spec-kit-project-map-gate

name	spec-kit-project-map-gate
description	Use when changing, reviewing, planning against, or debugging an existing Spec Kit Plus codebase. Require project cognition status and the workflow-appropriate slice first, or route to map refresh when cognition coverage is missing or stale.
origin	spec-kit-plus

Spec Kit Project Map Gate

This passive skill is the brownfield hard gate, not the route selection layer.

Complementary Passive Skills

• spec-kit-workflow-routing owns route selection into the correct sp-* workflow before implementation, planning, or debugging proceeds.
• spec-kit-project-learning owns the shared memory capture layer after context is loaded. Once this gate is satisfied, follow that skill's learning-start and learning-capture expectations for the active workflow.

Hard Gate

Before code edits, investigation, planning against existing code, or architectural judgment in an established Spec Kit Plus repository:

• Read .specify/project-cognition/status.json first.
• Read .specify/project-cognition/slices/debug.json for sp-debug.
• Read .specify/project-cognition/slices/change.json for other ordinary brownfield workflows.
• Read targeted graph artifacts, such as .specify/project-cognition/graph/claims.json or .specify/project-cognition/graph/conflicts.json, only when the active workflow needs ownership or conflict resolution beyond the slice.
• Treat DEBUG-HANDBOOK.md, BUILD-HANDBOOK.md, and .specify/project-map/** as compatibility/export surfaces, not the default runtime truth path.
• Read .specify/memory/project-rules.md and .specify/memory/project-learnings.md when they exist.

Command Surface Discipline

• Treat the live specify --help output as the only authoritative CLI command surface.
• Before suggesting or running a specify <subcommand> invocation while satisfying this gate, verify that it exists in specify --help or specify <subcommand> --help.
• Do not invent, paraphrase, or "normalize" unsupported CLI names such as specify create-feature.
• Feature creation remains {{invoke:specify}} plus the generated create-feature script at .specify/scripts/bash/create-new-feature.sh or .specify/scripts/powershell/create-new-feature.ps1, not a separate branch-creation command.

Missing Or Stale Cognition

• If the project cognition runtime is missing, route through the canonical sp-map-scan -> sp-map-build workflow detour before continuing. When giving the user an explicit command to type, write {{invoke:map-scan}} -> {{invoke:map-build}}.
• If the project cognition runtime is stale or too weak for a localized touched area, route through sp-map-update first. When giving the user an explicit command to type, write {{invoke:map-update}}.
• If no usable localized baseline remains, route through {{invoke:map-scan}} -> {{invoke:map-build}}.
• Treat that detour as a user-invoked workflow handoff. Do not silently switch into sp-map-update, sp-map-scan, or sp-map-build yourself from another workflow; stop and tell the user which map workflow to run.
• Do not rely on generic framework instinct, chat memory, or prior sessions when the project cognition runtime should be the source of truth.

Scope Guard

• This gate applies even if the user asks for a direct code change without mentioning Spec Kit workflows.
• Stand down only when the task is clearly greenfield and does not depend on any existing project structure, conventions, or runtime surface.