# Aloha project start and phase gate record

Fill in the project start before the first prompt, then one gate row per phase. The record works with or without Aloha; where an item names an Aloha command or file, record what you used instead if you are not using it.

**Project / owner / reviewer:** ____________________

## Before the first prompt

**What the project is for, in one sentence someone outside it would recognize:** ____________________

**What done means, including any change in how people work:** ____________________

**Who confirms done, other than the agent:** ____________________

**Constraints (stack, hosting, data the agent may touch, data it may not):** ____________________

**Out of scope for this milestone:** ____________________

**Where the plan lives (for example `.planning/`) and whether it is committed to git:** ____________________

**Model profile (`quality`, `balanced`, `budget`, `inherit`) and why:** ____________________

**Systems and credentials the agent may use, and under which identity:** ____________________

- [ ] Requirements are written with IDs that phases and commits can cite.
- [ ] Each phase in the roadmap states its goal as an outcome, not a list of tasks.
- [ ] Each phase has success criteria phrased as what must be true.
- [ ] On existing code, the codebase was mapped (`/aloha:map-codebase`) before the roadmap was written.
- [ ] Decisions that must not change are written down before planning (`/aloha:discuss-phase`).

## Phase gates

| Phase | Goal (what must be true) | Plans checked before execution | One commit per task | Verified against the goal by | Result / gaps | Next action |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

## Verification against the goal

Answer for each phase before marking it complete.

- [ ] The goal was restated from the roadmap, not from the task list.
- [ ] What must be true was checked in the code or the running system, not in the agent's summary.
- [ ] What must exist was found and is substantive, not a placeholder.
- [ ] What must be wired was exercised end to end.
- [ ] Anything only a person can confirm is listed with an owner and a date.
- [ ] A verification report exists for the phase, including phases run with `/aloha:autonomous`.
- [ ] Gaps became new plans or new phases, not notes.

**Checks only a person can perform / owner / date:** ____________________

**Gaps found and where they went (plan, phase, or todo):** ____________________

## When `/aloha:quick` is enough

- [ ] The change fits in one sitting and touches a known part of the code.
- [ ] It adds no new requirement and does not change a phase goal.
- [ ] It needs no research into an unfamiliar library or service.
- [ ] Its result can be checked directly, by a test or by running it.
- [ ] It does not touch credentials, access, or production data.

If any box stays empty, plan it as a phase, or add `--discuss`, `--research`, or `--full` (plan checking and verification) to the quick task.

**Quick tasks this period and why each was quick:** ____________________

## After a context reset

Run this after `/clear`, a new session, or a handover to another person.

- [ ] `STATE.md` names the current phase, the current plan, and where work stopped.
- [ ] The next action can be stated from the files alone, without the previous conversation.
- [ ] Decisions made in earlier sessions are recorded with their reasons.
- [ ] The last task's commit exists, and its summary matches what the commit changed.
- [ ] Open blockers are listed with an owner.
- [ ] A fresh session that reads only the planning files (`/aloha:progress`) proposes the same next step you would.

**Last reset tested / what the fresh session got wrong:** ____________________

## Common failure modes

- A phase is marked complete because every task has a summary, while the goal was never checked.
- The definition of done is a change in how people work, and nobody owns confirming it.
- An autonomous run leaves no verification report, and the gap is found at the milestone audit.
- A decision lives only in a conversation that was cleared.
- The planning record grows without anyone deciding what to keep after the project ships.

**Review cadence / next review:** ____________________

**What happens to the planning record after the project ships:** ____________________

This record covers how an agent-built project keeps its plan and proves each phase. It does not judge whether the project should be built, or what access the agent should hold; use the AI-assisted build evaluation and the OpenClaw deployment checklist for those.