bmad-method 6.0.0-alpha.11 → 6.0.0-alpha.13

package/docs/installers-bundlers/installers-modules-platforms-reference.md

@@ -171,7 +171,7 @@ communication_language: "English"
 - Windsurf
 
 **Additional**:
-Cline, Roo, Auggie, GitHub Copilot, Codex, Gemini, Qwen, Trae, Kilo, Crush, iFlow
+Cline, Roo, Rovo Dev,Auggie, GitHub Copilot, Codex, Gemini, Qwen, Trae, Kilo, Crush, iFlow
 
 ### Platform Features
 

package/package.json

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "$schema": "https://json.schemastore.org/package.json",
   "name": "bmad-method",
-  "version": "6.0.0-alpha.11",
+  "version": "6.0.0-alpha.13",
   "description": "Breakthrough Method of Agile AI-driven Development",
   "keywords": [
     "agile",
@@ -76,7 +76,8 @@
     "ora": "^5.4.1",
     "semver": "^7.6.3",
     "wrap-ansi": "^7.0.0",
-    "xml2js": "^0.6.2"
+    "xml2js": "^0.6.2",
+    "yaml": "^2.7.0"
   },
   "devDependencies": {
     "@eslint/js": "^9.33.0",

package/src/core/agents/bmad-master.agent.yaml

@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ agent:
       description: "List Workflows"
 
     - trigger: "party-mode"
-      workflow: "{project-root}/{bmad_folder}/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.yaml"
+      exec: "{project-root}/{bmad_folder}/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.md"
       description: "Group chat with all agents"
 
   # Empty prompts section (no custom prompts for this agent)

package/src/core/agents/bmad-web-orchestrator.agent.xml

@@ -105,7 +105,7 @@
     <item cmd="*help">Show numbered command list</item>
     <item cmd="*list-agents">List all available agents with their capabilities</item>
     <item cmd="*agents [agent-name]">Transform into a specific agent</item>
-    <item cmd="*party-mode" workflow="{bmad_folder}/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.yaml">Enter group chat with all agents
+    <item cmd="*party-mode" exec="{bmad_folder}/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.md">Enter group chat with all agents
       simultaneously</item>
     <item cmd="*advanced-elicitation" task="{bmad_folder}/core/tasks/advanced-elicitation.xml">Push agent to perform advanced elicitation</item>
     <item cmd="*exit">Exit current session</item>

