Plan Review

Overview

Review implementation plans before execution to catch sizing issues, dependency problems, and gaps that would cause implementation failures. This is a pre-flight check that prevents wasted effort.

When to Use

• After a Planner creates an implementation plan
• Before handing off a plan to implementation
• When RPIV requests plan validation before proceeding
• When user asks to review/validate a plan

Review Checklist

1. Phase Sizing Assessment

For each phase, evaluate:

Context estimation heuristic:

• Each file read: ~2-5% context (depending on size)
• Each code generation: ~5-10% context
• Each test run + analysis: ~3-5% context

2. Dependency Analysis

For each phase, verify:

• Phases are correctly ordered (no forward dependencies)
• Each phase builds on previous phases' outputs
• No circular dependencies
• Optional/parallel phases are clearly marked

3. Completeness Check

For each phase, verify it includes:

• Clear description of what to implement
• Specific files to create/modify
• Success criteria (automated and manual separated)
• Any code snippets or patterns to follow

4. Gap Analysis

Identify missing elements:

• Are there phases that should exist but don't?
• Are there implicit steps that should be explicit?
• Are error cases and edge cases addressed?
• Is there a testing strategy for each phase?

Review Process

Step 1: Read Full Plan

Read the entire plan without making judgments. Understand:

• What is being built
• Why it's structured this way
• What the end state looks like

Step 2: Phase-by-Phase Assessment

For each phase, create an assessment:

### Phase N: [Title]

**Sizing**: ✓ Acceptable / ⚠️ Borderline / ✗ Too Large
- Estimated files: X
- Estimated context: Y%

**Dependencies**: ✓ Clear / ⚠️ Implicit / ✗ Circular

**Completeness**: ✓ Complete / ⚠️ Missing details / ✗ Insufficient

**Notes**: [Any specific concerns or suggestions]

Step 3: Synthesize Verdict

Based on all assessments:

APPROVED - Plan is ready for implementation

• All phases are appropriately sized
• Dependencies are clear and logical
• Each phase has sufficient detail

NEEDS DECOMPOSITION - Specific phases must be broken down

• List which phases need decomposition
• Explain why (too large, too complex, etc.)
• Suggest how to split if obvious

NEEDS REVISION - Plan has structural issues

• List what needs to be fixed
• Dependencies need reordering
• Gaps need to be addressed

Output Template

# Plan Review: [Plan Name]

## Overview
[1-2 sentence summary of what the plan implements]

## Phase Assessments

### Phase 1: [Title]
**Sizing**: ✓ / ⚠️ / ✗
**Dependencies**: ✓ / ⚠️ / ✗  
**Completeness**: ✓ / ⚠️ / ✗
**Notes**: ...

[Repeat for each phase]

## Dependency Graph

Phase 1 → Phase 2 → Phase 3 ↘ Phase 4 (parallel)

## Issues Found

### Must Fix Before Implementation
- [Critical issue 1]
- [Critical issue 2]

### Recommendations (Optional)
- [Suggestion 1]
- [Suggestion 2]

## Verdict

**[APPROVED / NEEDS DECOMPOSITION / NEEDS REVISION]**

[Explanation of verdict with specific action items if not approved]

Integration with RPIV

When operating within RPIV:

1. Receive plan from Planner via RPIV orchestration
2. Perform review using this skill
3. Return verdict to RPIV
4. If NEEDS DECOMPOSITION: RPIV triggers Planner to revise specific phases
5. If APPROVED: RPIV proceeds to implementation orchestration