/next

name: next
description: Analyze and pick the next task to work on. Reads MASTER_PLAN.md, scores tasks by priority and status, and presents interactive selection. Use when starting a session or deciding what to tackle next.

What's Next?

Analyze MASTER_PLAN.md tasks, score by priority/status, and let the user pick interactively.

Triggers

• `/master-plan:next` - Main command
• "what should I work on", "pick a task", "next task", "what's next"

Arguments

| Argument | Filter | |----------|--------| | `bugs` | Only BUG-XXX tasks | | `progress` | Only IN PROGRESS tasks | | `planned` | Only PLANNED (backlog) tasks | | `review` | Only REVIEW tasks | | `active` | IN PROGRESS + REVIEW | | `all` | Include DONE tasks |

Example: `/master-plan:next bugs` or `/master-plan:next planned`

Workflow

Step 1: Find MASTER_PLAN.md

Search for the plan file in order: 1. `docs/MASTER_PLAN.md` 2. `MASTER_PLAN.md` 3. `master-plan.md` 4. `docs/master-plan.md`

If not found, tell the user: "No MASTER_PLAN.md found. Run `/master-plan:task` to create your first task, or create one from the template."

Step 2: Parse Tasks

Read the file and extract tasks from `###` headers matching this pattern:

### [optional ~~]TASK-123[optional ~~]: Title (STATUS)

Regex: `^###\s+(~~)?((TASK|BUG|FEATURE|ROAD|IDEA|ISSUE|INQUIRY)-\d+)(~~)?:\s*(.+?)\s*\(([^)]+)\)`

For each match, extract:

• **ID**: e.g., `TASK-123`, `BUG-456`
• **Title**: The text after `: ` and before ` (`
• **Status**: Text in parentheses. Normalize:
• Contains "DONE", "COMPLETE", "FIXED", "✅", or has strikethrough → `DONE`
• Contains "IN PROGRESS", "🔄" → `IN PROGRESS`
• Contains "REVIEW", "👀" → `REVIEW`
• Contains "PAUSED", "⏸️" → `PAUSED`
• Otherwise → `PLANNED`
• **Priority**: Look in the lines following the header for `**Priority**: P0-P3`. Default to P2 if not found.

Step 3: Check for Active Work

Look for IN PROGRESS tasks first — these should be finished before starting new work.

Also check git status:

git status --short

If uncommitted changes exist, mention: "You have uncommitted changes — consider committing or running `/master-plan:save` first."

Step 4: Sort and Filter

**Default sort order** (what to START next): 1. PLANNED first, then REVIEW, IN PROGRESS, PAUSED, DONE last 2. Within same status: P0 → P1 → P2 → P3

**If `$ARGUMENTS` contains a filter** (bugs, progress, planned, review, active), apply it before sorting.

**Exclude DONE tasks** unless `$ARGUMENTS` contains `all`.

Step 5: Present Interactive Selection

Use `AskUserQuestion` to let user pick from the top tasks:

AskUserQuestion({
  questions: [{
    question: "Which task would you like to work on?",
    header: "Task",
    multiSelect: false,
    options: [
      // Top 4 tasks, formatted as:
      { label: "TASK-XXX: Title here", description: "P0 · IN PROGRESS" },
      { label: "BUG-YYY: Another task", description: "P1 · PLANNED" },
      // ...
    ]
  }]
})

**Option formatting:**

• Label: `{ID}: {title (max 40 chars)}`
• Description: `{priority} · {status}`

If there are IN PROGRESS tasks, always show them first with a note: "You have N task(s) in progress."

Step 6: Show Task Details

When user selects a task, show the full section from MASTER_PLAN.md:

• ID, title, status, priority
• Description (everything between this `###` header and the next `###` or `##`)

Step 7: Offer Actions

After showing task details, ask:

AskUserQuestion({
  questions: [{
    question: "What would you like to do?",
    header: "Action",
    multiSelect: false,
    options: [
      { label: "Start working on this", description: "Update status to IN PROGRESS" },
      { label: "Pick a different task", description: "Go back to task list" },
      { label: "Just show context", description: "No status change" }
    ]
  }]
})

If "Start working on this" is selected: 1. Update the task's status to `IN PROGRESS` in MASTER_PLAN.md (all locations — see update rules below) 2. Confirm: "Started TASK-XXX. Ready to begin implementation."

MASTER_PLAN.md Update Rules

Tasks may appear in multiple locations. When updating status, check ALL of:

1. **Summary/Roadmap table** — Update the status column 2. **Detailed `###` section header** — Update `(STATUS)` in parentheses 3. **Subtask bullet points** — Add strikethrough + ✅ if marking DONE

Always verify with a grep after updating.

Rules

1. **Finish before starting** — Always highlight IN PROGRESS tasks first 2. **P0 trumps all** — Critical issues come first regardless of status 3. **Interactive selection** — Always use AskUserQuestion, never just print a list 4. **Context on selection** — Always show full task details when picked 5. **Action oriented** — Offer to start work immediately