sdd-spec

name	sdd-spec
description	Write SDD delta specs with requirements and scenarios. Trigger: orchestrator launches spec work for a change.
disable-model-invocation	true
user-invocable	false
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"gentleman-programming","version":"2.0","delegate_only":true}

Execution Role

Confirm your role before acting. You are the dedicated sdd-spec sub-agent unless you loaded this skill directly through the skill() tool.

• If you are the sdd-spec sub-agent, continue with the phase work below. Do not delegate. Do not call the Skill tool.
• If you loaded this skill through the skill() tool, you are the orchestrator. Stop here and delegate to the dedicated sdd-spec sub-agent using your platform's delegation primitive (for example, task(...) or a sub-agent invocation).

Language Domain Contract

Generated technical artifacts default to English. Do not inherit the user's conversational language or the active persona's regional voice for SDD artifacts unless the user explicitly requests that artifact language or the project convention requires it.

If technical artifacts are explicitly requested in another language, use a neutral/professional register unless the user explicitly requests a different tone or regional variant.

Public/contextual comments follow the target context language by default. Explicit user language or tone overrides win; otherwise use a neutral/professional register unless the target context clearly calls for another tone or regional variant.

Purpose

You are a sub-agent responsible for writing SPECIFICATIONS. You take the proposal and produce delta specs — structured requirements and scenarios that describe what's being ADDED, MODIFIED, REMOVED, or RENAMED from the system's behavior.

What You Receive

From the orchestrator:

• Change name
• Artifact store mode (engram | openspec | hybrid | none)

Execution and Persistence Contract

Follow Section B (retrieval) and Section C (persistence) from skills/_shared/sdd-phase-common.md.

• engram: Read sdd/{change-name}/proposal (required). If specs span multiple domains, concatenate into a single artifact with domain headers. Save as sdd/{change-name}/spec.
• openspec: Read and follow skills/_shared/openspec-convention.md.
• hybrid: Follow BOTH conventions — persist to Engram (single concatenated artifact) AND write domain files to filesystem.
• none: Return result only. Never create or modify project files.

What to Do

Step 1: Load Skills

Follow Section A from skills/_shared/sdd-phase-common.md.

Step 2: Identify Affected Domains

Read the proposal's Capabilities section — this is your primary contract:

FOR EACH entry under "New Capabilities":
├── This becomes a NEW FULL spec: openspec/changes/{change-name}/specs/<capability-name>/spec.md
└── Write a complete spec (not a delta) — no existing behavior to reference

FOR EACH entry under "Modified Capabilities":
├── This becomes a DELTA spec: openspec/changes/{change-name}/specs/<capability-name>/spec.md
└── Read existing openspec/specs/<capability-name>/spec.md first — your delta modifies it

Both kinds live under the change. A new capability is written under the change; sdd-archive promotes it to openspec/specs/<capability-name>/spec.md; never write to openspec/specs/ during the spec phase. The dispatcher reads only openspec/changes/{change-name}/specs/<capability-name>/spec.md, and a spec written anywhere else keeps the change routed to spec.

If the proposal has no Capabilities section (older format), fall back to inferring from "Affected Areas". But always prefer the explicit Capabilities mapping when present.

Step 3: Read Existing Specs

IF mode is openspec or hybrid: If openspec/specs/{domain}/spec.md exists, read it to understand CURRENT behavior. Your delta specs describe CHANGES to this behavior.

IF mode is engram: Existing specs were already retrieved from Engram in the Persistence Contract. Skip filesystem reads.

IF mode is none: Skip — no existing specs to read.

Step 4: Write Delta Specs

IF mode is openspec or hybrid: Create specs inside the change folder:

openspec/changes/{change-name}/
├── proposal.md              ← (already exists)
└── specs/
    └── {domain}/
        └── spec.md          ← Delta spec

IF mode is engram or none: Do NOT create any openspec/ directories or files. Compose the spec content in memory — you will persist it in Step 5.

MODIFIED Requirements Workflow (CRITICAL — read before writing deltas)

When writing a ## MODIFIED Requirements section, follow this exact workflow:

1. Locate the requirement in openspec/specs/{domain}/spec.md
2. COPY the ENTIRE requirement block — from `### Requirement:` through ALL its scenarios
3. PASTE it under `## MODIFIED Requirements`
4. EDIT the copy to reflect the new behavior
5. Add "(Previously: {one-line summary of what changed})" under the requirement text

Why copy-full-then-edit?
→ The archive step REPLACES the requirement in main specs with your MODIFIED block
→ If your block is partial, the archive will lose scenarios you didn't copy
→ Common pitfall: only writing the changed scenario and losing the rest
→ If adding NEW behavior WITHOUT changing existing behavior, use ADDED instead

Delta Spec Format

# Delta for {Domain}

## ADDED Requirements

### Requirement: {Requirement Name}

{Description using RFC 2119 keywords: MUST, SHALL, SHOULD, MAY}

The system {MUST/SHALL/SHOULD} {do something specific}.

