Subagent-Driven Development

Execute plan by dispatching fresh subagent per task, with two-stage review after each: spec compliance review first, then code quality review.

Core principle: Fresh subagent per task + two-stage review (spec then quality) = high quality, fast iteration

When to Use

digraph when_to_use {
    "Have implementation plan?" [shape=diamond];
    "Tasks mostly independent?" [shape=diamond];
    "Stay in this session?" [shape=diamond];
    "subagent-driven-development" [shape=box];
    "executing-plans" [shape=box];
    "Manual execution or brainstorm first" [shape=box];

    "Have implementation plan?" -> "Tasks mostly independent?" [label="yes"];
    "Have implementation plan?" -> "Manual execution or brainstorm first" [label="no"];
    "Tasks mostly independent?" -> "Stay in this session?" [label="yes"];
    "Tasks mostly independent?" -> "Manual execution or brainstorm first" [label="no - tightly coupled"];
    "Stay in this session?" -> "subagent-driven-development" [label="yes"];
    "Stay in this session?" -> "executing-plans" [label="no - parallel session"];
}

vs. Executing Plans (parallel session):

• Same session (no context switch)
• Fresh subagent per task (no context pollution)
• Two-stage review after each task: spec compliance first, then code quality
• Faster iteration (no human-in-loop between tasks)

The Process

At session start: Read tasks.json (prs array) to find the current PR:

• If a PR has status: in_progress: that session was interrupted. Resume from the first task in that PR whose commit is not in git log --oneline.
• If no in_progress PR: find the first pending PR whose blockedBy IDs are all completed.
• If all PRs are completed: invoke superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch.

digraph process {
    rankdir=TB;

    subgraph cluster_per_task {
        label="Per Task";
        "Dispatch implementer subagent (./implementer-prompt.md)" [shape=box];
        "Implementer subagent asks questions?" [shape=diamond];
        "Answer questions, provide context" [shape=box];
        "Implementer subagent implements, tests, commits, self-reviews" [shape=box];
        "Dispatch spec reviewer subagent (./spec-reviewer-prompt.md)" [shape=box];
        "Spec reviewer subagent confirms code matches spec?" [shape=diamond];
        "Implementer subagent fixes spec gaps" [shape=box];
        "Dispatch code quality reviewer subagent (./code-quality-reviewer-prompt.md)" [shape=box];
        "Code quality reviewer subagent approves?" [shape=diamond];
        "Implementer subagent fixes quality issues" [shape=box];
        "TaskUpdate: mark task completed" [shape=box];
    }

    "Read plan, extract tasks, TaskCreate for each with full text" [shape=box];
    "Write PR in_progress to tasks.json" [shape=box];
    "More tasks remain in this PR?" [shape=diamond];
    "Push branch + create PR" [shape=box];
    "Switch back to main" [shape=box];
    "Create branch for next PR" [shape=box];
    "Ask: continue to next PR or close?" [shape=diamond];
    "Close session" [shape=box];
    "More PRs remain?" [shape=diamond];
    "Dispatch final code reviewer subagent for entire implementation" [shape=box];
    "Use superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch" [shape=box style=filled fillcolor=lightgreen];

