Issues

Break a plan into independently-grabbable issues using vertical slices (tracer bullets). Each slice cuts end-to-end through every layer, so a completed one is demoable or verifiable on its own.

Process

1. Gather context

Work from whatever is already in the conversation context. If the user passes an issue reference (issue number, URL, or path) as an argument, fetch it (gh issue view <ref> for GitHub) and read its full body and comments. When the path points to a PRD artifact (<slug>-prd.md), also extract any **Tracking:** <URL> line under the H1 — that URL marks the parent for sub-issue linking.

2. Explore the codebase (skip if already explored this session)

If the codebase has not been explored this session, explore it now to understand its current state. Follow the domain-doc consumer rules in ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/grill-docs/reference/domain-docs.md: read .yoke/context.md and relevant .yoke/adr/, give issue titles and descriptions the glossary's vocabulary, and flag any ADR a slice contradicts. Also read the git memory of the areas the slices touch per ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/gca/reference/history-reading.md — a slice that re-proposes a Rejected: approach or crosses a Constraint: must say so.

3. Draft vertical slices

Break the plan into tracer bullet issues. Each issue is a thin vertical slice that cuts through ALL integration layers end-to-end, NOT a horizontal slice of one layer.

Slices may be 'HITL' or 'AFK'. HITL slices require human interaction, such as an architectural decision or a design review. AFK slices can be implemented and merged without human interaction. Prefer AFK over HITL where possible.

4. Confirm the breakdown

Present the proposed breakdown as a numbered list. For each slice, show:

• Title: short descriptive name
• Type: HITL / AFK
• Blocked by: which other slices (if any) must complete first
• User stories covered: which user stories this addresses (if the source material has them)

Granularity, dependency order, and HITL/AFK marking are the skill's own job — decide them and show the result, do not interview the user slice by slice. Publishing creates real GitHub issues, so gate it with a single approval: ask once via AskUserQuestion — "Publish these N issues, or tell me what to change?" with Publish (Recommended) first. Apply any requested edits in one pass, then publish. No multi-question loop.

5. Publish

Publish in dependency order (blockers first) to reference real issue identifiers in the "Blocked by" field. Follow reference/github-issues.md for the gh conventions and triage labels.

Order the slices so every blocker is created before the slices that depend on it. For each slice, in that order: write its body (the <issue-template> below) to a file, substitute the real issue numbers of its blockers into the "Blocked by" section, then create it:

gh issue create --title "<slice title>" --body-file <slice body file>

Label AFK slices ready-for-agent and HITL slices ready-for-human (per the reference; create a label if the repo lacks it, unless the user objects). Capture each returned issue number for its dependents to cite.

Once each child exists, run two best-effort follow-ups per the reference: set its type to Task (per "Issue types"; leave it untyped and warn if unavailable), and — if a parent issue is known (from the input argument or from a **Tracking:** <URL> line in a PRD artifact) — link the child as a sub-issue of the parent (per "Sub-issues"; leave it unlinked and warn if unavailable). The textual ## Parent section in the issue body remains the human-readable fallback.

Build the slug as in /yoke:prd — an English kebab-case description, prefixed with a ticket id if one exists; reuse the parent PRD/issue's slug when the source was one, so <slug>-prd.md and <slug>-issues.md sit together. Save a local index to .yoke/ai/<slug>/<slug>-issues.md (mkdir -p .yoke/ai/<slug> first) listing every slice: title, type, blocked-by, the created issue URL, and its body.

If gh is not authenticated or there is no GitHub remote, skip publishing, write the full breakdown to the local index, and tell the user.

Do NOT close or modify any parent issue.

A reference to the parent issue (if there is one, otherwise omit this section).

What to build

A concise description of this vertical slice. Describe the end-to-end behavior, not layer-by-layer implementation.

Avoid specific file paths or code snippets — they go stale fast. Exception: if a prototype produced a snippet that encodes a decision more precisely than prose can (state machine, reducer, schema, type shape), inline it here and note briefly that it came from a prototype. Trim to the decision-rich parts — not a working demo, just the important bits.

Acceptance criteria

• Criterion 1
• Criterion 2
• Criterion 3

Blocked by

• A reference to the blocking ticket (if any)

Or "None - can start immediately" if no blockers.

Rules

• Vertical slices, not horizontal layers. Prefer many thin slices.
• Publish in dependency order so "Blocked by" can reference real issue numbers.
• Use the project's domain glossary and respect ADRs. Pair with /yoke:prd upstream.
• Language: match the conversation language, or follow the project-level definition in CLAUDE.md / AGENTS.md.