# Skills A skill is a small piece of policy the runner applies. Each skill has a markdown spec and a code-side runner. ## ralph-loop Retry policy with scope reduction. 5 attempts. On attempt 3+ skip optional work. On attempt 5 raise a typed gate with evidence. ## gate-guard Decides if an action needs human approval. Detects destructive shell commands, external publish, paid calls, and missing secrets. Stops and writes a gate file. ## humanizer Tone rules for public copy. Strips banned words: revolutionary, powerful, next-gen, seamless, unlock, leverage, delight. Cuts filler sentences. ## daily-briefing Rally uses this at start of a session. Reads prior runs, lists open gates, picks the top 3 things to do. ## work-out-loud Echo uses this after a ship. Appends a dated entry to the changelog. Past tense. Concrete. No claims of value. ## content-refresh Quill and Cipher use this when an outline changes. Re-renders one page without rebuilding everything.