diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/decorators.py b/src/anemoi/inference/decorators.py
index bb8a15dd..a6f36919 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/decorators.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/decorators.py
@@ -8,11 +8,15 @@
 # nor does it submit to any jurisdiction.
 
 
+import logging
+from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any
 from typing import TypeVar
 
 from anemoi.inference.context import Context
 
+LOG = logging.getLogger("anemoi.inference")
+
 MARKER = object()
 F = TypeVar("F", bound=type)
 
@@ -64,3 +68,67 @@ def __init__(wrapped_cls, context: Context, main: object = MARKER, *args: Any, *
                 super().__init__(context, *args, **kwargs)
 
         return type(cls.__name__, (WrappedClass,), {})
+
+
+class ensure_path:
+    """Decorator to ensure a path argument is a Path object and optionally exists.
+
+    If `is_dir` is True, the path is treated as a directory, if not for files, the parent directory is treated as a directory.
+    If `must_exist` is True, the directory must exist.
+    If `create` is True, the directory will be created if it doesn't exist.
+
+    For example:
+    ```
+    @ensure_path("dir", create=True)
+    class GribOutput
+        def __init__(context, dir=None, archive_requests=None):
+            ...
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, arg: str, is_dir: bool = False, create: bool = True, must_exist: bool = False):
+        self.arg = arg
+        self.is_dir = is_dir
+        self.create = create
+        self.must_exist = must_exist
+
+    def __call__(self, cls: F) -> F:
+        """Decorate the object to ensure the path argument is a Path object."""
+
+        class WrappedClass(cls):
+            def __init__(wrapped_cls, context: Context, *args: Any, **kwargs: Any) -> None:
+                if self.arg not in kwargs:
+                    LOG.debug(f"Argument '{self.arg}' not found in kwargs, cannot ensure path.")
+                    super().__init__(context, *args, **kwargs)
+                    return
+
+                path = kwargs[self.arg] = Path(kwargs[self.arg])
+                if not self.is_dir:
+                    path = path.parent
+
+                if self.must_exist:
+                    if not path.exists():
+                        raise FileNotFoundError(f"Path '{path}' does not exist.")
+                if self.create:
+                    path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+
+                super().__init__(context, *args, **kwargs)
+
+        return type(cls.__name__, (WrappedClass,), {})
+
+
+class ensure_dir(ensure_path):
+    """Decorator to ensure a directory path argument is a Path object and optionally exists.
+
+    If `must_exist` is True, the directory must exist.
+    If `create` is True, the directory will be created if it doesn't exist.
+
+    For example:
+    ```
+    @ensure_dir("dir", create=True)
+    class PlotOutput
+        def __init__(context, dir=None, ...):
+            ...
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, arg: str, create: bool = True, must_exist: bool = False):
+        super().__init__(arg, is_dir=True, create=create, must_exist=must_exist)
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/grib/encoding.py b/src/anemoi/inference/grib/encoding.py
index ecb03f78..24e34e80 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/grib/encoding.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/grib/encoding.py
@@ -9,15 +9,18 @@
 
 
 import logging
-import re
 import warnings
 from io import IOBase
+from pathlib import Path
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
 from typing import Any
+from typing import Hashable
 
 import earthkit.data as ekd
 from anemoi.utils.dates import as_timedelta
 
+from anemoi.inference.utils.templating import render_template
+
 if TYPE_CHECKING:
     from anemoi.transform.variables import Variable
 
@@ -469,12 +472,12 @@ def encode_message(
 class GribWriter:
     """Write GRIB messages to one or more files."""
 
-    def __init__(self, out: str | IOBase, split_output: bool = True) -> None:
+    def __init__(self, out: Path | IOBase, split_output: bool = True) -> None:
         """Initialize the GribWriter.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
-        out : Union[str, IOBase]
+        out : Union[Path, IOBase]
             Path or file-like object to write the grib data to.
             If a string, it should be a file path.
             If a file-like object, it should be opened in binary write mode.
@@ -487,7 +490,7 @@ def __init__(self, out: str | IOBase, split_output: bool = True) -> None:
 
         self.out = out
         self.split_output = split_output
-        self._files: dict[str, IOBase] = {}
+        self._files: dict[Hashable, IOBase] = {}
 
     def close(self) -> None:
         """Close all open files."""
@@ -570,7 +573,7 @@ def write(
 
         return handle, path
 
-    def target(self, handle: Any) -> tuple[IOBase, str]:
+    def target(self, handle: Any) -> tuple[IOBase, Path | str]:
         """Determine the target file for the GRIB message.
 
