Pattern Discovery Skill

Purpose

Enforce pattern-first development by checking the pattern library before implementing new functionality.

When to Use

• About to create a new API route
• About to create a new UI component
• About to add database operations
• User asks "how do I implement..." or "how should I build..."

Pattern Discovery Protocol

ALWAYS check patterns before writing new code:

Step 1: Check Pattern Library

ls patterns_library/api/      # API route patterns
ls patterns_library/ui/       # UI component patterns
ls patterns_library/database/ # Database patterns
ls patterns_library/testing/  # Testing patterns

Step 2: Review Pattern Index

See patterns_library/README.md for the complete index.

Step 3: Apply or Escalate

If pattern exists: Copy, customize, validate.

If missing: Search codebase, implement following conventions, report gap.

Pattern Matching Guide

If you need to...	Use this pattern
Create authenticated API endpoint	api/user-context-api.md
Create admin-only API endpoint	api/admin-context-api.md
Handle external webhooks	api/webhook-handler.md
Validate API input with Zod	api/zod-validation-api.md
Create protected page	ui/authenticated-page.md
Build form with validation	ui/form-with-validation.md
Add new table with RLS	database/rls-migration.md
Test API endpoints	testing/api-integration-test.md

Reference

• Pattern Index: patterns_library/README.md
• RLS Patterns: See safe-workflow skill
• Testing Patterns: See testing-patterns skill