Agent skill

Code Guidelines

by openteams-lab in openteams-lab/openteams

OpenTeams-only workflow skill. An agent skill from openteams-lab/openteams.

MITAuto-check passedDevelopment

Install Code Guidelines

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .claude/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Paste into Claude Code

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .claude/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

$skill-installer

$skill-installer install https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines

Type this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a codex

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines --agent codex

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .agents/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.

Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/

Paste into Codex

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .agents/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a cursor

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines --agent cursor

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .cursor/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.

Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/

Paste into Cursor

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .cursor/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

gemini skills install

$ gemini skills install https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git --path assets/skills/code-guidelines

--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a gemini-cli

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines --agent gemini-cli

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .gemini/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.

Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into Gemini CLI

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .gemini/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines

Installs for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a github-copilot

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .github/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.

GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into GitHub Copilot

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .github/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a opencode

OpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install openteams-lab/openteams code-guidelines --agent opencode

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/assets/skills/code-guidelines .opencode/skills/code-guidelines && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.

OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into OpenCode

Install the "code-guidelines" agent skill from https://github.com/openteams-lab/openteams/tree/main/assets/skills/code-guidelines into .opencode/skills/code-guidelines/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "code-guidelines", then confirm the skill loads.

OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

Facts

Skill name: code-guidelines
GitHub stars: 626
Token cost: ~711 tokens
SKILL.md length: 332 words
Files: 1
Skills in repo: 7
Repo updated: Oct 4, 2026
First seen: Oct 7, 2026
Licence: MIT

At a glance

OpenTeams-only workflow skill. An agent skill from openteams-lab/openteams.

Works in 4 steps: Think Before Coding → Simplicity First → Surgical Changes → …
Refactoring code to avoid overcomplication
SKILL.md covers OpenTeams-only availability, 1. Think Before Coding, 2. Simplicity First and 3. Surgical Changes, plus 1 more section
Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md

What it does

Code Guidelines is an agent skill from openteams-lab/openteams. OpenTeams-only workflow skill. Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code to avoid overcomplication, make surgical changes, surface assumptions, and define verifiable success criteria.

Its SKILL.md is about 710 tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

It sits in Development, covering Refactoring. The repository describes itself as: Plan, Build, and Ship — with a team of AI agents instead of one. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

Refactoring code to avoid overcomplication
Make surgical changes
Surface assumptions
Define verifiable success criteria

Example prompts

“/code-guidelines”

Workflow steps

4 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

Think Before Coding
Simplicity First
Surgical Changes
Goal-Driven Execution

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit ebee9de. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
Links to these hosts (documentation or services it may open):
- x.com
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Code Guidelines loads about 711 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 67 tokens; SKILL.md has 332 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it: ~67
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches: ~711

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from openteams-lab/openteams at commit ebee9de, republished under its MIT licence (© openteams-lab). 332 words, ~711 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/code-guidelines/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).

name: code-guidelines
description: OpenTeams-only workflow skill. Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code to avoid overcomplication, make surgical changes, surface assumptions, and define verifiable success criteria.
license: MIT

Karpathy Guidelines

OpenTeams-only availability

This skill is part of the OpenTeams workflow and is only available when the current input prompt starts with:

text

[OPENTEAMS_SOURCE=openteams]

If this marker is absent, do not use this skill. Tell the caller that code-guidelines is only available through OpenTeams.

Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes, derived from Andrej Karpathy's observations on LLM coding pitfalls.

Tradeoff: These guidelines bias toward caution over speed. For trivial tasks, use judgment.

1. Think Before Coding

Don't assume. Don't hide confusion. Surface tradeoffs.

Before implementing:

State your assumptions explicitly. If uncertain, ask.
If multiple interpretations exist, present them - don't pick silently.
If a simpler approach exists, say so. Push back when warranted.
If something is unclear, stop. Name what's confusing. Ask.

2. Simplicity First

Minimum code that solves the problem. Nothing speculative.

No features beyond what was asked.
No abstractions for single-use code.
No "flexibility" or "configurability" that wasn't requested.
No error handling for impossible scenarios.
If you write 200 lines and it could be 50, rewrite it.

