IF A SKILL APPLIES TO YOUR TASK, YOU DO NOT HAVE A CHOICE. YOU MUST USE IT.

This is not negotiable. This is not optional. You cannot rationalize your way out of this. </EXTREMELY-IMPORTANT>

How to Access Skills

In Claude Code: Use the Skill tool. When you invoke a skill, its content is loaded and presented to you—follow it directly. Never use the Read tool on skill files.

In other environments: Check your platform's documentation for how skills are loaded.

Using Skills

The Rule

Invoke relevant or requested skills BEFORE any response or action. Even a 1% chance a skill might apply means that you should invoke the skill to check. If an invoked skill turns out to be wrong for the situation, you don't need to use it.

dot

digraph skill_flow {
    "User message received" [shape=doublecircle];
    "Might any skill apply?" [shape=diamond];
    "Invoke Skill tool" [shape=box];
    "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'" [shape=box];
    "Has checklist?" [shape=diamond];
    "Create TodoWrite todo per item" [shape=box];
    "Follow skill exactly" [shape=box];
    "Respond (including clarifications)" [shape=doublecircle];

    "User message received" -> "Might any skill apply?";
    "Might any skill apply?" -> "Invoke Skill tool" [label="yes, even 1%"];
    "Might any skill apply?" -> "Respond (including clarifications)" [label="definitely not"];
    "Invoke Skill tool" -> "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'";
    "Announce: 'Using [skill] to [purpose]'" -> "Has checklist?";
    "Has checklist?" -> "Create TodoWrite todo per item" [label="yes"];
    "Has checklist?" -> "Follow skill exactly" [label="no"];
    "Create TodoWrite todo per item" -> "Follow skill exactly";
}

Red Flags

These thoughts mean STOP—you're rationalizing:

Thought	Reality
"This is just a simple question"	Questions are tasks. Check for skills.
"I need more context first"	Skill check comes BEFORE clarifying questions.
"Let me explore the codebase first"	Skills tell you HOW to explore. Check first.
"I can check git/files quickly"	Files lack conversation context. Check for skills.
"Let me gather information first"	Skills tell you HOW to gather information.
"This doesn't need a formal skill"	If a skill exists, use it.
"I remember this skill"	Skills evolve. Read current version.
"This doesn't count as a task"	Action = task. Check for skills.
"The skill is overkill"	Simple things become complex. Use it.
"I'll just do this one thing first"	Check BEFORE doing anything.
"This feels productive"	Undisciplined action wastes time. Skills prevent this.
"I know what that means"	Knowing the concept ≠ using the skill. Invoke it.

Skill Priority

When multiple skills could apply, use this order:

Process skills first (brainstorming, debugging) - these determine HOW to approach the task
Implementation skills second (frontend-design, mcp-builder) - these guide execution

"Let's build X" → brainstorming first, then implementation skills. "Fix this bug" → debugging first, then domain-specific skills.

Skill Types

Rigid (TDD, debugging): Follow exactly. Don't adapt away discipline.

Flexible (patterns): Adapt principles to context.

The skill itself tells you which.

User Instructions

Instructions say WHAT, not HOW. "Add X" or "Fix Y" doesn't mean skip workflows.

Planning & Implementation Workflow

When starting work that involves creating or changing functionality, follow this workflow:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    STARTING NEW WORK?                           │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                              │
                              ▼
              ┌───────────────────────────────┐
              │ Are requirements clear?       │
              └───────────────────────────────┘
                     │              │
                    NO             YES
                     │              │
                     ▼              ▼
         ┌─────────────────┐   ┌─────────────────┐
         │ /brainstorming  │   │ Does a plan     │
         │                 │   │ file exist?     │
         │ Explore intent, │   │ (gi_*.md)       │
         │ design approach │   └─────────────────┘
         └─────────────────┘          │       │
                  │                  NO      YES
                  ▼                   │       │
         ┌─────────────────┐         │       │
         │ Outputs design  │         │       │
         │ to doc/plans/   │         │       │
         └─────────────────┘         │       │
                  │                  │       │
                  ▼                  ▼       │
         ┌─────────────────────────────┐    │
         │      /issue-planning        │    │
         │                             │    │
         │ Create detailed plan in     │    │
         │ doc/plans/issues/gi_*.md    │    │
         └─────────────────────────────┘    │
                        │                   │
                        └─────────┬─────────┘
                                  ▼
         ┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
         │  Is it a discrete issue (gi_*.md)  │
         │  or a larger plan?                  │
         └─────────────────────────────────────┘
                     │              │
             gi_*.md issue    larger plan
                     │              │
                     ▼              ▼
         ┌─────────────────┐  ┌─────────────────┐
         │/executing-issues│  │ /executing-plans│
         └─────────────────┘  └─────────────────┘
                     │              │
                     └──────┬───────┘
                            ▼
         ┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
         │       /pre-deploy-validation        │
         │                                     │
         │ Before pushing to production        │
         └─────────────────────────────────────┘

