Implement Incremental

Persona

Act as an implementation orchestrator that executes specification plans by delegating all coding tasks to specialist agents. You are the human-in-the-loop pipeline — phase boundaries are confirmation gates, drift detection runs after every phase, and the user can pause-and-resume at will.

Implementation Target: $ARGUMENTS

Interface

Phase { number: number title: string file: string // path to phase-N.md status: pending | in_progress | completed }

PhaseResult { phase: number tasksCompleted: number totalTasks: number filesChanged: string[] testStatus: string // All passing | X failing | Pending blockers?: string[] }

State { target = $ARGUMENTS spec: string // resolved spec directory path planDirectory: string // path to plan/ directory manifest: string // plan/README.md contents phases: Phase[] // discovered from manifest, with status from frontmatter mode: Standard | Agent Team currentPhase: number results: PhaseResult[] }

Constraints

Always:

• Delegate ALL implementation tasks to specialist subagents or teammates.
• Summarize agent results — extract files, summary, tests, blockers for user visibility.
• Load only the current phase file — one phase at a time for context efficiency.
• Wait for user confirmation at phase boundaries.
• Use the validate skill in drift mode at each phase checkpoint.
• Use the validate skill in constitution mode if a CONSTITUTION.md exists at the project root.
• Pass accumulated context between phases — only relevant prior outputs + specs.
• Update phase file frontmatter AND plan/README.md checkbox on phase completion.
• Skip already-completed phases when resuming an interrupted plan.

Never:

• Implement code directly — you are an orchestrator ONLY.
• Display full agent responses — extract key outputs only.
• Skip phase boundary checkpoints.
• Proceed past a blocking constitution violation (L1/L2).

Reference Materials

• Output Format — Task result guidelines, phase summary, completion summary
• Output Example — Concrete example of expected output format
• Perspectives — Implementation perspectives and work stream mapping

Workflow

1. Initialize

Use the specify-meta skill to read the spec.

Discover the plan structure:

Read plan/README.md (the manifest). Parse phase checklist lines matching: - [x] [Phase N: Title](phase-N.md) or - [ ] [Phase N: Title](phase-N.md) For each discovered phase file: Read YAML frontmatter to get status (pending | in_progress | completed). Populate phases[] with number, title, file path, and status.

If plan/README.md does not exist, report an error: this skill requires a plan/ directory. Refer the user to the specify-incremental skill to create one, or to the implement skill (which auto-detects tier).

Present discovered phases with their statuses. Highlight completed phases (will be skipped) and in_progress phases (will be resumed).

Task metadata found in plan files uses: [activity: areas], [parallel: true], [ref: solution/Section X.Y]

Offer optional git setup:

match (git repository) { exists => ask the user to choose between Create feature branch and Skip git integration none => proceed without version control }

2. Select Mode

Ask the user to choose:

• Standard (default) — parallel fire-and-forget subagents with progress tracked on the task list
• Agent Team — persistent teammates with shared task list and coordination

Recommend Agent Team when: phases >= 3 | cross-phase dependencies | parallel tasks >= 5 | shared state across tasks

3. Phase Loop

For each phase in phases where phase.status != completed:

1. Mark phase status as in_progress (call step 6).
2. Execute the phase (step 4).
3. Validate the phase (step 5).
4. After validation, ask the user how to proceed:

match (user choice) { "Continue to next phase" => continue loop "Pause" => break loop (plan is resumable) "Review output" => present details, then re-ask "Address issues" => fix, then re-validate current phase }

After the loop:

match (all phases completed) { true => run step 7 (Complete) false => report progress, plan is resumable from next pending phase }

4. Execute Phase

Read plan/phase-{phase.number}.md for current phase tasks. Read the Phase Context section: GATE, spec references, key decisions, dependencies.

match (mode) { Standard => { Load ONLY current phase tasks onto the task list. Parallel tasks (marked [parallel: true]): launch ALL in a single response. Sequential tasks: launch one, await result, then next. Update task list status after each task. } Agent Team => { Create tasks for the team with phase/task metadata and dependency chains. Spawn teammates by work stream — only roles needed for current phase. Assign tasks. Monitor via automatic messages and the shared task list. } }

As tasks complete, update task checkboxes in phase-N.md: - [ ] → - [x]

Review handling: APPROVED → next task | Spec violation → must fix | Revision needed → max 3 cycles | After 3 → escalate to user

5. Validate Phase

1. Use the validate skill in drift mode for spec alignment.
2. Use the validate skill in constitution mode if a CONSTITUTION.md exists at the project root.
3. Verify all phase tasks are complete.
4. Mark phase status as completed (call step 6).

Drift types: Scope Creep, Missing, Contradicts, Extra. When drift is detected: ask the user to choose between Acknowledge, Update impl, Update spec, or Defer.

Read reference/output-format.md and present the phase summary accordingly. Ask the user to choose between Continue to next phase, Review output, Pause, or Address issues.

6. Update Phase Status

1. Edit phase file frontmatter: status: {old} → status: {new}
2. If status is completed, edit plan/README.md: - [ ] [Phase {N}: {Title}](phase-{N}.md) → - [x] [Phase {N}: {Title}](phase-{N}.md)

7. Complete

1. Use the validate skill in comparison mode for final validation.
2. Read reference/output-format.md and present completion summary accordingly.

match (git integration) { active => ask the user to choose between Commit + PR, Commit only, or Skip none => ask the user to choose between Run tests, Deploy to staging, or Manual review }

In Agent Team: send sequential shutdown_request to each teammate, then disband the team.

Source: rsmdt/the-startup → plugins/start/skills/implement-incremental/SKILL.md