BMad Glossary

Terminology reference for the BMad Method.

Core Concepts

Term	Definition
Agent	Specialized AI persona with specific expertise (PM, Architect, SM, DEV, TEA) that guides users through workflows and creates deliverables.
BMad	Breakthrough Method of Agile AI-Driven Development — AI-driven agile framework with specialized agents, guided workflows, and scale-adaptive intelligence.
BMad Method	Complete methodology for AI-assisted software development, encompassing planning, architecture, implementation, and quality assurance workflows that adapt to project complexity.
BMM	BMad Method Module — core orchestration system providing comprehensive lifecycle management through specialized agents and workflows.
Scale-Adaptive System	Intelligent workflow orchestration that adjusts planning depth and documentation requirements based on project needs through three planning tracks.
Workflow	Multi-step guided process that orchestrates AI agent activities to produce specific deliverables. Workflows are interactive and adapt to user context.

Scale and Complexity

Term	Definition
BMad Method Track	Full product planning track using PRD + Architecture + UX. Best for products, platforms, and complex features. Typical range: 10-50+ stories.
Enterprise Method Track	Extended planning track adding Security Architecture, DevOps Strategy, and Test Strategy. Best for compliance needs and multi-tenant systems. Typical range: 30+ stories.
Planning Track	Methodology path (Quick Flow, BMad Method, or Enterprise) chosen based on planning needs and complexity, not story count alone.
Quick Flow Track	Fast implementation track using tech-spec only. Best for bug fixes, small features, and clear-scope changes. Typical range: 1-15 stories.

Planning Documents

Term	Definition
Architecture Document	BMad Method/Enterprise. System-wide design document defining structure, components, data models, integration patterns, security, and deployment.
Epics	High-level feature groupings containing multiple related stories. Typically 5-15 stories each representing cohesive functionality.
Game Brief	BMGD. Document capturing game’s core vision, pillars, target audience, and scope. Foundation for the GDD.
GDD	BMGD. Game Design Document — comprehensive document detailing all aspects of game design: mechanics, systems, content, and more.
PRD	BMad Method/Enterprise. Product Requirements Document containing vision, goals, FRs, NFRs, and success criteria. Focuses on WHAT to build.
Product Brief	Phase 1. Optional strategic document capturing product vision, market context, and high-level requirements before detailed planning.
Tech-Spec	Quick Flow only. Comprehensive technical plan with problem statement, solution approach, file-level changes, and testing strategy.

Workflow and Phases

Term	Definition
Phase 0: Documentation	Brownfield. Conditional prerequisite phase creating codebase documentation before planning. Only required if existing docs are insufficient.
Phase 1: Analysis	Discovery phase including brainstorming, research, and product brief creation. Optional for Quick Flow, recommended for BMad Method.
Phase 2: Planning	Required phase creating formal requirements. Routes to tech-spec (Quick Flow) or PRD (BMad Method/Enterprise).
Phase 3: Solutioning	BMad Method/Enterprise. Architecture design phase including creation, validation, and gate checks.
Phase 4: Implementation	Required sprint-based development through story-by-story iteration using sprint-planning, create-story, dev-story, and code-review workflows.
Quick Spec Flow	Fast-track workflow for Quick Flow projects going straight from idea to tech-spec to implementation.
Workflow Init	Initialization workflow creating bmm-workflow-status.yaml, detecting project type, and determining planning track.
Workflow Status	Universal entry point checking for existing status file, displaying progress, and recommending next action.

Agents and Roles

Term	Definition
Analyst	Agent that initializes workflows, conducts research, creates product briefs, and tracks progress. Often the entry point for new projects.
Architect	Agent designing system architecture, creating architecture documents, and validating designs. Primary agent for Phase 3.
BMad Master	Meta-level orchestrator from BMad Core facilitating party mode and providing high-level guidance across all modules.
DEV	Developer agent implementing stories, writing code, running tests, and performing code reviews. Primary implementer in Phase 4.
Game Architect	BMGD. Agent designing game system architecture and validating game-specific technical designs.
Game Designer	BMGD. Agent creating game design documents (GDD) and running game-specific workflows.
Party Mode	Multi-agent collaboration feature where agents discuss challenges together. BMad Master orchestrates, selecting 2-3 relevant agents per message.
PM	Product Manager agent creating PRDs and tech-specs. Primary agent for Phase 2 planning.
SM	Scrum Master agent managing sprints, creating stories, and coordinating implementation. Primary orchestrator for Phase 4.
TEA	Test Architect agent responsible for test strategy, quality gates, and NFR assessment. Integrates throughout all phases.
Technical Writer	Agent specialized in creating technical documentation, diagrams, and maintaining documentation standards.
UX Designer	Agent creating UX design documents, interaction patterns, and visual specifications for UI-heavy projects.

Status and Tracking

Term	Definition
bmm-workflow-status.yaml	Phases 1-3. Tracking file showing current phase, completed workflows, and next recommended actions.
DoD	Definition of Done — criteria for marking a story complete: implementation done, tests passing, code reviewed, docs updated.
Epic Status Progression	backlog → in-progress → done — lifecycle states for epics during implementation.
Gate Check	Validation workflow (implementation-readiness) ensuring PRD, Architecture, and Epics are aligned before Phase 4.
Retrospective	Workflow after each epic capturing learnings and improvements for continuous improvement.
sprint-status.yaml	Phase 4. Single source of truth for implementation tracking containing all epics, stories, and their statuses.
Story Status Progression	backlog → ready-for-dev → in-progress → review → done — lifecycle states for stories.

