How do I install the Trellis Before Dev skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add qiaokes/trellis-before-dev in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

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Which AI agents work with Trellis Before Dev?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Trellis Before Dev free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Trellis Before Dev?

qiaokes (@qiaokes) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Trellis Before Dev by qiaokes — Agent Skill

Name: Trellis Before Dev
Author: qiaokes

Trellis Before Dev

Discovers and injects project-specific coding guidelines from .trellis/spec/ before implementation begins. Reads spec indexes, pre-development checklists, and shared thinking guides for the target package. Use when starting a new coding task, before writing any code, switching to a different package, or needing to refresh project conventions and standards.

qiaokes 5f1c28a 2.6 KB Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

Read the relevant development guidelines before starting your task.

Execute these steps:

Read current task artifacts:
- prd.md for requirements and acceptance criteria
- design.md if present for technical design
- implement.md if present for execution order and validation plan

Discover packages and their spec layers:

python3 ./.trellis/scripts/get_context.py --mode packages

Identify which specs apply to your task based on:
- Which package you're modifying (e.g., cli/, docs-site/)
- What type of work (backend, frontend, unit-test, docs, etc.)
- Any spec/research paths referenced by the task artifacts
Read the spec index for each relevant module:
```
cat .trellis/spec/<package>/<layer>/index.md
```
Follow the "Pre-Development Checklist" section in the index.
Read the specific guideline files listed in the Pre-Development Checklist that are relevant to your task. The index is NOT the goal — it points you to the actual guideline files (e.g., error-handling.md, conventions.md, mock-strategies.md). Read those files to understand the coding standards and patterns.
Always read shared guides:
```
cat .trellis/spec/guides/index.md
```
For a non-trivial task, state the change boundary before writing code. Non-trivial means it touches more than one file, crosses a layer, changes a public interface, or edits code you did not just write. Write down:
- the smallest behavior gap between what happens now and what should happen
- where that behavior actually lives (not where it is easiest to intercept)
- which files you expect to change, and why each one is necessary
- what you are explicitly not doing in this task
- if a local refactor is needed, how you will show it did not change behavior
A small, well-scoped change does not need this — do it directly.

If the real scope turns out to be clearly larger than this, say so and why before continuing. Do not widen the change on your own.
Understand the coding standards and patterns you need to follow, then proceed with your development plan.

This step is mandatory before writing any code.

---name: trellis-before-devdescription: Discovers and injects project-specific coding guidelines from .trellis/spec/ before implementation begins. Reads spec indexes, pre-development checklists, and shared thinking guides for the target package. Use when starting a new coding task, before writing any code, switching to a different package, or needing to refresh project conventions and standards.---Read the relevant development guidelines before starting your task.Execute these steps:1. **Read current task artifacts**: - `prd.md` for requirements and acceptance criteria - `design.md` if present for technical design - `implement.md` if present for execution order and validation plan2. **Discover packages and their spec layers**: ```bash python3 ./.trellis/scripts/get_context.py --mode packages ```3. **Identify which specs apply** to your task based on: - Which package you're modifying (e.g., `cli/`, `docs-site/`) - What type of work (backend, frontend, unit-test, docs, etc.) - Any spec/research paths referenced by the task artifacts4. **Read the spec index** for each relevant module: ```bash cat .trellis/spec/<package>/<layer>/index.md ``` Follow the **"Pre-Development Checklist"** section in the index.5. **Read the specific guideline files** listed in the Pre-Development Checklist that are relevant to your task. The index is NOT the goal — it points you to the actual guideline files (e.g., `error-handling.md`, `conventions.md`, `mock-strategies.md`). Read those files to understand the coding standards and patterns.6. **Always read shared guides**: ```bash cat .trellis/spec/guides/index.md ```7. **For a non-trivial task, state the change boundary before writing code.** Non-trivial means it touches more than one file, crosses a layer, changes a public interface, or edits code you did not just write. Write down: - the smallest behavior gap between what happens now and what should happen - where that behavior actually lives (not where it is easiest to intercept) - which files you expect to change, and why each one is necessary - what you are explicitly not doing in this task - if a local refactor is needed, how you will show it did not change behavior A small, well-scoped change does not need this — do it directly. If the real scope turns out to be clearly larger than this, say so and why before continuing. Do not widen the change on your own.8. Understand the coding standards and patterns you need to follow, then proceed with your development plan.This step is **mandatory** before writing any code.

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