CS - Create Skill

Input: $ARGUMENTS

Core Principles

Mode determines method. CREATE, UPDATE, and GAP_SCAN are fundamentally different operations. CREATE starts from a problem. UPDATE starts from existing content. GAP_SCAN starts from the library topology. Don’t blend them.
CREATE requires a problem statement. “Make a skill for X” is insufficient. What problem does the user currently solve by improvising? What goes wrong when they improvise? That failure pattern is the skill’s reason to exist.
UPDATE must preserve what works. The most common update failure is breaking working elements while fixing broken ones. Read the existing skill thoroughly, identify what’s good, protect it.
GAP_SCAN requires library knowledge. You can’t find gaps without knowing what’s there. A gap is not “I can’t find it” — it’s “the library provably lacks coverage for this need class.”
Output contracts are non-negotiable. Every skill must specify what it produces. A skill without an output format is a suggestion, not a tool.

Phase 1: Mode Detection

[C1] INPUT_TYPE: [new skill request | existing skill to improve | library analysis request]
[C2] MODE: CREATE | UPDATE | GAP_SCAN
[C3] MODE_EVIDENCE: [why this mode was selected]

Mode Signals

Signal	Mode
”Make a skill for…” / “I need a skill that…”	CREATE
”This skill isn’t good enough” / “Improve /skill”	UPDATE
”What skills am I missing?” / “What gaps exist?”	GAP_SCAN
Skill ID provided + complaint	UPDATE
Domain described + no existing skill matches	CREATE

Mode: CREATE

Phase 2C: Problem Definition

[C4] PROBLEM: [what the user currently solves by improvising]
[C5] FAILURE_WITHOUT_SKILL: [what goes wrong without a structured approach]
[C6] TRIGGER: [when would someone reach for this skill?]
[C7] INPUT: [what the skill receives]
[C8] OUTPUT: [what the skill produces]
[C9] SCOPE_BOUNDARY: [what this skill does NOT do]

Phase 3C: Overlap Check

[C10] OVERLAP SCAN:
| Existing Skill | Overlap | Distinct Because |
|---------------|---------|-----------------|
| /[id] | [level] | [reason] |

If HIGH overlap found: recommend UPDATE on existing skill instead of CREATE.

Phase 4C: Skill Generation

Generate the complete SKILL.md following the quality schema:

Frontmatter (name, description)
Core Principles (3-6, specific to domain)
Phase structure with numbered findings
Output format
Failure modes (≥4)
Depth scaling (1x-8x)
Pre-completion checklist (≥6)
Integration section

[C11] GENERATED_SKILL: [complete SKILL.md content]
[C12] PROPOSED_ID: [2-6 char, guessable]
[C13] PROPOSED_NAME: [full name]

Mode: UPDATE

Phase 2U: Current State Assessment

[C14] SKILL_TO_UPDATE: /[id]
[C15] CURRENT_LINE_COUNT: [N lines]
[C16] CURRENT_QUALITY_TIER: [stub | partial | adequate | good | excellent]

Phase 3U: Gap Analysis

Check the existing skill against schema requirements:

[C17] SCHEMA COMPLIANCE:
| Element | Status | Gap |
|---------|--------|-----|
| Core Principles | [present/missing/weak] | [what needs fixing] |
| Phase structure | [present/missing/weak] | |
| Failure modes | [present/missing/weak] | |
| Depth scaling | [present/missing/weak] | |
| Checklist | [present/missing/weak] | |
| Integration | [present/missing/weak] | |

Phase 4U: Preservation + Improvement

[C18] PRESERVE (do not change):
  - [element] — [why it works]
  - [element] — [why it works]

[C19] IMPROVE:
  - [element] — [current state] → [target state]
  - [element] — [current state] → [target state]

[C20] ADD:
  - [element] — [why it's missing and needed]

[C21] UPDATED_SKILL: [complete updated SKILL.md content]

Mode: GAP_SCAN

Phase 2G: Library Analysis

[C22] SCAN_SCOPE: [full library | specific category | specific domain]
[C23] ANALYSIS_METHOD: [category coverage | user-need mapping | workflow gap | domain gap]

Phase 3G: Gap Identification

[C24] GAPS FOUND:
| Gap | Need Class | Nearest Existing | Why Insufficient | Priority |
|-----|-----------|-----------------|-----------------|----------|
| [gap 1] | [need] | /[id] | [why] | [high/medium/low] |
| [gap 2] | [need] | /[id] | [why] | [priority] |

Phase 4G: Recommendations

[C25] RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. CREATE /[proposed-id] — [purpose] — PRIORITY: [level]
2. CREATE /[proposed-id] — [purpose] — PRIORITY: [level]
...

Output

For CREATE/UPDATE: complete SKILL.md content ready to save. For GAP_SCAN: prioritized gap list with proposed skill specs.

Failure Modes

Failure	Signal	Fix
Mode confusion	Applying CREATE logic to an UPDATE request	Phase 1 mode detection must be explicit
No problem statement	CREATE with “make a skill for X” and no failure pattern	Go back: what goes wrong without this skill?
Update destroys content	Working elements removed during improvement	Phase 4U PRESERVE list must be explicit
Duplicate creation	New skill overlaps existing one at HIGH level	Overlap check before generation
Gap inflation	GAP_SCAN finds 50 “gaps” — most are marginal	Prioritize ruthlessly; only HIGH priority gaps warrant new skills
Stub output	Generated skill is under 100 lines	Quality gate: ≥100 lines, all schema elements present

Depth Scaling

Depth	Mode	Min Elements	Min Overlap Checks	Min Output Length
1x	Any	Schema basics	3	80 lines
2x	Any	Full schema	5	120 lines
4x	Any	Schema + quality	8	180 lines
8x	Any	Schema + quality + style	12	250 lines

Default: 2x. These are floors.

Pre-Completion Checklist

Integration

Use from: /dtse (when skill doesn’t exist), /pci (when skill needs improvement)
Differs from /mts: mts focuses on initial creation; cs handles CREATE/UPDATE/GAP_SCAN
Differs from /fmtsb: fmtsb formalizes a draft; cs creates or updates the skill itself
Differs from /sc: sc designs creation systems; cs executes creation/update for one skill

cs - Create Skill