C3 Architecture Assistant

REQUIRED: Load References

Before proceeding, use Glob to find and Read these files:

1. **/references/skill-harness.md – Red flags and complexity rules
2. **/references/layer-navigation.md – How to traverse C3 docs

Intent Recognition & Routing

This skill is the primary entry point for C3 tasks. Route based on intent:

When unclear: Ask “Do you want to explore (query), design only (provision), change and implement (alter), manage patterns (ref), or audit?”

Mode: Adopt

Route to /onboard skill for the full staged learning loop.

Mode: Audit

REQUIRED: Load **/references/audit-checks.md for full procedure.

Checks: Inventory vs code, categorization, reference validity, diagrams, ADR lifecycle, abstraction boundaries, content separation, context files

Content Separation Check (Phase 9):

• Verifies components contain domain logic, refs contain usage patterns
• Uses c3-skill:c3-content-classifier agent for LLM-based analysis
• Detects: missing refs for technologies, integration patterns in components, duplicated patterns

Context Files Check (Phase 10):

• Verifies CLAUDE.md files exist in Code Reference directories
• Checks c3-generated blocks are current (match component/refs)
• Detects: missing CLAUDE.md, stale blocks, orphaned blocks
• Resolution: Run /c3 apply to generate/update files

Example:

User: "Check if C3 docs are up to date"

1. Load audit-checks.md
2. Run Phase 1: Gather (list containers, components, ADRs)
3. Run Phase 2-10: Validate each check
4. Output audit report with PASS/FAIL/WARN per check
5. List actionable fixes for any failures

Proactive Pattern Awareness

C3 provides ambient pattern awareness through CLAUDE.md files in code directories:

Why CLAUDE.md over hooks:

• Hooks fire too late (PreToolUse on Edit/Write happens after Claude decides what to change)
• Subagents don’t receive SessionStart context
• CLAUDE.md loads at session start for all agents

Legacy hooks (still available but less reliable):

Mode: Apply

Trigger: User says “apply”, “generate context”, “propagate context”, “create CLAUDE.md”

Generates CLAUDE.md files in directories listed in component Code References.

/c3 apply [--dry-run]

1. Scan .c3/c3-*/c3-*.md for Code References sections
2. For each referenced directory:
   - Create CLAUDE.md if missing
   - Update c3-generated block if stale
   - Preserve user content outside block
3. Report: created, updated, skipped counts
4. Files left unstaged for user review

CLAUDE.md template:

<!-- c3-generated: c3-201 -->
# c3-201: Component Title

Before modifying this code, read:
- Component: `.c3/c3-2-api/c3-201.md`
- Patterns: `ref-error-handling`, `ref-logging`

Full refs: `.c3/refs/ref-{name}.md`
<!-- end-c3-generated -->

Workflow:

1. Run /c3 audit to see what’s missing (Phase 10)
2. Run /c3 apply to generate files
3. Review and commit generated files