         Parameters
@@ -584,7 +587,8 @@ def target(self, handle: Any) -> tuple[IOBase, str]:
             The file object and the file path.
         """
         if self.split_output:
-            out = render_template(self.out, handle)
+            assert not isinstance(self.out, IOBase), "Cannot split output when `out` is a file-like object."
+            out = render_template(str(self.out), handle)
         else:
             out = self.out
 
@@ -596,37 +600,3 @@ def target(self, handle: Any) -> tuple[IOBase, str]:
             self._files[out] = open(out, "wb")
 
         return self._files[out], out
-
-
-_TEMPLATE_EXPRESSION_PATTERN = re.compile(r"\{(.*?)\}")
-
-
-def render_template(template: str, handle: dict) -> str:
-    """Render a template string with the given keyword arguments.
-
-    Given a template string such as '{dateTime}_{step:03}.grib' and
-    the GRIB handle, this function will replace the expressions in the
-    template with the corresponding values from the handle, formatted
-    according to the optional format specifier.
-
-    For example, the template '{dateTime}_{step:03}.grib' with a handle
-    containing 'dateTime' as '202501011200' and 'step' as 6 will
-    produce '202501011200_006.grib'.
-
-    Parameters
-    ----------
-    template : str
-        The template string to render.
-    handle : Dict
-        The earthkit.data handle manager.
-
-    Returns
-    -------
-    str
-        The rendered template string.
-    """
-    expressions = _TEMPLATE_EXPRESSION_PATTERN.findall(template)
-    expr_format = [el.split(":") if ":" in el else [el, ""] for el in expressions]
-    keys = {k[0]: format(handle.get(k[0]), k[1]) for k in expr_format}
-    path = template.format(**keys)
-    return path
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/grib/templates/manager.py b/src/anemoi/inference/grib/templates/manager.py
index ba09a88d..45692f2d 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/grib/templates/manager.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/grib/templates/manager.py
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ def __init__(self, owner: Any, templates: list[str] | str | None = None) -> None
 
         self.templates_providers = [create_template_provider(self, template) for template in templates]
 
-    def template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: list[Any]) -> ekd.Field | None:
+    def template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: dict[str, Any]) -> ekd.Field | None:
         """Get the template for a given name and state.
 
         Parameters
@@ -60,8 +60,8 @@ def template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: list[Any]) -> ekd.F
             The name of the template.
         state : State
             The state object containing template information.
-        typed_variables : list of Any
-            The list of typed variables.
+        typed_variables : dict[str, Any]
+            The dictionary of typed variables.
 
         Returns
         -------
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ def template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: list[Any]) -> ekd.F
 
         return self._template_cache.get(name)
 
-    def load_template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: list[Any]) -> ekd.Field | None:
+    def load_template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: dict[str, Any]) -> ekd.Field | None:
         """Load the template for a given name and state.
 
         Parameters
@@ -87,8 +87,8 @@ def load_template(self, name: str, state: State, typed_variables: list[Any]) ->
             The name of the template.
         state : State
             The state object containing template information.
-        typed_variables : list of Any
-            The list of typed variables.
+        typed_variables : dict[str, Any]
+            The dictionary of typed variables.
 
         Returns
         -------
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/output.py b/src/anemoi/inference/output.py
index 02d7a8f2..42714f7a 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/output.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/output.py
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
 from abc import abstractmethod
 from functools import cached_property
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
+from typing import Any
 
 from anemoi.inference.post_processors import create_post_processor
 from anemoi.inference.processor import Processor
@@ -244,20 +245,20 @@ class ForwardOutput(Output):
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: "Context",
-        output: dict | None,
+        output: Output | Any,
         variables: list[str] | None = None,
         post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
         output_frequency: int | None = None,
         write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
     ):
-        """Initialize the ForwardOutput object.
+        """Initialise the ForwardOutput object.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context in which the output operates.
-        output : dict
-            The output configuration dictionary.
+        output : Output | Any
+            The output configuration dictionary or an Output instance.
         variables : list, optional
             The list of variables, by default None.
         post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
@@ -277,8 +278,9 @@ def __init__(
             output_frequency=None,
             write_initial_state=write_initial_state,
         )
-
-        self.output = None if output is None else create_output(context, output)
+        if not isinstance(output, Output):
+            output = create_output(context, output)
+        self.output = output
 
