manifesto

name	manifesto
description	Guide the creation of a product manifesto — vision, principles, and governing laws that shape all downstream decisions.
user_invocable	true

Manifesto

Guide the user through defining the product's vision, principles, and governing laws. The manifesto is the foundation that PRD, architecture, and all downstream documents reference.

---

If the user provides $ARGUMENTS, analyze them for: - A product name or concept - An existing manifesto path to review/iterate

Check if a manifesto already exists:

• Search for docs/MANIFESTO.md or MANIFESTO.md
• If found, ask the user: "A manifesto already exists at {path}. Do you want to review and iterate on it, or start fresh?"

No strict prerequisites — the manifesto is the first artifact in the pipeline.

If a PRD already exists but no manifesto:

• Inform: "A PRD exists but no manifesto was found. The manifesto defines the governing principles that the PRD should align with. Creating it now will provide a foundation for reviewing the PRD."

1. **Define output location:** - Suggest default: `docs/MANIFESTO.md` - Ensure the `docs/` directory exists (create if needed)

2. Guide the user through these sections:

   Vision — What does this product exist to do? One sentence.

   Principles — 3-7 guiding principles that shape every decision. Example: "GitHub stores, Rust computes — zero custom storage"

   Governing Laws — Non-negotiable rules. If a design violates a law, the design is wrong. Example: "Every write invalidates and recomputes — consistency after mutations"

   Out of Scope — What this product will never do. Explicit boundaries.

3. Write the manifesto to the agreed path using this structure:

   # {Product Name} — Manifesto
   
   **Status:** DRAFT | APPROVED
   **Date:** {date}
   
   ## Vision
   {one sentence}
   
   ## Principles
   1. {principle} — {why}
   2. ...
   
   ## Governing Laws
   1. {law} — {consequence if violated}
   2. ...
   
   ## Out of Scope
   - {what this product will never do}
   

4. Iterate with the user until they approve

5. Update status to APPROVED

1. Verify the manifesto file was created at the agreed path 2. Show the user the status (DRAFT or APPROVED) Inform the user they can continue editing the manifesto directly or re-run `/manifesto` to iterate. Recommend proceeding with `/requirements` to create the PRD, referencing the manifesto as the governing document.