Sprint planner

sprint-planner

When to use

• Starting the build phase and need to break work into manageable chunks.
• After locking scope (mvp-scope-guardian) to plan the execution order.
• Weekly sprint check-ins to update progress and plan the next sprint.
• Checking if you're on track for a launch date.

When NOT to use

• For generating actual task code (this plans the work, doesn't do it).
• For project-level planning beyond sprints (use mvp-scope-guardian for scope).
• If the project has no defined work items yet.

Prerequisites

• Project must be onboarded in solo-dev-suite.
• available_hours_per_week should be set honestly in the profile.
• Ideally, scope is locked first so you know what needs building.

Methodology

Honest capacity, not aspirational capacity

The buffer_percent (default 20%) accounts for real life: day job emergencies, family commitments, infra fires, meetings that should have been emails. If you set it to 0%, you're lying to yourself.

Effective hours = hours_per_week x sprint_length_weeks x (1 - buffer_percent/100)

Velocity is earned, not estimated

Until you complete a sprint, you have zero velocity data. The tool tracks actual hours completed per sprint and averages them. Your first sprint estimate will be wrong -- that's the point. By sprint 3, you'll have honest numbers.

Launch countdown: red/yellow/green

If launch_target_date is set in the profile, the tool compares remaining backlog hours against remaining sprint capacity:

• Green: remaining work <= 80% of available capacity (comfortable buffer)
• Yellow: remaining work <= 100% of available capacity (tight but possible)
• Red: remaining work > available capacity (something has to give)

Incomplete items return to backlog

When you complete a sprint, any todo/in-progress items automatically return to the backlog with priority bumped to "high" (you committed to them once -- they matter). Dropped items stay in the sprint record for the retro.

Operations

init

Set up capacity and optional initial backlog.

echo '{"hours_per_week": 10, "sprint_length_weeks": 2, "buffer_percent": 20, "backlog": [{"title": "User auth", "estimate_hours": 12, "priority": "critical", "category": "feature"}, {"title": "API endpoints", "estimate_hours": 8, "priority": "high"}]}' | python scripts/sprint_tool.py init <slug> --from-stdin

hours_per_week defaults to profile's available_hours_per_week if omitted.

add

Add items to the backlog.

echo '{"items": [{"title": "Payment webhook handler", "estimate_hours": 6, "priority": "high", "category": "feature"}]}' | python scripts/sprint_tool.py add <slug> --from-stdin

Single item shorthand (no items wrapper) also works.

plan

Plan the next sprint by pulling items from the backlog.

echo '{"goal": "Core auth + API scaffold", "backlog_ids": ["BL01", "BL02"]}' | python scripts/sprint_tool.py plan <slug> --from-stdin

Warns if planned hours exceed 120% of sprint capacity. Won't plan if there's an active sprint.

start

Activate the next planned sprint.

python scripts/sprint_tool.py start <slug>

update

Update item statuses and actual hours in the active sprint.

echo '{"items": [{"id": "SI01", "status": "done", "actual_hours": 10}, {"id": "SI02", "status": "in-progress"}]}' | python scripts/sprint_tool.py update <slug> --from-stdin

complete

Complete the active sprint. Computes velocity, returns incomplete items to backlog.

python scripts/sprint_tool.py complete <slug> --retro "Auth took longer than expected, need to buffer more for OAuth flows"

show

Display current state: capacity, velocity, launch countdown, active sprint, backlog.

python scripts/sprint_tool.py show <slug>
python scripts/sprint_tool.py show <slug> --json

render

Generate SPRINT_PLAN.md.

python scripts/sprint_tool.py render <slug>

delete

Remove sidecar.

python scripts/sprint_tool.py delete <slug> --yes

Files

File	Purpose
scripts/sprint_tool.py	CLI with all subcommands
templates/sprint.schema.json	Sidecar JSON Schema
templates/SPRINT_PLAN.md.tmpl	Rendered doc template