describe-current-state

Do not modify application code, tests, configuration, or project assets while this skill governs the turn. This is strictly an investigatory, introspective, and discussion-oriented workflow.

When this step runs under the solutionize skill, follow that skill for when and how to persist output.

1 - Describe current state

Read everything relevant: modules, callers, tests, tickets or docs as needed. Act as subject matter expert for this task.

Paragraph length (step 1): In 1 - Describe current state, three sentences is the absolute maximum per paragraph. Never put a fourth sentence in the same paragraph; start a new paragraph instead.

What step 1 is for: The whole of 1 - Describe current state is one concise, brief narrative that sets the stage for 2 - Approach problem and the rest of the workflow. It should show that you understand the problem in context and give the partner the same working picture—enough to reason about tradeoffs and implementation next—without duplicating a spec or writing a design doc. Do not structure the section as a cold open followed by a separate "deep dive": it is one story, told in order.

Shape of that story (top down, forward, concrete): Tell it in the order a person would follow the system: recognizable entry points (product or API surface, main jobs), then how work proceeds through layers that matter for this issue—only as far as needed to explain current behavior around the gap. Do not open at a deep leaf (a private helper, one changeset field, an internal job) and walk upward; do not restart mid-narrative from a narrow function as the sentence subject and gesture backward into persistence ("…which flows into Message.insert_changeset"). Anchor beats on the layer doing the work; say who calls whom, what runs before what, and what inputs become what artifact. Introduce helpers in place along that path. Do not substitute mush verbs ("flows," "feeds," "lands in," "wires through," "hands off") for those mechanics—each sentence should still answer who invokes what, ordering, or data shape between stages. If you cannot say that yet, read the code until you can.

Output of this step: that synopsis: brief natural-language how it works today where it touches the issue. Weave references inline (as markdown links) as supporting context (function names, key assigns, schema fields). Do NOT include any diagrams or tables.

Step 1 is current-state only. Do not include implementation intent, recommendations, option framing, or proposed future behavior.

Avoid future-state language in this step. If a sentence drifts into recommendation or implementation intent, rewrite it as present behavior or a current constraint.

No preamble ("in this section…") inside the Describe current state section.