---
description: When starting Jira story work, create story branch, load issue + repo context; no implementation code until a plan exists under docs/plans/.
alwaysApply: true
---

# Story kickoff (Jira)

When the user starts work on a **Jira story** (e.g. issue key `NS-14`, phrases like “begin work on story”, “implement NS-…”), run this sequence **before** writing or changing application code.

## 1. Load Jira context

- Fetch the issue when possible (e.g. Atlassian MCP `getJiraIssue`), or use a URL / pasted description the user provides.
- Capture summary, description, acceptance criteria, and anything explicitly **out of scope**.

## 1b. Story branch

- **Create and use a new branch** for this issue as soon as story work begins (planning counts). Name it with the **Jira key first** and a short kebab-case slug (e.g. `NS-15-position-state-api`); see [jira-git-naming](jira-git-naming.md) and [git workflow](git-workflow.md).
- If the user is already on a branch whose **first path segment** matches this issue key, continue on it unless they ask to rename.
- Do not wait for implementation to start before branching; the implementation plan and all story commits belong on this branch.

## 2. Load codebase context (read-only)

- Open only what the story implies: entry scenes/scripts, related modules, configs, tests/CI, and relevant [`docs/`](docs/) files.
- **No edits** and **no new implementation or test files** in this phase.

## 3. No implementation yet

- Do not add or change source, Godot scenes/project, game data pipelines, or automated tests until step 4 is done **and** the user has moved past planning in chat (e.g. explicit go-ahead to implement).

## 4. Planning document

- Add **`docs/plans/{JIRA_KEY}-implementation-plan.md`** (example: `docs/plans/NS-14-implementation-plan.md`). Create `docs/plans/` if it does not exist.
- **Do not** `git commit` the plan unless the user explicitly asks; see [commit-and-review](commit-and-review.md). When the user commits plan-only changes for this story, commit on the **story branch** from step 1b, not `main`, per [git workflow](git-workflow.md).

**Required sections** in that file:

- Story reference (key, title, link if available)
- Goal, scope, and out-of-scope (from Jira)
- Acceptance criteria checklist (from Jira)
- Technical approach (concise)
- **Files to add** (paths)
- **Files to modify** (paths and one-line rationale each)
- **Tests** — what will be added or changed; if none, say why (e.g. no harness yet, manual verification only)
- Open questions / risks (if any)

## 5. After the plan

- Implement only after the user confirms. All implementation commits stay on the **same story branch** from step 1b; follow [git workflow](git-workflow.md).