| name | ascii-this |
| description | Renders text as ASCII art block letters, draws ASCII diagrams (boxes, arrows, system interactions, flowcharts, sequence diagrams), or produces freehand ASCII drawings of any subject (animals, objects, scenes, characters). Use when user says "ascii this", "draw a diagram", "draw a dragon", "make ascii art", "show me how X interacts with Y", "render in ascii", "ascii-ify", or asks for a system/flow/sequence diagram or any drawing in text form. |
ASCII-This
Three modes — pick automatically based on the request:
| Request type | Mode |
|---|
| "ascii this: Hello" / render text as big letters | Text art |
| "draw how A talks to B" / system diagram / flowchart / sequence | Diagram |
| "draw a dragon" / "draw a cat" / any subject or scene | Freehand |
Mode 1 — Text Art
Render the requested string as 5-row block letters.
Rules:
- Use the character map below — one glyph per character.
- Separate glyphs with one column of spaces.
- Output exactly 5 rows inside a fenced code block.
- Unsupported characters → 3-wide
? block.
Character map (5 rows)
A B C D E F G
### #### ### #### ##### ##### ###
# # # # # # # # # # # #
##### #### # # # #### #### #
# # # # # # # # # # # ##
# # #### ### #### ##### # ####
H I J K L M N
# # # # # # # # # ## #
# # # # # # # ## ## # # #
##### # # ### # # # # # # #
# # # # # # # # # # # ##
# # # ### # # ##### # # # #
O P Q R S T U
### #### ### #### ### ##### # #
# # # # # # # # # # # # #
# # #### # # #### ## # # #
# # # # ## # # ## # # #
### # ## # # # ### # ###
V W X Y Z
# # # # # # # # #####
# # # # # # # # #
# # # # # # # #
# ## ## # # # #
# # # # # # #####
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
### ## #### ### # # ##### ###
# # # # # # # # # #
# ## # # ## ##### ### ####
## # # # # # # # #
### ### ##### ### # ### ####
7 8 9 ! ?
##### ### ### # ###
# # # # # # # #
# ### #### # #
# # # # # #
# ### ### #
Example
Input: Hi
# # #
# # #
##### #
# # #
# # #
Mode 2 — ASCII Diagrams
Draw system interaction diagrams, flowcharts, and sequence diagrams using boxes, arrows, and labels.
Box styles
Single border Double border Rounded
+------------------+ +==================+ .-------------------.
| Component Name | || Component Name || | Component Name |
+------------------+ +==================+ '-------------------'
Use single border by default. Use double border for external systems or databases. Use rounded for users/actors.
Arrow styles
| Meaning | Style |
|---|
| Sync call / request | -----> |
| Response / return | <----- |
| Async / event | - - -> |
| Bidirectional | <----> |
| Dependency / uses | ......> |
Label arrows inline above or below the shaft:
[HTTP POST /orders]
Client -----------------------> API Gateway
<-----------------------
[200 OK + body]
Layout rules
- Left-to-right for request/response flows; top-to-bottom for flowcharts and sequences.
- Align boxes on a grid — pad labels so box widths match within a column.
- Group related components with a surrounding border and a title:
+-- Payment Domain --------------------------------+
| +------------+ +----------------------+ |
| | Checkout |-----> | Payment Service | |
| +------------+ +----------------------+ |
+-------------------------------------------------+
- Sequence diagrams: draw vertical lifelines with
|, use --> for messages, label each step with a number.
Client API DB
| | |
|--[1: GET /]--->| |
| |--[2: query]-->|
| |<--[3: rows]--|
|<--[4: 200]-----| |
- Keep the total width ≤ 80 characters when possible; break into sub-diagrams if needed.
- Add a legend when arrow types or box styles are mixed.
Example — system interaction
Request: "Show how a browser talks to an API that queries a database"
.----------. +------------------+ +==============+
| Browser | | REST API | || PostgreSQL ||
| | | | || Database ||
'----------' +------------------+ +==============+
| | |
| [GET /products] | |
|------------------>| |
| | [SELECT * FROM |
| | products] |
| |--------------------->|
| | |
| | [rows] |
| |<---------------------|
| [200 OK + JSON] | |
|<------------------| |
Example — flowchart
Request: "Draw the order processing flow"
+-------------+
| Order placed |
+------+------+
|
v
+------+------+
| Validate |
| payment |
+------+------+
|
+-------+-------+
| |
[success] [failure]
| |
v v
+------+------+ +-----+------+
| Fulfillment | | Notify user|
| triggered | | of failure |
+-------------+ +------------+
Mode 3 — Freehand Drawing
Draw any subject as expressive ASCII art — animals, objects, characters, scenes, vehicles, food, etc.
Principles
- Silhouette first — capture the overall shape and recognisable outline before adding detail.
- Use the full ASCII palette — choose characters for their visual weight and shape:
| Character(s) | Use for |
|---|
@, #, W, M | Dense fills, dark areas, fur, shadow |
o, 0, *, · | Eyes, spots, round features |
/, \, _, - | Smooth curves, limbs, ground lines |
(, ), [, ] | Body curves, enclosed shapes |
~, =, - | Horizontal texture, water, ground |
", ', `, , | Fur, feathers, grass, fine texture |
^, v, <, > | Pointed features, beaks, ears, arrows |
| ` | ` |
. | Fine detail, eyes, distant objects |
- Scale to the subject — small subjects (cat, cup) fit in ~10×20 chars; large or complex subjects (dragon, landscape) deserve ~20–40 rows.
- Orientation — animals and characters face right by default unless specified.
- Add context — include a simple ground line (
~~~~~~~~~~ or __________) or background elements when it adds clarity.
- Label optionally — if the subject might be ambiguous, add a small caption below.
Example — dragon
/ \
/\ /\ / |
/ \ _____________/ \______ / /
/ /\/ \__ / /`
/ / \ <*> <*> \\____/ /`
( ( \___ ___________// /`
\ \ \ / \\ /`
\ \ \_____/ /\ \\ |
\/\ ____/ \______\\ |
\____________/ \|
| | || \
__/ | || \___
/ _|_ || \
/______/ \_/\_______/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Example — cat
/\_____/\
( o o )
=( Y Y )=
) (
(_/-^^^-\_)
| |
(__|__|__)
Example — rocket
/\
/ \
| () |
| |
/| |\
/ | | \
/ | | \
| /| |\ |
| / | | \ |
|/ '----' \|
| |
| |
/| |\
( |____| )
(________}
\ /\ /
\/ \/
Handling difficult subjects
- Abstract concepts (love, freedom): render a symbolic representation (heart, bird in flight).
- Scenes (forest, city): use layered rows — sky, background, midground, foreground.
- Very detailed requests: produce the best-effort render, then offer to zoom into a specific part.
Activation
Once loaded, stay active for the entire session. Infer the mode from context. When ambiguous, ask: "Big letters, a diagram, or a drawing?"
