prompt-critique
Fast prompt critique tool with technique library. Analyzes any prompt against 7 technique categories and 14 anti-patterns, producing a scorecard with prioritized recommendations. **AUTOMATICALLY INVOKE** when: - User says "critique prompt", "score this prompt", "improve this prompt" - User asks "what techniques should I use", "prompt best practices" - User pastes a system prompt, agent prompt, or skill definition for feedback - User mentions "prompt anti-patterns", "prompt quality", "score this prompt" - User asks about instructional style, quality gates, or compression techniques **NOT for:** - Exhaustive multi-phase analysis (use /prompt-reviewer) - A/B prompt comparison with execution (use compare-prompts) - GAS-specific system prompt optimization (use /optimize-system-prompt)
Resources
1Install
npx skillscat add whichguy/claude-craft/prompt-critique Install via the SkillsCat registry.
Prompt Critique
Fast, practical prompt analysis. Produces a technique scorecard, anti-pattern flags, and prioritized recommendations with before/after examples.
Technique Index
7 categories with model-specific guidance (Opus 4.6, Sonnet 4.5). Full examples and tradeoffs in references/technique-library.md.
| # | Category | Key Question | Sub-techniques |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Structural | Is the prompt well-organized? | XML tags, prompt-as-code, hierarchical structure, information architecture, modular composition |
| 2 | Instructional Style | Is the right style used for each concern? | Instructive, directional, imperative, declarative, motivated instructions (explain WHY), affirmative framing |
| 3 | Quality Gates | Are there checkpoints for output quality? | Hard gates (binary), soft gates (threshold), self-validation, progressive gates, gate placement |
| 4 | Context Management | Is dynamic context handled correctly? | Context injection, context priming, usage instructions, long context placement, budget priority |
| 5 | Compression | Is the prompt token-efficient? | Prose→directives, examples→snippets, narrative→tables, remove known knowledge, merge redundant |
| 6 | Cognitive | Does it leverage LLM reasoning well? | Extended/adaptive thinking, CoT scaffolding, few-shot examples, quote extraction, metacognitive prompts |
| 7 | Anti-patterns | Is anything actively hurting the prompt? | 14 cataloged anti-patterns (see references/anti-patterns.md) |
Style Selection Quick Reference
| Context | Best Style | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Safety-critical rules | Imperative | Non-negotiable, memorable |
| Complex procedures | Instructive | Steps prevent skipping |
| Creative/flexible tasks | Directional | Room for judgment |
| Output specifications | Declarative | Contract-style clarity |
| Mixed concerns | Layer: imperative for rules, directional for approach | Match style to concern |
Critique Workflow
When given a prompt to critique, follow these 5 steps:
Step 1: Classify
Determine prompt type using the classification rules in references/critique-rubric.md:
- Agent Prompt: Has YAML frontmatter with
name:field - Template: Has
{{variables}}or<prompt-arguments>placeholders - System Prompt: Starts with "You are" or defines persistent role/behavior
- Task Prompt: Everything else
Step 2: Scan
Read the prompt and identify which techniques from each category are currently used. Note specific text that demonstrates each technique (or its absence). Load references/technique-library.md for comparison.
Step 3: Score
Apply the relevance matrix from references/critique-rubric.md to weight categories by prompt type. For each category with weight >= 2:
- GREEN: Technique present and correctly applied
- YELLOW: Missing but would improve the prompt (note expected impact)
- RED: Anti-pattern detected (load
references/anti-patterns.mdto identify)
Calculate composite score using the rubric's scoring algorithm.
Step 4: Recommend
Select the top 3-5 improvements ordered by impact (weight x improvement potential). For each:
- Quote the current text
- Provide a concrete rewrite
- State why it's better in one sentence
Step 5: Flag
List any anti-patterns found with severity (CRITICAL/WARNING/INFO) and fixes.
Output Format
Every critique MUST follow this template:
## Prompt Critique: [filename or first 50 chars]
**Type**: [System/Agent/Task/Template] | **Size**: [X chars / ~Y tokens] | **Rating**: [STRONG/ADEQUATE/WEAK/POOR] ([Z]%)
### Technique Scorecard
| Category | Weight | Status | Notes |
|----------|--------|--------|-------|
| Structural | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Instructional Style | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Quality Gates | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Context Management | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Compression | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Cognitive | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
| Anti-patterns | [0-3] | [GREEN/YELLOW/RED] | [one-line finding] |
### Top Recommendations
1. **[Technique]** | Impact: [HIGH/MED/LOW]
Current: `[quote relevant section]`
Recommended: `[concrete rewrite]`
Why: [one sentence]
### Anti-patterns Found
- **[SEVERITY]** [Name]: [specific text that triggered] → [fix]
### Token Analysis
Current: ~X tokens | After recommendations: ~Y tokens | Change: [±Z%]Rating Scale
| Rating | Score | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| STRONG | >= 80% | Minor improvements possible, well-crafted |
| ADEQUATE | 60-79% | Meaningful improvements available |
| WEAK | 40-59% | Significant technique gaps |
| POOR | < 40% | Major rework recommended |
When to Use What
| Need | Tool |
|---|---|
| Quick technique check + recommendations | /prompt-critique (this skill) |
| Exhaustive 9-phase deep analysis | /prompt-reviewer |
| Compare two prompt versions with scoring | compare-prompts |
| GAS system prompt refinement, compression + A/B testing | /optimize-system-prompt |
References
references/technique-library.md- Full technique catalog with before/after examplesreferences/anti-patterns.md- 14 anti-patterns with detection, examples, and fixesreferences/critique-rubric.md- Classification rules, scoring algorithm, output template
Categories
Install
npx skillscat add whichguy/claude-craft/prompt-critique Install via the SkillsCat registry.