Challenge a Plan or Design

Challenge the current plan, approach, or design with two structured passes. Catches over-engineering, missing requirements, YAGNI violations, and implementation flaws early.

Arguments

• $ARGUMENTS — (Optional) Description of what to challenge. If omitted, challenge the current plan or approach in the conversation context.

Workflow

1. Identify the target
   • If $ARGUMENTS is provided, use it as the challenge target
   • If omitted, identify the most recent plan, design, or proposed approach in the conversation
   • If no clear target exists, ASK the user what to challenge
2. Attempt architect delegation
   • If an architect agent is available (team context with AGENT_TEAM.md), spawn the architect to perform both challenges
   • If no architect is available (solo session), perform both challenges directly
3. Challenge 1 — Scope & Necessity
   • Is every component/feature actually needed? (YAGNI check)
   • Are there simpler approaches that were dismissed too quickly?
   • Are edge cases identified but deferred appropriately?
   • Does the design solve the stated problem without gold-plating?
   • Is the tier assignment (if applicable) correct for the scope?
   • Could any pieces be cut without losing the core value?
4. Challenge 2 — Correctness & Completeness
   • Does the plan match the stated requirements faithfully?
   • Are there missing steps, untested paths, or incorrect assumptions?
   • Are error handling and validation covered at every layer?
   • Will the proposed changes pass CI (formatting, linting, type checks)?
   • Are there batches or tasks that should be cut or reordered?
   • Does the team configuration (if applicable) match the assigned tier?
5. Present results
   • For each challenge pass, output a numbered list of:
     • Changes made (cuts, additions, corrections)
     • Rationale for each change
   • If no changes result from a pass, state: "Challenged — no changes needed"
   • Present the revised plan/approach incorporating all changes

Rules

• MUST perform exactly two challenge passes — never skip the second
• MUST challenge substance, not style — focus on correctness, scope, and completeness
• MUST preserve the original intent while cutting scope or simplifying
• MUST NOT rubber-stamp — if you can't find issues, look harder at assumptions and edge cases
• If the architect agent is available, MUST delegate to it rather than self-challenging
• After both passes, present the final revised version for user approval