| name | wardley-map |
| description | Generate a Wardley Map from a scenario description using a formal mathematical model. Produces OWM-format output and strategic analysis grounded in Wardley's cheat sheet, 61 gameplays, and 40 doctrine principles. Use when the user wants a Wardley Map of a system, business, or domain, or asks to "map" something strategically. |
| argument-hint | <scenario description> |
| allowed-tools | Read, Grep |
Wardley Map Generator
Generate a Wardley Map for the scenario in $ARGUMENTS, following the formal mathematical model below. Output OWM text plus a strategic analysis.
If $ARGUMENTS is empty, ask the user for a scenario description before proceeding.
1. The mathematical model
A Wardley Map is the tuple:
M = (V, E, U, ν, ε, t)
- V = set of components
- E ⊆ V × V = directed dependency edges.
(a, b) ∈ E means "a depends on b".
- U ⊆ V = anchor set — one or more user-need nodes. Real maps often have multiple user types.
- ν: V → [0, 1] = visibility function (Y-axis). Higher = closer to the user.
- ε: V → [0, 1] = evolution function (X-axis). Higher = more commoditised.
- t = time (optional; used only for dynamics)
Optional: τ: V \ U → {A, P, D, K} — component type (Activity, Practice, Data, Knowledge). Use when the map benefits from distinguishing types.
2. Procedure
Step 1 — List components and anchors
- Anchor set
U: the user need(s). If the scenario has multiple user types (e.g., customer AND artisan), use multiple anchors.
- Then list Activities, Practices, Data, Knowledge the users depend on.
- Use concrete nouns, not slogans.
Step 2 — Dependencies
For each component, list (a, b) edges meaning "a depends on b". The dependency graph is typically a DAG but this is NOT a hard constraint. The only hard rule is the visibility constraint in Step 3.
Step 3 — Visibility ν (Y-axis)
Visibility is a judgment about value chain position, not a pure graph property. Seed from distance, then adjust:
d(v) = min over u ∈ U of { shortest path length from u to v }
ν(v) = 1 / (1 + d(v))
Then override where judgment disagrees:
- Raise ν for a component the user thinks about directly even if deep in the graph.
- Lower ν for a component that's technically close but architecturally invisible.
Hard rule: for every edge (a, b) ∈ E, require ν(a) ≥ ν(b).
Step 4 — Evolution ε (X-axis)
IMPORTANT: Evolution is NOT maturity and NOT time-based. Wardley's climatic pattern states "you cannot measure evolution over time or adoption."
Use a 4-row cheat-sheet subset (full 19-row table in cheat-sheet.md):
| Row | Stage I (Genesis) | Stage II (Custom Built) | Stage III (Product +rental) | Stage IV (Commodity +utility) |
|---|
| Ubiquity (in market) | Rare | Slowly increasing | Rapidly increasing | Widespread, stabilising |
| Certainty | Poorly understood | Rapid learning | Rapid use / fit for purpose | Commonly understood |
| User Perception | Different / exciting | Leading edge | Common / expected | Standard |
| Publication Types | Describe the wonder | Build / construct / awareness | Maintenance / operations / features | Focused on use |
Map stage picks to band midpoints:
- I → 0.125, II → 0.375, III → 0.625, IV → 0.875
ε(v) = mean of the four row picks.
Flag components where rows disagree strongly as "in transition" and report the range.
Step 5 — Stage bands
- Genesis: [0, 0.25)
- Custom Built: [0.25, 0.5)
- Product (+rental): [0.5, 0.75)
- Commodity (+utility): [0.75, 1.0]
Stage III covers products AND rental/licensing; Stage IV covers commodities AND utility services.
Step 6 — Derived heuristics (label as such)
The three metrics below are heuristics proposed by this skill's math model, not canonical Wardley concepts. Treat as attention prompts only.
- Differentiation pressure:
D(v) = ν(v) · (1 − ε(v)) — high = visible + immature = possible advantage.
- Commodity leverage:
K(v) = (1 − ν(v)) · ε(v) — high = deep + mature = candidate for outsourcing / utility.
- Dependency risk:
R(a, b) = ν(a) · (1 − ε(b)) — high = visible depending on fragile foundation.
3. Output format (OWM)
Produce the map in OWM text syntax. Coordinates are [visibility, evolution] with both values in [0, 1].
title Map Title
style wardley
// Anchor(s)
anchor User Need Name [ν, ε]
// Components
component Name [ν, ε]
// Dependencies (component → what it depends on)
Component A->Component B
// Optional
evolve Component Name target_ε
note Note text [ν, ε]
component Legacy [ν, ε] inertia
pipeline Platform [start_ε, end_ε]
Include multiple anchor lines if the scenario has more than one user type.
4. Strategic analysis
After the OWM output, produce:
a. Top 3 by differentiation pressure D — with brief reasoning.
b. Top 3 by commodity leverage K — with brief reasoning.
c. Top 3 dependency risks R — edge (a, b) and why.
d. Suggested gameplays — name each play from Wardley's 61-play catalogue (full list in gameplays.md) and which component(s) it targets. Prefer named Wardley plays over generic advice.
e. Doctrine violations — if any of Wardley's 40 doctrine principles are clearly violated (missing anchor, unclear user, underspecified Knowledge layer), flag them. Full list in doctrine.md.
f. Caveat — remind the user that evolution trajectories are scenarios, not forecasts. Wardley's climatic pattern: "you cannot measure evolution over time or adoption."
5. Dynamics (optional, only if asked)
If the user explicitly asks for simulated evolution over time, use the logistic form:
dε/dt = r · ε · (1 − ε)
where r = r₀ + u(t) − c(t):
r₀: baseline market pressureu(t): strategic actions (named Wardley gameplays)c(t): inertia (17 forms enumerated in inertia.md)
Clamp r to be non-negative — evolution is monotonic-forward.
Always label output as "scenario, not forecast."
Supporting files in this skill
cheat-sheet.md — Wardley's full 19-row evolution characteristic tablegameplays.md — all 61 gameplays by categorydoctrine.md — all 40 doctrine principles by phaseinertia.md — the 17 forms of inertiaREADME.md — install instructions for humans
The skill is a self-contained package; use ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR} if you need to reference these files from shell commands. From markdown links, relative paths like [cheat-sheet](cheat-sheet.md) work.
