council convene
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pnpm --filter @council-ai/site docs:generate:commands. Run that command to regenerate it, andpnpm --filter @council-ai/site docs:check:commandsto verify it is in sync.
Run a panel debate on a topic and persist results to the local DB. For one-shot questions use `council ask`. For conversation use `council chat`.
council convene [options] [topic]Arguments
Section titled “Arguments”| Argument | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
[topic] |
The topic / question for the panel to debate (optional when –prompt-file is used; omit in a terminal to enter it interactively) | — |
Options
Section titled “Options”| Option | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
--prompt-file <path> |
Read the topic VERBATIM from a file (or `-` for stdin) instead of the positional argument. Bypasses the shell so `$`, backticks, and values like `$180K` survive intact. Content must be non-empty after trimming. Mutually exclusive with the positional <topic>. | — |
-p, --panel <name> |
Use a built-in or custom panel template (alias: –template). **Omit to let Council auto-design an expert panel from your topic.** | — |
--template <name> |
Use a built-in or custom panel template (alias: –panel). **Omit to let Council auto-design an expert panel from your topic.** | — |
--experts <slugs...> |
Expert slugs from the library (space- or comma-separated, repeatable). Bypasses both –template and auto-compose. Because –experts is variadic, put the <topic> BEFORE it (or quote a comma-list) so a trailing topic is not consumed as a slug. | — |
--engine <kind> |
Engine to use (default: from config) (choices: copilot, mock, openai, anthropic) |
— |
--format <kind> |
Output format (auto picks Ink TUI on TTY, plain text otherwise) (choices: auto, json, plain) |
auto |
--max-rounds <n> |
Max rounds for freeform mode. Defaults to the panel template’s declared maxRounds, else config.defaults.maxRounds. | — |
--mode <kind> |
Debate mode (choices: freeform, structured) |
freeform |
--max-words <n> |
Soft per-response word budget (opening-phase anchor; structured mode scales the other phases) | 250 |
--human <name> |
Add a human participant by name (repeatable) | [] |
--strategy <name> |
Moderator strategy for freeform mode (round-robin | devils-advocate | consensus-check). devils-advocate accepts an optional “:<slug>” suffix to pin the advocate (defaults to first expert). | round-robin |
--context-scope <scope> |
Visibility scope for prior turns: all | same-round | recent | all |
--summarize-after <n> |
Start rolling-summary after N rounds. Omit to disable. | — |
--heuristic-summaries |
Use simpler local summarizer instead of LLM — for offline/air-gapped use | — |
--heuristic-memory |
Skip post-debate LLM extraction — for offline/air-gapped use. Useful for offline tests and air-gapped environments. | — |
--yes |
Skip the auto-compose confirmation prompt — required for non-interactive / CI runs | — |
--no-conclude |
Skip automatic conclusion synthesis after a completed debate | — |
--verbose |
Show template migration notices and zero-change summaries | — |
-q, --quiet |
Suppress informational output | — |
--model <model> |
Model to use for experts — overrides template and expert defaults (default: from config; run ‘council doctor –models’ to list available models) | — |
--max-experts <n> |
Maximum number of experts for auto-compose | — |