# Strategic Testing

> Decide whether a change warrants new tests and choose proportionate verification. Use before adding tests, when planning validation, or when reviewing whether a proposed test protects meaningful behavior.

- Skill: `franciscomoretti/strategic-testing` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add franciscomoretti/strategic-testing`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/franciscomoretti/strategic-testing/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: franciscomoretti (https://skillmd.com/u/franciscomoretti)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/franciscomoretti/strategic-testing

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# Strategic testing

Add tests only when they protect meaningful behavior or a stable contract that existing checks could realistically miss.

- Prioritize domain invariants, important edge cases, public interfaces, persisted data, security boundaries, and integration seams.
- Skip tests for mechanical edits, implementation details, existing coverage, or changes already verified by types, linting, or schema validation.
- Choose the smallest test level that protects the behavior.

Before adding a test, identify the realistic failure it prevents and confirm that the maintenance cost is justified. If that case is weak, do not add one.