Agent skill

Systematic Debugging

by xenitV1 in xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows

4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification.

MITAuto-check passedDevelopment

Install Systematic Debugging

skills CLI
$ npx skills add xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows --skill systematic-debugging -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows systematic-debugging --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/xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/systematic-debugging .claude/skills/systematic-debugging && 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
systematic-debugging
GitHub stars
130
Token cost
~599 tokens
SKILL.md length
103 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
42
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
MIT

At a glance

4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification.

  • Works in 4 steps: Reproduce → Isolate → Understand → …
  • Debugging complex issues
  • SKILL.md covers Overview, 4-Phase Debugging Process, Debugging Checklist and Common Debugging Commands, plus 1 more section
  • Calls git

What it does

Systematic Debugging is an agent skill from xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows. 4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification. Use when debugging complex issues.

Its SKILL.md is about 600 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 Debugging and Root cause analysis. The licence is MIT.

When your agent uses it

  • Debugging complex issues
  • Tasks that involve Debugging
  • Tasks that involve Root cause analysis

Example prompts

  • “/systematic-debugging”

Requirements

  • Pre-approved tools (allowed-tools): Read, Glob, Grep

Workflow steps

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

  1. Reproduce
  2. Isolate
  3. Understand
  4. Fix & Verify

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit f0a1fa7. 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
    • Glob
    • Grep

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • git

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    No URLs in SKILL.md. Its commands use git, which can reach the network depending on how they are called.

    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

Systematic Debugging loads about 599 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 39 tokens; SKILL.md has 103 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~39
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~599

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 xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows at commit f0a1fa7, republished under its MIT licence (© xenitV1). 103 words, ~599 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/systematic-debugging/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).
name
systematic-debugging
description
4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification. Use when debugging complex issues.
allowed-tools
Read, Glob, Grep

Systematic Debugging

Source: obra/superpowers

Overview

This skill provides a structured approach to debugging that prevents random guessing and ensures problems are properly understood before solving.

4-Phase Debugging Process

Phase 1: Reproduce

Before fixing, reliably reproduce the issue.

markdown
## Reproduction Steps
1. [Exact step to reproduce]
2. [Next step]
3. [Expected vs actual result]

## Reproduction Rate
- [ ] Always (100%)
- [ ] Often (50-90%)
- [ ] Sometimes (10-50%)
- [ ] Rare (<10%)
Phase 2: Isolate

Narrow down the source.

markdown
## Isolation Questions
- When did this start happening?
- What changed recently?
- Does it happen in all environments?
- Can we reproduce with minimal code?
- What's the smallest change that triggers it?
Phase 3: Understand

Find the root cause, not just symptoms.

markdown
## Root Cause Analysis
### The 5 Whys
1. Why: [First observation]
2. Why: [Deeper reason]
3. Why: [Still deeper]
4. Why: [Getting closer]
5. Why: [Root cause]
Phase 4: Fix & Verify

Fix and verify it's truly fixed.

markdown
## Fix Verification
- [ ] Bug no longer reproduces
- [ ] Related functionality still works
- [ ] No new issues introduced
- [ ] Test added to prevent regression

Debugging Checklist

markdown
## Before Starting
- [ ] Can reproduce consistently
- [ ] Have minimal reproduction case
- [ ] Understand expected behavior

## During Investigation
- [ ] Check recent changes (git log)
- [ ] Check logs for errors
- [ ] Add logging if needed
- [ ] Use debugger/breakpoints

## After Fix
- [ ] Root cause documented
- [ ] Fix verified
- [ ] Regression test added
- [ ] Similar code checked

Common Debugging Commands

bash
# Recent changes
git log --oneline -20
git diff HEAD~5

# Search for pattern
grep -r "errorPattern" --include="*.ts"

# Check logs
pm2 logs app-name --err --lines 100

Anti-Patterns

❌ Random changes - "Maybe if I change this..." ❌ Ignoring evidence - "That can't be the cause" ❌ Assuming - "It must be X" without proof ❌ Not reproducing first - Fixing blindly ❌ Stopping at symptoms - Not finding root cause

© xenitV1, MIT. 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 skills/systematic-debugging of xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit f0a1fa7

Compare with similar skills

Systematic Debugging 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.

Systematic Debugging compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Systematic Debugging this skillxenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows130—~599Automated safety check: PassMIT
OpenLogi macOS Permissions TriageAprilNEA/OpenLogi23k—~2.5kAutomated safety check: NotesApache-2.0
Bug Finder for daisyUIsaadeghi/daisyui43k—~2.3kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Root Cause Debugginggarrytan/gstack136k—~1.4kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
Graph-Based Bug Tracingtirth8205/code-review-graph32k1 repos~287Automated safety check: PassMIT
Systematic DebuggingChrisWiles/claude-code-showcase6.1k3 repos~1.2kAutomated safety check: PassNone

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Categories

Questions about Systematic Debugging

What does Systematic Debugging do?

4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification. Systematic Debugging is an agent skill from xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows. 4-phase systematic debugging methodology with root cause analysis and evidence-based verification.

When should I use Systematic Debugging?

Systematic Debugging fits situations like: debugging complex issues; tasks that involve Debugging; tasks that involve Root cause analysis.

How do I install Systematic Debugging in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows --skill systematic-debugging -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/systematic-debugging in xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows) into .claude/skills/systematic-debugging in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Systematic Debugging in Codex?

Run `npx skills add xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows --skill systematic-debugging -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/systematic-debugging in xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows) into .agents/skills/systematic-debugging in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Systematic Debugging 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 xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows --skill systematic-debugging -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/systematic-debugging, .gemini/skills/systematic-debugging, .github/skills/systematic-debugging and .opencode/skills/systematic-debugging in your project.

What does Systematic Debugging need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Systematic Debugging needs the command-line tools its instructions call (git). Its frontmatter pre-approves these tools: Read, Glob, Grep.

Does Systematic Debugging access the network?

SKILL.md contains no URLs. Its commands use git, which can reach the network depending on how they are called. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Systematic Debugging 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 Systematic Debugging use?

Systematic Debugging is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Systematic Debugging use?

About 599 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 2.4k 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 Systematic Debugging?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Systematic Debugging: OpenLogi macOS Permissions Triage (AprilNEA/OpenLogi, 23k stars), Bug Finder for daisyUI (saadeghi/daisyui, 43k stars), Root Cause Debugging (garrytan/gstack, 136k stars) and Graph-Based Bug Tracing (tirth8205/code-review-graph, 32k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Systematic Debugging?

xenitV1 (a GitHub user) maintains it in xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows, which has 130 GitHub stars. The repository holds 42 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on January 14, 2026.

Source: xenitV1/Antigravity-Workflows on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.