[Decision Support] Use when pressure-testing irreversible, high-stakes decisions with adversarial AI advisors.
[IMPORTANT] MUST ATTENTION use council only for multi-option, hard-to-reverse, high-stakes decisions. NEVER council trivial, factual, reversible, or single-option questions.
[IMPORTANT] MUST ATTENTION spawn 5 advisors in parallel, then 5 fresh peer reviewers in parallel, then chairman synthesis.
[IMPORTANT] MUST ATTENTION require evidence for code/architecture claims: file:line, graph trace, or explicit "insufficient evidence."
LLM Council
Quick Summary
Goal: Adversarial decision support for costly wrong choices. Five advisors analyze independently, five fresh reviewers critique anonymously, chairman produces final verdict + report artifacts.
Code/architecture gate: If question references existing code, services, files, or blast radius, run before framing:
python .claude/scripts/code_graph trace <key-file> --direction both --json
Skip graph only when .code-graph/graph.db missing or question is non-code.
Framed question includes: core decision, user context, workspace evidence, stakes, constraints, known unknowns. Keep the framing neutral and opinion-free. Ask exactly one clarifying question only if prompt is too vague.
Step 2: Advisor Round
Spawn all 5 advisors simultaneously. Each gets identity, framed question, evidence rules, output constraints.
You are [Advisor Name] on an LLM Council.
Thinking style: [advisor dimension from table]
Question:
---
[framed question]
---
EVIDENCE RULES:
- Code/architecture claims require `file:line`, graph trace, or "I don't have enough evidence yet."
- If existing code context is needed, run:
python .claude/scripts/code_graph trace <file> --direction both --json
python .claude/scripts/code_graph connections <file> --json
- Cite trace output for blast radius, callers, downstream impact.
- Confidence: 95-100% full trace | 80-94% main paths | 60-79% partial | <60% do not recommend.
- Do NOT speculate. Name missing evidence instead.
Respond from assigned angle. Direct, specific, unbalanced by design. Other advisors cover other angles.
Length: 150-300 words plus one-line confidence declaration. No preamble.
Step 3: Peer Review Round
Collect responses. Randomize/anonymize as Response A-E. Spawn 5 fresh reviewers in parallel.
You are reviewing an LLM Council.
Question:
---
[framed question]
---
Anonymized responses:
**Response A:** [response]
**Response B:** [response]
**Response C:** [response]
**Response D:** [response]
**Response E:** [response]
Answer:
1. Strongest response? Why?
2. Biggest blind spot? What is missing?
3. What did all five miss?
Reference responses by letter. Be specific. Under 200 words.
You are Chairman of an LLM Council. Synthesize 5 advisors + peer reviews into final verdict.
Question:
---
[framed question]
---
ADVISOR RESPONSES:
**Contrarian:** [response]
**First Principles Thinker:** [response]
**Expansionist:** [response]
**Outsider:** [response]
**Executor:** [response]
PEER REVIEWS:
[all peer reviews]
Produce exact structure:
## Where the Council Agrees
[Independent convergences; high-confidence signals.]
## Where the Council Clashes
[Genuine disagreements. Present both sides; explain why reasonable advisors disagree.]
## Blind Spots the Council Caught
[Only emerged through peer review.]
## The Recommendation
[Clear direct recommendation. Not "it depends."]
## The One Thing to Do First
[Single concrete next step.]
Be direct. Do not hedge. Give clarity unavailable from one perspective.
Quality loop: If chairman misses required sections, ignores degraded-quality state, or makes unsupported code claims, repair with fresh chairman prompt. Max 3 repair rounds; then escalate with missing evidence.
Step 5: Report Artifacts
Write both files; create plans/reports/ if missing.
{YYMMDD-HHMM} = session datetime. {kebab-slug} = 3-6 word question descriptor. Both share prefix. NEVER write artifacts to workspace root or docs/.
HTML: self-contained inline CSS, question top, prominent chairman verdict, agreement/disagreement visual, collapsed advisor responses, collapsed peer review highlights, footer timestamp/topic, professional briefing style, open after generation.
Markdown transcript: original question, framed question, all advisor responses, all peer reviews, anonymization mapping, chairman synthesis.
Output Format
Council complete.
