docs(agents): adopt grill-me + improve-codebase-architecture skills (mattpocock)

Two Tier 3 maintainer-only skills sourced from mattpocock/skills:

grill-me — pure interview pattern. Walk a design tree branch by branch,
recommend an answer per question, ask one at a time. 8-line skill, zero
cost when not invoked. Filled a gap visible in the codemap-audit plan
(this PR's first commit): I made many decisions by myself; grill-me would
have surfaced them for second opinion before they crystallised in the doc.

improve-codebase-architecture — Ousterhout-style deepening vocabulary
(module / interface / seam / adapter / depth / leverage / locality), the
deletion test, "one adapter = hypothetical seam, two = real," dependency
categories (DEEPENING.md), and parallel-sub-agent "Design It Twice"
interface exploration (INTERFACE-DESIGN.md). Translated CONTEXT.md /
docs/adr/ references → docs/glossary.md / docs/plans/ to fit codemap's
existing docs framework (per Rule 9 + Rule 3); ADR-offer flow dropped
since codemap lifts decisions from plans into architecture.md per Rule 2.
Companion files (LANGUAGE.md, DEEPENING.md, INTERFACE-DESIGN.md) are
verbatim — they don't reference CONTEXT.md / ADRs.

Both adopted as maintainer-only (under .agents/skills/ + .cursor/skills/
symlinks per agents-first-convention). Not added to templates/agents/
since that surface ships only the codemap rule + skill — same precedent
as PR #25 for audit-pr-architecture / docs-governance / etc.

agents-tier-system Tier 3 list updated with both skills + the existing
docs-governance and docs-lifecycle-sweep entries that were missing.

Composes with grill-me from improve-codebase-architecture's grilling-loop
step (deepening candidates get grilled, not auto-accepted). Skipped
grill-with-docs (the third skill in the upstream "grill" family) — it
requires standing up CONTEXT.md / docs/adr/ infrastructure that conflicts
with codemap's lift-to-architecture-then-delete-the-plan lifecycle.

Author: SutuSebastian

.agents/rules/agents-tier-system.md

@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ Today's Tier-2 rules:
 
 Pure intent-triggered. The skill description is detailed enough that Cursor surfaces it on relevant phrases. No always-on cost.
 
-Skills stay rule-less when the work is **explicitly invoked** by the user, not pattern-triggered (e.g. `audit-pr-architecture`, `docs-lifecycle-sweep` in this repo; `improve-codebase-architecture`, `gritql-codemods`, `ubiquitous-language` in larger codebases).
+Skills stay rule-less when the work is **explicitly invoked** by the user, not pattern-triggered. Today: `audit-pr-architecture`, `docs-governance`, `docs-lifecycle-sweep`, `grill-me`, `improve-codebase-architecture`. (Skills like `gritql-codemods` and `ubiquitous-language` would also fit this tier if adopted.)
 
 ## Authoring guidelines
 

.agents/skills/grill-me/SKILL.md

@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+---
+name: grill-me
+description: Interview the user relentlessly about a plan or design until reaching shared understanding, resolving each branch of the decision tree. Use when user wants to stress-test a plan, get grilled on their design, or mentions "grill me".
+---
+
+Interview me relentlessly about every aspect of this plan until we reach a shared understanding. Walk down each branch of the design tree, resolving dependencies between decisions one-by-one. For each question, provide your recommended answer.
+
+Ask the questions one at a time, waiting for feedback before continuing.
+
+If a question can be answered by exploring the codebase, explore the codebase instead. In this repo, that means querying [`codemap`](../codemap/SKILL.md) (the structural index) before reaching for `Grep` or `Read` — see the [`codemap` rule](../../rules/codemap.md).
+
+When agreement crystallises on a question that affects an in-flight `docs/plans/<name>.md`, write the answer into the plan inline as you go — don't batch them up. The plan doc is the durable record; the chat transcript is not.