package/src/core/tasks/advanced-elicitation-methods.csv

@@ -1,21 +1,51 @@
-category,method_name,description,output_pattern
-core,Five Whys,Drill down to root causes by asking 'why' iteratively. Each answer becomes the basis for the next question. Particularly effective for problem analysis and understanding system failures.,problem → why1 → why2 → why3 → why4 → why5 → root cause
-core,First Principles,Break down complex problems into fundamental truths and rebuild from there. Question assumptions and reconstruct understanding from basic principles.,assumptions → deconstruction → fundamentals → reconstruction → solution
-structural,SWOT Analysis,Evaluate internal and external factors through Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities and Threats. Provides balanced strategic perspective.,strengths → weaknesses → opportunities → threats → strategic insights
-structural,Mind Mapping,Create visual representations of interconnected concepts branching from central idea. Reveals relationships and patterns not immediately obvious.,central concept → primary branches → secondary branches → connections → insights
-risk,Pre-mortem Analysis,Imagine project has failed and work backwards to identify potential failure points. Proactive risk identification through hypothetical failure scenarios.,future failure → contributing factors → warning signs → preventive measures
-risk,Risk Matrix,Evaluate risks by probability and impact to prioritize mitigation efforts. Visual framework for systematic risk assessment.,risk identification → probability assessment → impact analysis → prioritization → mitigation
-creative,SCAMPER,Systematic creative thinking through Substitute Combine Adapt Modify Put to other uses Eliminate Reverse. Generates innovative alternatives.,substitute → combine → adapt → modify → other uses → eliminate → reverse
-creative,Six Thinking Hats,Explore topic from six perspectives: facts (white) emotions (red) caution (black) optimism (yellow) creativity (green) process (blue).,facts → emotions → risks → benefits → alternatives → synthesis
-analytical,Root Cause Analysis,Systematic investigation to identify fundamental causes rather than symptoms. Uses various techniques to drill down to core issues.,symptoms → immediate causes → intermediate causes → root causes → solutions
-analytical,Fishbone Diagram,Visual cause-and-effect analysis organizing potential causes into categories. Also known as Ishikawa diagram for systematic problem analysis.,problem statement → major categories → potential causes → sub-causes → prioritization
-strategic,PESTLE Analysis,Examine Political Economic Social Technological Legal Environmental factors. Comprehensive external environment assessment.,political → economic → social → technological → legal → environmental → implications
-strategic,Value Chain Analysis,Examine activities that create value from raw materials to end customer. Identifies competitive advantages and improvement opportunities.,primary activities → support activities → linkages → value creation → optimization
-process,Journey Mapping,Visualize end-to-end experience identifying touchpoints pain points and opportunities. Understanding through customer or user perspective.,stages → touchpoints → actions → emotions → pain points → opportunities
-process,Service Blueprint,Map service delivery showing frontstage backstage and support processes. Reveals service complexity and improvement areas.,customer actions → frontstage → backstage → support processes → improvement areas
-stakeholder,Stakeholder Mapping,Identify and analyze stakeholders by interest and influence. Strategic approach to stakeholder engagement.,identification → interest analysis → influence assessment → engagement strategy
-stakeholder,Empathy Map,Understand stakeholder perspectives through what they think feel see say do. Deep understanding of user needs and motivations.,thinks → feels → sees → says → does → pains → gains
-decision,Decision Matrix,Evaluate options against weighted criteria for objective decision making. Systematic comparison of alternatives.,criteria definition → weighting → scoring → calculation → ranking → selection
-decision,Cost-Benefit Analysis,Compare costs against benefits to evaluate decision viability. Quantitative approach to decision validation.,cost identification → benefit identification → quantification → comparison → recommendation
-validation,Devil's Advocate,Challenge assumptions and proposals by arguing opposing viewpoint. Stress-testing through deliberate opposition.,proposal → counter-arguments → weaknesses → blind spots → strengthened proposal
-validation,Red Team Analysis,Simulate adversarial perspective to identify vulnerabilities. Security and robustness through adversarial thinking.,current approach → adversarial view → attack vectors → vulnerabilities → countermeasures
