Agent skill

Init

by rhuss in rhuss/cc-spex

Initialize or update the project using the specify CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line).

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedDevelopment

Install Init

skills CLI
$ npx skills add rhuss/cc-spex --skill init -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install rhuss/cc-spex init --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/rhuss/cc-spex.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/spex/skills/init .claude/skills/init && 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/

Facts

Skill name
init
GitHub stars
120
Token cost
~1.4k tokens
SKILL.md length
647 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
1
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Apache-2.0

At a glance

Initialize or update the project using the specify CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line).

  • Works in 4 steps: Run init script → Ask about extensions and permissions → Detect companion plugins and seed memory → …
  • Tasks that involve Spec-driven development
  • SKILL.md covers Step 1: Run init script, Step 2: Ask about extensions…, Step 3: Detect companion… and Step 4: Report
  • Calls claude

What it does

Init is an agent skill from rhuss/cc-spex. Initialize or update the project using the specify CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line). Do NOT search for speckit or spec-kit binaries.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.4k 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 Spec-driven development. The repository describes itself as: SDD based on spec-kit, enhanced with custom traits. The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

  • Tasks that involve Spec-driven development

Example prompts

  • “/init”

Workflow steps

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

  1. Run init script
  2. Ask about extensions and permissions
  3. Detect companion plugins and seed memory
  4. Report

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 3cc6bf5. 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

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • claude

    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):

    • github.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

Init loads about 1.4k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 48 tokens; SKILL.md has 647 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~48
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~1.4k

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 rhuss/cc-spex at commit 3cc6bf5, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© rhuss). 647 words, ~1,438 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/init/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
init
description
Initialize or update the project using the `specify` CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line). Do NOT search for speckit or spec-kit binaries.

You MUST complete ALL steps below. Do not stop after Step 1.

Step 1: Run init script

Run the command from <spex-init-command> in the <spex-context> system reminder. This is your first and only Bash call. Do not run anything else before it.

  • If output contains NEED_INSTALL: show output, STOP.
  • If output contains ERROR: show error, STOP.
  • If the command was run with --refresh or --update and output contains RESTART_REQUIRED: SKIP Steps 2 and 3. Templates and extensions were refreshed but the existing configuration (enabled extensions, permissions) is preserved. Go directly to Step 4 and report that the refresh completed. Tell the user to restart Claude Code.
  • If output contains READY or RESTART_REQUIRED: do not summarize yet, go to Step 2.

Step 2: Ask about extensions and permissions

You MUST ask all 3 questions below in a SINGLE AskUserQuestion call. Do NOT split, merge, reword, or reorder them. Pass them exactly as specified:

  1. (multiSelect: true, header: "Quality"): "Which quality & review extensions do you want to enable?"

    • "spex-gates": "Quality gates on speckit commands (review-spec, review-code, verification)"
    • "spex-deep-review": "Multi-perspective code review with autonomous fix loop (5 agents)"
    • "spex-teams": "Parallel implementation with spec guardian review via Agent Teams (experimental, requires: spex-gates)"
  2. (multiSelect: true, header: "Workflow"): "Which workflow extensions do you want to enable?"

    • "spex-worktrees": "Git worktree isolation after speckit-specify (creates worktree in .claude/worktrees/)"
    • "spex-collab": "Phase-split collaboration with REVIEWERS.md for team PRs"
    • "spex-detach": "Strip spec artifacts at PR time for contributing to repos that don't use SDD"
  3. (multiSelect: false, header: "Permissions"): "How should spex commands handle permission prompts?"

    • "Standard (Recommended)": "Auto-approve spex plugin scripts (spex-init.sh, specify CLI)"
    • "YOLO": "Auto-approve everything, bypass all permission prompts for unattended workflows"
    • "None": "Confirm every spex command before execution"

Then apply the selections:

Dependency resolution: If the user selected spex-teams but NOT spex-gates, auto-enable spex-gates and warn:

Note: spex-gates was auto-enabled because spex-teams depends on it for spec guardian review.

Extensions: Extensions are already installed and enabled by the init script. For any extensions the user did NOT select (after dependency resolution), disable them:

bash
# Disable unselected extensions (ignore errors if already in desired state)
specify extension disable <extension-name> 2>/dev/null || true

If the user selected all extensions, no action needed (all are enabled by default after init).

