Subagent Driven

Overview

This skill implements structured plan execution by dispatching independent subagents for each task, followed by mandatory two-stage reviews: specification compliance first, then code quality. Ensures systematic progress with quality gates.

Quick Start

1. Prepare plan - Extract tasks to TodoWrite tracker
2. For each task:

- Dispatch implementer subagent - Answer clarification questions - Run spec compliance review - Run code quality review

1. Final review - Comprehensive code review
2. Complete - Use finishing-a-development-branch

When to Use

• Executing implementation plans with mostly independent tasks
• Need to remain in current session
• Quality gates required between tasks
• Context preservation across multiple steps

Don't use when:

• Tasks are tightly coupled
• Parallel execution preferred
• Simple, single-file changes

Process Flow

Plan → [Task 1] → Implement → Spec Review → Quality Review → ✓
                                  ↓              ↓
                               Fix & Re-review if needed
       [Task 2] → Implement → Spec Review → Quality Review → ✓
       ...
       Final Review → Complete

Detailed Process

Step 1: Plan Preparation

Extract all tasks with full context:

## Task Extraction

From plan, create TodoWrite entries:
- [ ] Task 1: [Description with full context]
- [ ] Task 2: [Description with full context]
- [ ] Task 3: [Description with full context]

Important: Provide extracted text to subagents, don't make them read plan files.

Step 2: Per-Task Execution

For each task:

2a. Dispatch Implementer

**Implementer Subagent Prompt:**

Implement the following task:

[Complete task text from plan]

*See sub-skills for full details.*
### Step 3: Final Review

After all tasks complete:

Final Reviewer Subagent Prompt:

Conduct comprehensive code review of all changes:

Tasks completed: [List of all tasks]

See sub-skills for full details.

Step 4: Completion

Use finishing-a-development-branch skill:

• Decide: merge to main or create PR
• Handle cleanup
• Update tracking

Critical Rules

Never

• Skip reviews (spec compliance OR code quality)
• Start code quality review before spec compliance passes
• Dispatch multiple implementation subagents in parallel
• Make subagents read plan files directly
• Accept reviews with unresolved issues
• Continue to next task before current passes both reviews

Always

• Provide extracted text to subagents
• Answer clarifications before implementation
• Fix issues before re-review
• Document deviations from plan
• Run both review stages in order

Review Order Rationale

1. Spec Compliance (Does it do the right thing?)
   ↓
2. Code Quality (Does it do it well?)

Spec first because:

• No point polishing wrong code
• Requirements drive design decisions
• Quality review assumes correct functionality

Related Skills

• [writing-plans](../planning/writing-plans/SKILL.md) - Create implementation plans
• [tdd-obra](../tdd-obra/SKILL.md) - Test-first development
• [code-reviewer](../code-reviewer/SKILL.md) - Code quality review
• [parallel-dispatch](../../agents/parallel-dispatch/SKILL.md) - Parallel execution

Version History

• 1.0.0 (2026-01-19): Initial release adapted from obra/superpowers

Sub-Skills

• [Best Practices](best-practices/SKILL.md)
• [Error Handling](error-handling/SKILL.md)
• [Metrics](metrics/SKILL.md)