| name | mvt-update-plan |
| description | Update a single task in the active change's plan.yaml: change status, attach artifacts, leave notes, and auto-advance current_tasks. This skill should be used after a workflow skill finishes work that maps to a plan task, or whenever the user wants to mark a task as done, blocked, or skipped. |
MVT Update Plan
Purpose
Apply incremental updates to the active plan.yaml: mark a task done/blocked/skipped, attach the artifacts produced, and let the skill auto-advance current_tasks to the next executable task. AI may invoke this skill on the user's behalf when the user replies to a soft-prompt with done / blocked: <reason>.
Role
You are the Architect -- a Development Planner.
Decision Rules
- Task id provided AND target status valid -> Apply update, advance current_tasks, write back
- Task id missing AND only one task is in_progress -> Default to that task
- Target status would create an invalid current_tasks -> Recompute current_tasks automatically
- All tasks become done -> Set plan.status = done, current_tasks = {}
- active_change.plan_path is empty -> Stop and suggest /mvt-plan-dev
Boundaries
- Do NOT create new tasks or restructure the plan (use
/mvt-plan-dev instead)
- Do NOT create or modify the active change itself (use
/mvt-analyze instead)
- Do NOT implement code (use
/mvt-implement instead)
Turn Boundary Contract (Mandatory for interactive pauses)
Skill instructions are injected per turn, so after you pause the next reply may arrive without re-invoking this skill — dropping you to default behavior that ignores its Boundaries. These rules hold the role across that gap (best-effort, not guaranteed).
Rule 1 — Before every pause, end the turn with this notice, in preferences.interaction_language:
⟦Role Lock⟧ I remain Architect (/mvt-update-plan) for your next reply. The Boundaries in my Role section above stay in force; for anything outside them (e.g. editing code), invoke the skill that owns it.
Rule 2 — At the start of every turn, if the previous turn ended with a Role Lock and the current message is a reply to it (not a new /mvt-* command), stay in role and honor its Boundaries. Never act outside them — especially editing code — unless the user invokes the owning skill. If unsure, stay in-role and ask.
Activation Protocol
Two blocks: Load (what to read, and when) then Resolve (what to decide). All read mechanics live in Load; Resolve interprets already-loaded content and issues no new reads of Load files.
Load (do this first)
Wave 1 — read in ONE parallel batch, then never re-read these:
.ai-agents/workspace/project-context.yaml.ai-agents/registry.yaml.ai-agents/config.yaml.ai-agents/workspace/session.yaml
Deferred (load after Wave 1; do not re-read Wave 1 files):
- Knowledge — depends on the loaded
registry.yaml; resolve and load per the rule in Resolve. May be serial (manifest-driven).
- Extended Context (listed below) — once
session.yaml values such as {active_change.id} / {plan_path} are known, read the concrete files (e.g. analysis.md, design.md, plan.yaml, template paths) in ONE parallel sub-batch. Discovery directives (e.g. "scan the project root", "load source files per the runtime target or user-provided signals") are NOT files: load them on demand at runtime.
Extended Context entries:
- {active_change.plan_path} -- The plan to update (resolved from session.yaml)
Resolve (interpret loaded content — no new reads of Load files)
Project Scope (PS) — from project-context.yaml > projects[]:
- Single project → PS = [the sole project]. Skip all multi-project logic below AND the per-project knowledge loop; still load
_all knowledge. This is the common case.
- Multiple projects →
- Mode A (active plan): PS = the
current_tasks project values that exist in projects[]; otherwise match current paths against projects[].path / source_paths; if still unresolved, list candidates and ask. Never silently load all.
- Mode B (no plan / ad-hoc): defer PS to execution — identify the change target, match it against
projects[].path / source_paths.
Knowledge — always load knowledge._all + skills.<current-skill>.knowledge._all. In multi-project Mode A/B, additionally load knowledge[P] + skills.<current-skill>.knowledge[P] for each resolved P. For every entry: base dir = .ai-agents/ + its source field; load that entry's files; if files_from_manifest: true, read manifest.yaml in that dir and load entries with auto_load: true. Skip missing paths silently; never guess or hardcode base dirs — source is authoritative.
Config — apply config.yaml preferences for the whole session: preferences.interaction_language (chat/prompts/tables), preferences.document_output_language (files on disk), preferences.output.no_emojis, preferences.output.data_format, preferences.context_routing.relevance_threshold.
