Minecraft-Console-Client/.skills/writing-skills/testing-skills-with-subagents.md

Testing Skills With Subagents

Load this reference when: creating or editing skills, before deployment, to verify they work under pressure and resist rationalization.

Overview

Testing skills is just TDD applied to process documentation.

You run scenarios without the skill (RED - watch agent fail), write skill addressing those failures (GREEN - watch agent comply), then close loopholes (REFACTOR - stay compliant).

Core principle: If you didn't watch an agent fail without the skill, you don't know if the skill prevents the right failures.

When to Use

Test skills that:

• Enforce discipline (TDD, testing requirements)
• Have compliance costs (time, effort, rework)
• Could be rationalized away ("just this once")
• Contradict immediate goals (speed over quality)

Don't test:

• Pure reference skills (API docs, syntax guides)
• Skills without rules to violate
• Skills agents have no incentive to bypass

TDD Mapping for Skill Testing

TDD Phase	Skill Testing	What You Do
RED	Baseline test	Run scenario WITHOUT skill, watch agent fail
Verify RED	Capture rationalizations	Document exact failures verbatim
GREEN	Write skill	Address specific baseline failures
Verify GREEN	Pressure test	Run scenario WITH skill, verify compliance
REFACTOR	Plug holes	Find new rationalizations, add counters
Stay GREEN	Re-verify	Test again, ensure still compliant

RED Phase: Baseline Testing (Watch It Fail)

Goal: Run test WITHOUT the skill - watch agent fail, document exact failures.

Process:

• Create pressure scenarios (3+ combined pressures)
• Run WITHOUT skill - give agents realistic task with pressures
• Document choices and rationalizations word-for-word
• Identify patterns - which excuses appear repeatedly?
• Note effective pressures - which scenarios trigger violations?

GREEN Phase: Write Minimal Skill (Make It Pass)

Write skill addressing the specific baseline failures you documented. Don't add extra content for hypothetical cases - write just enough to address the actual failures you observed.

Run same scenarios WITH skill. Agent should now comply.

If agent still fails: skill is unclear or incomplete. Revise and re-test.

REFACTOR Phase: Close Loopholes (Stay Green)

Agent violated rule despite having the skill? Capture new rationalizations verbatim:

• "This case is different because..."
• "I'm following the spirit not the letter"
• "Being pragmatic means adapting"
• "Deleting X hours is wasteful"

Document every excuse. These become your rationalization table.

Testing Checklist (TDD for Skills)

RED Phase:

• Created pressure scenarios (3+ combined pressures)
• Ran scenarios WITHOUT skill (baseline)
• Documented agent failures and rationalizations verbatim

GREEN Phase:

• Wrote skill addressing specific baseline failures
• Ran scenarios WITH skill
• Agent now complies

REFACTOR Phase:

• Identified NEW rationalizations from testing
• Added explicit counters for each loophole
• Updated rationalization table
• Updated red flags list
• Re-tested - agent still complies
• Meta-tested to verify clarity
• Agent follows rule under maximum pressure