@ghostpaw/grimoire

A procedural knowledge engine for Node.js, built on Git, SQLite, and the filesystem.

Grimoire treats spells (learned procedures), evidence, versioning, and health as one coherent model instead of separate systems. It ships as a single prebundled blob with zero runtime dependencies, designed for two audiences at once: human developers working directly in code, and LLM agents operating through a structured soul / tools / skills runtime.

Install

npm install @ghostpaw/grimoire

Requires Node.js 24+ (uses the built-in node:sqlite module).

Quick Start

import { DatabaseSync } from 'node:sqlite';
import { init, read, write } from '@ghostpaw/grimoire';

const db = new DatabaseSync(':memory:');
const root = '/path/to/my-grimoire';

// Bootstrap: filesystem + SQLite tables + bare git repo with initial commit
init(root, db);

// Inscribe a new spell (content is a spec-compliant SKILL.md string)
const { spell } = write.inscribe(root, db, {
  name: 'deploy-service',
  chapter: 'engineering',
  content: '---\nname: deploy-service\ndescription: Deploy a service to production\n---\n\n# deploy-service\n\n## Steps\n\n1. Run `npm run build`\n2. Push to registry\n3. Apply manifests\n',
});

// Drop an observation note as evidence
write.dropNote(db, {
  source: 'practice',
  content: 'Build step fails if DOCKER_REGISTRY is not exported first.',
});

// Seal the improvement into a git commit, advancing rank
write.seal({ root }, db, [`engineering/${spell.name}`], 'Fix: document required env var for build step');

// Read back the enriched spell
const detail = read.getSpell(root, 'engineering/deploy-service', db);
const chapters = read.listChapters(root);

The Model

Eight concepts, strict separation of concerns:

| Concept | Purpose | |---|---| | Spell | A learned procedure stored as SKILL.md with YAML frontmatter and a markdown body | | Chapter | A folder grouping related spells into a focused collection | | Seal | A git commit marking a verified improvement — rank equals seal count | | Tier | Mastery level computed from rank: Uncheckpointed → Apprentice → Journeyman → Expert → Master | | Note | Raw evidence (observation, failure path, correction) awaiting distillation into a spell | | Resonance | Read-time signal indicating which spells have the highest return on honing effort | | Draft | A proposed new spell submitted for review before inscription | | Catalogue | A health snapshot: staleness, dormancy, oversizing, velocity, and clustering |

The model means each kind of truth has its own home:

| What it looks like | What it actually is | |---|---| | A how-to guide or runbook | A Spell | | Related spells grouped by domain | A Chapter | | "This procedure is proven — preserve it" | A Seal | | "We got burned by this edge case" | A Note | | "This spell hasn't been touched in months" | A Catalogue health signal | | "This spell is ready to hone next" | Resonance |

State is derived, not hand-toggled. Tier, resonance color, staleness, dormancy, and health scores are computed from evidence and commit history at read time, never stored as caller-written flags.

Tier progression at a glance

Grimoire computes tier markers on every read. They advance as spells accumulate sealed improvements:

Inscription

| | | | |:---:|---|---| | $\color{Gray}{\textsf{◎}}$ | deploy-service | uncheckpointed · no seals yet | | | ↓   seal a validated improvement | |

Honing

| | | | |:---:|---|---| | $\color{SteelBlue}{\textsf{◎}}$ | deploy-service | apprentice · rank 1–4 | | $\color{MediumSeaGreen}{\textsf{◎}}$ | deploy-service | journeyman · rank 5–14 | | $\color{Goldenrod}{\textsf{◎}}$ | deploy-service | expert · rank 15–29 | | $\color{Orchid}{\textsf{◎}}$ | deploy-service | master · rank 30+ |

Attention signals

| | | | |:---:|---|---| | $\color{OrangeRed}{\textsf{●}}$ | deploy-service | resonance · hone now | | $\color{Gray}{\textsf{●}}$ | deploy-service | dormant · low return on effort |

Rank is the only experience counter. Tier boundaries gate real capabilities (history, diff, rollback), not badges.

Two Audiences

Human developers

Use the read and write namespaces for direct-code access to the domain:

import { read, write } from '@ghostpaw/grimoire';

// Inscribe and evolve a spell
write.inscribe(root, db, { name: 'lint-fix', chapter: 'general', content: '---\nname: lint-fix\ndescription: Run lint with autofix\n---\n\n# lint-fix\n\nRun `npx biome check --fix .`\n' });
write.dropNote(db, { source: 'practice', content: 'Biome needs --unsafe for some rules.' });
write.seal({ root }, db, ['general/lint-fix'], 'Add note about unsafe flag');

// Read derived state
const spell = read.getSpell(root, 'general/lint-fix', db);
const resonance = read.allResonance(db);
const catalogue = read.readCatalogue(db);

See HUMAN.md for the full direct-code guide with worked examples and modeling boundaries.

