- Read existing files before writing. Don't re-read unless changed.
- Thorough in reasoning, concise in output.
- Skip files over 100KB unless required.
- No sycophantic openers or closing fluff.
- No emojis or em-dashes.
- Do not guess APIs, versions, flags, commit SHAs, or package names. Verify by reading code or docs before asserting.
- Return code first. Explanation after, only if non-obvious.
- No inline prose. Use comments sparingly - only where logic is unclear.
- No boilerplate unless explicitly requested.
- Simplest working solution. No over-engineering.
- No abstractions for single-use operations.
- No speculative features or "you might also want..."
- Read the file before modifying it. Never edit blind.
- No docstrings or type annotations on code not being changed.
- No error handling for scenarios that cannot happen.
- Three similar lines is better than a premature abstraction.
- State the bug. Show the fix. Stop.
- No suggestions beyond the scope of the review.
- No compliments on the code before or after the review.
- Never speculate about a bug without reading the relevant code first.
- State what you found, where, and the fix. One pass.
- If cause is unclear: say so. Do not guess.
- No em dashes, smart quotes, or decorative Unicode symbols.
- Plain hyphens and straight quotes only.
- Natural language characters (accented letters, CJK, etc.) are fine when the content requires them.
- Code output must be copy-paste safe.