Starting a New Phase
Follow this process to plan the next development phase:
Step 1: Identify the Next Phase
Read the roadmap section of CLAUDE.md to find what's next. This skill only needs to be leveraged if the next item is a phase or large feature with a requirements doc.
Step 2: Read Requirements
- •Find and read the requirements document for this phase (typically in
docs/). - •For context on where this phase fits within the longer term plan and how it sets up future phases, reference docs/VISION.txt.
Step 3: Discuss Approach
Do NOT enter plan mode. Discuss as conversation.
- •Use /architecture to get a jumpstart on finding and understanding current design patterns
- •Ask clarifying questions about requirements
- •Present high-level approach options with trade-offs as prose discussion
- •Identify an iterative approach with frequent human testing checkpoints
- •Only ask questions that affect high-level decisions - feature-specific questions wait
Step 4: Create Phase Plan
Save the high-level phase plan to docs/[name]-phase-plan.md — this is the single planning artifact for the phase. Do not create separate plan files. Contents:
- •Original requirements reference
- •User-facing outcomes for each sub-phase
- •[TEST] checkpoints where user can verify behavior
- •[DOCS] checkpoint after each [TEST] to update README, CLAUDE.md, game-mechanics, and architecture as needed
- •[RETRO] checkpoint after each [DOCS] to run /retro on any human-testable, README-worthy feature
- •Suggest any opportunistic or triggered enhancements from docs/randomideas.md or triggered-enhancements.md that could be worked into the plan.
Aim for shippable steps — plan to avoid regressions where reasonably feasible, so each step leaves the codebase in a working state.
Step 5: Note Feature Questions
For clarifications that don't impact the high-level approach, save those questions in feature plan docs to ask in context during implementation.
Reminder: Features within a phase are approached one at a time with fresh discussion, todos, and testing for each. Use /new-feature when starting each one.