Finishing a Development Branch

Overview

Guide completion of development work by presenting clear options and handling chosen workflow.

Core principle: Verify tests → Present options → Execute choice → Update project context → Clean up.

Announce at start: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."

The Process

Step 1: Verify Tests

Before presenting options, verify tests pass:

# Run project's test suite
npm test / cargo test / pytest / go test ./...

If tests fail:

Tests failing (<N> failures). Must fix before completing:

[Show failures]

Cannot proceed with merge/PR until tests pass.

Stop. Don't proceed to Step 2.

If tests pass: Continue to Step 2.

Step 2: Determine Base Branch

# Try common base branches
git merge-base HEAD main 2>/dev/null || git merge-base HEAD master 2>/dev/null

Or ask: "This branch split from main - is that correct?"

Step 3: Present Options

Present exactly these 4 options in AskUserQuestion.

Implementation complete. What would you like to do?

1. Merge back to <base-branch> locally
2. Push and create a Pull Request
3. Keep the branch as-is (I'll handle it later, or I have more work to do)
4. Discard this work

Which option?

Don't add explanation - keep options concise.

Step 4: Execute Choice

Option 1: Merge Locally

# Switch to base branch
git checkout <base-branch>

# Pull latest
git pull

# Merge feature branch
git merge <feature-branch>

# Verify tests on merged result
<test command>

# If tests pass
git branch -d <feature-branch>

Then: Update project context (Step 5), then cleanup worktree (Step 6)

Option 2: Push and Create PR

# Push branch
git push -u origin <feature-branch>

# Create PR
gh pr create --title "<title>" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## Summary
<2-3 bullets of what changed>

## Test Plan
- [ ] <verification steps>
EOF
)"

Then: Update project context (Step 5), then cleanup worktree (Step 6)

Option 3: Keep As-Is

Report: "Keeping branch <name>. Worktree preserved at <path>."

Don't cleanup worktree.

Option 4: Discard

Confirm first:

This will permanently delete:
- Branch <name>
- All commits: <commit-list>
- Worktree at <path>

Type 'discard' to confirm.

Wait for exact confirmation.

If confirmed:

git checkout <base-branch>
git branch -D <feature-branch>

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 6)

Step 5: Update Project Context

Before merging or creating a PR, invoke ed3d-extending-claude:project-claude-librarian to update CLAUDE.md files if contracts or structure changed.

<invoke name="Task">
<parameter name="subagent_type">ed3d-extending-claude:project-claude-librarian</parameter>
<parameter name="description">Updating project context for <branch-name></parameter>
<parameter name="prompt">
  Review what changed in this branch and update CLAUDE.md files if contracts or structure changed.

  Base branch: <base-branch>
  Feature branch: <feature-branch>
  Working directory: <directory>

  Follow the ed3d-extending-claude:maintaining-project-context skill to:
  1. Diff against base branch to see what changed
  2. Identify contract/API/structure changes
  3. Update affected CLAUDE.md files
  4. Commit documentation updates with message: "docs: update project context for <branch-name>"

  Report back with what was updated (or that no updates were needed).
</parameter>
</invoke>

If librarian commits updates: Include those commits in the merge/PR. If librarian reports no updates needed: Proceed with chosen option. If librarian subagent is not available: skip this step, saying aloud that you're skipping it because the ed3d-extending-claude plugin is not available.

Skip this step for Option 4 (Discard).

Step 6: Cleanup Worktree

For Options 1, 2, 4:

Check if in worktree:

git worktree list | grep $(git branch --show-current)

If yes:

git worktree remove <worktree-path>

For Option 3: Keep worktree.

Step 7: Remind About Test Plan

For Options 1, 2, and 3:

If a human test plan was generated (check docs/test-plans/), remind the user:

Human test plan available at: docs/test-plans/<plan-name>.md

This documents:
- What automated tests cover
- What requires human verification
- End-to-end scenarios to manually test

Review before considering this work fully complete.

Skip for Option 4 (Discard).

Quick Reference

Option	Merge	Push	Update Context	Keep Worktree	Cleanup Branch	Test Plan Reminder
1. Merge locally	✓	-	✓	-	✓	✓
2. Create PR	-	✓	✓	✓	-	✓
3. Keep as-is	-	-	-	✓	-	✓
4. Discard	-	-	-	-	✓ (force)	-

Common Mistakes

Skipping test verification

• Problem: Merge broken code, create failing PR
• Fix: Always verify tests before offering options

Open-ended questions

• Problem: "What should I do next?" → ambiguous
• Fix: Present exactly 4 structured options

Automatic worktree cleanup

• Problem: Remove worktree when might need it (Option 2, 3)
• Fix: Only cleanup for Options 1 and 4

No confirmation for discard

• Problem: Accidentally delete work
• Fix: Require typed "discard" confirmation

Red Flags

Never:

• Proceed with failing tests
• Merge without verifying tests on result
• Delete work without confirmation
• Force-push without explicit request

Always:

• Verify tests before offering options
• Present exactly 4 options
• Get typed confirmation for Option 4
• Clean up worktree for Options 1 & 4 only
• Remind about human test plan for Options 1, 2 & 3 (if exists)

Integration

Called by:

• executing-an-implementation-plan - After all tasks complete

Pairs with:

• using-git-worktrees - Cleans up worktree created by that skill