Agent skill · Jesse Vincent (obra)

Verification Before Completion skill for Claude Code, Codex and Cursor

Requires running checks and showing their output before claiming work is done.

Communityname: verification-before-completion★ 305k (repo)pushed 2026-10-23MITSKILL.md on GitHubchecked 2026-11-07

What it does, in the publisher's words

Use when about to claim work is complete, fixed, or passing, before committing or creating PRs - requires running verification commands and confirming output before making any success claims; evidence before assertions always

The description field of the SKILL.md. The agent reads only this at startup and decides from it when to load the full skill.

Install Verification Before Completion

The skills CLI copies the skill into the folder of each agent you pick (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf...). Add -g for all projects. Needs Node.js 22.20+. docs

npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion

This repo is a plugin marketplace. Inside Claude Code, add it and install the plugin that holds the skill (superpowers), or copy only this skill into ~/.claude/skills. docs

/plugin marketplace add obra/superpowers
/plugin install <plugin>@superpowers-dev

# or only this skill:
npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion -a claude-code

Download the skill folder, zip it, then Customize > Skills > + > Create skill > Upload a skill. Code execution must be on (Settings > Capabilities). docs

git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/obra/superpowers.git /tmp/verification-before-completion-src
cp -r /tmp/verification-before-completion-src/skills/verification-before-completion ./verification-before-completion
zip -r verification-before-completion.zip verification-before-completion

Codex reads skills from .agents/skills in the repo or ~/.agents/skills. Type $ in Codex to use one. docs

npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion -a codex

gh skill (GitHub CLI 2.90+, preview) installs it for Copilot in VS Code, the CLI and the cloud agent. Copilot also reads .github/skills and ~/.copilot/skills. docs

gh skill install obra/superpowers verification-before-completion

Cursor reads .cursor/skills, .agents/skills and ~/.cursor/skills (and .claude/skills). It does not install loose skills from a GitHub URL, so copy it in. docs

npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion -a cursor

Installs from the GitHub repo; --path picks this skill out of the repo. Default scope is user (all projects). docs

gemini skills install https://github.com/obra/superpowers.git --path skills/verification-before-completion

OpenCode reads .opencode/skills, ~/.config/opencode/skills and the Claude and .agents folders. docs

npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion -a opencode

Windsurf (now Devin Desktop) reads .devin/skills, .windsurf/skills and ~/.codeium/windsurf/skills. docs

npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion -a windsurf

Works with

Claude Code, Claude.ai and Claude Desktop, Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf and other agents that read the open Agent Skills format.

What's in the SKILL.md

8 sections

Overview
The Iron Law
The Gate Function
Common Failures
Red Flags - STOP
Rationalization Prevention
Key Patterns
When To Apply

Facts

Skill name: verification-before-completion
Publisher: Jesse Vincent (obra) (community)
Repo: obra/superpowers
License: MIT
SKILL.md size: 359 words, 116 lines
Repo stars: 305k (as of 2026-10-24)
SKILL.md checked: 2026-11-07

More skills from obra/superpowers

Brainstorming: Makes the agent clarify goals and explore options with you before building anything new.
Requesting Code Review: Has the agent get its finished work reviewed against requirements before merging.
Subagent-Driven Development: Executes a plan by handing each task to a fresh subagent with review between steps.
Systematic Debugging: A root-cause-first process for bugs and failing tests before any fix is attempted.
Test-Driven Development: Enforces a red-green-refactor loop: write a failing test first, then the code.
Using Git Worktrees: Sets up an isolated git worktree before feature work so the main checkout stays clean.
Writing Plans: Turns a spec into a detailed, step-by-step implementation plan before coding starts.
Writing Skills: Method for writing and testing new skills so they trigger and behave reliably.

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FAQ

What does the verification-before-completion skill do?+

Requires running checks and showing their output before claiming work is done. In its own SKILL.md, Jesse Vincent (obra) describes it as: "Use when about to claim work is complete, fixed, or passing, before committing or creating PRs - requires running verification commands and confirming output before making any success claims; evidence before assertions always"

How do I install the verification-before-completion skill?+

Run npx skills add obra/superpowers --skill verification-before-completion and pick your agents, or use the tab for your agent above. In Claude Code the skill ends up in ~/.claude/skills/verification-before-completion/SKILL.md; in Codex and Cursor in .agents/skills/verification-before-completion/.

Does Verification Before Completion work in Codex, Cursor and Copilot, or only Claude?+

It's a standard SKILL.md, so any agent that reads the Agent Skills format can use it: Claude Code, the Claude apps, Codex, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Windsurf and more.

Who maintains Verification Before Completion?+

Jesse Vincent (obra) (a community project), in the obra/superpowers repo on GitHub, last pushed 2026-10-23. License: MIT.

Read a skill's SKILL.md and scripts before you install it: skills aren't verified by any agent vendor. Claude skills marketplace · How to install skills · MCP servers