Team

Context (gather first)

Run these and read the output before planning:

git branch --show-current
git status --short

Pipeline

Read → Decompose → Plan → Gate 1 → Assign → Run → Gate 2 → Synthesize

The input — the text after /team (Claude Code) or $team (Codex) — is the user's natural-language goal. Run the pipeline. Don't ask permission for read-only work. Surface only when a gate fires.

0. Required reading (before Interpret)

Blocking, in order:

1. Always read references/SKILL.md — the project doc index. Use it to identify which reference files are relevant to the goal.
2. If the request requires building (writing/editing code, creating files, scaffolding features), also read references/development/conventions.md before any Plan node that writes code. No code-writing agent is dispatched until this read has happened in the main thread.

Cite both reads in the Gate 1 checklist as the first row(s). Skipping either is a planning failure — roll back to step 0.

No references/SKILL.md? The reference layer isn't set up here — skip this step and work from the codebase itself. Say so at the top of the run. Don't invent a reference doc, and don't halt over its absence. /setup builds it, in either mode.

1. Interpret

Extract: real intent · success shape (advice / fix / comparison / plan) · scope · destructive?

State a one-line restatement so the user can interrupt:

"Interpreting as: . Dispatching team to produce: ."

2. Plan the DAG

Decompose into 3–5 nodes. Each node: type · deps · agent kind (Explore for reads, Plan for design, general-purpose for action / +isolation: "worktree" for code writes).

Always end with a critic node prompted to disagree with the synthesizer.

3. Gate 1 — Review the plan

For each plan finding, mark Auto or Ask using Claude Code's auto-mode as the classifier:

• Auto-mode would prompt → Ask
• Auto-mode would run silently → Auto
• /team-specific addition: ambiguous name/path with multiple valid resolutions → Ask

Print the checklist at the top of your response (one row per finding, Auto / Ask + 1-line note).

• All Auto → apply silently, proceed.
• Any Ask → use AskUserQuestion with the single most important question. Revise. Re-run Gate 1. Max 2 loops; on the 3rd, stop and surface the planning problem.

4. Run

Dispatch all dep-free nodes in ONE message (parallel Task calls). As layers finish, dispatch the next layer the same way. Critic runs last.

5. Gate 2 — Review the outcome

For each agent: format ok · scope ok · substance ok · budget ok · no "scope was wrong" signal.

• All pass → synthesize.
• N pass, 1 fails → re-dispatch only the failed node with sharpened prompt.
• "Scope was wrong" signal → roll back to Step 3.

Max 2 rollbacks per invocation. On the 3rd failure, stop:

"Plan and execution disagree after 2 rollbacks. Here's what I tried and the next plan I'd try — Y to run / N to revise."

6. Synthesize

Final output:

1. The answer (recommendation / fix / diff)
2. Why — 1–3 sentences, cite file:line or references/*.md
3. Critic pushback (skip if rubber-stamp)
4. Out of scope (if user might expect it)

Never dump raw agent reports.

Hard rules

• Main thread orchestrates only. Reads >3 files? Use Task.
• Always include a critic. Critics must disagree, not approve.
• Auto/Ask follows auto-mode — don't invent new classifications.
• Cite file:line or doc section for every claim.

Caps

Hard (enforce):

• Max 5 agents per layer
• Max 10 agents total per /team invocation
• Max 4 DAG layers (deeper = wrong problem)
• Max 2 rollbacks (already in Gate 2)

Soft (debug signal):

• Total token budget ~60k; per-agent report ~4k
• Persistently over → re-scope, you over-fanned

Principle:

• Reports should be the smallest table that conveys findings. Trust the model to self-size; the soft caps are guard-rails, not gates.

Anti-patterns

• Asking permission for read-only research
• Serial Task dispatch when parallel is possible
• Full rollback when only one node failed
• Critic that rubber-stamps (re-prompt to disagree)
• Dumping raw sub-agent output instead of synthesizing

Last Updated: 2026-08-18