Nudge task expansion and dependency mapping toward critical path reduction

[bjcoombs]

Problem

Task Master's expansion and dependency prompts have a serial-by-default bias. When expanding tasks into subtasks, the prompts emphasize sequential order (Setup → Implement → Test → Integrate) without considering whether subtasks could be independent. When adding dependencies, prompts suggest adding related dependencies without challenging whether they're necessary.

This leads to over-constrained dependency graphs where the critical path (longest chain of dependent tasks measured in complexity) equals the total work — meaning zero parallelism.

Goal

Reduce critical path duration by nudging two prompts to:

1. Prefer independent subtasks during expansion (parallel lanes shorten critical path)
2. Challenge dependency necessity when adding dependencies (fewer unnecessary constraints = shorter critical path)

Proposed Changes

expand-task.md

Subtask Generation — add guidance to prefer independence:

• "Maximize subtask independence: only chain where output genuinely blocks input"
• "Show which subtasks can run in parallel vs which are sequential"

Post-Expansion — surface the critical path:

• "Show critical path through subtasks (longest dependency chain by complexity)"
• "If critical path equals total complexity, flag: can any subtasks be made independent?"

add-dependency.md

Validation — challenge before adding:

• "Is this a hard data dependency (blocks execution) or a preferred ordering?"
• "Show critical path impact: does this dependency lengthen the critical path?"

Smart Features — stop suggesting MORE dependencies:

• Replace "Suggest related dependencies" with "Warn if this creates unnecessary serialization"

Non-Goals

• No new complexity systems (TM already has complexity scores 1-10)
• No changes to workflow commands (next, status, etc.) in this PR
• No Fibonacci/story points — use existing TM complexity scores

Acceptance Criteria

• expand-task.md mentions subtask independence and critical path
• add-dependency.md challenges necessity and shows critical path impact
• No new concepts introduced — uses existing TM complexity scores