Writing Plans

CRITICAL CONSTRAINTS — Read Before Anything Else

You MUST NOT call EnterPlanMode or ExitPlanMode at any point during this skill. This skill operates in normal mode and manages its own completion flow via AskUserQuestion. Calling EnterPlanMode traps the session in plan mode where Write/Edit are restricted. Calling ExitPlanMode breaks the workflow and skips the user's execution choice. If you feel the urge to call either, STOP — follow this skill's instructions instead.

Overview

Write comprehensive implementation plans assuming the engineer has zero context for our codebase and questionable taste. Document everything they need to know: which files to touch for each task, code, testing, docs they might need to check, how to test it. Give them the whole plan as bite-sized tasks. DRY. YAGNI. TDD. Frequent commits.

Assume they are a skilled developer, but know almost nothing about our toolset or problem domain. Assume they don't know good test design very well.

Announce at start: "I'm using the writing-plans skill to create the implementation plan."

Context: This should be run in a dedicated worktree (created by brainstorming skill).

Save plans to: docs/superpowers/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<feature-name>.md

(User preferences for plan location override this default)

Scope Check

If the spec covers multiple independent subsystems, it should have been broken into sub-project specs during brainstorming. If it wasn't, suggest breaking this into separate plans — one per subsystem. Each plan should produce working, testable software on its own.

File Structure

Before defining tasks, map out which files will be created or modified and what each one is responsible for. This is where decomposition decisions get locked in.

Design units with clear boundaries and well-defined interfaces. Each file should have one clear responsibility.
You reason best about code you can hold in context at once, and your edits are more reliable when files are focused. Prefer smaller, focused files over large ones that do too much.
Files that change together should live together. Split by responsibility, not by technical layer.
In existing codebases, follow established patterns. If the codebase uses large files, don't unilaterally restructure - but if a file you're modifying has grown unwieldy, including a split in the plan is reasonable.

This structure informs the task decomposition. Each task should produce self-contained changes that make sense independently.

REQUIRED FIRST STEP: Initialize Task Tracking

BEFORE exploring code or writing the plan, you MUST:

Call TaskList to check for existing tasks from brainstorming
If tasks exist: you will enhance them with implementation details as you write the plan
If no tasks: you will create them with TaskCreate as you write each plan task

Do not proceed to exploration until TaskList has been called.

TaskList

Bite-Sized Task Granularity

Each step is one action (2-5 minutes):

"Write the failing test" - step
"Run it to make sure it fails" - step
"Implement the minimal code to make the test pass" - step
"Run the tests and make sure they pass" - step
"Commit" - step

Plan Document Header

Every plan MUST start with this header:

# [Feature Name] Implementation Plan

> **For agentic workers:** REQUIRED: Use superpowers-extended-cc:subagent-driven-development (if subagents available) or superpowers-extended-cc:executing-plans to implement this plan. Steps use checkbox (`- [ ]`) syntax for tracking.

**Goal:** [One sentence describing what this builds]

**Architecture:** [2-3 sentences about approach]

**Tech Stack:** [Key technologies/libraries]

---

Task Structure

### Task N: [Component Name]

**Files:**
- Create: `exact/path/to/file.py`
- Modify: `exact/path/to/existing.py:123-145`
- Test: `tests/exact/path/to/test.py`

- [ ] **Step 1: Write the failing test**

```python
def test_specific_behavior():
    result = function(input)
    assert result == expected
```

- [ ] **Step 2: Run test to verify it fails**

Run: `pytest tests/path/test.py::test_name -v`
Expected: FAIL with "function not defined"

- [ ] **Step 3: Write minimal implementation**

```python
def function(input):
    return expected
```

- [ ] **Step 4: Run test to verify it passes**

Run: `pytest tests/path/test.py::test_name -v`
Expected: PASS

- [ ] **Step 5: Commit**

```bash
git add tests/path/test.py src/path/file.py
git commit -m "feat: add specific feature"
```

Remember

Exact file paths always
Complete code in plan (not "add validation")
Exact commands with expected output
Reference relevant skills with @ syntax
DRY, YAGNI, TDD, frequent commits

Plan Review Loop

After completing each chunk of the plan:

Dispatch plan-document-reviewer subagent (see plan-document-reviewer-prompt.md) with precisely crafted review context — never your session history. This keeps the reviewer focused on the plan, not your thought process.
- Provide: chunk content, path to spec document
If ❌ Issues Found:
- Fix the issues in the chunk
- Re-dispatch reviewer for that chunk
- Repeat until ✅ Approved
If ✅ Approved: proceed to next chunk (or execution handoff if last chunk)

Chunk boundaries: Use ## Chunk N: <name> headings to delimit chunks. Each chunk should be ≤1000 lines and logically self-contained.

Review loop guidance:

Same agent that wrote the plan fixes it (preserves context)
If loop exceeds 5 iterations, surface to human for guidance
Reviewers are advisory - explain disagreements if you believe feedback is incorrect

Execution Handoff

Your ONLY permitted next action is calling AskUserQuestion with this EXACT structure:

AskUserQuestion:
  question: "Plan complete and saved to docs/superpowers/plans/<filename>.md. How would you like to execute it?"
  header: "Execution"
  options:
    - label: "Subagent-Driven (this session)"
      description: "I dispatch fresh subagent per task, review between tasks, fast iteration"
    - label: "Parallel Session (separate)"
      description: "Open new session in worktree with executing-plans, batch execution with checkpoints"

If you are about to call ExitPlanMode, STOP — call AskUserQuestion instead.

If Subagent-Driven chosen:

REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use superpowers-extended-cc:subagent-driven-development
Stay in this session
Fresh subagent per task + two-stage review

If Parallel Session chosen:

Guide them to open new session in worktree
REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: New session uses superpowers-extended-cc:executing-plans

Native Task Integration Reference

Use Claude Code's native task tools (v2.1.16+) to create structured tasks alongside the plan document.

Creating Native Tasks

For each task in the plan, create a corresponding native task:

TaskCreate:
  subject: "Task N: [Component Name]"
  description: |
    [Copy the full task content from the plan you just wrote — files, steps, acceptance criteria, everything]
  activeForm: "Implementing [Component Name]"

Setting Dependencies

After all tasks created, set blockedBy relationships:

TaskUpdate:
  taskId: [task-id]
  addBlockedBy: [prerequisite-task-ids]

During Execution

Update task status as work progresses:

TaskUpdate:
  taskId: [task-id]
  status: in_progress  # when starting

TaskUpdate:
  taskId: [task-id]
  status: completed    # when done

Notes

Native tasks provide CLI-visible progress tracking
Plan document remains the permanent record

Task Persistence

At plan completion, write the task persistence file in the same directory as the plan document.

If the plan is saved to docs/superpowers/plans/2026-01-15-feature.md, the tasks file MUST be saved to docs/superpowers/plans/2026-01-15-feature.md.tasks.json.

{
  "planPath": "docs/superpowers/plans/2026-01-15-feature.md",
  "tasks": [
    {"id": 0, "subject": "Task 0: ...", "status": "pending"},
    {"id": 1, "subject": "Task 1: ...", "status": "pending", "blockedBy": [0]}
  ],
  "lastUpdated": "<timestamp>"
}

Both the plan .md and .tasks.json must be co-located in docs/superpowers/plans/.

Resuming Work

Any new session can resume by running:

/superpowers-extended-cc:executing-plans <plan-path>

The skill reads the .tasks.json file and continues from where it left off.