {{trigger.triggerObjectUrl}}

Repository Context

trigger.repository.name

string

Repository name (e.g., "blog-server").Example: {{trigger.repository.name}}

trigger.repository.fullName

string

Full repository name including owner (e.g., "acme/blog-server").Example: {{trigger.repository.fullName}}

trigger.repository.owner

string

Repository owner username or organization name.Example: {{trigger.repository.owner}}

trigger.repository.url

string

Clone URL for the repository.Example: {{trigger.repository.url}}

trigger.repository.defaultBranch

string

Default branch name (e.g., "main", "master").Example: {{trigger.repository.defaultBranch}}

trigger.repository.provider

string

Git provider name (e.g., "github", "gitlab", "bitbucket").Example: {{trigger.repository.provider}}

Actor Context

The user or bot that triggered the event.

Username or login of the actor.Example: {{trigger.actor.login}}

trigger.actor.name

string

Display name of the actor.Example: {{trigger.actor.name}}

trigger.actor.email

string

Email address of the actor (if available).Example: {{trigger.actor.email}}

trigger.actor.type

string

Type of actor: "User", "Bot", or "Organization".Example: {{trigger.actor.type}}

Organization Context

Available when the repository belongs to an organization.

Organization username or login.Example: {{trigger.organization.login}}

trigger.organization.name

string

Organization display name.Example: {{trigger.organization.name}}

Issue Event Properties

Available for issue-related events: issue_opened, issue_closed, issue_edited, issue_assigned, issue_unassigned, issue_labeled, issue_unlabeled, issue_commented.

Core Issue Properties

trigger.issue.number

number

Issue number (unique within the repository).Example: {{trigger.issue.number}}

trigger.issue.title

string

Issue title.Example: {{trigger.issue.title}}

trigger.issue.state

string

Current state of the issue: "open" or "closed".Example: {{trigger.issue.state}}

trigger.issue.body

string

Issue description or body content.Example: {{trigger.issue.body}}

trigger.issue.author

string

Username of the issue author.Example: {{trigger.issue.author}}

Issue Metadata

trigger.issue.labels

array<string>

Array of label names attached to the issue.Example: {{trigger.issue.labels}} or {{trigger.issue.labels.[0]}} for first label

trigger.issue.assignees

array<string>

Array of usernames assigned to the issue.Example: {{trigger.issue.assignees}} or {{trigger.issue.assignees.[0]}}

trigger.issue.milestone

string

Milestone title if the issue is assigned to a milestone.Example: {{trigger.issue.milestone}}

trigger.issue.workItemType

string

Normalized issue type coming from the source tracker (e.g., "Bug", "Task", "Story"). Use this to branch workflows by work item type without writing provider-specific logic.Example: {{trigger.issue.workItemType}}

GitHub issues may return an empty string because the platform does not classify issues, while Jira, GitLab, and Azure DevOps provide their native issue types.

trigger.issue.confidential

boolean

Whether the issue is confidential.Example: {{trigger.issue.confidential}}

GitLab only - This property is only available for GitLab issues. Returns undefined for other providers.

Issue Timestamps

trigger.issue.createdAt

string

ISO timestamp when the issue was created.Example: {{trigger.issue.createdAt}}

trigger.issue.updatedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the issue was last updated.Example: {{trigger.issue.updatedAt}}

trigger.issue.closedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the issue was closed (if applicable).Example: {{trigger.issue.closedAt}}

Pull Request Event Properties

Available for PR-related events: pull_request_opened, pull_request_closed, pull_request_merged, pull_request_edited, pull_request_reviewed, pull_request_assigned, pull_request_unassigned, pull_request_labeled, pull_request_unlabeled, pull_request_commented, pull_request_review_commented.

trigger.commitAdded

boolean

Always true for pull_request_opened events (initial commit set).
true for pull_request_edited only when the edit originates from new commits.
false for metadata-only changes such as title/body edits, label updates, or reviewer requests.

Use this flag in trigger conditions to run workflows exclusively on code-changing updates.

GitLab and GitHub only - This property is only available for GitLab and GitHub pull requests. Returns false for other providers.

Provider Differences: While all core properties (number, title, state, branches, labels, assignees) are available across all providers, some advanced properties like change statistics, merge status, and reviewer information are provider-specific. Check the individual property notes below for availability.

