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: <...>

Task Board Output

Decomposition results go to the task board — the team-visible contract:

Create tasks with dependency chains

synapse tasks create "Write auth tests"
-d "Cover valid login, invalid credentials, token expiry"
--priority 5

Returns: 3f2a1b4c (displayed prefix of a UUID such as 3f2a1b4c-1111-2222-3333-444444444444)

synapse tasks create "Implement auth module"
-d "Add OAuth2 with JWT in synapse/auth.py"
--priority 4
--blocked-by 3f2a1b4c

Returns: 7a9d2e10 (displayed prefix of a UUID such as 7a9d2e10-5555-6666-7777-888888888888)

synapse tasks create "Integration test"
-d "End-to-end auth flow verification"
--priority 3
--blocked-by 7a9d2e10

Returns: c84ef901 (displayed prefix of a UUID such as c84ef901-9999-aaaa-bbbb-cccccccccccc)

Capture the created IDs, then assign ownership using the UUID prefix

TESTS_ID=$(synapse tasks create "Write auth tests"
-d "Cover valid login, invalid credentials, token expiry"
--priority 5 | awk '{print $3}') IMPL_ID=$(synapse tasks create "Implement auth module"
-d "Add OAuth2 with JWT in synapse/auth.py"
--priority 4
--blocked-by "$TESTS_ID" | awk '{print $3}') INT_ID=$(synapse tasks create "Integration test"
-d "End-to-end auth flow verification"
--priority 3
--blocked-by "$IMPL_ID" | awk '{print $3}')

synapse tasks assign "$TESTS_ID" Tester synapse tasks assign "$IMPL_ID" Impl synapse tasks assign "$INT_ID" Tester

Use --blocked-by to express dependency chains. Blocked tasks cannot start until their blockers are completed, making execution order explicit. synapse tasks create generates full UUIDs, while the CLI prints the first 8 characters. synapse tasks assign , synapse tasks complete , and --blocked-by accept either the full UUID or a unique prefix.

TodoList for Personal Micro-Steps

Use a TodoList for your own micro-step tracking within a single task. Task board entries are coarse-grained (one per delegation); 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

Reference task board IDs in all status updates:

• Done: "Task 3f2a1b4c (Write auth tests) complete — 4 tests passing"

• synapse tasks complete "$TESTS_ID"

• Next: "Starting task 7a9d2e10 (Implement auth module); previously blocked by 3f2a1b4c"

• Blocked: "Task c84ef901 (Integration test) waiting — blocked by 7a9d2e10 (dependency will auto-unblock on completion)"