Architecture
Create or evaluate an architecture decision record (ADR). Use when choosing between technologies (e.g., Kafka vs SQS), documenting a design decision with trade-offs and consequences, reviewing a system design proposal, or designing a new component from requirements and constraints.
- Skill ID
- anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/architecture
- Publisher
- anthropics
- Repository
- knowledge-work-plugins
- Installs
- 0
- Files
- 1
- Synced
- Sep 23, 2026
Open any RiverX project, open the Skills panel in the chat, and search for this identifier. The files are fetched from the source repository at install time.
anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/architectureInstalls these files- SKILL.md
What this skill tells the agent
/architecture
If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see CONNECTORS.md.
Create an Architecture Decision Record (ADR) or evaluate a system design.
Usage
/architecture $ARGUMENTSModes
Create an ADR: "Should we use Kafka or SQS for our event bus?" Evaluate a design: "Review this microservices proposal" System design: "Design the notification system for our app"
See the system-design skill for detailed frameworks on requirements gathering, scalability analysis, and trade-off evaluation.
Output — ADR Format
# ADR-[number]: [Title]
**Status:** Proposed | Accepted | Deprecated | Superseded
**Date:** [Date]
**Deciders:** [Who needs to sign off]
## Context
[What is the situation? What forces are at play?]
## Decision
[What is the change we're proposing?]
## Options Considered
### Option A: [Name]
| Dimension | Assessment |
|-----------|------------|
| Complexity | [Low/Med/High] |
| Cost | [Assessment] |
| Scalability | [Assessment] |
| Team familiarity | [Assessment] |
**Pros:** [List]
**Cons:** [List]
### Option B: [Name]
[Same format]
## Trade-off Analysis
[Key trade-offs between options with clear reasoning]
## Consequences
- [What becomes easier]
- [What becomes harder]
- [What we'll need to revisit]
## Action Items
1. [ ] [Implementation step]
2. [ ] [Follow-up]If Connectors Available
If ~~knowledge base is connected:
- Search for prior ADRs and design docs
- Find relevant technical context
If ~~project tracker is connected:
- Link to related epics and tickets
- Create implementation tasks
Tips
- State constraints upfront — "We need to ship in 2 weeks" or "Must handle 10K rps" shapes the answer.
- Name your options — Even if you're leaning one way, I'll give a more balanced analysis with explicit alternatives.
- Include non-functional requirements — Latency, cost, team expertise, and maintenance burden matter as much as features.
More from anthropics
Use this skill in a project
Open any RiverX project, search the Skills panel for anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins/architecture, and install it in one click.
