SOUL.md Grader Skill

Install · Use it · What's included · Grading model · Public safety · Hermes docs

A drop-in agent skill for grading, reviewing, and rewriting Hermes Agent SOUL.md files with a research-backed rubric instead of vibes.

SOUL.md is the identity layer for a Hermes Agent profile: who the agent is, who it serves, what it owns, how it makes tradeoffs, and what character it brings to the work. The grader assumes the agent also has an operating agreement in AGENTS.md and/or CLAUDE.md; it grades SOUL only and rewards a clean split.

Unofficial community skill. This repo is not an official Nous Research or Hermes Agent release. It is a public-safe community skill by cobi / @cobi_bean.

Install

Hermes Agent

Clone this repository into the active Hermes profile's skills directory.

For the default profile:

mkdir -p ~/.hermes/skills/community
git clone https://github.com/cobibean/soul-grader-skill.git \
  ~/.hermes/skills/community/soul-grader

For a named profile:

profile="my-profile"
mkdir -p ~/.hermes/profiles/$profile/skills/community
git clone https://github.com/cobibean/soul-grader-skill.git \
  ~/.hermes/profiles/$profile/skills/community/soul-grader

Then start a fresh Hermes session or reload skills in a running session/gateway:

/reload-skills

Ask Hermes to load it directly when needed:

Use the soul-grader skill to grade this SOUL.md.

Codex / Claude / other Markdown skill-aware agents

Copy the whole repository into your agent's skill directory, keeping the bundled references/ folder next to SKILL.md:

mkdir -p ~/.codex/skills
git clone https://github.com/cobibean/soul-grader-skill.git \
  ~/.codex/skills/soul-grader

If your agent does not have a formal skill loader, paste the SKILL.md instructions into your project or agent instructions and keep the references/ files available.

Use it

Good prompts:

Use soul-grader to grade agents/my-agent/SOUL.md and tell me whether it is deployable.

Use soul-grader to compare these two SOUL.md drafts and recommend the stronger one.

Use soul-grader to rewrite this weak SOUL.md into a production-ready identity file, but do not invent access, credentials, live services, or authority.

The skill tells the agent to load the bundled grading standard first:

references/soul-md-grading-standard.md

Then it can use the full field guide and wording layer when it needs more detail or examples.

What it grades

The rubric scores a SOUL.md out of 100:

• Mission clarity — who/what the agent serves and what outcome matters
• Identity + positive role boundaries — what the agent owns and how adjacent responsibilities split
• Core thesis — the durable decision lens for the user/domain/problem
• Optimization hierarchy — ranked tradeoffs instead of virtue soup
• Judgment + decision ownership — tradeoff judgment and consequential operator authority
• Soft preferences — defaults that do not become brittle bans
• Relationship + authority posture — initiative, challenge, correction, and operator ownership
• Voice + truthfulness posture — distinctive tone plus candor and evidence orientation
• Success orientation — real user/product outcomes rather than activity
• Artifact separation + placement — correct placement earns credit; duplication does not
• Runtime hygiene — correct Hermes loading, session-cache, and frontmatter assumptions

System-level blockers include verified missing safety controls, false live-state claims, cross-client contamination, wrong Hermes frontmatter assumptions, and known policy contradictions. Missing operating policy in SOUL is not a blocker; when companion/system evidence is unavailable, deployability is marked not assessed.

What's included

SKILL.md
references/
  soul-md-grading-standard.md
  soul-md-field-guide.html
  soul-md-wording-verbiage-layer.md
  fleet-soul-grading-workflow.md
  research-deliverable-and-fleet-remediation.md
  phase-coupled-soul-refresh.md
  live-soul-upgrade-production-handoff.md
agents/
  openai.yaml
scripts/
  validate_skill.py
assets/readme/
  soul-grader-repo-card.png
.github/workflows/
  validate.yml

Grading model

The core idea:

A good SOUL.md is a compact identity constitution, not a costume or operating manual.

Every line should catch a future drift. If a sentence cannot change behavior under pressure, cut it or rewrite it.

The bundled standard intentionally keeps the source hierarchy narrow: the target SOUL.md is evidence, but the bundled references are the normative source for quality judgments. Scope is applied only after the base rubric, and suggested fixes are routed to [SOUL], [AGENTS/CLAUDE], or [SYSTEM]. That keeps the grader from importing random prompt-engineering advice, personal taste, or operating checklists into the identity score.

Public safety

The examples and references in this repository are intended to be public-safe:

• no API keys, tokens, passwords, private keys, or connection strings
• no private customer names, hostnames, live IPs, or credential locations
• no private transcripts or raw fleet deployment facts
• no claims that this is an official Hermes Agent release

Run the local validator before publishing changes:

python3 scripts/validate_skill.py

The validator checks frontmatter, required references, unexpected file layout, and common secret/private-term patterns. It is a lightweight guard, not a substitute for human review.

Credits

Created by cobi for practical Hermes Agent and multi-agent operations work.

Find cobi on X/Twitter: @cobi_bean

Hermes Agent is created by Nous Research:

• Docs: hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs
• GitHub: NousResearch/hermes-agent
• X/Twitter: @NousResearch

License

MIT. See LICENSE.