         if self.context.output_frequency is not None:
             LOG.warning("output_frequency is ignored for '%s'", self.__class__.__name__)
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/grib.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/grib.py
index 1afd5ffe..71aadca1 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/grib.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/grib.py
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ def __init__(
         output_frequency: int | None = None,
         write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the GribOutput object.
+        """Initialise the GribOutput object.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
@@ -285,6 +285,8 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         """
 
         reference_date = self.reference_date or self.context.reference_date
+        assert reference_date is not None, "No reference date set"
+
         step = state["step"]
         previous_step = state.get("previous_step")
         start_steps = state.get("start_steps", {})
@@ -367,10 +369,6 @@ def template(self, state: State, name: str) -> object:
         object
             The template object.
         """
-
-        if self.template_manager is None:
-            self.template_manager = TemplateManager(self, self.templates)
-
         return self.template_manager.template(name, state, self.typed_variables)
 
     def template_lookup(self, name: str) -> dict:
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/gribfile.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/gribfile.py
index 9089d22b..0d9329bf 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/gribfile.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/gribfile.py
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
 import logging
 from collections import defaultdict
 from io import IOBase
+from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any
 
 import earthkit.data as ekd
@@ -22,6 +23,7 @@
 from anemoi.inference.types import FloatArray
 from anemoi.inference.types import ProcessorConfig
 
+from ..decorators import ensure_path
 from ..decorators import main_argument
 from ..grib.encoding import GribWriter
 from ..grib.encoding import check_encoding
@@ -114,7 +116,7 @@ def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
         *,
-        out: str | IOBase,
+        out: Path | IOBase,
         post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
         encoding: dict[str, Any] | None = None,
         archive_requests: dict[str, Any] | None = None,
@@ -134,9 +136,8 @@ def __init__(
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context.
-        out : Union[str, IOBase]
+        out : Union[Path, IOBase]
             Path or file-like object to write the grib data to.
-            If a string, it should be a file path.
             If a file-like object, it should be opened in binary write mode.
         post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
             Post-processors to apply to the input
@@ -312,6 +313,7 @@ def _patch(r: DataRequest) -> DataRequest:
 
 @output_registry.register("grib")
 @main_argument("path")
+@ensure_path("path")
 class GribFileOutput(GribIoOutput):
     """Handles grib files."""
 
@@ -319,7 +321,7 @@ def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
         *,
-        path: str,
+        path: Path,
         post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
         encoding: dict[str, Any] | None = None,
         archive_requests: dict[str, Any] | None = None,
@@ -333,14 +335,15 @@ def __init__(
         write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
         split_output: bool = True,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the GribFileOutput.
+        """Initialise the GribFileOutput.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context.
-        path : str
+        path : Path
             Path to the grib file to write the data to.
+            If the parent directory does not exist, it will be created.
         post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
             Post-processors to apply to the input
         encoding : dict, optional
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/netcdf.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/netcdf.py
index ccc76979..0a0a779a 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/netcdf.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/netcdf.py
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 import logging
 import os
 import threading
+from pathlib import Path
 
 import numpy as np
 
@@ -17,6 +18,7 @@
 from anemoi.inference.types import ProcessorConfig
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
 
+from ..decorators import ensure_path
 from ..decorators import main_argument
 from ..output import Output
 from . import output_registry
@@ -30,13 +32,14 @@
 
 @output_registry.register("netcdf")
 @main_argument("path")
+@ensure_path("path")
 class NetCDFOutput(Output):
     """NetCDF output class."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        path: str,
+        path: Path,
         variables: list[str] | None = None,
         post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
         output_frequency: int | None = None,
@@ -44,14 +47,15 @@ def __init__(
         float_size: str = "f4",
         missing_value: float | None = np.nan,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the NetCDF output object.
+        """Initialise the NetCDF output object.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : dict
             The context dictionary.
-        path : str
-            The path to save the NetCDF file.
+        path : Path
+            The path to save the NetCDF file to.
+            If the parent directory does not exist, it will be created.
         post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
             Post-processors to apply to the input
         output_frequency : int, optional
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/plot.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/plot.py
index 7c6b1395..4cf5e300 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/plot.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/plot.py
@@ -8,16 +8,18 @@
 # nor does it submit to any jurisdiction.
 