    "Read plan, extract tasks, TaskCreate for each with full text" -> "Write PR in_progress to tasks.json";
    "Write PR in_progress to tasks.json" -> "Dispatch implementer subagent (./implementer-prompt.md)";
    "Dispatch implementer subagent (./implementer-prompt.md)" -> "Implementer subagent asks questions?";
    "Implementer subagent asks questions?" -> "Answer questions, provide context" [label="yes"];
    "Answer questions, provide context" -> "Dispatch implementer subagent (./implementer-prompt.md)";
    "Implementer subagent asks questions?" -> "Implementer subagent implements, tests, commits, self-reviews" [label="no"];
    "Implementer subagent implements, tests, commits, self-reviews" -> "Dispatch spec reviewer subagent (./spec-reviewer-prompt.md)";
    "Dispatch spec reviewer subagent (./spec-reviewer-prompt.md)" -> "Spec reviewer subagent confirms code matches spec?";
    "Spec reviewer subagent confirms code matches spec?" -> "Implementer subagent fixes spec gaps" [label="no"];
    "Implementer subagent fixes spec gaps" -> "Dispatch spec reviewer subagent (./spec-reviewer-prompt.md)" [label="re-review"];
    "Spec reviewer subagent confirms code matches spec?" -> "Dispatch code quality reviewer subagent (./code-quality-reviewer-prompt.md)" [label="yes"];
    "Dispatch code quality reviewer subagent (./code-quality-reviewer-prompt.md)" -> "Code quality reviewer subagent approves?";
    "Code quality reviewer subagent approves?" -> "Implementer subagent fixes quality issues" [label="no"];
    "Implementer subagent fixes quality issues" -> "Dispatch code quality reviewer subagent (./code-quality-reviewer-prompt.md)" [label="re-review"];
    "Code quality reviewer subagent approves?" -> "TaskUpdate: mark task completed" [label="yes"];
    "TaskUpdate: mark task completed" -> "More tasks remain in this PR?";
    "More tasks remain in this PR?" -> "Dispatch implementer subagent (./implementer-prompt.md)" [label="yes"];
    "More tasks remain in this PR?" -> "Push branch + create PR" [label="no — all PR tasks done"];
    "Push branch + create PR" -> "Switch back to main";
    "Switch back to main" -> "Ask: continue to next PR or close?";
    "Ask: continue to next PR or close?" -> "More PRs remain?" [label="continue"];
    "Ask: continue to next PR or close?" -> "Close session" [label="close"];
    "More PRs remain?" -> "Create branch for next PR" [label="yes"];
    "Create branch for next PR" -> "Write PR in_progress to tasks.json";
    "More PRs remain?" -> "Dispatch final code reviewer subagent for entire implementation" [label="no"];
    "Dispatch final code reviewer subagent for entire implementation" -> "Use superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch";
}

Per-PR Branch and PR Flow

Before each PR (not each task):

Check if on main/master. If so, ask for branch name and create branch — same as executing-plans Step 1c but referencing the PR subject: "What branch name for PR N: [pr subject]?". Write status: in_progress to prs[N] in tasks.json immediately.

Within a PR — after each task passes both reviews:

• Mark task completed in native tasks
• Do NOT open a PR — continue to the next task in the PR
• Do NOT ask "continue or close?" between tasks

After all tasks in the PR pass reviews:

1. Push branch and open PR using the → Open PR: "..." title from the plan:

   git push -u origin <branch-name>
   gh pr create --title "[title from → Open PR line]" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
   ## Summary
   [Task subjects completed in this PR, one per line]
   
   ## Acceptance Criteria
   [Acceptance criteria from each task in this PR]
   EOF
   )"
   

2. Switch back to main: git checkout main && git pull
3. Write status: completed to prs[N] in tasks.json
4. Ask: "Continue to next PR, or close session?"

After final PR:

• Dispatch final code-reviewer subagent for entire implementation
• Invoke finishing-a-development-branch for plan archiving

Committable mode: Read the **Committable:** field from the plan header. Use correct file extensions for tasks.json (or tasks.local.json).

Prompt Templates

• ./implementer-prompt.md - Dispatch implementer subagent
• ./spec-reviewer-prompt.md - Dispatch spec compliance reviewer subagent
• ./code-quality-reviewer-prompt.md - Dispatch code quality reviewer subagent

Example Workflow

You: I'm using Subagent-Driven Development to execute this plan.

[Read plan file once: docs/plans/feature-plan/plan.md]
[Extract all 5 tasks with full text and context]
[TaskCreate for each task with full description]

Task 1: Hook installation script

[Get Task 1 text and context (already extracted)]
[Dispatch implementation subagent with full task text + context]

Implementer: "Before I begin - should the hook be installed at user or system level?"

