investigate

# /investigate — answer the question, then stop Two failure modes bracket codebase investigation. One is stopping too early and answering from a plausible guess. The other is "look into the codebase" with no boundary, reading three hundred files and filling the context before any work starts. This skill fixes both ends: a **declared scope contract** before reading anything, and a **numeric budget** that ends the search whether or not the answer is complete. **This skill never modifies anything.** It reads and reports. ## Preconditions | Condition | If unmet | |---|---| | There is a specific question to answer | **Stop.** "Investigate the auth module" is not a question. Ask what decision the answer serves — that determines when to stop. | ## Position in the workflow | Upstream | This skill | Downstream | |---|---|---| | a question, or the start of planning | `/investigate` | `/grill-me`, `/writing-plans`, `/design-review` | ## Files to read ### Always read | File | Why | |---|---| | `${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/reference/evidence-rules.md` | How to report what you found, and what you did not | ### Read only if | File | Trigger condition | |---|---| | `CLAUDE.md`, `AGENTS.md` | When the question concerns project convention rather than mechanism | --- ## Step 1. Declare the scope contract — before reading anything State, and show the user: - **The question**, restated precisely. - **The decision it serves.** This is what tells you when you have enough. "Where is tenant f...