Figure Spec

# FigureSpec: Deterministic JSON → SVG Figure Generation

Generate publication-quality **architecture diagrams**, **workflow pipelines**, **audit cascades**, and **system topology** figures as editable SVG vector graphics using a deterministic JSON → SVG renderer.

## When to Use This Skill

**Use `figure-spec`** for:
- System architecture diagrams (layered, hub-and-spoke, multi-plane)
- Workflow / pipeline figures
- Audit cascade / flow-control diagrams
- Any structured diagram where node positions, connections, and groupings are semantically important
- Figures that need to be edited/tweaked later (SVG is plain text)
- Figures where determinism matters (same spec → same SVG)

**Do NOT use for:**
- Data plots (bar/line/scatter) — use `/paper-figure`
- Natural/qualitative illustrations — use `/paper-illustration`
- Quick state-machine / flowchart — use `/mermaid-diagram` (lighter syntax)

## Core Properties

- **Deterministic**: identical FigureSpec JSON always produces identical SVG output (for a fixed renderer version + fonts)
- **Editable**: SVG output is plain-text, can be post-edited by hand or programmatically
- **Validated**: renderer enforces schema, rejects malformed specs with clear error messages
- **Shape-aware**: edge clipping works correctly for rect/rounded/circle/ellipse/diamond
- **CJK support**: multi-line labels with proper Chinese character width estimation
- **No external API**: runs fully local, no network, no API keys

## Tool Location

Phase 3.1 (Arch C) move: the canonical implementation now lives at
`skills/figure-spec/scripts/figure_renderer.py` (this SKILL's own
`scripts/` subdirectory). A backwards-compatible shim at
`tools/figure_renderer.py` forwards to the canonical file via
`os.execv`, so existing users with `.aris/tools/figure_renderer.py`
or a manually copied `tools/figure_renderer.py` keep working
unchanged.

Resolve `$FIGURE_RENDERER` with the hybrid chain (layer 0 prefers the
self-contained location for the owning SKILL; layers 1-3 are the
shared-runtime chain documented in
[`shared-references/integration-contract.md`](../shared-references/integration-contract.md) §2,
Policy A — skill-local gate):

```bash
# Layer 0: self-contained (CC 1.0+ exposes $CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR).
FIGURE_RENDERER=""
if [ -n "${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR:-}" ] && [ -f "$CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR/scripts/figure_renderer.py" ]; then
  FIGURE_RENDERER="$CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR/scripts/figure_renderer.py"
fi