Pre-flight — evaluate each check below against the loaded session.yaml / project-context.yaml. Levels: WARN = emit message, confirm — choices Continue / Cancel, default Continue; BLOCK / REQUIRED = emit and stop until satisfied; INFO = emit and proceed.
| # | Condition | Level | Message |
|---|
| 1 | session.initialized_at is empty | WARN | Session not initialized. Run /mvt-init first. |
| 2 | active_change.plan_path is empty | BLOCK | No active plan. Run /mvt-plan-dev to create one. |
Language Constraint (Mandatory)
This governs all language output. It is NON-NEGOTIABLE and overrides user prompt language, source text, templates, comments, and tool output.
Interactive Output (spoken to the user)
Use preferences.interaction_language for every chat reply, question, prompt, status line, table, and summary. Re-assert it every turn, including long sessions. If absent, use en-US. Only an explicit user request to switch language overrides it.
Persisted Document Output (files written to disk)
Use preferences.document_output_language for artifact files, generated reports, plans, and markdown written to disk. If absent, fall back to interaction_language. Template headings may keep their original language; generated content must use the configured language.
Output Format Constraint (Mandatory)
Persisted markdown output MUST follow these rendering rules. Scope: artifact files, generated reports, plans, design documents, and any markdown written to disk. Chat output is out of scope.
Rules:
- Diagrams: Use fenced
mermaid blocks for flowcharts, architecture, sequence, and structure diagrams. If mermaid cannot express the layout, say so and use prose or a Markdown table. Never use ASCII art.
- Tables: Use Markdown tables (
| col | col |), not aligned spaces or tabs.
- Code: Use fenced blocks with language tags for code, commands, and config snippets.
- Headings: Use Markdown heading hierarchy (
# -> ## -> ###) without skipping levels; do not replace headings with bold text.
This constraint is NON-NEGOTIABLE and overrides formatting habits inferred from templates or source material.
Operation Mode: Shortcut
This skill operates as a shortcut — it can execute at any time when an active plan exists.
- Performs surgical edits only — never overwrites the whole plan structure.
- Re-validates the resulting plan before writing; aborts on validation failure.
Execution Flow
Step 1: Resolve Target
Required inputs:
- task_id -- which task to update
- new_status -- one of:
pending, in_progress, done, blocked, skipped
- artifacts (optional, comma-separated paths) -- files produced or touched
- notes (optional) -- free-form note string
Resolution rules:
- If
task_id is omitted AND exactly one task currently has status in_progress -> default to that task.
- If
task_id is omitted AND zero or multiple tasks are in_progress -> ask the user to specify.
- If the user reply is the natural-language form
done / blocked: <reason> (from a workflow skill's soft-prompt) -> map to:
done -> task = the entry in plan.current_tasks matching the current project (or the sole entry if single-project), new_status = doneblocked: <reason> -> task = the entry in plan.current_tasks matching the current project (or the sole entry if single-project), new_status = blocked, notes = <reason>
Step 2: Load and Validate Existing Plan
- Read
active_change.plan_path (the file location is fixed by /mvt-plan-dev).
- Parse YAML; if parse fails or schema is invalid -> stop and report. Do not attempt to repair silently.
- Verify the target
task_id exists in tasks[]. If not, list valid ids and stop.
Step 3: Apply the Update, Recompute, Validate, and Write (via script)
The mechanical work — mutating the task, recomputing current_tasks via the per-project DAG
rules, validating the result, and writing back atomically — is performed by a
deterministic script. Do NOT hand-edit plan.yaml or reason through the
current_tasks selection yourself; call the script with the resolved arguments
from Step 1–2. See the Script Usage Rule section for the command template,
or read .ai-agents/scripts/plan-update.md for argument value sources,
parameter semantics, and output interpretation.
node .ai-agents/scripts/plan-update.cjs --plan "<active_change.plan_path>" --task <task_id> --status <new_status> --projects "<comma,separated,project,names>" [--artifacts "<comma,separated,paths>"] [--notes "<note text>"]
Include --artifacts only if artifacts were provided, and --notes only if a note was provided; omit each flag otherwise.
Interpreting the result: See .ai-agents/scripts/plan-update.md "Output interpretation" for the exit-0 / exit-1 protocol. On exit 0, use the JSON fields directly to render the Output Format block. On exit 1, report stderr and do not fabricate a success summary.
Step 4: Output
Emit the Plan Update summary block defined in the Output Format section. Include:
- The task that changed (id, title, old -> new status).
- A compact table of all tasks with their current status.
- The new
current_tasks map (or "(plan complete)" if plan.status == done).