.agents/skills/improve-codebase-architecture/DEEPENING.md

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+# Deepening
+
+How to deepen a cluster of shallow modules safely, given its dependencies. Assumes the vocabulary in [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md) — **module**, **interface**, **seam**, **adapter**.
+
+## Dependency categories
+
+When assessing a candidate for deepening, classify its dependencies. The category determines how the deepened module is tested across its seam.
+
+### 1. In-process
+
+Pure computation, in-memory state, no I/O. Always deepenable — merge the modules and test through the new interface directly. No adapter needed.
+
+### 2. Local-substitutable
+
+Dependencies that have local test stand-ins (PGLite for Postgres, in-memory filesystem). Deepenable if the stand-in exists. The deepened module is tested with the stand-in running in the test suite. The seam is internal; no port at the module's external interface.
+
+### 3. Remote but owned (Ports & Adapters)
+
+Your own services across a network boundary (microservices, internal APIs). Define a **port** (interface) at the seam. The deep module owns the logic; the transport is injected as an **adapter**. Tests use an in-memory adapter. Production uses an HTTP/gRPC/queue adapter.
+
+Recommendation shape: _"Define a port at the seam, implement an HTTP adapter for production and an in-memory adapter for testing, so the logic sits in one deep module even though it's deployed across a network."_
+
+### 4. True external (Mock)
+
+Third-party services (Stripe, Twilio, etc.) you don't control. The deepened module takes the external dependency as an injected port; tests provide a mock adapter.
+
+## Seam discipline
+
+- **One adapter means a hypothetical seam. Two adapters means a real one.** Don't introduce a port unless at least two adapters are justified (typically production + test). A single-adapter seam is just indirection.
+- **Internal seams vs external seams.** A deep module can have internal seams (private to its implementation, used by its own tests) as well as the external seam at its interface. Don't expose internal seams through the interface just because tests use them.
+
+## Testing strategy: replace, don't layer
+
+- Old unit tests on shallow modules become waste once tests at the deepened module's interface exist — delete them.
+- Write new tests at the deepened module's interface. The **interface is the test surface**.
+- Tests assert on observable outcomes through the interface, not internal state.
+- Tests should survive internal refactors — they describe behaviour, not implementation. If a test has to change when the implementation changes, it's testing past the interface.

.agents/skills/improve-codebase-architecture/INTERFACE-DESIGN.md

@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+# Interface Design
+
+When the user wants to explore alternative interfaces for a chosen deepening candidate, use this parallel sub-agent pattern. Based on "Design It Twice" (Ousterhout) — your first idea is unlikely to be the best.
+
+Uses the vocabulary in [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md) — **module**, **interface**, **seam**, **adapter**, **leverage**.
+
+## Process
+
+### 1. Frame the problem space
+
+Before spawning sub-agents, write a user-facing explanation of the problem space for the chosen candidate:
+
+- The constraints any new interface would need to satisfy
+- The dependencies it would rely on, and which category they fall into (see [DEEPENING.md](DEEPENING.md))
+- A rough illustrative code sketch to ground the constraints — not a proposal, just a way to make the constraints concrete
+
+Show this to the user, then immediately proceed to Step 2. The user reads and thinks while the sub-agents work in parallel.
+
+### 2. Spawn sub-agents
+
+Spawn 3+ sub-agents in parallel using the Agent / Task tool. Each must produce a **radically different** interface for the deepened module.
+
+Prompt each sub-agent with a separate technical brief (file paths, coupling details, dependency category from [DEEPENING.md](DEEPENING.md), what sits behind the seam). The brief is independent of the user-facing problem-space explanation in Step 1. Give each agent a different design constraint:
+
+- Agent 1: "Minimize the interface — aim for 1–3 entry points max. Maximise leverage per entry point."
+- Agent 2: "Maximise flexibility — support many use cases and extension."
+- Agent 3: "Optimise for the most common caller — make the default case trivial."
+- Agent 4 (if applicable): "Design around ports & adapters for cross-seam dependencies."
+
+Include both [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md) vocabulary and [`docs/glossary.md`](../../../docs/glossary.md) vocabulary in the brief so each sub-agent names things consistently with the architecture language and the project's domain language.
+
+Each sub-agent outputs:
+
+1. Interface (types, methods, params — plus invariants, ordering, error modes)
+2. Usage example showing how callers use it
+3. What the implementation hides behind the seam
+4. Dependency strategy and adapters (see [DEEPENING.md](DEEPENING.md))
+5. Trade-offs — where leverage is high, where it's thin
+
+### 3. Present and compare
+
+Present designs sequentially so the user can absorb each one, then compare them in prose. Contrast by **depth** (leverage at the interface), **locality** (where change concentrates), and **seam placement**.
+
+After comparing, give your own recommendation: which design you think is strongest and why. If elements from different designs would combine well, propose a hybrid. Be opinionated — the user wants a strong read, not a menu.

