Simplicity First

About

The Simplicity First skill integrates a core architectural philosophy into Claude's development workflow, prioritizing maintainability and clarity over cleverness. It uses specific decision heuristics to challenge unnecessary requirements, promotes 'boring' but stable technology choices, and guides developers through progressive layering—ensuring that complexity is only added when proven necessary. This skill is ideal for teams looking to reduce technical debt, streamline code reviews, and build systems that remain fundamentally understandable as they scale.

Key Features

• Identification of over-engineering patterns and architectural code smells
• Guidance on selecting stable, proven technologies over novel alternatives
• 0 GitHub stars
• Strategies for deleting dead code and consolidating premature abstractions
• YAGNI-driven decision heuristics to challenge unnecessary requirements
• Progressive implementation layering from direct code to external services

Use Cases

• Choosing between competing tools or libraries based on minimal coordination cost
• Refactoring complex legacy modules into simpler, more maintainable code
• Vetting new feature designs to prevent premature scaling and over-architecture