| name | skill-phase-context |
| description | Skill loading tiers: TIER 0 (always), TIER 1 (phase-triggered), TIER 2 (extended). Defines when to load which skills. |
| tier | 2 |
| version | 1.1 |
Phase Context Loading Protocol
This skill defines skill loading tiers to optimize token consumption while preserving automation capabilities.
[!IMPORTANT]
Single Source of Truth for Skill Loading Strategy.
Reference this skill to understand WHEN to load WHICH skills.
TIER 0: System Foundation — ALWAYS LOADED
[!CAUTION]
NEVER lazy-load TIER 0 skills. They enable core automation.
These skills MUST be available in EVERY session at bootstrap.
| Skill | Tokens | Why Always Load |
|---|
core-principles | ~519 | Anti-hallucination rules, Stub-First, Documentation First |
skill-safe-commands | ~927 | Enables automation — mv, ls, git, tests auto-run |
artifact-management | ~636 | Archiving protocol, file management, dual state tracking |
| TOTAL | ~2,082 | Non-negotiable system foundation |
TIER 0 Loading Rule
- Load at session bootstrap (via
GEMINI.md / .cursorrules)
- These skills are loaded BEFORE any phase begins
- Never remove or defer loading of TIER 0 skills
TIER 1: Phase-Triggered — Load on Phase Entry
These skills are phase-specific and loaded when entering the corresponding phase.
| Phase | Skills to Load | Approx. Tokens |
|---|
| Analysis | requirements-analysis, skill-task-model, artifact-formalizer (contract only), (skill-archive-task if new task) | ~3,100-4,000 |
| Architecture | architecture-design, artifact-formalizer (contract only), (architecture-format-core OR -extended) | ~2,850-4,200 |
| Planning | planning-decision-tree, skill-planning-format, tdd-stub-first, artifact-formalizer (contract only) | ~2,525 |
| Development | developer-guidelines, documentation-standards | ~1,100 |
| Review | Phase-specific -review-checklist skill | ~300-400 |
| Security | security-audit | ~500 |
| VDD | vdd-adversarial, (adversarial-* per workflow) | ~1,000-2,500 |
TIER 1 Loading Conditions
Analysis Phase:
requirements-analysis — When 02_analyst activatedskill-task-model — When creating/updating TASK.mdskill-archive-task — When existing TASK.md detected AND new (unrelated) task
Architecture Phase:
architecture-design — When 04_architect activatedarchitecture-format-core — Default for most updatesarchitecture-format-extended — Load ONLY for:
- Creating NEW system from scratch
- Major refactor (>3 components affected)
- User explicitly requests "full architecture template"
Planning Phase:
planning-decision-tree — When 06_planner activatedskill-planning-format — When creating PLAN.mdtdd-stub-first — When stub creation starts
Development Phase:
developer-guidelines — When 08_developer activateddocumentation-standards — When updating docs
Review Phase:
- Load the appropriate
*-review-checklist for the current review type
Every authoring phase (Analysis, Architecture, Planning):
artifact-formalizer — load references/authoring-contract.md before the first sentence of
any artifact is written. Load the SKILL.md body and the scanner only when auditing an artifact
that already exists.- Why. The contract is ~1,100 tokens; auditing an artifact afterwards costs a full re-read of
that artifact plus the rewrite. Measured cost of the late order:
artifact-formalizer/references/measurement-baseline.md §5.
TIER 2: Extended — Load Only When Explicitly Requested
These skills are specialized and loaded only when explicitly invoked by user or workflow.
| Skill | Tokens | Loading Condition |
|---|
architecture-format-extended | ~3,000 | New system / major refactor / user requests full template |
skill-reverse-engineering | ~1,322 | User requests "sync docs with code" / docs-code mismatch |
skill-update-memory | ~1,101 | Post-development phase, .AGENTS.md updates needed |
skill-adversarial-security | ~838 | VDD workflow with security focus |
skill-adversarial-performance | ~946 | VDD workflow with performance focus |
vdd-sarcastic | ~145 | VDD workflow with sarcastic mode |
Integration
How Agents Should Reference This
Agent prompts should:
- Always load TIER 0 skills at session start
- Load TIER 1 skills when entering their specific phase
- Load TIER 2 skills only when explicitly triggered
Referenced By
.gemini/GEMINI.md — TIER 0 at bootstrap.cursorrules — TIER 0 at bootstrap- All agent prompts — TIER 1 at phase entry
- VDD workflows — TIER 2 when invoked
