| name | unslop |
| description | Always-on AI-tell stripper: apply its pattern check to everything written for humans (chat prose, commits, PR bodies, docs, UI text). Also use when the user says /unslop, "unslop this", or points at text or a file to clean. |
Unslop
Strip AI patterns from writing. Write clean first: never generate the tell and fix it after. The cleanup-afterward pass has been measured to fail, so the bad sentence must not be produced in the first place.
Always-on contract
This skill is a session default (see CLAUDE.md). It applies at write time to every artifact a human will read: chat replies, commit messages, PR titles and bodies, docs, READMEs, UI text, summaries, issue comments.
Exempt: code, symbol/function/API names, error strings, quoted text, file contents reproduced verbatim.
Coexists with other modes:
- caveman compresses; unslop strips tells. Both apply to chat prose. Invoking caveman activates this contract, and the caveman skill carries a copy of the core-tells digest so no separate load is needed.
- humanizer is the on-request deep pass: voice-matching, file rewrites, soul-adding for long-form drafts. Unslop is the always-on floor. For "humanize this in my voice", load humanizer.
Two condensed copies of the core tells exist outside this file: the "Core tells, banned at write time" section in CLAUDE.md and the "Unslop rides this skill" section in .claude/skills/caveman/SKILL.md. They are verbatim duplicates. Changing a core tell here means updating both.
On-demand mode (/unslop <text or path>)
- Scan for the patterns below.
- Rewrite. Preserve meaning and every fact; match intended tone.
- Self-audit: "What makes this obviously AI generated?" Fix remaining tells.
- For files: targeted section edits, show the diff, never silently overwrite.
Patterns to detect and never write
Content
- Puffery. "pivotal moment", "testament to", "evolving landscape", "setting the stage for", "indelible mark". State what happened.
- Superficial -ing phrases. "highlighting...", "ensuring...", "showcasing...", "fostering...". Delete or expand with real substance.
- Promotional language. "nestled", "vibrant", "breathtaking", "groundbreaking", "renowned", "stunning". Neutral description.
- Vague attributions. "Experts believe", "Industry reports suggest". Name the source or delete.
- Formulaic challenges. "Despite challenges... continues to thrive." Specific facts.
Language
- AI vocabulary. Additionally, crucial, delve, enduring, enhance, fostering, garner, interplay, intricate, landscape (abstract), pivotal, showcase, tapestry (abstract), testament, underscore, vibrant. Plain words.
- Fancy ways to say "is". "serves as", "stands as", "boasts", "features". Say "is" or "has".
- "Not just X, but Y." State the point directly.
- Rule of three. Forcing ideas into groups of three. Use the natural number.
- Synonym cycling. Protagonist, main character, central figure in one paragraph. Pick one, repeat it.
- False ranges. "from X to Y" where X and Y aren't on a meaningful scale. List directly.
Style
- Em dashes. Never. Use
. , : ; ·. No parentheses or en dashes as substitutes; end the sentence or use a comma.
- Colon as mid-sentence connector. Colons before a list or example are fine. As a rhetorical hinge ("If you're coming from X: instead of...") rewrite so the point stands alone.
- Boldface overuse. Don't bold every proper noun or acronym.
- Inline-header lists. Bold label + colon restating the line ("Performance: Performance improved...") is a tell; convert to prose. A bold lead-in ending in a period followed by genuinely new detail is fine.
- Title case headings. Sentence case.
- Decorative emojis in headings and bullets. Remove.
- Curly quotes. Straight quotes.
Communication artifacts
- Chatbot phrases. "I hope this helps!", "Let me know if...", "Of course!", "Certainly!", "Found the smoking gun!" Remove.
- Sycophancy. "Great question! You're absolutely right!" Respond directly.
- Cutoff disclaimers. "While specific details are limited..." Find the fact or remove.
Filler
- Filler phrases. "In order to" → "To". "Due to the fact that" → "Because". "It is important to note that" → delete.
- Hedging stacks. "could potentially possibly be argued that it might" → "may".
- Generic conclusions. "The future looks bright." Specific plans or facts, or nothing.
Jargon
- Abstract metaphor nouns. Substrate, wedge, vector, locus, nexus, primitive (noun), harness (metaphor), surface ("API surface"), bedrock, scaffolding (metaphor), paradigm, gold-plating, ratchet (metaphor), north star, flywheel, endgame. Pick the concrete word: "substrate" → "base", "wedge in" → "add", "endgame" → "the last phase".
Plain speech
- Say what it does, not how it feels. "SQL you can read", "types that follow your schema" name a feeling. Name the mechanism or a number instead: "
.toSQL() returns the exact string sent to the database", "a column rename fails the build". If a sentence can't be restated as a concrete instruction, fact, or number, cut it. If it could appear unchanged in another project's docs, it says nothing about this one; cut it.
- One idea per sentence. If the reader backtracks to parse, split or drop clauses.
- Active voice. "queries are validated" → "the compiler validates queries". Passive only when the actor is unknown or genuinely irrelevant.
- Cut adverbs or use the number. "runs quickly" → "is fast" or the measurement. "significantly improves" → the measured delta.
- Plain word over fancy synonym. "utilize" → "use", "leverage" → "use", "facilitate" → "help", "numerous" → "many", "in the event that" → "if".
Code diffs (/unslop the diff)
Code has its own slop. When pointed at a diff (default: against main), remove AI patterns introduced in the branch:
- Extra comments that are unnecessary or inconsistent with local style.
- Defensive checks or try/catch blocks abnormal for trusted code paths.
- Casts to
any used only to bypass type issues.
- Deeply nested code that early returns would simplify.
- Other patterns inconsistent with the file and surrounding codebase.
Guardrails: keep behavior unchanged unless fixing a clear bug; minimal focused edits over broad rewrites; summary in 1-3 sentences.
Anti-patterns
- Don't drop a fact, caveat, or qualifier to remove a tell. Accuracy beats cleanliness.
- Don't apply to code, identifiers, error strings, or quoted material.
- Don't run a visible "cleanup pass" over your own fresh prose; write it clean the first time.
- Don't replace humanizer for voice-matching or long-form rewrites; that's its job.
Adapted from the unslop skill in cursor/plugins pstack (MIT, by poteto); code-diff section from cursor-team-kit's deslop (MIT).