.agents/skills/improve-codebase-architecture/LANGUAGE.md

@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+# Language
+
+Shared vocabulary for every suggestion this skill makes. Use these terms exactly — don't substitute "component," "service," "API," or "boundary." Consistent language is the whole point.
+
+## Terms
+
+**Module**
+Anything with an interface and an implementation. Deliberately scale-agnostic — applies equally to a function, class, package, or tier-spanning slice.
+_Avoid_: unit, component, service.
+
+**Interface**
+Everything a caller must know to use the module correctly. Includes the type signature, but also invariants, ordering constraints, error modes, required configuration, and performance characteristics.
+_Avoid_: API, signature (too narrow — those refer only to the type-level surface).
+
+**Implementation**
+What's inside a module — its body of code. Distinct from **Adapter**: a thing can be a small adapter with a large implementation (a Postgres repo) or a large adapter with a small implementation (an in-memory fake). Reach for "adapter" when the seam is the topic; "implementation" otherwise.
+
+**Depth**
+Leverage at the interface — the amount of behaviour a caller (or test) can exercise per unit of interface they have to learn. A module is **deep** when a large amount of behaviour sits behind a small interface. A module is **shallow** when the interface is nearly as complex as the implementation.
+
+**Seam** _(from Michael Feathers)_
+A place where you can alter behaviour without editing in that place. The _location_ at which a module's interface lives. Choosing where to put the seam is its own design decision, distinct from what goes behind it.
+_Avoid_: boundary (overloaded with DDD's bounded context).
+
+**Adapter**
+A concrete thing that satisfies an interface at a seam. Describes _role_ (what slot it fills), not substance (what's inside).
+
+**Leverage**
+What callers get from depth. More capability per unit of interface they have to learn. One implementation pays back across N call sites and M tests.
+
+**Locality**
+What maintainers get from depth. Change, bugs, knowledge, and verification concentrate at one place rather than spreading across callers. Fix once, fixed everywhere.
+
+## Principles
+
+- **Depth is a property of the interface, not the implementation.** A deep module can be internally composed of small, mockable, swappable parts — they just aren't part of the interface. A module can have **internal seams** (private to its implementation, used by its own tests) as well as the **external seam** at its interface.
+- **The deletion test.** Imagine deleting the module. If complexity vanishes, the module wasn't hiding anything (it was a pass-through). If complexity reappears across N callers, the module was earning its keep.
+- **The interface is the test surface.** Callers and tests cross the same seam. If you want to test _past_ the interface, the module is probably the wrong shape.
+- **One adapter means a hypothetical seam. Two adapters means a real one.** Don't introduce a seam unless something actually varies across it.
+
+## Relationships
+
+- A **Module** has exactly one **Interface** (the surface it presents to callers and tests).
+- **Depth** is a property of a **Module**, measured against its **Interface**.
+- A **Seam** is where a **Module**'s **Interface** lives.
+- An **Adapter** sits at a **Seam** and satisfies the **Interface**.
+- **Depth** produces **Leverage** for callers and **Locality** for maintainers.
+
+## Rejected framings
+
+- **Depth as ratio of implementation-lines to interface-lines** (Ousterhout): rewards padding the implementation. We use depth-as-leverage instead.
+- **"Interface" as the TypeScript `interface` keyword or a class's public methods**: too narrow — interface here includes every fact a caller must know.
+- **"Boundary"**: overloaded with DDD's bounded context. Say **seam** or **interface**.

