pipeline-templates

pipeline-templates

Makes handoff v0.3's save-as-template step useful by adding execution-by-name. Catalyst bundles 3 default templates; users save their own.

Bundled templates

Template	When to use	Stages
audit-then-fix	Codebase audit (security / performance / correctness) followed by fixing top findings	parallel-audit → prioritize → fix → verify
research-plan-implement-review	Multi-week feature from fuzzy ask to reviewed PR	research → plan → contract → implement → review
parallel-review-synthesize	One artifact, multiple reviewer angles, unified summary	parallel-review → synthesize

Template format

Templates are markdown with a fixed section structure:

# Pipeline: <name>

## When to use
<one sentence>

## Decomposition axis
<concern | module | stage>

## Stages
1. **<stage-name>** (parallel | sequential | background)
   - Subagent role: <researcher / planner / generator / evaluator / orchestrator>
   - Inputs: <pointers>
   - Expected output: <artifact shape>
2. ...

## Synthesis
<how the orchestrator combines stage outputs>

## Failure / abort criteria
<conditions under which to stop the pipeline mid-flight>

Lookup order

When /pipeline run <name> is invoked, the skill checks:

1. $CLAUDE_PROJECT_DIR/.claude/pipelines/<name>.md (user-saved — takes precedence)
2. $CLAUDE_PROJECT_DIR/skills/pipeline-templates/templates/<name>.md (plugin-bundled)

User templates override bundled ones with the same name — that's the customization story.

Execution

/pipeline run <name> hands the template to handoff PIPELINE mode at step 2 (decompose → route...). The template's stage list IS the decomposition; PIPELINE mode handles BRIEF + dispatch + synthesis per the existing protocol.

/pipeline run <name> --dry-run renders the stage plan to stdout and exits without dispatching. Use to inspect what would happen.

Commands

Command	What it does
/pipeline list	List bundled + user templates with their When to use line
/pipeline run <name>	Execute the named template via handoff PIPELINE mode
/pipeline run <name> --dry-run	Print the stage plan without dispatching
/pipeline save <name>	Save the just-run pipeline shape to .claude/pipelines/<name>.md

(The /pipeline slash command also still supports the original handoff PIPELINE-mode invocation when no run / list / save sub-arg is provided — see commands/pipeline.md.)

When NOT to use

• One-off pipelines — if you're not going to run this shape again, no template needed. Just use /pipeline directly.
• Pipelines that span repos — single-repo only in v0.5. Cross-repo is Tier 4 territory.
• Templates that auto-run on commit / cron — that's Tier 4 multi-agent-coord.

Anti-patterns

• Editing bundled templates in skills/pipeline-templates/templates/. They ship with the plugin; your changes will conflict on update. Save user copies to .claude/pipelines/ instead.
• Templates with evaluator stages that bypass evaluator-library. Use the dispatch helper — anti-self-grade is preserved by going through it.
• Templates with >7 stages. Indicator that the decomposition is wrong; split into two templates with a hand-off artifact between them.
• Saving every pipeline as a template. Only save the ones you'd actually re-run. Otherwise .claude/pipelines/ becomes a graveyard.

Composition with other Catalyst skills

• handoff PIPELINE mode is the runtime — pipeline-templates is the catalog.
• evaluator-library is referenced by template evaluator stages. The dispatcher enforces fresh context.
• session-health may flag a recovery-spiral at session end if a template fails to converge — that's a signal the template needs review.

Model evolution

Assumes templates speed up common workflows. May retire if future Claude Code internalizes pipeline shapes natively (no template lookup needed). Review annually per Catalyst convention.