Find reference solutions for CTF security challenges using challenge names, distinctive code, or error messages. Search for related writeups, extract promising pages, and compare their techniques to decide which approach may fit the current challenge.
Searches for similar CTF challenge writeups using Tavily API for search and content extraction. Use when the user requests finding related challenges, when solve-challenge has failed multiple times and needs reference solutions, or when first identifying a challenge type and seeking examples.
Run score Not tested
See how to installReview the instructions the agent will receive before you install.
Search for similar CTF challenge writeups using Tavily API.
pip install requests tavily
Set your Tavily API key (from https://tavily.com) before running:
export TAVILY_API_KEY='tvly-...'
This skill provides two interfaces:
| Interface | Purpose | Command |
|---|---|---|
| Tavily Search | Search for writeups and articles | ./search.sh search <keyword> |
| Tavily Extract | Extract content from URLs | ./search.sh extract <url1> [url2] ... |
Choose keywords based on available information:
# Format: [Competition Name] [Challenge Name] — max 3 words
./search.sh search "DASCTF URL Storage"
./search.sh search "HGAME baby web"
./search.sh search "BUUCTF pwn1"
# Use challenge name directly — max 3 words
./search.sh search "URL Storage"
./search.sh search "baby overflow"
./search.sh search "crypto-rsa"
# Use unique, non-trivial strings from the challenge — NO word limit
./search.sh search "def encrypt_flag(key): return base64"
./search.sh search "CUSTOM_MAGIC_BYTES"
./search.sh search "ERROR: invalid padding in AES block"
All keyword searches that are NOT code snippets or unique identifier strings MUST NOT exceed 3 words. This constraint ensures precise, focused queries that return relevant CTF writeup results instead of broad, diluted searches.
| Search Type | Word Limit | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Competition + Challenge name | ≤ 3 words | "DASCTF URL Storage", "HGAME baby web" |
| Challenge name only | ≤ 3 words | "URL Storage", "baby overflow" |
| Code snippets / strings | No limit | "def encrypt_flag(key): return base64" |
| Error messages / identifiers | No limit | "CUSTOM_MAGIC_BYTES", "ERROR: invalid padding in AES block" |
For competition + challenge name searches, drop filler words (year numbers, "CTF", "competition", "writeup", "solution") and keep only the 3 most distinctive words:
"HGAME 2024 baby web challenge" (5 words)"HGAME baby web" (3 words)"DASCTF 2023 URL Storage writeup" (5 words)"DASCTF URL Storage" (3 words)"PlaidCTF 2025 zero day exploit solution" (6 words)"PlaidCTF zero day" (3 words)For code/string searches, use the entire unique snippet — these are exempt from the word limit:
"def xor_encrypt(data, key):" (code — exempt)"ERROR: invalid padding in AES block" (error string — exempt)"CUSTOM_MAGIC_BYTES" (identifier — exempt)| ✅ Good Keywords | ❌ Bad Keywords |
|---|---|
| Competition + Challenge name (≤3 words) | Single vulnerability type (SSRF, XSS) |
| Challenge name (≤3 words) | Generic terms (web, pwn, crypto) |
| Unique code snippets (no word limit) | Full sentences |
| Specific error messages (no word limit) | Articles (a, the, in) |
| Library/framework names | Generic strings (flag{}, etc.) |
| Custom function names | Tool names alone |
Why avoid these?
Why the 3-word limit?
Key principle: Use keywords that uniquely identify THIS challenge, not the general technique or common patterns. Keep non-code queries to 3 words or fewer.
The search returns:
If a search result looks promising, extract its full content:
# Single URL
./search.sh extract "https://example.com/writeup"
# Multiple URLs
./search.sh extract "https://url1.com" "https://url2.com"
Based on extracted content:
ctf-* skillctf-osintctf-writeup# Scenario 1: Competition + Challenge name (≤3 words)
./search.sh search "DASCTF URL Storage"
# Scenario 2: Challenge name only (≤3 words)
./search.sh search "URL Storage"
# Scenario 3: Unique identifier from challenge (no word limit)
./search.sh search "def xor_encrypt(data, key):"
./search.sh search "ERROR: invalid padding"
# Extract content from promising results
./search.sh extract "https://ctftime.org/writeup/12345"
$ARGUMENTS
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