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workflow-discuss-mode.md

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Discuss Mode: Assumptions vs Interview

GSD's discuss-phase has two modes for gathering implementation context before planning.

Modes

discuss (default)

The original interview-style flow. Claude identifies gray areas in the phase, presents them for selection, then asks ~4 questions per area. Good for:

  • Early phases where the codebase is new
  • Phases where the user has strong opinions they want to express proactively
  • Users who prefer guided, conversational context gathering

assumptions

A codebase-first flow. Claude deeply analyzes the codebase via a subagent (reading 5-15 relevant files), forms assumptions with evidence, and presents them for confirmation or correction. Good for:

  • Established codebases with clear patterns
  • Users who find the interview questions obvious
  • Faster context gathering (~2-4 interactions vs ~15-20)

Configuration

# Enable assumptions mode
gsd-tools config-set workflow.discuss_mode assumptions

# Switch back to interview mode
gsd-tools config-set workflow.discuss_mode discuss

The setting is per-project (stored in .planning/config.json).

How Assumptions Mode Works

  1. Init — Same as discuss mode (load prior context, scout codebase, check todos)
  2. Deep analysis — Explore subagent reads 5-15 codebase files related to the phase
  3. Surface assumptions — Each assumption includes:
    • What Claude would do and why (citing file paths)
    • What goes wrong if the assumption is incorrect
    • Confidence level (Confident / Likely / Unclear)
  4. Confirm or correct — User reviews assumptions, selects any that need changing
  5. Write CONTEXT.md — Identical output format to discuss mode

Flag Compatibility

Flag discuss mode assumptions mode
--auto Auto-selects recommended answers Skips confirm gate, auto-resolves Unclear items
--batch Groups questions in batches N/A (corrections already batched)
--text Plain-text questions (remote sessions) Plain-text questions (remote sessions)
--analyze Shows trade-off tables per question N/A (assumptions include evidence)

Output

Both modes produce identical CONTEXT.md with the same 6 sections:

  • <domain> — Phase boundary
  • <decisions> — Locked implementation decisions
  • <canonical_refs> — Specs/docs downstream agents must read
  • <code_context> — Reusable assets, patterns, integration points
  • <specifics> — User references and preferences
  • <deferred> — Ideas noted for future phases

Downstream agents (researcher, planner, checker) consume this identically regardless of mode.