create-story-tasks Skill

create-story-tasks

Break down a user story into individual development tasks, creating task documents for each.

When to Use

After user story is drafted and approved
When preparing work breakdown for sprint planning
When story needs granular task estimation
When assigning work to multiple developers
When tracking progress at task level

Quick Start

Load user story from docs/stories/
Analyze story scope and acceptance criteria
Map ACs to implementation work and dependencies
Generate task breakdown (2-8 hour tasks)
Create task documents with estimates

Purpose

Decompose a user story into specific, actionable development tasks that can be assigned, estimated, and tracked independently. Each task should be small enough to complete in a single development session but meaningful enough to deliver value toward the story's acceptance criteria.

SEQUENTIAL Task Execution

1. Load User Story

inputs:
  - Story document from docs/stories/
  - Story ID, title, and description
  - Acceptance criteria list
  - Technical notes and requirements
  - Initial task breakdown from story

2. Analyze Story Scope

analysis:
  acceptance_criteria_coverage:
    - Map each AC to required implementation work
    - Identify technical components affected
    - Determine task dependencies
    
  technical_assessment:
    - Frontend components needed
    - Backend services/APIs needed
    - Database changes required
    - Testing requirements
    
  task_granularity:
    - Each task should be 2-8 hours of work
    - Tasks should be independently testable
    - Tasks should align with PRISM principles

3. Generate Task Breakdown

task_structure:
  naming_convention: "{{story_id}}-T{{task_num}}"
  # Example: US-001-T1, US-001-T2, etc.
  
  task_categories:
    - Database/Schema changes
    - Backend API implementation
    - Frontend component development
    - Testing implementation
    - Documentation updates
    - Integration/deployment tasks
    
  task_template_per_task:
    task_id: "{{story_id}}-T{{number}}"
    task_title: "{{brief_description}}"
    acceptance_criteria_refs: [{{ac_numbers}}]
    estimated_hours: "{{2-8}}"
    dependencies: [{{other_task_ids}}]

4. Create Individual Task Documents

For each identified task, create a task document:

# Task {{story_id}}-T{{number}}: {{task_title}}

## Story Reference
- **Parent Story:** {{story_id}} - {{story_title}}
- **Story Link:** [{{story_id}}](../stories/{{story_file}})

## Task Description

{{detailed_description_of_what_needs_to_be_done}}

## Acceptance Criteria Coverage

This task contributes to the following story acceptance criteria:
- AC #{{number}}: {{criteria_text}}
- AC #{{number}}: {{criteria_text}}

## Implementation Requirements

### Functional Requirements
1. {{requirement_1}}
2. {{requirement_2}}
3. {{requirement_3}}

### Technical Details
- **Component/Module:** {{component_name}}
- **Files to Modify:** 
  - {{file_path_1}}
  - {{file_path_2}}
- **New Files to Create:**
  - {{file_path_3}}

### PRISM Principles Application
- **Predictability:** {{how_task_ensures_predictable_outcome}}
- **Resiliency:** {{testing_strategy}}
- **Intentionality:** {{design_decisions_and_rationale}}
- **Sustainability:** {{maintainable_approach}}
- **Maintainability:** {{clear_code_structure}}

## Dependencies

### Upstream Dependencies (must complete first)
- {{task_id}}: {{brief_reason}}

### Downstream Dependencies (waiting on this)
- {{task_id}}: {{brief_reason}}

### External Dependencies
- {{service/resource}}: {{what_is_needed}}

## Testing Requirements

### Unit Tests
- Test: {{test_case_1}}
- Test: {{test_case_2}}

### Integration Tests
- Test: {{integration_scenario}}

### Manual Testing Steps
1. {{step_1}}
2. {{step_2}}
3. {{step_3}}

## Definition of Done
- [ ] Implementation complete per requirements
- [ ] Unit tests written and passing
- [ ] Integration tests passing
- [ ] Code reviewed and approved
- [ ] Documentation updated
- [ ] Acceptance criteria validated
- [ ] No regression in existing functionality

