Stage awareness — what's expected at each methodology stage, what to do, what NOT to do, which tools and skills are available
Your stage is determined by task_readiness in your task context:
Source of truth: config/methodology.yaml
Job: UNDERSTAND, not BUILD.
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Ask specific questions about unclear requirements | Write code |
| Propose your understanding, accept correction |
| Commit changes |
| Extract knowledge from PO | Create PRs |
| Post draft proposals for PO review | Produce finished deliverables |
Tools available: fleet_read_context, fleet_chat, fleet_task_progress, fleet_artifact_create (drafts only) Tools BLOCKED: fleet_commit, fleet_task_complete, fleet_task_accept Skills to use: /brainstorming (mandatory before creative work), fleet-communicate
Advance when: PO confirms understanding. Readiness increases. Verbatim requirement populated. No open questions.
Job: UNDERSTAND WHAT EXISTS, not solve the problem.
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Read and examine the codebase | Produce solutions (that's reasoning) |
| Reference SPECIFIC files and line numbers | Write implementation code |
| Produce analysis_document artifact progressively | Skip to planning |
| Present findings to PO via task comments |
Tools available: fleet_read_context, fleet_commit (analysis docs only), fleet_artifact_create/update, fleet_task_progress Tools BLOCKED: fleet_task_complete Skills to use: fleet-gap, fleet-urls, /systematic-debugging, fleet-comment
Advance when: Analysis document covers relevant areas. PO reviewed findings. Implications for task are clear.
Job: EXPLORE OPTIONS, not decide.
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Research solutions, explore options | Decide on an approach (that's reasoning) |
| Explore MULTIPLE options — not just the first one | Write implementation code |
| Cite sources, compare tradeoffs | Commit to a solution |
| Present findings to PO |
Tools available: fleet_read_context, fleet_commit (investigation docs only), fleet_artifact_create/update, fleet_task_progress Tools BLOCKED: fleet_task_complete Skills to use: /brainstorming, /dispatching-parallel-agents, /adversarial-spec (architect), fleet-report
Advance when: Research document has multiple options. PO reviewed findings. Enough info to decide in reasoning.
Job: PLAN, not execute.
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Decide approach based on requirements + analysis + investigation | Start implementing |
| Produce plan that references verbatim requirement EXPLICITLY | Skip contribution check |
| Specify target files and components | |
| Map acceptance criteria to implementation steps | |
| Present plan to PO for confirmation |
Tools available: fleet_read_context, fleet_task_accept, fleet_task_create, fleet_commit (planning docs), fleet_artifact_create/update Tools BLOCKED: fleet_task_complete Skills to use: /writing-plans, fleet-plan, fleet-task-create, fleet-contribution (check inputs)
Before advancing: Verify required contributions received (use eng_contribution_check or pm_contribution_check). Missing contributions → fleet_request_input. Do NOT advance to work without required inputs.
Advance when: Plan exists and references verbatim. Plan specifies target files. PO confirmed. Readiness reaches 99-100%.
Job: EXECUTE THE PLAN, not redesign.
| DO | DON'T |
|---|---|
| Execute the confirmed plan exactly | Deviate from the plan |
| Follow conventions: conventional commits, tests | Add unrequested scope |
| Use pre-embedded task data (or fleet_read_context if injection:none) | Modify files outside plan targets |
| Call fleet_task_accept with plan | Skip tests |
| Call fleet_commit for each logical change | |
| Call fleet_task_complete when done |
Tools available: ALL tools Tools BLOCKED: none Skills to use: /test-driven-development, /verification-before-completion, fleet-commit, fleet-pr, fleet-contribution (consume inputs)
Required tool sequence:
fleet_read_context — load task + methodology statefleet_task_accept(plan) — confirm plan (verbatim reference checked)fleet_commit(files, msg) — one or more, conventional formatfleet_task_complete(summary) — push, PR, review chain firesReadiness defines your methodology stage. It does NOT block dispatch. The PO sets readiness to control what stage you operate in.
| Type | Required Stages |
|---|---|
| epic | conversation → analysis → investigation → reasoning → work |
| story | conversation → reasoning → work |
| task | reasoning → work |
| subtask | reasoning → work |
| bug | analysis → reasoning → work |
| spike | conversation → investigation → reasoning (no work) |
| blocker | conversation → reasoning → work |