Report: plans/reports/council-{YYMMDD-HHMM}-{kebab-slug}.html
Transcript: plans/reports/council-{YYMMDD-HHMM}-{kebab-slug}.md
Verdict: [1-2 sentence chairman recommendation]
First action: [single next step]
Workflow Integration
Opt-in escalation hook from host skills. NEVER wire into workflow-bugfix, workflow-refactor, or test-* workflows. Blacklist is enforced at the why-review gate (Step A — workflow context check) before the 8-OR frontmatter gate evaluates.
Host skill
Mode
Default
Gate
architecture-design
Always-offer after ## Next Steps
Skip
User chooses
tech-stack-research
Always-offer after ## Next Steps
Skip
User chooses
domain-analysis
Always-offer after ## Next Steps
Skip
User chooses
why-review
Conditional on active plan/PBI frontmatter
Escalate when gate fires
Step A workflow blacklist suppression THEN 8-OR frontmatter gate
prioritize
Conditional on ranking output
Escalate when gate fires
RICE top-2 within 15%, MoSCoW tie, or stakeholder disagreement
why-review Gate Schema
Gate fires when ANY field true. Absent fields default no-fire; gate opt-in via frontmatter, never opt-out.
Field
Convention
Fires when
cross_service_impact
NONE / PARTIAL / FULL
value != NONE
breaking_changes
bool
true
complexity
low / medium / high / critical
high, critical, or story_points >= 13
new_framework
bool
true
irreversible
bool
true
security_critical
bool
true
performance_critical
bool
true
cost_high
bool
true
Host prompt copy MUST cite cheaper rungs: /why-review, /plan-validate, /llm-council.
Critical Thinking Mindset — Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence >80% to act.
Anti-hallucination: Never present guess as fact — cite sources for every claim, admit uncertainty freely, self-check output for errors, cross-reference independently, stay skeptical of own confidence — certainty without evidence root of all hallucination.
AI Mistake Prevention — Failure modes to avoid on every task:
Re-read files after context changes. Context compaction, resume, or long-running work can make memory stale; verify current files before acting.
Verify generated content against source evidence. AI hallucinates APIs, names, claims, and document facts. Check the relevant source before documenting or referencing.
Check downstream references before deleting or renaming. Removing an artifact can stale docs, generated mirrors, configs, and callers; map references first.
Trace the full impact chain after edits. Changing a definition can miss derived outputs and consumers. Follow the affected chain before declaring done.
Verify ALL affected outputs, not just the first. One green check is not all green checks; validate every output surface the change can affect.
Assume existing values are intentional — ask WHY before changing. Before changing a constant, limit, flag, wording, or pattern, read nearby context and history.
Surface ambiguity before acting — don't pick silently. Multiple valid interpretations require an explicit question or stated assumption with risk.
Keep shared guidance role-relevant. Universal guidance must help every receiving skill or agent; code-specific obligations belong only in code-specific protocols.
Closing Reminders
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION use council only for multi-option, hard-to-reverse, high-stakes decisions.
Protocols in force — MUST ATTENTION (concise digest of the SYNC/shared blocks this skill carries):
AI Mistake Prevention: verify generated content against evidence, trace downstream references, verify all affected outputs, re-read after context loss, surface ambiguity.
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION spawn 5 advisors in parallel, then 5 fresh peer reviewers in parallel, then chairman synthesis.
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION require evidence for code/architecture claims: file:line, graph trace, or explicit "insufficient evidence."
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION mark verdict degraded if fewer than 5 usable advisor responses return.
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION write paired HTML + Markdown artifacts under plans/reports/ and open HTML.
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION after editing this skill, run /sync-codex to regenerate mirrors — NEVER hand-edit .agents/ or .codex/ (generated).
Anti-Rationalization:
Evasion
Rebuttal
"This decision feels important"
Gate it: multi-option, hard-to-reverse, real stakes, multi-angle value.
"One advisor can handle it"
Council value comes from independent angles + anonymous peer review.
Missing angle changes verdict quality. Mark degraded.
"Evidence would slow us down"
Unsupported code/architecture claims are speculation. Use graph/file proof or say insufficient evidence.
MUST ATTENTION apply critical + sequential thinking — every claim needs appropriate traced evidence (file:line for repo/code claims; source URL or artifact section for research, product, content, and docs claims); confidence >80% to act, <60% DO NOT recommend. Anti-hallucination: never present guess as fact, admit uncertainty freely, cross-reference independently, stay skeptical of own confidence.
MUST ATTENTION apply AI mistake prevention — verify generated content against evidence, trace downstream references before deleting or renaming, verify all affected outputs, re-read files after context loss, and surface ambiguity before acting.