code-refiner

# Code Refiner A structured, multi-pass code refinement skill that transforms complex, verbose, or tangled code into clean, idiomatic, maintainable implementations — without changing what the code does. ## Philosophy The goal is **not** fewer lines. The goal is code that a tired engineer at 2am can read, understand, and safely modify. Every change must pass three tests: 1. **Behavioral equivalence** — identical inputs produce identical outputs, side effects, and errors 2. **Cognitive load reduction** — a reader unfamiliar with the code understands it faster after the change 3. **Maintenance leverage** — the change makes future modifications easier, not harder When clarity and brevity conflict, clarity wins. When idiom and explicitness conflict, consider the team's experience level. When DRY and locality conflict, prefer locality for code read more than modified. ## Prerequisites - **git** — used in Phase 1 for scope detection (`git diff`) when the user doesn't specify target files - **Python 3.10+** — required to run `scripts/complexity_report.py` for quantitative complexity metrics ## Workflow Follow this sequence. Each phase builds on the previous one. Do not skip phases, but adapt depth to the scope of the request (a single function gets a lighter pass than a full module). ### Phase 1: Reconnaissance Before touching anything, build a mental model: 1. **Identify scope** — What files/functions are in play? If the user hasn't specified, check recent git modific...