Run Claude Code like an engineering org. Wave-based execution with dedicated sub-agents per phase, computed-style visual verification, no "tsc passes" lies.
A real /wave-start run end-to-end: 17 phases dispatched through dedicated sub-agents, TDD-RED → GREEN → visual gates → cleanup → checkpoint. Unattended.
The defaults of "vibe-coding" optimise for time-to-first-demo. This plugin optimises for time-to-shippable.
- How is this different?
- Why this exists
- Prerequisites
- Install
- Quickstart — your first wave
- What you get
- The 10 invariants
- The 5 hard-won rules
- Repository structure
- Community
- Used in production by
- Talks & writing
- Status
- Contributing
- License
| claude-wave-plugin | Superpowers | Vanilla Claude Code | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workflow philosophy | Evidence-first verification | Brainstorm → plan → execute | One-shot prompts |
| Phases per feature | 17 base + 2 conditional | 7 stages | None |
| TDD enforcement | Hook-enforced | Recommended | None |
| Visual verification gates | ✅ Computed-style assertions | ❌ | ❌ |
| Sub-agent isolation | ✅ Per-phase, lean context | ✅ | ❌ |
| Auto-compact recovery | ✅ Checkpoint resume | ❌ | ❌ |
| Best for | Production codebases where bugs cost money | Greenfield features, creative flow | Prototypes |
Both claude-wave-plugin and Superpowers are serious frameworks built by people shipping real code with Claude Code. They optimise for different problems. If you're brainstorming a new product feature, Superpowers' creative flow is excellent. If you're shipping into a production codebase where "the agent said it's done" is not acceptable evidence, this plugin is for you.
Most Claude Code workflows are one-shot: type a prompt, get a diff, ship it. That works for prototypes. It produces piles of fake-done features in production codebases — features whose tests pass but whose pages render blank, whose configs validate but whose runtime never reads them, whose data-theme="dark" attribute gets set on <html> while the screenshot stays light.
Wave-based execution treats Claude Code as an orchestration layer, not an autocomplete. Every phase of shipping a feature gets its own dedicated sub-agent with lean context — and the orchestrator gates each hand-off on real evidence (live stack screenshots, computed-style assertions, true end-to-end runs), not on "build clean".
This plugin packages that workflow.
- Claude Code installed and authenticated. See the official docs.
- A project to run waves against (any language / stack).
- For UI waves: a browser-driving setup such as Playwright. The framework's TEET phase uses Playwright via the official MCP.
- Optional but recommended: the CodeRabbit plugin if you want the
[CR]Code Review gate at Phase 3.5.
# Add this repo as a plugin source
/plugins marketplace add https://github.com/Harshvardhan86/claude-wave-plugin
# Then install the plugin
/plugins install claude-wave-pluginAfter installation you should see two new slash commands available:
/wave-start/wave-checkpoint
…and six skills registered: wave-orchestrator, ac-writer, design-reviewer, red-tests, green-impl, teet-verify.
If you'd rather install directly:
git clone https://github.com/Harshvardhan86/claude-wave-plugin.git \
~/.claude/plugins/local/claude-wave-pluginRestart Claude Code. The plugin should be picked up automatically.
In any project you want to ship a feature in:
/wave-start --demo "make the save button show a loading spinner"What you'll see:
- The orchestrator dispatches the AC sub-agent.
.wave/ac.mdlands with brutal, testable criteria. - DR sub-agent audits your design system's installed dist files, writes a per-route mockup, defines computed-style visual ACs. Any design-system gap becomes an OPEN item that pauses the wave.
- RED writes failing tests against those ACs and prints the failure output. That's the point.
- GREEN writes the minimum code, starts the live stack, runs the full test suite, takes a Playwright screenshot.
- Visual approval gate. The orchestrator stops, shows you the screenshot, asks you to confirm before proceeding.
- TEET runs cross-system computed-style assertions and produces the final verdict.
If the agent says "done" without showing you a screenshot, refuse the hand-off — that's the failure mode the plugin exists to prevent.
Once you've shipped two or three waves with --demo successfully, drop the flag:
/wave-start "implement the new payment flow"This invokes the canonical pipeline: 17 base phases plus [DR] (auto-engaged for UI waves) and optional [CR] (opt-in via cr_enabled). Brutal AC, Silent Error Analysis, Brutal SEA, Dependency Audit, Output Alignment, Brutalised E2E, version bump, commit, cleanup, checkpoint, dashboard — all dispatched as separate Agents with proper Opus / Sonnet / Haiku model routing.
If context fills before completion, /wave-checkpoint writes resume state to .wave/checkpoints/. A fresh session picks up exactly where you left off.
This plugin vendors the complete Wave Execution Framework v2 — refined over months of production engineering work where bugs cost real money. 17 base phases plus two conditional gates: [DR] Design Review at Phase 1.5 (mandatory whenever the wave ships UI — web, mobile, Storybook, CLI-TUI) and [CR] Code Review at Phase 3.5 (optional, opt-in). Maximum surface per wave: 19 phases. Model-routed across Opus / Sonnet / Haiku, with hook-enforced invariants and worktree isolation for writing dispatches.
