| name | grill-me |
| description | Grilling session that challenges a plan against the existing domain model, sharpens terminology, and updates documentation (CONTEXT.md, ADRs) inline as decisions crystallise. Use when stress-testing a plan, exploring trade-offs, validating a design, or refining domain language. |
Interview me relentlessly about every aspect of this plan until we reach a
shared understanding. Walk down each branch of the design tree, resolving
dependencies between decisions one by one. For each question, provide your
recommended answer.
Ask the questions one at a time, waiting for feedback on each question before
continuing.
If a question can be answered by exploring the codebase, explore the codebase
instead.
Rules
- Ask questions one at a time
- For each question, provide your recommended answer with brief rationale
- If a question can be answered by exploring the codebase, explore it instead of asking
- Reference existing ADRs in
docs/adr/ — don't re-litigate settled decisions
- Use project domain vocabulary (map-file, provider, facade, etc.)
- When a decision crystallizes that contradicts an existing ADR, flag it explicitly
- Stop when all branches are resolved or user says "enough"
Domain Awareness
During codebase exploration, look for existing documentation:
File structure
Most repos have a single context:
/
├── CONTEXT.md
├── docs/
│ └── adr/
│ ├── 0001-event-sourced-orders.md
│ └── 0002-postgres-for-write-model.md
└── src/
If a CONTEXT-MAP.md exists at the root, the repo has multiple contexts. The
map points to where each one lives:
/
├── CONTEXT-MAP.md
├── docs/
│ └── adr/ ← system-wide decisions
├── src/
│ ├── ordering/
│ │ ├── CONTEXT.md
│ │ └── docs/adr/ ← context-specific decisions
│ └── billing/
│ ├── CONTEXT.md
│ └── docs/adr/
Create files lazily — only when you have something to write. If no CONTEXT.md
exists, create one when the first term is resolved. If no docs/adr/ exists,
create it when the first ADR is needed.
During the Session
Challenge against the glossary
When the user uses a term that conflicts with the existing language in
CONTEXT.md, call it out immediately. "Your glossary defines 'cancellation' as
X, but you seem to mean Y — which is it?"
Sharpen fuzzy language
When the user uses vague or overloaded terms, propose a precise canonical term.
"You're saying 'account' — do you mean the Customer or the User? Those are
different things."
Discuss concrete scenarios
When domain relationships are being discussed, stress-test them with specific
scenarios. Invent scenarios that probe edge cases and force the user to be
precise about the boundaries between concepts.
Cross-reference with code
When the user states how something works, check whether the code agrees. If you
find a contradiction, surface it: "Your code cancels entire Orders, but you just
said partial cancellation is possible — which is right?"
Update CONTEXT.md inline
When a term is resolved, update CONTEXT.md right there. Don't batch these
up — capture them as they happen. Use the format in
CONTEXT-FORMAT.md.
CONTEXT.md should be totally devoid of implementation details. Do not treat
CONTEXT.md as a spec, a scratch pad, or a repository for implementation
decisions. It is a glossary and nothing else.
Offer ADRs sparingly
Only offer to create an ADR when all three are true:
- Hard to reverse — the cost of changing your mind later is meaningful
- Surprising without context — a future reader will wonder "why did they
do it this way?"
- The result of a real trade-off — there were genuine alternatives and you
picked one for specific reasons
If any of the three is missing, skip the ADR. Use the format in
ADR-FORMAT.md.
Based on grill-with-docs by Matt Pocock.