Paths: File paths (shared/, references/, ../ln-*) are relative to skills repo root. If not found at CWD, locate this SKILL.md directory and go up one level for repo root.

Automated Test Planner

Creates Story test task with comprehensive automated test coverage (E2E/Integration/Unit) based on Risk-Based Testing methodology and REAL manual testing results.

Purpose & Scope

• Create comprehensive test task for Story automation
• Calculate risk-based priorities (Impact x Probability)
• Generate 11-section test plan from manual test results
• Delegate to ln-301-task-creator (CREATE) or ln-302-task-replanner (REPLAN)
• NOT for: manual testing (ln-522), research (ln-521), orchestration (ln-520)

When to Use This Skill

This skill should be used when:

• Invoked by ln-520-test-planner after ln-521 research and ln-522 manual testing
• All implementation tasks in Story are Done
• Manual testing results documented in Linear comment (from ln-522)
• Research findings available in Linear comment (from ln-521)

Prerequisites:

• All implementation Tasks in Story status = Done
• ln-521-test-researcher completed (research comment exists)
• ln-522-manual-tester completed (manual test results in Linear comment)

Automation: Supports autoApprove: true (default when invoked by ln-520) to skip manual confirmation.

When NOT to Use

Do NOT use if:

• Manual testing NOT completed -> Wait for ln-522
• Research NOT completed -> Wait for ln-521
• Implementation tasks NOT all Done -> Complete impl tasks first

Workflow

Phase 1: Discovery (Automated)

Auto-discovers Team ID from docs/tasks/kanban_board.md (see CLAUDE.md "Configuration Auto-Discovery").

Input: Story ID from orchestrator (ln-520)

Phase 2: Story + Tasks Analysis (NO Dialog)

Step 0: Study Project Test Files

1. Scan for test-related files:
   • tests/README.md (commands, setup, environment)
   • Test configs (jest.config.js, vitest.config.ts, pytest.ini)
   • Existing test structure (tests/, tests/ directories)
   • Coverage config (.coveragerc, coverage.json)
2. Extract: test commands, framework, patterns, coverage thresholds
3. Ensures test planning aligns with project practices

Step 1: Load Research and Manual Test Results

1. Fetch Story from Linear (must have label "user-story")
2. Extract Story.id (UUID) - Use UUID, NOT short ID (required for Linear API)
3. Load research comment (from ln-521): "## Test Research: {Feature}"
4. Load manual test results comment (from ln-522): "## Manual Testing Results"
   • If not found -> ERROR: Run ln-520-test-planner pipeline first
5. Parse sections: AC results (PASS/FAIL), Edge Cases, Error Handling, Integration flows
6. Map to test design: PASSED AC -> E2E, Edge cases -> Unit, Errors -> Error handling, Flows -> Integration

Step 2: Analyze Story + Tasks

1. Parse Story: Goal, Test Strategy, Technical Notes
2. Fetch all child Tasks (parentId = Story.id, status = Done) from Linear
3. Analyze each Task:
   • Components implemented
   • Business logic added
   • Integration points created
   • Conditional branches (if/else/switch)
4. Identify what needs testing

Phase 3: Parsing Strategy for Manual Test Results

Process: Locate Linear comment with "Manual Testing Results" header -> Verify Format Version 1.0 -> Extract structured sections (Acceptance Criteria, Test Results by AC, Edge Cases, Error Handling, Integration Testing) using regex -> Validate (at least 1 PASSED AC, AC count matches Story, completeness check) -> Map parsed data to test design structure

Error Handling: Missing comment -> ERROR (run ln-522 first), Missing format version -> WARNING (try legacy parsing), Required section missing -> ERROR (re-run ln-522), No PASSED AC -> ERROR (fix implementation)

Phase 4: Risk-Based Test Planning (Automated)

MANDATORY READ: Load shared/references/risk_based_testing_guide.md for complete methodology.

E2E-First Approach: Prioritize by business risk (Priority = Impact x Probability), not coverage metrics.

Workflow:

Step 1: Risk Assessment

Calculate Priority for each scenario from manual testing:

Priority = Business Impact (1-5) x Probability (1-5)

Decision Criteria:

• Priority >=15 -> MUST test
• Priority 9-14 -> SHOULD test if not covered
• Priority <=8 -> SKIP (manual testing sufficient)

Step 2: E2E Test Selection (2-5): Baseline 2 (positive + negative) ALWAYS + 0-3 additional (Priority >=15 only)

Step 3: Unit Test Selection (0-15): DEFAULT 0. Add ONLY for complex business logic (Priority >=15): financial, security, algorithms

Step 4: Integration Test Selection: DEFAULT 0. Add ONLY if E2E gaps AND Priority >=15: rollback, concurrency, external API errors

