PPT Template Fill

Run when the user provides a raw .pptx template plus new content / a new topic and asks to generate a .pptx from that template. This skill treats the existing .pptx as a native slide library and produces a new .pptx by selecting, cloning, and patching source slides.

This skill is independent from the ppt-master SVG generation pipeline. It keeps the original PowerPoint design intact and writes a new .pptx by cloning selected source slides and replacing text directly in OOXML. Executable scripts are shared with ppt-master and stay at .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/.

Route Entry and Authority

Entry contract: ppt-master/workflows/routing.md selects the raw-PPTX template-fill route before this full skill is loaded. Route selection does not require loading the main ppt-master/SKILL.md.

Gate owner: After selection, this skill owns every runtime gate from inputs through native render validation. Root summaries and the main SVG skill add no preflight, confirmation, spec, SVG, export, or completion gate to this route. Reusing shared scripts does not transfer workflow ownership.

Route change: If the request changes to reusable-template creation, strict 1:1 beautify, main-pipeline re-architecture, or finished-PPTX native enhancement, return to routing.md before loading the new owner.

Boundary against template-based generation: run this skill for raw PPTX template + generated PPTX requests. Skip this skill only when the user explicitly wants a reusable template package, SVG-derived template roster, or SVG-generated deck that can freely select / repeat / skip / adapt template pages. In that case, they must run create-template first and then provide the generated template directory path to the ppt-master main pipeline.

User wants	Route
Generate a PPTX from a raw PPTX template	This skill
Directly edit / fill cloned PPTX slides	This skill
Create a reusable design asset from the PPTX	ppt-master create-template
Generate a new PPT from a reusable template package	ppt-master main pipeline Step 3 with the explicit template directory path
Generate through the SVG pipeline directly from a raw PPTX "template"	Not allowed; create the template package first
Re-layout an existing deck 1:1 (same pages, same wording)	ppt-master beautify-pptx
Enhance a finished PPTX (notes, narration, transitions only)	native-enhance-pptx standalone skill

When to Run

Recognize requests that combine an existing PowerPoint template with new content or a topic and ask for a generated .pptx without explicitly requesting the reusable SVG/template-package route:

Pattern	Example
Existing .pptx + "fill back" intent	"Use this deck and fill in the attached material"
Raw PPTX template + generated PPTX	"Use this PowerPoint template to generate a PPTX about this topic"
Existing .pptx + selective reuse	"Do not keep every page; only use the slides that fit"
Existing .pptx + copywriting replacement	"Keep the original design and replace the copy with this text"
Native PPT template fill	"Use this PowerPoint template for this content and fill the slides directly"
Direct wording	"Fill this deck with the new content"

Hard rule: Do not run main-pipeline preflight.py, confirm_ui, validate_spec.py, svg_quality_checker.py, finalize_svg.py, svg_to_pptx.py, or verify_deck.py for this skill. Do not run pptx_to_svg.py or pptx_template_import.py. This skill edits PowerPoint directly and uses its own plan, apply, OfficeCLI, and native-render gates.

Deterministic routing rule: do not ask a route-choice question for raw PPTX template + generated PPTX requests; route them here. If the user asks for SVG/template-package generation from a raw PPTX, state that create-template must run first and stop this skill until they provide the generated template directory path.

---

Step 1: Inputs

🚧 GATE: The user has provided:

Input	Required	Notes
Source PPTX	Yes	Original design deck to reuse as a slide library
Content material	Yes	User text, Markdown, document, URL-derived source, or a clear topic brief
Target output intent	Optional	Audience, page count, tone, must-keep pages, must-drop pages

If the content material is only a topic with no supporting facts, gather or ask for source material first. Do not invent detailed factual content.

---

Step 2: Create the Project Workspace

Create a dedicated project directory under projects/. Do not write outputs directly into projects/ root. Reuse the standard project manager so source import rules stay consistent with the rest of the repository:

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/project_manager.py init "<project_name>" --format ppt169
python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/project_manager.py import-sources "<project_dir>" "<source.pptx>" "<material...>"

Source import rule: project_manager.py import-sources copies files from outside the repository and moves repo-local files by default, unless --copy / --move is explicitly supplied. Keep this shared behavior; do not create a separate template-fill import path.

Use this fixed layout:

Path	Required content
<project_dir>/sources/	Source PPTX and user-provided text / Markdown / converted materials
<project_dir>/analysis/	Slide library JSON, page-selection reasoning, and final fill plan
<project_dir>/exports/	Final generated PPTX only
<project_dir>/validation/	Read-back Markdown, extracted validation assets, OfficeCLI scan output, rendered pages, and validation notes

Hard rule: A template-fill project is a project, not a loose output file. The final answer must point to <project_dir>/exports/<name>.pptx, and all intermediate artifacts must remain inside <project_dir>.

