# Brain+

> Invoke BEFORE any design or feature work. Wraps superpowers:brainstorming with scout agent context harvesting, signal-first design considerations, opt-in agent-loop trajectory elicitation, and constitutional rule awareness. Asks questions one at a time to refine the design.

- **Type:** Skill
- **Install:** `agentstack add skill-franklywatson-claude-rig-brain-plus`
- **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior
- **Seller:** [franklywatson](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/franklywatson)
- **Installs:** 0
- **Category:** [AI & ML](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/ai-and-ml)
- **Latest version:** 0.1.0
- **License:** MIT
- **Upstream author:** [franklywatson](https://github.com/franklywatson)
- **Source:** https://github.com/franklywatson/claude-rig/tree/master/templates/skills/brain-plus

## Install

```sh
agentstack add skill-franklywatson-claude-rig-brain-plus
```

Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent.

## About

# brain+ — Context-Aware Design

Wraps `superpowers:brainstorming`. Requires superpowers to be installed.

## Before You Begin

Invoke this skill BEFORE starting any design work. It adds three capabilities on top of the base brainstorming skill:

1. **Scout context** — automatically harvests codebase context
2. **Signal-first design** — considers which layers of the signal stack the feature touches, plus Docker/test infrastructure and full-loop verification (see `references/agent-loops.md`)
3. **Constitutional awareness** — loads active enforcement rules from session context

## Procedure

### Phase A: Harvest Context

1. Invoke the scout agent to map the current codebase:

   ```
   Agent(subagent_type="scout", prompt="Map the codebase structure for [feature area]. Focus on: existing patterns, related modules, test infrastructure, and entry points relevant to [feature].")
   ```

2. Read the project's CLAUDE.md for project-specific rules.

3. Identify:
   - Existing patterns this feature should follow
   - Test infrastructure available (vitest, pytest, stack tests)
   - Modules that will be affected
   - Active enforcement rules from session context (see session-start output; real dependencies in stack/E2E tests by default)

### Phase B: Design (delegate to superpowers:brainstorming)

1. Invoke `superpowers:brainstorming` with the enriched context.

2. During brainstorming, add these signal-first considerations:
   - Which layers of the signal stack does this feature touch? (see `references/agent-loops.md` — deterministic logic, external contract, evaluation quality, integration, telemetry)
   - What instrumentation do those layers need? (Docker services, test harnesses, probes)
   - What are the full-loop assertions? (primary + second-order + third-order effects)
   - What test utilities need to exist before implementation?
   - Which components are protected from mocking (see active enforcement rules)?

3. Use positive framing in all design guidance:
   - "Use real database connections in tests" (not "don't mock the database")
   - "Write assertions that verify observable behavior" (not "don't test implementation details")
   - "Show command output before claiming done" (not "don't say tests pass without evidence")

4. **Loop-fit assessment** (within your own reasoning — do not ask unless fit
   signals are present). Check the emerging design against the fit guidance in
   `references/agent-loops.md`: headless/scheduled operation, external API
   contracts, model/evaluation components, long-lived operation. One-off
   scripts, interactive UI apps, and libraries do not fit — skip silently.

   If fit signals are present, ask the user **once**:

   > "This project fits the agent-loop pattern (headless operation / external
   > contracts / model components). Want the design to include a signal stack
   > and a maintainer trajectory? See `references/agent-loops.md` for what
   > that adds. Opting out costs nothing."

   If declined, do not re-ask this session. If accepted, walk the layering
   for this project: which layers apply, what signal each emits, where the
   primary/loop boundary sits, the autonomy ceiling, and the maintainer
   cadence — capture all of it in the design.

### Phase C: Validate

1. Confirm the design addresses:
   - [ ] Feature purpose and scope
   - [ ] Affected modules identified
   - [ ] Testing strategy defined
   - [ ] Active enforcement rules acknowledged (see session-start output)
   - [ ] Protected components identified per enforcement rules (real dependencies in stack/E2E tests; mocks appropriate in unit tests)
   - [ ] Integration-layer (stack test) user journey defined (if applicable)
   - [ ] **If loop trajectory opted in:** signal stack defined for each applicable layer (signal + failure meaning);
     primary system operable with the loop disabled; autonomy ceiling and orchestrator-owned gates stated

## Output

Return the validated design with testing strategy to feed into `plan+`.

## Skill Chain

After completing brain+, the next step is:

- Invoke `/plan+` to create the implementation plan from this design

## Completion

Report one of these states when the skill finishes:

- **DONE** — Design validated, ready for `/plan+`. All checklist items in Phase C confirmed.
- **DONE_WITH_CONCERNS** — Design complete but has open questions or risks to address in planning.
- **BLOCKED** — Cannot proceed (missing context, unclear requirements, external dependency).
- **NEEDS_CONTEXT** — Need user input to resolve an ambiguity or make a design decision.

## Source & license

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

- **Author:** [franklywatson](https://github.com/franklywatson)
- **Source:** [franklywatson/claude-rig](https://github.com/franklywatson/claude-rig)
- **License:** MIT

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

## Pricing

- **Free** — Free

## Security capabilities

Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access:

- **Network access:** no
- **Filesystem access:** no
- **Shell / process execution:** no
- **Environment & secrets:** no
- **Dynamic code execution:** no

*"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.*


## Versions

- **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source.

## Links

- Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-franklywatson-claude-rig-brain-plus
- Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/franklywatson
- Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse

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