Files
superpowers/skills/executing-plans/SKILL.md
Drew Ritter e5f337b89e fix(skills): plans reference the spec instead of restating it — end to end (SUP-333 A)
Consolidates the reference-discipline change with every consumer of it,
so this PR is independently mergeable (previously split across two
stacked PRs whose intermediate state left the SDD spec reviewer blind).

writing-plans: plans reference the spec — never restate, paraphrase,
or summarize it; spec owns WHAT/WHY, plan owns HOW; cite by path in
the header (**Spec:** template line) and by section where a task needs
context; No Placeholders repetition stays intra-plan; no-spec branch
scoped to conversational-requirements-only (eval-caught: an agent used
an unscoped no-spec branch to skip writing the spec entirely).

brainstorming: spec path loophole closed (claude shortened
docs/superpowers/specs/ to docs/specs/, documented run); an existing
differently-named docs dir is not a "user preference".

subagent-driven-development: Spec Context section — the controller
reads the plan-cited spec and pastes cited sections into implementer
and spec-reviewer prompts; the spec reviewer's diff-only rule gets a
spec-document exception. Without this, reference discipline starves
the pipeline of requirements.

executing-plans: Step 1 reads the spec the plan cites (the
non-subagent path; plans are no longer self-contained).

Eval evidence (quorum, full-stack text): cost-spec-plan-duplication
claude 3/3 pass (RED: 5/5 agents failed), codex pass, pi pass (the
683-line duplication RED agent); sdd-spec-context-consumed functional
pass with deterministic dispatch-prompt check;
writing-plans-no-spec-conversational 2/2 pass;
triggering-writing-plans canary 3/3.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-06-11 00:20:49 -07:00

2.6 KiB

name, description
name description
executing-plans Use when you have a written implementation plan to execute in a separate session with review checkpoints

Executing Plans

Overview

Load plan, review critically, execute all tasks, report when complete.

Announce at start: "I'm using the executing-plans skill to implement this plan."

Note: Tell your human partner that Superpowers works much better with access to subagents. The quality of its work will be significantly higher if run on a platform with subagent support (Claude Code, Codex CLI, Codex App, Copilot CLI, and Gemini CLI all qualify; see the per-platform tool refs in ../using-superpowers/references/). If subagents are available, use superpowers:subagent-driven-development instead of this skill.

The Process

Step 1: Load and Review Plan

  1. Read plan file, and the spec it cites in its **Spec:** header (plans reference requirements rather than restating them)
  2. Review critically - identify any questions or concerns about the plan
  3. If concerns: Raise them with your human partner before starting
  4. If no concerns: Create todos for the plan items and proceed

Step 2: Execute Tasks

For each task:

  1. Mark as in_progress
  2. Follow each step exactly (plan has bite-sized steps)
  3. Run verifications as specified
  4. Mark as completed

Step 3: Complete Development

After all tasks complete and verified:

  • Announce: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."
  • REQUIRED SUB-SKILL: Use superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch
  • Follow that skill to verify tests, present options, execute choice

When to Stop and Ask for Help

STOP executing immediately when:

  • Hit a blocker (missing dependency, test fails, instruction unclear)
  • Plan has critical gaps preventing starting
  • You don't understand an instruction
  • Verification fails repeatedly

Ask for clarification rather than guessing.

When to Revisit Earlier Steps

Return to Review (Step 1) when:

  • Partner updates the plan based on your feedback
  • Fundamental approach needs rethinking

Don't force through blockers - stop and ask.

Remember

  • Review plan critically first
  • Follow plan steps exactly
  • Don't skip verifications
  • Reference skills when plan says to
  • Stop when blocked, don't guess
  • Never start implementation on main/master branch without explicit user consent

Integration

Required workflow skills:

  • superpowers:using-git-worktrees - Ensures isolated workspace (creates one or verifies existing)
  • superpowers:writing-plans - Creates the plan this skill executes
  • superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch - Complete development after all tasks