Borrowing it
Nothing to install: this file belongs to wbern/agent-instructions. Take a copy, put it at the same path in your own repository, and replace the rules that are about this project with yours.
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wbern/agent-instructions/main/.claude/commands/simplify.mdgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/wbern/agent-instructionsWrote this? Show the measurements
A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.
[](https://agentmods.dev/commands/wbern/agent-instructions/simplify)<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/wbern/agent-instructions/simplify"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/wbern/agent-instructions/simplify/github.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>Or the 80×15 button, for a site that already has a row of RSS and ATOM ones. Only the verdict fits; the numbers stay here.
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/commands/wbern/agent-instructions/simplify"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/commands/wbern/agent-instructions/simplify.svg" alt="Reviewed on agentmods" width="80" height="20"></a>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.
| Model | Per session | Once invoked |
|---|---|---|
| Fable 5.1 | $0.00007 | $0.00682 |
| Opus 5.5 | $0.00003 | $0.00273 |
| Sonnet 5.5 | $0.00001 | $0.00136 |
| Haiku 4.5 | $0.00001 | $0.00068 |
Grade A, and why
simplify 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 2mo 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.
How it starts
The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 96 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.
General Guidelines
Output Style
- Never explicitly mention TDD in code, comments, commits, PRs, or issues
- Write natural, descriptive code without meta-commentary about the development process
- The code should speak for itself - TDD is the process, not the product
Beads is available for task tracking. Use mcp__beads__* tools to manage issues (the user interacts via bd commands).
User arguments:
Simplify: $ARGUMENTS
End of user arguments
(If there was no info above, fallback to the context of the conversation)
Reduce complexity while keeping tests green.
Core Principles
YAGNI - Don't build until actually needed. Delete "just in case" code.
KISS - Simplest solution that works. Clever is the enemy of clear.
Rule of Three - Don't abstract until 3rd occurrence. "Prefer duplication over wrong abstraction" (Sandi Metz).
When NOT to Simplify
- Essential domain complexity (regulations, business rules)
- Performance-critical optimized code
- Concurrency/thread-safety requirements
- Security-sensitive explicit checks
Prerequisites
Tests must be green. If failing, use /green first.
Code Complexity Signals
Look for these refactoring opportunities:
- Nesting > 3 levels deep
- Functions > 20 lines
- Duplicate code blocks
- Abstractions with single implementation
- "Just in case" parameters or config
- Magic values without names
- Dead/unused code
Techniques
| Pattern | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Guard clause | Nested if/else |
Early return |
| Named condition | Complex boolean | const isValid = ... |
| Extract constant | if (x > 3) |
if (x > MAX_RETRIES) |
| Flatten callback | .then().then() |
async/await |
Also apply: Consolidate duplicates, inline unnecessary abstractions, delete dead code.
Validate
- Tests still green
- Code reads more clearly
- No behavioral changes
Simplify removes complexity locally. Refactor improves architecture broadly. Use /refactor if changes require structural reorganization.
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.
- 2mo ago First seen · 96 lines · 7 tokens per session scan A 814bfedcfddd
simplify is a command published in the GitHub repository wbern/agent-instructions (168 stars, last pushed 5mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 7 tokens to every session and 682 once invoked, about $0.0000 per session on Opus 5.5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-30.
Other commands, from other repositories
refactor
Systematic code refactoring with smart scope detection.
review-branch
Review the current branch's diff against base by dispatching atomic-reviewer. No orchestration loop, no spec required — pre-flight before /commit pr or /commit merge.
init
Install the formatters this repository needs, with every command visible before it runs.
spec-trace-requirements
You are verifying that implementation changes trace back to specification requirements.
merge-conflict-analysis
You are analyzing merge conflicts for PR #${{ pr-number }}.
boot
Start a new PromptKit prompt assembly session (alias for /bootstrap).