176 lines
10 KiB
Markdown
176 lines
10 KiB
Markdown
---
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name: team-level
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description: "Orchestrate level design team: level-designer + narrative-director + world-builder + art-director + systems-designer + qa-tester for complete area/level creation."
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argument-hint: "[level name or area to design]"
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user-invocable: true
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allowed-tools: Read, Glob, Grep, Write, Edit, Bash, Task, AskUserQuestion, TodoWrite
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---
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When this skill is invoked:
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**Decision Points:** At each step transition, use `AskUserQuestion` to present
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the user with the subagent's proposals as selectable options. Write the agent's
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full analysis in conversation, then capture the decision with concise labels.
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The user must approve before moving to the next step.
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1. **Read the argument** for the target level or area (e.g., `tutorial`,
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`forest dungeon`, `hub town`, `final boss arena`).
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2. **Gather context**:
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- Read the game concept at `design/gdd/game-concept.md`
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- Read game pillars at `design/gdd/game-pillars.md`
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- Read existing level docs in `design/levels/`
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- Read relevant narrative docs in `design/narrative/`
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- Read world-building docs for the area's region/faction
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## How to Delegate
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Use the Task tool to spawn each team member as a subagent:
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- `subagent_type: narrative-director` — Narrative purpose, characters, emotional arc
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- `subagent_type: world-builder` — Lore context, environmental storytelling, world rules
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- `subagent_type: level-designer` — Spatial layout, pacing, encounters, navigation
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- `subagent_type: systems-designer` — Enemy compositions, loot tables, difficulty balance
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- `subagent_type: art-director` — Visual theme, color palette, lighting, asset requirements
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- `subagent_type: accessibility-specialist` — Navigation clarity, colorblind safety, cognitive load
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- `subagent_type: qa-tester` — Test cases, boundary testing, playtest checklist
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Always provide full context in each agent's prompt (game concept, pillars, existing level docs, narrative docs).
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3. **Orchestrate the level design team** in sequence:
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### Step 1: Narrative + Visual Direction (narrative-director + world-builder + art-director, parallel)
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Spawn all three agents simultaneously — issue all three Task calls before waiting for any result.
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Spawn the `narrative-director` agent to:
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- Define the narrative purpose of this area (what story beats happen here?)
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- Identify key characters, dialogue triggers, and lore elements
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- Specify emotional arc (how should the player feel entering, during, leaving?)
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Spawn the `world-builder` agent to:
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- Provide lore context for the area (history, faction presence, ecology)
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- Define environmental storytelling opportunities
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- Specify any world rules that affect gameplay in this area
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Spawn the `art-director` agent to:
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- Establish visual theme targets for this area — these are INPUTS to layout, not outputs of it
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- Define the color temperature and lighting mood for this area (how does it differ from adjacent areas?)
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- Specify shape language direction (angular fortress? organic cave? decayed grandeur?)
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- Name the primary visual landmarks that will orient the player
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- Read `design/art/art-bible.md` if it exists — anchor all direction in the established art bible
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**The art-director's visual targets from Step 1 must be passed to the level-designer in Step 2** as explicit constraints. Layout decisions happen within the visual direction, not before it.
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**Gate**: Use `AskUserQuestion` to present all three Step 1 outputs (narrative brief, lore foundation, visual direction targets) and confirm before proceeding to Step 2.
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### Step 2: Layout and Encounter Design (level-designer)
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Spawn the `level-designer` agent with the full Step 1 output as context:
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- Narrative brief (from narrative-director)
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- Lore foundation (from world-builder)
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- **Visual direction targets (from art-director)** — layout must work within these targets, not contradict them
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The level-designer should:
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- Design the spatial layout (critical path, optional paths, secrets) — ensuring primary routes align with the visual landmark targets from Step 1
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- Define pacing curve (tension peaks, rest areas, exploration zones) — coordinated with the emotional arc from narrative-director
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- Place encounters with difficulty progression
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- Design environmental puzzles or navigation challenges
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- Define points of interest and landmarks for wayfinding — these must match the visual landmarks the art-director specified
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- Specify entry/exit points and connections to adjacent areas
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**Adjacent area dependency check**: After the layout is produced, check `design/levels/` for each adjacent area referenced by the level-designer. If any referenced area's `.md` file does not exist, surface the gap:
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> "Level references [area-name] as an adjacent area but `design/levels/[area-name].md` does not exist."
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Use `AskUserQuestion` with options:
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- (a) Proceed with a placeholder reference — mark the connection as UNRESOLVED in the level doc and list it in the open cross-level dependencies section of the summary report
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- (b) Pause and run `/team-level [area-name]` first to establish that area
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Do NOT invent content for the missing adjacent area.
