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14 commits
0.0.2 ... main

Author SHA1 Message Date
Jun-te Kim
677a0add9d
Merge pull request #5 from Hestia-Homes/feature/hestia-skills-instlaled
error in setup
2026-05-13 17:01:36 +01:00
Jun-te Kim
c2bb301a57 error in setup 2026-05-13 16:00:41 +00:00
Jun-te Kim
b88fb554ec
Merge pull request #4 from Hestia-Homes/feature/hestia-skills-instlaled
Feature/hestia skills instlaled
2026-05-13 16:46:37 +01:00
Jun-te Kim
5c12f8bf43 added tdd 2026-05-13 15:45:44 +00:00
Jun-te Kim
12a885f43b save 2026-05-13 15:36:58 +00:00
Daniel Roth
0c32b3fe0f
Merge pull request #3 from Hestia-Homes/tdd-3a
TDD
2026-05-11 14:12:51 +01:00
Daniel Roth
9cf30dd365 Merge branch 'main' into tdd-3a 2026-05-11 14:11:46 +01:00
Daniel Roth
4e09b52b29 update skills-lock.json 2026-05-11 14:11:40 +01:00
Daniel Roth
47f7b1b828
Merge pull request #2 from Hestia-Homes/tdd-3a
tdd skill
2026-05-11 12:47:32 +01:00
Daniel Roth
0d67119bdb rename to tdd and delete matt pocock tdd 2026-05-11 12:29:58 +01:00
Daniel Roth
4d763066d4 tdd-3a skill 2026-05-11 10:54:42 +01:00
Jun-te Kim
3e04fe14ae save in main 2026-05-05 17:28:02 +00:00
Jun-te Kim
af8ea95a5b set up.sh 2026-05-05 17:22:20 +00:00
Jun-te Kim
769689a093 0.0.3 2026-05-05 17:05:46 +00:00
6 changed files with 482 additions and 118 deletions

3
.gitignore vendored
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@ -6,3 +6,6 @@ dist
.env.local
coverage
.vitest-cache
# skills CLI side-effects when running `skills add` locally
.agents/
.claude/

135
scripts/generate-lock.sh Executable file
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@ -0,0 +1,135 @@
#!/usr/bin/env bash
#
# Regenerate skills-lock.json from skills.config.json.
#
# How it works:
# 1. Read skills.config.json (list of {source, skills[]}).
# 2. In a temp dir, run `npx skills add <source> --skill ... --agent <agent> --copy --yes`
# once per source. The `skills` CLI auto-writes/merges skills-lock.json there.
# 3. Copy the resulting lock back to the repo root.
#
# Run from the repo root (or anywhere; paths are resolved relative to the script):
# bash scripts/generate-lock.sh
#
set -euo pipefail
SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
REPO_ROOT="$(cd "$SCRIPT_DIR/.." && pwd)"
CONFIG="$REPO_ROOT/skills.config.json"
DEST_LOCK="$REPO_ROOT/skills-lock.json"
if [[ ! -f "$CONFIG" ]]; then
echo "error: $CONFIG not found." >&2
exit 1
fi
for bin in node npx; do
if ! command -v "$bin" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
echo "error: $bin is required (install Node.js >= 20)." >&2
exit 1
fi
done
WORK_DIR="$(mktemp -d -t skills-lockgen.XXXXXX)"
trap 'rm -rf "$WORK_DIR"' EXIT
# Emit "agent\ninstallSource\tcanonicalSource\tskillA,skillB\n..." for the shell.
# installSource is what we pass to `skills add` (resolved localPath if set, else
# the canonical slug). canonicalSource is what the published lock must record.
PLAN_FILE="$WORK_DIR/plan.txt"
node --input-type=module -e "
import fs from 'node:fs';
import path from 'node:path';
const cfg = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[1], 'utf8'));
const repoRoot = process.argv[3];
const agent = cfg.agent || 'claude-code';
const lines = [agent];
for (const entry of cfg.sources || []) {
if (!entry?.source || !Array.isArray(entry.skills) || entry.skills.length === 0) continue;
const install = entry.localPath ? path.resolve(repoRoot, entry.localPath) : entry.source;
lines.push(install + '\t' + entry.source + '\t' + entry.skills.join(','));
}
fs.writeFileSync(process.argv[2], lines.join('\n') + '\n');
" "$CONFIG" "$PLAN_FILE" "$REPO_ROOT"
AGENT="$(head -n1 "$PLAN_FILE")"
echo "==> Agent target: $AGENT"
echo "==> Generating lock in $WORK_DIR"