 import logging
-import os
+from pathlib import Path
 
 import numpy as np
 from anemoi.utils.grib import units
 
 from anemoi.inference.context import Context
+from anemoi.inference.decorators import ensure_dir
 from anemoi.inference.decorators import main_argument
 from anemoi.inference.types import FloatArray
 from anemoi.inference.types import ProcessorConfig
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
+from anemoi.inference.utils.templating import render_template
 
 from ..output import Output
 from . import output_registry
@@ -42,55 +44,59 @@ def fix(lons: FloatArray) -> FloatArray:
 
 
 @output_registry.register("plot")
-@main_argument("path")
+@main_argument("dir")
+@ensure_dir("dir")
 class PlotOutput(Output):
     """Use `earthkit-plots` to plot the outputs."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        path: str,
+        dir: Path,
         *,
         variables: list[str] | None = None,
         mode: str = "subplots",
         domain: str | list[str] | None = None,
-        strftime: str = "%Y%m%d%H%M%S",
         template: str = "plot_{date}.{format}",
         format: str = "png",
-        missing_value: float | None = None,
         post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
         output_frequency: int | None = None,
         write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
         **kwargs,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the PlotOutput.
+        """Initialise the PlotOutput.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context.
-        path : str
-            The path to save the plots.
+        dir : Path
+            The directory to save the plots.
+            If the directory does not exist, it will be created.
         variables : list, optional
             The list of variables to plot, by default all.
         mode : str, optional
             The plotting mode, can be "subplots" or "overlay", by default "subplots".
         domain : str | list[str] | None, optional
             The domain/s to plot, by default None.
-        strftime : str, optional
-            The date format string, by default "%Y%m%d%H%M%S".
         template : str, optional
             The template for plot filenames, by default "plot_{date}.{format}".
+            Has access to the following variables:
+            - date: the date of the forecast step
+            - basetime: the base time of the forecast
+            - domain: the domain being plotted
+            - format: the format of the plot
+            - variables: the variables being plotted (joined by underscores)
         format : str, optional
             The format of the plot, by default "png".
-        missing_value : float, optional
-            The value to use for missing data, by default None.
         post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
             Post-processors to apply to the input
         output_frequency : int, optional
             The frequency of output, by default None.
         write_initial_state : bool, optional
             Whether to write the initial state, by default None.
+        **kwargs : Any
+            Additional keyword arguments to pass to `earthkit.plots.quickplot`.
         """
 
         super().__init__(
@@ -100,12 +106,11 @@ def __init__(
             output_frequency=output_frequency,
             write_initial_state=write_initial_state,
         )
-        self.path = path
+
+        self.dir = dir
         self.format = format
         self.variables = variables
-        self.strftime = strftime
         self.template = template
-        self.missing_value = missing_value
         self.domain = domain
         self.mode = mode
         self.kwargs = kwargs
@@ -121,8 +126,6 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         import earthkit.data as ekd
         import earthkit.plots as ekp
 
-        os.makedirs(self.path, exist_ok=True)
-
         longitudes = fix(state["longitudes"])
         latitudes = state["latitudes"]
         date = state["date"]
@@ -134,7 +137,7 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
             if self.skip_variable(name):
                 continue
 
-            variable = self.context.checkpoint.typed_variables[name]
+            variable = self.typed_variables[name]
             param = variable.param
 
             plotting_fields.append(
@@ -153,10 +156,19 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
             )
 
         fig = ekp.quickplot(
-            ekd.FieldList.from_fields((plotting_fields)), mode=self.mode, domain=self.domain, **self.kwargs
+            ekd.FieldList.from_fields(plotting_fields), mode=self.mode, domain=self.domain, **self.kwargs
+        )
+        fname = render_template(
+            self.template,
+            {
+                "date": date,
+                "basetime": basetime,
+                "domain": self.domain,
+                "format": self.format,
+                "variables": "_".join(self.variables or []),
+            },
         )
-        fname = self.template.format(date=date, format=self.format)
-        fname = os.path.join(self.path, fname)
+        fname = self.dir / fname
 
         fig.save(fname)
         del fig
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/printer.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/printer.py
index 2584d687..f1dab062 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/printer.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/printer.py
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@
 import logging
 from collections.abc import Callable
 from functools import partial
+from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any
 from typing import Literal
 from typing import Union
@@ -18,9 +19,9 @@
 import numpy as np
 
 from anemoi.inference.context import Context
-from anemoi.inference.types import ProcessorConfig
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
 
