Council — Table ronde

A live meeting between named figures (historical or contemporary) around one topic — and the user is a participant at the table, not a reader of minutes.

Output: studies/<slug>/council.md (study-linked) or output/council/<slug>/council.md (standalone).

When to use (vs other skills)

Do not auto-chain from other skills.

Hard rules

1. Live, never simulated — the meeting happens turn by turn in chat. Never generate the whole meeting in one message. After the opening round, STOP and wait for the user — then never more than 3 figure turns before the floor returns to the user.
2. Real people only — every seat at the table is a real historical or public contemporary figure speaking in their own voice, references, and era. No invented personas, no generic roles (no « Modérateur », no « une ingénieure robotique »). If an angle has no obvious figure, pick the closest real one. The host is a real figure too (rule 11).
3. Built-in conflict — compose the panel around at least one real axis of disagreement (Edison vs Tesla, Bohr vs Einstein, Keynes vs Hayek…). A panel that agrees is a failed panel.
4. Short turns — each figure speaks in ≤4 sentences. No monologues, no transcript blobs.
5. The user matters — figures react to what the user actually said, may challenge it, and may address the user directly by question. The host regularly hands the floor back: « Et vous, qu'en dites-vous ? »
6. Honest fiction — artifact header states: réunion pédagogique fictive — lentilles interprétatives, pas sources primaires. No quotation marks on invented speech; paraphrase only.
7. Era limits — informed mode by default: modern topics through each figure's own concepts, tagged [extrapolation] inline. Modes and turn discipline: see dialogue/references/epistemic-modes.md (shared with /dialogue).
8. No research — never WebSearch / WebFetch during the meeting. Fact-check request → break character once, offer /deep-research.
9. Living figures — only public contemporary figures (published work, public positions). Refuse private individuals or defamation.
10. French by default — host and figures speak the user's language.
11. Real host — the meeting is animated by a real figure known for hosting or questioning (défaut français : Bernard Pivot ; alternatives selon sujet : Socrate, Jacques Chancel, Oprah Winfrey, David Attenborough…). The host frames, distributes the floor, and needles — in their own style. The user can swap the host or run « sans hôte » (figures self-manage, address the user directly).

Step 0: Topic

• User gave a topic or question → use it directly. No framing gate: a raw topic is enough for a meeting.
• User named a study slug → Read studies/<slug>/brief.md; topic = ## Narrow wedge, and ## Current beliefs become debate fuel (figures may attack them).
• Nothing clear → one AskUserQuestion (title Table ronde — Sujet): "Sur quel sujet ou quelle question réunir la table ?" with 2–3 options inferred from studies/*/brief.md if any + other.

Sharpen loose topics into a debatable question (« l'IA » → « Faut-il craindre que l'IA centralise le pouvoir ? »). State the reframing in one line; adjust if the user objects.

Step 1: Compose the panel

Size: 3–5 figures (hard cap 6, including mid-meeting invitations).

Selection priorities, in order:

1. Figures with a real historical stake in the question
2. At least two who genuinely disagree (historically or by doctrine)
3. One unexpected but relevant voice (different era or field) — optional, often the best turn generator
4. A real host fitting topic and language (rule 11) — announced with the panel

If the user already named figures → take them, suggest at most one addition if an obvious tension axis is missing, and go.

Else one AskUserQuestion (title Table ronde — Panel):

Ask: "Voici la table que je propose. On garde ?"

Options:

• Ce panel (Recommended) — list the 3–5 names, one line each: figure + why + against whom
• Variante — a second panel with a different angle
• Je choisis moi-même — user names figures in chat

Persona line schema (goes into the artifact, one card per figure):

### <Nom> (<dates>, <domaine>)
- **Position de départ :** one sentence on the topic
- **Conteste :** what they push back on
- **Tension avec :** <autre membre> — sur quoi

The host gets a one-line card too (name, era, hosting style).