For first-time users, small features, and live-demo segments, the plugin ships five polished entry skills plus the orchestrator:
| Skill | Phase | Owns |
|---|---|---|
wave-orchestrator |
Router | Mode dispatch (full vs demo), hand-off gates |
ac-writer |
1. Acceptance Criteria | Brutal, testable ACs grounded in real visual vocabulary |
design-reviewer |
UI: pre-RED gate (matches Phase 1.5) | Component API audit, per-route mockup, visual ACs |
red-tests |
RED | Failing tests first, prove they fail before any code is written |
green-impl |
GREEN | Minimum implementation, verify-before-scan: live stack + tests + screenshot |
teet-verify |
TEET | True end-to-end with computed-style assertions, not toBeVisible() lies |
These run as /wave-start --demo "<feature>". The recommended starting point.
/wave-start <feature>— runs the full v2 pipeline (17 base + conditional[DR]and[CR]gates)/wave-start --demo <feature>— runs the trimmed 5-phase entry subset/wave-checkpoint— saves wave state to disk so an auto-compact (or laptop battery dying) doesn't kill the run
- Lean context per unit — no "just in case" dumps.
- Strict TDD — tests first, watch them fail, then implement.
- Strict build order — build → app startup → tests.
- Never assume on bugs — present options, user decides.
- Save learnings globally after every bug fix (no duplicates, enhance existing).
- Planning docs never committed to the code repo.
- Auto-compact = STOP. Fresh terminal. Resume from checkpoint.
- No team self-declares success — internal reviewer signs off first.
- No hanging the system — teams must not deadlock or block indefinitely.
- The orchestrator is the single throat to choke — all decisions and user interactions flow through it.
Invariants 6 and 7 are hook-enforced in v2; see framework/references/11-hooks-and-automation.md.
These complement the invariants for UI work specifically:
- Verify before scan. Never run BC/SEA/BSEA scanners on un-verified GREEN. Live stack + full test suite + screenshot first; then scan.
- Visual effect over DOM presence.
toBeVisible()returns true for a 0×0 element. AssertgetComputedStyle().backgroundColor,boundingBoxdimensions, and effective CSS bytes. - Visual vocabulary grounding. Never invent a color or token the app doesn't already render. Audit compiled CSS, not theoretical class names.
- Never implement without wiring. Trace config → runner → handler end-to-end. A "catalog without dispatch" is a lie.
- Permissions once, upfront. Ask for all permissions in a single consolidated request at session start. Never again.
Each rule was learned from a specific incident, not from a blog post.
claude-wave-plugin/
├── .claude-plugin/
│ └── plugin.json # plugin manifest
├── README.md # you are here
├── LICENSE # MIT
├── CHANGELOG.md # release history
├── CONTRIBUTING.md # PR / issue norms
├── .gitignore
│
├── framework/ # full Wave Execution Framework v2
│ ├── SKILL.md # canonical pipeline + 10 invariants
│ └── references/ # 12 load-on-demand reference docs
│ ├── 01-architecture.md
│ ├── 02-standing-teams.md
│ ├── 03-wave-pipeline.md
│ ├── 04-meta-orchestration.md
│ ├── 05-language-binding-rules.md
│ ├── 06-team-quick-reference.md
│ ├── 07-invariant-rules.md
│ ├── 08-worktree-strategy.md
│ ├── 09-platform-deltas.md
│ ├── 10-model-routing.md
│ ├── 11-hooks-and-automation.md
│ └── 12-mcp-and-plugins.md
│
├── skills/ # demo on-ramps + orchestrator
│ ├── wave-orchestrator/SKILL.md
│ ├── ac-writer/SKILL.md
│ ├── design-reviewer/SKILL.md
│ ├── red-tests/SKILL.md
│ ├── green-impl/SKILL.md
│ └── teet-verify/SKILL.md
│
├── commands/
│ ├── wave-start.md # /wave-start [--demo] "<feature>"
│ └── wave-checkpoint.md # /wave-checkpoint
│
└── scripts/
└── qr.html # parametric QR-code generator
- X / Twitter: @Anim1986 — DM open for questions, suggestions, war stories
- Issues & ideas: Open an issue with the
.wave/<phase>.mdexcerpt that surfaced the question - Discussions: GitHub Discussions for design questions and patterns
This plugin is in early public release. If you're shipping with claude-wave-plugin in a real engineering org, open an issue or DM @Anim1986 — I'll add your team here and would love to hear what's working, what's not, and what's missing.
- 🎤 Beyond Vibe Coding — Claude Builders Delhi NCR, May 2026 — the talk that introduced this framework. Recap with photos and the core thesis.
- ✍️ Coming soon: TDD with sub-agents — the patterns from
claude-wave. Acceptance criteria, evidence-first verification, brutal silent-error scans.
v0.1.0 — initial public release. The framework itself is battle-tested in private production work; this is its first public packaging. Expect rough edges around platform integration as Claude Code's plugin system evolves. Issues and PRs are welcome.
See CONTRIBUTING.md. Short version:
- Bug reports and rule clarifications: open an issue with the
.wave/<phase>.mdexcerpt that surfaced the problem - New rules to the framework: come with a real incident behind them
- Skill changes: include a before/after showing the new guidance in action
Harshvardhan Singh Chouhan
- X: @Anim1986
- LinkedIn: harshvardhan-chouhan
- Email: harshvardhanc.1986@gmail.com / proharsh@gmail.com
MIT — fork it, ship it, mutate it.