Getting Started

Build software faster using AI-powered workflows with specialized agents that guide you through planning, architecture, and implementation.

What You’ll Learn

• Install and initialize the Wizz Method for a new project
• Use Wizz-Help — your intelligent guide that knows what to do next
• Choose the right planning track for your project size
• Progress through phases from requirements to working code
• Use agents and workflows effectively

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20.12+ — Required for the installer
• Git — Recommended for version control
• AI-powered IDE — Claude Code, Cursor, or similar
• A project idea — Even a simple one works for learning

The Easiest Path

Install → npx bmad-method install Ask → wizz-help what should I do first? Build → Let Wizz-Help guide you workflow by workflow

Meet Wizz-Help: Your Intelligent Guide

Wizz-Help is the fastest way to get started with the Wizz Method. You don’t need to memorize workflows or phases. Just ask, and Wizz-Help will:

• Inspect your project to see what’s already been done
• Show your options based on which modules you have installed
• Recommend what’s next — including the first required task
• Answer questions like “I have a SaaS idea, where do I start?”

How to Use Wizz-Help

Run it in your AI IDE by invoking the skill:

wizz-help

Or combine it with a question for context-aware guidance:

wizz-help I have an idea for a SaaS product, I already know all the features I want. where do I get started?

Wizz-Help will respond with:

• What’s recommended for your situation
• What the first required task is
• What the rest of the process looks like

It Powers Workflows Too

Wizz-Help doesn’t just answer questions. It automatically runs at the end of every workflow to tell you exactly what to do next. No guessing, no searching docs. Just clear guidance on the next required workflow.

Start Here

After installing the Wizz Method, invoke the wizz-help skill immediately. It will detect what modules you have installed and guide you to the right starting point for your project.

Understanding the Wizz Method

The Wizz Method helps you build software through guided workflows with specialized AI agents. The process follows four phases:

Phase	Name	What Happens
1	Analysis	Brainstorming, research, product brief or PRFAQ (optional)
2	Planning	Create requirements (PRD or spec)
3	Solutioning	Design architecture (Wizz Method/Enterprise only)
4	Implementation	Build epic by epic, story by story

Open the Workflow Map to explore phases, workflows, and context management.

Based on your project’s complexity, the Wizz Method offers three planning tracks:

Track	Best For	Documents Created
Quick Flow	Bug fixes, simple features, clear scope (1-15 stories)	Tech-spec only
Wizz Method	Products, platforms, complex features (10-50+ stories)	PRD + Architecture + UX
Enterprise	Compliance, multi-tenant systems (30+ stories)	PRD + Architecture + Security + DevOps

Note

Story counts are guidance, not definitions. Choose your track based on planning needs, not story math.

Installation

Open a terminal in your project directory and run:

npx bmad-method install

If you want the newest prerelease build instead of the default release channel, use npx bmad-method@next install.

When prompted to select modules, choose Wizz Method.

The installer creates two folders:

• _wizz/ — agents, workflows, tasks, and configuration
• _wizz-output/ — empty for now, but this is where your artifacts will be saved

Your Next Step

Open your AI IDE in the project folder and run:

wizz-help

Wizz-Help will detect what you’ve completed and recommend exactly what to do next. You can also ask it questions like “What are my options?” or “I have a SaaS idea, where should I start?”

How to Load Agents and Run Workflows

Each workflow has a skill you invoke by name in your IDE (e.g., wizz-prd). Your AI tool will recognize the bmad-* name and run it — you don’t need to load agents separately. You can also invoke an agent skill directly for general conversation (e.g., wizz-agent-pm for the PM agent).

Fresh Chats

Always start a fresh chat for each workflow. This prevents context limitations from causing issues.

Step 1: Create Your Plan

Work through phases 1-3. Use fresh chats for each workflow.

Project Context (Optional)

Before starting, consider creating project-context.md to document your technical preferences and implementation rules. This ensures all AI agents follow your conventions throughout the project.

Create it manually at _wizz-output/project-context.md or generate it after architecture using wizz-generate-project-context. Learn more.

Phase 1: Analysis (Optional)

All workflows in this phase are optional. Not sure which to use?

• brainstorming (wizz-brainstorming) — Guided ideation
• research (wizz-market-research / wizz-domain-research / wizz-technical-research) — Market, domain, and technical research
• product-brief (wizz-product-brief) — Recommended foundation document when your concept is clear
• prfaq (wizz-prfaq) — Working Backwards challenge to stress-test and forge your product concept

Phase 2: Planning (Required)

For Wizz Method and Enterprise tracks:

1. Run wizz-prd in a new chat — state your intent (Create / Update / Validate) or let the skill ask
2. Output: prd.md, addendum.md, decision-log.md

wizz-prd intents

• Create — coached discovery from scratch; the skill names the workspace folder and guides you to a PRD you’re proud of
• Update — point it at an existing PRD and a change signal; it surfaces conflicts before applying changes
• Validate — critique a finished PRD against a checklist and produce an HTML findings report

For Quick Flow track:

• Run wizz-quick-dev — it handles planning and implementation in a single workflow, skip to implementation

UX Design (Optional)

If your project has a user interface, invoke the UX-Designer agent (wizz-agent-ux-designer) and run the UX design workflow (wizz-ux) after creating your PRD.

