Agent skill

Testing Patterns

Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage.

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedTesting & QA

Install Testing Patterns

skills CLI

$ npx skills add softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns --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/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .claude/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .claude/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns

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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a codex

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

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns --agent codex

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

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .agents/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .agents/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a cursor

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

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns --agent cursor

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

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .cursor/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .cursor/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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/softspark/ai-toolkit.git --path app/skills/testing-patterns

--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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a gemini-cli

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

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns --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/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .gemini/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .gemini/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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 softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns

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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a github-copilot

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

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .github/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .github/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -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 softspark/ai-toolkit testing-patterns --agent opencode

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

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/app/skills/testing-patterns .opencode/skills/testing-patterns && 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 "testing-patterns" agent skill from https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/testing-patterns into .opencode/skills/testing-patterns/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-patterns", 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: testing-patterns
GitHub stars: 179
Token cost: ~1.6k tokens
SKILL.md length: 656 words
Files: 6
Skills in repo: 112
Repo updated: Oct 7, 2026
First seen: Oct 7, 2026
Licence: Apache-2.0

At a glance

Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage.

Tasks that involve Test strategy
SKILL.md covers Test Structure (AAA Pattern), Test Organization, Quality Targets and Validation contract regressions, plus 5 more sections
Calls pytest and jest
Tasks that involve End-to-end testing

What it does

Testing Patterns is an agent skill from softspark/ai-toolkit. Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage. Triggers: test, fixture, mock, stub, e2e, TDD, Playwright, Cypress, flaky, coverage, property-based.

Its SKILL.md is about 1.6k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 6 other files (for example `reference/flutter-testing.md`, `reference/go-testing.md` and `reference/php-phpunit.md`).

It sits in Testing & QA, covering Test strategy, End-to-end testing and Unit testing. It works with Cypress, Playwright, Python and pytest. The repository describes itself as: Professional-grade AI coding toolkit: 94 skills, 44 agents, multi-platform (Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot, Gemini, Cline, Roo Code, Aider, Augment, Antigravity, Codex CLI… The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

Tasks that involve Test strategy
Tasks that involve End-to-end testing
Tasks that involve Unit testing

Example prompts

“/testing-patterns”

Requirements

Python 3
Pre-approved tools (allowed-tools): Read

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit d64db2b. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

Tool permissions
Pre-approves these tools, so the agent can use them without asking each time:
- Read
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
Shell commands in SKILL.md call:
- pytest
- jest
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md.
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

Testing Patterns loads about 1.6k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 48 tokens; SKILL.md has 656 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: ~1.6k

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 softspark/ai-toolkit at commit d64db2b, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© softspark). 656 words, ~1,636 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/testing-patterns/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 5 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.

name: testing-patterns
description: Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage. Triggers: test, fixture, mock, stub, e2e, TDD, Playwright, Cypress, flaky, coverage, property-based.
allowed-tools: Read
effort: medium
user-invocable: false

Testing Patterns Skill

Test Structure (AAA Pattern)

python

def test_function_does_expected_thing():
    """Test description explaining what and why."""
    # Arrange - Set up test data and preconditions
    input_data = {"key": "value"}
    expected = "result"

    # Act - Execute the code under test
    result = function_under_test(input_data)

    # Assert - Verify the outcome
    assert result == expected

Test Organization

tests/
├── conftest.py           # Shared fixtures
├── unit/                 # Unit tests (isolated)
│   ├── test_search_core.py
│   └── test_utils.py
├── integration/          # Integration tests
│   └── test_api.py
└── e2e/                  # End-to-end tests
    └── test_workflow.py

Quality Targets

Metric	Target
Coverage	>70% overall
New code	100%
Core modules	>80%
No flaky tests	0

Validation contract regressions

Mirrored validators can agree on a generated snapshot while disagreeing on real inputs. Execute the same accepted/rejected fixtures against the real backend validator and the client evaluator. Include N/N+1 boundaries, collection/item limits, omitted/null/empty/default values, nested paths, conditional branches, hydrated updates versus fresh DTOs, Unicode units and previously valid inputs.

Test the actual HTTP path for malformed input and unchanged persisted state after a pre-write refusal. Test zero transport calls for a local refusal, normal transport for a valid payload, and field correction/resubmission. Run deterministic-generation and reviewed-exclusion checks separately from behavioral parity. A schema/rule count is inventory, not assertion coverage.

For operation semantics and runtime mismatches, read reference/input-validation.md from the installed security-patterns skill. Resolve the skill through the current client's catalog; directory names may carry an adapter-specific prefix.

Language-Specific References

Language	Reference	Key Topics
Python	reference/python-pytest.md	Fixtures, mocking, parametrize, markers, conftest, running tests
TypeScript	reference/typescript-vitest.md	Vitest/Jest, React Testing Library, mocking, running tests
PHP	reference/php-phpunit.md	PHPUnit test cases, mocking, running tests
Go	reference/go-testing.md	Table-driven tests, testify mocking, running tests
Flutter/Dart	reference/flutter-testing.md	Widget tests, unit tests, running tests

For Python pytest patterns, see reference/python-pytest.md.

For TypeScript Vitest/Jest patterns, see reference/typescript-vitest.md.

For PHP PHPUnit patterns, see reference/php-phpunit.md.

For Go testing patterns, see reference/go-testing.md.

For Flutter/Dart testing patterns, see reference/flutter-testing.md.

