Epics group related tasks together under a larger piece of work, giving you a way to organize and track big features or initiatives inside a project. This guide covers creating a new epic and editing one afterward, from the Epics tab of a project.
Who can create and manage epics?
Epic access is controlled by granular permissions under Settings → Roles & Permissions, in the Epics permission group:
- Create Epics — can create new epics
- View Epics — can view epics and their details
- Edit Epics — can modify existing epics
- Delete Epics — can delete epics
- Assign Epics — can assign epics to users
These are independent toggles per role — a role could, for example, have View Epics and Edit Epics without Delete Epics or Assign Epics. If an action described in this article isn’t available to you, check with your Organization Administrator which of these permissions your role has.
Before you begin
Make sure you have:
- An existing project to add the epic to
- The relevant Epic permission(s) for what you’re trying to do (see above)
- A clear title for the epic, and optionally a target owner
Step 1: Open the Epics tab
Open your project, then go to Execution → Epics. If the project has no epics yet, you’ll see an empty state with a Create Epic button. If epics already exist, use New Epic in the top right instead — both open the same panel.
Step 2: Fill in the basics (Quick mode)
The Create Epic panel opens in Quick mode, with just the essentials:
- Title * — Up to 255 characters. Required.
- Assigned To — Search and select a user to own this epic. Optional — can be left unassigned.
- Priority — Low, Medium, High, or Critical. Defaults to Medium.
- Status — Planned, Active, Completed, or Cancelled. Defaults to Planned.
This is enough to create a working epic — select Create Epic to save it now, or continue to Step 3 for more detail.
Step 3: Add more detail (Advanced mode)
Select Switch to Advanced to reveal additional fields:
- Description — Free text, up to 5,000 characters.
- Objectives — Type an objective and press Enter to add it as a tag. Repeat for multiple objectives.
- Acceptance Criteria — Same pattern — type a criterion and press Enter to add it.
- Start Date / End Date — Optional planning dates.
- Estimated Effort — In hours, e.g. 40.5.
- Story Points — Uses the Fibonacci scale (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13…).
- Tags — Freeform labels for filtering and search.
- Custom Fields — A collapsible section for any custom fields your organization has configured.
Note: Objectives and Acceptance Criteria are tag-style inputs, not paragraph fields — typing a full sentence and pressing Enter adds the whole sentence as a single tag. Add each point separately if you want them listed individually.
Select ← Back to Quick mode at any time to collapse these fields again.
Step 4: Create the epic
Select Create Epic to save. The epic is created with an auto-generated Epic Key (e.g. PRJ0063-E-001) and appears in your Epics list with its status, progress, task count, and owner.
Updating an existing epic
Epics can be edited at any time after creation.
Step 5: Open the epic
From the Epics list, select the ⋯ actions menu next to the epic you want to update, then choose Edit Epic (View Epic opens the same panel in a read-focused view).
Step 6: Edit the details
The Overview tab shows editable Description, Objectives, and Acceptance Criteria fields. The panel on the right — Epic Details — lets you change Status, Priority, and Owner from dropdowns, and set Start, Due, Est. Hrs, and Story Pts by selecting “Click to edit.” A Tags field sits below for adding or removing labels.
Note: This panel doesn’t show a separate Save button — changes appear to apply per field as you edit them. Worth confirming the exact save behavior (auto-save vs. save-on-blur) as part of your test coverage, especially for what happens if you navigate away mid-edit.
Step 7: Review linked tasks
Switch to the Related tab to see the tasks currently linked to this epic — each with its task ID, title, status, and assignee.
Generating Tasks with AI
From the same ⋯ actions menu on an epic, DeskFactor also offers Generate Tasks with AI — an AI-assisted way to break an epic down into tasks automatically.
Important: AI-assisted features like Generate Tasks with AI are available based on your organization’s subscribed plan, and usage may be capped by a periodic limit tied to that plan. If this option doesn’t appear, or generation stops working partway through your workflow, check your plan’s AI allowance with your Organization Administrator before assuming it’s a bug.
What happens after?
- The epic appears in the project’s Epics list with its key, status, and progress
- Tasks can be created under the epic and will show up in its Related tab
- Progress updates automatically as linked tasks are completed
- The epic can be edited again at any time from the same Epic Details panel
Common Issues
Create Epic / New Epic option isn’t available
Your role may not have the Create Epics permission. Check Settings → Roles & Permissions, or ask your Organization Administrator to grant it.
Create Epic button is disabled
Title is the only required field — check it’s filled in and under 255 characters.
Can’t edit or delete an epic
These are separate permissions (Edit Epics, Delete Epics) from Create Epics — having one doesn’t guarantee the others. Check your role’s permissions under Settings → Roles & Permissions.
Assigned To search returns no results
Only users with access to this project can be assigned. Add the user to the project team first, then try again. Also confirm your own role has the Assign Epics permission — without it, the assignment action may not be available at all.
Objectives or Acceptance Criteria look wrong after saving
These fields add one tag per Enter press. If you typed a long sentence and pressed Enter once, it was saved as a single tag rather than split into separate points.
Generate Tasks with AI is missing or fails
This depends on your organization’s plan. Confirm with your Organization Administrator whether AI features are included in your plan and whether you’ve hit a usage limit.
Expected Result
- A new epic exists in the project with a unique Epic Key
- The epic reflects the title, owner, priority, and status you set
- Any additional detail (description, objectives, acceptance criteria, estimation, tags) is saved and visible when reopening the epic
- The epic can be updated at any time without needing to recreate it