sketch-with-questions

sketch-with-questions is a command for Claude Code, Cursor from codeready-toolchain/tarsy. It costs 0 tokens per session (1,036 once invoked), scanned A, original, Apache-2.0.

A guided planning mode for ideas that are not yet defined well enough for detailed design. It creates a high-level technical sketch and a questions document, then works through the questions one at a time.

In plain words
What is it for?
Use it to explore a feature, inspect the codebase and existing proposals, record an initial sketch, and resolve open questions.
Why use it?
It helps turn an uncertain feature idea into a clearer proposal before making detailed architecture or implementation plans. It also requires understanding the existing code and related documentation first.

Command for Claude CodeCursor

Written for Cursor and Claude Code: installed under .cursor/, but also a Claude Code command (commands/*.md).

Good fit Use it to explore a feature, inspect the codebase and existing proposals, record an initial sketch, and resolve open questions.

Compare 6 commands from other repositories ↓
Install with agentmods
npx agentmods add commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions
Install

Getting it into your agent

One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.

Clone the repo
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/codeready-toolchain/tarsy

Made for: Claude Code, Cursor.

Wrote this? Show the measurements

A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.

agentmods badge for sketch-with-questions

README.md
[![agentmods](https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions/github.svg)](https://agentmods.dev/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions)
Your own site
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions/github.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>

Or the 80×15 button, for a site that already has a row of RSS and ATOM ones. Only the verdict fits; the numbers stay here.

agentmods 80×15 button for sketch-with-questions

Your own site · 80×15
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/codeready-toolchain/tarsy/sketch-with-questions.svg" alt="Reviewed on agentmods" width="80" height="20"></a>
Per session 0 Only the description is in the session, so the agent can decide to use it. The body loads when it is invoked.
When invoked 1,036 The whole file, excluding the scripts and references it only reads on demand.
Security scan A 0 findings. A grade says what 26 rules found in the file — not that it is safe.
Origin original No closer match found in the catalogue.
Token cost

What it costs to keep this loaded

Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.

ModelPer sessionOnce invoked
Fable 5.1 $0.00000 $0.01036
Opus 5 $0.00000 $0.00518
Sonnet 5 $0.00000 $0.00207
Haiku 4.5 $0.00000 $0.00104

Measured 10d ago against content hash 93a01986d11a, method: parsed. Prices are Anthropic first-party input rates as of 2026-09-10, from the pricing page.

Security

Grade A, and why

sketch-with-questions scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 10d ago.

A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.

Nothing flagged

None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.

.cursor/commands/sketch-with-questions.md · 116 lines

How it starts

The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 116 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.

/sketch-with-questions

You are in sketch mode. The feature or idea is not yet well-defined enough for a detailed design. Your job is to produce a high-level technical sketch and a questions document, then walk through the questions one at a time to form the sketch. Do not attempt detailed architecture, implementation plans, or interface definitions — those belong in a /design-with-questions session.


Before you start

Do a thorough analysis before generating anything. You need to understand the existing system well enough to place this feature in context.

  • Explore the codebase: understand the overall structure, relevant components, and how related features currently work
  • Read existing documentation in docs/ — especially any sketches, designs, or proposals that relate to this feature
  • If the feature involves external technologies, libraries, or patterns you're not confident about, research them first

Only start generating documents once you have enough context to do so accurately.


Phase 1: Generate two documents

1. docs/proposals/{name}-sketch.md — Sketch Document

A high-level technical description of the feature. Structure it however best fits the idea — not every feature is alike, and a rigid template can get in the way. Use judgment.

The document should always include:

  • Status header: Draft — sketch in progress, see [{name}-questions.md]({name}-questions.md)
  • A clear explanation of what this is and what problem it solves
  • How it relates to the existing system
  • Key concepts and rough behavior
  • What is out of scope
  • Open question markers cross-referencing the questions doc

Beyond that, choose sections that make sense for this specific feature. Use diagrams where they add clarity. Keep it high-level — no detailed architecture, implementation plans, or interface definitions. Those come later.

For uncertain areas, add an inline marker:

> **Open question:** {brief description} — see [questions document]({name}-questions.md), Q{N}.

Read the full file on GitHub · 116 lines

Changes

What this file has done since we first saw it

Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.

  1. 10d ago First seen · 116 lines · 0 tokens per session scan A 93a01986d11a

Subscribe to this mod's changes

sketch-with-questions is a command published in the GitHub repository codeready-toolchain/tarsy (10 stars, last pushed today), licensed Apache-2.0. It costs nothing until one of its globs matches a file; then it loads 1,036 tokens. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-31.