+num,category,method_name,description,output_pattern
+1,collaboration,Stakeholder Round Table,Convene multiple personas to contribute diverse perspectives - essential for requirements gathering and finding balanced solutions across competing interests,perspectives → synthesis → alignment
+2,collaboration,Expert Panel Review,Assemble domain experts for deep specialized analysis - ideal when technical depth and peer review quality are needed,expert views → consensus → recommendations
+3,collaboration,Debate Club Showdown,Two personas argue opposing positions while a moderator scores points - great for exploring controversial decisions and finding middle ground,thesis → antithesis → synthesis
+4,collaboration,User Persona Focus Group,Gather your product's user personas to react to proposals and share frustrations - essential for validating features and discovering unmet needs,reactions → concerns → priorities
+5,collaboration,Time Traveler Council,Past-you and future-you advise present-you on decisions - powerful for gaining perspective on long-term consequences vs short-term pressures,past wisdom → present choice → future impact
+6,collaboration,Cross-Functional War Room,Product manager + engineer + designer tackle a problem together - reveals trade-offs between feasibility desirability and viability,constraints → trade-offs → balanced solution
+7,collaboration,Mentor and Apprentice,Senior expert teaches junior while junior asks naive questions - surfaces hidden assumptions through teaching,explanation → questions → deeper understanding
+8,collaboration,Good Cop Bad Cop,Supportive persona and critical persona alternate - finds both strengths to build on and weaknesses to address,encouragement → criticism → balanced view
+9,collaboration,Improv Yes-And,Multiple personas build on each other's ideas without blocking - generates unexpected creative directions through collaborative building,idea → build → build → surprising result
+10,collaboration,Customer Support Theater,Angry customer and support rep roleplay to find pain points - reveals real user frustrations and service gaps,complaint → investigation → resolution → prevention
+11,advanced,Tree of Thoughts,Explore multiple reasoning paths simultaneously then evaluate and select the best - perfect for complex problems with multiple valid approaches,paths → evaluation → selection
+12,advanced,Graph of Thoughts,Model reasoning as an interconnected network of ideas to reveal hidden relationships - ideal for systems thinking and discovering emergent patterns,nodes → connections → patterns
+13,advanced,Thread of Thought,Maintain coherent reasoning across long contexts by weaving a continuous narrative thread - essential for RAG systems and maintaining consistency,context → thread → synthesis
+14,advanced,Self-Consistency Validation,Generate multiple independent approaches then compare for consistency - crucial for high-stakes decisions where verification matters,approaches → comparison → consensus
+15,advanced,Meta-Prompting Analysis,Step back to analyze the approach structure and methodology itself - valuable for optimizing prompts and improving problem-solving,current → analysis → optimization
+16,advanced,Reasoning via Planning,Build a reasoning tree guided by world models and goal states - excellent for strategic planning and sequential decision-making,model → planning → strategy
+17,competitive,Red Team vs Blue Team,Adversarial attack-defend analysis to find vulnerabilities - critical for security testing and building robust solutions,defense → attack → hardening
+18,competitive,Shark Tank Pitch,Entrepreneur pitches to skeptical investors who poke holes - stress-tests business viability and forces clarity on value proposition,pitch → challenges → refinement
+19,competitive,Code Review Gauntlet,Senior devs with different philosophies review the same code - surfaces style debates and finds consensus on best practices,reviews → debates → standards
+20,technical,Architecture Decision Records,Multiple architect personas propose and debate architectural choices with explicit trade-offs - ensures decisions are well-reasoned and documented,options → trade-offs → decision → rationale
+21,technical,Rubber Duck Debugging Evolved,Explain your code to progressively more technical ducks until you find the bug - forces clarity at multiple abstraction levels,simple → detailed → technical → aha
+22,technical,Algorithm Olympics,Multiple approaches compete on the same problem with benchmarks - finds optimal solution through direct comparison,implementations → benchmarks → winner
+23,technical,Security Audit Personas,Hacker + defender + auditor examine system from different threat models - comprehensive security review from multiple angles,vulnerabilities → defenses → compliance