+from ..decorators import ensure_path
 from ..decorators import main_argument
 from ..output import Output
 from . import output_registry
@@ -105,36 +106,42 @@ def print_state(
 
 @output_registry.register("printer")
 @main_argument("max_lines")
+@ensure_path("path")
 class PrinterOutput(Output):
     """Printer output class."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
-        path: str | None = None,
+        path: Path | None = None,
         variables: ListOrAll | None = None,
+        max_lines: int = 4,
         **kwargs: Any,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the PrinterOutput.
+        """Initialise the PrinterOutput.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context.
-        post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]] = None
-            Post-processors to apply to the input
-        path : str, optional
+        path : Path, optional
             The path to save the printed output, by default None.
+            If the parent directory does not exist, it will be created.
         variables : list, optional
             The list of variables to print, by default None.
+        max_lines : int, optional
+            The maximum number of lines to print, by default 4.
+            If set to 0, all variables will be printed.
         **kwargs : Any
             Additional keyword arguments.
         """
 
-        super().__init__(context, variables=variables, post_processors=post_processors)
+        super().__init__(context, variables=variables, **kwargs)
         self.print = print
         self.variables = variables
+        self.max_lines = max_lines
+
+        self.f = None
 
         if path is not None:
             self.f = open(path, "w")
@@ -148,4 +155,9 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         state : State
             The state dictionary.
         """
-        print_state(state, print=self.print, variables=self.variables)
+        print_state(state, print=self.print, variables=self.variables, max_lines=self.max_lines)
+
+    def close(self) -> None:
+        if self.f is not None:
+            self.f.close()
+        return super().close()
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/raw.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/raw.py
index 0528e509..58778b7d 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/raw.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/raw.py
@@ -8,14 +8,15 @@
 # nor does it submit to any jurisdiction.
 
 import logging
-import os
+from pathlib import Path
 
 import numpy as np
 
 from anemoi.inference.context import Context
-from anemoi.inference.types import ProcessorConfig
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
+from anemoi.inference.utils.templating import render_template
 
+from ..decorators import ensure_dir
 from ..decorators import main_argument
 from ..output import Output
 from . import output_registry
@@ -25,47 +26,36 @@
 
 @output_registry.register("raw")
 @main_argument("path")
+@ensure_dir("dir")
 class RawOutput(Output):
     """Raw output class."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        path: str,
+        dir: Path,
         template: str = "{date}.npz",
         strftime: str = "%Y%m%d%H%M%S",
         variables: list[str] | None = None,
-        post_processors: list[ProcessorConfig] | None = None,
-        output_frequency: int | None = None,
-        write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
+        **kwargs,
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the RawOutput class.
+        """Initialise the RawOutput class.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : dict
             The context.
-        path : str
-            The path to save the raw output.
+        dir : Path
+            The directory to save the raw output.
+            If the parent directory does not exist, it will be created.
         template : str, optional
             The template for filenames, by default "{date}.npz".
+            Variables available are `date`, `basetime` `step`.
         strftime : str, optional
             The date format string, by default "%Y%m%d%H%M%S".
-        post_processors : Optional[List[ProcessorConfig]], default None
-            Post-processors to apply to the input
-        output_frequency : int, optional
-            The frequency of output, by default None.
-        write_initial_state : bool, optional
-            Whether to write the initial state, by default None.
         """
-        super().__init__(
-            context,
-            variables=variables,
-            post_processors=post_processors,
-            output_frequency=output_frequency,
-            write_initial_state=write_initial_state,
-        )
-        self.path = path
+        super().__init__(context, variables=variables, **kwargs)
+        self.dir = dir
         self.template = template
         self.strftime = strftime
 
