skill-scout

name	skill-scout
tags	["Automation","Utility"]
description	Search existing skills before creating a new one. Checks for naming conflicts, tag overlap, and functional duplication. Use BEFORE creating any new skill to prevent wasted effort and registry bloat.

Skill Scout

Use this skill before creating a new skill. It checks whether an existing skill already covers the intended capability.

When to Use

• Before creating a new skill
• When thinking "I need a skill for X"
• When a user asks to add a new capability
• Before importing a third-party skill

Process

Step 1: Capture Intent

Record what the new skill would do:

• Target capability (1-sentence summary)
• Key scenarios it should handle
• Intended tags

Step 2: Search Local Registry

Scan existing skills for overlap:

# Search by keyword in skill names and descriptions
cd web && npx tsx -e "
import skillsData from './src/data/skills-data.json' assert { type: 'json' };
const query = process.argv[1].toLowerCase();
const matches = skillsData.filter(s =>
  s.id.includes(query) ||
  s.description.toLowerCase().includes(query) ||
  s.tags.some(t => t.toLowerCase().includes(query))
);
matches.forEach(s => console.log(s.id, '|', s.tags.join(','), '|', s.description.slice(0,80)));
" "<keyword>"

Also check manually:

• Read registry/skills.json for tag-based overlap
• Read skills/*/SKILL.md titles for name collision

Step 3: Check Tag Coverage

Determine if the new skill's intended tags are already well-covered:

• If there are 5+ skills with the same tag combination, the new skill must offer something genuinely different
• If the tag is rare (< 2 skills), the new skill is likely additive

Step 4: Decision

Present the verdict:

Verdict	Meaning
Create	No overlap found. Proceed with creation.
Extend	An existing skill covers 80%+ of the intent. Suggest extending it instead.
Duplicate	An existing skill already does this. Point to it and stop.
Merge	Multiple skills cover parts of the intent. Suggest merging or creating a meta-skill.

Step 5: If Creating

After confirming the skill should be created, suggest:

• A unique kebab-case name (verified not taken)
• Appropriate tags from the ALLOWED_TAGS whitelist
• Whether upstream metadata is needed (if derived from a third-party source)

Anti-Patterns

• Don't create "better" versions of existing skills without checking first
• Don't create skills with overlapping tags without clear differentiation
• Don't skip this step even when "obviously" new — the registry grows fast