Implement Feature
Parallel subagent execution for feature implementation with scope control and reflection.
Quick Start
bash
/implement user authentication
/implement real-time notifications
/implement dashboard analytics
Step 0: Project Context Discovery
BEFORE any work, detect the project tier. This becomes the complexity ceiling for all patterns.
Auto-Detection
Scan codebase for signals: README keywords (take-home, interview),
, Dockerfile, terraform/, k8s/, CONTRIBUTING.md.
Tier Classification
| Signal | Tier | Architecture Ceiling |
|---|
| README says "take-home", time limit | 1. Interview (details) | Flat files, 8-15 files |
| < 10 files, no CI | 2. Hackathon | Single file if possible |
| , managed DB | 3. MVP | MVC monolith |
| Module boundaries, Redis, queues | 4. Growth | Modular monolith, DI |
| K8s/Terraform, monorepo | 5. Enterprise | Hexagonal/DDD |
| CONTRIBUTING.md, LICENSE | 6. Open Source | Minimal API, exhaustive tests |
If confidence is low, use
to ask the user. Pass detected tier to ALL downstream agents — see
scope-appropriate-architecture
.
Tier → Workflow Mapping
| Tier | Phases | Max Agents |
|---|
| 1. Interview | 1, 5 only | 2 |
| 2. Hackathon | 5 only | 1 |
| 3. MVP | 1-6, 9 | 3-4 |
| 4-5. Growth/Enterprise | All 10 | 5-8 |
| 6. Open Source | 1-7, 9-10 | 3-4 |
Use
to verify scope (full-stack / backend-only / frontend-only / prototype) and constraints.
Orchestration Mode
- Agent Teams (mesh) when
CLAUDE_CODE_EXPERIMENTAL_AGENT_TEAMS=1
- Task tool (star) otherwise;
ORCHESTKIT_FORCE_TASK_TOOL=1
- See Orchestration Modes
Task Management (MANDATORY)
Create tasks with
BEFORE doing any work. Each phase gets a subtask. Update status with
as you progress.
Workflow (10 Phases)
| Phase | Activities | Agents |
|---|
| 1. Discovery | Research best practices, Context7 docs, break into tasks | — |
| 2. Micro-Planning | Detailed plan per task (guide) | — |
| 3. Worktree | Isolate in git worktree for 5+ file features (workflow) | — |
| 4. Architecture | 5 parallel background agents | workflow-architect, backend-system-architect, frontend-ui-developer, llm-integrator, ux-researcher |
| 5. Implementation + Tests | Parallel agents, single-pass artifacts with mandatory tests | backend-system-architect, frontend-ui-developer, llm-integrator, test-generator, rapid-ui-designer |
| 6. Integration Verification | Code review + real-service integration tests | backend, frontend, code-quality-reviewer, security-auditor |
| 7. Scope Creep | Compare planned vs actual (detection) | workflow-architect |
| 8. E2E Verification | Browser + API E2E testing (guide) | — |
| 9. Documentation | Save decisions to memory graph | — |
| 10. Reflection | Lessons learned, estimation accuracy | workflow-architect |
See Agent Phases for detailed agent prompts and spawn templates.
For Agent Teams mode, see Agent Teams Phases.
Issue Tracking
If working on a GitHub issue, run the Start Work ceremony from
and post progress comments after major phases.
Feedback Loop
Maintain checkpoints after each task. See Feedback Loop for triggers and actions.
Test Requirements Matrix
Phase 5 test-generator MUST produce tests matching the change type:
| Change Type | Required Tests | Rules |
|---|
| API endpoint | Unit + Integration + Contract | , , |
| DB schema/migration | Migration + Integration | , |
| UI component | Unit + Snapshot + A11y | , , , |
| Business logic | Unit + Property-based | , , |
| LLM/AI feature | Unit + Eval | , , |
| Full-stack feature | All of the above | All matching rules |
Real-Service Detection (Phase 6)
Before running integration tests, detect infrastructure:
python
# Auto-detect real service testing capability (PARALLEL)
Glob(pattern="**/docker-compose*.yml")
Glob(pattern="**/testcontainers*")
Grep(pattern="testcontainers|docker-compose", glob="requirements*.txt")
Grep(pattern="testcontainers|docker-compose", glob="package.json")
If detected: run integration tests against real services, not just mocks. Reference
rules:
,
,
.
Phase 9 Gate
Do NOT proceed to Phase 9 (Documentation) if test-generator produced 0 tests. Return to Phase 5 and generate tests for the implemented code.
Key Principles
- Tests are NOT optional — each task includes its tests, matched to change type (see matrix above)
- Parallel when independent — use , launch all agents in ONE message
- 128K output — generate complete artifacts in a single pass, don't split unnecessarily
- Micro-plan before implementing — scope boundaries, file list, acceptance criteria
- Detect scope creep (phase 7) — score 0-10, split PR if significant
- Real services when available — if docker-compose/testcontainers exist, use them in Phase 6
- Reflect and capture lessons (phase 10) — persist to memory graph
Related Skills
- explore: Explore codebase before implementing
- verify: Verify implementations work correctly
- worktree-coordination: Git worktree management patterns
- issue-progress-tracking: Auto-updates GitHub issues with commit progress
References
- Agent Phases
- Agent Teams Phases
- Interview Mode
- Orchestration Modes
- Feedback Loop
- CC Enhancements
- Agent Teams Full-Stack Pipeline
- Team Worktree Setup
- Micro-Planning Guide
- Scope Creep Detection
- Worktree Workflow
- E2E Verification