image

name	image
description	Smart router — generates an image using the best available cloud provider. Tries providers in priority order: FAL (FLUX), OpenAI (GPT Image), Google (Imagen). Requires at least one provider configured.

/image

Generate an image using the best available cloud provider.

Locate Plugin

PLUGIN_ROOT=$(python3 -c "
from pathlib import Path
import sys, os
if os.environ.get('JACK_TAR_CLOUD_ROOT'):
    print(os.environ['JACK_TAR_CLOUD_ROOT']); sys.exit()
home = Path.home()
for base in [home / '.claude' / 'plugins' / 'cache']:
    for p in base.rglob('jack-tar-cloud/.claude-plugin/plugin.json'):
        print(str(p.parent.parent)); sys.exit()
dev = Path.cwd() / 'plugins' / 'jack-tar-cloud'
if dev.exists():
    print(str(dev)); sys.exit()
print('NOT_FOUND')
" 2>/dev/null)
if [ -z "$PLUGIN_ROOT" ] || [ "$PLUGIN_ROOT" = "NOT_FOUND" ]; then echo "ERROR: jack-tar-cloud not found" && exit 1; fi

Parse Arguments

Parse $ARGUMENTS for:

• Prompt: The quoted description
• --output PATH: Where to save
• --size SIZE: Dimensions (default: 1536x1024)
• --model MODEL: Specific model ID (passed through to the provider skill)
• --provider PROVIDER: Force a specific provider instead of auto-routing
• --resolution RES: Tier (1K, 2K, 4K). Default: 1K. Forwarded to the chosen per-provider skill. Provider must support the requested tier — see EPIC #58 capability matrix.

Discover Available Providers

PYTHONPATH="$PLUGIN_ROOT" python3 -c "
import os, json
providers = {}
providers['openai'] = bool(os.environ.get('OPENAI_API_KEY'))
providers['google'] = bool(os.environ.get('GOOGLE_CLOUD_PROJECT') or os.environ.get('GOOGLE_API_KEY'))
providers['fal'] = bool(os.environ.get('FAL_KEY'))
print(json.dumps(providers))
"

Parse the JSON. If --provider was specified, check that provider is available. If no providers are available, report NOT_AVAILABLE and tell the user to run /jack-tar-cloud:verify for setup instructions.

Select Provider and Route

If --provider is specified and available, use it directly.

Otherwise, route based on content suitability:

1. Text-heavy content (slides with visible text, labels, diagrams) → prefer Google Nano Banana (best text rendering), then OpenAI, then FAL
2. Photorealistic imagery (scenes, people, objects) → prefer FAL FLUX (best photorealism), then OpenAI, then Google
3. Budget bulk generation (backgrounds, patterns, simple scenes) → prefer Google Imagen (cheapest at $0.02), then FAL, then OpenAI
4. Default (no clear category) → fal first, then openai, then google

When routing to Google, pass the appropriate --model based on use case:

• Budget: --model imagen-4.0-fast-generate-001
• Standard: --model gemini-3.1-flash-image
• Premium: --model gemini-3-pro-image

Dispatch the appropriate per-provider skill:

• fal → /jack-tar-cloud:fal-image
• openai → /jack-tar-cloud:openai-image
• google → /jack-tar-cloud:google-image
• recraft → /jack-tar-cloud:recraft-image

Resolution-aware routing: when --resolution 4K is requested, restrict to providers that support it (Google Nano Banana Pro/Flash). When --resolution 2K, restrict to Google (Imagen Standard, Nano Banana Pro/Flash) or FAL FLUX 2 Pro. When --resolution 1K (default), all available providers are eligible.

Forward the flag to the dispatched per-provider skill:

• --resolution 1K (or omitted) → no change to existing routing
• --resolution 2K → fal-image (FLUX 2 Pro) or google-image (Imagen Standard / Nano Banana Pro)
• --resolution 4K → google-image with --model gemini-3.1-flash-image (Flash 4K, $0.151) or --model gemini-3-pro-image (Pro 4K, $0.240)

Brand-color-fidelity routing (issue #61): when the prompt or context indicates exact brand-color match matters (logos, product shots, brand-led hero slides with 3+ specified hexes), prefer Recraft V4 raster over the photorealistic providers:

• 1K, 2K → /jack-tar-cloud:recraft-image --tier pro --resolution 2K --colors HEX,HEX,...
• 4K → /jack-tar-cloud:recraft-image --tier pro --resolution 4K --colors HEX,HEX,... (chain: 2K Pro + Creative Upscale, ~$0.50 vs Nano Banana Pro 4K $0.24 — premium for brand fidelity)

Recraft V4 outperforms FLUX/Nano Banana on exact hex compliance but is ~2× cost at 4K. The deckhand strategy-map's brand_fidelity field controls automated routing; speakers can also force routing here via --provider recraft.

Pass through all arguments (--output, --size, --model, --resolution, original prompt).

If the first provider fails, try the next available provider in the priority order.