# Read plan from fd 3 so the loop body's stdin stays free for npx (the skills
# CLI reads stdin even in --yes mode and would otherwise gobble loop lines).
while IFS=$'\t' read -r INSTALL_SOURCE CANONICAL_SOURCE SKILLS <&3; do
[[ -z "$INSTALL_SOURCE" ]] && continue
if [[ "$INSTALL_SOURCE" == "$CANONICAL_SOURCE" ]]; then
echo "==> $CANONICAL_SOURCE :: $SKILLS"
else
echo "==> $CANONICAL_SOURCE (from local $INSTALL_SOURCE) :: $SKILLS"
fi
SKILL_ARGS=()
IFS=',' read -ra _NAMES <<< "$SKILLS"
for n in "${_NAMES[@]}"; do
[[ -z "$n" ]] && continue
SKILL_ARGS+=(--skill "$n")
done
( cd "$WORK_DIR" && npx --yes skills@latest add "$INSTALL_SOURCE" \
"${SKILL_ARGS[@]}" \
--agent "$AGENT" \
--copy \
--yes < /dev/null )
done 3< <(tail -n +2 "$PLAN_FILE")
if [[ ! -f "$WORK_DIR/skills-lock.json" ]]; then
echo "error: skills CLI did not produce $WORK_DIR/skills-lock.json." >&2
exit 1
fi
# Rewrite any local-path sources in the lock back to their canonical slug, so
# consumers of skills-lock.json (e.g. setup.sh in a dev container) fetch from
# GitHub instead of a path that only exists on the generator's machine.
node --input-type=module -e "
import fs from 'node:fs';
import path from 'node:path';
const cfg = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[1], 'utf8'));
const repoRoot = process.argv[2];
const lock = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[3], 'utf8'));
const remap = new Map();
for (const entry of cfg.sources || []) {
if (!entry?.source || !entry.localPath) continue;
remap.set(path.resolve(repoRoot, entry.localPath), entry.source);
}
for (const skill of Object.values(lock.skills || {})) {
if (!skill?.source) continue;
const resolved = path.resolve(skill.source);
if (remap.has(resolved)) {
skill.source = remap.get(resolved);
skill.sourceType = 'github';
}
}
fs.writeFileSync(process.argv[4], JSON.stringify(lock, null, 2) + '\n');
" "$CONFIG" "$REPO_ROOT" "$WORK_DIR/skills-lock.json" "$DEST_LOCK"
echo "==> Wrote $DEST_LOCK"
# Cross-check: every (source, skill) requested in config should be present in the lock.
node --input-type=module -e "
import fs from 'node:fs';
const cfg = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[1], 'utf8'));
const lock = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[2], 'utf8'));
const got = new Map();
for (const [name, entry] of Object.entries(lock.skills || {})) {
if (!entry?.source) continue;
if (!got.has(entry.source)) got.set(entry.source, new Set());
got.get(entry.source).add(name);
}
const missing = [];
for (const entry of cfg.sources || []) {
const have = got.get(entry.source) || new Set();
for (const s of entry.skills || []) {
if (!have.has(s)) missing.push(entry.source + '::' + s);
}
}
if (missing.length) {
console.error('error: skills missing from generated lock (likely missing SKILL.md frontmatter upstream):');
for (const m of missing) console.error(' - ' + m);
process.exit(1);
}
console.log('==> Verified: all ' + Object.keys(lock.skills).length + ' configured skills present in lock.');
" "$CONFIG" "$DEST_LOCK"

113
setup.sh
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@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
