Planning

Planning

Create detailed technical implementation plans through research, codebase analysis, solution design, and comprehensive documentation.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• Planning new feature implementations
• Architecting system designs
• Evaluating technical approaches
• Creating implementation roadmaps
• Breaking down complex requirements
• Assessing technical trade-offs

Core Responsibilities & Rules

Always honoring YAGNI, KISS, and DRY principles. Be honest, be brutal, straight to the point, and be concise.

1. Research & Analysis

Load: references/research-phase.md Skip if: Provided with researcher reports

2. Codebase Understanding

Load: references/codebase-understanding.md Skip if: Provided with scout reports

3. Solution Design

Load: references/solution-design.md

4. Plan Creation & Organization

Load: references/plan-organization.md

5. Task Breakdown & Output Standards

Load: references/output-standards.md

Workflow Process

1. Initial Analysis → Read codebase docs, understand context
2. Research Phase → Spawn researchers, investigate approaches
3. Synthesis → Analyze reports, identify optimal solution
4. Design Phase → Create architecture, implementation design
5. Plan Documentation → Write comprehensive plan
6. Review & Refine → Ensure completeness, clarity, actionability

Output Requirements

• DO NOT implement code - only create plans
• Respond with plan file path and summary
• Ensure self-contained plans with necessary context
• Include code snippets/pseudocode when clarifying
• Provide multiple options with trade-offs when appropriate
• Fully respect the ./docs/development-rules.md file.

Task Integration (Optional)

When session has CLAUDE_CODE_TASK_LIST_ID set (active plan):

• Use TaskCreate to create tasks for each phase with clear subjects
• Set dependencies: Phase N+1 blockedBy Phase N
• Subagents coordinate via shared task list automatically
• Use TaskUpdate to mark progress (in_progress → completed)

Important

DO NOT create plans or reports in USER directory. ALWAYS create plans or reports in CURRENT WORKING PROJECT DIRECTORY.

Plan Directory Structure IN CURRENT WORKING PROJECT DIRECTORY:

plans/
└── {date}-plan-name/
    ├── research/
    │   ├── researcher-XX-report.md
    │   └── ...
    ├── reports/
    │   ├── XX-report.md
    │   └── ...
    ├── scout/
    │   ├── scout-XX-report.md
    │   └── ...
    ├── plan.md
    ├── phase-XX-phase-name-here.md
    └── ...

Active Plan State

Prevents version proliferation by tracking current working plan via session state.

Active vs Suggested Plans

Check the ## Plan Context section injected by hooks:

• "Plan: {path}" = Active plan, explicitly set via set-active-plan.cjs - use for reports
• "Suggested: {path}" = Branch-matched, hint only - do NOT auto-use
• "Plan: none" = No active plan

Rules

1. If "Plan:" shows a path: Ask "Continue with existing plan? [Y/n]"
2. If "Suggested:" shows a path: Inform user, ask if they want to activate or create new
3. If "Plan: none": Create new plan using naming from ## Naming section
4. Update on create: Run node .claude/scripts/set-active-plan.cjs {plan-dir}

Report Output Location

All agents writing reports MUST:

1. Check ## Naming section injected by hooks for the computed naming pattern
2. Active plans use plan-specific reports path
3. Suggested plans use default reports path (not plan folder)

Important

DO NOT create plans or reports in USER directory. ALWAYS create plans or reports in CURRENT WORKING PROJECT DIRECTORY.

Important: Suggested plans do NOT get plan-specific reports - this prevents pollution of old plan folders.

Quality Standards

• Be thorough and specific
• Consider long-term maintainability
• Research thoroughly when uncertain
• Address security and performance concerns
• Make plans detailed enough for junior developers
• Validate against existing codebase patterns

Remember: Plan quality determines implementation success. Be comprehensive and consider all solution aspects.