Add Skill

VerifiedSafe

Create and populate a skill guide for recurring tasks. Documents patterns and best practices.

Sby Skills Guide Bot
DocumentationIntermediate
107/24/2026
Claude Code
#skill-creation#documentation#codebase-analysis#patterns#meta-skill

Recommended for

Our review

This skill helps create a structured guide for recurring tasks by analyzing the codebase and asking clarifying questions.

Strengths

  • Automates documentation of reusable patterns
  • Leverages existing code for concrete examples
  • Provides clear structure with steps, anti-patterns, and examples

Limitations

  • Relies on user input for topic and clarifications
  • May produce generic suggestions if codebase lacks relevant patterns
  • Does not handle updating skills after creation
When to use it

Create a new skill when you have a repetitive task that would benefit from standardized documentation.

When not to use it

Do not use this skill for one-off tasks or instructions that are not intended to be reused.

Security analysis

Safe
Quality score90/100

This skill only involves file system operations within a .claude directory (mkdir) and interaction with the codebase and user. There are no destructive commands, network calls, or exfiltration risks.

No concerns found

Examples

Create testing skill
/add-skill testing
Create error handling skill
/add-skill error handling
Create deployment skill
/add-skill deployment

Add Skill

Create and populate a new skill guide for recurring tasks.

Usage: /add-skill [name or topic]

Process

1. Get Skill Topic

If $ARGUMENTS is empty, use AskUserQuestion tool to ask:

  • "What task or pattern should this skill document?"

2. Analyze Codebase

Search the codebase to find:

  • Existing patterns related to this skill
  • Code examples that demonstrate the pattern
  • Common files/modules involved

3. Gather Context

Use AskUserQuestion tool to ask 2-3 clarifying questions:

  • When should developers use this pattern?
  • Are there any anti-patterns or common mistakes to avoid?
  • Any project-specific conventions for this task?

4. Create Skill Structure

mkdir -p .claude/skills/[skill-slug]

5. Populate SKILL.md

Create .claude/skills/[skill-slug]/SKILL.md:

# Skill: [Name]

## When to Use

- [Situation 1 - based on analysis]
- [Situation 2]
- [Situation 3]

## Step by Step

### 1. [First Step]

[Explanation]

```[language]
# Code example from this codebase
[actual code found in the project]

2. [Second Step]

[Explanation]

[code example]

3. [Third Step]

[Explanation]

[code example]

Anti-Patterns

Don't:

  • [Bad practice 1 - why it's bad]
  • [Bad practice 2 - why it's bad]

Do:

  • [Good practice 1]
  • [Good practice 2]

Examples from This Codebase

[Example 1 Name]

Located at: [file path]

[relevant code snippet]

[Example 2 Name]

Located at: [file path]

[relevant code snippet]

Related

  • [Link to related ADR if applicable]
  • [Link to related skill if applicable]

## Output

Created: .claude/skills/[slug]/SKILL.md

Skill: [Name]

Steps documented: X Examples included: X from codebase Anti-patterns: X identified


## If You Get Stuck

If you cannot make progress after 3 attempts at the same step:
1. Stop immediately
2. Explain what you're trying to do and what's blocking you
3. **Use AskUserQuestion tool** to ask the user how to proceed

Never loop indefinitely. If you find yourself repeating the same actions without progress, stop and ask for help.
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