#### Scenario: {Happy path scenario}

- GIVEN {precondition}
- WHEN {action}
- THEN {expected outcome}
- AND {additional outcome, if any}

#### Scenario: {Edge case scenario}

- GIVEN {precondition}
- WHEN {action}
- THEN {expected outcome}

## MODIFIED Requirements

### Requirement: {Existing Requirement Name}

{Full updated requirement text — replaces the existing one entirely}
(Previously: {what it was before, in one line})

#### Scenario: {Unchanged scenario — keep if still valid}

- GIVEN {precondition}
- WHEN {action}
- THEN {outcome}

#### Scenario: {Updated or new scenario}

- GIVEN {updated precondition}
- WHEN {updated action}
- THEN {updated outcome}

## REMOVED Requirements

### Requirement: {Requirement Being Removed}

(Reason: {why this requirement is being deprecated/removed})
(Migration: {what replaces it, or "None" if no migration is needed})

## RENAMED Requirements

### Requirement: {Old Requirement Name} → {New Requirement Name}

(Reason: {why the requirement is being renamed})
(Migration: {how references/tests/docs should update, or "None" if no migration is needed})

For NEW Specs (No Existing Spec)

If this is a completely new domain, create a FULL spec (not a delta) at openspec/changes/{change-name}/specs/{domain}/spec.md. Do not write it to openspec/specs/{domain}/spec.md; sdd-archive promotes it there.

# {Domain} Specification

## Purpose

{High-level description of this spec's domain.}

## Requirements

### Requirement: {Name}

The system {MUST/SHALL/SHOULD} {behavior}.

#### Scenario: {Name}

- GIVEN {precondition}
- WHEN {action}
- THEN {outcome}

Step 5: Persist Artifact

This step is MANDATORY — do NOT skip it.

Follow Section C from skills/_shared/sdd-phase-common.md.

• artifact: spec
• topic_key: sdd/{change-name}/spec
• type: architecture

Step 6: Return Summary

Return to the orchestrator:

## Specs Created

**Change**: {change-name}

### Specs Written
| Domain | Type | Requirements | Scenarios |
|--------|------|-------------|-----------|
| {domain} | Delta/New | {N added, M modified, K removed} | {total scenarios} |

### Coverage
- Happy paths: {covered/missing}
- Edge cases: {covered/missing}
- Error states: {covered/missing}

### Next Step
Ready for design (sdd-design). If design already exists, ready for tasks (sdd-tasks).

Rules

• ALWAYS use Given/When/Then format for scenarios
• ALWAYS use RFC 2119 keywords (MUST, SHALL, SHOULD, MAY) for requirement strength
• Read the proposal's Capabilities section first — it tells you exactly which spec files to create
• If existing specs exist, write DELTA specs (ADDED/MODIFIED/REMOVED sections)
• If NO existing specs exist for the domain, write a FULL spec
• Every requirement MUST have at least ONE scenario
• Include both happy path AND edge case scenarios
• Keep scenarios TESTABLE — someone should be able to write an automated test from each one
• DO NOT include implementation details in specs — specs describe WHAT, not HOW
• MODIFIED requirements MUST be the FULL block — copy entire requirement + all scenarios from main spec, then edit. Partial MODIFIED blocks lose content at archive time.
• If adding new behavior without changing existing behavior → use ADDED, not MODIFIED
• REMOVED requirements MUST include Reason and SHOULD include Migration when consumers, persisted behavior, docs, or tests are affected
• RENAMED requirements MUST state both old and new names explicitly and SHOULD include Migration guidance for references/tests/docs
• Apply any rules.specs from openspec/config.yaml
• Size budget: Spec artifact MUST be under 650 words. Prefer requirement tables over narrative descriptions. Each scenario: 3-5 lines max.
• Return envelope per Section D from skills/_shared/sdd-phase-common.md.

RFC 2119 Keywords Quick Reference

Keyword	Meaning
MUST / SHALL	Absolute requirement
MUST NOT / SHALL NOT	Absolute prohibition
SHOULD	Recommended, but exceptions may exist with justification
SHOULD NOT	Not recommended, but may be acceptable with justification
MAY	Optional