Matt Pocock's public engineering, productivity, and misc agent skills for planning, TDD, debugging, issue workflows, architecture improvement, and concise collaboration.
Skills(19)
diagnose—Disciplined diagnosis loop for hard bugs and performance regressions. Reproduce → minimise → hypothesise → instrument → fix → regression-test. Use when user says "diagnose this" / "debug this", reports a bug, says something is broken/throwing/failing, or describes a performance regression.
grill-with-docs—Grilling session that challenges your plan against the existing domain model, sharpens terminology, and updates documentation (CONTEXT.md, ADRs) inline as decisions crystallise. Use when user wants to stress-test a plan against their project's language and documented decisions.
improve-codebase-architecture—Find deepening opportunities in a codebase, informed by the domain language in CONTEXT.md and the decisions in docs/adr/. Use when the user wants to improve architecture, find refactoring opportunities, consolidate tightly-coupled modules, or make a codebase more testable and AI-navigable.
prototype—Build a throwaway prototype to flesh out a design before committing to it. Routes between two branches — a runnable terminal app for state/business-logic questions, or several radically different UI variations toggleable from one route. Use when the user wants to prototype, sanity-check a data model or state machine, mock up a UI, explore design options, or says "prototype this", "let me play with it", "try a few designs".
setup-matt-pocock-skills—Sets up an `## Agent skills` block in AGENTS.md/CLAUDE.md and `docs/agents/` so the engineering skills know this repo's issue tracker (GitHub or local markdown), triage label vocabulary, and domain doc layout. Run before first use of `to-issues`, `to-prd`, `triage`, `diagnose`, `tdd`, `improve-codebase-architecture`, or `zoom-out` — or if those skills appear to be missing context about the issue tracker, triage labels, or domain docs.
tdd—Test-driven development with red-green-refactor loop. Use when user wants to build features or fix bugs using TDD, mentions "red-green-refactor", wants integration tests, or asks for test-first development.
to-issues—Break a plan, spec, or PRD into independently-grabbable issues on the project issue tracker using tracer-bullet vertical slices. Use when user wants to convert a plan into issues, create implementation tickets, or break down work into issues.
to-prd—Turn the current conversation context into a PRD and publish it to the project issue tracker. Use when user wants to create a PRD from the current context.
triage—Triage issues through a state machine driven by triage roles. Use when user wants to create an issue, triage issues, review incoming bugs or feature requests, prepare issues for an AFK agent, or manage issue workflow.
zoom-out—Tell the agent to zoom out and give broader context or a higher-level perspective. Use when you're unfamiliar with a section of code or need to understand how it fits into the bigger picture.
caveman—Ultra-compressed communication mode. Cuts token usage ~75% by dropping filler, articles, and pleasantries while keeping full technical accuracy. Use when user says "caveman mode", "talk like caveman", "use caveman", "less tokens", "be brief", or invokes /caveman.
grill-me—Interview the user relentlessly about a plan or design until reaching shared understanding, resolving each branch of the decision tree. Use when user wants to stress-test a plan, get grilled on their design, or mentions "grill me".
handoff—Compact the current conversation into a handoff document for another agent to pick up.
teach—Teach the user a new skill or concept, within this workspace.
write-a-skill—Create new agent skills with proper structure, progressive disclosure, and bundled resources. Use when user wants to create, write, or build a new skill.
git-guardrails-claude-code—Set up Claude Code hooks to block dangerous git commands (push, reset --hard, clean, branch -D, etc.) before they execute. Use when user wants to prevent destructive git operations, add git safety hooks, or block git push/reset in Claude Code.
migrate-to-shoehorn—Migrate test files from `as` type assertions to @total-typescript/shoehorn. Use when user mentions shoehorn, wants to replace `as` in tests, or needs partial test data.
scaffold-exercises—Create exercise directory structures with sections, problems, solutions, and explainers that pass linting. Use when user wants to scaffold exercises, create exercise stubs, or set up a new course section.
setup-pre-commit—Set up Husky pre-commit hooks with lint-staged (Prettier), type checking, and tests in the current repo. Use when user wants to add pre-commit hooks, set up Husky, configure lint-staged, or add commit-time formatting/typechecking/testing.
README.md
written by Forgecat
Matt Pocock Skills
Matt Pocock's public engineering, productivity, and misc agent skills for planning, TDD, debugging, issue workflows, architecture improvement, and concise collaboration.
