superpowers

Superpowers

AI agents skip steps under time pressure. They bypass best practices when confident. They lack consistency across tasks. The result: bugs you didn't catch, designs you didn't validate, tests you didn't write.

Superpowers fixes this. Skills are mandatory instruction documents agents must follow. When a relevant skill exists, the agent checks for it, uses it, or fails the task.

How It Works

At session start, the agent learns which skills exist. Before any task, the agent checks: "Does a skill match this work?" If yes, the agent loads and follows that skill.

Skills are markdown files with proven workflows. The test-driven-development skill forces RED-GREEN-REFACTOR. No test-first? Delete the code and start over. The skill prevents rationalization.

The Workflow

When you ask to build a feature:

1. brainstorming - Activates before writing code. Refines rough ideas through questions, explores alternatives, presents design in sections for validation. Saves design document.

2. using-git-worktrees - Activates after design approval. Creates isolated workspace on new branch, runs project setup, verifies clean test baseline.

3. writing-plans - Activates with approved design. Breaks work into bite-sized tasks (2-5 minutes each). Every task has exact file paths, complete code, verification steps.

4. subagent-driven-development or executing-plans - Activates with plan. Dispatches fresh subagent per task (same session, fast iteration) or executes in batches (parallel session, human checkpoints).

5. test-driven-development - Activates during implementation. Enforces RED-GREEN-REFACTOR: write failing test, watch it fail, write minimal code, watch it pass, commit. Deletes code written before tests.

6. requesting-code-review - Activates between tasks. Reviews against plan, reports issues by severity. Critical issues block progress.

7. finishing-a-development-branch - Activates when tasks complete. Verifies tests, presents options (merge/PR/keep/discard), cleans up worktree.

The agent checks for relevant skills before any task. Mandatory workflows, not suggestions.

Installation

Note: Installation differs by platform. Claude Code has a built-in plugin system. Codex and OpenCode require manual setup.

Claude Code (via Plugin Marketplace)

In Claude Code, register the marketplace first:

/plugin marketplace add obra/superpowers-marketplace

Then install the plugin from this marketplace:

/plugin install superpowers@superpowers-marketplace

Verify Installation

Check that commands appear:

/help

# Should see:
# /superpowers:brainstorm - Interactive design refinement
# /superpowers:write-plan - Create implementation plan
# /superpowers:execute-plan - Execute plan in batches

Codex

Tell Codex:

Fetch and follow instructions from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/obra/superpowers/refs/heads/main/.codex/INSTALL.md

Detailed docs: docs/README.codex.md

OpenCode

Tell OpenCode:

Fetch and follow instructions from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/obra/superpowers/refs/heads/main/.opencode/INSTALL.md

Detailed docs: docs/README.opencode.md

What's Inside

Skills Library

Testing (skills/testing/)

• test-driven-development - RED-GREEN-REFACTOR cycle
• condition-based-waiting - Async test patterns
• testing-anti-patterns - Common pitfalls to avoid

Debugging (skills/debugging/)

• systematic-debugging - 4-phase root cause process
• root-cause-tracing - Find the real problem
• verification-before-completion - Ensure it's actually fixed
• defense-in-depth - Multiple validation layers

Collaboration (skills/collaboration/)

• brainstorming - Socratic design refinement
• writing-plans - Detailed implementation plans
• executing-plans - Batch execution with checkpoints
• dispatching-parallel-agents - Concurrent subagent workflows
• requesting-code-review - Pre-review checklist
• receiving-code-review - Responding to feedback
• using-git-worktrees - Parallel development branches
• finishing-a-development-branch - Merge/PR decision workflow
• subagent-driven-development - Fast iteration with quality gates

Meta (skills/meta/)

• writing-skills - Create new skills following best practices
• sharing-skills - Contribute skills back via branch and PR
• testing-skills-with-subagents - Validate skill quality
• using-superpowers - Introduction to the skills system

Philosophy

• Test-Driven Development - Write tests first, always
• Systematic over ad-hoc - Process over guessing
• Complexity reduction - Simplicity as primary goal
• Evidence over claims - Verify before declaring success

Read more: Superpowers for Claude Code

Contributing

Skills live directly in this repository. To contribute:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a branch for your skill
3. Follow the writing-skills skill for creating new skills
4. Use the testing-skills-with-subagents skill to validate quality
5. Submit a PR

See skills/meta/writing-skills/SKILL.md for the complete guide.

Updating

Skills update automatically when you update the plugin:

/plugin update superpowers

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

Support

• Issues: https://github.com/obra/superpowers/issues
• Marketplace: https://github.com/obra/superpowers-marketplace