Unified workflow

Unified Development Workflow

The Stack

System	Role	Type
Superpowers	Development methodology (HOW to work)	Plugin, rigid skills
Beads	Task tracking (WHAT to work on)	Plugin, bd CLI
Template Bridge	Specialist agents (WHO helps)	On-demand from claude-code-templates

The Mandatory Flow

Task arrives
    │
    ├─ 1. EPIC: bd create -t epic "High-level goal"
    │       (container — tracks intent, holds lock, preserves context)
    │
    ├─ 2. BRAINSTORM: superpowers:brainstorming (design before code)
    │
    ├─ 3. PLAN: superpowers:writing-plans (decompose into 2-5 min tasks)
    │
    ├─ 4. SUB-TASKS: Create concrete tasks from the plan:
    │       bd create "Sub-task 1" -t task
    │       bd dep add sub-task-1 epic-id --type parent-child
    │       bd dep add sub-task-2 sub-task-1  (if sequential — blocks)
    │
    ├─ 5. ISOLATE: superpowers:using-git-worktrees (non-trivial work)
    │
    ├─ 6. IMPLEMENT: bd ready → pick from Ready Front → bd update <id> --claim
    │       For each sub-task:
    │       ├─ TDD: RED → verify fail → GREEN → verify pass → REFACTOR
    │       ├─ Commit after each green
    │       ├─ superpowers:requesting-code-review
    │       └─ bd close <sub-id> --reason "Done"
    │           (closing unblocks next Ready Front automatically)
    │
    ├─ 7. VERIFY: superpowers:verification-before-completion
    │
    ├─ 8. FINISH: superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch
    │
    └─ 9. CLOSE: bd close <epic-id> --reason "Done"

Task Decomposition with Beads Dependencies

Four dependency types (only blocks affects bd ready):

Type	Effect on bd ready	Use when
blocks	YES — blocked task hidden from bd ready	Sequential work, technical prerequisites
parent-child	No	Epic → sub-task structure
related	No	Connected but independent work
discovered-from	No	Side-quest found during implementation

Direction rule: Think "X needs Y" → bd dep add X Y

Ready Fronts: As sub-tasks close, blocked work automatically becomes ready. Use bd ready to always see what can be worked on NOW.

Side quests during implementation:

bd create "Found: missing input validation" -t bug
bd dep add new-id current-id --type discovered-from

TDD: Red-Green-Refactor (RIGID — no exceptions)

1. RED: Write ONE failing test for desired behavior
2. VERIFY RED: Run it. Must fail for the RIGHT reason
3. GREEN: Write minimal code to pass
4. VERIFY GREEN: All tests pass
5. REFACTOR: Clean up, tests still pass
6. COMMIT after each green cycle

No production code without a failing test first. Ever.

Debugging (RIGID)

Invoke superpowers:systematic-debugging BEFORE any fix attempt:

1. Root cause investigation (read errors, reproduce, check recent changes)
2. Pattern analysis (find working examples, compare)
3. Hypothesis + single-variable test
4. Fix with failing test first
5. Stop after 3 failed attempts → question architecture

Verification Gate (RIGID)

Before claiming ANYTHING done, invoke superpowers:verification-before-completion:

1. Identify the proving command
2. Run it fresh (not cached)
3. Read complete output + exit code
4. Verify output supports claim
5. Only then claim done

"Evidence before claims, always."

Beads Task Tracking

• ALL work MUST be tracked — start with epic, decompose after plan
• bd ready → find available tasks from current Ready Front
• bd update <id> --claim → atomic start (marks in_progress + lock)
• bd close <id> --reason "..." → mark done, auto-unblocks dependents
• Side quests: bd create "Issue" -t bug + bd dep add new-id current-id --type discovered-from
• Multi-terminal: each works on DIFFERENT issues (exclusive lock)
• Session recovery: bd list --status in_progress → bd show <id> → read notes

When to Pull External Templates

Check template-bridge:template-catalog when task needs a specialist NOT in:

• Current project agents/skills
• Superpowers skills (14 workflow skills)
• Beads (task tracking)
• Other installed plugins (code-review, frontend-design, code-simplifier)

Install fresh: npx claude-code-templates@latest --agent {category}/{name} --yes

Context7: Fresh Docs (MANDATORY)

Before implementing with ANY external library, framework, or SDK:

mcp__context7__resolve-library-id → mcp__context7__query-docs

When: Next.js, Supabase, React, Tailwind, Zod, BullMQ, Qdrant, LangChain — any library. Who: Main agent, subagents, and skills — everyone queries Context7. Why: Claude's training data is stale. APIs change. Context7 gives current docs.

Never write implementation code based on memory alone. Always verify with Context7 first.

Skill Invocation Priority

1. Context7 FIRST: query fresh docs for any library/framework being used
2. Process skills SECOND: brainstorming, debugging, verification
3. Implementation skills THIRD: TDD, code-review, frontend-design
4. External templates FOURTH: only when no existing skill covers the need

Key Superpowers Skills Reference

Skill	When	Type
brainstorming	Before ANY creative/feature work	Rigid
writing-plans	After brainstorm approval	Rigid
test-driven-development	During ALL implementation	Rigid
systematic-debugging	Any bug/test failure	Rigid
verification-before-completion	Before claiming done	Rigid
using-git-worktrees	Non-trivial feature work	Flexible
requesting-code-review	After each task	Flexible
receiving-code-review	When getting feedback	Rigid
subagent-driven-development	Executing plans, independent tasks	Flexible
executing-plans	Following pre-written plans	Flexible
finishing-a-development-branch	Tests pass, ready to merge	Rigid
dispatching-parallel-agents	2+ independent problems	Flexible

Anti-Patterns (NEVER)

• Skip brainstorming → "just code it"
• Write code before failing test
• Claim "fixed" without verification command output
• Work without beads task
• Multiple fixes simultaneously
• Trust subagent reports without own verification
• Qualifier language ("should work", "probably fixed")
• Implement with library without querying Context7 first