You: "User level (~/.config/superpowers/hooks/)"

Implementer: "Got it. Implementing now..."
[Later] Implementer:
  - Implemented install-hook command
  - Added tests, 5/5 passing
  - Self-review: Found I missed --force flag, added it
  - Committed

[Dispatch spec compliance reviewer]
Spec reviewer: ✅ Spec compliant - all requirements met, nothing extra

[Get git SHAs, dispatch code quality reviewer]
Code reviewer: Strengths: Good test coverage, clean. Issues: None. Approved.

[Mark Task 1 complete — more tasks in this PR, no PR yet]

Task 2: Recovery modes

[Get Task 2 text and context (already extracted)]
[Dispatch implementation subagent with full task text + context]

Implementer: [No questions, proceeds]
Implementer:
  - Added verify/repair modes
  - 8/8 tests passing
  - Self-review: All good
  - Committed

[Dispatch spec compliance reviewer]
Spec reviewer: ❌ Issues:
  - Missing: Progress reporting (spec says "report every 100 items")
  - Extra: Added --json flag (not requested)

[Implementer fixes issues]
Implementer: Removed --json flag, added progress reporting

[Spec reviewer reviews again]
Spec reviewer: ✅ Spec compliant now

[Dispatch code quality reviewer]
Code reviewer: Strengths: Solid. Issues (Important): Magic number (100)

[Implementer fixes]
Implementer: Extracted PROGRESS_INTERVAL constant

[Code reviewer reviews again]
Code reviewer: ✅ Approved

[Mark Task 2 complete — all tasks in PR 1 done]
[Push branch, open PR for PR 1 using → Open PR title]
[Switch to main]
[Ask: continue to next PR or close?]

...

[After all tasks]
[Dispatch final code-reviewer]
Final reviewer: All requirements met, ready to merge

Done!

Advantages

vs. Manual execution:

• Subagents follow TDD naturally
• Fresh context per task (no confusion)
• Parallel-safe (subagents don't interfere)
• Subagent can ask questions (before AND during work)

vs. Executing Plans:

• Same session (no handoff)
• Continuous progress (no waiting)
• Review checkpoints automatic

Efficiency gains:

• No file reading overhead (controller provides full text)
• Controller curates exactly what context is needed
• Subagent gets complete information upfront
• Questions surfaced before work begins (not after)

Quality gates:

• Self-review catches issues before handoff
• Two-stage review: spec compliance, then code quality
• Review loops ensure fixes actually work
• Spec compliance prevents over/under-building
• Code quality ensures implementation is well-built

Cost:

• More subagent invocations (implementer + 2 reviewers per task)
• Controller does more prep work (extracting all tasks upfront)
• Review loops add iterations
• But catches issues early (cheaper than debugging later)

Red Flags

Never:

• Start implementation on main/master branch without explicit user consent
• Skip reviews (spec compliance OR code quality)
• Proceed with unfixed issues
• Dispatch multiple implementation subagents in parallel (conflicts)
• Make subagent read plan file (provide full text instead)
• Skip scene-setting context (subagent needs to understand where task fits)
• Ignore subagent questions (answer before letting them proceed)
• Accept "close enough" on spec compliance (spec reviewer found issues = not done)
• Skip review loops (reviewer found issues = implementer fixes = review again)
• Let implementer self-review replace actual review (both are needed)
• Start code quality review before spec compliance is ✅ (wrong order)
• Move to next task while either review has open issues

If subagent asks questions:

• Answer clearly and completely
• Provide additional context if needed
• Don't rush them into implementation

If reviewer finds issues:

• Implementer (same subagent) fixes them
• Reviewer reviews again
• Repeat until approved
• Don't skip the re-review

If subagent fails task:

• Dispatch fix subagent with specific instructions
• Don't try to fix manually (context pollution)

Integration

Required workflow skills:

• superpowers:using-git-worktrees - REQUIRED: Set up isolated workspace before starting
• superpowers:writing-plans - Creates the plan this skill executes
• superpowers:requesting-code-review - Code review template for reviewer subagents
• superpowers:finishing-a-development-branch - Complete development after all tasks

Subagents should use:

• superpowers:test-driven-development - Subagents follow TDD for each task

Alternative workflow:

• superpowers:executing-plans - Use for parallel session instead of same-session execution