Use when starting any conversation - establishes how to find and use skills, requiring Skill tool invocation before ANY response including clarifying questions
Installs into .claude/skills of the current project.
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---
name: using-superpowers
description: Use when starting any conversation - establishes how to find and use skills, requiring Skill tool invocation before ANY response including clarifying questions
---
# Using Skills
## The Rule
Invoke relevant or requested skills BEFORE any response or action. Even a 1% chance a skill might apply means that you should invoke the skill to check.
## Instruction Priority
Superpowers skills override default system prompt behavior, but user instructions always take precedence:
1. User's explicit instructions (CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md, direct requests) — highest priority
2. Superpowers skills — override default system behavior
3. Default system prompt — lowest priority
## Red Flags - STOP and Check for Skills
| Thought | Reality |
|---------|---------|
| "This is just a simple question" | Questions are tasks. Check for skills. |
| "I need more context first" | Skill check comes BEFORE clarifying questions. |
| "Let me explore the codebase first" | Skills tell you HOW to explore. Check first. |
| "This doesn't need a formal skill" | If a skill exists, use it. |
| "I'll just do this one thing first" | Check BEFORE doing anything. |
## Skill Priority
1. Process skills first (brainstorming, debugging) - determine HOW to approach
2. Implementation skills second - guide execution
"If you think there is even a 1% chance a skill might apply, you ABSOLUTELY MUST invoke it."