@@ -77,7 +67,7 @@ def __repr__(self) -> str:
         str
             String representation of the RawOutput object.
         """
-        return f"RawOutput({self.path})"
+        return f"RawOutput({self.dir})"
 
     def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         """Write the state to a compressed .npz file.
@@ -87,9 +77,16 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         state : State
             The state to be written.
         """
-        os.makedirs(self.path, exist_ok=True)
-        date = state["date"].strftime(self.strftime)
-        fn_state = f"{self.path}/{self.template.format(date=date)}"
+        date = state["date"]
+        basetime = date - state["step"]
+
+        format_info = {
+            "date": date.strftime(self.strftime),
+            "step": state["step"],
+            "basetime": basetime.strftime(self.strftime),
+        }
+
+        fn_state = f"{self.dir}/{render_template(self.template, format_info)}"
         restate = {f"field_{key}": val for key, val in state["fields"].items() if not self.skip_variable(key)}
 
         for key in ["date"]:
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/tee.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/tee.py
index bf49a184..a9705316 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/tee.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/tee.py
@@ -12,11 +12,10 @@
 from collections.abc import Sequence
 from typing import Any
 
-from anemoi.inference.config import Configuration
 from anemoi.inference.context import Context
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
 
-from ..output import ForwardOutput
+from ..output import Output
 from . import create_output
 from . import output_registry
 
@@ -24,39 +23,39 @@
 
 
 @output_registry.register("tee")
-class TeeOutput(ForwardOutput):
+class TeeOutput(Output):
     """TeeOutput class to manage multiple outputs."""
 
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        *args: Configuration,
-        outputs: Sequence[Configuration] | None = None,
+        *args,
+        outputs: Sequence | None = None,
         **kwargs: Any,
     ):
-        """Initialize the TeeOutput.
+        """Initialise the TeeOutput.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : object
             The context object.
-        *args : Configuration
+        *args :
             Additional positional arguments.
-        outputs : Sequence[Configuration], optional
+        outputs : Sequence, optional
             Outputs to be created.
         **kwargs : Any
             Additional keyword arguments.
         """
         super().__init__(
             context,
-            None,
             **kwargs,
         )
 
         if outputs is None:
             outputs = args
+        else:
+            outputs = [*args, *outputs]
 
-        assert isinstance(outputs, (list, tuple)), outputs
         self.outputs = [create_output(context, output) for output in outputs]
 
     # We override write_initial_state and write_state
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/truth.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/truth.py
index b20e1ebe..9b30e635 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/truth.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/truth.py
@@ -10,11 +10,11 @@
 import logging
 from typing import Any
 
-from anemoi.inference.config import Configuration
+from anemoi.inference.runners.default import DefaultRunner
 from anemoi.inference.state import reduce_state
 from anemoi.inference.types import State
 
-from ..context import Context
+from ..decorators import main_argument
 from ..output import ForwardOutput
 from . import output_registry
 
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@
 
 
 @output_registry.register("truth")
+@main_argument("output")
 class TruthOutput(ForwardOutput):
     """Write the input state at the same time for each output state.
 
@@ -29,20 +30,23 @@ class TruthOutput(ForwardOutput):
     the forecasts, effectively only for times in the past.
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, context: Context, output: Configuration, **kwargs: Any) -> None:
-        """Initialize the TruthOutput.
+    def __init__(self, context: DefaultRunner, output, **kwargs: Any) -> None:
+        """Initialise the TruthOutput.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : Context
             The context for the output.
-        output : Configuration
+        output :
             The output configuration.
         kwargs : dict
             Additional keyword arguments.
         """
+        if not isinstance(context, DefaultRunner):
+            raise ValueError("TruthOutput can only be used with `DefaultRunner`")
+
         super().__init__(context, output, None, **kwargs)
-        self._input = self.context.create_input()
+        self._input = context.create_prognostics_input()
 
     def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
         """Write a step of the state.
@@ -53,6 +57,8 @@ def write_step(self, state: State) -> None:
             The state to write.
         """
         truth_state = self._input.create_input_state(date=state["date"])
+        truth_state["step"] = state["step"]
+
         reduced_state = reduce_state(truth_state)
         self.output.write_state(reduced_state)
 