Core Pull Request Properties

trigger.pullRequest.number

number

Pull request number.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.number}}

trigger.pullRequest.title

string

Pull request title.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.title}}

trigger.pullRequest.state

string

Current state: "open", "closed", or "merged".Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.state}}

trigger.pullRequest.body

string

Pull request description or body content.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.body}}

trigger.pullRequest.author

string

Username of the pull request author.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.author}}

Branch Information

trigger.pullRequest.baseBranch

string

Target branch name (where the PR will be merged into).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.baseBranch}}

trigger.pullRequest.headBranch

string

Source branch name (the branch with changes).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.headBranch}}

trigger.pullRequest.baseSha

string

Base commit SHA.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.baseSha}}

Not available on GitLab - GitLab webhooks don’t include the base SHA (would require an additional API call).

trigger.pullRequest.headSha

string

Head commit SHA.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.headSha}}

trigger.pullRequest.mergeCommitSha

string

Merge commit SHA (available after merge).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.mergeCommitSha}}

Pull Request Metadata

trigger.pullRequest.labels

array<string>

Array of label names attached to the pull request.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.labels}}

trigger.pullRequest.assignees

array<string>

Array of assignee usernames.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.assignees}}

trigger.pullRequest.requestedReviewers

array<string>

Array of requested reviewer usernames.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.requestedReviewers}}

GitHub only - GitLab returns an empty array (no explicit reviewer request concept). Not available on Bitbucket or Azure DevOps.

trigger.pullRequest.milestone

string

Milestone title if assigned.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.milestone}}

trigger.pullRequest.draft

boolean

Whether the pull request is a draft.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.draft}}

Change Statistics

GitHub only - Change statistics (additions, deletions, changedFiles) are only available for GitHub pull requests. Other providers don’t include these metrics in their webhook payloads.

trigger.pullRequest.additions

number

Number of lines added.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.additions}}

trigger.pullRequest.deletions

number

Number of lines deleted.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.deletions}}

trigger.pullRequest.changedFiles

number

Number of files changed.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.changedFiles}}

Merge Status

trigger.pullRequest.mergeable

boolean | null

Whether the pull request can be merged (null if unknown).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.mergeable}}

GitHub and GitLab only - Not available on Bitbucket or Azure DevOps.

trigger.pullRequest.rebaseable

boolean | null

Whether the pull request can be rebased (null if unknown).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.rebaseable}}

GitHub only - Not available on other providers.

trigger.pullRequest.autoMerge

boolean

Whether auto-merge is enabled.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.autoMerge}}

GitHub only - Not available on other providers.

Pull Request Timestamps

trigger.pullRequest.createdAt

string

ISO timestamp when the pull request was created.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.createdAt}}

trigger.pullRequest.updatedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the pull request was last updated.Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.updatedAt}}

trigger.pullRequest.closedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the pull request was closed (if applicable).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.closedAt}}

trigger.pullRequest.mergedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the pull request was merged (if applicable).Example: {{trigger.pullRequest.mergedAt}}

Action-Specific Context

These properties provide additional context about the specific action that triggered the event.

Label Operations

Available for issue_labeled, issue_unlabeled, pull_request_labeled, pull_request_unlabeled events.

trigger.label

string

The label that was added or removed.Example: {{trigger.label}}

trigger.labelAction

string

The action performed: "added" or "removed".Example: {{trigger.labelAction}}

Assignee Operations

Available for issue_assigned, issue_unassigned, pull_request_assigned, pull_request_unassigned events.

trigger.assignee

string

Username of the assignee that was added or removed.Example: {{trigger.assignee}}

trigger.assigneeAction

string

The action performed: "assigned" or "unassigned".Example: {{trigger.assigneeAction}}

Milestone Operations

trigger.milestone

string

The milestone that was added or removed.Example: {{trigger.milestone}}

trigger.milestoneAction

string

The action performed: "added" or "removed".Example: {{trigger.milestoneAction}}

Comment Operations

Available for issue_commented, pull_request_commented, pull_request_review_commented events.

trigger.commentId

string

Comment ID from the git provider.Example: {{trigger.commentId}}

trigger.commentAuthor

string

Username of the comment author.Example: {{trigger.commentAuthor}}

trigger.commentBody

string

Full content of the comment.Example: {{trigger.commentBody}}

trigger.commentLocation

string

Where the comment was made: "issue" or "pull_request".Example: {{trigger.commentLocation}}

trigger.commentCreatedAt

string

ISO timestamp when the comment was created.Example: {{trigger.commentCreatedAt}}

Review Operations

Available for pull_request_reviewed events.

