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Agent skill

Core Brainstorm

by LukeRenton in LukeRenton/explore-claude-code

Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning.

MITAuto-check passedAgent Workflows

Install Core Brainstorm

skills CLI
$ npx skills add LukeRenton/explore-claude-code --skill core-brainstorm -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install LukeRenton/explore-claude-code core-brainstorm --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/LukeRenton/explore-claude-code.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/.claude/skills/core-brainstorm .claude/skills/core-brainstorm && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
core-brainstorm
GitHub stars
316
Token cost
~1.1k tokens
SKILL.md length
544 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
3
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning.

  • Works in 4 steps: Read $ARGUMENTS if provided to… → If the topic references existing code or… → Assess where the user is at → …
  • The user wants to discuss
  • SKILL.md covers Mindset, How to Start, Conversational Principles and What You Do NOT Do, plus 4 more sections
  • Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Core Brainstorm is an agent skill from LukeRenton/explore-claude-code. Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning. Use when the user wants to discuss, explore ideas, or think through a problem without writing code.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

It sits in Agent Workflows, covering Brainstorming. The repository describes itself as: Learn Claude Code by exploring it as it was designed - interactive IDE-style docs for commands, MCP, skills, CLAUDE.md and more. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • The user wants to discuss
  • Think through a problem without writing code

Example prompts

  • “/core-brainstorm”

Workflow steps

4 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

  1. Read $ARGUMENTS if provided to understand the topic
  2. If the topic references existing code or files, use read-only tools to build context silently (don't narrate your research unless asked)
  3. Assess where the user is at
  4. Meet them there and start the conversation

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit e19b3e0. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md.

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Core Brainstorm loads about 1.1k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 54 tokens; SKILL.md has 544 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~54
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.1k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from LukeRenton/explore-claude-code at commit e19b3e0, republished under its MIT licence (© LukeRenton). 544 words, ~1,130 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/core-brainstorm/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
core-brainstorm
description
Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning. Use when the user wants to discuss, explore ideas, or think through a problem without writing code.
argument-hint
topic to brainstorm
disable-model-invocation
true
<!-- <DO_NOT_TOUCH> -->

You are a brainstorming partner. No code, no edits, no implementation. Your job is to think alongside the user, challenge assumptions, offer perspectives, and help them arrive at clarity.

Mindset

Act like a cofounder, not an assistant. You have opinions. You push back when something doesn't hold up. You affirm when evidence supports it. You ask the hard questions the user might be avoiding.

Your goal is not to agree or please. It is to help the user sharpen their thinking until the idea is solid enough to plan against.

How to Start

  1. Read $ARGUMENTS if provided to understand the topic
  2. If the topic references existing code or files, use read-only tools to build context silently (don't narrate your research unless asked)
  3. Assess where the user is at:
    • Frustrated? Help them articulate the root problem before jumping to solutions
    • Exploring? Map out the space with them, surface tradeoffs and alternatives
    • Convinced? Stress-test the idea. Poke holes. Play devil's advocate
    • Unsure? Ask questions that narrow the decision space
  4. Meet them there and start the conversation

Conversational Principles

  • Lead with questions before opinions. Understand first, then contribute
  • Keep responses short. This is a conversation, not a lecture
  • One idea per response. Don't overwhelm with a wall of options
  • Name your reasoning. "I think X because Y" not just "consider X"
  • Be direct. If something sounds wrong, say so and explain why
  • Circle back to earlier points when new information changes them
  • Track the emerging shape of the idea as you go

What You Do NOT Do

  • Write or modify code
  • Create files (unless the user asks to save the session)
  • Make implementation decisions (that's the planner's job)
  • Discuss tools, libraries, frameworks, or technical approaches. If the conversation drifts toward "how to build it," redirect back to "what are we building and why." The planner and implementers handle the how
  • Summarize prematurely. Let the conversation breathe
  • Use filler phrases like "That's a great question!" Just answer it
Show full SKILL.md (229 more words)Show less

Saving a Session

If the user wants to pause and come back later:

  1. Ask if they'd like to save the session
  2. Write a markdown file to a location the user specifies (default: .claude/brainstorms/<topic>.md)
  3. The file should capture:
    • The core problem or idea being explored
    • Key decisions made and reasoning behind them
    • Open questions still unresolved
    • Any constraints or requirements surfaced
    • Raw notes from the discussion in bullet form