Phase 3: Solutioning (Wizz Method/Enterprise)

Create Architecture

1. Invoke the Architect agent (wizz-agent-architect) in a new chat
2. Run wizz-create-architecture (wizz-create-architecture)
3. Output: Architecture document with technical decisions

Create Epics and Stories

V6 Improvement

Epics and stories are now created after architecture. This produces better quality stories because architecture decisions (database, API patterns, tech stack) directly affect how work should be broken down.

1. Invoke the PM agent (wizz-agent-pm) in a new chat
2. Run wizz-create-epics-and-stories (wizz-create-epics-and-stories)
3. The workflow uses both PRD and Architecture to create technically-informed stories

Implementation Readiness Check (Highly Recommended)

1. Invoke the Architect agent (wizz-agent-architect) in a new chat
2. Run wizz-check-implementation-readiness (wizz-check-implementation-readiness)
3. Validates cohesion across all planning documents

Step 2: Build Your Project

Once planning is complete, move to implementation. Each workflow should run in a fresh chat.

Initialize Sprint Planning

Invoke the Developer agent (wizz-agent-dev) and run wizz-sprint-planning (wizz-sprint-planning). This creates sprint-status.yaml to track all epics and stories.

The Build Cycle

For each story, repeat this cycle with fresh chats:

Step	Agent	Workflow	Command	Purpose
1	DEV	wizz-create-story	wizz-create-story	Create story file from epic
2	DEV	wizz-dev-story	wizz-dev-story	Implement the story
3	DEV	wizz-code-review	wizz-code-review	Quality validation (recommended)

After completing all stories in an epic, invoke the Developer agent (wizz-agent-dev) and run wizz-retrospective (wizz-retrospective).

What You’ve Accomplished

You’ve learned the foundation of building with the Wizz Method:

• Installed the Wizz Method and configured it for your IDE
• Initialized a project with your chosen planning track
• Created planning documents (PRD, Architecture, Epics & Stories)
• Understood the build cycle for implementation

Your project now has:

your-project/
├── _wizz/                                   # Wizz Method configuration
├── _wizz-output/
│   ├── planning-artifacts/
│   │   ├── PRD.md                           # Your requirements document
│   │   ├── architecture.md                  # Technical decisions
│   │   └── epics/                           # Epic and story files
│   ├── implementation-artifacts/
│   │   └── sprint-status.yaml               # Sprint tracking
│   └── project-context.md                   # Implementation rules (optional)
└── ...

Quick Reference

Workflow	Command	Agent	Purpose
wizz-help ⭐	wizz-help	Any	Your intelligent guide — ask anything!
wizz-prd	wizz-prd	Any	Create, update, or validate a PRD
wizz-create-architecture	wizz-create-architecture	Architect	Create architecture document
wizz-generate-project-context	wizz-generate-project-context	Analyst	Create project context file
wizz-create-epics-and-stories	wizz-create-epics-and-stories	PM	Break down PRD into epics
wizz-check-implementation-readiness	wizz-check-implementation-readiness	Architect	Validate planning cohesion
wizz-sprint-planning	wizz-sprint-planning	DEV	Initialize sprint tracking
wizz-create-story	wizz-create-story	DEV	Create a story file
wizz-dev-story	wizz-dev-story	DEV	Implement a story
wizz-code-review	wizz-code-review	DEV	Review implemented code

Common Questions

Do I always need architecture? Only for Wizz Method and Enterprise tracks. Quick Flow skips from spec to implementation.

Can I change my plan later? Yes. The wizz-correct-course workflow handles scope changes mid-implementation.

What if I want to brainstorm first? Invoke the Analyst agent (wizz-agent-analyst) and run wizz-brainstorming (wizz-brainstorming) before starting your PRD.

Do I need to follow a strict order? Not strictly. Once you learn the flow, you can run workflows directly using the Quick Reference above.

Getting Help

First Stop: Wizz-Help

Invoke wizz-help anytime — it’s the fastest way to get unstuck. Ask it anything:

• “What should I do after installing?”
• “I’m stuck on workflow X”
• “What are my options for Y?”
• “Show me what’s been done so far”

Wizz-Help inspects your project, detects what you’ve completed, and tells you exactly what to do next.

• During workflows — Agents guide you with questions and explanations
• Community — Discord (#bmad-method-help, #report-bugs-and-issues)

Key Takeaways

Remember These

• Start with wizz-help — Your intelligent guide that knows your project and options
• Always use fresh chats — Start a new chat for each workflow
• Track matters — Quick Flow uses wizz-quick-dev; Method/Enterprise need PRD and architecture
• Wizz-Help runs automatically — Every workflow ends with guidance on what’s next

Ready to start? Install the Wizz Method, invoke wizz-help, and let your intelligent guide lead the way.