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/zarr.py b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/zarr.py
index 0a8450a1..7f72f6a9 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/zarr.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/outputs/zarr.py
@@ -10,8 +10,9 @@
 from __future__ import annotations
 
 import logging
-import os
 import shutil
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
 from typing import Any
 from typing import Literal
 
@@ -27,14 +28,17 @@
 
 LOG = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from zarr.storage import StoreLike
+
 
 def create_zarr_array(
-    store: Any,
+    store: "StoreLike",
     name: str,
     shape: tuple,
     dtype: str,
     dimensions: tuple[str, ...],
-    chunks: tuple[int, ...] | Literal["auto"] | bool,
+    chunks: tuple[int, ...] | str | bool,
     fill_value: float | None = None,
 ) -> Any:
     """Create a Zarr array with the given parameters.
@@ -45,8 +49,6 @@ def create_zarr_array(
 
     chunks = chunks if zarr.__version__ >= "3" else chunks if not chunks == "auto" else True
 
-    store: zarr.Group = store
-
     if zarr.__version__ >= "3":
         from zarr import create_array
     else:
@@ -78,21 +80,21 @@ class ZarrOutput(Output):
     def __init__(
         self,
         context: Context,
-        store: Any,
+        store: "StoreLike",
         variables: list[str] | None = None,
         output_frequency: int | None = None,
         write_initial_state: bool | None = None,
         missing_value: float | None = np.nan,
         float_size: str = "f4",
-        chunks: tuple[int, ...] | Literal["auto"] = "auto",
+        chunks: tuple[int, ...] | Literal["auto"] | bool = "auto",
     ) -> None:
-        """Initialize the ZarrOutput object.
+        """Initialise the ZarrOutput object.
 
         Parameters
         ----------
         context : dict
             The context dictionary.
-        store : Any
+        store : StoreLike
             The Zarr store to save the data.
             Can be a file path or a Zarr store.
             If an existing store is provided, it is assumed to
@@ -107,7 +109,7 @@ def __init__(
             The size of the float, by default "f4".
         missing_value : float, optional
             The missing value, by default np.nan.
-        chunks : tuple[int, ...] | Literal['auto'], optional
+        chunks : tuple[int, ...] | Literal['auto'] | bool, optional
             The chunk size for the Zarr arrays, by default 'auto'.
         """
 
@@ -115,8 +117,6 @@ def __init__(
             context, variables=variables, output_frequency=output_frequency, write_initial_state=write_initial_state
         )
 
-        from zarr.storage import StoreLike
-
         self.zarr_store: StoreLike = store
         self.missing_value = missing_value
         self.chunks = chunks
@@ -138,8 +138,11 @@ def open(self, state: State) -> None:
         """
         import zarr
 
-        if isinstance(self.zarr_store, str):
-            if os.path.exists(self.zarr_store):
+        if isinstance(self.zarr_store, (str, Path)):
+            zarr_store = Path(self.zarr_store)
+            zarr_store.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+
+            if zarr_store.exists():
                 LOG.warning(f"Zarr store {self.zarr_store} already exists. It will be overwritten.")
                 shutil.rmtree(self.zarr_store)
 
