api-design-principles

Master REST and GraphQL API design principles to build intuitive, scalable, and maintainable APIs that delight developers. Use when designing new APIs, reviewing API specifications, or establishing API design standards.

Quality

66%

Does it follow best practices?

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Passed

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tessl review fix ./plugins/backend-development/skills/api-design-principles/SKILL.md

Quality

Content

53%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.

A well-organized overview that delegates depth to references, but the body over-explains basic HTTP/versioning concepts and provides little executable code itself. The other bundle files are not surfaced from SKILL.md, weakening discoverability.

Suggestions

Trim the basic HTTP method semantics and versioning syntax explanations that Claude already knows; keep only non-obvious guidance to improve conciseness.

Add inline links from the relevant sections to the unused bundle files (rest-best-practices.md, graphql-schema-design.md, assets/api-design-checklist.md, assets/rest-api-template.py) so all progressive-disclosure targets are discoverable.

Include at least one copy-paste-ready REST endpoint example or a short GraphQL schema snippet in the body so the skill is actionable without opening references.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Conciseness	The body is mostly lean bullet points, but it re-explains concepts Claude already knows (HTTP method semantics, URL versioning syntax), so it could be tightened; not the verbose wall-of-text of score 2 nor the fully lean score 5.	3 / 5
Actionability	It provides concrete illustrative snippets (versioning URLs, status code ranges, @deprecated) but the bulk is principle-level guidance with executable code deferred to references/details.md, leaving the body itself incomplete rather than copy-paste ready.	3 / 5
Workflow Clarity	The content is organized into clear sections (When to Use, Core Concepts, Best Practices, Pitfalls) but presents no sequenced multi-step process or validation checkpoints; there are no destructive/batch operations so no cap applies, yet no real workflow exists to score higher.	3 / 5
Progressive Disclosure	There is a clearly signaled one-level-deep pointer ('Detailed pattern documentation lives in references/details.md'), but the other bundle files (graphql-schema-design.md, rest-best-practices.md, assets/api-design-checklist.md, assets/rest-api-template.py) are never linked from the body, leaving a navigation gap.	4 / 5
	Total	13 / 20 Passed

Description

78%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.

A strong description that clearly states the skill's purpose and provides explicit, natural trigger phrases for when to use it. The main weakness is that the stated capabilities lean on aspirational verbs rather than concrete, enumerable actions.

Dimension	Reasoning	Score
Specificity	The description names the domain ('REST and GraphQL API design principles') and several goals, but the verbs are aspirational ('Master', 'build intuitive, scalable, and maintainable APIs', 'delight developers') rather than concrete, listable actions, matching the 'names domain and 1-2 concrete actions' anchor.	3 / 5
Completeness	It explicitly answers both 'what' ('Master REST and GraphQL API design principles to build... APIs') and 'when' with a concrete 'Use when designing new APIs, reviewing API specifications, or establishing API design standards' clause, matching the top anchor.	5 / 5
Trigger Term Quality	Natural phrases users would say are well covered ('designing new APIs', 'reviewing API specifications', 'establishing API design standards'), though a few common variations ('API review', 'endpoint design') are absent.	4 / 5
Distinctiveness Conflict Risk	The REST/GraphQL API design framing is a clear, distinct niche with specific triggers, with only minor overlap risk against general code-review or documentation skills.	4 / 5
	Total	16 / 20 Passed

Validation

100%

Warnings & errors only

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: wshobson/agents
Path: plugins/backend-development/skills/api-design-principles/SKILL.md
Commit: d6837ae

Reviewed: about 12 hours ago

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