bp

Bearpaws

Bearpaws is an independent, low-token skills toolkit for AI coding agents, focused on portability, simplicity, and practical agent support. See Attribution for the project's origin and license.

Claude Code and Gemini CLI are the primary supported targets. Codex, Devin for Terminal, and Windsurf Cascade support is experimental unless explicitly validated for a given workflow.

15 skills covering TDD, debugging, planning, code review, parallel execution, plus a stack-agnostic onboarding skill. All skill bodies use a compact XML-like structure with lazy-loaded references.

How skills compose. Standard flow when there's a project: (1) bp:onboarding-to-a-project identifies key files and stack from manifests, README, and similar files; (2) bp:brainstorming designs against those discovered conventions; (3) other process skills (writing-plans, TDD, debugging, code review) carry implementation. Onboarding → brainstorming → implementation. Onboarding is skipped only for purely abstract design questions with no project context.

flowchart TD
    Start([User prompt]) --> Bootstrap[bp:using-bearpaws<br/>loaded by agent bootstrap context<br/>Red Flags + skill priority + lazy-load contract<br/>fallback brevity policy]
    Bootstrap --> Check{Project<br/>context?}
    Check -->|YES &mdash; existing codebase| Onboard[bp:onboarding-to-a-project<br/>identify key files, stack, conventions<br/>read manifests, README, CLAUDE.md/AGENTS.md/GEMINI.md, sample files]
    Check -->|NO &mdash; purely abstract design| Brainstorm
    Onboard --> Brainstorm[bp:brainstorming<br/>design against discovered conventions]
    Brainstorm --> Process[Process skills<br/>writing-plans &middot; test-driven-development<br/>systematic-debugging &middot; requesting-code-review<br/>verification-before-completion &middot; finishing-a-development-branch]

Support Status

Agent	Status	Evidence
Claude Code	Primary	Working
Gemini CLI	Primary	Mostly working, needs lightweight validation
Codex	Experimental	No maintained install flow yet
Devin for Terminal	Experimental	Partial repo-local symlink and hook wiring
Windsurf Cascade	Experimental	Partial repo-local symlink and rule wiring

See docs/agent-support.md for the current support policy and docs/skill-structure.md for the descriptive skill structure contract.

Install (Claude Code)

You can install the plugin via the Claude Code CLI:

claude plugin marketplace add /path/to/bearpaws
claude plugin install bp@bearpaws

Or pass it on the command line without installing: claude --plugin-dir /path/to/bearpaws.

Install (Gemini CLI)

You can install the plugin via the Gemini CLI:

gemini extensions install /path/to/bearpaws

Or link it for local development so updates are reflected immediately: gemini extensions link /path/to/bearpaws.

Experimental Install (Devin for Terminal & Windsurf Cascade)

These integrations are experimental. The script sets up the repo-local symlinks and bootstrap files Bearpaws currently uses for Devin and Windsurf, but behavior should be verified in the target agent before treating either integration as supported for critical work.

Quick install (recommended):

# Install for both platforms
./install.sh --all

# Or install for specific platforms
./install.sh --devin      # Devin for Terminal only
./install.sh --windsurf   # Windsurf Cascade only

# Global installation for Devin (available in all projects)
./install.sh --devin --global

The install script reconciles repo-local skill symlinks for Devin and Windsurf, preserves Devin's hook wiring, supports optional global Devin symlinks with --global, and checks that the Windsurf bootstrap rule exists.

Manual install (if you prefer):

For Devin for Terminal:

mkdir -p .devin/skills
for skill in skills/*/; do
  ln -sfn "$skill" ".devin/skills/$(basename "$skill")"
done

For Windsurf Cascade:

mkdir -p .windsurf/skills
for skill in skills/*/; do
  ln -sfn "$skill" ".windsurf/skills/$(basename "$skill")"
done
# Bootstrap activation is experimental; verify .windsurf/rules/bearpaws.md in Windsurf

The using-bearpaws skill is the intended bootstrap for the rest of the skills. SessionStart hooks and rules are included for working in the bearpaws repo itself, but experimental agent activation should be verified in the target tool.

Skills

Bootstrap (1)

Skill	Purpose
bp:using-bearpaws	Loaded by the target agent's bootstrap or context mechanism. Establishes skill-discovery discipline (Red Flags, lazy-load contract, skill-priority order) and a fallback brevity policy for output not governed by process skills. Never invoked directly.

Always-first (1)