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**Gate**: Use `AskUserQuestion` to present Step 2 layout (including any unresolved adjacent area dependencies) and confirm before proceeding to Step 3.
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### Step 3: Systems Integration (systems-designer)
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Spawn the `systems-designer` agent to:
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- Specify enemy compositions and encounter formulas
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- Define loot tables and reward placement
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- Balance difficulty relative to expected player level/gear
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- Design any area-specific mechanics or environmental hazards
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- Specify resource distribution (health pickups, save points, shops)
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**Gate**: Use `AskUserQuestion` to present Step 3 outputs and confirm before proceeding to Step 4.
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### Step 4: Production Concepts + Accessibility (art-director + accessibility-specialist, parallel)
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**Note**: The art-director's directional pass (visual theme, color targets, mood) happened in Step 1. This pass is location-specific production concepts — given the finalized layout, what does each specific space look like?
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Spawn the `art-director` agent with the finalized layout from Step 2:
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- Produce location-specific concept specs for key spaces (entrance, key encounter zones, landmarks, exits)
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- Specify which art assets are unique to this area vs. shared from the global pool
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- Define sight-line and lighting setups per key space (these are now layout-informed, not directional)
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- Specify VFX needs that are specific to this area's layout (weather volumes, particles, atmospheric effects)
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- Flag any locations where the layout creates visual direction conflicts with the Step 1 targets — surface these as production risks
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Spawn the `accessibility-specialist` agent in parallel to:
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- Review the level layout for navigation clarity (can players orient themselves without relying on color alone?)
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- Check that critical path signposting uses shape/icon/sound cues in addition to color
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- Review any puzzle mechanics for cognitive load — flag anything that requires holding more than 3 simultaneous states
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- Check that key gameplay areas have sufficient contrast for colorblind players
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- Output: accessibility concerns list with severity (BLOCKING / RECOMMENDED / NICE TO HAVE)
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Wait for both agents to return before proceeding.
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**Gate**: Use `AskUserQuestion` to present both Step 4 results. If the accessibility-specialist returned any BLOCKING concerns, highlight them prominently and offer:
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- (a) Return to level-designer and art-director to redesign the flagged elements before Step 5
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- (b) Document as a known accessibility gap and proceed to Step 5 with the concern explicitly logged in the final report
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Do NOT proceed to Step 5 without the user acknowledging any BLOCKING accessibility concerns.
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### Step 5: QA Planning (qa-tester)
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Spawn the `qa-tester` agent to:
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- Write test cases for the critical path
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- Identify boundary and edge cases (sequence breaks, softlocks)
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- Create a playtest checklist for the area
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- Define acceptance criteria for level completion
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4. **Compile the level design document** combining all team outputs into the
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level design template format.
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5. **Save to** `design/levels/[level-name].md`.
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6. **Output a summary** with: area overview, encounter count, estimated asset
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list, narrative beats, any cross-team dependencies or open questions, open
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cross-level dependencies (adjacent areas referenced but not yet designed, each
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marked UNRESOLVED), and accessibility concerns with their resolution status.
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## File Write Protocol
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All file writes (level design docs, narrative docs, test checklists) are delegated
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to sub-agents spawned via Task. Each sub-agent enforces the "May I write to [path]?"
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protocol. This orchestrator does not write files directly.
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Verdict: **COMPLETE** — level design document produced and all team outputs compiled.
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Verdict: **BLOCKED** — one or more agents blocked; partial report produced with unresolved items listed.
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## Next Steps
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- Run `/design-review design/levels/[level-name].md` to validate the completed level design doc.
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- Run `/dev-story` to implement level content once the design is approved.
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- Run `/qa-plan` to generate a QA test plan for this level.
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## Error Recovery Protocol
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If any spawned agent (via Task) returns BLOCKED, errors, or cannot complete:
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1. **Surface immediately**: Report "[AgentName]: BLOCKED — [reason]" to the user before continuing to dependent phases
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2. **Assess dependencies**: Check whether the blocked agent's output is required by subsequent phases. If yes, do not proceed past that dependency point without user input.
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3. **Offer options** via AskUserQuestion with choices:
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- Skip this agent and note the gap in the final report
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- Retry with narrower scope
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- Stop here and resolve the blocker first
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4. **Always produce a partial report** — output whatever was completed. Never discard work because one agent blocked.
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Common blockers:
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- Input file missing (story not found, GDD absent) → redirect to the skill that creates it
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- ADR status is Proposed → do not implement; run `/architecture-decision` first
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- Scope too large → split into two stories via `/create-stories`
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- Conflicting instructions between ADR and story → surface the conflict, do not guess
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