BubbleBuffer/finishing-a-development-branch

Finishing a Branch

Overview

Guide completion of development work by presenting clear options and handling chosen workflow.

Core principle: Present options → Execute choice → Clean up.

Announce at start: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."

The Process

Determine Base Branch

# Try common base branches
git merge-base HEAD main 2>/dev/null || git merge-base HEAD master 2>/dev/null

Or ask: "This branch split from main - is that correct?"

Present Options

Present exactly these 4 options, each with one line of guidance:

Implementation complete and verified. What would you like to do?

1. Merge back to <base-branch> locally — solo or local workflows
2. Push and create a Pull Request — default for shared repos or when review/CI is required
3. Keep the branch as-is — pause work; resume later without merging or discarding
4. Discard this work — only if the user has explicitly abandoned the branch

Which option?

One line per option is allowed. Do not add longer explanations or recommendations — the user decides.

Execute Choice

Option 1: Merge Locally

Use ordinary git commands:

git switch <base-branch>
git merge --no-ff <feature-branch>
git branch -d <feature-branch>

Only delete the feature branch after the merge succeeds.

Option 2: Push and Create PR

# Push branch
git push -u origin <feature-branch>

# Create PR
gh pr create --title "<title>" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## Summary
<2-3 bullets of what changed>

## Test Plan
- [ ] <verification steps>
EOF
)"

Option 3: Keep As-Is

Report: "Keeping branch <name>."

Option 4: Discard

Confirm first:

This will permanently delete:
- Branch <name>
- All commits: <commit-list>

Type 'discard' to confirm.

Wait for exact confirmation.

If confirmed:

git switch <base-branch>
git branch -D <feature-branch>

Quick Reference

| Option | Merge | Push | Keep Branch | Delete Branch | |--------|-------|------|-------------|---------------| | 1. Merge locally | yes | no | no | yes, after merge | | 2. Create PR | no | yes | yes | no | | 3. Keep as-is | no | no | yes | no | | 4. Discard | no | no | no | yes, after confirmation |

Common Mistakes

Open-ended questions

• Problem: "What should I do next?" → ambiguous
• Fix: Present exactly 4 structured options

No confirmation for discard

• Problem: Accidentally delete work
• Fix: Require typed "discard" confirmation

Deleting the wrong branch

• Problem: Current or base branch is deleted by mistake
• Fix: Verify git branch --show-current and require typed confirmation before destructive branch deletion

Red Flags

Never:

• Merge without verifying tests on result
• Delete work without confirmation
• Force-push without explicit request

Always:

• Present exactly 4 options
• Get typed confirmation for Option 4

Integration

Use after:

• subagent-driven-development — all tasks complete, final reviewer and verifier have passed.
• verification-before-completion — completion claims must be backed by fresh verification evidence before this skill runs.

Pairs with:

• using-git-branches — created the branch this skill completes.