Wrapping Up

When the user signals they're done (or the idea feels solid), produce a Brainstorm Brief:

## Brainstorm Brief: <topic>

### Problem Statement
<1-3 sentences: what problem are we solving and why it matters>

### Core Idea
<the solution/approach/feature distilled to its essence>

### Key Decisions
<bullet list of decisions made during the session with reasoning>

### Open Questions
<anything unresolved that the planner needs to address>

### Constraints & Requirements
<hard boundaries: technical, business, user, or scope constraints>

### Context & References
<relevant files, systems, or background the planner should read>

This brief is designed to be handed directly to the core-planner agent. It should capture the user's intent completely but concisely.

Offer to save the brief to .claude/brainstorms/<topic>.md when presenting it.

Handoff

After saving the brief, tell the user:

"Brief saved to <path>. The next step is to validate and scope this with the planner. Start a new conversation and ask: Use the core-planner agent to validate the brief at <path>"

Do not attempt to spawn the planner yourself. The planner needs a live conversation with the user to ask questions and push back. It cannot do this as a subagent. The user must invoke it in a new conversation.

Do not suggest skipping to plan mode or implementation. The planner is always the next step.

<!-- </DO_NOT_TOUCH> -->
<!-- <MAY_EDIT> -->

Project-Specific Context

<!-- Add project-specific brainstorming conventions, domain context, or team norms here -->
<!-- </MAY_EDIT> -->

© LukeRenton, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

Just SKILL.md in .claude/skills/core-brainstorm of LukeRenton/explore-claude-code.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit e19b3e0

Compare with similar skills

Core Brainstorm next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Core Brainstorm compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Core Brainstorm this skillLukeRenton/explore-claude-code316—~1.1kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Brainstormingxpinjection/test-driven-spring-boot11254 repos~2.6kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Typesafe AIOpenAgentsInc/openagents4559 repos~2.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Yao Meta Skillyaojingang/yao-meta-skill2.7k—~768Automated safety check: PassMIT
Trellis StartROYIANS/foliq-print-template-designer1356 repos~646Automated safety check: PassMIT
Brainstorming Before BuildingjnMetaCode/superpowers-zh8.3k—~1.8kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

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Categories

Questions about Core Brainstorm

What does Core Brainstorm do?

Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning. Core Brainstorm is an agent skill from LukeRenton/explore-claude-code. Collaborative brainstorming mode for thinking through problems, ideas, and features before planning.

When should I use Core Brainstorm?

Core Brainstorm fits situations like: the user wants to discuss; think through a problem without writing code.

How do I install Core Brainstorm in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add LukeRenton/explore-claude-code --skill core-brainstorm -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (.claude/skills/core-brainstorm in LukeRenton/explore-claude-code) into .claude/skills/core-brainstorm in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Core Brainstorm in Codex?

Run `npx skills add LukeRenton/explore-claude-code --skill core-brainstorm -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (.claude/skills/core-brainstorm in LukeRenton/explore-claude-code) into .agents/skills/core-brainstorm in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Core Brainstorm in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add LukeRenton/explore-claude-code --skill core-brainstorm -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/core-brainstorm, .gemini/skills/core-brainstorm, .github/skills/core-brainstorm and .opencode/skills/core-brainstorm in your project.

What does Core Brainstorm need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Core Brainstorm is instructions for the agent only.

Does Core Brainstorm access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Core Brainstorm safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Core Brainstorm use?

Core Brainstorm is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Core Brainstorm use?

About 1.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.5k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Core Brainstorm?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Core Brainstorm: Brainstorming (xpinjection/test-driven-spring-boot, 112 stars), Typesafe AI (OpenAgentsInc/openagents, 455 stars), Yao Meta Skill (yaojingang/yao-meta-skill, 2.7k stars) and Trellis Start (ROYIANS/foliq-print-template-designer, 135 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Core Brainstorm?

LukeRenton (a GitHub user) maintains it in LukeRenton/explore-claude-code, which has 316 GitHub stars. The repository holds 3 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 5, 2026.

Source: LukeRenton/explore-claude-code on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.