grilling Skill (mattpocock/skills) for Claude Code: What It Does and How to Install It

Makes Claude interview you about a plan, decision or idea in numbered rounds, with a suggested answer for each question, until nothing is left open.

Installs: 1M; on skills.sh
Stars: 309.2K; on GitHub
Files: 1; besides SKILL.md
Updated: Nov 2026; last repo commit

grilling makes Claude question you hard before it acts. It treats your plan as a tree of decisions and asks every question that is ready in one numbered round, each with its own recommended answer, so you can reply "yes" to accept. Then it waits for your answers and plans the next round.

It starts when you ask to be grilled or stress-test an idea. When a question needs a fact from your files or tools, it sends a helper agent to look it up instead of asking you. It does not act until you confirm you share the same understanding. It needs no scripts or API key.

Good for

Anyone with a half-formed plan who wants it tested before building
Developers who want design decisions settled before the agent writes code
People using other mattpocock skills, such as triage and grill-me, that call it

Install grilling

Claude Code

Copy this prompt.

Install the grilling skill in Claude Code. Run this command:

npx skills add https://github.com/mattpocock/skills --skill grilling

Then check that it loaded and tell me how to use it.

2
Paste it into Claude Code. It shows the change and asks before running it.

Requires Node.js.

From its listing on skills.sh. Source.

What's in the skill

When it loads

Grill the user relentlessly about a plan, decision, or idea. Use when the user wants to stress-test their thinking, or uses any 'grill' trigger phrases.

Key facts

Author: Matt Pocock (mattpocock/skills)
License: MIT
Installs on skills.sh: 1,033,871 (Nov 2, 2026)
GitHub stars: 309,237 (whole repo, Nov 2, 2026)
Last commit: Nov 1, 2026 (repo)
Files it bundles: SKILL.md, agents/openai.yaml
Starts: Can start when your request matches its description

What it includes

Treats every decision as a branch with decisions hanging off it
Map the design tree
Asks all currently answerable questions in one numbered round, then waits
Ask in rounds
Each question has a suggested answer worded so "yes" accepts it
Recommended answers
Your answers unblock the next questions; later ones wait for earlier ones
Recompute the frontier
Dispatches a sub-agent to read files or tools rather than asking you
Files · Look up facts itself
Done when no branch is open; it does not act until you confirm
Confirmation gate

From the official docs

Questions

What does the grilling skill do?

It interviews you about a plan until every decision is settled. Questions come in numbered rounds, each with a recommended answer, and it works out the next round from your replies.

How do I install it?

Use the install box at the top of this page. Install it with the rest of the set if you use grill-me or triage, because they call it.

How is grilling different from grill-me?

grilling holds the interview rules. grill-me is the short command you type that hands off to it. triage calls grilling directly when an issue needs fleshing out.

Does it need an API key or run scripts?

No. It is one instruction file. The only extra work it does is send a helper agent to read your project when a question needs a fact.

Is it safe?

It only asks questions and reads, and waits for your confirmation before acting. skills.sh audits: Gen Agent Trust Hub pass, Socket pass, Snyk pass.

Will it start without me asking?

It can. Its description tells the agent to use it when you want to stress-test your thinking or use a "grill" phrase.

Information

updated Nov 2, 2026

Repository: mattpocock/skills
Folder: skills/productivity/grilling

mattpocock/skills skills.sh

Sources

Docs, issue trackers and discussions this page is built from.

Show all 3

grilling SKILL.md · github.com
skills.sh listing and audits · skills.sh
mattpocock/skills · github.com