---
type: ApplicationType
title: skill (application type)
description: An agent-behavioral program: SKILL.md tree, plugin manifest, engage directive, prose as an executable surface — with or without a runtime. The apex identity label operator-confirmed 2026-07-03.
tags: [application-type, catalog, rfc-114, skill]
timestamp: 2026-07-03T00:00:00Z
---

# skill (application type)

The **skill** application type names an agent-behavioral program: a
`.claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md` prose tree (with topic files), a plugin
manifest, and an always-engage directive in the vendor adapter file. The
defining move is that **markdown prose is the executed surface** — the agent
reads and follows it — not documentation about something else that executes. A
skill may ship with or without an accompanying runtime (this repo's forge-
manager skill ships version-coupled with a server; a pure-prose skill ships
alone).

## Entry (structured — the judgment-carrying-catalog schema)

```yaml
kind: application-type
id: skill
question: application-type
features:
  - id: skill-md-tree
    signal: ".claude/skills/<name>/SKILL.md present with a topic tree"
    observed_via: path-glob
    probe: ".claude/skills/*/SKILL.md"
  - id: engage-directive
    signal: "CLAUDE.md / adapter file carries an always-engage directive naming the skill"
    observed_via: file-content
    probe: "CLAUDE.md::.claude/skills/"
  - id: prose-executable
    signal: "markdown prose is the executed surface (agent reads + follows), not documentation"
    observed_via: judgment
counter_features:
  - id: standalone-runtime-required
    signal: "the asset cannot function without its own installed process"
    observed_via: judgment
lineage:
  tradition: "agent-skill ecosystems"
  exemplars: ["Claude Code skills", "agents.md conventions"]
  reference: "RFC #114 / Discussion #114 derivation 2026-07-03"
examples:
  - "forge-manager skill constituent (this repo), classified 2026-07-03 operator-confirmed"
```