+24,technical,Performance Profiler Panel,Database expert + frontend specialist + DevOps engineer diagnose slowness - finds bottlenecks across the full stack,symptoms → analysis → optimizations
+25,creative,SCAMPER Method,Apply seven creativity lenses (Substitute/Combine/Adapt/Modify/Put/Eliminate/Reverse) - systematic ideation for product innovation,S→C→A→M→P→E→R
+26,creative,Reverse Engineering,Work backwards from desired outcome to find implementation path - powerful for goal achievement and understanding endpoints,end state → steps backward → path forward
+27,creative,What If Scenarios,Explore alternative realities to understand possibilities and implications - valuable for contingency planning and exploration,scenarios → implications → insights
+28,creative,Random Input Stimulus,Inject unrelated concepts to spark unexpected connections - breaks creative blocks through forced lateral thinking,random word → associations → novel ideas
+29,creative,Exquisite Corpse Brainstorm,Each persona adds to the idea seeing only the previous contribution - generates surprising combinations through constrained collaboration,contribution → handoff → contribution → surprise
+30,creative,Genre Mashup,Combine two unrelated domains to find fresh approaches - innovation through unexpected cross-pollination,domain A + domain B → hybrid insights
+31,research,Literature Review Personas,Optimist researcher + skeptic researcher + synthesizer review sources - balanced assessment of evidence quality,sources → critiques → synthesis
+32,research,Thesis Defense Simulation,Student defends hypothesis against committee with different concerns - stress-tests research methodology and conclusions,thesis → challenges → defense → refinements
+33,research,Comparative Analysis Matrix,Multiple analysts evaluate options against weighted criteria - structured decision-making with explicit scoring,options → criteria → scores → recommendation
+34,risk,Pre-mortem Analysis,Imagine future failure then work backwards to prevent it - powerful technique for risk mitigation before major launches,failure scenario → causes → prevention
+35,risk,Failure Mode Analysis,Systematically explore how each component could fail - critical for reliability engineering and safety-critical systems,components → failures → prevention
+36,risk,Challenge from Critical Perspective,Play devil's advocate to stress-test ideas and find weaknesses - essential for overcoming groupthink,assumptions → challenges → strengthening
+37,risk,Identify Potential Risks,Brainstorm what could go wrong across all categories - fundamental for project planning and deployment preparation,categories → risks → mitigations
+38,risk,Chaos Monkey Scenarios,Deliberately break things to test resilience and recovery - ensures systems handle failures gracefully,break → observe → harden
+39,core,First Principles Analysis,Strip away assumptions to rebuild from fundamental truths - breakthrough technique for innovation and solving impossible problems,assumptions → truths → new approach
+40,core,5 Whys Deep Dive,Repeatedly ask why to drill down to root causes - simple but powerful for understanding failures,why chain → root cause → solution
+41,core,Socratic Questioning,Use targeted questions to reveal hidden assumptions and guide discovery - excellent for teaching and self-discovery,questions → revelations → understanding
+42,core,Critique and Refine,Systematic review to identify strengths and weaknesses then improve - standard quality check for drafts,strengths/weaknesses → improvements → refined
+43,core,Explain Reasoning,Walk through step-by-step thinking to show how conclusions were reached - crucial for transparency,steps → logic → conclusion
+44,core,Expand or Contract for Audience,Dynamically adjust detail level and technical depth for target audience - matches content to reader capabilities,audience → adjustments → refined content
+45,learning,Feynman Technique,Explain complex concepts simply as if teaching a child - the ultimate test of true understanding,complex → simple → gaps → mastery
+46,learning,Active Recall Testing,Test understanding without references to verify true knowledge - essential for identifying gaps,test → gaps → reinforcement
+47,philosophical,Occam's Razor Application,Find the simplest sufficient explanation by eliminating unnecessary complexity - essential for debugging,options → simplification → selection
+48,philosophical,Trolley Problem Variations,Explore ethical trade-offs through moral dilemmas - valuable for understanding values and difficult decisions,dilemma → analysis → decision
+49,retrospective,Hindsight Reflection,Imagine looking back from the future to gain perspective - powerful for project reviews,future view → insights → application
+50,retrospective,Lessons Learned Extraction,Systematically identify key takeaways and actionable improvements - essential for continuous improvement,experience → lessons → actions