#!/usr/bin/env bash
#
# Install Domna's curated skill set into the current repo.
# Install Domna's curated skill set globally (~/.claude).
#
# Run from the root of the target repo:
# curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit/main/setup.sh | bash
@ -8,60 +8,119 @@
# bash /path/to/agentic-toolkit/setup.sh
#
# What this does:
# 1. Drops the pinned skills-lock.json from agentic-toolkit into the target repo.
# 2. Runs `skills experimental_install` to restore the exact pinned versions
# of Matt Pocock's skills + Domna's own skills (Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit).
# 1. Copies the pinned skills-lock.json from agentic-toolkit to ~/.claude.
# 2. Parses it and runs `skills add --global` per source so all skills land
# in ~/.claude/skills (user-level, available in every repo).
#
# To upgrade skills across all Domna repos:
# - In agentic-toolkit, re-install the skills you want, then commit the
# resulting skills-lock.json (this script reads from that file).
# - Devs re-run setup.sh in their target repos.
# Note: `skills experimental_install` would be the natural fit but it only
# restores at project scope — confirmed empirically that running it against
# a global lock prints "No project skills found" and exits 0, installing
# nothing. So we drive `skills add --global` from the lock instead.
#
# Logs verbose output to $HOME/.claude/agentic-toolkit-setup.log so failures
# under postCreateCommand or `| bash` are inspectable after the fact.
#
set -euo pipefail
# --- logging -------------------------------------------------------------------
CLAUDE_DIR="${CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR:-$HOME/.claude}"
mkdir -p "$CLAUDE_DIR"
LOG_FILE="$CLAUDE_DIR/agentic-toolkit-setup.log"
# Tee everything (stdout + stderr) to the log so silent failures aren't silent.
exec > >(tee -a "$LOG_FILE") 2>&1
echo "=== agentic-toolkit setup.sh @ $(date -u +%FT%TZ) ==="
# Trap so a failure under set -e prints the failing line into the log.
trap 'rc=$?; echo "ERROR: setup.sh exited $rc at line $LINENO" >&2; exit $rc' ERR
# --- config --------------------------------------------------------------------
LOCK_URL="https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit/main/skills-lock.json"
SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" 2>/dev/null && pwd || true)"
LOCAL_LOCK="${SCRIPT_DIR:+$SCRIPT_DIR/skills-lock.json}"
AGENT_TARGET="claude-code"
DEST_LOCK="$CLAUDE_DIR/skills-lock.json"
# --- guards --------------------------------------------------------------------
if ! command -v npx >/dev/null 2>&1; then
echo "error: npx is required (install Node.js >= 20)." >&2
exit 1
fi
if [[ ! -d .git ]]; then
echo "error: run this script from the root of a git repository." >&2
if ! command -v node >/dev/null 2>&1; then
echo "error: node is required to parse skills-lock.json." >&2
exit 1
fi
# --- stage skills-lock.json ----------------------------------------------------
# --- stage skills-lock.json into ~/.claude ------------------------------------
if [[ -n "$LOCAL_LOCK" && -f "$LOCAL_LOCK" ]]; then
echo "==> Using local skills-lock.json from $LOCAL_LOCK"
cp "$LOCAL_LOCK" ./skills-lock.json
echo "==> Copying local skills-lock.json -> $DEST_LOCK"
cp "$LOCAL_LOCK" "$DEST_LOCK"
else
echo "==> Fetching skills-lock.json from $LOCK_URL"
echo "==> Fetching skills-lock.json -> $DEST_LOCK"
if command -v curl >/dev/null 2>&1; then
curl -fsSL "$LOCK_URL" -o ./skills-lock.json
curl -fsSL "$LOCK_URL" -o "$DEST_LOCK"
elif command -v wget >/dev/null 2>&1; then
wget -qO ./skills-lock.json "$LOCK_URL"
wget -qO "$DEST_LOCK" "$LOCK_URL"
else
echo "error: need curl or wget to fetch skills-lock.json." >&2
exit 1
fi
fi
# --- install -------------------------------------------------------------------
echo "==> Restoring skills from skills-lock.json"
npx --yes skills@latest experimental_install
# --- parse lock: write "source<TAB>skill1,skill2,..." to a tempfile -----------
GROUPS_FILE="$(mktemp -t skills-groups.XXXXXX)"
trap 'rm -f "$GROUPS_FILE"' EXIT
# --- post-install reminder -----------------------------------------------------
node --input-type=module -e "
import fs from 'node:fs';
const lock = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(process.argv[1], 'utf8'));
const bySource = new Map();
for (const [name, entry] of Object.entries(lock.skills || {})) {
if (!entry || !entry.source) continue;
if (!bySource.has(entry.source)) bySource.set(entry.source, []);
bySource.get(entry.source).push(name);
}
const out = [...bySource.entries()]
.map(([src, names]) => src + '\t' + names.join(','))
.join('\n');
fs.writeFileSync(process.argv[2], out + (out ? '\n' : ''));
" "$DEST_LOCK" "$GROUPS_FILE"
if [[ ! -s "$GROUPS_FILE" ]]; then
echo "error: no skills found in $DEST_LOCK." >&2
exit 1
fi
echo "==> Skill groups parsed from lock:"
cat "$GROUPS_FILE"
# --- install (globally, grouped by source) -------------------------------------
echo "==> Installing skills globally (~/.claude)"
