nicodiansk Story Breakdown
Transform requirements into INVEST-compliant user stories with testable acceptance criteria.
Announce: "Using story breakdown to create implementable stories."
The Iron Law
NO STORY WITHOUT ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
Every story must have testable acceptance criteria before implementation.
No exceptions:
- Don't start work without criteria
- Don't assume "obvious" criteria
- Don't defer criteria to "later"
- Later never comes
INVEST Criteria
Every story MUST pass:
| Criterion | Question | Failure Symptom |
|---|---|---|
| Independent | Can this ship without other stories? | "We need to do X first" |
| Negotiable | Can scope be discussed? | "It has to be exactly this" |
| Valuable | Does user/business care? | "It's technical debt" |
| Estimable | Can team size it? | "No idea how long" |
| Small | Fits in one iteration? | "It's a 2-week story" |
| Testable | Can we verify done? | "We'll know when we see it" |
Failing any criterion = story needs work.
Epic Template
# Epic: [Name]
## Problem Statement
[What problem does this solve? Who has this problem?]
## Success Metrics
- [Measurable outcome 1]
- [Measurable outcome 2]
## Scope
### In Scope
- [Feature/capability]
### Out of Scope
- [Explicitly excluded]
## Stories
1. [Story 1 title]
2. [Story 2 title]
## Dependencies
- [External dependencies]
## Risks
- [Risk]: [Mitigation]
Story Template
# Story: [Title]
**As a** [role/persona],
**I want** [capability/feature],
**So that** [benefit/value].
## Acceptance Criteria
### Criterion 1: [Name]
**Given** [precondition]
**When** [action]
**Then** [expected result]
### Criterion 2: [Name]
**Given** [precondition]
**When** [action]
**Then** [expected result]
## Technical Notes
- [Implementation consideration]
## Story Points: [1/2/3/5/8]
Breakdown Process
Phase 1: Understand the Epic
- Identify the user/persona
- State the core problem
- Define success metrics
- List what's explicitly OUT of scope
Phase 2: Slice by User Value
- What's the smallest valuable increment?
- Split by workflow, not by component
- Each story = one user capability
Good splits: By workflow step, user role, data type, happy path vs error Bad splits: By technical layer, by file, by developer
Phase 3: Apply INVEST
Run each story through all 6 criteria. Fix failures. Re-split if needed.
Phase 4: Write Acceptance Criteria
- Start with happy path
- Add error states
- Add edge cases
- Each criterion = one test case
Sizing Guide
| Points | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trivial | Copy change, config toggle |
| 2 | Simple | Add field, simple validation |
| 3 | Moderate | New form, basic CRUD |
| 5 | Complex | Multi-step flow, integration |
| 8 | Too large | Needs to be split |
If >5 points, split the story.
Red Flags — STOP
| Flag | Problem |
|---|---|
| "Technical story" | No user value — attach to user story |
| "As a developer" | Wrong persona — find the actual user |
| No acceptance criteria | Not a story — it's a wish |
| Vague criteria | "Works correctly" — define what correct means |
| >5 points | Too big — split it |
| Implementation in story | "Using React" — describe WHAT not HOW |
After Stories Are Complete
- Save to
docs/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<feature>-stories.md - Commit
- Offer: "Ready for implementation planning?" → chains to
/turbocharge:plan
Workflow Position
brainstorm → story → plan → build → review → ship