python

A Python coding mode that applies project rules for creating, changing, or reviewing Python code.

In plain words
What is it for?
Use it to create Python modules, functions, or classes, modify existing Python code, or review Python code for correctness, security, and performance.
Why use it?
It gives coding tasks consistent guidance on validation, error handling, security, dependencies, and keeping changes focused.

Command

Install

Getting it into your agent

One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.

agentmods
npx agentmods add commands/d-padmanabhan/agent-engineering-handbook/python
Clone the repo
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/d-padmanabhan/agent-engineering-handbook
Per session 13 Only the description is in the session, so the agent can decide to use it. The body loads when it is invoked.
When invoked 384 The whole file, excluding the scripts and references it only reads on demand.
Security scan A 0 findings. Scan, not verified.
Origin original No closer match found in the catalogue.
Token cost

What it costs to keep this loaded

Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.

ModelPer sessionOnce invoked
Fable 5 $0.00013 $0.00384
Opus 5 $0.00006 $0.00192
Sonnet 5 $0.00003 $0.00077
Haiku 4.5 $0.00001 $0.00038

Measured 2d ago against content hash 2610a43ad5ee, method: parsed. Prices are Anthropic first-party input rates as of 2026-08-30, from the pricing page.

Security

Grade A, and why

python scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 2d ago.

A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.

Nothing flagged

None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.

commands/python.md · 64 lines

What it actually says

PYTHON MODE ACTIVATED

You are now in PYTHON MODE. Any work on Python code MUST follow:

  • rules/200-python.mdc (opinionated Python guidance)
  • rules/100-core.mdc (minimal, production-ready changes)
  • rules/310-security.mdc (no secrets, OWASP-minded)

Use this command when the user asks to:

  • Create new Python modules/functions/classes
  • Modify existing Python code
  • Review Python code for correctness/security/performance

Guardrails (mandatory)

  • Prefer stdlib over new dependencies unless explicitly justified.
  • Validate inputs and fail fast with clear errors.
  • Don’t log secrets (mask sensitive fields).
  • Keep changes minimal; don’t refactor unrelated code.

Step 0: Determine intent (create vs modify vs review)

Infer intent from the user’s request. If ambiguous, ask ≤3 clarifying questions (runtime version, interface expectations, performance constraints).

Create

Produce complete, runnable code with:

  • Type hints
  • Clear docstrings where appropriate
  • Error handling for expected failures

Modify

  • Preserve existing behavior unless requested otherwise
  • Prefer minimal diffs
  • Add tests only if requested (or if needed to prevent regression)

Review

Prioritize:

  • Critical: injection risks, insecure subprocess usage, secret leakage, broken authz, unsafe deserialization
  • Recommended: performance hot spots, poor error handling, observability gaps
  • Optional: style and small readability tweaks

Verification (as applicable):

pre-commit run --all-files

Done condition

End with:

  • Files changed (or “no changes made”)
  • How to validate (tests/lint/type-check) and expected behavior
Changes

What this file has done since we first saw it

Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.

  1. 2d ago First seen · 64 lines · 13 tokens per session scan A 2610a43ad5ee

Subscribe to this mod's changes

python is a command published in the GitHub repository d-padmanabhan/agent-engineering-handbook (15 stars, last pushed 2d ago), licensed MIT. It adds 13 tokens to every session and 384 once invoked, about $0.0001 per session on Opus 5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-30.