Core Skills
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superpowers Core Skills Overview - A Workflow That Turns AI Into a Senior Engineer
superpowers' eight core skills aren't isolated — they form a complete workflow: think it through -> isolate -> plan -> execute -> gate. This page ties them all together with a recommended learning order.
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Turn Vague Ideas into a Buildable Design
superpowers' brainstorming skill turns fuzzy requirements into a validated design through one-question-at-a-time dialogue. Demonstrated with a real "add a loyalty-points feature" scenario.
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Make AI Write the Implementation Plan Before Coding
superpowers' writing-plans skill breaks a task into 2-5 minute steps written as a plan document, assuming a zero-context executor. Demonstrated with an "export the monthly statement to Excel" scenario.
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Write the Test First, Then the Code
superpowers' test-driven-development skill uses an "iron law + anti-excuse table" to force a failing test before any implementation. Demonstrated with an edge-heavy "shipping-fee function" scenario.
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Stop Fixing Bugs by Guessing
superpowers' systematic-debugging skill forces you to find the root cause before any fix, and to question the architecture after 3 failed attempts. Demonstrated with a "paid but order not updated" intermittent bug.
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Give Every Feature Its Own Isolated Workspace
superpowers' using-git-worktrees skill creates isolated worktrees via a fixed directory-selection and safety-verification flow. Demonstrated with a "feature half-done, urgent prod bug" scenario.
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Drive Development with Subagents
superpowers' subagent-driven-development skill dispatches a fresh subagent per task with a two-stage review (spec compliance + code quality). Demonstrated with a "build a coupon system" scenario.
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The Full Loop of Request, Review, Receive
superpowers builds a review loop from requesting/receiving-code-review plus a code-reviewer subagent. Demonstrated with a "coupon redeem feature up for review" scenario.
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No "It Should Be Fine Now"
superpowers' verification-before-completion skill requires running the verification command and reading the output before any completion claim. Demonstrated with an AI claiming "the login timeout is fixed."