ringusing-dev-team

name	ring:using-dev-team
description	Guide to the dev-team skills - specialist developer agents and 6-gate development cycle. Provides backend engineers (Go/TypeScript), frontend engineers, DevOps, SRE, and QA agents.
license	MIT
compatibility	{"platforms":["opencode"]}
metadata	{"version":"1.0.0","author":"Lerian Studio","category":"workflow","trigger":["Development tasks requiring specialist implementation","Backend, frontend, or infrastructure code changes","Need for structured development workflow"]}

Using Ring Developer Specialists

The ring-dev-team plugin provides 9 specialized developer agents. Use them via Task tool with subagent_type:.

See CLAUDE.md and ring:using-ring for canonical workflow requirements and ORCHESTRATOR principle. This skill introduces dev-team-specific agents.

Remember: Follow the ORCHESTRATOR principle from ring:using-ring. Dispatch agents to handle complexity; don't operate tools directly.

---

Blocker Criteria - STOP and Report

<block_condition>

• Technology Stack decision needed (Go vs TypeScript)
• Architecture decision needed (monolith vs microservices)
• Infrastructure decision needed (cloud provider)
• Testing strategy decision needed (unit vs E2E) </block_condition>

If any condition applies, STOP and ask user.

always pause and report blocker for:

Decision Type	Examples	Action
Technology Stack	Go vs TypeScript for new service	STOP. Check existing patterns. Ask user.
Architecture	Monolith vs microservices	STOP. This is a business decision. Ask user.
Infrastructure	Cloud provider choice	STOP. Check existing infrastructure. Ask user.
Testing Strategy	Unit vs E2E vs both	STOP. Check QA requirements. Ask user.

You CANNOT make technology decisions autonomously. STOP and ask.

---

Common Misconceptions - REJECTED

See shared-patterns/shared-anti-rationalization.md for universal anti-rationalizations (including Specialist Dispatch section).

Self-sufficiency bias check: If you're tempted to implement directly, ask:

1. Is there a specialist for this? (Check the 9 specialists below)
2. Would a specialist follow standards I might miss?
3. Am I avoiding dispatch because it feels like "overhead"?

If any answer is yes → You MUST DISPATCH the specialist. This is NON-NEGOTIABLE.

---

Anti-Rationalization Table

See shared-patterns/shared-anti-rationalization.md for universal anti-rationalizations (including Specialist Dispatch section and Universal section).

---

Cannot Be Overridden

<cannot_skip>

• Dispatch to specialist (standards loading required)
• 10-gate development cycle (quality gates)
• Parallel reviewer dispatch (not sequential)
• TDD in Gate 0 (test-first)
• User approval in Gate 9 </cannot_skip>

These requirements are NON-NEGOTIABLE:

Requirement	Why It Cannot Be Waived
Dispatch to specialist	Specialists have standards loading, you don't
10-gate development cycle	Gates prevent quality regressions
Parallel reviewer dispatch	Sequential review = 3x slower, same cost
TDD in Gate 0	Test-first ensures testability
User approval in Gate 9	Only users can approve completion

User cannot override these. Time pressure cannot override these. "Simple task" cannot override these.

---

Pressure Resistance

See shared-patterns/shared-pressure-resistance.md for universal pressure scenarios (including Combined Pressure Scenarios and Emergency Response).

Critical Reminder:

• Urgency ≠ Permission to bypass - Emergencies require MORE care, not less
• Authority ≠ Permission to bypass - Ring standards override human preferences
• Sunk Cost ≠ Permission to bypass - Wrong approach stays wrong at 80% completion

---

Emergency Response Protocol

See shared-patterns/shared-pressure-resistance.md → Emergency Response section for the complete protocol.

Emergency Dispatch Template:

Task tool:
  subagent_type: "ring:backend-engineer-golang"
  model: "opus"
  prompt: "URGENT PRODUCTION INCIDENT: [brief context]. [Your specific request]"

IMPORTANT: Specialist dispatch takes 5-10 minutes, not hours. This is NON-NEGOTIABLE even under CEO pressure.

---

Combined Pressure Scenarios

See shared-patterns/shared-pressure-resistance.md → Combined Pressure Scenarios section.

