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principle-redesign-from-first-principles — Claude Code skill

A skill that makes the agent rebuild an existing design as if the new requirement had been there from day one. Use it when a change ripples through types, docs, and examples.

Install into Claude Code · Skills CLI (Vercel) All methods and platforms ↓ 
npx skills add backnotprop/pstack --skill principle-redesign-from-first-principles -a claude-code
Open on GitHub

What principle-redesign-from-first-principles does

The skill triggers when you integrate a new requirement into an existing design. Instead of bolting a patch onto the current structure, the agent reads all affected files, understands the design, and asks: if we were writing this from scratch with the new requirement, what would we build?

Then the change propagates through every reference: types, documentation, examples, rationale sections. The agent thinks through the whole redesign first, but ships it incrementally. The method preserves option value when existing designs absorb new requirements.

It ships as a single SKILL.md file and installs via npx skills add. Model invocation is disabled, so the agent applies it only when the task genuinely calls for restructuring, not for small fixes.

What it helps with

  • stop the agent from patching over an existing design
  • propagate a change through types, docs, and examples
  • preserve option value when new requirements land
  • plan the full redesign but deliver it incrementally

Example prompts for the agent

  • Apply the redesign from first principles principle to this change
  • Rebuild this module as if the new requirement had been there from the start
  • Read the affected files and restructure the design instead of patching it

How to install principle-redesign-from-first-principles

1Skills CLI (Vercel)

npx skills add backnotprop/pstack --skill principle-redesign-from-first-principles -a claude-code

2Manually: put the files in place

~/.claude/skills/principle-redesign-from-first-principles/SKILL.md

Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/principle-redesign-from-first-principles/

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Questions about principle-redesign-from-first-principles

How do I install principle-redesign-from-first-principles in Claude Code?

Run npx skills add backnotprop/pstack --skill principle-redesign-from-first-principles -a claude-code. The skill lands in ~/.claude/skills/principle-redesign-from-first-principles/SKILL.md.

What does principle-redesign-from-first-principles do?

It makes the agent redesign an existing design from scratch when a new requirement arrives, as if that requirement had been a foundational assumption. The change propagates through types, docs, examples, and rationale sections.

How is this different from regular refactoring?

Refactoring cleans code without changing behavior. Here the new requirement changes the design itself, so the agent first plans the entire redesign, then delivers it incrementally.

Source text

SKILL.md · MIT 
---
name: principle-redesign-from-first-principles
description: "Apply when integrating a new requirement into an existing design."
disable-model-invocation: true
---

# Redesign From First Principles

When integrating a change, don't bolt it onto the existing design. Redesign as if the requirement had been a foundational assumption from the start.

- Read all affected files and understand the current design
- Ask: "if we were writing this from scratch with this new requirement, what would we build?"
- Propagate the change through every reference: types, docs, examples, rationale sections
- Think about the whole redesign, then deliver it incrementally

This is the method for preserving option value when integrating changes into an existing design.

© backnotprop · MIT · backnotprop/pstack

See also

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