Build guard

Build-Guard

Plan in isolation, implement with guardrails. Fully autonomous after approval.

Phase 1 — PLAN (read-only)

1. Enter plan mode — call EnterPlanMode. No code changes until Phase 2
2. Explore — use Read, Grep, Glob to understand every file related to the task, plus their direct callers and dependents
3. Write a numbered plan:
   • Each file to change and what changes are needed
   • Dependencies between changes (order matters)
   • Potential regression risks per change
   • Estimated complexity: small (1-2 files), medium (3-5 files), large (6+ files)
4. Present the plan for user approval

digraph plan_decision {
    "Plan approved" [shape=diamond];
    "Small (1-2 files)" [shape=diamond];
    "Exit plan mode, implement inline" [shape=box];
    "Exit plan mode, dispatch subagents" [shape=box];
    "Context heavy?" [shape=diamond];
    "Handoff plan, clear context, resume" [shape=box];

    "Plan approved" -> "Small (1-2 files)";
    "Small (1-2 files)" -> "Exit plan mode, implement inline" [label="yes"];
    "Small (1-2 files)" -> "Context heavy?" [label="no"];
    "Context heavy?" -> "Handoff plan, clear context, resume" [label="yes"];
    "Context heavy?" -> "Exit plan mode, dispatch subagents" [label="no"];
}

If context is heavy after planning (exploration consumed significant context): run /handoff to save the plan, then the user can clear context and resume with full budget for implementation. If remembrall is not installed, save the plan to docs/plans/ as a file instead.

Phase 2 — IMPLEMENT

5. Exit plan mode — call ExitPlanMode

Small plans (1-2 files): implement directly, one file at a time.

Medium/large plans: dispatch subagents.

• One subagent per file or logical chunk (files that must change together)
• Each subagent receives: the plan, its specific task, and relevant file context
• Use Agent tool with a clear prompt describing exactly what to change and why

6. After each file/subagent completes:
   • Review the changes (read the modified files)
   • Run the project's type checker — fix errors before moving on
7. After every 3 completed files, or sooner if a change touches a shared interface:
   • Run the full test suite
   • If any test breaks: stop immediately, analyze root cause, explain before continuing
   • If the approach is fundamentally wrong: revise the plan, inform the user
8. After all changes: run the full test suite and type checker one final time

Phase 3 — VERIFY

9. Invoke review-gate — execute the review-gate skill now. Do not declare done until review-gate has completed and all findings are resolved

Rules

• Never skip the plan phase
• Never batch multiple file changes between verification steps
• If no test suite exists: state this, verify manually by reading affected code paths
• If no type checker exists: skip type checking, proceed with tests
• If patrol plugin is active: comply with its warnings. Read files before editing
• If remembrall nudges about context: run /handoff before continuing
• Never declare done without completing review-gate — non-negotiable