package/src/core/tasks/advanced-elicitation.xml

@@ -44,8 +44,8 @@
     <step n="2" title="Present Options and Handle Responses">
 
       <format>
-        **Advanced Elicitation Options**
-        Choose a number (1-5), r to shuffle, or x to proceed:
+        **Advanced Elicitation Options (If you launched Party Mode, they will participate randomly)**
+        Choose a number (1-5), [r] to Reshuffle, [a] List All, or [x] to Proceed:
 
         1. [Method Name]
         2. [Method Name]
@@ -53,6 +53,7 @@
         4. [Method Name]
         5. [Method Name]
         r. Reshuffle the list with 5 new options
+        a. List all methods with descriptions
         x. Proceed / No Further Actions
       </format>
 
@@ -68,7 +69,9 @@
           <i>CRITICAL: Re-present the same 1-5,r,x prompt to allow additional elicitations</i>
         </case>
         <case n="r">
-          <i>Select 5 different methods from advanced-elicitation-methods.csv, present new list with same prompt format</i>
+          <i>Select 5 random methods from advanced-elicitation-methods.csv, present new list with same prompt format</i>
+          <i>When selecting, try to think and pick a diverse set of methods covering different categories and approaches, with 1 and 2 being
+            potentially the most useful for the document or section being discovered</i>
         </case>
         <case n="x">
           <i>Complete elicitation and proceed</i>
@@ -76,6 +79,11 @@
           <i>The enhanced content becomes the final version for that section</i>
           <i>Signal completion back to create-doc.md to continue with next section</i>
         </case>
+        <case n="a">
+          <i>List all methods with their descriptions from the CSV in a compact table</i>
+          <i>Allow user to select any method by name or number from the full list</i>
+          <i>After selection, execute the method as described in the n="1-5" case above</i>
+        </case>
         <case n="direct-feedback">
           <i>Apply changes to current section content and re-present choices</i>
         </case>
@@ -90,11 +98,13 @@
       <i>Output pattern: Use the pattern as a flexible guide (e.g., "paths → evaluation → selection")</i>
       <i>Dynamic adaptation: Adjust complexity based on content needs (simple to sophisticated)</i>
       <i>Creative application: Interpret methods flexibly based on context while maintaining pattern consistency</i>
-      <i>Be concise: Focus on actionable insights</i>
-      <i>Stay relevant: Tie elicitation to specific content being analyzed (the current section from create-doc)</i>
-      <i>Identify personas: For multi-persona methods, clearly identify viewpoints</i>
-      <i>Critical loop behavior: Always re-offer the 1-5,r,x choices after each method execution</i>
-      <i>Continue until user selects 'x' to proceed with enhanced content</i>
+      <i>Focus on actionable insights</i>
+      <i>Stay relevant: Tie elicitation to specific content being analyzed (the current section from the document being created unless user
+        indicates otherwise)</i>
+      <i>Identify personas: For single or multi-persona methods, clearly identify viewpoints, and use party members if available in memory
+        already</i>
+      <i>Critical loop behavior: Always re-offer the 1-5,r,a,x choices after each method execution</i>
+      <i>Continue until user selects 'x' to proceed with enhanced content, confirm or ask the user what should be accepted from the session</i>
       <i>Each method application builds upon previous enhancements</i>
       <i>Content preservation: Track all enhancements made during elicitation</i>
       <i>Iterative enhancement: Each selected method (1-5) should:</i>

package/src/core/tasks/workflow.xml

@@ -6,14 +6,14 @@
     <mandate>Instructions are MANDATORY - either as file path, steps or embedded list in YAML, XML or markdown</mandate>
     <mandate>Execute ALL steps in instructions IN EXACT ORDER</mandate>
     <mandate>Save to template output file after EVERY "template-output" tag</mandate>
-    <mandate>NEVER delegate a step - YOU are responsible for every steps execution</mandate>
+    <mandate>NEVER skip a step - YOU are responsible for every steps execution without fail or excuse</mandate>
   </llm>
 
   <WORKFLOW-RULES critical="true">
     <rule n="1">Steps execute in exact numerical order (1, 2, 3...)</rule>
     <rule n="2">Optional steps: Ask user unless #yolo mode active</rule>
-    <rule n="3">Template-output tags: Save content → Show user → Get approval before continuing</rule>
-    <rule n="4">User must approve each major section before continuing UNLESS #yolo mode active</rule>
+    <rule n="3">Template-output tags: Save content, discuss with the user the section completed, and NEVER proceed until the users indicates
+      to proceed (unless YOLO mode has been activated)</rule>
   </WORKFLOW-RULES>
 
   <flow>
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@
       </substep>
     </step>
 
-    <step n="2" title="Process Each Instruction Step">
+    <step n="2" title="Process Each Instruction Step in Order">
       <iterate>For each step in instructions:</iterate>
 
       <substep n="2a" title="Handle Step Attributes">
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@
           <tag>action xml tag → Perform the action</tag>
           <tag>check if="condition" xml tag → Conditional block wrapping actions (requires closing &lt;/check&gt;)</tag>
           <tag>ask xml tag → Prompt user and WAIT for response</tag>
-          <tag>invoke-workflow xml tag → Execute another workflow with given inputs</tag>
+          <tag>invoke-workflow xml tag → Execute another workflow with given inputs and the workflow.xml runner</tag>
           <tag>invoke-task xml tag → Execute specified task</tag>
           <tag>invoke-protocol name="protocol_name" xml tag → Execute reusable protocol from protocols section</tag>
           <tag>goto step="x" → Jump to specified step</tag>
@@ -71,7 +71,6 @@
         <if tag="template-output">
           <mandate>Generate content for this section</mandate>
           <mandate>Save to file (Write first time, Edit subsequent)</mandate>
-          <action>Show checkpoint separator: ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━</action>
           <action>Display generated content</action>
           <ask> [a] Advanced Elicitation, [c] Continue, [p] Party-Mode, [y] YOLO the rest of this document only. WAIT for response. <if
               response="a">
@@ -99,16 +98,14 @@
     </step>
 
