Task Planner
This skill helps you turn ambiguous or large requests into a clear, sequenced plan with ownership and verification.
Outputs To Produce
- A short problem statement
- Assumptions and open questions
- A step-by-step plan with measurable outcomes
- Risks and rollback/containment options
- Test and verification steps
Decomposition Technique
Split work into thin vertical slices:
- One slice should be mergeable on its own
- Each slice should include tests or validation
- Prefer smallest unit that reduces uncertainty
Common slice types:
- Spec tests (lock requirements, CLI flags, edge cases)
- Implementation changes (small, isolated)
- Documentation updates
- Observability and traceability improvements
Dependency And Priority Rules
- Identify blockers first (missing API, failing tests, permissions).
- Order by "unblocks others" and "reduces uncertainty".
- For multi-agent work, keep interfaces stable and define contracts (inputs/outputs) per slice.
Multi-Agent Assignment
When delegating:
- Specify the exact deliverable (files, tests, output format)
- Specify constraints (no commits, branch constraints, time limits)
- Specify the acceptance test (what must pass)
Example delegation message:
Please write tests for <feature>.
Constraints:
- Do not change implementation yet
- Use pytest
Acceptance:
- Tests fail before implementation
- Tests cover edge cases: <...>Plan Output
Plan Card Output (Canvas)
For visual plans with Mermaid DAG visualization and step-level status tracking, post a plan card to Canvas:
# Post plan card with Mermaid DAG and step list
synapse canvas plan '{"plan_id":"plan-auth","status":"proposed","mermaid":"graph TD; A[Tests]-->B[Impl]-->C[Review]","steps":[{"id":"s1","subject":"Write auth tests","agent":"Tester","status":"pending"},{"id":"s2","subject":"Implement auth","agent":"Impl","status":"pending","blocked_by":["s1"]},{"id":"s3","subject":"Review","agent":"Tester","status":"pending","blocked_by":["s2"]}]}' --title "Auth Plan"Plan cards are useful when the decomposition should be visible to the team in the Canvas dashboard. Use plan cards for plans with 3+ steps or complex dependency chains that benefit from DAG visualization.
TodoList for Personal Micro-Steps
Use a TodoList for your own micro-step tracking within a single task. TodoList items are fine-grained (one per coding step):
- Add failing tests for
- Implement behind tests
- Run targeted tests
- Update docs
- Run full test suite
Progress Reporting
Include clear status updates in all communications:
- Done:
"Write auth tests complete — 4 tests passing" - Next:
"Starting Implement auth module; tests are confirmed" - Blocked:
"Integration test waiting — implementation not yet complete"