Swain Retro

Retrospectives

Captures learnings at natural completion points and persists them for future use. This skill is both auto-triggered (EPIC terminal transition hook in swain-design) and manually invocable via /swain-retro.

Output modes

Invocation modes

Terminal states that trigger auto-retro: Complete, Abandoned, Superseded. The retro content adapts to the terminal state — an Abandoned EPIC's retro focuses on why work stopped and what was learned, not on success criteria.

Step 1 — Gather context

Collect evidence of what happened during the work period.

For EPIC-scoped retros (auto or scoped)

# Get the EPIC and its children
bash skills/swain-design/scripts/chart.sh deps <EPIC-ID>

# Get closed tasks linked to child specs
TK_BIN="$(cd skills/swain-do/bin && pwd)"
export PATH="$TK_BIN:$PATH"
ticket-query '.status == "closed"' 2>/dev/null | grep -l "<EPIC-ID>\|<SPEC-IDs>"

Also read:

• The EPIC's lifecycle table (dates, duration)
• Child SPECs' verification tables (what was proven)
• Any ADRs created during the work
• Git log for commits between EPIC activation and completion dates

For manual (unscoped) retros

# Recent git activity
git log --oneline --since="1 week ago" --no-merges

# Recently closed tasks
TK_BIN="$(cd skills/swain-do/bin && pwd)"
export PATH="$TK_BIN:$PATH"
ticket-query '.status == "closed"' 2>/dev/null | head -20

# Recently transitioned artifacts
bash skills/swain-design/scripts/chart.sh status 2>/dev/null

Also check:

• Existing memory files for context on prior patterns
• Previous retro docs in docs/swain-retro/ for recurring themes

Step 2 — Generate or prompt reflection

Auto mode (non-interactive)

When invoked by swain-design during a non-interactive EPIC terminal transition (e.g., dispatched agent, batch processing), generate the retro content automatically from the gathered context:

1. Synthesize what was accomplished, what changed from the original scope, and what patterns are visible in the commit/task history
2. For Abandoned or Superseded EPICs, focus on why the work stopped and what was learned
3. Proceed directly to Step 3 (memory extraction) and Step 4 (write output)

Interactive mode

When the user is present (live session, manual invocation), present a summary and offer reflection:

Summary format

Retro scope: {EPIC-NNN title / "recent work"} Period: {start date} — {end date} Artifacts completed: {list} Tasks closed: {count} Key commits: {notable commits}

Reflection questions

Ask these one at a time, waiting for user response between each:

1. What went well? What patterns or approaches worked effectively that we should repeat?
2. What was surprising? Anything unexpected — blockers, shortcuts, scope changes?
3. What would you change? If you could redo this work, what would you do differently?
4. What patterns emerged? Any recurring themes across tasks — tooling friction, design gaps, communication patterns?

Adapt follow-up questions based on user responses. If the user gives brief answers, probe deeper. If they're expansive, move on.

Step 3 — Distill into memory files

After the reflection conversation, create or update memory files:

Feedback memories

For behavioral patterns and process learnings that should guide future agent behavior:

---
name: retro-{topic}
description: {one-line description of the learning}
type: feedback
---

{The pattern or rule}

**Why:** {User's explanation from the retro}
**How to apply:** {When this guidance kicks in}

Write to the project memory directory:

~/.claude/projects/<project-slug>/memory/feedback_retro_{topic}.md

Update MEMORY.md index.

Project memories

For context about ongoing work patterns, team dynamics, or project-specific learnings:

---
name: retro-{topic}
description: {one-line description}
type: project
---

{The fact or observation}

**Why:** {Context from the retro}
**How to apply:** {How this shapes future suggestions}

Rules for memory creation

• Only create memories the user has explicitly validated during the reflection
• Merge with existing memories when the learning extends a prior pattern
• Use absolute dates (from the retro context), not relative
• Maximum 3-5 memory files per retro — distill, don't dump

Step 4 — Write output

Output destination depends on scope — see Output modes at the top.

EPIC-scoped: embed in the EPIC artifact

Append a ## Retrospective section to the EPIC markdown file, before the ## Lifecycle table. This keeps the EPIC as the single source of truth.

## Retrospective

**Terminal state:** {Complete | Abandoned | Superseded}
**Period:** {activation date} — {terminal date}

### Summary

{What was accomplished — or for Abandoned/Superseded, what was learned and why work stopped}

### Reflection

{Synthesized findings — from auto-generation or interactive Q&A}

### Learnings captured

| Memory file | Type | Summary |
|------------|------|---------|
| feedback_retro_x.md | feedback | ... |
| project_retro_y.md | project | ... |

Cross-epic / time-based: standalone retro doc (required)

For manual retros not scoped to a single EPIC, a standalone doc is required — no single artifact owns the scope.

mkdir -p docs/swain-retro

File: docs/swain-retro/YYYY-MM-DD-{topic-slug}.md

# Retro: {title}

**Date:** {YYYY-MM-DD}
**Scope:** {description of what's covered}
**Period:** {start} — {end}

## Summary

{Brief description of what was completed across the scope}

## Artifacts

| Artifact | Title | Outcome |
|----------|-------|---------|
| ... | ... | Complete/Abandoned/... |

## Reflection

### What went well
{User's responses, synthesized}

### What was surprising
{User's responses, synthesized}

### What would change
{User's responses, synthesized}

### Patterns observed
{User's responses, synthesized}

## Learnings captured

| Memory file | Type | Summary |
|------------|------|---------|
| feedback_retro_x.md | feedback | ... |
| project_retro_y.md | project | ... |

Step 5 — Update session bookmark

BOOKMARK="$(find . .claude .agents -path '*/swain-session/scripts/swain-bookmark.sh' -print -quit 2>/dev/null)"
bash "$BOOKMARK" "Completed retro for {scope} — {N} learnings captured"

Integration with swain-design

swain-design orchestrates this skill when an EPIC transitions to any terminal state (Complete, Abandoned, Superseded):

1. swain-design completes the phase transition (move, status update, commit, hash stamp)
2. swain-design invokes swain-retro with the EPIC ID and terminal state
3. swain-retro gathers context, generates/prompts reflection, extracts memories, and embeds the ## Retrospective section in the EPIC
4. swain-design commits the retro content as part of (or immediately after) the transition

Interactive detection: If the session is interactive (user is present and responding), swain-retro offers the reflection questions. If non-interactive (dispatched agent, batch), it runs fully automated.

This is best-effort — if swain-retro is not available, the EPIC transition still succeeds without a retro section.

Referencing prior retros

When running a new retro, scan both EPIC artifacts (grep for ## Retrospective sections) and docs/swain-retro/ for prior retros. If patterns recur across multiple retros, call them out explicitly — recurring themes are the most valuable learnings.

# Check standalone retro docs
ls docs/swain-retro/*.md 2>/dev/null | head -10

# Check embedded retros in EPICs
grep -rl "## Retrospective" docs/epic/ 2>/dev/null | head -10