"Create work-order with minimal context for isolated subagent execution, optionally linked to GitHub issue"
Install
npx skillscat add laurigates/claude-plugins/blueprint-work-order Install via the SkillsCat registry.
This skill generates a work-order document for isolated subagent execution, optionally linking it to a GitHub issue. It solves the problem of creating minimal context packages for delegating tasks to subagents. Developers should use it when they need to break down work into discrete units that can be executed independently, either locally or with GitHub integration.
Generate a work-order document for isolated subagent execution with optional GitHub issue integration.
Flags
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
--no-publish |
Create local work-order only, skip GitHub issue creation |
--from-issue N |
Create work-order from existing GitHub issue #N |
--from-prp NAME |
Create work-order from existing PRP (auto-populates context) |
Default behavior: Creates both local work-order AND GitHub issue with work-order label.
Prerequisites
- Blueprint Development initialized (
docs/blueprint/exists) - At least one PRD exists (unless using
--from-issueor--from-prp) ghCLI authenticated (unless using--no-publish)
Mode: Create from PRP (--from-prp NAME)
When --from-prp NAME is provided:
Read PRP:
cat docs/prps/$NAME.mdExtract PRP content:
- Parse frontmatter for id, confidence score, implements references
- Extract Objective section
- Extract Implementation Blueprint tasks
- Extract TDD Requirements
- Extract Success Criteria
- Note ai_docs references
Verify confidence:
- If confidence < 9: Warn that PRP may not be ready for delegation
- Ask to proceed anyway or return to refine PRP
Generate work-order:
- Pre-populate from PRP content
- Include relevant ai_docs as inline context (not references)
- Copy TDD requirements verbatim
- Include file list from PRP's Codebase Intelligence section
Continue to Step 6 (save and optionally publish)
name: blueprint-work-order
Mode: Create from Existing Issue (--from-issue N)
When --from-issue N is provided:
Fetch issue:
gh issue view N --json title,body,labels,numberParse issue content:
- Extract objective from title/body
- Extract any TDD requirements or success criteria if present
- Note existing labels
Generate work-order:
- Number matches issue number (e.g., issue #42 → work-order
042-...) - Pre-populate from issue content
- Add context sections (files, PRD reference, etc.)
- Number matches issue number (e.g., issue #42 → work-order
Update issue with link:
gh issue comment N --body "Work-order created: \`docs/blueprint/work-orders/NNN-task-name.md\`" gh issue edit N --add-label "work-order"Continue to save and report (skip to Step 6 below)
Mode: Create New Work-Order (Default)
Step 1: Analyze Current State
- Read
docs/blueprint/feature-tracker.jsonfor current phase and tasks - Run
git statusto check uncommitted work - Run
git log -5 --onelineto see recent work - Find existing work-orders (count them for numbering)
Step 2: Read Relevant PRDs
- Read PRD files to understand requirements
- Identify next logical work unit based on:
- Work-overview progress
- PRD phase/section ordering
- Git history (what's been done)
Step 3: Determine Next Work Unit
Should be:
- Specific: Single feature/component/fix
- Isolated: Minimal dependencies
- Testable: Clear success criteria
- Focused: 1-4 hours of work
Good examples:
- "Implement JWT token generation methods"
- "Add input validation to registration endpoint"
- "Create database migration for users table"
Bad examples (too broad):
- "Implement authentication"
- "Fix bugs"
Step 4: Determine Minimal Context
- Files to modify/create (only relevant ones)
- PRD sections (only specific requirements for this task)
- Existing code (only relevant excerpts, not full files)
- Dependencies (external libraries, environment variables)
Step 5: Generate Work-Order
- Number: Find highest existing work-order number + 1 (001, 002, etc.)
