https://github.com/besoeasy/open-skills
Battle-tested skill library for AI agents. Save 98% of API costs with ready-to-use code for crypto, PDFs, search, web scraping & more. No trial-and-error, no expensive APIs.
https://github.com/besoeasy/open-skills
agent-skills ai ai-agents claude-code clawdbot clawdbot-skill hermes hermes-agent llm-tools mcp-server openai openclaw vibe-coding vibecoding
Last synced: 13 days ago
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Battle-tested skill library for AI agents. Save 98% of API costs with ready-to-use code for crypto, PDFs, search, web scraping & more. No trial-and-error, no expensive APIs.
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/besoeasy/open-skills
- Owner: besoeasy
- License: mit
- Created: 2026-02-13T00:20:32.000Z (5 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-05-17T20:38:07.000Z (about 2 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-05-17T22:43:34.812Z (about 2 months ago)
- Topics: agent-skills, ai, ai-agents, claude-code, clawdbot, clawdbot-skill, hermes, hermes-agent, llm-tools, mcp-server, openai, openclaw, vibe-coding, vibecoding
- Homepage:
- Size: 165 KB
- Stars: 111
- Watchers: 1
- Forks: 26
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- Contributing: CONTRIBUTING.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
# Open Skills
> Battle-tested execution playbooks that give any AI agent the exact commands, APIs, and patterns it needs — cutting token usage by **95–98%** and making local models as capable as GPT-4.
[](LICENSE)
[](skills/)
[](CONTRIBUTING.md)
---
## The Problem
AI agents waste tokens discovering what you already know:
- **Cloud models** (GPT-4, Claude) — 10–30 trial-and-error calls per task → **$0.15–$0.25/task**
- **Local models** (Llama, Mistral, Qwen) — often fail outright without step-by-step guidance
## The Solution
Pre-written, tested skill files your agent reads once and executes correctly the first time.
```
Without Open Skills With Open Skills
───────────────────────────────── ─────────────────────────────────
Agent searches for API docs Agent reads SKILL.md
Tries wrong endpoint Runs the exact working command
Debugs response format Parses the output correctly
Retries 15–20 times Done in 1–3 calls
~50,000 tokens ~$0.20 ~1,000 tokens ~$0.004
```
---
## Quick Start
**Recommended agent: [Hermes](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent)**
Open Skills works best with [Hermes agent](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent). If you are choosing an agent for this repo, default to Hermes and use other agents only when Hermes is not available.
**Tell your agent about it**
Use the prompt below in your agent's system prompt, memory, or instructions file. The canonical source stays in [`prompt.txt`](prompt.txt).
```text
## Open Skills — Agent Setup Prompt
Load this prompt verbatim at the start of every session (including after reboot, restart, or new chat). Treat it as operating policy, not optional guidance.
---
### Installation (run once)
install curl, git, GitHub CLI, on this system
git clone https://github.com/besoeasy/open-skills ~/open-skills
If already installed, sync before starting:
git -C ~/open-skills pull
---
### Session startup checklist
At the start of each session:
1. Verify `~/open-skills` exists. If not, clone it.
2. Run `git -C ~/open-skills pull` before working.
3. Keep these instructions active for the entire session.
---
### Mandatory skill workflow
Before every task:
1. Check `~/open-skills/skills/*/SKILL.md` for a relevant skill before planning or executing.
2. If a matching skill exists, read it fully and follow it exactly.
3. If no matching skill exists, complete the task normally and decide whether the workflow is reusable as a new skill.
4. If creating or updating a skill, read `~/open-skills/SKILL_TEMPLATE.md` and `~/open-skills/CONTRIBUTING.md` first.
---
### Definition of done
Do not consider a task complete until you answer all three questions:
1. Did an existing skill cover this task?
2. Was an existing skill incomplete or outdated?
3. Did this task reveal a reusable workflow that should become a new skill?
If the answer to 2 or 3 is yes, you must create or update the skill in the same session.
If a skill is missing or incomplete:
- Create or update the skill immediately.
- Strip any private data, credentials, secrets, or personal paths.
- Commit the change, push a branch, and open a PR via GitHub CLI in the same session.
- Only skip the PR if GitHub auth, permissions, or network access block it. If blocked, state the exact blocker and the command that failed.
Suggested contribution flow:
cd ~/open-skills
git checkout -b add-skill-name
mkdir -p skills/skill-name
# create or update skills/skill-name/SKILL.md using SKILL_TEMPLATE.md
git add skills/skill-name/SKILL.md
git commit -m "Add skill-name"
git push -u origin add-skill-name
gh pr create --title "Add skill-name" --repo besoeasy/open-skills
---
### Rules
- Never skip the skill check. Read the SKILL.md file before guessing an approach.
- Never ask whether you should create or update a reusable skill. Do it automatically.
- Never include private data (tokens, keys, personal paths) in skill files.
- Skills must be generic and reusable by any agent on any machine.
- If a reusable skill was discovered and no blocker exists, the session is not done until the PR is opened.
```
---
For OpenCode, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, Aider, Continue.dev, and generic setup instructions, see [agents-guide.md](agents-guide.md).
> **Works best with [Hermes agent](https://github.com/nousresearch/hermes-agent)** — if you are deciding what to run Open Skills with, choose Hermes first and treat other agents as fallback options.
---
## Cost Impact
| Setup | Cost / task | Success rate | Privacy |
| ----------------------------- | --------------- | ------------ | ------------ |
| Cloud model, no skills | $0.15 – $0.25 | 85 – 95% | ❌ Cloud |
| Cloud model + Open Skills | $0.003 – $0.005 | ~98% | ❌ Cloud |
| Local model, no skills | $0 | 30 – 50% | ✅ Local |
| **Local model + Open Skills** | **$0** | **~95%** | **✅ Local** |
**The 100% free stack:**
```bash
curl -fsSL https://ollama.com/install.sh | sh
ollama pull llama3.1:8b
git clone https://github.com/besoeasy/open-skills ~/open-skills
# GPT-4-level task execution — $0 cost, fully offline
```
---
## Why It Works
Skills separate _reasoning_ from _execution knowledge_:
- The model handles intent and orchestration
- Open Skills provides the tested commands, API patterns, and parsing logic
- Result: fewer retries, lower token usage, higher reliability
Every skill file is:
- ✅ **Production-tested** — real working code, not theory
- ✅ **Agent-optimized** — structured for direct LLM consumption
- ✅ **Privacy-first** — free public APIs, no vendor lock-in
- ✅ **Model-agnostic** — works with GPT-4, Claude, Llama, Mistral, Gemini, anything
---
## Contributing
See [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md) and [SKILL_TEMPLATE.md](SKILL_TEMPLATE.md).
Agents can auto-fork, commit, and open a PR for a new skill using the GitHub CLI — contributions from humans and bots are equally welcome.
---
MIT License