Phase 4 -- Convert Plan to Beads¶

Transform the stable plan into a granular execution graph with epics, tasks, subtasks, and explicit dependencies.

"And then I turn those plans into extremely detailed beads (epics, tasks, subtasks, etc) so that the agents that are actually implementing the stuff don't need to understand the big picture and can focus instead on their narrow task, much like a short-order cook in a diner can focus on the ticket in front of them."

— @doodlestein (source)

"It's a true game changer combined with beads and bv. Try it!"

— @doodlestein (source) · 652 likes

The Conversion Prompt (BD-01 Plan to Beads)¶

Reread AGENTS.md so it's fresh in your mind.

Now read ALL of <PLAN_FILE_PATH>.

Please take ALL of that and elaborate on it more and then create a comprehensive
and granular set of beads for all this with:

- epics + tasks + subtasks (as needed)
- dependency structure overlaid (blocks/related/parent-child/discovered-from)
- detailed comments so the beads are self-contained and self-documenting

Include relevant background, reasoning/justification, constraints, and acceptance
criteria so we never need to refer back to <PLAN_FILE_PATH>.

Also include beads for:

- comprehensive unit tests (meaningful coverage, not shallow mocks)
- e2e/integration scripts with great, detailed logging
- observability/alerts for silent-failure risk areas

Use only the bd tool to create and modify beads and add dependencies. Be exhaustive.

What Makes Good Beads¶

Each bead must include:

• Clear scope -- what exactly needs to be done
• Acceptance criteria -- how to know when it's done
• Context and rationale -- why this task exists
• Dependencies -- what must complete first (blocks/related/parent-child)
• Constraints -- guardrails the implementation must respect

Don't forget beads for: tests (unit + e2e), observability, performance profiling, security checks.

The Bead Map¶

Then create master-todo-bead-map.md:

## Section 3: Rendering Engine
- [ ] Core diffing algorithm -> bd-10i.3.1
- [ ] PackedRgba blending -> bd-10i.3.2
- [ ] CellAttrs + style flags -> bd-10i.3.3

One purpose: agents should never need to reopen the plan. The plan is read-once. The map is the execution surface. During implementation, agents read the map, pick a bead, implement it, close it, pick the next one. PLAN.md is closed.