trigger.reviewer

string

Username of the reviewer.Example: {{trigger.reviewer}}

trigger.reviewState

string

Review state: "approved", "changes_requested", "commented", or "dismissed".Example: {{trigger.reviewState}}

trigger.reviewAction

string

Review action: "submitted", "edited", or "dismissed".Example: {{trigger.reviewAction}}

Mention Operations

Available for mention events.

trigger.mentionedBy

string

Username of the user who mentioned the bot.Example: {{trigger.mentionedBy}}

trigger.mentionLocation

string

Where the mention occurred (e.g., "issue", "pull_request", "comment").Example: {{trigger.mentionLocation}}

trigger.mentionContent

string

The full message or content containing the mention.Example: {{trigger.mentionContent}}

Slash Command Operations

Available for slash_command events.

trigger.slashCommand

string

The slash command that was used (e.g., "/review").Example: {{trigger.slashCommand}}

trigger.slashCommandWithMention

boolean

Whether the slash command was used with an @mention.Example: {{trigger.slashCommandWithMention}}

Practical Examples

Example 1: Accessing Issue Properties

Use issue properties in an agent instruction:

- id: "analyze-issue"
  action: "agent.run"
  params:
    agentId: "triage-bot"
    instruction: |
      Review issue #{{trigger.issue.number}}: "{{trigger.issue.title}}"
      
      Issue details:
      - Author: @{{trigger.issue.author}}
      - State: {{trigger.issue.state}}
      - Labels: {{trigger.issue.labels}}
      - Created: {{trigger.issue.createdAt}}
      
      {{trigger.issue.body}}

Example 2: Clone PR Branch

Use pull request branch information in git operations:

- id: "clone-pr-branch"
  action: "git.clone"
  params:
    repoFullName: "{{trigger.repository.fullName}}"
    branch: "{{trigger.pullRequest.headBranch}}"

Example 3: Conditional Logic Based on Event State

Use Handlebars helpers for conditional logic:

- id: "context-aware-agent"
  action: "agent.run"
  params:
    instruction: |
      {{#if (eq trigger.issue.state "closed")}}
        This issue is already closed. Provide a summary of the resolution.
      {{else}}
        This issue is open. Analyze and provide recommendations.
      {{/if}}
      
      {{#if trigger.issue.labels}}
        Labels present: {{trigger.issue.labels}}
      {{else}}
        No labels assigned yet.
      {{/if}}

Example 4: Working with Arrays

Access array elements and iterate:

- id: "check-assignees"
  action: "agent.run"
  params:
    instruction: |
      Issue assignees:
      {{#if trigger.issue.assignees}}
        {{#each trigger.issue.assignees}}
          - @{{this}}
        {{/each}}
      {{else}}
        No assignees yet.
      {{/if}}
      
      First label: {{trigger.issue.labels.[0]}}

Example 5: Mention the Original Author

Reference the event author in responses:

- id: "respond-to-user"
  action: "agent.run"
  params:
    instruction: |
      @{{trigger.issue.author}}, I've analyzed your issue and here are my findings...

Example 6: Use Comment Context

Access comment-specific properties:

- id: "process-comment"
  action: "agent.run"
  params:
    instruction: |
      Process comment by @{{trigger.commentAuthor}}:
      
      {{trigger.commentBody}}
      
      Respond in the {{trigger.commentLocation}} thread.

Example 7: Conditional Repository Selection

Combine with conditional logic for dynamic behavior:

- id: "clone-code"
  action: "git.clone"
  params:
    repoFullName: |
      {{#if outputs.identify-repos.[0]}}
        {{outputs.identify-repos.[0].repoFullName}}
      {{else}}
        {{trigger.repository.fullName}}
      {{/if}}
    branch: "{{trigger.repository.defaultBranch}}"

Example 8: Filter by Actor Type

Exclude bot-triggered events:

# In trigger conditions
trigger:
  eventType: "issue_commented"
  conditions:
    - field: "context.actor.type"
      operator: "not_equals"
      value: "Bot"

Example 9: Run Workflow Only When Commits Are Added to a PR

Use the trigger.commitAdded flag to avoid running expensive jobs on metadata-only changes:

trigger:
  eventType: "pull_request_edited"
  conditions:
    - field: "context.trigger.commitAdded"
      operator: "equals"
      value: true

In this setup, the workflow will execute when a pull request is opened or when new commits are pushed, but it will not run if the PR author only updates the title, description, labels, or other metadata.

