Zeus Brainstorm

Zeus Brainstorm - Design-First Planning Loop

Use this skill to transform broad requests into approved design specs before implementation.

Guardrails

1. Never skip design, even for "small" features.
2. Ask exactly one clarifying question at a time.
3. Propose 2-3 options before selecting final architecture.
4. Require explicit user approval before planning artifacts are generated.

Preconditions

• .zeus/main/config.json exists and is valid.
• Target version folder exists (main by default, optional vN).
• You can read prior artifacts (prd, task, roadmap, specs, ai-logs).

Context intake

Read first:

• .zeus/{version}/config.json
• .zeus/{version}/prd.json
• .zeus/{version}/task.json
• .zeus/{version}/roadmap.json
• .zeus/{version}/specs/* (recent entries)
• .zeus/{version}/existing-modules.json (if present)
• .zeus/{version}/architecture.md (if present)

If config is missing, stop and instruct user to run /zeus:init.

Deterministic workflow

1) Silent context exploration

Perform read-only exploration and summarize current baseline:

• existing stories/tasks that overlap this request,
• known constraints,
• existing architectural boundaries.
• existing modules that can be reused or extended.

2) Scope fit check

Classify request as:

• single feature,
• multi-feature bundle,
• multi-system program.

If too broad, decompose into independent design tracks and ask user which track to start with.

3) Clarifying question loop

Ask one question per turn. Focus on:

• success criteria,
• constraints,
• user roles,
• non-goals.

Prefer multiple-choice when practical.

4) Approach options (2-3)

Present options with trade-offs and recommendation tied to north_star impact.

For brownfield projects, each option must explicitly classify implementation strategy:

• Reuse existing module
• Extend existing module
• Rewrite with migration plan

5) Section-by-section design review

Present and confirm each section before moving on:

1. Architecture and boundaries
2. Components and interfaces
3. Data contracts
4. Error and fallback strategy
5. Validation and test strategy
6. Acceptance criteria

6) Write spec file

Write to:

.zeus/{version}/specs/{YYYY-MM-DD}-{topic}-design.md

Minimum structure:

# {Feature} Design Spec
## Background and Goals
## Option Analysis
## Final Architecture
## Components and Interfaces
## Data Model and Contracts
## Error Handling
## Testing Plan
## Acceptance Criteria

7) Spec self-review

Run quick checks and fix inline:

1. Placeholder scan (TODO, TBD)
2. Internal consistency
3. Scope fit
4. Ambiguity resolution

8) User review gate

Ask user to review the saved spec path and wait for approval.

9) AI log write

Create .zeus/{version}/ai-logs/{ISO-ts}-brainstorm.md.

10) Hand-off to planning

After approval, trigger /zeus:plan --spec <spec-file> --version <version>.

Output contract

• approved spec file,
• AI log entry,
• explicit hand-off command to planning.

Failure handling

• no user response: send concise follow-up question;
• unresolved ambiguity: keep questioning loop active;
• conflicting constraints: surface explicit trade-off matrix.

Agent collaboration

Use zeus-researcher for broad repository/context discovery before option design.