nordic-conf-pw

Decide WHEN to drive the browser MCP, WHEN to invoke a Playwright Test Agent (planner/generator/healer), and WHEN to just edit files. The orchestrator skill — read this first when a Playwright task comes in.

Mix API calls into Playwright suites — pure API tests via the request fixture and hybrid tests that seed state via API then assert through the UI. Use when login/setup is slow, when verifying side-effects, or for API regression coverage alongside UI.

Use Playwright as an investigation tool, not just a regression suite — broken-image audits, console-error capture, failed-request capture, negative-path tests, accessibility scans. Use during exploratory testing or whenever a real bug is suspected but not reliably reproducible.

Unblock a failing or hard-to-author Playwright test — UI mode, codegen, trace viewer, Inspector, page.pause(), failure artifacts. Use whenever a test fails mysteriously, when you need to discover a locator, or when stepping through a flow.

Build custom Playwright fixtures, skip repeated login with storage state, and keep tests isolated so they run in any order in parallel. Use when tests need auth, share setup, or are slow because every test re-logs-in.

Pick locators that survive UI changes and lean on Playwright's auto-waiting to kill flakes. Use when authoring or refactoring a spec, replacing brittle CSS/XPath, or chasing flaky failures.

Make tests deterministic and fast by controlling the network — page.route for stubs, HAR record/replay, request/response modification, WebSocket mocking. Use when tests are flaky due to a slow/unreliable backend, when testing edge-case responses, or when running CI without external services.

Compact reference for organising Playwright tests with page objects. Use when adding a new page or refactoring a spec that has grown messy. Not a style lecture — see sibling skills for locators, fixtures, debugging, etc.