# Read plan from fd 3 and redirect npx stdin to /dev/null. The skills CLI reads
# stdin even with --yes; without these guards it would consume the remaining
# lines of GROUPS_FILE and the loop would only run once (silently dropping
# every source after the first).
while IFS=$'\t' read -r SOURCE SKILLS <&3; do
[[ -z "$SOURCE" ]] && continue
echo "==> $SOURCE :: $SKILLS"
# The skills CLI expects --skill repeated per name, not a comma-joined string.
SKILL_ARGS=()
IFS=',' read -ra _NAMES <<< "$SKILLS"
for n in "${_NAMES[@]}"; do
[[ -z "$n" ]] && continue
SKILL_ARGS+=(--skill "$n")
done
npx --yes skills@latest add "$SOURCE" \
"${SKILL_ARGS[@]}" \
--agent "$AGENT_TARGET" \
--copy \
--global \
--yes < /dev/null
done 3< "$GROUPS_FILE"
echo "==> Done. Log: $LOG_FILE"
cat <<'EOF'
==> Done. Next steps:
1. Run /setup-matt-pocock-skills (one-time per repo) to record the issue
tracker, triage labels, and domain-doc layout.
2. Commit skills-lock.json so the rest of the team gets the same pinned
skill versions on their next `skills experimental_install`.
Next step:
Run /setup-matt-pocock-skills once per repo to record the issue tracker,
triage labels, and domain-doc layout.
EOF

View file

@ -1,115 +1,86 @@
{
"version": 3,
"version": 1,
"skills": {
"diagnose": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/diagnose/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "43d464d0e9d1049b9d525975c0f7367ab7e01a5f",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"grill-with-docs": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/grill-with-docs/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "2969a1224c70fe41b9dd2ddbe32c2ec62f2815bd",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"improve-codebase-architecture": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/improve-codebase-architecture/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "3ad8fa787b3b9b622d1f5a3d0afc27812ac782fa",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"setup-matt-pocock-skills": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/setup-matt-pocock-skills/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "a500c5b9a481e6fac8c9bb87cd4c4e16c3f46e1a",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"tdd": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/tdd/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "75beb3030b4c979205dd771ff85ac600baeb68f4",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"to-issues": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/to-issues/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "2bf2903405724ce27038fc91f1c4304c4a63ae16",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"to-prd": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/to-prd/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "63e890f04a30b69c9931615f36700fc45eb8d1ad",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"triage": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/triage/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "de4f182c30876a2460ca307e2f601b9b892527e5",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"zoom-out": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/zoom-out/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "6ecebabdea814d12888f56a611da7bf182b5fb26",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
},
"caveman": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/productivity/caveman/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "17972a1bdbf5909b9dbdc435ad348f0bf45f8664",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
"computedHash": "934433479903febc585bf6deb5f0cebc63137e3f86b7babe0aab1ecb94d6d7a4"
},
"diagnose": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/diagnose/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "15939a26f86edec2d4862042b8564e5a062cb81d04e047a0cea6305c8830b5f5"
},
"grill-me": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/productivity/grill-me/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "2a1ad17028306ebe45f0e49703fa28b9b2e7f499",
"pluginName": "mattpocock-skills"
"computedHash": "784f0dbb7403b0f00324bce9a112f715342777a0daee7bbb7385f9c6f0a170ea"
},
"write-a-skill": {
"grill-with-docs": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/mattpocock/skills.git",
"skillPath": "skills/productivity/write-a-skill/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "2f252b35aa238879afc5a230ac30343708dee0b3"
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/grill-with-docs/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "1adf321072f53cce3dcaf5357d91b8230d4aa647bb8a51756745337a6ee567b8"