Quick Reference

Situation	Skill
Unclear requirements, exploring ideas	`/brainstorming`
Need to create detailed implementation plan	`/issue-planning`
Implementing a discrete issue with `gi_*.md` file	`/executing-issues`
Executing a larger architecture plan	`/executing-plans`
Ready to deploy	`/pre-deploy-validation`

Workflow Tips

Always start with /brainstorming if requirements are fuzzy or you're exploring options
Skip to /issue-planning if you already know what to build
Skip to /executing-issues if a plan file already exists
Use /executing-plans for multi-issue architecture work (e.g., migrations, refactors)

Complete Skill Catalog

Planning & Execution (Sequential Workflow)

Skill	When to Use	Trigger Phrases
`/brainstorming`	Requirements unclear, exploring approaches, new feature design	"Let's build...", "How should we...", "I want to add..."
`/issue-planning`	Create detailed implementation plan for discrete task	"Plan this feature", "Create an issue for...", after brainstorming
`/executing-issues`	Implement a task with existing `gi_*.md` plan file	"Implement PREPQ-001", "Execute the issue plan"
`/executing-plans`	Execute large multi-step plans (migrations, refactors)	"Execute the migration plan", "Implement the architecture"
`/pre-deploy-validation`	Verify changes before pushing to production	"Ready to deploy", "Check if this is deployment-ready"

Implementation Process (Use During Coding)

Skill	When to Use	Trigger Phrases
`/software-architecture`	Reference for code patterns, naming, structure	"What's the convention for...", "How should I structure...", while writing code
`/test-driven-development`	Writing any new code (features, bugfixes)	"Implement...", "Fix bug...", "Add feature..."

Note: software-architecture is a reference skill — consult it while coding. test-driven-development is a process skill — follow it strictly.

Code Review (After Implementation)

Skill	When to Use	Trigger Phrases
`/requesting-code-review`	After completing work, before merge	"Review my changes", "Check this before merge"
`/receiving-code-review`	When you receive feedback on your code	"Here's review feedback...", PR comments received

Domain Expert Reviewers (Validation)

These skills activate read-only reviewers who provide feedback without making edits. Use them to validate work from different perspectives.

Skill	Expertise	When to Use
`/hydrological-modeller`	Scientific validity, model correctness, skill metrics	Reviewing model implementations, forecast quality, documentation for modellers
`/operational-hydrologist`	End-user workflows, dashboard UX, forecast interpretation	Any UI changes, frontend changes, user-facing documentation, visualization decisions
`/hydromet-sysadmin`	Server operations, deployment, security, troubleshooting	Deployment docs, maintenance procedures, server-related changes

Mandatory reviews:

UI/Frontend changes → Always invoke /operational-hydrologist (they are the end users)
Model/forecast changes → Always invoke /hydrological-modeller
Deployment/server changes → Always invoke /hydromet-sysadmin

Typical workflow: After implementation, invoke the relevant reviewer(s) for domain-specific feedback before deployment.

Technical Reference (Domain-Specific Guidance)

Skill	When to Use	Trigger Phrases
`/ieasyhydro-sdk`	Working with iEasyHydro HF API, SDK errors, data retrieval	"SDK error", "get_data_values", "422 error", working in `preprocessing_runoff`
`/cicd-master`	GitHub Actions, deployment scripts, Docker pipelines, cron jobs	Editing `.github/workflows/`, `bin/` scripts, Docker builds
`/documentation`	Writing/updating docs, documentation audits, identifying gaps	"Update the docs", "Write documentation for...", working in `doc/`

Meta Skills

Skill	When to Use
`/use-skills`	Unsure which skill applies, starting a conversation
`/skill-creator`	Creating or updating a skill

Skill Combinations

Common skill sequences for different work types:

New Feature:

/brainstorming → /issue-planning → /test-driven-development → /executing-issues → /requesting-code-review → /pre-deploy-validation

Bug Fix:

/test-driven-development → /requesting-code-review → /pre-deploy-validation

Documentation:

/documentation → /hydrological-modeller (for technical review)

Model Changes:

/brainstorming → /issue-planning → /test-driven-development → /hydrological-modeller (review) → /pre-deploy-validation

UI/Frontend Changes (dashboard, visualizations):

/brainstorming → /issue-planning → /test-driven-development → /operational-hydrologist (REQUIRED) → /pre-deploy-validation

Deployment/CI Changes:

/cicd-master → /hydromet-sysadmin (review) → /pre-deploy-validation

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SKILL.md