# elicit

Runs a structured discovery session and turns the conversation into an Allium specification. Useful when a system or feature is not written down yet.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 2700 installs · ★ 521
- Author: juxt
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/juxt/allium/tree/HEAD/skills/elicit/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-09-27
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/elicit

## What it does

The skill asks questions one at a time and keeps track of the spec boundary. First it works out what belongs in the document and what does not. Then it helps pick the level of abstraction: where to stay concrete, where to generalise. Each detail gets checked — why the stakeholder cares, whether it could be built differently, whether it is a template or a specific instance.

Two references ship with it: `references/process-discovery.md` for process work and `references/detail-elicitation.md` for rules and surfaces. The skill reads the opening prompt and decides where to start. If someone describes a flow, it goes through process discovery. If they name entities like Order straight away, it moves to scope and detail.

The output is a `.allium` file with the version marker `-- allium: N` on the first line. The skill suggests splitting off anything that drags in other areas: authentication, payments, reporting. When code already exists, the session runs differently — the existing implementation limits what is realistic to specify.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add juxt/allium --skill elicit -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/elicit/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/elicit/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add juxt/allium --skill elicit -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/elicit/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add juxt/allium --skill elicit -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/elicit/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install juxt/allium elicit
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/elicit/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add juxt/allium --skill elicit -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/juxt/allium --path skills/elicit
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/elicit/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add juxt/allium --skill elicit -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/juxt/allium/tree/HEAD/skills/elicit/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- gather requirements for a new feature into one document
- separate domain decisions from implementation details
- fix the spec boundary and move the rest out
- describe system behaviour before coding starts
- read existing code and pull the rules out of it

## Example prompts
- Help me spec the hiring system: candidates, screening, interviews, decision
- I need a spec for an Order entity with states and transitions
- Let's run a discovery session on the notifications module

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 8c87a72a335d592d.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 8c87a72a335d592d
````text
---
name: elicit
description: "Run a structured discovery session to build an Allium specification through conversation. Use when the user wants to create a new spec from scratch, elicit or gather requirements, capture domain behaviour, specify a feature or system, define what a system should do, or is describing functionality and needs help shaping it into a specification."
---

# Elicitation

This skill guides you through building Allium specifications by conversation. The goal is to surface ambiguities and produce a specification that captures what the software does without prescribing implementation.

## Scoping the specification

Before diving into details, establish what you are specifying. Not everything needs to be in one spec.

### Questions to ask first

**"What's the boundary of this specification?"** A complete system? A single feature area? One service in a larger system? Be explicit about what is in and out of scope.

**"Are there areas we should deliberately exclude?"** Third-party integrations might be library specs. Legacy features might not be worth specifying. Some features might belong in separate specs.

**"Is this a new system or does code already exist?"** If code exists, you are doing distillation with elicitation. Existing code constrains what is realistic to specify.

### Documenting scope decisions

Capture scope at the start of every spec:

```
-- allium: 3
-- interview-scheduling.allium

-- Scope: Interview scheduling for the hiring pipeline
-- Includes: Candidacy, Interview, Slot management, Invitations, Feedback
-- Excludes:
--   - Authentication (use oauth library spec)
--   - Payments (not applicable)
--   - Reporting dashboards (separate spec)
-- Dependencies: User entity defined in core.allium
```

The version marker (`-- allium: N`) must be the first line of every `.allium` file. Use the current language version number.

## Finding the right level of abstraction

Too concrete and you are specifying implementation. Too abstract and you are not saying anything useful.

### The "Why" test

For every detail, ask: "Why does the stakeholder care about this?"

| Detail | Why? | Include? |
|--------|------|----------|
| "Users log in with Google OAuth" | They need to authenticate | Maybe not, "Users authenticate" might be sufficient |
| "We support Google and Microsoft OAuth" | Users choose their provider | Yes, the choice is domain-level |
| "Sessions expire after 24 hours" | Security/UX decision | Yes, affects user experience |
| "Sessions are stored in Redis" | Performance | No, implementation detail |
| "Passwords must be 12+ characters" | Security policy | Yes, affects users |
| "Passwords are hashed with bcrypt" | Security implementation | No, how not what |

### The "Could it be different?" test

Ask: "Could this be implemented differently while still being the same system?"

- If yes, it is probably an implementation detail. Abstract it away.
````
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 8c87a72a335d592d

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