},
"improve-codebase-architecture": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/improve-codebase-architecture/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "c77b86b4332919499608f9af1880074e1fec65a59b95c70c27a9f39cd137865e"
},
"ralph-loop": {
"source": "Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/ralph-loop/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "d1414d3ccd3cc27f7cc1117b7723efc22b2d1ec7"
"computedHash": "6d6c256a5145008038d128089fa17ed78ac9350d98efd977624da21d9255988b"
},
"setup-matt-pocock-skills": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/setup-matt-pocock-skills/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "0164a8b1ef998abca426056c6ed8a7716a9d4692fc6daa5378f68381a6dafd24"
},
"tdd": {
"source": "Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit",
"sourceType": "github",
"computedHash": "b995b2494d7cd0737c7aa2d6a8affcdd8030ac1b29a52c572a3c5c163842c451"
},
"to-issues": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/to-issues/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "47f648f3414848ccfc62cb41d2828b7e575fb5e7cbd6c4bdf630c063b5dc5e82"
},
"to-prd": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/to-prd/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "6d741474efd4bc3db55fabc2722ed78ca9c374cabcb6212936d79d4fd4a30fcb"
},
"to-project": {
"source": "Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit",
"sourceType": "github",
"sourceUrl": "https://github.com/Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit.git",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/to-project/SKILL.md",
"skillFolderHash": "c28e88e90052bee0dfddc8c525462fe339ff2244"
"computedHash": "59daf039ac699a44a9416f8ec403b83d4166e05489959e127746231ff8be4e12"
},
"triage": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/triage/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "2b6efb6da12d92551772fcc04acf331f4e0e6f7bd9d4cb23ce0b301e0b128feb"
},
"write-a-skill": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/productivity/write-a-skill/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "b44d8aab2ead83c716e01af4c9a24ccc4575ce70ad58ec4f1749fb88c9cc82ba"
},
"zoom-out": {
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"sourceType": "github",
"skillPath": "skills/engineering/zoom-out/SKILL.md",
"computedHash": "8357aeaece3b709c442eab67e64b86844e05e2f1ea95b109565eba50b6def36e"
}
},
"dismissed": {}
}
}

31
skills.config.json Normal file
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@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
{
"$schema_comment": "Source of truth for skills-lock.json. Edit this then run scripts/generate-lock.sh.",
"agent": "claude-code",
"sources": [
{
"source": "mattpocock/skills",
"skills": [
"diagnose",
"grill-with-docs",
"improve-codebase-architecture",
"setup-matt-pocock-skills",
"to-issues",
"to-prd",
"triage",
"zoom-out",
"caveman",
"grill-me",
"write-a-skill"
]
},
{
"source": "Hestia-Homes/agentic-toolkit",
"localPath": ".",
"skills": [
"ralph-loop",
"to-project",
"tdd"
]
}
]
}

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@ -0,0 +1,165 @@
---
name: tdd
description: Test-driven development using vertical 3A slices. Use when adding behavior, fixing a bug that lacks a regression test, or any work where making a failing test pass is the right unit of progress.
---
# Test-Driven Development (3A)
## Philosophy
**Core principle**: Tests should verify behavior through public interfaces, not implementation details. Code can change entirely; tests shouldn't.
**Good tests** are integration-style: they exercise real code paths through public APIs. They describe _what_ the system does, not _how_ it does it. A good test reads like a specification - "user can checkout with valid cart" tells you exactly what capability exists. These tests survive refactors because they don't care about internal structure.
**Bad tests** are coupled to implementation. They mock internal collaborators, test private methods, or verify through external means (like querying a database directly instead of using the interface). The warning sign: your test breaks when you refactor, but behavior hasn't changed. If you rename an internal function and tests fail, those tests were testing implementation, not behavior.
Tests exercise real code paths through public APIs; mocks are a last resort for I/O boundaries only.
## Anti-Pattern: Horizontal Slices
**DO NOT write all tests first, then all implementation.** This is "horizontal slicing" - treating RED as "write all tests" and GREEN as "write all code."
