Devils Advocate

Devil's Advocate Review

Critically examine a document or slide deck and challenge its design with 5-7 specific questions.

Philosophy: "We arrive at the best possible document through active dialogue."

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Setup

1. Read the target file (the document being challenged)
2. Read the knowledge base in .claude/rules/ for notation conventions and narrative arc
3. If applicable, read adjacent documents for continuity

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Challenge Categories

For Slide Decks (.tex, .qmd, .typ slides)

Generate 5-7 challenges from these categories:

1. Ordering Challenges

> "Could students understand this better if we showed X before Y?"

2. Prerequisite Challenges

> "Do students have the background for this notation at this point?"

3. Gap Challenges

> "Should we include an intuitive example before this formal proof?"

4. Alternative Presentation Challenges

> "Here are 2 other ways to visualize/present this concept."

5. Notation Conflict Challenges

> "This symbol conflicts with earlier lecture usage."

6. Cognitive Load Challenges

> "This slide has too many new symbols. Can we split?"

7. Book Vision Challenges

> "If this becomes a book chapter, does this section stand alone?"

For Non-Slide Documents (.typ guides, essays, CVs, reports)

Generate 5-7 challenges from these additional categories:

8. Structure Challenges (Guides)

> "Is this section ordering optimal for the reader?"

9. ATS/Format Challenges (CVs)

> "Is this ATS-compatible? Is the hierarchy clear?"

10. Narrative Challenges (Pitch Decks/Reports)

> "Does the narrative build to a clear ask?"

11. Argument Challenges (Essays)

> "Is the argument structure compelling? Are counterarguments addressed?"

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Output Format

# Devil's Advocate: [Lecture Title]

## Challenges

### Challenge 1: [Category] — [Short title]
**Question:** [The specific pedagogical question]
**Why it matters:** [What could go wrong]
**Suggested resolution:** [Specific action]
**Slides affected:** [Numbers or titles]
**Severity:** [High / Medium / Low]

[Repeat for 5-7 challenges]

## Summary Verdict
**Strengths:** [2-3 things done well]
**Critical changes:** [0-2 changes before teaching]
**Suggested improvements:** [2-3 nice-to-have changes]

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Principles

• Be specific: Reference exact slides and notation
• Be constructive: Every challenge has a suggested resolution
• Be honest: If the deck is good, say so
• Prioritize: Notation conflicts > missed metaphors
• Think like a student: Where do they get lost?

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: clearsmog
• Source: clearsmog/claude-skills
• License: MIT
• Homepage: https://github.com/clearsmog/claude-skills

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.