qa-manual-testing
Manual scripted + exploratory testing: 14 skills (bug-bash-facilitator, crusspic-stmpl-heuristic, decision-table-test-design, exploratory-tours-reference, fcc-cuts-vids-heuristic, hiccupps-f-heuristic, manual-test-debrief, manual-test-script-author, manual-testing-getting-started, sbtm-reference, sfdpot-heuristic, state-transition-test-design, test-execution-checklist, uat-script-author) and 3 agents (charter-coach, session-debrief-coach, test-script-quality-critic). Covers SBTM, Whittaker's seven tours, Bach + Bolton's heuristic catalogues (HICCUPPS-F oracles, SFDPOT variation, FCC CUTS VIDS modelling, CRUSSPIC STMPL quality criteria), UAT, bug bashes, and PROOF debriefs.
Install this plugin
/plugin install qa-manual-testing@testland-qaPart of role bundles: qa-starter, qa-role-manual-tester
qa-manual-testing
Manual scripted + exploratory testing. Human-driven testing has two modes: scripted (steps, data, and expected results fixed before execution - the repeatable, signable record) and exploratory (tests designed, executed, and evaluated simultaneously while the tester learns - what finds the bugs nobody thought to anticipate). This plugin covers both: scripted manual test authoring in four formats (step-table, Gherkin, UAT, checklist), systematic test-design techniques (decision tables, state transitions), session-based exploratory testing per Jonathan and James Bach's SBTM with the classic heuristic catalogs (Whittaker's tours, FCC CUTS VIDS, SFDPOT, HICCUPPS-F, CRUSSPIC STMPL) bundled as references, bug-bash facilitation, and an adversarial script-quality gate.
Components
| Type | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Skill | manual-test-script-author | Build-an-X scripted manual test cases in four formats - step-table, Gherkin, business-language UAT scripts with sign-off, and one-line execution checklists - with self-contained data and per-step expected results. |
| Skill | exploratory-testing | Session-based exploratory testing per SBTM: charters, time-boxed sessions, TBS metrics, PROOF debriefs; bundles Whittaker's seven tours, Kelly's FCC CUTS VIDS, Bach's SFDPOT + CRUSSPIC STMPL, and Bolton's HICCUPPS-F as references, plus a charter-card template and a session-review checklist. |
| Skill | exploratory-charter-author | Authoring workflow that turns a feature spec, risk area, or bug cluster into an SBTM charter - mission framing, 3-7 scoped areas, time-box choice, tour suggestions, PROOF deliverables - filling exploratory-testing's charter-card template. |
| Skill | decision-table-test-design | Build-an-X manual test cases from business-rule specs via decision tables: full 2^n matrix, collapse, infeasible-combination analysis, one case per feasible column (ISTQB CTFL 4.2.3). |
| Skill | state-transition-test-design | Build-an-X manual test cases from stateful behavior: state table with invalid transitions, coverage-level choice (all states / 0-switch / 1-switch / all transitions), event-sequence cases (ISTQB CTFL 4.2.4). |
| Skill | bug-bash-facilitator | Build-an-X structured multi-tester session: pre-bash kit + cohort charters + real-time triage board + scoring + post-bash cluster debrief. |
| Agent | test-script-quality-critic | Adversarial review of authored manual scripts for vague preconditions, bundled steps, missing expected results, and imperative-where-declarative slots. |
Install
/plugin marketplace add testland/qa
/plugin install qa-manual-testing@testland-qaSkills
bug-bash-facilitator
Builds a structured bug-bash session - pre-bash kit (charter, test-data prep, environment setup, sign-up sheet), in-bash structure (role rotation across cohorts, shared backlog board, real-time triage), scoring rubric (severity weighting, novelty bonus), and a post-bash same-day wrap-up authored by the facilitator (not a standalone debrief: for post-session writeups without a live bash, use the PROOF debrief in exploratory-testing). Use when a team needs a coordinated multi-tester sweep before a release or after a major change - converts an ad-hoc "everyone test for an hour" into a recorded, comparable session with deliverables.
