Choose Between Default and Cross-Vendor Mode

The council offers two operating modes with different levels of complexity, diversity, and cost. The default mode uses several prompted agents on one model. The cross-vendor mode uses several model families through a paid routing service.

The appropriate choice depends on how much deliberative depth the decision requires.

Default mode is available after the skill is installed. It does not require the separate API-key configuration used by cross-vendor mode. It still performs a council workflow, but all agents share one underlying model.

Cross-vendor mode requires:

• A dedicated project folder.
• A .env file.
• A valid API key.
• Access to several models through the routing service.
• Payment for API usage.

In one run, one cross-vendor answer cost approximately $0.20. That amount is an example from one run, not a general fixed price for every future request.

Using the most elaborate workflow for every question would create unnecessary API spending and setup overhead. Using only the default mode for every high-stakes question would leave the council dependent on one model family.

The recommended operating principle is therefore selective escalation. The default council is considered sufficient most of the time. Cross-vendor mode is available when the user wants to be especially thorough about an important decision.

Use the default council when:

• The installed single-model workflow provides enough deliberation for the question.
• Additional vendor diversity is not necessary.
• The user wants to avoid external API configuration and usage charges.

Use the cross-vendor council when:

• The decision is important enough to justify extra scrutiny.
• The user wants several model families to evaluate the same question.
• The limitations of relying on one model are a material concern.
• The user is prepared to pay the API cost and inspect potentially divergent conclusions.

After a cross-vendor run, review the usage associated with the API key. The example demonstrates that even one answer creates a measurable charge, so cost is part of the mode-selection decision.

Default mode offers simplicity and no additional multi-model service, but every agent shares one model's tendencies. Cross-vendor mode offers broader model participation and is treated as more thorough, but it requires credential management and paid calls.

The two modes can produce different recommendations. More agents or more models should not be used merely to obtain agreement with a preferred answer. Their purpose is to expose competing reasoning and make the final decision process more rigorous.

Treat the default council as the standard mode and cross-vendor execution as a deliberate escalation for decisions that warrant extra thoroughness. The core trade-off is shared-model simplicity versus multi-model diversity, setup effort, and API cost.