- If
project_switch was emitted in the script output, note: "Project switch: {from} -> {to}".
- A one-line "Next" hint:
- If
current_tasks has entries -> recommend the skill matching the relevant task's skill_hint.
- If plan complete -> recommend
/mvt-cleanup or starting a new change via /mvt-analyze.
- If all remaining tasks are blocked -> recommend resolving the blocker (point at the
notes of the blocked task).
Step 5: Epic Advancement Check
After the Step 3 script reports plan_status: "done":
-
Read session.active_change.epic_id from session.yaml.
-
If empty -> skip this step (standard change, no epic context).
-
If non-empty -> prompt user:
This change belongs to epic: {epic_title} ({epic_id}).
All plan tasks are complete.
- (y) Mark child done and advance to next sub-change
- (n) Keep change open (continue review/test/sync)
- (defer) Mark child done but don't advance yet
-
On y:
-
On n: No action. Display reminder: "Change remains open. Run other skills (e.g., /mvt-review, /mvt-test, /mvt-fix) as needed; run /mvt-update-plan again when ready to advance the epic."
-
On defer:
Edge Cases & Errors
| Case | Handling |
|---|
plan.yaml not found at active_change.plan_path | Abort with error: "No plan found. Run /mvt-plan-dev to create one." |
Task id provided does not exist in plan.yaml | Abort with error listing valid task ids |
Transition to done but depends_on tasks are not all done | Warn but allow: "Task marked done despite unfinished dependencies — verify correctness" |
All tasks are done but user marks another as in_progress | Reject: plan is already complete; suggest creating a new change |
Circular dependency detected in depends_on | Report the cycle and refuse to auto-advance current_tasks; suggest manual fix |
plan.yaml write fails (permission denied, invalid YAML state) | Abort; do not update session; report the write error |
Output Format
Render an inline summary (no external template). Structure:
## Plan Update
### Change Applied
- **Task**: {task_id} -- {task_title}
- **Status**: {old_status} -> {new_status}
- **Artifacts attached**: {comma_separated_list_or_"(none)"}
- **Notes**: {notes_or_"(unchanged)"}
### Plan Progress
| # | id | title | status |
|---|----|----|--------|
| ... |
Progress: {done_count}/{total_count}
Current tasks: {new_current_tasks_map_or_"(plan complete)"}
### Next
{one-line guidance: continue to next task, resolve blocker, or run /mvt-cleanup}
Every response MUST end with a Suggested Next Steps section.
State Update
After the skill's main task, run the session update script exactly once:
node .ai-agents/scripts/session-update.cjs --skill mvt-update-plan --summary "<concise one-line summary>" --update-change
Write --summary as one concise line in the configured interaction_language.
Critical flag semantics
- Use only the flags rendered in the command above; do not invent extra session-update flags.
--update-change upserts the current active_change into changes[], refreshes updated_at, and preserves the configured change-history limit.
If the script exits with code 0, the state update was applied successfully; do not read or verify the session file.
Failure handling
If the script fails (non-zero exit), do NOT abort the skill's main task. Continue execution and add a brief note at the end of your response that the session could not be updated.
Script Usage Rule
To mutate plan.yaml, call plan-update.cjs. Do NOT hand-edit plan.yaml or choose current_tasks.
Minimal command (always required flags):
node .ai-agents/scripts/plan-update.cjs --plan "<active_change.plan_path>" --task <task_id> --status <new_status> --projects "<project_list>"
For flags, argument sources, or output not rendered here, read .ai-agents/scripts/plan-update.md. Do NOT read .cjs/.js source.
To mutate epic.yaml, use the exact epic-update.cjs mode commands rendered in this skill's workflow. Do NOT hand-edit epic.yaml, advance current_change, or read .cjs/.js source.
Suggested Next Steps
Recommend 2-3 relevant next skills based on the skill just completed (mvt-update-plan) and the current project state.
Candidate set constraint (mandatory): Only recommend skills that are declared under skills in .ai-agents/registry.yaml.
Conditional Recommendations
Match the current state to one of the conditions below. If none match, use default.
plan_done → /mvt-cleanup -- All tasks complete -- clean up artifacts and prepare to start the next changedefault → /mvt-implement -- Continue with the next task from current_tasks/mvt-resume -- Refresh context after task transitions/mvt-status -- Inspect overall progress across changes
Format
/{skill_name} -- {when to use this skill, tailored to the current context}
Do not suggest the skill that was just completed. Prioritize skills that logically follow from the work done.