This produces **crap tests**:
- Tests written in bulk test _imagined_ behavior, not _actual_ behavior
- You end up testing the _shape_ of things (data structures, function signatures) rather than user-facing behavior
- Tests become insensitive to real changes - they pass when behavior breaks, fail when behavior is fine
- You outrun your headlights, committing to test structure before understanding the implementation
**Correct approach**: Vertical slices via tracer bullets. One test → one implementation → repeat. Each test responds to what you learned from the previous cycle. Because you just wrote the code, you know exactly what behavior matters and how to verify it.
```
WRONG (horizontal):
RED: test1, test2, test3, test4, test5
GREEN: impl1, impl2, impl3, impl4, impl5
RIGHT (vertical):
RED→GREEN: test1→impl1
RED→GREEN: test2→impl2
RED→GREEN: test3→impl3
...
```
## Workflow
### 1. Planning
When exploring the codebase, use the project's domain glossary so that test names and interface vocabulary match the project's language, and respect ADRs in the area you're touching.
Before writing any code:
- [ ] Confirm with user what interface changes are needed
- [ ] Confirm with user which behaviors to test (prioritize)
- [ ] Identify opportunities for deep modules (small interface, deep implementation)
- [ ] Design interfaces for testability
- [ ] List the behaviors to test (not implementation steps)
- [ ] Get user approval on the plan
Ask: "What should the public interface look like? Which behaviors are most important to test?"
**You can't test everything.** Confirm with the user exactly which behaviors matter most. Focus testing effort on critical paths and complex logic, not every possible edge case.
### 2. Tracer Bullet
Write ONE test that confirms ONE thing about the system:
```
RED: Write test for first behavior → test fails
GREEN: Write minimal code to pass → test passes
```
This is your tracer bullet - proves the path works end-to-end.
### 3. Incremental Loop
For each remaining behavior:
```
RED: Write next test → fails
GREEN: Minimal code to pass → passes
```
Rules:
- One test at a time
- Only enough code to pass current test
- Don't anticipate future tests
- Keep tests focused on observable behavior
### 4. Refactor
After all tests pass, look for refactor candidates:
- [ ] Extract duplication
- [ ] Deepen modules (move complexity behind simple interfaces)
- [ ] Apply SOLID principles where natural
- [ ] Consider what new code reveals about existing code
- [ ] Run tests after each refactor step
**Never refactor while RED.** Get to GREEN first.
## Checklist Per Cycle
```
[ ] Test describes behavior, not implementation
[ ] Test uses public interface only
[ ] Test would survive internal refactor
[ ] Code is minimal for this test
[ ] No speculative features added
```
---
## Test Structure: Arrange-Act-Assert
Every test must be structured in three clearly separated phases:
- **Arrange** — set up inputs, state, and dependencies
- **Act** — invoke the unit under test (one call per test)
- **Assert** — verify the single observable outcome
Keep each phase visually distinct with a blank line between phases and inline `// Arrange / // Act / // Assert` comments, where the framework doesn't make the separation obvious.
---
## Stub-First Reds
Before writing a failing test, define stub implementations for all functions, methods, and classes the test will import. Stubs must:
- Exist at the correct import path
- Have the correct signature
- Raise / throw a "not implemented" error (e.g. `raise NotImplementedError`, `throw new Error('not implemented')`)
This ensures RED tests fail because the **behavior is missing**, not because of import or attribute errors. A test that errors on import is not a RED test — it is a broken test.
---
## Red-Green-Refactor: Stage Gates
After completing each stage, **stop and wait** before proceeding to the next. At each gate:
1. **After RED** — present the suggested commit message, run tests to confirm they fail for the right reason (not import/attribute errors), then wait for the user to commit manually.
2. **After GREEN** — present the suggested commit message, confirm all tests pass, then wait for the user to commit manually.
3. **After REFACTOR** — present the suggested commit message, confirm tests still pass and no behavior changed, then wait for the user to commit manually.
Do not continue to the next stage until the user has committed and explicitly given the go-ahead.
### Commit Message Format
One sentence describing the **behavior being delivered**, followed by a stage emoji. The sentence must describe what the system now does, not the TDD action taken.
| Stage | Emoji |
|----------|-------|
| Red | 🟥 |
| Green | 🟩 |
| Refactor | 🟪 |
**Examples:**
```
Map API response to domain object 🟥
Map API response to domain object 🟩
Map API response to domain object 🟪
```
Not: "wrote failing mapping tests" or "made tests pass" — those describe the process, not the behavior.