---

9 Developer Specialists

<dispatch_required agent="{specialist}"> Use Task tool to dispatch appropriate specialist based on technology need. </dispatch_required>

Agent	Specializations	Use When
ring:backend-engineer-golang	Go microservices, PostgreSQL/MongoDB, Kafka/RabbitMQ, OAuth2/JWT, gRPC, concurrency	Go services, DB optimization, auth/authz, concurrency issues
ring:backend-engineer-typescript	TypeScript/Node.js, Express/Fastify/NestJS, Prisma/TypeORM, async patterns, Jest/Vitest	TS backends, JS→TS migration, NestJS design, full-stack TS
ring:devops-engineer	Docker/Compose, Terraform/Helm, cloud infra, secrets management	Containerization, local dev setup, IaC provisioning, Helm charts
ring:frontend-bff-engineer-typescript	Next.js API Routes BFF, Clean/Hexagonal Architecture, DDD patterns, Inversify DI, repository pattern	BFF layer, Clean Architecture, DDD domains, API orchestration
ring:frontend-designer	Bold typography, color systems, animations, unexpected layouts, textures/gradients	Landing pages, portfolios, distinctive dashboards, design systems
ring:ui-engineer	Wireframe-to-code, Design System compliance, UX criteria satisfaction, UI states implementation	Implementing from product-designer specs (ux-criteria.md, user-flows.md, wireframes/)
ring:qa-analyst	Test strategy, coverage analysis, API testing, fuzz/property/integration/chaos testing (Go)	Backend test planning, coverage gaps, quality gates (Go-focused)
ring:qa-analyst-frontend	Vitest, Testing Library, axe-core, Playwright, Lighthouse, Core Web Vitals, snapshot testing	Frontend test planning, accessibility, visual, E2E, performance testing
ring:sre	Structured logging, tracing, health checks, observability	Logging validation, tracing setup, health endpoint verification

Dispatch template:

Task tool:
  subagent_type: "ring:{agent-name}"
  model: "opus"
  prompt: "{Your specific request with context}"

Frontend Agent Selection:

• ring:frontend-designer = visual aesthetics, design specifications (no code)
• ring:frontend-bff-engineer-typescript = business logic/architecture, BFF layer
• ring:ui-engineer = implementing UI from product-designer specs (ux-criteria.md, user-flows.md, wireframes/)

When to use ring:ui-engineer: Use ring:ui-engineer when product-designer outputs exist in docs/pre-dev/{feature}/. The ring:ui-engineer specializes in translating design specifications into production code while ensuring all UX criteria are satisfied.

---

When to Use Developer Specialists vs General Review

Use Developer Specialists for:

• ✅ Deep technical expertise needed – Architecture decisions, complex implementations
• ✅ Technology-specific guidance – "How do I optimize this Go service?"
• ✅ Specialized domains – Infrastructure, SRE, testing strategy
• ✅ Building from scratch – New service, new pipeline, new testing framework

Use General Review Agents for:

• ✅ Code quality assessment – Architecture, patterns, maintainability
• ✅ Correctness & edge cases – Business logic verification
• ✅ Security review – OWASP, auth, validation
• ✅ Post-implementation – Before merging existing code

Both can be used together: Get developer specialist guidance during design, then run general reviewers before merge.

---

Dispatching Multiple Specialists

If you need multiple specialists (e.g., backend engineer + DevOps engineer), dispatch in parallel (single message, multiple Task calls):

✅ CORRECT:
Task #1: ring:backend-engineer-golang
Task #2: ring:devops-engineer
(Both run in parallel)

❌ WRONG:
Task #1: ring:backend-engineer-golang
(Wait for response)
Task #2: ring:devops-engineer
(Sequential = 2x slower)

---

ORCHESTRATOR Principle

Remember:

• You're the orchestrator – Dispatch specialists, don't implement directly
• Don't read specialist docs yourself – Dispatch to specialist, they know their domain
• Combine with ring:using-ring principle – Skills + Specialists = complete workflow

Good Example (ORCHESTRATOR):

"I need a Go service. Let me dispatch ring:backend-engineer-golang to design it."

Bad Example (OPERATOR):

"I'll manually read Go best practices and design the service myself."

---

Available in This Plugin

Agents: See "9 Developer Specialists" table above.