Tags
skills
engineering
tdd
debugging
planning
productivity
Installation
npx forgecat install @forgecat/mattpocock_skills
Skills / Agents / Commands
diagnose — Disciplined diagnosis loop for hard bugs and performance regressions. Reproduce → minimise → hypothesise → instrument → fix → regression-test. Use when user says "diagnose this" / "debug this", reports a bug, says something is broken/throwing/failing, or describes a performance regression. skill
grill-with-docs — Grilling session that challenges your plan against the existing domain model, sharpens terminology, and updates documentation (CONTEXT.md, ADRs) inline as decisions crystallise. Use when user wants to stress-test a plan against their project's language and documented decisions. skill
improve-codebase-architecture — Find deepening opportunities in a codebase, informed by the domain language in CONTEXT.md and the decisions in docs/adr/. Use when the user wants to improve architecture, find refactoring opportunities, consolidate tightly-coupled modules, or make a codebase more testable and AI-navigable. skill
prototype — Build a throwaway prototype to flesh out a design before committing to it. Routes between two branches — a runnable terminal app for state/business-logic questions, or several radically different UI variations toggleable from one route. Use when the user wants to prototype, sanity-check a data model or state machine, mock up a UI, explore design options, or says "prototype this", "let me play with it", "try a few designs". skill
setup-matt-pocock-skills — Sets up an ## Agent skills block in AGENTS.md/CLAUDE.md and docs/agents/ so the engineering skills know this repo's issue tracker (GitHub or local markdown), triage label vocabulary, and domain doc layout. Run before first use of to-issues, to-prd, triage, diagnose, tdd, improve-codebase-architecture, or zoom-out — or if those skills appear to be missing context about the issue tracker, triage labels, or domain docs. skill
tdd — Test-driven development with red-green-refactor loop. Use when user wants to build features or fix bugs using TDD, mentions "red-green-refactor", wants integration tests, or asks for test-first development. skill
to-issues — Break a plan, spec, or PRD into independently-grabbable issues on the project issue tracker using tracer-bullet vertical slices. Use when user wants to convert a plan into issues, create implementation tickets, or break down work into issues. skill
to-prd — Turn the current conversation context into a PRD and publish it to the project issue tracker. Use when user wants to create a PRD from the current context. skill
triage — Triage issues through a state machine driven by triage roles. Use when user wants to create an issue, triage issues, review incoming bugs or feature requests, prepare issues for an AFK agent, or manage issue workflow. skill
zoom-out — Tell the agent to zoom out and give broader context or a higher-level perspective. Use when you're unfamiliar with a section of code or need to understand how it fits into the bigger picture. skill
caveman — Ultra-compressed communication mode. Cuts token usage ~75% by dropping filler, articles, and pleasantries while keeping full technical accuracy. Use when user says "caveman mode", "talk like caveman", "use caveman", "less tokens", "be brief", or invokes /caveman. skill
grill-me — Interview the user relentlessly about a plan or design until reaching shared understanding, resolving each branch of the decision tree. Use when user wants to stress-test a plan, get grilled on their design, or mentions "grill me". skill
handoff — Compact the current conversation into a handoff document for another agent to pick up. skill
teach — Teach the user a new skill or concept, within this workspace. skill
write-a-skill — Create new agent skills with proper structure, progressive disclosure, and bundled resources. Use when user wants to create, write, or build a new skill. skill
git-guardrails-claude-code — Set up Claude Code hooks to block dangerous git commands (push, reset --hard, clean, branch -D, etc.) before they execute. Use when user wants to prevent destructive git operations, add git safety hooks, or block git push/reset in Claude Code. skill
migrate-to-shoehorn — Migrate test files from as type assertions to @total-typescript/shoehorn. Use when user mentions shoehorn, wants to replace as in tests, or needs partial test data. skill
scaffold-exercises — Create exercise directory structures with sections, problems, solutions, and explainers that pass linting. Use when user wants to scaffold exercises, create exercise stubs, or set up a new course section. skill
setup-pre-commit — Set up Husky pre-commit hooks with lint-staged (Prettier), type checking, and tests in the current repo. Use when user wants to add pre-commit hooks, set up Husky, configure lint-staged, or add commit-time formatting/typechecking/testing. skill
My agent skills that I use every day to do real engineering - not vibe coding.
Developing real applications is hard. Approaches like GSD, BMAD, and Spec-Kit try to help by owning the process. But while doing so, they take away your control and make bugs in the process hard to resolve.
These skills are designed to be small, easy to adapt, and composable. They work with any model. They're based on decades of engineering experience. Hack around with them. Make them your own. Enjoy.
If you want to keep up with changes to these skills, and any new ones I create, you can join ~60,000 other devs on my newsletter:
The Problem. The most common failure mode in software development is misalignment. You think the dev knows what you want. Then you see what they've built - and you realize it didn't understand you at all.
This is just the same in the AI age. There is a communication gap between you and the agent. The fix for this is a grilling session - getting the agent to ask you detailed questions about what you're building.
These are my most popular skills. They help you align with the agent before you get started, and think deeply about the change you're making. Use them every time you want to make a change.
#2: The Agent Is Way Too Verbose
With a ubiquitous language, conversations among developers and expressions of the code are all derived from the same domain model.
The Problem: At the start of a project, devs and the people they're building the software for (the domain experts) are usually speaking different languages.