Step 2: Open the meeting

In chat:

1. The host (2–3 sentences, in their own style): frames the question, names what is off-topic today, and announces the tour de table.
2. Tour de présentations — each figure introduces themselves in 2–3 sentences, in voice, assuming the user does not know them: who they are (era, field), what they are known for, and why they have a stake in today's question. No opening position yet — just « qui je suis et pourquoi je suis à cette table ». The host may add one teasing line per figure (« …et il n'est pas d'accord avec Monsieur Tesla, vous verrez »).
3. Tour de table — each figure gives an opening position (≤4 sentences, in voice, ending on a hook: a provocation, a doubt, or a question).
4. The host hands the floor to the user: one direct question tied to what was just said.
5. STOP. Wait for the user. The meeting does not continue without them.

Steps 2 and 3 may be merged for panels of 3 (presentation + position in one turn, ≤6 sentences); keep them separate for 4+ figures so the opening stays digestible.

Write the artifact header + panel cards + opening round to council.md now (path per Step 4).

Step 3: Debate loop

For each user message:

1. Pick 1–3 figures who respond — priority to: a figure the user addressed by name, then a figure who disagrees with what was just said, then relevant expertise. Not everyone speaks every turn.
2. Figures may argue with each other for at most 2 exchanges before the host cuts in.
3. End the block with the floor open to the user — a question from a figure or a relaunch from the host.
4. Append the exchange (user turn included, as **Toi :**) to the current ## Session in council.md.

Table commands:

Soft budget: after ~10 user exchanges, the host offers to close — the user decides.

Drift control: re-read the panel cards in council.md every 5 exchanges; keep voices distinct (vocabulary, era, temperament).

Step 4: Close the meeting

Trigger: « termine », « on conclut », or accepted wrap-up offer.

1. Each figure gives one closing sentence (their position now — moved or not).
2. Host synthesis (in their style, but honest), appended to council.md:

## Synthèse — <YYYY-MM-DD>

**Accords :**
- ...

**Désaccords restés ouverts :**
- <qui vs qui — sur quoi — ce qui trancherait>

**Ce que la discussion a déplacé :**
- <idées du user renforcées / ébranlées / apparues>

**Prochain pas suggéré :** <one concrete step — optionally /dialogue avec <figure>, /source-scout, /deep-research, /layout-html sur ce fichier, ou rien>

3. Append one line to ~/.ours-stack/learnings.jsonl:

{"ts":"<ISO8601>","skill":"council","slug":"<slug>","panel":"<noms>","insight":"<one durable sentence>"}

4. In chat: path to council.md + the synthesis's 3 strongest bullets. Nothing more.

Artifact template:

# Table ronde — <question débattue>

> Réunion pédagogique fictive — les personnages sont des lentilles interprétatives, pas des sources primaires. Aucune recherche web effectuée.

**Slug :** <slug ou standalone>
**Sujet :** <question débattue>
**Panel :** <noms>
**Mode :** informé | strict | spéculatif
**Date :** <YYYY-MM-DD>

## Panel
<persona cards>

## Session <YYYY-MM-DD>
**<Hôte> :** ...
**<Figure> :** ...
**Toi :** ...
...

## Synthèse — <YYYY-MM-DD>
...

Resume: if council.md already exists with a ## Session marker, one AskUserQuestion (title Table ronde — Reprise): continue (append new ## Session <date>, re-read panel cards + last 3 turns), restart (archive as council-<date>-archived.md), or cancel.

Escape hatches

Self-check before close

• Meeting ran live — user spoke at least once (unless « sans moi »)
• Each figure introduced themselves at the opening (who, era, why at this table) — never assume the user knows them
• Never more than 3 figure turns between user turns
• Real disagreement surfaced and named in the synthesis
• Figure turns ≤4 sentences, distinct voices, no invented quotes in quotation marks
• Fiction disclaimer in artifact header
• council.md contains panel cards + transcript + synthesis
• learnings.jsonl appended on close
• brief.md untouched (council is advisory)