Prickles

What is Prickles?

Prickles is a collection of 50 software craft tenets with cited claims and receipts, designed to be used as rule packs for AI coding agents like Claude Code, Cursor, and Copilot. Each tenet includes its origin, evidence, the strongest objection, and a copy-paste version for your AI rules. The site organizes these tenets into 9 pillars, such as Foundations, Architecture, Style, Types & Schema, and Process, with the goal of treating AI like a junior developer and training it accordingly.

Application scenarios

Code review defense
Each rule is one the author has defended in code review, making it useful for developers who want to justify design decisions.
AI agent training
Developers can copy-paste tenets directly into AI coding agent rules (Claude, Cursor, Copilot) to enforce consistent coding standards.
Software architecture planning
The Architecture pillar (11 tenets) helps teams decide on boundaries and coupling before choosing patterns.
Type system enforcement
The Types & Schema pillar (4 tenets) guides developers on modeling domains and ensuring type safety.
Process discipline
The Process pillar covers the disciplines that make good code writing a repeatable practice.
Learning software craft
The site serves as a reference for developers to study proven principles like Single Responsibility, DRY, and Encapsulation.

Core Features

50 software craft tenets
A curated set of rules with origins, evidence, and strongest objections for each.
Receipts for each tenet
Every rule includes supporting evidence and citations to defend it in code review.
Copy-paste AI rules
Each tenet provides a ready-to-use version for Claude Code, Cursor, or Copilot.
9 pillars organization
Tenets are grouped into Foundations (6), Architecture (11), Style (4), Types & Schema (4), and Process (7), among others.
Updated weekly
The collection is refreshed weekly under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
Implementation counters
The site includes code examples (e.g., TypeScript) that demonstrate violations and correct implementations of tenets like Single Responsibility Principle.
Show/hide functionality
Users can expand or collapse each pillar to browse tenets at their own pace.

Target users

This tool is for software developers, engineering leads, and tech teams who want to enforce consistent coding standards across AI-assisted development workflows. It’s especially useful for those using AI coding agents like Claude Code, Cursor, or Copilot and need a structured rule set to train their AI like a junior developer.

How to use Prickles?

Visit the official website at https://prickles.org/. Browse the 50 tenets organized under 9 pillars (Foundations, Architecture, Style, etc.). For each tenet, read its origin, evidence, and strongest objection, then copy the provided version for your Claude, Cursor, or Copilot rules. Use the tenets as a reference during code reviews to defend design decisions.

Effect review

Prickles offers a practical, evidence-backed approach to software craft that directly addresses the challenge of training AI coding agents. The inclusion of receipts (evidence and objections) adds credibility that many rule collections lack. The weekly updates and CC BY-NC 4.0 license make it a living resource rather than a static document. For developers already using AI agents, this tool provides a ready-made, defensible rule set that can be integrated with minimal friction. However, the value depends on how closely a team’s practices align with the tenets—teams with different architectural preferences may find some rules less applicable.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 50 software craft tenets in Prickles?

They are a curated set of rules for writing high-quality, maintainable code, each supported by cited claims and receipts.

What are rule packs and how do they work?

Rule packs are downloadable files that configure AI coding agents (like Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot) to follow the tenets automatically.

Which AI agents are supported by Prickles?

Prickles supports Claude Code, Cursor, and Copilot, with rule packs tailored for each.

Is Prickles free to use?

Pricing details are not specified here; check the official Prickles site for current pricing.

Can I customize the rule packs?

The rule packs are pre-built, but you may be able to modify them depending on the agent's configuration options.