ponytail-audit

Audits an entire codebase for over-engineering and produces a ranked list of deletions and simplifications.

Updated Aug 28, 2026
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/epicodic/drift --skill ponytail-audit-epicodic
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent▼
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: ponytail-audit
Source: https://github.com/epicodic/drift/tree/main/.agents/skills/ponytail-audit
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/epicodic/drift --skill ponytail-audit-epicodic

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solve? Codebases accumulate dead code, speculative abstractions, and hand-rolled utilities that duplicate the standard library. This Skill scans the whole repository and reports exactly what to delete, simplify, or replace, ranked by biggest cut first. ## Core Features & Use Cases - Whole-Repo Over-Engineering Scan: Hunts dead code, single-implementation interfaces, one-product factories, delegating wrappers, unused config flags, and hand-rolled stdlib equivalents. - Tagged Findings: Classifies each finding as delete, stdlib, native, yagni, or shrink, with a concrete replacement named for each. - Ranked One-Shot Report: Outputs one line per finding ordered by impact, ending with a net estimate of removable lines and dependencies. - Use Case: Before a refactor sprint, ask for an audit of your repo to find bloat such as a custom retry helper that the standard library already provides, then hand the ranked list to your team as a deletion backlog. ## Quick Start Ask the AI to audit this codebase for over-engineering and list what can be deleted or replaced with standard library equivalents.

Frequently Asked Questions about ponytail-audit

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How do I audit a codebase for over-engineering?▼

Run a whole-repo audit that scans for dead code, single-implementation abstractions, and hand-rolled stdlib duplicates. The audit returns a ranked list of findings tagged by type, with a concrete replacement named for each item.

What kinds of bloat does a code audit find?▼

It finds dead code, unused config flags, factories with one product, wrappers that only delegate, files exporting a single thing, and custom code duplicating standard library or platform features. Each finding is tagged delete, stdlib, native, yagni, or shrink.

Does the audit automatically fix or delete the code it finds?▼

No, the audit is a one-shot report that only lists findings and applies nothing. It ends with an estimate of net removable lines and dependencies, leaving all changes to you.

Does an over-engineering audit catch bugs or security issues?▼

No, correctness bugs, security holes, and performance problems are explicitly out of scope. Those should be routed to a normal code review pass instead.

When should I not use a whole-repo over-engineering audit?▼

Skip it when you only changed a small diff, since a diff-scoped review is more appropriate there. It is also not a substitute for testing, security scanning, or performance profiling.