architect

Use a phased workflow: ground yourself in the existing system, sketch types and signatures with placeholder bodies, synthesize the best design from multiple candidates, then implement against the sketch. The architect skill automates this loop and treats deviations from the sketch as signals to revisit the design.

Generate at least two structurally distinct candidates using parallel model runners, then screen each against design red flags like shallow modules, information leakage, and pass-through methods. Compare survivors on interface depth, preferring the design that hides more complexity behind a smaller public surface.

Scrap when you see a repeated pattern of friction, not isolated hard cases: the same workaround shape across unrelated code, types needing escape hatches like casts or any, or callers forced to know internal rules. Re-ground in what the implementation taught you, then redesign from first principles.

No, human checkpoints are opt-in. By default it proceeds directly from the synthesized design to implementation. You can request a checkpoint by asking to stop and review the design before coding begins.

The grounding phase can be skipped only for genuinely greenfield work, so integrating with unfamiliar systems adds upfront tracing effort. The workflow also depends on multiple configured model runners for candidate generation, and single-runner setups lose the design-space exploration benefit.