Template Helpers

Overcut supports Handlebars helpers for advanced logic:

Comparison Helpers

{{#if (eq value1 value2)}} - Equals
{{#if (ne value1 value2)}} - Not equals
{{#if (gt value1 value2)}} - Greater than
{{#if (lt value1 value2)}} - Less than
{{#if (gte value1 value2)}} - Greater than or equal
{{#if (lte value1 value2)}} - Less than or equal

Logical Helpers

{{#if (and condition1 condition2)}} - Logical AND
{{#if (or condition1 condition2)}} - Logical OR
{{#if (not condition)}} - Logical NOT

Iteration

{{#each array}}...{{/each}} - Iterate over arrays
{{@index}} - Current iteration index
{{@first}} / {{@last}} - First/last iteration flags

Notes and Best Practices

Platform Normalization

All properties are automatically normalized from platform-specific formats. For example, GitHub’s pull_request becomes pullRequest, and Jira’s key becomes number.

Property Availability

Not all properties are available for all events. For example, trigger.pullRequest is only available for pull request events, and trigger.issue only for issue events. Optional properties may be null or undefined if not provided by the platform.

Provider-Specific Properties

While Overcut normalizes events across all platforms, some properties are only available from specific providers due to webhook payload limitations: Issue Properties:

confidential - GitLab only

Pull Request Properties:

additions, deletions, changedFiles - GitHub only
autoMerge, rebaseable - GitHub only
mergeable - GitHub and GitLab only
requestedReviewers - GitHub only (GitLab returns empty array)
baseSha - Not available on GitLab

Array Access

When accessing array elements, always check if the array exists first using {{#if trigger.issue.labels}} to avoid template rendering errors.

Dynamic Workflows

Combine event context with step outputs ({{outputs.step-id.property}}) for powerful dynamic workflows that adapt based on runtime data.

Triggers

Learn about trigger types and event normalization

Use Cases

Understand workflow structure and template variables

Agent Run

Use event context in agent instructions

Git Clone

Clone repositories using trigger context

Get Started

Quick Starts

Use Cases and Actions

Reference

Source Code and Ticket Management

​Template Variable Syntax

​Base Event Properties

​Event Metadata

​Repository Context

​Actor Context

​Organization Context

​Issue Event Properties

​Core Issue Properties

​Issue Metadata

​Issue Timestamps

​Pull Request Event Properties

​Core Pull Request Properties

​Branch Information

​Pull Request Metadata

​Change Statistics

​Merge Status

​Pull Request Timestamps

​Action-Specific Context

​Label Operations

​Assignee Operations

​Milestone Operations

​Comment Operations

​Review Operations

​Mention Operations

​Slash Command Operations

​Practical Examples

​Example 1: Accessing Issue Properties

​Example 2: Clone PR Branch

​Example 3: Conditional Logic Based on Event State

​Example 4: Working with Arrays

​Example 5: Mention the Original Author

​Example 6: Use Comment Context

​Example 7: Conditional Repository Selection

​Example 8: Filter by Actor Type

​Example 9: Run Workflow Only When Commits Are Added to a PR

​Template Helpers

​Comparison Helpers

​Logical Helpers

​Iteration

​Notes and Best Practices

​Platform Normalization

​Property Availability

​Provider-Specific Properties

​Array Access

​Dynamic Workflows

​Related Documentation

Triggers

Use Cases

Agent Run

Git Clone

Template Variable Syntax

Base Event Properties

Event Metadata

Repository Context

Actor Context

Organization Context

Issue Event Properties

Core Issue Properties

Issue Metadata

Issue Timestamps

Pull Request Event Properties

Core Pull Request Properties

Branch Information

Pull Request Metadata

Change Statistics

Merge Status

Pull Request Timestamps

Action-Specific Context

Label Operations

Assignee Operations

Milestone Operations

Comment Operations

Review Operations

Mention Operations

Slash Command Operations

Practical Examples

Example 1: Accessing Issue Properties

Example 2: Clone PR Branch

Example 3: Conditional Logic Based on Event State

Example 4: Working with Arrays

Example 5: Mention the Original Author

Example 6: Use Comment Context

Example 7: Conditional Repository Selection

Example 8: Filter by Actor Type

Example 9: Run Workflow Only When Commits Are Added to a PR

Template Helpers

Comparison Helpers

Logical Helpers

Iteration

Notes and Best Practices

Platform Normalization

Property Availability

Provider-Specific Properties

Array Access

Dynamic Workflows

Related Documentation