ROLE & PRINCIPLE

SkillMedia

Enforces lean coding, minimizes codebase footprint, and reviews/audits for over-engineering or complexity. Triggered by topics: - Core Mindset: "pragmatic minimalism", "lean coding", "simplify code", "zero code", "minimize diff", "pragmatic design". - Design Review: "review for complexity", "review codebase design", "find bloated logic", "is this design too complex". - Project Audit: "audit code complexity", "audit codebase design", "find project bloat", "codebase design check". - Simplification Ledger: "pragmatic debt", "simplification ledger", "shortcut list", "what did we simplify". - Reference Help: "minimalism help", "how do I use minimalism".

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Then ask your AI: use the ROLE & PRINCIPLE skill

What this skill tells your AI

The instructions your AI receives, as published by rudycity/superagent in .agents/skills/pragmatic-minimalism/SKILL.md and read by ahel’s review.

  • Role: Senior developer. Goal: Minimize additions, reduce codebase footprint.
  • Rule: Code is liability. Avoid additions. Delete dead code.

EXECUTION ROUTING

if topic == "design_review" OR intent == "review_diff": CALL execute_complexity_review() elif topic == "project_audit" OR intent == "audit_repo": CALL execute_complexity_audit() elif topic == "simplification_ledger" OR intent == "debt_check": CALL execute_simplification_ledger() elif topic == "help" OR intent == "show_guide": CALL show_help_card() else: CALL apply_implementation_filter()

1. IMPLEMENTATION FILTER (Core Mindset)

Apply filter sequentially before modifying/adding code:

  1. ELIMINATION: Challenge task value. Cancel/refuse task if speculative.
  2. RECYCLING: Locate similar logic. Reuse existing functions/helpers.
  3. RUNTIME_APIS: Use built-in standard library/runtime APIs.
  4. NATIVE_CAPABILITIES: Use native platform/browser options (e.g. standard CSS, HTML forms, DB constraints).
  5. CURRENT_PACKAGES: Use existing project dependencies. Do not install new modules.
  6. SHORT_SYNTAX: Simplify structures (ternaries, short-circuits, built-in array methods).
  7. MINIMAL_FOOTPRINT: Write absolute minimum lines/files for functional requirements.

2. BUG RESOLUTION PATHWAY

if fixing_defect: CALL trace_root_cause() # Apply fix at the common source function. # NEVER wrap callers with ad-hoc checks.

3. COMPLEXITY REVIEW (Design Review)

Analyze diffs for architectural bloat. Output exactly one line per issue: [<tag>] L<line>: <reason> -> <resolution> If multi-file: [<tag>] <file>:L<line>: <reason> -> <resolution>

Tags:

  • CUT: Unused code, dead variables, speculative branches. -> Delete.
  • STANDARD: Hand-rolled logic replacing standard library functions. -> Replace with native APIs.
  • INLINE: Speculative wrappers (single-caller helpers, single-impl interfaces). -> Inline logic.
  • CONDENSE: Bloated conditionals/verbose assignments. -> Simplify.
  • DEPENDENCY: Third-party packages when native code or minor helpers suffice. -> Remove package.

4. COMPLEXITY AUDIT (Project Audit)

Perform repository-wide design scans:

  1. EXCLUSION: Ignore node_modules, vendor, dist, .git.
  2. DETECTION: Identify:
    • Unreferenced functions/classes.
    • Hand-rolled code duplicating runtime library APIs.
    • Speculative layers (e.g. single-caller helpers, single-implementation interfaces).
    • Long files with complex structures (>500 lines).
  3. PRIORITIZATION: Sort by potential line reduction (highest first).
  4. OUTPUT: Print clean markdown list grouped by file and priority.

5. SIMPLIFICATION LEDGER (Pragmatic Debt)

Scan code to index deliberate bypasses/shortcuts:

  1. TARGETS: Find comments starting with: // pragmatic:, # pragmatic:, // temporary-bypass:, # temporary-bypass:.
  2. EXCLUSION: Ignore node_modules, vendor, dist, .git.
  3. OUTPUT: Print markdown table of findings: | File | Line | Description | Proposed Cleanup |

6. HELP CARD

Output reference summary card:

  [PRAGMATIC MINIMALISM HELP CARD]
  =================================
  Mindset   : ELIMINATE -> RECYCLE -> RUNTIME_APIS -> NATIVE -> SHORT_SYNTAX -> MINIMAL
  Review    : Diff checks using CUT, STANDARD, INLINE, CONDENSE, DEPENDENCY
  Audit     : Repository-wide over-engineering scan
  Ledger    : Indexing // pragmatic: and // temporary-bypass: comments

Signals

GitHub stars
21
Forks
3
Last commit
Sep 2026
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Catalog kind
skill
Gateway key
pragmatic-minimalism
Source
github.com/rudycity/superagent