Navigator

Navigator helps you understand existing work without changing it. Ask for a project introduction, an explanation of a function, help tracing a problem, or a quiz on something you want to learn.

When to use Navigator

You can use Navigator at any time, including during expedited work or after a cycle ends. It does not require an active cycle or a complete installed runtime to explain available project files.

Discover your options

Before invoking Navigator, you can ask in an installed project’s chat, “What modes and user styles does Navigator offer?” The agent checks the installed options without starting Navigator’s project work or changing the workflow.

You can also invoke help directly:

Client	Prompt
Codex	$navigator help
Claude Code	/navigator help

Help shows the current mode choices and any available user styles with example invocations. The agent performs the lookup internally; there is no extra setup or shell command for you to run. A new mode’s metadata or a new style file is picked up on the next help request. If the current inventory cannot be verified, the answer explains that limit.

After starting Navigator, ask “show Navigator options” whenever you need them. Help keeps your current topic, mode, selected style, and quiz progress. During a quiz, “help me with this question” asks for assistance with the question; it does not open the options menu.

A bare first invocation gives a short introduction and asks what you want to explore. If you already supplied a question, Navigator answers it directly. Continuing an existing conversation resumes its current activity.

Modes

The modes below ship with STANDARDS; help reflects the current installation. Navigator uses one mode at a time. You can select a mode explicitly or let Navigator choose from your request. Use $navigator in Codex or /navigator in Claude Code. You can change the topic, depth, or mode at any time.

EXPLAIN

The default for explanations and project introductions. Use it to understand what existing work does and how it fits together, with examples or diagrams when useful.

$navigator EXPLAIN: What is this project's purpose, and where should I start reading?

INVESTIGATE

Use this mode for a concrete question or unexplained behavior. Navigator follows the evidence and checks possible explanations. It gives a supported answer or identifies what remains unknown and what would help resolve it.

$navigator INVESTIGATE: Why can this request return an empty result?

GRILL_ME

Test your understanding with one question at a time. Navigator waits for your answer and gives feedback before continuing. You can ask for a hint or answer, skip a question, or stop.

$navigator GRILL_ME on the retry flow.

Navigator adapts to what you have demonstrated. It ends with a brief account of what you understand and what remains untested. That feedback concerns the chosen topic; it does not approve project work.

What to expect

Navigator reads relevant code, documentation, configuration, history, and saved workflow records. It cites files and explains the difference between intended behavior, what the evidence supports, and what is still uncertain. If files change, it rechecks affected explanations.

Answers, questions, and quiz progress stay in the conversation. Navigator creates no saved report or score and needs no fresh assessment session. If you select a user style from .standards/user-styles/navigator/, Navigator applies it for the rest of the conversation; name it again in a new chat. For example, if help lists alice, append Use user style alice. to your request. Use Use user style NONE. to clear a selection. Merely listing a style does not select or apply it.

What stays unchanged

Navigator never edits files, stages or commits changes, suggests a commit, runs another role, or changes workflow state. Even if you ask, signing off, cancelling, or changing a cycle requires leaving Navigator. Stopping a quiz only stops the quiz.

It runs a diagnostic only after establishing that it will not change files or external systems. It may run node .standards/bin/check.mjs, which only reads files, and it reports any problems the check or the stop hook finds without fixing them. A test or a command called “dry run” is not automatically safe. Where that cannot be established, Navigator uses existing evidence and explains what still needs checking.

Navigator can explain a suspected defect and its likely owner. It does not make repairs, provide Tester’s verification, or issue Reviewer’s verdict. For where Navigator sits in the workflow and what it may never do to a cycle, see its place in the protocol.

The quiz format is inspired by AI Hero’s grill-me discussion; Navigator has its own procedure for understanding existing work.