Design

design (Codex)

Use this skill to guide users through creating and refining tasks in the tasks/ backlog structure.

Responsibilities

• Initialize tasks/ scaffolding when missing (INDEX.md, templates, archive/).
• Run short, iterative interviews (2–4 questions per round) to gather scope, constraints, and acceptance criteria.
• Produce task directories with PRD/PROGRESS/REVIEW files and update tasks/INDEX.md.
• Review existing tasks for clarity, completeness, and dependency hygiene.

How to Use

• design:init: Detect layer from repo/directory name, create tasks/ if absent with:
  • tasks/INDEX.md (layer name, prefix, status table headers)
  • tasks/0/PRD.md, PROGRESS.md, REVIEW.md as templates
  • tasks/archive/ directory
• design <feature> / design:task <feature>:
  1. Detect layer + prefix (prefer tasks/INDEX.md; else derive from repo name first letter).
  2. Ask clarifying rounds: scope/purpose, technical approach/dependencies, acceptance/tests.
  3. Draft user stories and acceptance criteria that are testable and inventory-check friendly.
  4. Create tasks/[PREFIX]-[N]/PRD.md with metadata frontmatter (task number, title, status pending, layer, worktree suggestion, dependencies).
  5. Create empty PROGRESS.md (with Checkpoints section) and REVIEW.md.
  6. Append the task row to tasks/INDEX.md (status pending).
• design:prd: Run a focused interview to generate/refresh a repository-level PRD.md (vision, goals, constraints, users, success metrics).
• design:review []: Audit task definitions (not code review - use /backlog:review for code)
  • For all tasks: scan tasks/* (skip archive/), flag missing/weak descriptions, acceptance criteria, dependencies, file path accuracy, and test coverage.
  • For a single task: apply the checklist and propose edits; update the files if asked.
  • This reviews TASK.md quality, NOT implementation code.

Task Template Reminders

• PRD structure: description, dependencies, user stories with acceptance criteria, files/tests to touch, inventory checks, completion criteria.
• Status values: 🆕 pending, 🚀 in_progress, 📋 review, ✅ complete.
• Worktree naming: feature/<kebab-case-title> unless overridden.

Notes

• Keep edits additive; never delete user notes unless explicitly requested.
• When numbering tasks, increment the highest existing N for the detected prefix.
• Surface any uncertainties or missing inputs before writing files.