Grill
Turn fuzzy or contradictory plans into shared understanding and authoritative
planning artifacts. Grill owns clarification, not tickets or implementation.
Inputs
- An idea, plan, question, PRD, ADR set, or existing spec to challenge.
- The current repo, caller context, and workflow config when available.
Invocation Threshold
Explicit invocation always starts. Invoke implicitly only when an unresolved
product, domain, scope, or architecture decision could change behavior, ticket
boundaries, risk, dependencies, or required proof after available evidence is
checked. Say what ambiguity caused the pause. Do not invoke for routine details,
harmless preferences, or discoverable facts.
Context
Read repo instructions first. Then read the planning-artifact mapping in
docs/agents/workflow/config.md when present. Load
references/planning-artifacts.md for
authority, default formats, ADR rules, and the readiness contract.
If config does not map planning artifacts, discover existing specs, context or
glossary files, ADRs, roadmaps, and relevant implementation. Preserve the
established convention and report the missing mapping as a Setup gap.
Treat code and external systems as evidence, not automatically as intended
behavior. For existing artifacts, run a contradiction and requirement-coverage
pass first. For a new idea, build the decision tree from scratch. Both paths
converge on the same readiness contract.
Grilling Loop
- Build a private decision tree ordered by dependency and impact. Cover only
applicable outcome, actor, language, scope, behavior, data, security,
failure, concurrency, integration, operations, rollout, and acceptance
branches.
- Resolve discoverable facts from code, docs, config, or authoritative sources.
- Ask one highest-leverage question with evidence, a recommendation, and its
consequence.
- Wait for the user's answer. Do not bundle follow-up questions.
- Challenge vague terminology and propose one canonical term.
- Stress-test the answer with concrete scenarios, especially boundary,
lifecycle, failure, concurrency, authorization, and recovery cases.
- After explicit confirmation, update the smallest authoritative artifact set
immediately and keep the active spec
Draft.
- Recompute the tree and repeat until the pre-approval gate can pass.
Artifact Updates
Update the spec that already owns the behavior, or create one focused spec when
none does. Update context docs only for domain language. Create an ADR only
after a confirmed decision passes all three ADR tests in the reference. Never
substitute an ADR, transcript, scratch note, or ticket for current truth. In
conversation-only use, emit a self-contained Markdown spec.
Readiness
Keep the active spec Draft. After the reference's pre-approval gate and final
contradiction pass, present the recommendation, outcome, non-goals, deferred
questions, changed artifacts, risks, and assumptions.
Ask exactly one final question: Mark this spec ready for slicing?
Only explicit confirmation may change status to Ready for slicing. Run
configured documentation checks. Failed checks return the spec to Draft.
Caller Handoff
Return to an implementation caller only when no ticket scope, risk, dependency,
acceptance, or proof boundary changed. Otherwise stop implementation, never
widen the PR or silently rewrite tracker work. Handoff with:
- File:
$ziw-to-issues <spec-path>
- Conversation:
$ziw-to-issues use the Ready for slicing spec in this conversation
Guardrails
- Do not create or edit tracker tickets.
- Do not invoke To Issues, implement code, open PRs, merge, or deploy.
- Do not edit planning artifacts before the user confirms the decision.
- Do not ask a question that available evidence can answer.
- Do not expose secrets or private customer data in planning artifacts.
Done
Report spec status and path, decisions and evidence, changed artifacts, blocking
and deferred questions, checks, Setup gaps, and either the next single question
or the exact file-backed or conversation-only To Issues handoff.
1---2name: ziw-grill3description: Grills an idea, plan, PRD, ADR set, or existing spec one question at a time and produces authoritative specs ready for ticket slicing. Use when the user asks to be grilled or material product, domain, scope, or architecture ambiguity blocks safe progress.4---56# Grill78Turn fuzzy or contradictory plans into shared understanding and authoritative9planning artifacts. Grill owns clarification, not tickets or implementation.1011## Inputs1213- An idea, plan, question, PRD, ADR set, or existing spec to challenge.14- The current repo, caller context, and workflow config when available.1516## Invocation Threshold1718Explicit invocation always starts. Invoke implicitly only when an unresolved19product, domain, scope, or architecture decision could change behavior, ticket20boundaries, risk, dependencies, or required proof after available evidence is21checked. Say what ambiguity caused the pause. Do not invoke for routine details,22harmless preferences, or discoverable facts.2324## Context2526Read repo instructions first. Then read the planning-artifact mapping in27`docs/agents/workflow/config.md` when present. Load28[references/planning-artifacts.md](references/planning-artifacts.md) for29authority, default formats, ADR rules, and the readiness contract.3031If config does not map planning artifacts, discover existing specs, context or32glossary files, ADRs, roadmaps, and relevant implementation. Preserve the33established convention and report the missing mapping as a Setup gap.3435Treat code and external systems as evidence, not automatically as intended36behavior. For existing artifacts, run a contradiction and requirement-coverage37pass first. For a new idea, build the decision tree from scratch. Both paths38converge on the same readiness contract.3940## Grilling Loop41421. Build a private decision tree ordered by dependency and impact. Cover only43 applicable outcome, actor, language, scope, behavior, data, security,44 failure, concurrency, integration, operations, rollout, and acceptance45 branches.462. Resolve discoverable facts from code, docs, config, or authoritative sources.473. Ask one highest-leverage question with evidence, a recommendation, and its48 consequence.494. Wait for the user's answer. Do not bundle follow-up questions.505. Challenge vague terminology and propose one canonical term.516. Stress-test the answer with concrete scenarios, especially boundary,52 lifecycle, failure, concurrency, authorization, and recovery cases.537. After explicit confirmation, update the smallest authoritative artifact set54 immediately and keep the active spec `Draft`.558. Recompute the tree and repeat until the pre-approval gate can pass.5657## Artifact Updates5859Update the spec that already owns the behavior, or create one focused spec when60none does. Update context docs only for domain language. Create an ADR only61after a confirmed decision passes all three ADR tests in the reference. Never62substitute an ADR, transcript, scratch note, or ticket for current truth. In63conversation-only use, emit a self-contained Markdown spec.6465## Readiness6667Keep the active spec `Draft`. After the reference's pre-approval gate and final68contradiction pass, present the recommendation, outcome, non-goals, deferred69questions, changed artifacts, risks, and assumptions.7071Ask exactly one final question: `Mark this spec ready for slicing?`7273Only explicit confirmation may change status to `Ready for slicing`. Run74configured documentation checks. Failed checks return the spec to `Draft`.7576## Caller Handoff7778Return to an implementation caller only when no ticket scope, risk, dependency,79acceptance, or proof boundary changed. Otherwise stop implementation, never80widen the PR or silently rewrite tracker work. Handoff with:8182- File: `$ziw-to-issues <spec-path>`83- Conversation: `$ziw-to-issues use the Ready for slicing spec in this conversation`8485## Guardrails8687- Do not create or edit tracker tickets.88- Do not invoke To Issues, implement code, open PRs, merge, or deploy.89- Do not edit planning artifacts before the user confirms the decision.90- Do not ask a question that available evidence can answer.91- Do not expose secrets or private customer data in planning artifacts.9293## Done9495Report spec status and path, decisions and evidence, changed artifacts, blocking96and deferred questions, checks, Setup gaps, and either the next single question97or the exact file-backed or conversation-only To Issues handoff.