From cortex
Start a brainstorming session to explore ideas before committing to a plan. Use when the solution isn't clear, there are multiple approaches, or you need to explore trade-offs.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/cortex:brainstorm <title><title>This skill is limited to the following tools:
The summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
This skill starts an **interactive brainstorming session** to explore ideas before committing to implementation.
This skill starts an interactive brainstorming session to explore ideas before committing to implementation.
$ARGUMENTS
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="create", title="$ARGUMENTS", description="Exploring approaches for: $ARGUMENTS")
This returns a brainstorm ID (BS-N).
Help the user explore by:
Suggesting initial ideas based on the title
Adding ideas as the user discusses options:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="add_idea", id="BS-N", content="Idea description")
Adding pros/cons to each idea:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="add_idea", id="BS-N", content="OAuth2", pros=["Industry standard", "Delegated auth"], cons=["Complex setup", "External dependency"])
Voting on ideas as preferences emerge:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="vote_idea", idea_id="<id>", vote=1) # +1 or -1
Selecting the winning ideas:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="select_idea", idea_id="<id>", selected=true)
As the user makes decisions, record them:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="add_decision", id="BS-N", decision="We will use OAuth2 with Google provider")
If external resources are discussed:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="add_ref", id="BS-N", url="https://...", title="OAuth2 Best Practices")
When the user is ready to move forward:
mcp__cortex__brainstorm(action="to_plan", id="BS-N")
This creates a Plan (PL-N) with:
User: /brainstorm Authentication system
Claude: Creates BS-1 "Authentication system"
Suggests ideas: OAuth2, JWT, Session-based, Passwordless
User: I like OAuth2 and JWT, what are the trade-offs?
Claude: Adds pros/cons to both ideas
OAuth2: + delegated, + secure | - complex, - external
JWT: + stateless, + scalable | - token size, - no revocation
User: Let's go with OAuth2 for external users, JWT for API
Claude: Votes +1 on OAuth2 and JWT
Selects both as winning ideas
Adds decision: "Hybrid approach: OAuth2 for web, JWT for API"
User: Ok, let's plan this out
Claude: Converts BS-1 to PL-1
Shows plan with approach and decisions
This skill is interactive - engage with the user to:
After brainstorm, the user can:
/plan BS-N - Continue editing the generated plancx add "Task" --type feature - Create tasks from the plan/implement CX-N - Implement the tasksnpx claudepluginhub jsvitolo/cortex-plugins --plugin cortexCreates bite-sized, testable implementation plans from specs or requirements, with file structure and task decomposition. Activates before coding multi-step tasks.