studio-kickstart

One CLI to scaffold a complete project — framework, database, auth, agent skills, MCP servers, quality gates, and docs — so you never rebuild the same setup twice.

kickstart --web my-app

That single command creates a Next.js app with Supabase, Better-Auth, Husky, Vitest, Playwright, Prettier, Sandcastle, pre-wired MCP servers, and agent instructions for Claude Code, Codex, and Gemini CLI.

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Install

npm install -g studio-kickstart
kickstart --init

Create a project

Interactive — prompts for stack, name, local model mode, and GitHub mode:

kickstart

Scripted — specify everything up front:

kickstart --web my-app --github skip
kickstart --mobile my-mobile-app --github private
kickstart --universal my-platform --github public
kickstart --other my-app --github skip

Choose what gets installed

# Select specific skill packs
kickstart --web my-app --skill-pack essential,security

# Install the full 31-skill library
kickstart --web my-app --all-skills

# Wire specific MCP servers (or skip them)
kickstart --web my-app --mcp supabase,github,filesystem
kickstart --web my-app --mcp none

# Pin skills to a specific release
kickstart --web my-app --skills-ref v1.2.0

# Use a custom skills repository
kickstart --skills https://github.com/your-org/your-skills.git --web custom-app

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Every scaffolded project includes a consistent, production-grade setup:

Layer	What you get
Framework	Next.js, Expo, Turborepo + Solito, or bare (git init + pnpm init)
Database	Supabase client starter
Auth	Better-Auth starter
Offline-first	WatermelonDB starter (mobile and universal projects)
Quality gates	Husky, lint-staged, Vitest, Playwright, Prettier, Sandcastle
Agent docs	AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, GEMINI.md
Skills	Selected Studio Skill Packs in .claude/skills/ and .agents/skills/
Skills lockfile	.studio-skills.json — tracks repo URL, ref, packs, and installed skills
MCP servers	.claude/settings.json pre-wired with Supabase and GitHub MCP
Design staging	.design-staging/.gitkeep for Open Design exports and Artifact-Pro handoffs
PR pipeline	CodeRabbit guidance for auditing Sandcastle-generated PRs
Local models	Optional guidance for Ollama, LM Studio, llama.cpp, Open WebUI
Containers	Docker Desktop, Podman, or OrbStack guidance

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Skill Packs

New projects install the Essential Pack by default:

Pack	Contents
Essential	Manual-SDD, Antivibe, Watermelon Architect, Matt Pocock TypeScript, Usage Limit Reducer
Agency	Agentic SEO, Marp Slides, Spider-King lead extraction, Email Campaigns
Security & Safety	Shannon-Pro, Tech Debt Audit
All Skills	Complete library — every workflow available

kickstart --web my-app --skill-pack essential
kickstart --web my-app --skill-pack essential,agency,security
kickstart --web my-app --all-skills

Skills Sync

Every scaffold writes a .studio-skills.json lockfile. Re-apply or upgrade skills anytime:

# Re-apply skills from lockfile (safe, idempotent)
kickstart skills sync

# Upgrade to the latest release tag
kickstart skills sync --upgrade

# Run from any subdirectory
kickstart skills sync --project /path/to/my-app

{
  "kickstartVersion": "1.2.0",
  "repoUrl": "https://github.com/Soham407/studio-kickstart.git",
  "ref": "v1.2.0",
  "packs": ["essential"],
  "installedAt": "2026-06-01T00:00:00.000Z",
  "lastSyncedAt": "2026-06-01T00:00:00.000Z",
  "skills": [
    { "name": "manual-sdd", "category": "architecture" },
    { "name": "tdd", "category": "architecture" }
  ]
}

MCP Servers

Scaffolded projects get .claude/settings.json pre-wired with Supabase and GitHub MCP. Replace the placeholder tokens before use:

Server	Token
supabase	SUPABASE_ACCESS_TOKEN — create at supabase.com
github	GITHUB_TOKEN — create at github.com
filesystem	No token required

Agent Targets

Skills install into agent-specific discovery paths:

Agent	Target
Claude Code	.claude/skills/
Codex	.agents/skills/
Pi	.agents/skills/
Portable fallback	.agents/skills/

---

Install individual skills with kickstart skills install <name>:

