BMAD Builder
Function: Scaffold and validate custom planning/orchestration skills for the BMAD Planning & Orchestrator plugin. Produces compliant SKILL.md files, shell scripts, and templates — pre-wired to this plugin's path conventions — and runs scope-violation checks to keep new skills inside the PLAN/ORCHESTRATE boundary.
Scope (PLAN, never build)
This skill produces planning artifacts and skill skeleton files. It does NOT write application code, run tests, lint, check coverage, or execute builds. If a skill being designed is tempted to "implement", "fix the code", "run the suite", or "review the diff" — that is a scope violation. Plan and hand off instead.
Three intents
Always clarify which intent applies before starting.
Create — new planning skill from scratch
Gather requirements (use TodoWrite to track):
- Skill name (lowercase-hyphen, prefixed
bmad-; e.g. bmad-example)
- What planning/orchestration problem it solves
- Trigger phrases users will say
- Allowed tools (subset of: Read, Write, Edit, Bash, Glob, Grep, WebSearch, WebFetch, TodoWrite)
- Which BMAD track(s) it applies to (Quick Flow / BMad Method / Enterprise)
- Upstream BMAD counterpart (e.g.
bmad-risk-assessment)
Run the scaffold script to create the directory:
bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <skill-name>
This creates skills/<skill-name>/ with scripts/ and templates/ subdirectories and a starter SKILL.md.
Fill the SKILL.md using the skill template:
- Reference:
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/templates/skill.template.md
- Keep body under 5K tokens; push long reference detail to a sibling
REFERENCE.md in the new skill's own folder
- Use
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT} for all paths to bundled scripts/templates
- Artifacts go to
bmad-output/ (honor user-configured folder)
- End with the mandatory attribution footer (see template)
Validate the new skill:
bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/validate-skill.sh \
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md
Fix all errors; review all warnings before declaring done.
Validate — check an existing SKILL.md
Run the validator directly against any SKILL.md path:
bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/validate-skill.sh <path-to-SKILL.md>
The validator checks:
name field present and lowercase-hyphendescription field present with trigger phrasesallowed-tools field present (warns if missing)- No dev/lint/build/coverage scope violations in
allowed-tools or body
- File size within the
5K token target (20KB)
- Attribution footer present
Scaffold — directory structure only
Use when you want an empty directory skeleton without generating content:
bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <skill-name>
Then fill SKILL.md manually using the template as a guide.
Scope law for new skills
Every skill created by this builder MUST comply with the Scope Law:
- The plugin PLANS and ORCHESTRATES. It NEVER writes application code, runs tests, lints, checks coverage, builds, or reviews implemented code.
- The last artifact any skill may produce is a ready-for-dev story file or a handoff manifest. Implementation is handed to EXTERNAL dev tools/plugins.
- Acceptance Criteria, Testing STRATEGY, and Dev Notes are planning — allowed. Executing tests or writing implementation code is out of scope.
The validate-skill.sh script enforces this automatically by flagging forbidden terms.
BMAD fidelity reminders
When designing skills, track the BMAD Method conventions:
| Convention |
Rule |
| Scale Tracks |
Quick Flow / BMad Method / Enterprise — user confirms interactively |
| Story size |
~2-8h, one dev-day max; split if larger |
| Delivery tracking |
Stories remaining / completion rate — NO Fibonacci points, velocity, or burndown |
| Story name |
{epic}.{story}.{slug}.story.md |
| Story status |
backlog → ready-for-dev → in-progress → review → done |
| Decision log |
Decisions thread through decision-log.md |
| Project constitution |
project-context.md loaded across skills |
| Three intents |
Create / Update / Validate where applicable |
Available scripts
| Script |
Purpose |
scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <name> |
Creates skills/<name>/ with subdirs and starter SKILL.md |
scripts/validate-skill.sh <SKILL.md> |
Validates frontmatter, scope, size, and attribution footer |
Invoke with the ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT} prefix shown above. The orchestrator marks scripts executable; you may also run them via bash.
