singular-particular-space/skills/commissioning-skill/spore-entry-format.md

Spore entry format

Each entry in a *-spores.md file is a self-contained, atomic policy record. One trigger condition. One outcome. No prose reasoning.

---

Schema

---
spore: {kebab-case-identifier}
task-class: {task-class-name}
scion-model: {model-identifier}
deposited: {YYYY-MM-DD}
hook: {relative-path-to-hook} | nil
---
policy: {single declarative sentence describing the decision}
trigger: {event} · {condition}
on-match: allow | deny | escalate
on-novel: escalate to parent

---

Field definitions

spore — unique identifier within the file. Kebab-case. Descriptive enough to identify the decision at a glance without reading the body.

task-class — the task class this entry was written for. Should match the filename stem (e.g. annotator in annotator-spores.md).

scion-model — the model this entry was token-budgeted for. Entries written for Haiku-4.5 are valid for Sonnet-class scions (more capable model, easier load) but not necessarily vice versa.

deposited — ISO date the entry was first written.

hook — relative path to the compiled cchooks Python file, if one exists for this decision. nil if the decision requires scion interpretation and has no compiled hook.

policy — one declarative sentence. What the scion should do. Not why. Not when. Just what. The trigger handles when.

trigger — the event and condition that activates this policy. Use the format: {HookEvent} · {condition}. Hook events are: PreToolUse, PostToolUse, UserPromptSubmit, Stop, SessionStart, SessionEnd.

on-match — the outcome when trigger fires: allow, deny, or escalate.

on-novel — always escalate to parent. This is the fallback for situations not covered by any spore entry.

---

Token discipline

Each entry must stay under approximately 60 tokens. Count before writing. The policy line is the most likely offender — keep it to one clause. The trigger line should be terse: event type, one condition, nothing more.

Reasoning about why a policy exists belongs in the corresponding SEEDS.md entry body, not here. If you find yourself wanting to add a comment or explanation to a spore entry, that content goes in SEEDS.md instead.

---

Examples

File write guard (with hook)

---
spore: env-file-write-guard
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: hooks/env-guard.py
---
policy: deny all writes to sensitive credential files
trigger: PreToolUse · tool=Write · file_path matches *.env|secrets.json|id_rsa
on-match: deny
on-novel: escalate to parent

Output format enforcement (no hook)

---
spore: annotation-output-format
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: nil
---
policy: write all annotation output as JSONL to stdout, one record per line
trigger: PostToolUse · tool=Write · file_path matches *.annotation
on-match: allow
on-novel: escalate to parent

Bash safety guard (with hook)

---
spore: destructive-bash-guard
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: hooks/bash-guard.py
---
policy: deny bash commands containing destructive patterns
trigger: PreToolUse · tool=Bash · command matches rm -rf|sudo|fdisk|format
on-match: deny
on-novel: escalate to parent

Escalation trigger (no hook)

---
spore: schema-mismatch-escalate
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: nil
---
policy: escalate if input schema does not match expected annotation schema
trigger: PreToolUse · tool=Read · file_path matches *.input · schema-mismatch detected
on-match: escalate
on-novel: escalate to parent

---

Full spore file example

# annotator-spores.md
# task-class: annotator
# scion-model: haiku-4.5
# token-budget: 600
# last-updated: 2026-03-20

---
spore: env-file-write-guard
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: hooks/env-guard.py
---
policy: deny all writes to sensitive credential files
trigger: PreToolUse · tool=Write · file_path matches *.env|secrets.json|id_rsa
on-match: deny
on-novel: escalate to parent

---
spore: annotation-output-format
task-class: annotator
scion-model: haiku-4.5
deposited: 2026-03-20
hook: nil
---
policy: write annotation output as JSONL to stdout, one record per line
trigger: PostToolUse · tool=Write · file_path matches *.annotation
on-match: allow
on-novel: escalate to parent