I felt the same tension with my agents. Agents are usually dropped into a project and asked to figure out the jargon as they go. So they use 20 words where 1 will do.
The Fix for this is a shared language. It's a document that helps agents decode the jargon used in the project.
Example
Here's an example CONTEXT.md, from my course-video-manager repo. Which one is easier to read?
BEFORE: "There's a problem when a lesson inside a section of a course is made 'real' (i.e. given a spot in the file system)"
AFTER: "There's a problem with the materialization cascade"
This concision pays off session after session.
This is built into /grill-with-docs. It's a grilling session, but that helps you build a shared language with the AI, and document hard-to-explain decisions in ADR's.
It's hard to explain how powerful this is. It might be the single coolest technique in this repo. Try it, and see.
Tip
A shared language has many other benefits than reducing verbosity:
Variables, functions and files are named consistently, using the shared language
As a result, the codebase is easier to navigate for the agent
The agent also spends fewer tokens on thinking, because it has access to a more concise language
#3: The Code Doesn't Work
"Always take small, deliberate steps. The rate of feedback is your speed limit. Never take on a task that’s too big."
The Problem: Let's say that you and the agent are aligned on what to build. What happens when the agent still produces crap?
It's time to look at your feedback loops. Without feedback on how the code it produces actually runs, the agent will be flying blind.
The Fix: You need the usual tranche of feedback loops: static types, browser access, and automated tests.
For automated tests, a red-green-refactor loop is critical. This is where the agent writes a failing test first, then fixes the test. This helps give the agent a consistent level of feedback that results in far better code.
I've built a /tdd skill you can slot into any project. It encourages red-green-refactor and gives the agent plenty of guidance on what makes good and bad tests.
For debugging, I've also built a /diagnose skill that wraps best debugging practices into a simple loop.
The Problem: Most apps built with agents are complex and hard to change. Because agents can radically speed up coding, they also accelerate software entropy. Codebases get more complex at an unprecedented rate.
The Fix for this is a radical new approach to AI-powered development: caring about the design of the code.
This is built in to every layer of these skills:
/to-prd quizzes you about which modules you're touching before creating a PRD
/zoom-out tells the agent to explain code in the context of the whole system
And crucially, /improve-codebase-architecture helps you rescue a codebase that has become a ball of mud. I recommend running it on your codebase once every few days.
Summary
Software engineering fundamentals matter more than ever. These skills are my best effort at condensing these fundamentals into repeatable practices, to help you ship the best apps of your career. Enjoy.
Reference
Engineering
Skills I use daily for code work.
diagnose — Disciplined diagnosis loop for hard bugs and performance regressions: reproduce → minimise → hypothesise → instrument → fix → regression-test.
grill-with-docs — Grilling session that challenges your plan against the existing domain model, sharpens terminology, and updates CONTEXT.md and ADRs inline.
triage — Triage issues through a state machine of triage roles.
improve-codebase-architecture — Find deepening opportunities in a codebase, informed by the domain language in CONTEXT.md and the decisions in docs/adr/.
setup-matt-pocock-skills — Scaffold the per-repo config (issue tracker, triage label vocabulary, domain doc layout) that the other engineering skills consume. Run once per repo before using to-issues, to-prd, triage, diagnose, tdd, improve-codebase-architecture, or zoom-out.
tdd — Test-driven development with a red-green-refactor loop. Builds features or fixes bugs one vertical slice at a time.
to-issues — Break any plan, spec, or PRD into independently-grabbable GitHub issues using vertical slices.
to-prd — Turn the current conversation context into a PRD and submit it as a GitHub issue. No interview — just synthesizes what you've already discussed.
zoom-out — Tell the agent to zoom out and give broader context or a higher-level perspective on an unfamiliar section of code.
prototype — Build a throwaway prototype to flesh out a design — either a runnable terminal app for state/business-logic questions, or several radically different UI variations toggleable from one route.
Productivity
General workflow tools, not code-specific.
caveman — Ultra-compressed communication mode. Cuts token usage ~75% by dropping filler while keeping full technical accuracy.
grill-me — Get relentlessly interviewed about a plan or design until every branch of the decision tree is resolved.
handoff — Compact the current conversation into a handoff document so another agent can continue the work.
teach — Teach the user a new skill or concept over multiple sessions, using the current directory as a stateful teaching workspace.
write-a-skill — Create new skills with proper structure, progressive disclosure, and bundled resources.
Misc
Tools I keep around but rarely use.
git-guardrails-claude-code — Set up Claude Code hooks to block dangerous git commands (push, reset --hard, clean, etc.) before they execute.
migrate-to-shoehorn — Migrate test files from as type assertions to @total-typescript/shoehorn.
scaffold-exercises — Create exercise directory structures with sections, problems, solutions, and explainers.
setup-pre-commit — Set up Husky pre-commit hooks with lint-staged, Prettier, type checking, and tests.
ForgeCat