Skill	What it does
antivibe	Explains AI-written code with curated resources
caveman	Ultra-compressed communication mode for reducing token use
claude-plugin-powerpack	Documents the recommended Claude Code plugin stack
diagnose	Reproduce, minimize, hypothesize, instrument, fix, and regression-test bugs
git-guardrails-claude-code	Sets up Claude Code hooks that block dangerous git commands
grill-me	Stress-tests a plan through focused questioning
grill-with-docs	Challenges a plan against project docs
improve-codebase-architecture	Finds deeper refactoring and architecture opportunities
manual-sdd	Applies a skills-first spec-driven development workflow
migrate-to-shoehorn	Migrates test data from as assertions to shoehorn
prototype	Builds throwaway terminal or UI prototypes
scaffold-exercises	Creates exercise folders with problems, solutions, and explainers
setup-matt-pocock-skills	Adds repo-level agent skill docs and issue-tracker conventions
setup-pre-commit	Adds Husky pre-commit hooks with formatting and tests
tdd	Runs a red-green-refactor loop for features and bug fixes
to-issues	Breaks plans or PRDs into implementation issues
to-prd	Turns conversation context into a PRD
triage	Triage issues through role-driven workflow states
write-a-skill	Creates new agent skills with proper structure
zoom-out	Maps an unfamiliar code area at a higher level
tech-debt-audit	Produces a file-cited codebase health and architecture audit
usage-limit-reducer	Diagnoses token usage and applies usage-reduction rules

Skill	What it does
agentic-seo	Audits documentation and websites for AI-agent discoverability
email-campaigns	Designs and sends HTML email campaigns through Resend
marp-slides	Creates MARP presentation decks with charts and themes
shannon-security	Guides white-box application security testing
spider-king-lead-extraction	Browser-independent lead collection

Skill	What it does
artifact-pro-open-design	Converts Open Design JSON exports into NativeWind v4 UI
hue	Generates new design language skills from references

Skill	What it does
matt-pocock-typescript	Applies bundled TypeScript engineering workflows
watermelon-architect	Guides offline-first WatermelonDB synchronization design

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How Skills Work

Every installable skill follows the same shape:

skill-folder/
└── SKILL.md
    ├── frontmatter: name, description, type, category, tags
    ├── trigger rules: when the agent should use it
    ├── workflow: steps the agent must follow
    ├── references: optional files loaded only when needed
    └── verification: evidence required before the work is done

Design principles: workflow over prose, progressive disclosure, clear triggers, verifiable output.

CLI Commands

Command	Result
kickstart --init	Saves defaults in ~/.studio-skills/config.json
kickstart	Guided interactive setup
kickstart --web my-app	Scaffolds Next.js with Studio defaults
kickstart --mobile my-app	Scaffolds Expo with mobile defaults
kickstart --universal my-app	Scaffolds Turborepo + Solito
kickstart --other my-app	Git init + agent setup, bring your own framework
kickstart skills list	Lists available skills from the configured repo
kickstart skills install tdd	Installs a single skill
kickstart skills sync	Re-applies skills from lockfile
kickstart skills sync --upgrade	Upgrades to the latest release

Project Structure

studio-kickstart/
├── bin/kickstart.js            # CLI entry point and flag parsing
├── lib/
│   ├── scaffold.js             # Project bootstrap orchestration
│   ├── skills.js               # Skill clone/copy/install/sync logic
│   ├── mcp.js                  # MCP server registry and config writing
│   ├── skill-catalog.js        # Skill discovery and linting
│   ├── wizard.js               # First-time setup wizard
│   ├── config.js               # ~/.studio-skills/config.json
│   └── updater.js              # npm update checks
├── architecture/               # 22 engineering workflow skills
├── coding/                     # 2 coding skills
├── business/                   # 5 business operation skills
├── design/                     # 2 design system skills
├── scripts/                    # Catalog generation and skill linting
├── test/                       # Node test runner tests
└── skills.json                 # Generated public skill catalog

---

Requirements

• Node.js 20+ and pnpm
• GitHub CLI authenticated with gh auth login (when using --github private or --github public)
• Docker-compatible runtime (optional, for container workloads)
• Local model runtime (optional)

Local Development

npm install
npm test
npm run skills:lint
npm run skills:catalog
npm run check           # lint + test + pack dry-run

Similar Projects

Studio Kickstart combines project scaffolding, agent skills, and guardrails into one bootstrapper:

• Framework scaffolding — create-next-app, create-expo-app, Solito starters
• Opinionated setup — create-t3-app
• Agent skill packaging — anthropics/skills, openai/skills, addyosmani/agent-skills
• Agent workflows — obra/superpowers
• Sandboxed orchestration — Matt Pocock's sandcastle
• Agent environments — Aider, OpenCode, Gemini CLI, Cline, Roo Code, Continue, Cursor, Windsurf

Contributing

Start with CONTRIBUTING.md for skill structure and pull request expectations, and ARCHITECTURE.md for how the CLI and skills library fit together.

License

MIT