Blender Checklist Driven Workflow

blender-checklist-driven-workflow

Purpose

Enforce a checklist-driven discipline where every stage of a Blender recipe (brief → asset → scene → render → export → handoff) has a written acceptance gate. Work does not advance until the previous stage's gate is checked off. Inspired by Anthropic Superpowers /test-driven-development analog: gate first, work second.

Quick start

• list the stages of the user's recipe
• write the gate per stage (specific, checkable conditions)
• run the gate after each stage; do not proceed if it fails
• record the gate result + evidence per stage

When to use

• complex multi-stage recipe (4+ distinct stages)
• when previous attempts had drift / scope creep / missed acceptance
• when user wants confidence that each stage is "done" before moving on
• before any runtime work

When not to use

• single-step requests
• pure exploratory brainstorming (use blender-brainstorming)
• fixing a broken render (use blender-troubleshooting)
• final handoff (use pre-handoff-verification)

Trigger phrases

• "let's do this step by step"
• "what's done before we move on"
• "checklist for this work"
• "I want to make sure each stage is solid"

Prerequisites / readiness

• recipe stages identified (or willing to identify them)
• user accepts gate-driven discipline (not all do)

Input schema

Required inputs

| Input | Why it is required | |---|---| | Recipe stages | Defines gate count | | Acceptance criteria per stage | Drives gate content | | Mode (text-only / runtime-ready) | Determines what gates can verify |

Optional inputs

| Input | Use | |---|---| | Reference images / specs | Drives stage-specific acceptance | | Time budget | Allows gate prioritization |

Assumptions to confirm

• The user agrees not to skip gates.
• "Acceptance criteria" are pre-agreed, not invented at gate time.
• A failing gate stops work until resolved.

Output schema

Primary output

A per-stage gate table: stage name, acceptance criteria (3-5 explicit checks), evidence required, current state (Pending / Pass / Fail / Blocked).

Secondary output

• the linear order in which stages must run
• per-stage handoff to a domain skill
• "gate failed → action" rules

Evidence / caveat output

Runtime status: Not Run | Attempted | Produced | Verified | Failed | Blocked / Not Run
Artifact status: Not Run | Not Produced | Produced | Verified | Failed
Evidence used: 
Limitations: 

Required laws

• ../../laws/evidence-before-done.md
• ../../laws/non-blender-user-language.md
• ../../laws/no-arbitrary-python-interface.md
• ../../laws/official-runtime-only.md

Official runtime boundary

Process / discipline skill — does not run Blender. Gates are written and evaluated against produced artifacts (per evidence-before-done.md). Gate verdicts are honest labels, not motivation.

Operating procedure

1. Confirm recipe stages with user (typically 5-7 stages).
2. Write acceptance criteria per stage (specific, checkable; see references/gate-template.md).
3. Pin the gate sequence; no parallel stages without explicit justification.
4. After each stage's work, run the gate (Pending → Pass / Fail).
5. If Fail: do not advance; either re-do or hand off to blender-troubleshooting.
6. If Pass: advance to next stage.
7. At the end, hand off to pre-handoff-verification for the final 7-point gate.

Decision tree

User wants to skip a stage?
  → Push back; document as risk if user insists
A previous gate is `Fail` but later stage was attempted anyway?
  → Stop; mark all subsequent stages `Blocked`
Two stages claimed `Pass` simultaneously?
  → Suspicious; verify each independently
Gate criteria are vague ("looks good")?
  → Re-write with concrete checks; do not run an undefined gate

Playbooks

Playbook A: Cyberpunk shoe hero (7 stages)

Stages: brief → scene plan → asset discovery → scene build → render → export → handoff. One gate per stage.

Playbook B: Multi-product grid (5 stages)

Stages: brief → grid plan → consistency setup → render → export. One gate per stage; gate 3 = "all cells render identical at sub-resolution".

Playbook C: Character portrait (6 stages)

Stages: brief → portrait plan → asset discovery → lookdev → render → handoff. Gate 4 = "lookdev approved against mood brief".

Mode handling

Text-only mode

Gates evaluate plans / specs only; runtime gates marked Not Run until runtime active.

Runtime-ready mode

Gates evaluate produced artifacts; honest labels per evidence-before-done.md.

Blocked runtime mode

Pre-runtime gates can pass; runtime / artifact gates remain Blocked.

Validation checklist

• [ ] Stages listed in linear order
• [ ] Gates written per stage
• [ ] Acceptance criteria concrete (3-5 checks)
• [ ] Evidence required per gate explicit
• [ ] Current state per stage explicit
• [ ] No vague "looks good" gate
• [ ] Failing gate stops work
• [ ] Final handoff to pre-handoff-verification present

Pass / Warn / Fail rubric

| Verdict | Criteria | |---|---| | Pass | All stages have written gates; evidence required is concrete; no skipped or vague gates. | | Warn | One gate has soft criteria ("looks acceptable"); one stage missing evidence row. | | Fail | Vague gates throughout; gates skipped; later stage Pass without earlier gate Pass. |

Failure handling

• Vague criteria → rewrite with concrete checks.
• User pushes to skip → document as risk; require explicit acknowledgment.
• Gate fails repeatedly → hand off to blender-troubleshooting.

Troubleshooting

| Problem | Response | |---|---| | Gate criteria invented at gate time | Reset; write gates BEFORE stage work begins. | | Gate Pass without evidence | Downgrade to Pending; require evidence. | | Multiple Fail gates accumulating | Stop work; troubleshoot before advancing. |

Best practices

• Write gates BEFORE the stage work begins.
• Gates contain concrete checks (numbers, paths, file existence) — not feelings.
• Stop work on first Fail; do not "we'll fix it in the next stage".
• Pair every gate with a fallback action.

Good examples

• "Stage 4 (render) gate: out/render-2026-05-09.png exists, dimensions 1920×1080, samples >= 128, render time logged. Evidence required: file path + visible image. Current state: Pending."

Bad examples

• "Stage 4 gate: render looks good." — vague.

User-facing response template

Recipe: 
Stages (linear order):

| # | Stage | Acceptance criteria | Evidence required | State | Next handoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |  |  | Pending / Pass / Fail / Blocked |  |
| 2 | … | … | … | … | … |

Failed gate action: stop + troubleshoot
Final handoff (after all gates Pass): pre-handoff-verification
Limitations: 

Anti-patterns

• Vague gate criteria.
• Skipping gates.
• Inventing criteria at gate time.
• Marking Pass without evidence.
• Running parallel stages without justification.

Cross-skill handoff

• Brainstorming → ../blender-brainstorming/SKILL.md (only if early)
• Brief → ../intent-to-3d-brief-writer/SKILL.md
• Asset discovery → ../blender-asset-discovery-planner/SKILL.md
• Scene planners → respective scene planner skill
• Quality validators → respective checker
• Troubleshooting on fail → ../blender-troubleshooting/SKILL.md
• Final gate → ../pre-handoff-verification/SKILL.md

Non-goals

• Run Blender.
• Author the recipe.
• Replace pre-handoff-verification (that is the final 7-point gate; this skill is per-stage).

References

• references/gate-template.md
• references/stage-decomposition-patterns.md
• references/failed-gate-handling.md
• ../../docs/skill-system.md

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: ThanhNguyxnOrg
• Source: ThanhNguyxnOrg/blendops
• License: MIT
• Homepage: https://github.com/ThanhNguyxnOrg/blendops

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.