decision-table-test-design
Derives human-readable manual test cases from a business-rule spec via a decision table: identify conditions and actions, build the full 2^n-column matrix, collapse columns with irrelevant entries, strike infeasible combinations, then emit one test case per remaining column (each feasible column is one coverage item per ISTQB CTFL v4.0 section 4.2.3). A deep single-technique walkthrough rather than a broad multi-lens case matrix; the output is manual step/expected cases rather than parameterized test code, and it covers how cases are derived rather than how a case record is structured. Use when a spec's outcome depends on interacting conditions (pricing, eligibility, discounts, routing rules) rather than the boundaries of a single input.
exploratory-charter-author
Authoring workflow that turns a feature spec, risk area, or bug cluster into a session-based exploratory testing charter per Jonathan and James Bach's SBTM - frames the one-sentence mission, scopes 3-7 areas, picks a 60 / 90 / 120 min time-box, suggests tours, and wires the PROOF debrief deliverables. Per Bach, exploratory testing is "performing tests while learning things that may influence the testing" - the charter sets the mission while leaving exact steps to the tester's judgment. Use when a feature has too many unknowns to script (new feature / refactor blast-radius / bug cluster) and a session-based exploration is the right approach. Authors the charter only: the ready-to-fill charter card, session vocabulary, debrief template, and session review live in the exploratory-testing skill this workflow composes with.
exploratory-testing
Plans and runs time-boxed exploratory testing when tester hours are scarce before a release - one tester with two free 45-minute blocks before code freeze, a high-stakes window such as year-end payroll, or a device and environment the scripted suite never touches. Session-based per the Bachs' SBTM: charters (Explore X with Y to discover Z), 60-90 minute sessions, session sheets with TBS metrics, and the PROOF debrief. Bundles the exploration heuristics as references - Whittaker's seven tours, Kelly's FCC CUTS VIDS, Bach's SFDPOT. Broader than exploratory-charter-author, which writes one charter document: this owns the whole cycle from budgeting the available hours to debriefing what was found. Use when deciding what to explore with the time available, and how to run and record those sessions.
manual-test-script-author
Builds stakeholder-readable scripted manual test cases from a feature spec in four formats: a step-table (preconditions / steps / expected result / actual / pass-fail / notes) for spreadsheet review, a Gherkin Given/When/Then format for BDD-aware teams, a business-language UAT script with acceptance-criteria mapping and contractual sign-off (references/uat-format.md), and a one-line-per-item execution checklist for smoke / on-call / bug-bash / compliance sweeps (references/checklist-format.md). Each script is self-contained (no implicit team knowledge), single-scenario (one happy + N edge per script), and includes the data setup the tester needs without being a developer. Use when a feature can't be (or shouldn't be) fully automated and a human tester needs an executable script or checklist - UAT sign-off rounds, regression baselines, certification testing, deploy smoke checklists, exploratory follow-up scripts.
state-transition-test-design
Derives human-readable manual test cases from stateful behavior: identify states, events, transitions, and guard conditions, draw the state table including invalid (empty-cell) transitions, choose a coverage level (all states, valid transitions / 0-switch, transition pairs / 1-switch per Chow, all transitions including invalid ones), then derive one test case per coverage item as an event sequence with per-step expected states (ISTQB CTFL v4.0 section 4.2.4). A deep single-technique walkthrough rather than a broad multi-lens case matrix; the output is manual step/expected cases rather than parameterized test code, and it covers how cases are derived rather than how a case record is structured. Use for lifecycle entities (accounts, orders, subscriptions), workflows, and UI wizards where the response to an event depends on the current state.
Related reading
Exploratory Testing and Session-Based Test Management
- HTSM: Inside James Bach's Heuristic Test Strategy Model
- HICCUPPS-F: Nine Testing Oracles for Defending Your Bug Calls
- Session-Based Test Management: Definition and History
- Precision in PROOF Debriefs: The Debriefer's 60-Second Test
- Session-Based Test Management Is the Audit Trail Exploratory Testing Needed