Step 5: Validation: Each test passes Usefulness Criteria (Priority ≥15, Confidence ROI, Behavioral, Predictive, Specific, Non-Duplicative)

Phase 5: Test Task Generation (Automated)

Generates complete test task per test_task_template.md (11 sections):

Sections 1-7: Context, Risk Matrix, E2E/Integration/Unit Tests (with Priority scores + justifications), Coverage, DoD

Section 8: Existing Tests to Fix (analysis of affected tests from implementation tasks)

Section 9: Infrastructure Changes (packages, Docker, configs - based on test dependencies)

Section 10: Documentation Updates (README, CHANGELOG, tests/README, config docs)

Section 11: Legacy Code Cleanup (deprecated patterns, backward compat, dead code)

Shows preview for review.

Phase 6: Confirmation & Delegation

Step 1: Preview generated test plan (always displayed for transparency)

Step 2: Confirmation logic:

• autoApprove: true (default from ln-520) -> proceed automatically
• Manual run -> prompt user to type "confirm"

Step 3: Check for existing test task

Query Linear: list_issues(parentId=Story.id, labels=["tests"])

Decision:

• Count = 0 -> CREATE MODE (Step 4a)
• Count >= 1 -> REPLAN MODE (Step 4b)

Step 4a: CREATE MODE (if Count = 0)

Invoke ln-301-task-creator worker with taskType: "test"

Pass to worker:

• taskType, teamId, storyData (Story.id, title, AC, Technical Notes, Context)
• researchFindings (from ln-521 comment)
• manualTestResults (from ln-522 comment)
• testPlan (e2eTests, integrationTests, unitTests, riskPriorityMatrix)
• infrastructureChanges, documentationUpdates, legacyCleanup

Worker returns: Task URL + summary

Step 4b: REPLAN MODE (if Count >= 1)

Invoke ln-302-task-replanner worker with taskType: "test"

Pass to worker:

• Same data as CREATE MODE + existingTaskIds

Worker returns: Operations summary + warnings

Step 5: Return summary to orchestrator (ln-520)

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Definition of Done

Research and Manual Results Loaded:

• Research comment "## Test Research: {Feature}" found (from ln-521)
• Manual test results "## Manual Testing Results" found (from ln-522)
• At least 1 AC marked as PASSED

Risk-Based Test Plan Generated:

• Risk Priority Matrix calculated for all scenarios
• E2E tests: Baseline positive + negative, additional only if Priority ≥15
• Integration tests: ONLY if E2E doesn't cover AND Priority ≥15
• Unit tests: ONLY complex business logic with Priority ≥15
• Each test passes all 6 Usefulness Criteria
• No framework/library testing: Each test validates OUR business logic only

Test Task Description Complete (11 sections):

• All 11 sections populated per template
• Risk Priority Matrix included
• Each test beyond baseline 2 justified

Worker Delegation Executed:

• CREATE MODE: Delegated to ln-301-task-creator
• REPLAN MODE: Delegated to ln-302-task-replanner
• Linear Issue URL returned

Output:

• CREATE MODE: Linear Issue URL + confirmation
• REPLAN MODE: Operations summary + URLs

Reference Files

• Risk-based testing methodology: shared/references/risk_based_testing_guide.md
• Auto-discovery patterns: shared/references/auto_discovery_pattern.md

risk_based_testing_guide.md

Purpose: Risk-Based Testing methodology (detailed guide)

Location: shared/references/risk_based_testing_guide.md

test_task_template.md (CENTRALIZED)

Location: shared/templates/test_task_template.md

Usage: Workers (ln-301, ln-302) load via Template Loading logic

Critical Rules

• Manual results required: Never plan tests without ln-522 manual testing results — guessing coverage is worse than no tests
• E2E-first, not unit-first: Baseline is always 2 E2E (positive + negative); unit/integration added only for Priority >= 15
• No framework testing: Every test must validate OUR business logic; never test library/framework behavior
• Usefulness enforcement: Every test beyond baseline must pass all 6 Usefulness Criteria (see risk_based_testing_guide.md)
• Delegate, don't create: Task creation goes through ln-301/ln-302 workers; this skill generates the plan only

Best Practices

Minimum Viable Testing: Start with baseline E2E (positive + negative). Each additional test must pass all 6 Usefulness Criteria.

Risk-Based Testing: Prioritize by Business Impact x Probability. E2E-first from ACTUAL manual testing results. Priority >=15 scenarios covered by tests.

Expected-Based Testing: For deterministic tests, compare actual vs expected using diff. MANDATORY READ: Load ../ln-522-manual-tester/SKILL.md — section "Test Design Principles".

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Version: 1.0.0 Last Updated: 2026-01-15