Mace-Enterprise Brainstorming → design
Refine an idea into a grounded design through questions and alternatives, validated
in small steps. Feeds the specifier (/spec) a settled starting point instead of a
vague prompt. (Assimilated from obra/superpowers-skills; security-audited 2026-06-18 = clean; our wording.)
Status: probation — promote to active after a verified win where this skill was used and helped (see the skill-and-agent-probation-lifecycle methodology).
Process
- Understand — check the current project state; ask one question at a time (prefer multiple-choice). Pin down purpose, constraints, success criteria.
- Explore — propose 2–3 genuinely different approaches; for each: core shape, trade-offs, complexity. Ask which resonates. Apply YAGNI ruthlessly.
- Design incrementally — present in small sections (architecture, data flow, error handling, testing); after each ask "does this hold so far?"
- Hand off — when approved, hand the design to the specifier; if implementation
follows, set up an isolated workspace via the
using-git-worktreesskill.
Go backward when it helps
A new constraint or a gap surfacing in Phase 2/3 → return to Phase 1. Don't force linear progress — flexibility beats rigid phase order.
Discipline
One question per message in Phase 1; explore before settling; never skip straight to a design the partner hasn't validated. Token-frugal: this is dialogue, not essays.