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smith-horn

Skill Builder

by @smith-horn in AI & LLM
8
4
# Install this skill:
npx skills add smith-horn/skillsmith --skill "Skill Builder"

Install specific skill from multi-skill repository

# Description

Create new Claude Code Skills with proper YAML frontmatter, progressive disclosure structure, and complete directory organization. Use when you need to build custom skills for specific workflows, generate skill templates, or understand the Claude Skills specification.

# SKILL.md

name: "Skill Builder"
version: "1.0.0"
description: "Create new Claude Code Skills with proper YAML frontmatter, progressive disclosure structure, and complete directory organization. Use when you need to build custom skills for specific workflows, generate skill templates, or understand the Claude Skills specification."
category: development
tags:
- skill-authoring
- templates
- yaml
- claude-code
- scaffolding
author: Smith Horn

Skill Builder

Behavioral Classification

Type: Guided Decision

This skill guides you through key decisions when creating skills, then generates appropriate templates and structure.

Decision Points:
1. What type of skill? (basic, intermediate, advanced)
2. Behavioral classification? (autonomous, guided, interactive, configurable)
3. Include scripts? (yes/no)

After decisions are made, skill generation proceeds automatically.

What This Skill Does

Creates production-ready Claude Code Skills with proper YAML frontmatter, progressive disclosure architecture, and complete file/folder structure. This skill guides you through building skills that Claude can autonomously discover and use across all surfaces (Claude.ai, Claude Code, SDK, API).

Key Features:
- Proper YAML frontmatter with required name and description fields
- Progressive disclosure (3-level system for scaling to 100+ skills)
- Directory structure templates for minimal to full-featured skills
- Scripts and resources organization patterns

Prerequisites

  • Claude Code 2.0+ or Claude.ai with Skills support
  • Basic understanding of Markdown and YAML
  • Text editor or IDE

Quick Start

Creating Your First Skill

# 1. Create skill directory (MUST be at top level, NOT in subdirectories!)
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/my-first-skill

# 2. Create SKILL.md with proper format
cat > ~/.claude/skills/my-first-skill/SKILL.md << 'EOF'
---
name: "My First Skill"
description: "Brief description of what this skill does and when Claude should use it. Maximum 1024 characters."
---

# My First Skill

## What This Skill Does
[Your instructions here]

## Quick Start
[Basic usage]
EOF

# 3. Verify skill is detected
# Restart Claude Code or refresh Claude.ai

Sub-Documentation

For detailed information, see the following files:

Document Contents
Specification YAML frontmatter, directory structure, progressive disclosure
Templates Basic, intermediate, and advanced skill templates
Best Practices Content writing guidelines, validation checklist
Skill Locations User vs project skills, precedence, migration

Quick Reference

YAML Frontmatter (Required)

---
name: "Skill Name"                    # REQUIRED: Max 64 chars
description: "What this skill does    # REQUIRED: Max 1024 chars
and when Claude should use it."       # Include BOTH what & when
---

Directory Structure

Minimal (Required):

~/.claude/skills/my-skill/
└── SKILL.md                     # REQUIRED

Full-Featured (Recommended):

~/.claude/skills/my-skill/
├── SKILL.md                     # REQUIRED: Main skill file
├── README.md                    # Optional: Human-readable docs
├── scripts/                     # Optional: Executable scripts
├── resources/                   # Optional: Templates, examples
└── docs/                        # Optional: Additional documentation

Skills Locations

Location Scope Use Case
~/.claude/skills/ Personal (all projects) Personal productivity tools
.claude/skills/ Project (team-shared) Team workflows, committed to git

Behavioral Classifications

Classification Directive When to Use
Autonomous Execution EXECUTE, DON'T ASK Prescribed workflows, no decisions needed
Guided Decision ASK, THEN EXECUTE Requires user input on specific choices
Interactive Exploration ASK THROUGHOUT Ongoing dialogue is the value
Configurable Enforcement USER-CONFIGURED Behavior depends on project settings

Progressive Disclosure

Level Loaded When Size Content
1: Metadata Always (startup) ~200 chars Name + description
2: SKILL.md Skill triggered 1-10KB Main instructions
3+: References On-demand Variable Deep reference, examples

Learn More

Official Resources

Community

Created: 2025-10-19
Version: 1.0.0
Maintained By: agentic-flow team

# Related Skills

# Supported AI Coding Agents

This skill is compatible with the SKILL.md standard and works with all major AI coding agents:

⚡ Amp 🚀 Antigravity 🤖 Claude Code 🦀 Clawdbot 📝 Codex ▶️ Cursor 🤖 Droid 💎 Gemini CLI 🐙 GitHub Copilot 🪿 Goose 📊 Kilo Code 🔧 Kiro CLI 💻 OpenCode 🦘 Roo Code 🌲 Trae 🏄 Windsurf

Learn more about the SKILL.md standard and how to use these skills with your preferred AI coding agent.