💻CLI Reference›turtles connect›skill

turtles connect skill

Skills are behavioral instructions that teach Turtles *how* to act — not just *what* to do.

They're written in Markdown (SKILL.md) and injected into the DNA compiler to shape Turtle behavior. Skills can be installed from ClawHub (the community registry) or from a local directory.

turtles connect skill add

Install a skill from a local directory or ClawHub

Usage: turtles connect skill add <NAME_OR_PATH>

Arguments:
  <NAME_OR_PATH>  Skill slug (from ClawHub) or local path (must contain SKILL.md)

Options:
  -h, --help  Print help

From local directory:

$ turtles connect skill add ./my-skills/smart-energy/

  ✓ Installed skill: Smart Energy (v1.0.0) [local]
    AI-powered energy management strategies

From ClawHub:

$ turtles connect skill add notification-strategy

  ⬇ Searching ClawHub for 'notification-strategy'...
  ✓ Installed skill: Notification Strategy (v2.1.0) [clawhub]
    Smart notification delivery and deduplication

turtles connect skill list

$ turtles connect skill list

  📚 Installed Skills

  Self Monitoring v1.0.0 [local]
    Internal health checks and self-diagnostics
  Data Persistence v1.2.0 [local]
    Strategies for reliable local data storage
  Notification Strategy v2.1.0 [clawhub]
    Smart notification delivery and deduplication

turtles connect skill search

Search ClawHub for community skills:

$ turtles connect skill search "energy"

  🔍 Searching ClawHub for 'energy'...

  SKILL                          VERSION      DOWNLOADS  DESCRIPTION
  smart-energy                   1.0.0        234        AI-powered energy management
  battery-optimizer              0.9.2        156        Optimize device battery usage
  solar-tracker                  1.1.0        89         Solar panel monitoring strategies

turtles connect skill remove

$ turtles connect skill remove notification-strategy
  ✓ Removed skill: notification-strategy

Or use turtles disconnect:

$ turtles disconnect skill:notification-strategy
  ✓ Disconnected skill: notification-strategy

Writing a Skill

A Skill is a directory containing a SKILL.md file with YAML frontmatter:

~/.turtles/skills/notification-strategy/
  └── SKILL.md

SKILL.md format:

---
name: Notification Strategy
description: Smart notification delivery and deduplication
when_to_use: When the Turtle needs to send notifications
version: 2.1.0
---

# Notification Strategy

## Rules
1. Never send duplicate notifications within 5 minutes
2. Group related notifications into a single message
3. Use system notifications for urgent alerts
4. Use log entries for informational messages
5. Respect quiet hours (10pm - 7am) unless critical

## Implementation
When sending a notification:
- Check the last notification timestamp
- If < 5 minutes ago with same content, skip
- If during quiet hours, queue for morning delivery
- Always log the notification to the turtle's data store

The when_to_use field tells the DNA compiler when to inject this skill's instructions. The body contains the behavioral rules the Turtle will follow.

How Skills Work

  • You install a skill — from ClawHub or a local directory
  • Compiler discovers it — when creating or updating any Turtle
  • Instructions are injected — into the Turtle's DNA based on when_to_use
  • Turtle follows the rules — behavioral guidelines shape how it acts

    • Skills are not code — they're *strategy documents* that the AI compiler reads and bakes into executable DNA. This means skills work across all Turtles, regardless of their specific task.

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