Spec Driven Brainstorm

You are helping the user turn an early-stage idea into a spec-driven change proposal.

This Skill's Commands

If you cannot remember the exact command used by this skill, look it up here before running anything. Do not guess.

propose: node {{SKILL_DIR}}/scripts/spec-driven.js propose <name>
verify: node {{SKILL_DIR}}/scripts/spec-driven.js verify <name>

Prerequisites

The .spec-driven/ directory must exist at the project root. Before proceeding, verify:

ls .spec-driven/

If this fails, the project is not initialized. Run /spec-driven-init first.

Steps

1. Start from the idea, not the artifact list — ask the user what they want to achieve, what problem they are trying to solve, and any known constraints or preferences. Do not require a change name up front.

2. Read project context and existing specs early — before narrowing scope, read:

   • .spec-driven/config.yaml — use context as project background and treat rules as binding constraints
   • .spec-driven/specs/INDEX.md — identify existing spec areas that may already cover the requested behavior
   • Every relevant main spec file referenced by INDEX.md that appears related to the idea being discussed

3. Brainstorm until the change is decision-ready — use the discussion to converge on:

   • the desired outcome and user-visible behavior
   • what is in scope and explicitly out of scope
   • important tradeoffs, constraints, risks, and unchanged behavior
   • which existing spec files will likely be modified, or whether a new spec area is needed
   • any questions that still need a human answer before implementation

4. Suggest the change name — once the idea is coherent enough, propose a short kebab-case change name. If the user already provided a valid name, keep it. If not, suggest one that reflects the agreed change scope.

5. Present a proposal checkpoint — before creating any files, summarize:

   • the proposed change name
   • the goal and scope
   • the main spec areas expected to change
   • key decisions or tradeoffs already settled
   • any unresolved questions that would go into questions.md

   Then ask for explicit confirmation. If the user wants revisions, continue the brainstorm and re-summarize until confirmed.

6. Scaffold the change after confirmation — run:

   node {{SKILL_DIR}}/scripts/spec-driven.js propose <name>
   

   This creates .spec-driven/changes/<name>/ with the seeded templates.

7. Fill the five proposal artifacts — after scaffolding, complete the same proposal workflow used by /spec-driven-propose:

   • write proposal.md with What, Why, Scope, and Unchanged Behavior

   • write design.md with Approach, Key Decisions, and Alternatives Considered

   • populate changes/<name>/specs/ with delta spec files aligned by path with the main .spec-driven/specs/ structure

     • mirror the main spec path exactly, for example .spec-driven/specs/skills/planning.md becomes .spec-driven/changes/<name>/specs/skills/planning.md

     • use this canonical sample as the format target:

       ---
       mapping:
         implementation:
           - path/to/implementation.ts
         tests:
           - test/path/to/test.ts
       ---
       
       ## ADDED Requirements
       
       ### Requirement: new-capability
       The system MUST provide <observable behavior>.
       
       #### Scenario: success
       - GIVEN <precondition>
       - WHEN <action>
       - THEN <result>
       
       ## MODIFIED Requirements
       
       ### Requirement: existing-capability
       Previously: The system MUST <old behavior>.
       The system MUST <new behavior>.
       
       ## REMOVED Requirements
       
       ### Requirement: old-capability
       Reason: This behavior is removed because <reason>.
       

     • omit sections that do not apply instead of leaving blank placeholders

     • if the change has no observable spec impact, leave changes/<name>/specs/ empty rather than creating a prose-only delta file

     • Do not invent mapping.implementation or mapping.tests paths when the repository evidence is unclear

   • include mapping.implementation and mapping.tests frontmatter in delta spec files when related files are knowable from repository context

   • write tasks.md using this canonical structure:

     # Tasks: <change-name>
     
     ## Implementation
     - [ ] Describe the first atomic implementation task
     - [ ] Describe the second atomic implementation task
     
     ## Testing
     
     - [ ] Run `npm run lint` — lint or validation task
     - [ ] Run `npm test` — unit test task
     
     ## Verification
     - [ ] Verify implementation matches proposal scope
     

     Each task uses - [ ] checkboxes and should be independently completable.

     The ## Testing section MUST satisfy these verification keyword requirements:

     • At least one task MUST contain a lint/validation keyword: lint, validate, validation, typecheck, type-check, or build
     • At least one task MUST contain a unit test keyword: unit test or unit tests
     • Both tasks MUST name an explicit runnable command in backticks or use a known runner (npm, pnpm, yarn, bun, node, bash, sh, pytest, jest, vitest, go, cargo, make, uv, poetry)
     • Paraphrasing these keywords (e.g. "run tests" instead of "run unit tests") will cause verify to fail

     If the relevant command cannot be determined confidently from repository context, record that in questions.md instead of guessing.

   • write questions.md, recording every unresolved point under ## Open, or leave <!-- No open questions --> if nothing is unclear

8. Validate before presenting the proposal — run:

   node {{SKILL_DIR}}/scripts/spec-driven.js verify <name>
   

   • Fix any safe artifact-format issues immediately and rerun verify
   • If only open questions remain, treat that as expected at proposal time and surface those questions clearly
   • If any non-question error remains, stop and report it instead of presenting the proposal as ready

9. Hand off like propose — show the user the generated artifacts, summarize the final proposed scope, and list any open questions that must be answered before /spec-driven-apply.

10. Offer auto hand-off — after the hand-off, ask the user whether to enter /spec-driven-auto to execute the proposal end-to-end, or continue modifying the proposal with /spec-driven-modify. Do not auto-enter auto without the user's explicit choice.

Rules

• Do not implement code — this skill is planning only
• Do not scaffold proposal artifacts until the user explicitly confirms the brainstorm summary and change name
• Read .spec-driven/config.yaml, INDEX.md, and relevant main specs before locking scope or writing delta specs
• Suggest a kebab-case change name when the user starts with only a rough idea
• Record unresolved ambiguity in questions.md; do not guess silently
• If testing commands are not knowable from repository context, record that in questions.md instead of inventing them
• After confirmation, follow the same artifact-writing and validation standard as /spec-driven-propose
• Keep implementation and test mappings in spec frontmatter, not in requirement prose