engineer-design-diagram
This skill contains shell command directives (!`command`) that may execute system commands. Review carefully before installing.
Engineer Design Diagram
Generates production-grade engineering design diagrams as single-file HTML with inline SVG, grounded in real repository topology. Credit: design palette + arrow-masking pattern inspired by Cocoon AI's architecture-diagram-generator (MIT). See THIRD_PARTY_LICENSES.md.
Overview
Most diagramming tools produce pretty pictures disconnected from reality. This skill does the opposite: it reads the actual repo (package manifests, docker-compose, k8s, terraform, import graph) and emits a diagram that reflects the real system. It also knows how the system changed — PR-diff mode highlights structural deltas, trace mode turns a stack/log into a sequence diagram, and drift mode detects when the architecture has wandered from a stored fingerprint.
Four modes share a common pipeline (DCI grounding → node/edge graph → template fill → fingerprint write). Output is a single self-contained HTML file that opens in any browser, plus a Mermaid text block for copy-paste into docs. Dark theme with semantic OKLCH color coding by component role. Accessible by default (ARIA, <title>/<desc>, reduced-motion, keyboard navigation).
Layout Philosophy — pick the shape before you draw
Dense technical systems want to render wide. This is how Anthropic docs, Linear docs, and Vercel architecture pages present multi-component systems: a sticky left rail for context (nav, invariants, legend) and a generous main column for the diagram itself. Mimic that pattern when your content is dense, and use the simpler single-SVG hero when it isn't.
Two supported output shapes, one decision up front:
| Shape | Use when | Template |
|---|---|---|
| Single-SVG hero (classic) | ≤8 nodes, one-screen takeaway, no sub-grouping, no accompanying explanation needed | templates/base.html |
| Docs-layout page (widescreen) | ≥8 nodes, multiple planes/groupings/sub-blocks, want invariants + detail cards + legend alongside the diagram | templates/docs-layout.html |