finishing-a-development-branch

name: finishing-a-development-branch description: Use when implementation is complete, all tests pass, and you need to decide how to integrate the work - guides completion of development work by presenting structured options for merge, PR, or cleanup

Related skills: Verify tests pass with /skill:verification-before-completion. Consider /skill:requesting-code-review before merging.

Finishing a Development Branch

Overview

Guide completion of development work by presenting clear options and handling chosen workflow.

Core principle: Verify tests → Present options → Execute choice → Clean up.

Announce at start: "I'm using the finishing-a-development-branch skill to complete this work."

The Process

Step 1: Verify Tests

Before presenting options, verify tests pass:

# Run project's test suite
npm test / cargo test / pytest / go test ./...

If tests fail:

Tests failing (<N> failures). Must fix before completing:

[Show failures]

Cannot proceed with merge/PR until tests pass.

Stop. Don't proceed to Step 2.

If tests pass: Continue to Step 1.5.

Step 1.5: Documentation and Learnings

Before presenting options, ask two questions:

1. "Does this work require documentation updates?" (README, CHANGELOG, API docs, inline docs) — If yes, make the updates before proceeding.
2. "What was learned during this implementation?" (surprises, codebase-specific knowledge, things to do differently next time) — Capture anything worth remembering using the memory tool's learnings file.

Step 2: Determine Base Branch

# Try common base branches
git merge-base HEAD main 2>/dev/null || git merge-base HEAD master 2>/dev/null

Or ask: "This branch split from main - is that correct?"

Step 3: Present Options

Present exactly these 4 options:

Implementation complete. What would you like to do?

1. Merge back to <base-branch> locally
2. Push and create a Pull Request
3. Keep the branch as-is (I'll handle it later)
4. Discard this work

Which option?

Don't add explanation - keep options concise.

Step 4: Execute Choice

Option 1: Merge Locally

# Switch to base branch
git checkout <base-branch>

# Pull latest
git pull

# Merge feature branch
git merge <feature-branch>

# Verify tests on merged result
<test command>

# If tests pass
git branch -d <feature-branch>

If merge conflicts: Abort the merge (git merge --abort) and suggest switching to Option 2 (PR) so the user can resolve conflicts manually. Don't attempt conflict resolution without explicit user approval.

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Option 2: Push and Create PR

# Push branch
git push -u origin <feature-branch>

# Create PR
gh pr create --title "<title>" --body "$(cat <<'EOF'
## Summary
<2-3 bullets of what changed>

## Test Plan
- [ ] <verification steps>
EOF
)"

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Option 3: Keep As-Is

Report: "Keeping branch . Worktree preserved at ."

Don't cleanup worktree.

Option 4: Discard

Confirm first:

This will permanently delete:
- Branch <name>
- All commits: <commit-list>
- Worktree at <path>

Type 'discard' to confirm.

Wait for exact confirmation.

If confirmed:

git checkout <base-branch>
git branch -D <feature-branch>

Then: Cleanup worktree (Step 5)

Step 5: Cleanup Worktree

For Options 1, 2, 4:

Check if in worktree:

git worktree list | grep $(git branch --show-current)

If yes:

git worktree remove <worktree-path>

For Option 3: Keep worktree.

Quick Reference

Rules

• Always verify tests before offering options — never merge or PR with failing tests
• Present exactly 4 structured options — no open-ended "what next?"
• Require typed "discard" confirmation for Option 4
• Only cleanup worktree for Options 1 and 4
• Never force-push without explicit request

Integration

Called by:

• /skill:subagent-driven-development (Step 7) - After all tasks complete
• /skill:executing-plans (Step 5) - After all batches complete

Pairs with:

• /skill:using-git-worktrees - Cleans up worktree created by that skill