## Estimation

### PSP/PROBE Estimation
- **Estimated Hours:** {{optimistic}}-{{likely}}-{{pessimistic}}
- **Story Points:** {{1|2|3}} (task level)
- **Size Category:** {{very_small|small|medium}}
- **Similar Tasks:** {{references}}
- **Confidence:** {{high|medium|low}}

### Tracking
- **Started:** {{date_time}}
- **Completed:** {{date_time}}
- **Actual Hours:** {{hours}}
- **Variance:** {{percentage}}

## Technical Notes

{{any_architecture_patterns_to_follow}}
{{coding_standards_references}}
{{security_considerations}}
{{performance_requirements}}

## Implementation Notes

{{dev_agent_records_implementation_details}}
{{challenges_encountered}}
{{decisions_made}}
{{files_actually_modified}}

---

**Status:** {{Not Started|In Progress|Review|Testing|Done}}
**Assigned To:** {{agent_or_developer}}
**Created:** {{date}}
**Updated:** {{date}}

5. Task Ordering Strategy

recommended_task_order:
  phase_1_foundation:
    - Database schema changes
    - Data models/entities
    - Migration scripts
    
  phase_2_backend:
    - API endpoints
    - Business logic
    - Service layer
    
  phase_3_frontend:
    - UI components
    - State management
    - Integration with APIs
    
  phase_4_testing:
    - E2E tests
    - Integration tests
    - Performance tests
    
  phase_5_finalization:
    - Documentation
    - Deployment configuration
    - Monitoring/observability

dependency_rules:
  - Backend tasks before frontend tasks
  - Database changes before API changes
  - Component creation before integration
  - Implementation before testing
  - Testing before documentation

6. Create Task Index

Update the parent story document:

## Tasks Created

| Task ID | Title | Status | Estimated | Actual | AC Refs |
|---------|-------|--------|-----------|--------|---------|
| {{story_id}}-T1 | {{title}} | {{status}} | {{est_hours}} | {{actual_hours}} | #1, #2 |
| {{story_id}}-T2 | {{title}} | {{status}} | {{est_hours}} | {{actual_hours}} | #3 |
| {{story_id}}-T3 | {{title}} | {{status}} | {{est_hours}} | {{actual_hours}} | #2, #4 |

**Total Estimated Hours:** {{sum_of_estimates}}
**Total Actual Hours:** {{sum_of_actuals}}
**Task Count:** {{number_of_tasks}}

7. Quality Checks

validation_checklist:
  coverage:
    - [ ] All acceptance criteria mapped to tasks
    - [ ] All technical components addressed
    - [ ] Testing tasks included
    - [ ] Documentation tasks present
    
  task_quality:
    - [ ] Each task has clear, actionable description
    - [ ] Dependencies identified and documented
    - [ ] Estimates provided using PROBE method
    - [ ] Testing requirements specified
    - [ ] PRISM principles applied
    
  sizing:
    - [ ] No task exceeds 8 hours estimate
    - [ ] Tasks are independently deliverable
    - [ ] Task breakdown is logical and sequential

Success Criteria

[ ] All story acceptance criteria covered by tasks
[ ] Task documents created in docs/tasks/
[ ] Task dependencies mapped
[ ] Estimates provided for all tasks
[ ] Parent story document updated with task index
[ ] Tasks ordered by logical implementation sequence
[ ] Each task aligns with PRISM principles

Output

Task document files: docs/tasks/{{story_id}}-T{{n}}-{{slug}}.md
Updated story document with task index
Task dependency graph (if complex)
Total effort estimate for story

Integration with PRISM Workflow

This task integrates with:

Before: Story creation and refinement
After: Individual task execution by Dev agent
Parallel: QA test design from acceptance criteria
Quality Gates: Story estimation, sprint planning

Notes

Keep tasks focused and atomic
Ensure clear handoff between tasks
Document assumptions and constraints
Use consistent naming conventions
Reference architecture and coding standards
Consider rollback/revert strategy for each task

Agent Skills: create-story-tasks

Install this agent skill to your local

Skill Files