- Name:
NNN-brief-task-description.md
Work-order structure:
name: blueprint-work-order
---
id: WO-NNN
created: {YYYY-MM-DD}
status: pending
implements: # Source PRP or PRD
- PRP-NNN
relates-to: # Related documents
- ADR-NNNN
github-issues:
- N
---
# Work-Order NNN: [Task Name]
**ID**: WO-NNN
**GitHub Issue**: #N
**Status**: pending
## Objective
[One sentence describing what needs to be accomplished]
## Context
### Required Files
[Only files needed - list with purpose]
### PRD Reference
[Link to specific PRD section, not entire PRD]
### Technical Decisions
[Only decisions relevant to this specific task]
### Existing Code
[Only relevant code excerpts needed for integration]
## TDD Requirements
### Test 1: [Test Description]
[Exact test to write, with code template]
**Expected Outcome**: Test should fail
### Test 2: [Test Description]
[Exact test to write]
**Expected Outcome**: Test should fail
[More tests as needed]
## Implementation Steps
1. **Write Test 1** - Run: `[test_command]` - Expected: **FAIL**
2. **Implement Test 1** - Run: `[test_command]` - Expected: **PASS**
3. **Refactor (if needed)** - Run: `[test_command]` - Expected: **STILL PASS**
[Repeat for all tests]
## Success Criteria
- [ ] All specified tests written and passing
- [ ] [Specific functional requirement met]
- [ ] [Performance/security baseline met]
- [ ] No regressions (existing tests pass)
## Notes
[Additional context, gotchas, considerations]
## Related Work-Orders
- **Depends on**: Work-Order NNN (if applicable)
- **Blocks**: Work-Order NNN (if applicable)name: blueprint-work-order
Step 6: Save Work-Order
Save to docs/blueprint/work-orders/NNN-task-name.md
Ensure zero-padded numbering (001, 002, 010, 100)
Step 7: Create GitHub Issue (unless --no-publish)
gh issue create \
--title "[WO-NNN] [Task Name]" \
--body "## Work Order: [Task Name]
**ID**: WO-NNN
**Local Context**: \`docs/blueprint/work-orders/NNN-task-name.md\`
### Related Documents
- **Implements**: {PRP-NNN or PRD-NNN}
- **Related ADRs**: {list of ADR-NNNN}
### Objective
[One-line objective from work order]
### TDD Requirements
- [ ] Test 1: [description]
- [ ] Test 2: [description]
### Success Criteria
- [ ] [Criterion 1]
- [ ] [Criterion 2]
---
*AI-assisted development work order. See linked file for full execution context.*" \
--label "work-order"Capture issue number and update work-order file:
# Extract issue number from gh output
gh issue create ... 2>&1 | grep -oE '#[0-9]+' | head -1Update the **GitHub Issue**: line in the work-order file with the issue number.
Step 8: Update docs/blueprint/feature-tracker.json
Add new work-order to pending tasks:
jq '.tasks.pending += [{"id": "WO-NNN", "description": "[Task name]", "source": "PRP-NNN", "added": "YYYY-MM-DD"}]' \
docs/blueprint/feature-tracker.json > tmp.json && mv tmp.json docs/blueprint/feature-tracker.jsonStep 8.5: Update Manifest
Update docs/blueprint/manifest.json ID registry:
{
"id_registry": {
"documents": {
"WO-NNN": {
"path": "docs/blueprint/work-orders/NNN-task-name.md",
"title": "[Task Name]",
"implements": ["PRP-NNN"],
"github_issues": [N],
"created": "{date}"
}
},
"github_issues": {
"N": ["WO-NNN", "PRP-NNN"]
}
}
}Also update the source PRP/PRD to add this work-order to its tracking.
Step 9: Report
Work-order created!
ID: WO-NNN
Work-Order: 003-jwt-token-generation.md
Location: docs/blueprint/work-orders/003-jwt-token-generation.md
GitHub Issue: #42 (or "Local only" if --no-publish)
Traceability:
- Implements: PRP-002 (OAuth Integration)
- Related: ADR-0003 (Session Storage)
Objective: [Brief objective]
Context included:
- Files: [List files]
- Tests: [Number of tests specified]
- Dependencies: [Key dependencies]
Ready for execution:
- Can be executed by subagent with isolated context
- TDD workflow enforced (tests specified first)
- Clear success criteria defined
- PR should use "Fixes #42" to auto-close issue
- Commit messages should use: feat(WO-NNN): descriptionStep 10: Prompt for Next Action
Use AskUserQuestion:
question: "Work-order ready. What would you like to do?"
options:
- label: "Execute this work-order (Recommended)"
description: "Start working on the task with TDD workflow"
- label: "Create another work-order"
description: "Generate the next task from pending items"
- label: "Delegate to subagent"
description: "Hand off for isolated execution"
- label: "I'm done for now"
description: "Exit - work-order is saved and ready"Based on selection:
- "Execute this work-order" → Run
/project:continuewith work-order context - "Create another work-order" → Run
/blueprint:work-orderagain - "Delegate to subagent" → Provide handoff instructions for subagent execution
- "I'm done" → Exit
name: blueprint-work-order
Key Principles
- Minimal context: Only what's needed, not full files/PRDs
- Specific tests: Exact test cases, not vague descriptions
- TDD enforced: Tests specified before implementation
- Clear criteria: Unambiguous success checkboxes
- Isolated: Task should be doable with only provided context
- Transparent: GitHub issue provides visibility to collaborators
Error Handling
| Condition | Action |
|---|---|
| No PRDs exist | Guide to write PRDs first |
| No tasks in feature-tracker | Ask for current phase/status |
| Task unclear | Ask user what to work on next |
gh not authenticated |
Warn and fallback to --no-publish behavior |
Issue already has work-order label |
Warn, ask to update or create new |
name: blueprint-work-order
GitHub Integration Notes
Completion Flow
- Work completed on work-order
- PR created with
Fixes #Nin body/title - Work-order moved to
completed/directory - Issue auto-closes when PR merges
Label Convention
The work-order label identifies issues created from this workflow. Create it in your repo if it doesn't exist:
gh label create work-order --description "AI-assisted work order" --color "0E8A16"Offline Mode
Use --no-publish when:
- Working offline
- Private experimentation
- Issue visibility not needed
Can publish later by manually creating issue and updating work-order file.