sartoris-digital/ralplan

Ralplan — Consensus Planning

Iterative planning workflow where a planner creates, an architect reviews for feasibility, and a critic challenges for quality. The loop continues until the critic approves.

When to Use

• High-risk or high-complexity features
• Architectural decisions that are hard to reverse
• When the user explicitly requests consensus planning
• When invoked from brainstorming after user chooses "consensus plan"

Process

Step 1: Generate Initial Plan

Dispatch planner (standard tier) to create the implementation plan:

subagent({
  agent: "planner",
  task: "Create an implementation plan for:\n\n[requirements]\n\nContext:\n[codebase context from scout]\n\nReturn a structured plan with numbered tasks, file paths, and verification steps.",
  tier: "standard"
})

Step 2: Architect Review

Dispatch architect (reasoning tier) to review feasibility:

subagent({
  agent: "architect",
  task: "MODE: plan-review\n\nReview this implementation plan:\n\n[plan from Step 1]\n\nEvaluate feasibility, completeness, ordering, and risks.",
  tier: "reasoning"
})

If architect returns concerns or rejected → revise plan and re-submit.

Step 3: Critic Review

Dispatch critic (reasoning tier) to challenge quality:

subagent({
  agent: "critic",
  task: "Review this implementation plan:\n\n[plan from Step 1]\n\nArchitect assessment:\n[architect output from Step 2]\n\nProvide adversarial review. You MUST present an alternative approach before approving.",
  tier: "reasoning"
})

If critic returns "revise" → incorporate feedback, return to Step 1.

Step 4: Loop Control

• Maximum 5 iterations of the planner → architect → critic loop
• If critic approves → proceed to Step 5
• If 5 iterations without approval → present current state to user for guidance

Step 5: Output

Produce final plan with:

• The approved implementation plan
• Architecture Decision Record (ADR):
  • Decision: What was decided
  • Context: Why this approach was chosen
  • Alternatives considered: From critic's reviews
  • Consequences: Trade-offs accepted

Save to docs/plans/ and offer to execute.

Red Flags

• Do not skip the critic step — that defeats the purpose
• Do not let the loop run indefinitely — 5 iterations max, then ask the human
• The critic MUST present an alternative — if it doesn't, re-dispatch with emphasis