LLM agents

Use the tools, skills, and soul namespaces for a structured runtime surface designed to minimize LLM cognitive load:

import { tools, skills, soul } from '@ghostpaw/grimoire';

// 10 intent-shaped tools with JSON Schema inputs and structured results
const allTools = tools.grimoireTools;
const searchTool = tools.getGrimoireToolByName('search_grimoire')!;
const result = await searchTool.handler({ root, db }, { query: 'deploy' });

// Workflow skills for common multi-step scenarios
const allSkills = skills.grimoireSkills;

// Thinking foundation for system prompts
const prompt = soul.renderGrimoireSoulPromptFoundation();

Every tool returns a discriminated result with outcome: 'success' | 'no_op' | 'needs_clarification' | 'error', structured entities, next-step hints, and actionable recovery signals.

See LLM.md for the full AI-facing guide covering soul, tools, and skills.

Tools

Eleven tools shaped around operator intent, not raw storage operations:

| Tool | What it does | |---|---| | search_grimoire | Search spells by name or description | | review_grimoire | Dashboard views: chapters, health, resonance, notes, drafts, validation, provenance | | inspect_grimoire_item | Detailed inspection of one spell: tier, resonance, validation, provenance, history | | inscribe_spell | Create a new spell in the grimoire | | update_spell | Write new content to an existing spell, leaving it uncommitted for hone_spell | | hone_spell | Seal pending changes into a git commit, advancing rank; optionally distill absorbed notes | | manage_spell | Shelve, unshelve, move, delete, repair, or rollback a spell | | drop_note | Drop an observation note for later cataloguing | | manage_draft | Submit, approve, or dismiss proposed spells | | run_catalogue | Full maintenance pass: staleness, dormancy, oversizing, note routing, health | | scout_skills | Scout, search, adopt, and update spells from external sources |

Each tool exports runtime metadata, JSON Schema inputs, and structured outputs so harnesses can wire them without parsing vague prose.

Key Properties

• Zero runtime dependencies. Only node:sqlite (built into Node 24+) for the SQLite layer.
• Single prebundled blob. One ESM + one CJS entry in dist/. No subpath exports, no code splitting.
• Three storage backends. Filesystem for spell content, git for versioning and rank, SQLite for metadata. Each is optional — the package degrades gracefully without any of them.
• Evidence-first progression. Rank is earned by sealing validated improvements. Speculative edits do not count as experience. Tier gates real capabilities, not badges.
• Derived health signals. Resonance, staleness, dormancy, and health scores are computed at read time from evidence and commit history — never stored as flags.
• Intention-shaped writes. inscribe, seal, hone, dropNote, distill, adoptSpell: operations that say what happened, not generic CRUD.
• Additive AI runtime. soul for posture, tools for actions, skills for workflow guidance — layered over the same direct-code API.
• Colocated tests. Every non-type module has a colocated .test.ts file. The documented behavior is backed by executable coverage.

Package Surface

import {
  init,                  // bootstrap: filesystem + SQLite setup
  initGrimoireTables,    // SQLite schema only
  read,                  // all query functions
  write,                 // all mutation functions
  tools,                 // LLM tool definitions + registry
  skills,                // LLM workflow skills + registry
  soul,                  // thinking foundation for system prompts
} from '@ghostpaw/grimoire';

All domain and runtime types are also available at the root for TypeScript consumers:

import type {
  GrimoireDb,
  GrimoireToolDefinition,
  GrimoireSkill,
  GrimoireSoul,
  GrimoireErrorCode,
} from '@ghostpaw/grimoire';

Documentation

| Document | Audience | |---|---| | HUMAN.md | Human developers using the low-level read / write API | | LLM.md | Agent builders wiring soul, tools, and skills into LLM systems | | docs/README.md | Architecture overview: model, storage topology, and source layout | | docs/entities/ | Per-concept manuals: spells, notes, events, health, drafts, provenance, registry |

Development

npm install
npm test            # node:test runner
npm run typecheck   # tsc --noEmit
npm run lint        # biome check
npm run build       # ESM + CJS + declarations via tsup
npm run demo:serve  # build and serve the browser demo

The repo is pinned to Node 24.14.0 via .nvmrc / .node-version / .tool-versions / mise.toml / Volta. Use whichever version manager you prefer.

Support

If this package helps your project, consider sponsoring its maintenance:

Anonyfox • MIT License