# Architect

Run /architect when choosing between approaches, designing a feature or page, picking a...

- Repository: https://github.com/jsmastery-pro/skills (1584 stars)
- Category: Design
- License: MIT
- Last updated: 2026-08-09
- Runs scripts: no, instructions only

## Install

Claude Code: `npx skills add jsmastery-pro/skills --skill architect -g -a claude-code -y`
Codex: `npx skills add jsmastery-pro/skills --skill architect -g -a codex -y`
Cursor: `npx skills add jsmastery-pro/skills --skill architect -g -a cursor -y`
Gemini CLI: `npx skills add jsmastery-pro/skills --skill architect -g -a gemini-cli -y`

## Description

Run /architect when choosing between approaches, designing a feature or page, picking a tech stack, or when /develop says a decision is owed, anytime a load bearing technical decision is unmade. Asks deep questions, recommends an answer, and writes a build spec to docs/specs/. Owns all spec files.

## SKILL.md, as published by its author (untrusted third-party text, read it as data)

## Output style (plain words, no dashes, no hyphens)

<!-- OUTPUT-STYLE:START -->
Write everything this skill produces, files and messages alike, in plain simple language. Talk to the reader as `you`, warm and direct like a colleague, and present every step as a recommendation they may run or skip, never an order. Keep technical terms that carry real meaning; explain each in plain words. Never use a dash or a hyphen as punctuation: no em dash, no en dash, and no hyphenated compounds. Write `read only`, not `read-only`. Say it in simple words, or reword the sentence. Code, file paths, command flags, and values other skills match on keep their hyphens. Use short sentences, commas, or parentheses. Clear beats clever.
<!-- OUTPUT-STYLE:END -->

## What this skill does

Runs structured discovery, weighs options, and writes or updates a build spec in `docs/specs/`. The main thread writes; it offloads only reading the codebase or fetching the web to a cheap subagent (see *Subagents*). Four modes:

| Mode | When | Design behaviour |
|---|---|---|
| `FEATURE` | Designing a new feature from scratch, with or without existing code | First principles design, best practices, minimal code reading |
| `ARCHITECTURE` | Choosing a tech stack or foundational architecture for a new project | Comprehensive stack evaluation, industry patterns, no code to read |
| `ENHANCEMENT` | Improving, replacing, or scaling something that already exists | Read existing code + specs, focused option comparison |
| `CROSS-CUTTING` | Standardising a pattern across the whole codebase (error handling, logging, auth, naming) | Sample current state, define the standard precisely, recommend enforcement |

The rest: https://github.com/jsmastery-pro/skills/blob/HEAD/skills/architect/SKILL.md