branch-comparison

name	branch-comparison
description	Load when the MainAgent is assembling a comparison report across multiple narrative-direction explorations (results from parallel/sequential task(explorer) calls). Use to compare directions along narrative, character, cost, and reader-promise dimensions. "Branches" here means narrative branches — this is NOT a git branch tool.

Branch Comparison

Use this skill to compare narrative branches, not version-control branches.

Compare By Difference

Do not rank the branches as better or worse unless the author asks. Describe what each path does.

Compare:

• Narrative feature: tone, pace, emotional direction, genre pressure.
• Character impact: who gains agency, who loses safety, whose wound is activated.
• Future cost: what must be introduced, discarded, delayed, or paid off.
• Reader promise: what experience this path teaches the reader to expect.
• Thematic pressure: which premise or theme question becomes sharper.

Report Shape

For each branch:

• Core feel in 1-2 short paragraphs.
• Downstream consequences.
• Craft notes: risks or opportunities.

End with a compact contrast paragraph that helps the author see the shape of the choice without telling them what to choose.

Avoid

• Treating one branch as the hidden correct answer.
• Using vague labels like "darker" without naming the concrete reader experience.
• Discussing git branch mechanics.