     <step n="3" title="Completion">
-      <check>If checklist exists → Run validation</check>
-      <check>If template: false → Confirm actions completed</check>
-      <check>Else → Confirm document saved to output path</check>
+      <check>Confirm document saved to output path</check>
       <action>Report workflow completion</action>
     </step>
   </flow>
 
   <execution-modes>
-    <mode name="normal">Full user interaction at all decision points</mode>
-    <mode name="#yolo">Skip all confirmations and elicitation, minimize prompts and try to produce all of the workflow automatically by
+    <mode name="normal">Full user interaction and confirmation of EVERY step at EVERY template output - NO EXCEPTIONS except yolo MODE</mode>
+    <mode name="yolo">Skip all confirmations and elicitation, minimize prompts and try to produce all of the workflow automatically by
       simulating the remaining discussions with an simulated expert user</mode>
   </execution-modes>
 
@@ -124,7 +121,7 @@
       <tag>action - Required action to perform</tag>
       <tag>action if="condition" - Single conditional action (inline, no closing tag needed)</tag>
       <tag>check if="condition"&gt;...&lt;/check&gt; - Conditional block wrapping multiple items (closing tag required)</tag>
-      <tag>ask - Get user input (wait for response)</tag>
+      <tag>ask - Get user input (ALWAYS wait for response before continuing)</tag>
       <tag>goto - Jump to another step</tag>
       <tag>invoke-workflow - Call another workflow</tag>
       <tag>invoke-task - Call a task</tag>
@@ -137,35 +134,6 @@
     </output>
   </supported-tags>
 
-  <conditional-execution-patterns desc="When to use each pattern">
-    <pattern type="single-action">
-      <use-case>One action with a condition</use-case>
-      <syntax>&lt;action if="condition"&gt;Do something&lt;/action&gt;</syntax>
-      <example>&lt;action if="file exists"&gt;Load the file&lt;/action&gt;</example>
-      <rationale>Cleaner and more concise for single items</rationale>
-    </pattern>
-
-    <pattern type="multi-action-block">
-      <use-case>Multiple actions/tags under same condition</use-case>
-      <syntax>&lt;check if="condition"&gt;
-        &lt;action&gt;First action&lt;/action&gt;
-        &lt;action&gt;Second action&lt;/action&gt;
-        &lt;/check&gt;</syntax>
-      <example>&lt;check if="validation fails"&gt;
-        &lt;action&gt;Log error&lt;/action&gt;
-        &lt;goto step="1"&gt;Retry&lt;/goto&gt;
-        &lt;/check&gt;</example>
-      <rationale>Explicit scope boundaries prevent ambiguity</rationale>
-    </pattern>
-
-    <pattern type="nested-conditions">
-      <use-case>Else/alternative branches</use-case>
-      <syntax>&lt;check if="condition A"&gt;...&lt;/check&gt;
-        &lt;check if="else"&gt;...&lt;/check&gt;</syntax>
-      <rationale>Clear branching logic with explicit blocks</rationale>
-    </pattern>
-  </conditional-execution-patterns>
-
   <protocols desc="Reusable workflow protocols that can be invoked via invoke-protocol tag">
     <protocol name="discover_inputs" desc="Smart file discovery and loading based on input_file_patterns">
       <objective>Intelligently load project files (whole or sharded) based on workflow's input_file_patterns configuration</objective>
@@ -181,17 +149,8 @@
         <step n="2" title="Load Files Using Smart Strategies">
           <iterate>For each pattern in input_file_patterns:</iterate>
 
