| name | prompt-compress |
| description | Compress a system prompt or skill body while preserving semantic content. More aggressive than caveman:compress — targets system prompts and tool descriptions, validates with eval set. Triggers on "compress this prompt", "shrink system prompt", "reduce prompt tokens". |
prompt-compress
Workflow
- Read target prompt + eval set (REQUIRED — refuse without one).
- Baseline: run eval, record score + token count.
- Apply compressions iteratively (caveman style):
- Drop articles, fillers, pleasantries.
- Merge redundant rules.
- Convert prose lists → bullet lists.
- Inline examples if they replace explanation.
- Replace verbose phrasing with technical terms.
- Re-run eval after each pass. Stop if score drops >2%.
- Output diff + new prompt + score+token deltas.
Refuse to compress
- Safety / refusal instructions (those stay verbose).
- Examples (they're cheap calibration).
- Anything user marks
<keep>.
Output
Original: 4,820 tokens, eval 0.87
Pass 1: 3,100 tokens, eval 0.87 (-36%)
Pass 2: 2,400 tokens, eval 0.85 (-50%) ← chose this
Pass 3: 1,900 tokens, eval 0.78 ✗ regression
Saved 50%. New eval within tolerance.
Companion
caveman:compress (memory files), eval-first (gate).
