bigpowers / rules

---
description: "Interactive assumption-surfacing Q&A that stress-tests a plan through relentless questioning until every decision is resolved. Use when user wants to challenge a plan, validate decisions from conversation/context, or mentions \"grill me\". For doc-grounded variant, use grill-with-docs."
alwaysApply: false
---

# Grill Me

> **Use this vs grill-with-docs:** `grill-me` surfaces assumptions from the conversation and context alone — no documentation fetching. Use `grill-with-docs` (the doc-grounded variant) when the plan relies on a specific library or external API and every challenge must cite a real doc URL.

Two modes. Default is **Design**. Switch to **Docs** by saying "grill me with docs" or when the plan relies on a specific library or external API.

> **HARD GATE** — Do NOT accept a design until every hard decision has been stress-tested. "Seems right" is not a decision. Grilling must identify and resolve tensions before build begins.

## Design mode (default)

Interview relentlessly about every aspect of this plan until reaching shared understanding. Walk each branch of the design tree, resolving dependencies between decisions one-by-one. For each question, provide your recommended answer. Ask one question at a time.

If a question can be answered by exploring the codebase, explore it instead.

### Facts vs. Decisions Boundary

Distinguish between **facts** and **decisions**:
- **Facts** — things discoverable by exploring the codebase, reading docs, or checking APIs. Do not ask the user to confirm facts; find them yourself.
- **Decisions** — choices that require user input (trade-offs, preferences, priorities). Always present options and ask the user to choose.

Never "grill yourself" — if the answer is in the code, go find it. Only ask questions where the user's judgment is needed.

## Docs mode

Ground every challenge in real documentation — no assumption about a library's behavior goes unchecked. See [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md) for the full process.

Short form:
1. List every external library, third-party API, and framework behavior relied upon.
2. Fetch the actual docs for each (`WebFetch` the official API reference).
3. Challenge each plan assumption against the real docs: correct method signature? right version? deprecated?
4. Report confirmed ✓, corrected ✗ (with the real behavior), and uncertain → `spike-prototype`.
5. Update the plan for each confirmed discrepancy.

## Confirmation Gate

> **HARD GATE** — Do NOT enact the plan or generate specifications until the user explicitly confirms shared understanding. Wait for explicit approval (e.g., "looks good", "confirmed", "proceed") before transitioning to any implementation, spec-writing, or task-slicing step.

---

# Docs Mode — Full Process

Triggered by "grill me with docs" or when a plan depends on a specific library or external API.

**Why this matters:** AI agents hallucinate API methods, argument orders, and behaviors. Every assumption about an external dependency must be validated against the actual docs before code is written.

## Step 1 — Identify the dependencies

From the plan or conversation, list:
- Every external library being used
- Every third-party API being called
- Every framework behavior being relied upon

Ask: "Which of these are you most confident about? Which are you less sure of?"

## Step 2 — Fetch the relevant docs

For each dependency, fetch the actual documentation:

```
WebFetch the official docs for [library/API]
```

Prioritize:
- The API reference for the specific method being used
- The changelog for the version in use (breaking changes)
- Migration guides if upgrading from a previous version
- Known gotchas / FAQ sections

## Step 3 — Challenge each assumption

For every assumption in the plan, find the corresponding doc section and ask:

- "Does the real API actually work this way? Show me the doc."
- "Is this method available in the version you're using?"
- "Does this argument order match the actual signature?"
- "Are there rate limits, quotas, or timeout behaviors that affect this design?"
- "Is this marked as deprecated in the current version?"

Ask one question at a time. For each challenge, cite the specific URL and section.

## Step 4 — Surface hallucinations

When an assumption doesn't match the docs:

> "Your plan uses `library.doThing(a, b)` but the [docs](https://example.com/api-reference) show the signature is `doThing(config: {a, b})` with a config object. This will fail at runtime."

Document each discrepancy clearly.

## Step 5 — Update the plan

For each confirmed discrepancy, recommend a concrete fix:
- Correct method signature
- Correct argument order
- Alternative approach that matches what the library actually supports
- Whether a spike (`spike-prototype`) is needed to validate a remaining uncertainty

## Step 6 — Sign off

When all major assumptions have been validated against docs, report:
- Which assumptions were confirmed ✓
- Which were corrected ✗ + what the correct approach is
- Which remain uncertain → recommend `spike-prototype`