Project Types

Term	Definition
Brownfield	Existing project with established codebase and patterns. Requires understanding existing architecture and planning integration.
Convention Detection	Quick Flow. Feature auto-detecting existing code style, naming conventions, and frameworks from brownfield codebases.
document-project	Brownfield. Workflow analyzing and documenting existing codebase with three scan levels: quick, deep, exhaustive.
Feature Flags	Brownfield. Implementation technique for gradual rollout, easy rollback, and A/B testing of new functionality.
Greenfield	New project starting from scratch with freedom to establish patterns, choose stack, and design from clean slate.
Integration Points	Brownfield. Specific locations where new code connects with existing systems. Must be documented in tech-specs.

Implementation Terms

Term	Definition
Context Engineering	Loading domain-specific standards into AI context automatically via manifests, ensuring consistent outputs regardless of prompt variation.
Correct Course	Workflow for navigating significant changes when implementation is off-track. Analyzes impact and recommends adjustments.
Shard / Sharding	Splitting large planning documents into section-based files for LLM optimization. Phase 4 workflows load only needed sections.
Sprint	Time-boxed period of development work, typically 1-2 weeks.
Sprint Planning	Workflow initializing Phase 4 by creating sprint-status.yaml and extracting epics/stories from planning docs.
Story	Single unit of implementable work with clear acceptance criteria, typically 2-8 hours of effort. Grouped into epics.
Story Context	Implementation guidance embedded in story files during create-story, referencing existing patterns and approaches.
Story File	Markdown file containing story description, acceptance criteria, technical notes, and testing requirements.
Track Selection	Automatic analysis by bmad-help suggesting appropriate track based on complexity indicators. User can override.

Game Development Terms

Term	Definition
Core Fantasy	BMGD. The emotional experience players seek from your game — what they want to FEEL.
Core Loop	BMGD. Fundamental cycle of actions players repeat throughout gameplay. The heart of your game.
Design Pillar	BMGD. Core principle guiding all design decisions. Typically 3-5 pillars define a game’s identity.
Environmental Storytelling	BMGD. Narrative communicated through the game world itself rather than explicit dialogue.
Game Type	BMGD. Genre classification determining which specialized GDD sections are included.
MDA Framework	BMGD. Mechanics → Dynamics → Aesthetics — framework for analyzing and designing games.
Meta-Progression	BMGD. Persistent progression carrying between individual runs or sessions.
Metroidvania	BMGD. Genre featuring interconnected world exploration with ability-gated progression.
Narrative Complexity	BMGD. How central story is to the game: Critical, Heavy, Moderate, or Light.
Permadeath	BMGD. Game mechanic where character death is permanent, typically requiring a new run.
Player Agency	BMGD. Degree to which players can make meaningful choices affecting outcomes.
Procedural Generation	BMGD. Algorithmic creation of game content (levels, items, characters) rather than hand-crafted.
Roguelike	BMGD. Genre featuring procedural generation, permadeath, and run-based progression.

Test Architect (TEA) Concepts

Term	Definition
ATDD	Acceptance Test-Driven Development — Generating failing acceptance tests BEFORE implementation (TDD red phase).
Burn-in Testing	Running tests multiple times (typically 5-10 iterations) to detect flakiness and intermittent failures.
Component Testing	Testing UI components in isolation using framework-specific tools (Cypress Component Testing or Vitest + React Testing Library).
Coverage Traceability	Mapping acceptance criteria to implemented tests with classification (FULL/PARTIAL/NONE) to identify gaps and measure completeness.
Epic-Level Test Design	Test planning per epic (Phase 4) focusing on risk assessment, priorities, and coverage strategy for that specific epic.
Fixture Architecture	Pattern of building pure functions first, then wrapping in framework-specific fixtures for testability, reusability, and composition.
Gate Decision	Go/no-go decision for release with four outcomes: PASS ✅ (ready), CONCERNS ⚠️ (proceed with mitigation), FAIL ❌ (blocked), WAIVED ⏭️ (approved despite issues).
Knowledge Fragment	Individual markdown file in TEA’s knowledge base covering a specific testing pattern or practice (33 fragments total).
MCP Enhancements	Model Context Protocol servers enabling live browser verification during test generation (exploratory, recording, and healing modes).
Network-First Pattern	Testing pattern that waits for actual network responses instead of fixed timeouts to avoid race conditions and flakiness.
NFR Assessment	Validation of non-functional requirements (security, performance, reliability, maintainability) with evidence-based decisions.
Playwright Utils	Optional package (@seontechnologies/playwright-utils) providing production-ready fixtures and utilities for Playwright tests.
Risk-Based Testing	Testing approach where depth scales with business impact using probability × impact scoring (1-9 scale).
System-Level Test Design	Test planning at architecture level (Phase 3) focusing on testability review, ADR mapping, and test infrastructure needs.
tea-index.csv	Manifest file tracking all knowledge fragments, their descriptions, tags, and which workflows load them.
TEA Integrated	Full BMad Method integration with TEA workflows across all phases (Phase 2, 3, 4, and Release Gate).
TEA Lite	Beginner approach using just automate to test existing features (simplest way to use TEA).
TEA Solo	Standalone engagement model using TEA without full BMad Method integration (bring your own requirements).
Test Priorities	Classification system for test importance: P0 (critical path), P1 (high value), P2 (medium value), P3 (low value).

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See Also

• TEA Overview - Complete TEA capabilities
• TEA Knowledge Base - Fragment index
• TEA Command Reference - Workflow reference
• TEA Configuration - Config options

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