Common Rationalizations

Excuse	Why It's Wrong
"It's too simple to test"	Simple code breaks in integration — test the contract, not the complexity
"Tests slow down development"	Tests slow down bugs reaching production — that's the point
"We'll add tests later"	Untested code accumulates — later means never, and coverage gaps compound
"Mocking everything is fine"	Over-mocking tests the mocks, not the code — mock at boundaries only
"100% coverage means no bugs"	Coverage measures execution, not correctness — focus on behavior assertions

Rules

MUST follow Arrange-Act-Assert (AAA) structure in every test — unstructured tests degrade into procedural smoke tests
MUST test behavior through the public interface, not internal implementation — tests coupled to internals break on every refactor
NEVER test implementation details (private method return values, internal state flags) — they are not the contract
NEVER hit real external services in unit tests — use fakes/stubs for boundaries; save real integration for integration tests
CRITICAL: integration tests must hit real dependencies (database, message queue, external API) when mock-vs-prod divergence is a real risk. Mocked integration tests create false confidence.
MANDATORY: flaky tests are bugs, not noise. Quarantine or delete them — a tolerated flaky test erodes the suite's credibility.

Show full SKILL.md (232 more words)Show less

Gotchas

Coverage numbers are easy to game: include generated code, test files that import but do not assert, or wide # pragma: no cover usage. A 95% reported coverage with 60% real behavior assertion is common.
Snapshot tests (Jest .toMatchSnapshot(), pytest-regressions) accept any output as "correct" on first run. An incorrect initial snapshot becomes the accepted baseline — review snapshots as carefully as code.
Mocks configured with any matchers (e.g., .mock.calls[0][0] without a schema) pass even when the production call shape changes. Assert on specific arguments, not just "was called".
Test isolation fails when globals leak (module-level mutable state, module-scoped fixtures, env vars set in one test). Flakiness that appears only under pytest -n auto or jest --parallel is usually shared state.
Property-based tests (Hypothesis, fast-check) shrink failing examples to minimal reproducers, but shrinking time can dominate the run. For complex generators, cap shrink deadlines or seed the failing example for next-run reproducibility.
Test pyramid vs trophy: the "right" ratio depends on stack. Frontend apps with rendering concerns benefit from more integration tests (trophy); pure backend services align better with pyramid. Don't cargo-cult one model.

When NOT to Load

For running the test suite — use /test
For test-first development workflow — use /tdd
For debugging a specific test failure — use /debug on the failure output
For test framework choice in a new project — use /app-builder
For performance/load testing — this skill covers correctness tests, not load

Files

SKILL.md and 5 other files in app/skills/testing-patterns of softspark/ai-toolkit.

SKILL.md
reference/flutter-testing.md
reference/go-testing.md
reference/php-phpunit.md
reference/python-pytest.md
reference/typescript-vitest.md

Open the folder on GitHubat commit d64db2b

Compare with similar skills

Testing Patterns 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.

Testing Patterns compared with similar skills
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Testing Patterns this skillsoftspark/ai-toolkit	179	—	~1.6k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	today
Angular TestingKilo-Org/kilo-marketplace	189	—	~2.9k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	9 days ago
Designing TestsCloudAI-X/claude-workflow-v2	1.4k	1 repos	~1.5k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	yesterday
Playwright Testingchongdashu/vibejam-starter-pack	149	—	~2.1k	Automated safety check: Pass	None	5 mo ago
Web Testing with Playwright and Vitestwithkynam/vibecode-pro-max-kit	1.1k	—	~892	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	3 mo ago
Claude Code QAPramodDutta/qaskills	232	—	~2.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	3 days ago

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Questions about Testing Patterns

What does Testing Patterns do?

Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage. Testing Patterns is an agent skill from softspark/ai-toolkit. Testing strategy: pyramid, AAA, mocks/fakes/stubs, flaky tests, coverage.

When should I use Testing Patterns?

Testing Patterns fits situations like: tasks that involve Test strategy; tasks that involve End-to-end testing; tasks that involve Unit testing.

How do I install Testing Patterns in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (app/skills/testing-patterns in softspark/ai-toolkit) into .claude/skills/testing-patterns in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Testing Patterns in Codex?

Run `npx skills add softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (app/skills/testing-patterns in softspark/ai-toolkit) into .agents/skills/testing-patterns in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Testing Patterns 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 softspark/ai-toolkit --skill testing-patterns -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/testing-patterns, .gemini/skills/testing-patterns, .github/skills/testing-patterns and .opencode/skills/testing-patterns in your project.

What does Testing Patterns need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Testing Patterns needs the command-line tools its instructions call (pytest and jest). Our summary lists: Python 3. Its frontmatter pre-approves these tools: Read.

Does Testing Patterns access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Testing Patterns 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 Testing Patterns use?

Testing Patterns 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 Testing Patterns use?

About 1.6k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 6.5k 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 Testing Patterns?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Testing Patterns: Angular Testing (Kilo-Org/kilo-marketplace, 189 stars), Designing Tests (CloudAI-X/claude-workflow-v2, 1.4k stars), Playwright Testing (chongdashu/vibejam-starter-pack, 149 stars) and Web Testing with Playwright and Vitest (withkynam/vibecode-pro-max-kit, 1.1k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Testing Patterns?

softspark (a GitHub user) maintains it in softspark/ai-toolkit, which has 179 GitHub stars. The repository holds 112 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 7, 2026.

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

Install Testing Patterns

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Requirements

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

Testing Patterns Skill

Test Structure (AAA Pattern)

Test Organization

Quality Targets

Validation contract regressions

Language-Specific References

Common Rationalizations

Rules

Gotchas

When NOT to Load

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from softspark/ai-toolkit

Related

Questions about Testing Patterns