Skills: ring:using-dev-team (this), ring:dev-cycle (10-gate backend workflow), ring:dev-cycle-frontend (9-gate frontend workflow), ring:dev-refactor (backend/general codebase analysis), ring:dev-refactor-frontend (frontend codebase analysis)

Commands: /ring:dev-cycle (backend tasks), /ring:dev-cycle-frontend (frontend tasks), /ring:dev-refactor (analyze backend/general codebase), /ring:dev-refactor-frontend (analyze frontend codebase), /ring:dev-status, /ring:dev-cancel, /ring:dev-report

Note: Missing agents? Check .claude-plugin/marketplace.json for ring-dev-team plugin.

---

Development Workflows

All workflows converge to the 10-gate development cycle:

Workflow	Entry Point	Output	Then
New Feature	/ring:pre-dev-feature "description"	docs/pre-dev/{feature}/tasks.md	→ /ring:dev-cycle tasks.md
Direct Tasks	/ring:dev-cycle tasks.md	—	Execute 6 gates directly
Refactoring	/ring:dev-refactor	docs/ring:dev-refactor/{timestamp}/tasks.md	→ /ring:dev-cycle tasks.md
Frontend Refactoring	/ring:dev-refactor-frontend	docs/ring:dev-refactor-frontend/{timestamp}/tasks.md	→ /ring:dev-cycle-frontend tasks.md

6-Gate Development Cycle:

Gate	Focus	Agent(s)
0: Implementation	TDD: RED→GREEN→REFACTOR	ring:backend-engineer-*, ring:frontend-bff-engineer-typescript, ring:ui-engineer
1: DevOps	Dockerfile, docker-compose, .env	ring:devops-engineer
2: SRE	Health checks, logging, tracing	ring:sre
3: Testing	Unit tests, coverage ≥85%	ring:qa-analyst
4: Review	6 reviewers IN PARALLEL	ring:code-reviewer, ring:business-logic-reviewer, ring:security-reviewer, ring:test-reviewer, ring:nil-safety-reviewer, ring:consequences-reviewer
5: Validation	User approval: APPROVED/REJECTED	User decision

Gate 0 Agent Selection for Frontend:

• If docs/pre-dev/{feature}/ux-criteria.md exists → use ring:ui-engineer
• Otherwise → use ring:frontend-bff-engineer-typescript

Key Principle: Backend follows the 10-gate process. Frontend follows the 9-gate process.

Frontend Development Cycle (9 Gates)

Use /ring:dev-cycle-frontend for frontend-specific development:

Gate	Focus	Agent(s)
0: Implementation	TDD: RED→GREEN→REFACTOR	ring:frontend-engineer, ring:ui-engineer, ring:frontend-bff-engineer-typescript
1: DevOps	Dockerfile, docker-compose, .env	ring:devops-engineer
2: Accessibility	WCAG 2.1 AA, axe-core, keyboard nav	ring:qa-analyst-frontend
3: Unit Testing	Vitest + Testing Library, ≥85%	ring:qa-analyst-frontend
4: Visual Testing	Snapshots, states, responsive	ring:qa-analyst-frontend
5: E2E Testing	Playwright, cross-browser, user flows	ring:qa-analyst-frontend
6: Performance	Core Web Vitals, Lighthouse > 90	ring:qa-analyst-frontend
7: Review	6 reviewers IN PARALLEL	ring:code-reviewer, ring:business-logic-reviewer, ring:security-reviewer, ring:test-reviewer, ring:nil-safety-reviewer, ring:consequences-reviewer
8: Validation	User approval: APPROVED/REJECTED	User decision

Backend → Frontend Handoff: When backend dev cycle completes, it produces a handoff with endpoints, types, and contracts. The frontend dev cycle consumes this handoff to verify E2E tests exercise the correct API endpoints.

Step	Command	Output
1. Backend	/ring:dev-cycle tasks.md	Backend code + handoff (endpoints, contracts)
2. Frontend	/ring:dev-cycle-frontend tasks-frontend.md	Frontend code consuming backend endpoints

---

Integration with Other Plugins

• ring:using-ring (default) – ORCHESTRATOR principle for all agents
• ring:using-pm-team – Pre-dev workflow agents
• ring:using-finops-team – Financial/regulatory agents

Dispatch based on your need:

• General code review → default plugin agents
• Specific domain expertise → ring-dev-team agents
• Feature planning → ring-pm-team agents
• Regulatory compliance → ring-finops-team agents