.agents/skills/improve-codebase-architecture/SKILL.md

@@ -0,0 +1,80 @@
+---
+name: improve-codebase-architecture
+description: Find deepening opportunities in the codebase, informed by the domain language in docs/glossary.md and the architecture in docs/architecture.md. Use when the user wants to improve architecture, find refactoring opportunities, consolidate tightly-coupled modules, or make a codebase more testable and AI-navigable.
+---
+
+# Improve Codebase Architecture
+
+Surface architectural friction and propose **deepening opportunities** — refactors that turn shallow modules into deep ones. The aim is testability and AI-navigability.
+
+## Glossary
+
+Use these terms exactly in every suggestion. Consistent language is the point — don't drift into "component," "service," "API," or "boundary." Full definitions in [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md).
+
+- **Module** — anything with an interface and an implementation (function, class, package, slice).
+- **Interface** — everything a caller must know to use the module: types, invariants, error modes, ordering, config. Not just the type signature.
+- **Implementation** — the code inside.
+- **Depth** — leverage at the interface: a lot of behaviour behind a small interface. **Deep** = high leverage. **Shallow** = interface nearly as complex as the implementation.
+- **Seam** — where an interface lives; a place behaviour can be altered without editing in place. (Use this, not "boundary.")
+- **Adapter** — a concrete thing satisfying an interface at a seam.
+- **Leverage** — what callers get from depth.
+- **Locality** — what maintainers get from depth: change, bugs, knowledge concentrated in one place.
+
+Key principles (see [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md) for the full list):
+
+- **Deletion test**: imagine deleting the module. If complexity vanishes, it was a pass-through. If complexity reappears across N callers, it was earning its keep.
+- **The interface is the test surface.**
+- **One adapter = hypothetical seam. Two adapters = real seam.**
+
+This skill is _informed_ by the project's domain model. The domain language in [`docs/glossary.md`](../../../docs/glossary.md) gives names to good seams; the layering described in [`docs/architecture.md`](../../../docs/architecture.md) records the structural decisions the skill should not re-litigate.
+
+## Process
+
+### 1. Explore
+
+Read [`docs/glossary.md`](../../../docs/glossary.md) (canonical domain terms) and the relevant section of [`docs/architecture.md`](../../../docs/architecture.md) (canonical layering / wiring) first.
+
+Then walk the codebase via [`codemap`](../codemap/SKILL.md) — the structural SQLite index. Per the [`codemap` rule](../../rules/codemap.md), querying the index beats grepping for symbol-shaped questions:
+
+```bash
+codemap query --json "SELECT name, signature, file_path FROM symbols WHERE file_path LIKE 'src/cli/%' AND kind = 'function'"
+codemap query --json "SELECT from_path, COUNT(*) AS deps FROM dependencies GROUP BY from_path ORDER BY deps DESC LIMIT 10"
+codemap query --json -r barrel-files
+```
+
+Don't follow rigid heuristics — explore organically and note where you experience friction:
+
+- Where does understanding one concept require bouncing between many small modules?
+- Where are modules **shallow** — interface nearly as complex as the implementation?
+- Where have pure functions been extracted just for testability, but the real bugs hide in how they're called (no **locality**)?
+- Where do tightly-coupled modules leak across their seams?
+- Which parts of the codebase are untested, or hard to test through their current interface?
+
+Apply the **deletion test** to anything you suspect is shallow: would deleting it concentrate complexity, or just move it? A "yes, concentrates" is the signal you want.
+
+### 2. Present candidates
+
+Present a numbered list of deepening opportunities. For each candidate:
+
+- **Files** — which files/modules are involved
+- **Problem** — why the current architecture is causing friction
+- **Solution** — plain English description of what would change
+- **Benefits** — explained in terms of locality and leverage, and also in how tests would improve
+
+**Use [`docs/glossary.md`](../../../docs/glossary.md) vocabulary for the domain, and [LANGUAGE.md](LANGUAGE.md) vocabulary for the architecture.** If the glossary defines `barrel file`, talk about "the barrel-file detection module" — not "the FooBarHandler," and not "the barrel service."
+
+**Architecture conflicts**: if a candidate contradicts [`docs/architecture.md` § Layering](../../../docs/architecture.md#layering), only surface it when the friction is real enough to warrant revisiting that layering. Mark it clearly (e.g. _"contradicts architecture.md § Layering — but worth reopening because…"_). Don't list every theoretical refactor the layering forbids.
+
+Do NOT propose interfaces yet. Ask the user: "Which of these would you like to explore?"
+
+### 3. Grilling loop
+
+Once the user picks a candidate, drop into a grilling conversation (per [`grill-me`](../grill-me/SKILL.md)). Walk the design tree with them — constraints, dependencies, the shape of the deepened module, what sits behind the seam, what tests survive.
+
+Side effects happen inline as decisions crystallize:
+
+- **Naming a deepened module after a concept not in `docs/glossary.md`?** Add the term to the glossary right there per [`docs/README.md` Rule 9](../../../docs/README.md). Disambiguations (TS shape vs SQL table, etc.) take priority.
+- **Sharpening a fuzzy term during the conversation?** Update `docs/glossary.md` right there.
+- **Surfacing a structural decision worth recording?** If the candidate becomes a planned refactor, draft `docs/plans/<topic>.md` per [`docs/README.md` Rule 3](../../../docs/README.md). Codemap doesn't ship ADRs — decisions of record lift into [`docs/architecture.md`](../../../docs/architecture.md) on ship per [`docs/README.md` Rule 2](../../../docs/README.md), and the plan file is deleted.
+- **Want to explore alternative interfaces for the deepened module?** See [INTERFACE-DESIGN.md](INTERFACE-DESIGN.md).
+- **Sub-rules for what counts as a "deepening" candidate**: see [DEEPENING.md](DEEPENING.md).

.cursor/skills/grill-me

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+../../.agents/skills/grill-me

.cursor/skills/improve-codebase-architecture

@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+../../.agents/skills/improve-codebase-architecture