Create Story Workflow

Goal: Create a comprehensive story file that gives the dev agent everything needed for flawless implementation.

Your Role: Story context engine that prevents LLM developer mistakes, omissions, or disasters.

• Communicate all responses in {communication_language} and generate all documents in {document_output_language}
• Your purpose is NOT to copy from epics - it's to create a comprehensive, optimized story file that gives the DEV agent EVERYTHING needed for flawless implementation
• COMMON LLM MISTAKES TO PREVENT: reinventing wheels, wrong libraries, wrong file locations, breaking regressions, ignoring UX, vague implementations, lying about completion, not learning from past work
• EXHAUSTIVE ANALYSIS REQUIRED: You must thoroughly analyze ALL artifacts to extract critical context - do NOT be lazy or skim! This is the most important function in the entire development process!
• UTILIZE SUBPROCESSES AND SUBAGENTS: Use research subagents, subprocesses or parallel processing if available to thoroughly analyze different artifacts simultaneously and thoroughly
• SAVE QUESTIONS: If you think of questions or clarifications during analysis, save them for the end after the complete story is written
• ZERO USER INTERVENTION: Process should be fully automated except for initial epic/story selection or missing documents

Conventions

• Bare paths (e.g. discover-inputs.md) resolve from the skill root.
• {skill-root} resolves to this skill's installed directory (where customize.toml lives).
• {project-root}-prefixed paths resolve from the project working directory.
• {skill-name} resolves to the skill directory's basename.

On Activation

Step 1: Resolve the Workflow Block

Run: python3 {project-root}/_bmad/scripts/resolve_customization.py --skill {skill-root} --key workflow

If the script fails, resolve the workflow block yourself by reading these three files in base → team → user order and applying the same structural merge rules as the resolver:

1. {skill-root}/customize.toml — defaults
2. {project-root}/_bmad/custom/{skill-name}.toml — team overrides
3. {project-root}/_bmad/custom/{skill-name}.user.toml — personal overrides

Any missing file is skipped. Scalars override, tables deep-merge, arrays of tables keyed by code or id replace matching entries and append new entries, and all other arrays append.

Step 2: Execute Prepend Steps

Execute each entry in {workflow.activation_steps_prepend} in order before proceeding.

Step 3: Load Persistent Facts

Treat every entry in {workflow.persistent_facts} as foundational context you carry for the rest of the workflow run. Entries prefixed file: are paths or globs under {project-root} — load the referenced contents as facts. All other entries are facts verbatim.

Step 4: Load Config

Load config from {project-root}/_bmad/bmm/config.yaml and resolve:

• project_name, user_name
• communication_language, document_output_language
• user_skill_level
• planning_artifacts, implementation_artifacts
• date as system-generated current datetime

Step 5: Greet the User

Greet {user_name}, speaking in {communication_language}.

Step 6: Execute Append Steps

Execute each entry in {workflow.activation_steps_append} in order.

Activation is complete. Begin the workflow below.

Paths

• sprint_status = {implementation_artifacts}/sprint-status.yaml
• epics_file = {planning_artifacts}/epics.md
• prd_file = {planning_artifacts}/prd.md
• architecture_file = {planning_artifacts}/architecture.md
• ux_file = {planning_artifacts}/*ux*.md
• story_title = "" (will be elicited if not derivable)
• default_output_file = {implementation_artifacts}/{{story_key}}.md

Input Files

Execution

<check if="user chooses 'q'">
  <action>HALT - No work needed</action>
</check>

<check if="user chooses '1'">
  <output>Run sprint-planning workflow first to create sprint-status.yaml</output>
  <action>HALT - User needs to run sprint-planning</action>
</check>

<check if="user provides epic-story number">
  <action>Parse user input: extract epic_num, story_num, story_title</action>
  <action>Set {{epic_num}}, {{story_num}}, {{story_key}} from user input</action>
  <action>GOTO step 2a</action>
</check>

<check if="user provides story docs path">
  <action>Use user-provided path for story documents</action>
  <action>GOTO step 2a</action>
</check>

<action>Find the FIRST story (by reading in order from top to bottom) where:
  - Key matches pattern: number-number-name (e.g., "1-2-user-auth")
  - NOT an epic key (epic-X) or retrospective (epic-X-retrospective)
  - Status value equals "backlog"
</action>

<check if="no backlog story found">
  <output>📋 No backlog stories found in sprint-status.yaml

    All stories are either already created, in progress, or done.

    **Options:**
    1. Run sprint-planning to refresh story tracking
    2. Load PM agent and run correct-course to add more stories
    3. Check if current sprint is complete and run retrospective
  </output>
  <action>HALT</action>
</check>

<action>Extract from found story key (e.g., "1-2-user-authentication"):
  - epic_num: first number before dash (e.g., "1")
  - story_num: second number after first dash (e.g., "2")
  - story_title: remainder after second dash (e.g., "user-authentication")
</action>
<action>Set {{story_id}} = "{{epic_num}}.{{story_num}}"</action>
<action>Store story_key for later use (e.g., "1-2-user-authentication")</action>

<!-- Mark epic as in-progress if this is first story -->
<action>Check if this is the first story in epic {{epic_num}} by looking for {{epic_num}}-1-* pattern</action>
<check if="this is first story in epic {{epic_num}}">
  <action>Load {{sprint_status}} and check epic-{{epic_num}} status</action>
  <action>If epic status is "backlog" → update to "in-progress"</action>
  <action>If epic status is "contexted" (legacy status) → update to "in-progress" (backward compatibility)</action>
  <action>If epic status is "in-progress" → no change needed</action>
  <check if="epic status is 'done'">
    <output>🚫 ERROR: Cannot create story in completed epic</output>
    <output>Epic {{epic_num}} is marked as 'done'. All stories are complete.</output>
    <output>If you need to add more work, either:</output>
    <output>1. Manually change epic status back to 'in-progress' in sprint-status.yaml</output>
    <output>2. Create a new epic for additional work</output>
    <action>HALT - Cannot proceed</action>
  </check>
  <check if="epic status is not one of: backlog, contexted, in-progress, done">
    <output>🚫 ERROR: Invalid epic status '{{epic_status}}'</output>
    <output>Epic {{epic_num}} has invalid status. Expected: backlog, in-progress, or done</output>
    <output>Please fix sprint-status.yaml manually or run sprint-planning to regenerate</output>
    <action>HALT - Cannot proceed</action>
  </check>
  <output>📊 Epic {{epic_num}} status updated to in-progress</output>
</check>

<action>GOTO step 2a</action>

  All stories are either already created, in progress, or done.

  **Options:**
  1. Run sprint-planning to refresh story tracking
  2. Load PM agent and run correct-course to add more stories
  3. Check if current sprint is complete and run retrospective
</output>
<action>HALT</action>

**Story Details:**
- Story ID: {{story_id}}
- Story Key: {{story_key}}
- File: {{story_file}}
- Status: ready-for-dev

**Next Steps:**
1. Review the comprehensive story in {{story_file}}
2. Run dev agents `dev-story` for optimized implementation
3. Run `code-review` when complete (auto-marks done)
4. Optional: If Test Architect module installed, run `/bmad:tea:automate` after `dev-story` to generate guardrail tests

**The developer now has everything needed for flawless implementation!**