-          <substep n="2a" title="Try Whole Document First">
-            <action>Attempt glob match on 'whole' pattern (e.g., "{output_folder}/*prd*.md")</action>
-            <check if="matches found">
-              <action>Load ALL matching files completely (no offset/limit)</action>
-              <action>Store content in variable: {pattern_name_content} (e.g., {prd_content})</action>
-              <action>Mark pattern as RESOLVED, skip to next pattern</action>
-            </check>
-          </substep>
-
-          <substep n="2b" title="Try Sharded Document if Whole Not Found">
-            <check if="no whole matches AND sharded pattern exists">
+          <substep n="2a" title="Try Sharded Documents First">
+            <check if="sharded pattern exists">
               <action>Determine load_strategy from pattern config (defaults to FULL_LOAD if not specified)</action>
 
               <strategy name="FULL_LOAD">
@@ -224,11 +183,23 @@
                 <action>Store combined content in variable: {pattern_name_content}</action>
                 <note>When in doubt, LOAD IT - context is valuable, being thorough is better than missing critical info</note>
               </strategy>
+              <action>Mark pattern as RESOLVED, skip to next pattern</action>
+            </check>
+          </substep>
+
+          <substep n="2b" title="Try Whole Document if No Sharded Found">
+            <check if="no sharded matches found OR no sharded pattern exists">
+              <action>Attempt glob match on 'whole' pattern (e.g., "{output_folder}/*prd*.md")</action>
+              <check if="matches found">
+                <action>Load ALL matching files completely (no offset/limit)</action>
+                <action>Store content in variable: {pattern_name_content} (e.g., {prd_content})</action>
+                <action>Mark pattern as RESOLVED, skip to next pattern</action>
+              </check>
             </check>
           </substep>
 
           <substep n="2c" title="Handle Not Found">
-            <check if="no matches for whole OR sharded">
+            <check if="no matches for sharded OR whole">
               <action>Set {pattern_name_content} to empty string</action>
               <action>Note in session: "No {pattern_name} files found" (not an error, just unavailable, offer use change to provide)</action>
             </check>
@@ -238,8 +209,8 @@
         <step n="3" title="Report Discovery Results">
           <action>List all loaded content variables with file counts</action>
           <example>
-            ✓ Loaded {prd_content} from 1 file: PRD.md
-            ✓ Loaded {architecture_content} from 5 sharded files: architecture/index.md, architecture/system-design.md, ...
+            ✓ Loaded {prd_content} from 5 sharded files: prd/index.md, prd/requirements.md, ...
+            ✓ Loaded {architecture_content} from 1 file: Architecture.md
             ✓ Loaded {epics_content} from selective load: epics/epic-3.md
             ○ No ux_design files found
           </example>
@@ -247,24 +218,18 @@
         </step>
       </flow>
 
-      <usage-in-instructions>
-        <example desc="Typical usage in workflow instructions.md">
-          &lt;step n="0" goal="Discover and load project context"&gt;
-          &lt;invoke-protocol name="discover_inputs" /&gt;
-          &lt;/step&gt;
-
-          &lt;step n="1" goal="Analyze requirements"&gt;
-          &lt;action&gt;Review {prd_content} for functional requirements&lt;/action&gt;
-          &lt;action&gt;Cross-reference with {architecture_content} for technical constraints&lt;/action&gt;
-          &lt;/step&gt;
-        </example>
-      </usage-in-instructions>
     </protocol>
   </protocols>
 
   <llm final="true">
-    <mandate>This is the complete workflow execution engine</mandate>
-    <mandate>You MUST Follow instructions exactly as written and maintain conversation context between steps</mandate>
-    <mandate>If confused, re-read this task, the workflow yaml, and any yaml indicated files</mandate>
+    <critical-rules>
+      • This is the complete workflow execution engine
+      • You MUST Follow instructions exactly as written
+      • The workflow execution engine is governed by: {project-root}/{bmad_folder}/core/tasks/workflow.xml
+      • You MUST have already loaded and processed: {installed_path}/workflow.yaml
+      • This workflow uses INTENT-DRIVEN PLANNING - adapt organically to product type and context
+      • YOU ARE FACILITATING A CONVERSATION With a user to produce a final document step by step. The whole process is meant to be
+      collaborative helping the user flesh out their ideas. Do not rush or optimize and skip any section.
+    </critical-rules>
   </llm>
-</task>
+</task>