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consulting-design-skill skill

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This skill helps you explore architecture options, trade-offs, and creative design ideas by consulting Gemini AI for diverse perspectives.

npx playbooks add skill julianobarbosa/claude-code-skills --skill consulting-design-skill

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---
name: consulting-design
description: Consult Gemini AI for architecture alternatives, design trade-offs, and brainstorming. Use when seeking different perspectives on design, evaluating architectural approaches, comparing solutions, or generating creative ideas.
allowed-tools: Read, Grep, Glob, mcp__gemini__ask-gemini, mcp__gemini__brainstorm
---

# Design Consultation with Gemini

## Tools

| Tool                      | Use For                                     |
| ------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- |
| `mcp__gemini__ask-gemini` | Architecture, design review, trade-offs     |
| `mcp__gemini__brainstorm` | Generating alternatives, creative solutions |

## ask-gemini

```json
{
  "prompt": "I'm designing [system]. Current approach: [desc]. Trade-offs and alternatives?",
  "model": "gemini-2.5-pro"
}
```

Options: `changeMode: true` for structured edits, `sandbox: true` for code execution

## brainstorm

```json
{
  "prompt": "How might we [challenge]?",
  "domain": "software",
  "methodology": "auto",
  "ideaCount": 10
}
```

Methodologies: `divergent`, `convergent`, `scamper`, `design-thinking`, `lateral`, `auto`

Overview

This skill connects you to Gemini for architecture alternatives, design trade-offs, and creative brainstorming. It helps teams evaluate approaches, compare solutions, and generate fresh ideas for system and product design. Use it to get structured feedback or many rapid alternatives when exploring design space.

How this skill works

Use the ask-gemini tool to present a system, current approach, and request trade-offs and alternatives; options include changeMode for structured edits and sandbox for executable prototypes. Use the brainstorm tool to generate multiple ideas with selectable methodologies (divergent, convergent, SCAMPER, design-thinking, lateral, auto) and control idea count. Responses focus on architectural pros/cons, risk, cost, performance, and actionable next steps.

When to use it

Comparing multiple architecture patterns before committing to one
Evaluating trade-offs like latency vs. cost, complexity vs. maintainability
Generating alternatives when the current design stalls or hits constraints
Preparing for design reviews or stakeholder discussions
Running structured ideation sessions to expand solution space

Best practices

Provide a concise system description, goals, constraints, and current approach
Ask for explicit trade-offs and ranking criteria (cost, latency, security, ops)
Use changeMode for iterative, structured edits and sandbox when you need runnable prototypes
Run brainstorm with a targeted methodology to shape idea diversity and depth
Iterate: combine ask-gemini outputs with focused brainstorm prompts for refinement

Example use cases

Choosing between microservices, modular monolith, and serverless for a new product
Assessing data partitioning strategies and their impact on consistency and latency
Brainstorming feature implementation patterns to minimize operational burden
Exploring fallback and retry strategies for high-availability systems
Rapidly generating alternatives for a constrained mobile/edge deployment

FAQ

What information should I include in the prompt?

Include the system name, primary goals, constraints (budget, latency, compliance), and a clear description of the current approach.

When should I use brainstorm vs. ask-gemini?

Use ask-gemini for analytical review, trade-offs, and structured alternatives. Use brainstorm to generate many creative options or when you want diverse ideation methodologies.