Build an agent skill1 / 3

3 min lesson

Build and test a changelog Skill

Build one changelog Skill, run its helpers and verify manual and automatic selection.

Create .cursor/skills/release-changelog/SKILL.md. Add valid name and description fields, then write the version input, latest-tag base, output path and finish check. Keep the collector, style guide and entry template in the skill folder and reference them with relative paths. Run /release-changelog for version 2.9.1. Compare the pull request range with git log, inspect the generated file and test the collector with a missing version. Fix any error, then start a fresh task with the plain release request to check automatic selection.

Turn a repeated job into a project Skill

0:42 · narrated

Read this demo as text

Filter Rules, Skills, Subagents to this project. The changelog row is real discovery chrome — name plus trigger description, not an invented skill catalog.
Open the file .cursor slash skills slash changelog slash SKILL dot md. Keep the trigger, ordered steps, and helper boundary together so the workflow is versioned with the repo.
Invoke slash changelog. The Skill runs its local commit collector, groups the result, and hands back a bounded draft — no hidden procedure left in your head.

Find a project Skill, read its SKILL.md contract, then invoke the script-backed workflow.

Practice next: Wrap one repeated job in .cursor/skills/<name>/SKILL.md and test it on a small real task.

Simulated Cursor 3.12 (macOS, light) — beta educational reconstruction, not the real product.

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Full explanation

.cursor/skills/release-changelog/

Release changelog skill

.cursor/skills/release-changelog/

SayWe cut the same changelog every Friday. It must collect merged pull requests since the latest tag, group them by label and write one Markdown file for the new version.

Type.cursor/skills/release-changelog/SKILL.md

Type

---
name: release-changelog
description: Build release notes from merged pull requests since the latest tag. Use when preparing a release changelog.
---

DoCreate the skill folder and add the two required frontmatter fields. Match name to the folder. Say what the skill does and when Agent should use it in description.

SeeCursor can discover release-changelog and use its description to decide when the workflow applies.

Type

release-changelog/
  SKILL.md
  scripts/collect-prs.mjs
  references/style.md
  assets/entry.md

DoWrite the ordered steps in SKILL.md. Refer to each helper with a path relative to the skill folder, and state the required version input and output path.

SeeAgent can load the style guide and template when needed, then run the collector without searching the repository for hidden files.

SayRun /release-changelog for version 2.9.1. Use the latest Git tag as the base and write docs/changelog/2.9.1.md.

DoOpen the generated file and compare its pull request range with git log from the latest tag. Run the script once with a missing version to check its error message.

SeeThe first run exposes a hard-coded HEAD~50 base. Replace it with the latest tag, rerun the skill and confirm that stale pull requests are gone.

TypePrepare the release changelog for 2.9.1

DoStart a fresh Agent task with the plain request so automatic selection is tested separately from the slash command.

SeeAgent selects release-changelog from its description, reads the workflow and returns the checked file at the stated path.

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Optional practice

Test yourself on Build and test a changelog Skill

QWhich result proves the changelog Skill is ready to keep?