Ponytail Review Gate

Use this skill when installing, explaining, or applying the Ponytail review gate to a project.

What It Provides

• Ponytail mode: prefer YAGNI, standard library, native platform features, installed dependencies, one-line fixes, then minimum custom code.
• Ponytail review: diff-only review for unnecessary complexity.
• Ponytail audit: optional whole-repo over-engineering audit, only when explicitly requested.
• Ponytail adversarial review gate: mandatory completion gate for code-writing tasks.

Gate Text

Add this to a target repo's AGENTS.md:

For any task that writes, edits, refactors, scaffolds, or reviews code in this repo, use the `ponytail-adversarial-review` skill from the `ponytail-review-gate` plugin.

The completion gate is mandatory: run Ponytail adversarial review on the changed code, decide corrective actions, apply accepted fixes, and verify before finishing.

Completion Workflow

1. Keep Ponytail's ladder in mind before editing.
2. After editing, collect the changed surface with git status --short and relevant diffs.
3. Run ponytail-review against changed code only.
4. Accept, reject, or defer each finding.
5. Apply accepted fixes.
6. Verify with the smallest relevant check.

Do not run ponytail-audit for ordinary per-diff completion. Reserve it for explicit whole-repo audit requests.