Epic Architecture Specification Prompt

Goal

Act as a Senior Software Architect. Your task is to take an Epic PRD and create a high-level technical architecture specification. This document will guide the development of the epic, outlining the major components, features, and technical enablers required.

Context Considerations

The Epic PRD from the Product Manager.
Domain-driven architecture pattern for modular, scalable applications.
Self-hosted and SaaS deployment requirements.
Docker containerization for all services.
TypeScript/Next.js stack with App Router.
Turborepo monorepo patterns.
tRPC for type-safe APIs.
Stack Auth for authentication.

Note: Do NOT write code in output unless it's pseudocode for technical situations.

Output Format

The output should be a complete Epic Architecture Specification in Markdown format, saved to /docs/ways-of-work/plan/{epic-name}/arch.md.

Specification Structure

1. Epic Architecture Overview

A brief summary of the technical approach for the epic.

2. System Architecture Diagram

Create a comprehensive Mermaid diagram that illustrates the complete system architecture for this epic. The diagram should include:

User Layer: Show how different user types (web browsers, mobile apps, admin interfaces) interact with the system
Application Layer: Depict load balancers, application instances, and authentication services (Stack Auth)
Service Layer: Include tRPC APIs, background services, workflow engines (n8n), and any epic-specific services
Data Layer: Show databases (PostgreSQL), vector databases (Qdrant), caching layers (Redis), and external API integrations
Infrastructure Layer: Represent Docker containerization and deployment architecture

Use clear subgraphs to organize these layers, apply consistent color coding for different component types, and show the data flow between components. Include both synchronous request paths and asynchronous processing flows where relevant to the epic.

3. High-Level Features & Technical Enablers

A list of the high-level features to be built.
A list of technical enablers (e.g., new services, libraries, infrastructure) required to support the features.

4. Technology Stack

A list of the key technologies, frameworks, and libraries to be used.

5. Technical Value

Estimate the technical value (e.g., High, Medium, Low) with a brief justification.

6. T-Shirt Size Estimate

Provide a high-level t-shirt size estimate for the epic (e.g., S, M, L, XL).

Context Template

Epic PRD: [The content of the Epic PRD markdown file]

Files1

1 files · 1.0 KB

Select a file to preview

Overall Score

73/100

Grade

B

Good

Safety

82

Quality

68

Clarity

78

Completeness

62

Summary

This skill prompts an AI agent to act as a Senior Software Architect and generate a comprehensive technical architecture specification for a software Epic based on a Product Requirements Document. The agent produces a markdown document outlining system architecture (with Mermaid diagrams), features, technical enablers, technology stack, technical value, and effort estimates, saved to `/docs/ways-of-work/plan/{epic-name}/arch.md`.

Detected Capabilities

file writemarkdown generationmermaid diagram generationstructured documentation outputtemplate-based content generation

Trigger Keywords

Phrases that MCP clients use to match this skill to user intent.

epic architecture designsystem architecture specificationtechnical epic planningarchitecture diagram generationtechnology stack definition

Use Cases

Planning technical approach for large feature epics
Creating system architecture documentation before development
Designing modular, scalable applications using domain-driven patterns
Documenting Docker containerization and deployment architecture
Defining technology stack and infrastructure requirements for epics
Generating high-level system design diagrams for stakeholder review

Quality Notes

Clear purpose: acts as an architect prompt, not a code execution tool
Well-defined output format with concrete section requirements
Specifies exact output location: `/docs/ways-of-work/plan/{epic-name}/arch.md`
Provides technology stack context (TypeScript, Next.js, tRPC, Docker, etc.)
Includes architectural patterns guidance (domain-driven design, self-hosted/SaaS)
Explicitly restricts code output to pseudocode only
Comprehensive Mermaid diagram requirements with clear layer definitions
Missing: no error handling guidance for invalid PRDs or edge cases
Missing: no guidance on dependencies between epics or cross-cutting concerns
Missing: no examples of output artifacts or reference architectures
Missing: unclear how agent should handle PRDs with conflicting requirements
No mention of version control or change management for architecture documents

Model: claude-haiku-4-5-20251001Analyzed: Jun 26, 2026

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