Phase Context Loading Protocol
This skill defines skill loading tiers to optimize token consumption while preserving automation capabilities.
[!IMPORTANT] Single Source of Truth for Skill Loading Strategy. Reference this skill to understand WHEN to load WHICH skills.
TIER 0: System Foundation — ALWAYS LOADED
[!CAUTION] NEVER lazy-load TIER 0 skills. They enable core automation. These skills MUST be available in EVERY session at bootstrap.
| Skill | Tokens | Why Always Load |
|---|---|---|
core-principles |
~519 | Anti-hallucination rules, Stub-First, Documentation First |
skill-safe-commands |
~927 | Enables automation — mv, ls, git, tests auto-run |
artifact-management |
~636 | Archiving protocol, file management, dual state tracking |
| TOTAL | ~2,082 | Non-negotiable system foundation |
TIER 0 Loading Rule
- Load at session bootstrap (via
GEMINI.md/.cursorrules) - These skills are loaded BEFORE any phase begins
- Never remove or defer loading of TIER 0 skills
TIER 1: Phase-Triggered — Load on Phase Entry
These skills are phase-specific and loaded when entering the corresponding phase.
| Phase | Skills to Load | Approx. Tokens |
|---|---|---|
| Analysis | requirements-analysis, skill-task-model, (skill-archive-task if new task) |
~2,000-2,900 |
| Architecture | architecture-design, (architecture-format-core OR -extended) |
~1,750-3,100 |
| Planning | planning-decision-tree, skill-planning-format, tdd-stub-first |
~1,425 |
| Development | developer-guidelines, documentation-standards |
~768 |
| Review | Phase-specific -review-checklist skill |
~300-400 |
| Security | security-audit |
~500 |
| VDD | vdd-adversarial, (adversarial-* per workflow) |
~1,000-2,500 |
TIER 1 Loading Conditions
Analysis Phase:
requirements-analysis— When 02_analyst activatedskill-task-model— When creating/updating TASK.mdskill-archive-task— When existing TASK.md detected AND new (unrelated) task
Architecture Phase:
architecture-design— When 04_architect activatedarchitecture-format-core— Default for most updatesarchitecture-format-extended— Load ONLY for:- Creating NEW system from scratch
- Major refactor (>3 components affected)
- User explicitly requests "full architecture template"
Planning Phase:
planning-decision-tree— When 06_planner activatedskill-planning-format— When creating PLAN.mdtdd-stub-first— When stub creation starts
Development Phase:
developer-guidelines— When 08_developer activateddocumentation-standards— When updating docs
Review Phase:
- Load the appropriate
*-review-checklistfor the current review type
TIER 2: Extended — Load Only When Explicitly Requested
These skills are specialized and loaded only when explicitly invoked by user or workflow.
| Skill | Tokens | Loading Condition |
|---|---|---|
architecture-format-extended |
~3,000 | New system / major refactor / user requests full template |
skill-reverse-engineering |
~1,322 | User requests "sync docs with code" / docs-code mismatch |
skill-update-memory |
~1,101 | Post-development phase, .AGENTS.md updates needed |
skill-adversarial-security |
~838 | VDD workflow with security focus |
skill-adversarial-performance |
~946 | VDD workflow with performance focus |
vdd-sarcastic |
~145 | VDD workflow with sarcastic mode |
Integration
How Agents Should Reference This
Agent prompts should:
- Always load TIER 0 skills at session start
- Load TIER 1 skills when entering their specific phase
- Load TIER 2 skills only when explicitly triggered
Referenced By
.gemini/GEMINI.md— TIER 0 at bootstrap.cursorrules— TIER 0 at bootstrap- All agent prompts — TIER 1 at phase entry
- VDD workflows — TIER 2 when invoked
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