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/testing/checks.py b/src/anemoi/inference/testing/checks.py
index 681fe1b2..83d0ebaf 100644
--- a/src/anemoi/inference/testing/checks.py
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/testing/checks.py
@@ -158,3 +158,24 @@ def check_lam(
     elif reference_file:
         # check against a reference file, implement when needed
         raise NotImplementedError("Reference file check is not implemented yet.")
+
+
+@testing_registry.register("check_file_exist")
+def check_file_exist(*, file: Path, **kwargs) -> None:
+    LOG.info(f"Checking file exists: {file}")
+    assert file.exists(), f"File {file} does not exist."
+    assert file.stat().st_size > 0, f"File {file} is empty."
+
+
+@testing_registry.register("check_files_in_directory")
+def check_files_in_directory(*, file: Path, expected_files: int | None = None, **kwargs) -> None:
+    LOG.info(f"Checking directory: {file}")
+    assert file.exists() and file.is_dir(), f"Directory {file} does not exist or is not a directory."
+    if expected_files is not None:
+        actual_files = [f for f in file.iterdir() if f.is_file()]
+        if expected_files < 0:
+            assert len(actual_files) > 0, "Expected at least one file, but found none."
+        else:
+            assert (
+                len(actual_files) == expected_files
+            ), f"Expected {expected_files} files, but found {len(actual_files)}."
diff --git a/src/anemoi/inference/utils/templating.py b/src/anemoi/inference/utils/templating.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..180d0806
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/anemoi/inference/utils/templating.py
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+# (C) Copyright 2025- Anemoi contributors.
+#
+# This software is licensed under the terms of the Apache Licence Version 2.0
+# which can be obtained at http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.
+#
+# In applying this licence, ECMWF does not waive the privileges and immunities
+# granted to it by virtue of its status as an intergovernmental organisation
+# nor does it submit to any jurisdiction.
+
+
+import re
+
+_TEMPLATE_EXPRESSION_PATTERN = re.compile(r"\{(.*?)\}")
+
+
+def render_template(template: str, handle: dict) -> str:
+    """Render a template string with the given keyword arguments.
+
+    Given a template string such as '{dateTime}_{step:03}.grib' and
+    the GRIB handle, this function will replace the expressions in the
+    template with the corresponding values from the handle, formatted
+    according to the optional format specifier.
+
+    For example, the template '{dateTime}_{step:03}.grib' with a handle
+    containing 'dateTime' as '202501011200' and 'step' as 6 will
+    produce '202501011200_006.grib'.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    template : str
+        The template string to render.
+    handle : dict
+        The dictionary to use for rendering the template.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    str
+        The rendered template string.
+    """
+    expressions = _TEMPLATE_EXPRESSION_PATTERN.findall(str(template))
+    expr_format = [el.split(":") if ":" in el else [el, ""] for el in expressions]
+    keys = {k[0]: format(handle.get(k[0]), k[1]) for k in expr_format}
+    path = str(template).format(**keys)
+    return path
diff --git a/tests/integration/single-o48-1.1/config.yaml b/tests/integration/single-o48-1.1/config.yaml
index b2b36676..b93775f0 100644
--- a/tests/integration/single-o48-1.1/config.yaml
+++ b/tests/integration/single-o48-1.1/config.yaml
@@ -83,3 +83,132 @@
       grib: ${input:}
     output:
       zarr: ${output:}
+
+- name: grib-in-plots-out
+  input: input.grib
+  output: plots
+  checks:
+    - check_files_in_directory:
+        expected_files: 8 # 48h / 6
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      plot:
+        dir: ${output:}
+        variables: [2t, 10u, 10v]
+
+- name: grib-in-plots-out
+  input: input.grib
+  output: plots
+  checks:
+    - check_files_in_directory:
+        expected_files: 9 # 48h / 6 + 1
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: true
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      plot:
+        dir: ${output:}
+        mode: overlay
+        variables: [2t]
+
+- name: grib-in-truth-out
+  input:
+  output: output.grib
+  checks:
+    - check_grib:
+        expected_variables:
+          - 2t
+          - q
+        grib_keys:
+          stream: oper
+          class: ai
+          type: fc
+        check_nans: true
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input: dummy
+    date: '20250101'
+    output:
+      truth:
+        output:
+          grib:
+            path: ${output:}
+            encoding:
+              stream: oper
+              class: ai
+              type: fc
+            variables:
+              - 2t
+              - q_600
+
+- name: grib-in-print-output
+  input: input.grib
+  output: output.txt
+  checks:
+    - check_file_exist: {}
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      printer:
+        path: ${output:}
+
+- name: grib-in-raw-output
+  input: input.grib
+  output: output
+  checks:
+    - check_files_in_directory:
+        expected_files: 8
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      raw:
+        dir: ${output:}
+
+- name: grib-in-raw-output-templated
+  input: input.grib
+  output: output
+  checks:
+    - check_files_in_directory:
+        expected_files: 8
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      raw:
+        dir: ${output:}
+        template: "{date}_step{step}.npz"
+
+
+- name: grib-in-tee-output
+  input: input.grib
+  output: output
+  checks:
+    - check_files_in_directory:
+        expected_files: 3
+  inference_config:
+    write_initial_state: false
+    checkpoint: ${checkpoint:}
+    input:
+      grib: ${input:}
+    output:
+      tee:
+        - grib: ${output:}/output.grib
+        - netcdf: ${output:}/output.nc
+        - tee:
+            outputs:
+              - netcdf: ${output:}/output.nc2