Ask yourself: "Would a senior engineer say this is overcomplicated?" If yes, simplify.

3. Surgical Changes

Touch only what you must. Clean up only your own mess.

When editing existing code:

Don't "improve" adjacent code, comments, or formatting.
Don't refactor things that aren't broken.
Match existing style, even if you'd do it differently.
If you notice unrelated dead code, mention it - don't delete it.

When your changes create orphans:

Remove imports/variables/functions that YOUR changes made unused.
Don't remove pre-existing dead code unless asked.

The test: Every changed line should trace directly to the user's request.

4. Goal-Driven Execution

Define success criteria. Loop until verified.

Transform tasks into verifiable goals:

"Add validation" → "Write tests for invalid inputs, then make them pass"
"Fix the bug" → "Write a test that reproduces it, then make it pass"
"Refactor X" → "Ensure tests pass before and after"

For multi-step tasks, state a brief plan:

1. [Step] → verify: [check]
2. [Step] → verify: [check]
3. [Step] → verify: [check]

Strong success criteria let you loop independently. Weak criteria ("make it work") require constant clarification.

Files

Just SKILL.md in assets/skills/code-guidelines of openteams-lab/openteams.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit ebee9de

Compare with similar skills

Code Guidelines next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Code Guidelines compared with similar skills
Skill	Stars	Used in	Tokens	Auto-check	Licence	Repo updated
Code Guidelines this skillopenteams-lab/openteams	626	—	~711	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	3 days ago
Guidelinesakash-network/node	1.1k	22 repos	~577	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	yesterday
Component Refactoringlangflow-ai/langflow	156k	—	~3.5k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	today
Migrate Core Code to Submodulestinyhumansai/openhuman	41k	—	~2.6k	Automated safety check: Pass	GPL-3.0	yesterday
ast-grep Structural Searchcode-yeongyu/oh-my-openagent	70k	—	~3.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	today
Systematic Code Refactoringluongnv89/claude-howto	42k	—	~3k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	7 days ago

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Questions about Code Guidelines

What does Code Guidelines do?

OpenTeams-only workflow skill. An agent skill from openteams-lab/openteams. Code Guidelines is an agent skill from openteams-lab/openteams. OpenTeams-only workflow skill.

When should I use Code Guidelines?

Code Guidelines fits situations like: refactoring code to avoid overcomplication; make surgical changes; surface assumptions; define verifiable success criteria.

How do I install Code Guidelines in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (assets/skills/code-guidelines in openteams-lab/openteams) into .claude/skills/code-guidelines in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Code Guidelines in Codex?

Run `npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (assets/skills/code-guidelines in openteams-lab/openteams) into .agents/skills/code-guidelines in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Code Guidelines in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add openteams-lab/openteams --skill code-guidelines -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/code-guidelines, .gemini/skills/code-guidelines, .github/skills/code-guidelines and .opencode/skills/code-guidelines in your project.

What does Code Guidelines need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Code Guidelines is instructions for the agent only.

Does Code Guidelines access the network?

SKILL.md names 1 domain. As links in the text: x.com. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Code Guidelines safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Code Guidelines use?

Code Guidelines is published under the MIT licence (declared in SKILL.md). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Code Guidelines use?

About 711 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 2.8k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Code Guidelines?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Code Guidelines: Guidelines (akash-network/node, 1.1k stars), Component Refactoring (langflow-ai/langflow, 156k stars), Migrate Core Code to Submodules (tinyhumansai/openhuman, 41k stars) and ast-grep Structural Search (code-yeongyu/oh-my-openagent, 70k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Code Guidelines?

openteams-lab (a GitHub organization) maintains it in openteams-lab/openteams, which has 626 GitHub stars. The repository holds 7 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 4, 2026.

Source: openteams-lab/openteams on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.

Install Code Guidelines

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Workflow steps

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

Karpathy Guidelines

OpenTeams-only availability

1. Think Before Coding

2. Simplicity First

3. Surgical Changes

4. Goal-Driven Execution

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from openteams-lab/openteams

Related

Questions about Code Guidelines