Permissions: The specify CLI does not manage permissions. Instead, write permission allowlists directly to .claude/settings.json based on the user's choice. Use the EXACT allow arrays below (copy verbatim, do not modify or rephrase the permission strings):

  • Standard:
    json
    {"permissions": {"allow": ["Skill", "Bash(specify *)", "Bash(*spex-init.sh*)", "Bash(*spex-ship-statusline.sh*)"]}}
  • YOLO:
    json
    {"permissions": {"defaultMode": "bypassPermissions", "allow": ["Bash(*)", "Read(*)", "Edit(*)", "Write(*)", "WebFetch", "WebSearch", "Skill", "Bash(specify *)", "Bash(*spex-init.sh*)", "Bash(*spex-ship-statusline.sh*)"]}}
    Note: defaultMode: "bypassPermissions" skips all permission prompts. The broad allow rules serve as additional fallback. Use this for unattended ship pipelines or when you trust the agent fully.
  • None: Do not modify permissions (leave defaults)

Use the existing project .claude/settings.json (create if missing). Merge permission entries without overwriting existing settings.

Show full SKILL.md (206 more words)Show less

Step 3: Detect companion plugins and seed memory

Scan the available skills list from the system reminder for companion plugins:

3a: Superpowers plugin

Check for any of these upstream superpowers skills: test-driven-development, systematic-debugging, brainstorming, writing-plans. These are skills from obra/superpowers that complement spex but are NOT bundled with it.

  • If found: record "superpowers" as a detected companion plugin in the Step 4 report. No further action needed.
  • If not found and the user enabled the spex-gates extension in Step 2: show a recommendation in the Step 4 report (see below). Do NOT block init or make it an error.

Step 4: Report

Summarize: extensions enabled, permission level, and companion plugins detected. If Step 1 said RESTART_REQUIRED or Step 2 permissions said CHANGED, tell user to restart Claude Code.

If superpowers companion plugin was NOT detected (Step 3b), append this to the report:

Recommended companion: The Superpowers plugin by Jesse Vincent adds TDD discipline and systematic debugging skills that complement spex's spec-first workflow. spex absorbs superpowers' quality gates and anti-rationalization patterns, but does not bundle these standalone skills:

  • test-driven-development: strict RED-GREEN-REFACTOR, no production code without failing test
  • systematic-debugging: 4-phase root cause analysis with defense-in-depth

Install with: /plugin install superpowers@claude-plugins-official (or claude plugin install superpowers@claude-plugins-official from the terminal)

© rhuss, Apache-2.0. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file

Files

Just SKILL.md in spex/skills/init of rhuss/cc-spex.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 3cc6bf5

Compare with similar skills

Init 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.

Init compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Init this skillrhuss/cc-spex120—~1.4kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
OpenSpec Bulk Change ArchiverFission-AI/OpenSpec71k3 repos~5.6kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Speckit ConstitutionWeihanLi/WeihanLi.Common24211 repos~2.1kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Speckit Taskstoissueskunstmusik/blue15419 repos~2kAutomated safety check: PassGPL-3.0
Speckit Analyzekunstmusik/blue15418 repos~3kAutomated safety check: PassGPL-3.0
Review Spdzhu1090093659/spec_driven_develop984—~1.5kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

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  • Archives several completed OpenSpec changes in one operation, checking the codebase to resolve spec conflicts rather than archiving blindly.

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  • Review Spd

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Categories

Questions about Init

What does Init do?

Initialize or update the project using the specify CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line). Init is an agent skill from rhuss/cc-spex. Initialize or update the project using the specify CLI (--refresh for templates, --update to upgrade CLI, --clear to reset status line).

When should I use Init?

Init fits situations like: tasks that involve Spec-driven development.

How do I install Init in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add rhuss/cc-spex --skill init -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (spex/skills/init in rhuss/cc-spex) into .claude/skills/init in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Init in Codex?

Run `npx skills add rhuss/cc-spex --skill init -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (spex/skills/init in rhuss/cc-spex) into .agents/skills/init in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Init 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 rhuss/cc-spex --skill init -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/init, .gemini/skills/init, .github/skills/init and .opencode/skills/init in your project.

What does Init need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Init needs the command-line tools its instructions call (claude).

Does Init access the network?

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

Is Init 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 Init use?

Init is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Init use?

About 1.4k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 5.8k 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 Init?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Init: OpenSpec Bulk Change Archiver (Fission-AI/OpenSpec, 71k stars), Speckit Constitution (WeihanLi/WeihanLi.Common, 242 stars), Speckit Taskstoissues (kunstmusik/blue, 154 stars) and Speckit Analyze (kunstmusik/blue, 154 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Init?

rhuss (a GitHub user) maintains it in rhuss/cc-spex, which has 120 GitHub stars. The repository was last updated on October 2, 2026.

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