| name | team-brainstorm-guard |
| description | Use when exploring requirements, doing deep design exploration, or brainstorming before proposing. Guards OpenSpec environment and brainstorm output location. |
Team Brainstorm Guard
Core Principle
Exploration phase creates design artifacts only (brainstorm.md). No implementation, no proposal.
When to Use
Use this skill when:
- Requirements are vague and need deep exploration
- Need to understand existing system implementation
- Need to compare multiple approaches
- Need structured brainstorming before /team-propose
- Problem is complex enough to warrant design exploration
Do NOT use this skill when:
- Problem is already clear, change-id is decided → go directly to
/team-propose
- Creating proposals or OpenSpec artifacts (use
team-openspec-guard)
- Implementing code (use
team-implementation-guard)
Gate 0: OpenSpec CLI Availability (Mandatory — Check First)
Before any OpenSpec operation, verify the CLI is installed and accessible:
openspec --version
If the command fails (not found / not recognized):
- STOP — do not proceed with any OpenSpec operations
- Tell the user:
OpenSpec CLI is not installed or not in PATH. Install it first:
npm install -g @fission-ai/openspec
Then verify with openspec --version.
If the command succeeds, proceed to Gate 1.
Gate 1: OpenSpec Directory Access (Mandatory)
Run openspec list to verify the openspec directory is accessible.
If the command fails:
- STOP — the openspec directory is not accessible
- Tell the user:
OpenSpec directory is not accessible from the project root. Initialize it first:
openspec init --tools none .
Then verify with openspec list.
If the command succeeds, proceed to Gate 2.
Gate 2: Brainstorm Output Location (Mandatory)
All brainstorm output MUST write to openspec/changes/<change-id>/brainstorm.md.
DO NOT write to:
docs/superpowers/specs/- Any other location
This ensures OpenSpec can track and validate the design artifact.
Brainstorming Process
After gates pass, invoke superpowers:brainstorming skill via Skill tool.
The brainstorming skill will:
- Explore project context (files, docs, recent commits)
- Offer visual companion (if topic involves visual questions)
- Ask clarifying questions — one at a time
- Propose 2-3 approaches with trade-offs and recommendation
- Present design sections, get approval after each section
IMPORTANT output redirection:
- Do NOT write to
docs/superpowers/specs/. Instead, write the brainstorming design output directly to openspec/changes/<change-id>/brainstorm.md.
Spec Self-Review
After writing brainstorm.md, perform self-review:
- Placeholder scan: Any "TBD", "TODO", incomplete sections? Fix them.
- Internal consistency: Do any sections contradict each other?
- Scope check: Is this focused enough for a single implementation plan?
- Ambiguity check: Could any requirement be interpreted two different ways? If so, pick one and make it explicit.
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|
| Writing code during exploration | Design only, no implementation |
| Skipping openspec environment check | Must verify CLI and directory first |
| Writing to docs/superpowers/specs/ | Write to openspec/changes//brainstorm.md |
| Not following brainstorming skill process | Invoke superpowers:brainstorming and follow its checklist |
| Finalizing with unresolved hard blockers | Keep hard blockers in Open Questions section |
Bad Cases
When this skill fails, record in badCases/ directory:
- Input: what the user said
- Wrong output: what the AI did that it shouldn't have
- Expected output: what it should have done
- New rule needed: how to prevent recurrence
See badCases/ for case history.
