Planning Base

<purpose> <item>Provide a universal change plan skeleton: short, verifiable, no hidden assumptions</item> <item>Define quality rules: what a good plan looks like and what not to do</item> </purpose>

<when_to_use> <item importance="critical">Always before producing a change plan</item> <item importance="high">When the task is ambiguous and questions/assumptions must be captured</item> </when_to_use>

<core_principles> <rule importance="critical">Separate facts, assumptions, and decisions</rule> <rule importance="critical">The plan must be verifiable: every step can be confirmed by a test/observation</rule> <rule importance="high">Changes are incremental, with stop points</rule> <rule importance="high">Do not replace requirements with solutions: first "what", then "how"</rule> <rule importance="high">Write only relevant sections: do not fill the template for the sake of it</rule> </core_principles>

<default_output_format>

<section>Goal</section> <section>Constraints</section> <section>Proposed change</section> <section>Risks</section> <section>Verification</section> <section>Rollout / rollback (if needed)</section> <section>Open questions</section> </default_output_format>

<quality_rules> <rule importance="critical">The goal is stated as behavior/outcome, not as a list of actions</rule> <rule importance="critical">Acceptance criteria exist (what "done" means)</rule> <rule importance="high">Boundaries are stated: what we explicitly do NOT do in this task</rule> <rule importance="high">A verification plan exists (at least: one quick signal + one regression check)</rule> <rule importance="medium">Open questions are explicitly listed and affect the plan</rule> </quality_rules>

<examples> <good> <case>Goal: remove 500s on /orders. Proposed change: add a guard for null tax and a regression test. Verification: the repro is gone, the test is green. Risks: may affect tax calculation. Open questions: do we have legacy clients without tax?</case> <why>Has a goal, a concrete change, verification, risks, and questions</why> </good> <bad> <case>Do something and check manually.</case> <why>No verifiability and no specifics</why> </bad> </examples>