Templates
| Template |
Use for |
templates/skill.template.md |
Skeleton for a new planning/orchestration SKILL.md |
templates/document.template.md |
Generic planning document (PRD section, brief, spec section, etc.) |
Subagent strategy
For creating a full skill package in parallel:
| Agent |
Task |
Output |
| Agent 1 |
Draft SKILL.md body from gathered requirements |
skills/<name>/SKILL.md |
| Agent 2 |
Write domain scripts (validators, checklists) |
skills/<name>/scripts/ |
| Agent 3 |
Write domain templates |
skills/<name>/templates/ |
| Agent 4 |
Write REFERENCE.md if body exceeds 5K tokens |
skills/<name>/REFERENCE.md |
Coordination: gather requirements first (sequential), write spec to bmad-output/skill-spec.md, then fan out. Main context validates all outputs with validate-skill.sh and assembles the final package.
Notes for LLMs
- Use TodoWrite to track which components have been created.
- Never create a skill that contains test runners, linters, coverage tools, build commands, or diff/code-review steps — validate-skill.sh will flag these.
- Always end SKILL.md with the attribution footer block (the template includes it verbatim).
- Keep SKILL.md under 5K tokens; use REFERENCE.md for lengthy patterns.
- Use
${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT} for all internal paths — never hardcode ~/.claude or absolute machine paths.
- Output artifacts (non-skill files) go under
bmad-output/ by default.
Part of the BMAD Planning & Orchestrator plugin — a Claude Code harness for the BMAD Method by the BMAD Code Organization (https://github.com/bmad-code-org/BMAD-METHOD). Implements the spirit of bmad-bmb-builder. All methodology credit belongs to the BMAD Code Organization.
1---2name: bmad-builder3description: Meta-skill for scaffolding and validating custom PLANNING/ORCHESTRATION skills within the BMAD Planning & Orchestrator plugin. Produces the full skill directory: SKILL.md, scripts, and templates — all pre-targeted at this plugin's path conventions. Includes a scope-violation checker so newly created skills never drift into dev/lint/build/coverage territory. Use when the user says "create a skill", "scaffold a skill", "build a new planning skill", "add a skill to the orchestrator", "extend BMAD planning", "custom orchestration skill", "validate this skill", "check this skill for scope violations", "new skill for the planner", or "bmad-builder". Supports three intents: Create (new skill skeleton), Validate (check an existing SKILL.md), Scaffold (directory structure only). This skill plans and scaffolds only — it NEVER writes application code, runs tests, lints, or builds.4---5
6# BMAD Builder
7
8**Function:** Scaffold and validate custom planning/orchestration skills for the BMAD Planning & Orchestrator plugin. Produces compliant SKILL.md files, shell scripts, and templates — pre-wired to this plugin's path conventions — and runs scope-violation checks to keep new skills inside the PLAN/ORCHESTRATE boundary.
9
10## Scope (PLAN, never build)
11
12This skill produces planning artifacts and skill skeleton files. It does NOT write application code, run tests, lint, check coverage, or execute builds. If a skill being designed is tempted to "implement", "fix the code", "run the suite", or "review the diff" — that is a scope violation. Plan and hand off instead.
13
14## Three intents
15
16Always clarify which intent applies before starting.
17
18### Create — new planning skill from scratch
19
201. Gather requirements (use TodoWrite to track):
21 - Skill name (lowercase-hyphen, prefixed `bmad-`; e.g. `bmad-example`)
22 - What planning/orchestration problem it solves
23 - Trigger phrases users will say
24 - Allowed tools (subset of: Read, Write, Edit, Bash, Glob, Grep, WebSearch, WebFetch, TodoWrite)
25 - Which BMAD track(s) it applies to (Quick Flow / BMad Method / Enterprise)
26 - Upstream BMAD counterpart (e.g. `bmad-risk-assessment`)
27
282. Run the scaffold script to create the directory:
29 ```bash
30 bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <skill-name>
31 ```
32 This creates `skills/<skill-name>/` with `scripts/` and `templates/` subdirectories and a starter SKILL.md.
33
343. Fill the SKILL.md using the skill template:
35 - Reference: `${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/templates/skill.template.md`
36 - Keep body under 5K tokens; push long reference detail to a sibling `REFERENCE.md` in the new skill's own folder
37 - Use `${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}` for all paths to bundled scripts/templates
38 - Artifacts go to `bmad-output/` (honor user-configured folder)
39 - End with the mandatory attribution footer (see template)
40
414. Validate the new skill:
42 ```bash
43 bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/validate-skill.sh \
44 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md
45 ```
46 Fix all errors; review all warnings before declaring done.
47
48### Validate — check an existing SKILL.md
49
50Run the validator directly against any SKILL.md path:
51```bash
52bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/validate-skill.sh <path-to-SKILL.md>
53```
54
55The validator checks:
56- `name` field present and lowercase-hyphen
57- `description` field present with trigger phrases
58- `allowed-tools` field present (warns if missing)
59- No dev/lint/build/coverage scope violations in `allowed-tools` or body
60- File size within the ~5K token target (~20KB)
61- Attribution footer present
62
63### Scaffold — directory structure only
64
65Use when you want an empty directory skeleton without generating content:
66```bash
67bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/bmad-builder/scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <skill-name>
68```
69Then fill SKILL.md manually using the template as a guide.
