CtrlK
BlogDocsLog inGet started
Tessl Logo
SkillPublic

test-driven-development

Implements a feature or bug fix test-first: write one failing test, run it and watch it fail, write the minimal code to pass, then refactor with the tests green. Use when a change alters code behavior: a new feature, a bug fix, or a behavior change, whether the request comes alone or through delivery-flow.

55

Quality

69%

Does it follow best practices?

Run evals on this skill

Adds up to 20 points to the overall score

View guide
SecuritybySnyk

Passed

No findings from the security scan

Fix and improve this skill with Tessl

tessl review fix ./02-mutation/versions/current-stubbed/sdlc-implementation/skills/test-driven-development/SKILL.md

The canonical home for this skill is delivery-flow in tesslio/tessl-eval-demo

SKILL.md
Quality
Evals
Security

Quality

Content

33%Weight 40%Scale 1-5

Reviews the quality of instructions and guidance provided to agents. Good implementation is clear, handles edge cases, and produces reliable results.

The body is a single 'do nothing, reply DONE' instruction that contains none of the skill's substance: no TDD workflow, no actionable guidance, and no path to the existing reference material. It is maximally lean only because it is empty — every substantive dimension (actionability, workflow clarity, disclosure) fails.

Suggestions

Restore the actual test-first workflow to the body: the red-green-refactor sequence (write one failing test, run it and watch it fail, write minimal code to pass, refactor with tests green) with the concrete commands to run the tests at each checkpoint.

Remove the 'Do not run any commands, read any files, or change anything. Reply with `DONE`' instruction — it directly contradicts the skill's stated purpose and forbids the very actions the skill exists to guide.

Link the existing references/writing-good-tests.md from the body (e.g., a '## Writing good tests' section pointing to it) so the 8KB of bundled guidance is discoverable from the SKILL.md overview.

DimensionReasoningScore

Conciseness

The body is a single sentence with zero padding, no over-explanation of known concepts, and nothing to trim — maximally token-efficient. The vacuousness of the body is penalized under actionability and workflow_clarity, not here, since this dimension measures verbose vs. lean and the body sits at the extreme lean end.

5 / 5

Actionability

The body provides no concrete TDD guidance whatsoever — no code, no commands, no steps for the red-green-refactor process the description promises. Worse, it instructs the agent to 'Do not run any commands, read any files, or change anything' and 'Reply with `DONE`', which actively forbids action rather than guiding it. Not 2: there are not even high-level hints toward executing the skill's purpose.

1 / 5

Workflow Clarity

TDD is inherently multi-step (failing test, run, minimal code, refactor), yet the body contains no sequence, no steps, and no validation checkpoints — the 'what' exists only in the frontmatter description. Not 2: even a rough sequence with gaps would score higher, but here the workflow is entirely absent from the body.

1 / 5

Progressive Disclosure

The bundle contains a substantive reference file (references/writing-good-tests.md, covering test-writing principles with examples), but the body never mentions or links it — the reference is completely buried and undiscoverable from SKILL.md. Not 1: the body is not a monolithic wall of text and references are not nested; not 3+: no reference is signaled at all, so navigation from the overview to the detail content is impossible.

2 / 5

Total

9

/

20

Passed

Description

88%Weight 40%Scale 1-5

Based on the skill's description, can an agent find and select it at the right time? Clear, specific descriptions lead to better discovery.

The description is strong: it states a concrete multi-step capability in third person and pairs it with an explicit, well-phrased 'Use when' trigger clause. Its only weaknesses are moderate — a few missing trigger synonyms and broad trigger terms that overlap with general coding/delivery skills.

DimensionReasoningScore

Specificity

The description enumerates the full concrete cycle — 'write one failing test, run it and watch it fail, write the minimal code to pass, then refactor with the tests green' — four specific actions with comprehensive coverage of the test-first workflow. Not 4: there are no coverage gaps in the action list; not below: every action is concrete, not generic.

5 / 5

Completeness

Explicitly answers both parts: the 'what' ('Implements a feature or bug fix test-first...') and the 'when' ('Use when a change alters code behavior: a new feature, a bug fix, or a behavior change...'). Not 4: the 'when' clause is not merely present but enumerates concrete trigger phrases.

5 / 5

Trigger Term Quality

Natural user phrasings are present — 'a new feature, a bug fix, or a behavior change' — which map well to how users actually ask. Not 5: common variations like 'write tests', 'unit test', 'regression', or 'TDD' itself are missing; not 3: the terms present are natural and relevant, not generic.

4 / 5

Distinctiveness Conflict Risk

The TDD niche ('test-first' with an explicit red-green-refactor cycle) is clearly distinguishable from other skills' actions. Not 5: the trigger 'a new feature, a bug fix, or a behavior change' fires on virtually any code change, creating overlap risk with general implementation and delivery-flow skills ('whether the request comes alone or through delivery-flow' explicitly spans another skill's domain); not 3: the action itself is a distinct, well-defined methodology.

4 / 5

Total

18

/

20

Passed

Validation

100%

Checks the skill against the spec for correct structure and formatting. All validation checks must pass before discovery and implementation can be scored.

Validation — 16 / 16 Passed

Validation for skill structure

No warnings or errors.

Repository

tesslio/tessl-eval-demo

Path

02-mutation/versions/current-stubbed/sdlc-implementation/skills/test-driven-development/SKILL.md

Reviewed

Table of Contents

Is this your skill?

If you maintain this skill, you can claim it as your own. Once claimed, you can manage eval scenarios, bundle related skills, attach documentation or rules, and ensure cross-agent compatibility.