v1.4.0 to v1.5.0

---

name: attic

description: >

Offloads context. Stashes findings, decisions, plans and long tool outputs

into a project-local .attic/ folder and keeps only a one-line index in the

conversation, so the live context stays lean and important knowledge

survives /compact, /clear and new sessions. Supports intensity levels:

lite, full (default), ultra, off. Use on ANY multi-step task that involves

investigating a codebase, reading many files, running noisy commands, or

making design decisions. Also use whenever the user says "attic", "stash

this", "remember this", "save this for later", "put it in the attic",

"context is getting long", "before compact", or complains that Claude

forgot something after compaction. Do NOT use for one-line answers, typo

fixes, or non-coding chat.

license: MIT

---

# Attic

First, in the same shell command as anything below, locate the script:

```bash

ATTIC_JS=$(ls -d "${CODEX_HOME:-$HOME/.codex}"/plugins/cache/attic/attic/*/skills/attic/scripts/attic.js "${CODEX_HOME:-$HOME/.codex}"/skills/attic/scripts/attic.js "$HOME"/.agents/skills/attic/scripts/attic.js .agents/skills/attic/scripts/attic.js 2>/dev/null | sort -V | tail -1)

```

You keep the conversation lean. Anything worth remembering goes into the

attic, not into the chat. The chat holds the handle, the attic holds the

detail.

Level requested: `$ARGUMENTS` (empty means **full**). If it is `off`, stop

applying these rules until `/attic` is run again. Otherwise confirm the level

in one line and continue with the user's task.

## Scope

Attic governs **what you keep in context**. It does not govern how terse your

prose is, or how much code you write. Do not use it for one-line answers,

typo fixes, or anything the user will never need again.

## Persistence

ACTIVE EVERY RESPONSE. No drift back to dumping everything into the chat.

Still active if unsure. Off only: `/attic off`, "stop attic", "normal mode".

Default: **full**. Switch: `/attic lite|full|ultra`. Level persists until

changed or session end.

## Use the script, not your own bookkeeping

`$(dirname "$ATTIC_JS")/../scripts/attic.js` owns every mechanical part: slug

hygiene, frontmatter, INDEX and DECISIONS bookkeeping, atomic writes, and

secret detection. Call it. Do not hand-write these files when the script is

available.

```bash

node "$ATTIC_JS" stash \

--slug login-test-timeout --kind finding \

--title "Login test times out" \

--hook "5s fixture timeout in tests/conftest.py:41, SMTP call is real" \

--tags tests,flaky \

--body-file /tmp/body.md

node "$ATTIC_JS" recall "login timeout"

node "$ATTIC_JS" index

node "$ATTIC_JS" validate

```

`--kind` is one of `finding`, `decision`, `plan`, `output`, `note`. Add

`--decision-why "<reason>"` to also log a line in `DECISIONS.md`. Long bodies

go through `--body-file`. Exit code 2 means the script refused because it

detected a credential: redact and retry, never pass `--force` to smuggle a

secret past it.

Your judgement decides *what* is worth stashing and writes the prose. The

script decides *how* it lands on disk.

## Rules

1. **Stash after investigating.** After any investigation (reading more than

~3 files, a grep sweep, a test run, tracing a flow), stash the conclusion

and reply with the handle plus at most three lines of what matters now.

2. **Never re-explain what is in the attic.** Point at the handle. If the

user wants detail, they run `/attic-recall <slug>`.

3. **Long output never lands in prose.** Logs, diffs, dumps, stack traces:

summarise in at most five lines, stash as `kind: output` with the exact

command, reference the handle. Read big results with `head`, `grep`,

`tail`; do not paste them.

4. **Check the attic before re-reading.** `.attic/INDEX.md` is normally

already in your context from session start. Scan it before opening a file

or re-running a search. If an item answers the question, say so

(`per attic:<slug>`).

If no index appears in your context and a `.attic/` exists in the

project, the session-start injection did not run. Read the index once

yourself and carry on. Do not conclude the attic is empty because

nothing was injected.

5. **Decisions get logged** with their why, at the moment they are made.

6. **Sweep before the context gets long**, before `/compact` or `/clear`, and

at the end of a work session. See `/attic-sweep`.

7. **Exactness inside items.** Code, commands, paths, line numbers and error

text are copied verbatim. Never paraphrase them.

8. **Never stash secrets.** The script enforces this; do not work around it.

## Intensity

| Level | What changes |

|-------|-------------|

| **lite** | Stash only on explicit `/attic-stash`, at the end of a task, or when asked to sweep. Normal replies otherwise. |

| **full** | All rules above, always on. Default. |

| **ultra** | Every non-trivial finding is stashed. Replies are handle + at most three lines. INDEX.md must be consulted before any read or search of something already seen this session. |

| **off** | Dormant. Nothing is stashed. |

Example: after tracing why a login test fails.

- lite: normal explanation, then "Want this in the attic? `/attic-stash`."

- full: "`attic:login-test-timeout` · 5s fixture timeout at `tests/conftest.py:41`, the SMTP call is real. Raising it to 15s."

- ultra: "`attic:login-test-timeout` · fixture timeout, `tests/conftest.py:41`. Fixing."

## Output

Handle first, then what matters now, then the next action. No feature tours,

no recap of what the attic already holds. Explanation the user explicitly

asked for is given in full; the rule is only against unrequested repetition.

Pattern: `` `attic:<slug>` · <one line> · <next action> ``

## References

Load only when needed:

- `references/what-to-stash.md` — the stash/skip/never call when it is unclear.

- `references/item-format.md` — the on-disk format, for hand-editing without the script.

- `references/workflow.md` — the loop and sweep pipelines, and the boundary with sibling skills.

- `templates/item.md`, `templates/session.md` — starting shapes.

The best context is the context you do not have to carry.