70
71## Scope law for new skills
72
73Every skill created by this builder MUST comply with the Scope Law:
74
75- The plugin PLANS and ORCHESTRATES. It NEVER writes application code, runs tests, lints, checks coverage, builds, or reviews implemented code.
76- The last artifact any skill may produce is a ready-for-dev story file or a handoff manifest. Implementation is handed to EXTERNAL dev tools/plugins.
77- Acceptance Criteria, Testing STRATEGY, and Dev Notes are planning — allowed. Executing tests or writing implementation code is out of scope.
78
79The `validate-skill.sh` script enforces this automatically by flagging forbidden terms.
80
81## BMAD fidelity reminders
82
83When designing skills, track the BMAD Method conventions:
84
85| Convention | Rule |
86|------------|------|
87| Scale Tracks | Quick Flow / BMad Method / Enterprise — user confirms interactively |
88| Story size | ~2-8h, one dev-day max; split if larger |
89| Delivery tracking | Stories remaining / completion rate — NO Fibonacci points, velocity, or burndown |
90| Story name | `{epic}.{story}.{slug}.story.md` |
91| Story status | backlog → ready-for-dev → in-progress → review → done |
92| Decision log | Decisions thread through `decision-log.md` |
93| Project constitution | `project-context.md` loaded across skills |
94| Three intents | Create / Update / Validate where applicable |
95
96## Available scripts
97
98| Script | Purpose |
99|--------|---------|
100| `scripts/scaffold-skill.sh <name>` | Creates `skills/<name>/` with subdirs and starter SKILL.md |
101| `scripts/validate-skill.sh <SKILL.md>` | Validates frontmatter, scope, size, and attribution footer |
102
103Invoke with the `${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}` prefix shown above. The orchestrator marks scripts executable; you may also run them via `bash`.
104
105## Templates
106
107| Template | Use for |
108|----------|---------|
109| `templates/skill.template.md` | Skeleton for a new planning/orchestration SKILL.md |
110| `templates/document.template.md` | Generic planning document (PRD section, brief, spec section, etc.) |
111
112## Subagent strategy
113
114For creating a full skill package in parallel:
115
116| Agent | Task | Output |
117|-------|------|--------|
118| Agent 1 | Draft SKILL.md body from gathered requirements | `skills/<name>/SKILL.md` |
119| Agent 2 | Write domain scripts (validators, checklists) | `skills/<name>/scripts/` |
120| Agent 3 | Write domain templates | `skills/<name>/templates/` |
121| Agent 4 | Write REFERENCE.md if body exceeds 5K tokens | `skills/<name>/REFERENCE.md` |
122
123Coordination: gather requirements first (sequential), write spec to `bmad-output/skill-spec.md`, then fan out. Main context validates all outputs with `validate-skill.sh` and assembles the final package.
124
125## Notes for LLMs
126
127- Use TodoWrite to track which components have been created.
128- Never create a skill that contains test runners, linters, coverage tools, build commands, or diff/code-review steps — validate-skill.sh will flag these.
129- Always end SKILL.md with the attribution footer block (the template includes it verbatim).
130- Keep SKILL.md under 5K tokens; use REFERENCE.md for lengthy patterns.
131- Use `${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}` for all internal paths — never hardcode `~/.claude` or absolute machine paths.
132- Output artifacts (non-skill files) go under `bmad-output/` by default.
133
134> ---
135> Part of the **BMAD Planning & Orchestrator** plugin — a Claude Code harness for the **BMAD Method** by the **BMAD Code Organization** (https://github.com/bmad-code-org/BMAD-METHOD). Implements the spirit of `bmad-bmb-builder`. All methodology credit belongs to the BMAD Code Organization.
aj-geddes