---

Step 3: Extract the PPTX Intake Bundle

project_manager.py import-sources automatically runs the standard PPTX intake for imported PowerPoint files and writes <stem>.slide_library.json into <project_dir>/analysis/. If you are working from a manually assembled project that does not have the intake artifact, run the template-fill analyzer directly:

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/template_fill_pptx.py analyze "<project_dir>/sources/<source.pptx>" -o "<project_dir>/analysis/<stem>.slide_library.json"

Read <project_dir>/analysis/<stem>.slide_library.json (intake prefixes per-deck artifacts by the template deck's file stem) and identify:

Field	Use
slides[].page_type	Cover / chapter / content / ending candidate
slides[].text_summary	Current semantic purpose of the source page
slides[].slots[]	Replaceable text slots with slot_id, role, geometry, paragraph count, and old text
slides[].slots[].role	Title / body / label candidate hint
slides[].tables[]	Native PowerPoint tables with table_id, row / column counts, per-cell coordinates/text, and merge anchor/slave topology
slides[].charts[]	Native PowerPoint charts with chart_id and an edit_capability safety result derived from the actual chart XML
slides[].diagrams[]	SmartArt layout, semantic nodes, hierarchy/connections, geometry, and extraction status; inventory-only

Selection rule: Pick pages by content fitness, not by source order alone. A source page is useful only if its visible structure can carry the target message without heavy redesign.

A page's layout already encodes a rhetorical shape — a single hero statement, a lead-then-detail split, a 2×2 comparison, a stepwise progression, a metric row. Match the source material's own logic to a page whose structure expresses that same logic; do not pour unrelated content into a slot just because it is empty. When no selected page fits a piece of content well, drop that page or that content rather than forcing it — a forced fill reads as stiff. It is fine to use fewer pages than the source deck has.

Layout-first planning: Treat <stem>.slide_library.json as a layout inventory, not as an ordered deck outline. Before writing fill_plan.json, infer each reusable source page's affordance from JSON fields:

JSON signal	Layout planning use
slides[].page_type	Identify cover / TOC / chapter / ending candidates, but do not preserve their original order by default
slots[].role counts	Infer whether the page is a hero statement, comparison, multi-card list, timeline, metric row, or dense explanation
slots[].geometry	Estimate whether each text slot is a short label, medium title, body block, caption, or decorative number
slots[].text_metrics.font_size_px	Estimate text capacity together with geometry; larger type means fewer safe characters
slots[].text_summary	Read the source page's original rhetorical pattern, not its literal placeholder wording
diagrams[].layout + nodes	Understand the SmartArt's source meaning; template-fill preserves it unchanged and cannot map new text into it

SmartArt boundary: A selected source slide keeps its original native SmartArt parts. check-plan warns because the fill plan cannot replace SmartArt node text; choose another layout unless the original diagram content is intentionally retained, or explicitly accept the warning.

Hard rule: The target story controls output order. Source slides may move forward, move backward, be omitted, or be reused several times when their layout matches multiple target messages. Never treat source slide order as a default outline unless the user explicitly asks to preserve it.

Required mapping pass: Record a concise page-to-layout rationale in each planned slide before finalizing the plan. Use the per-slide layout_rationale object in fill_plan.json with layout_pattern, why_fit, and risk. This is human-review evidence that selection came from template structure rather than sequential replacement; it is not a mechanical checker gate.

---

Step 4: Build the Fill Plan

Create a scaffold:

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/template_fill_pptx.py scaffold "<project_dir>/analysis/<stem>.slide_library.json" -o "<project_dir>/analysis/fill_plan.json" --slides "1,3,4"

Then edit <project_dir>/analysis/fill_plan.json by hand from the source material. The plan is the single execution contract.

Pages are reusable: the output is the ordered slides list, not a one-to-one copy of the source deck. A source page is not single-use — list the same source_slide as many times as you need, each entry with its own replacements, to drive several output slides from one good layout (e.g., reuse a single content layout for five content pages). Likewise you may omit source pages entirely and put the selected ones in any order.

Scaffold boundary: scaffold --slides is only a convenience starter. If the final plan needs repeated source pages or a story order that differs from the template order, duplicate / reorder entries in fill_plan.json manually or generate the plan from <stem>.slide_library.json; do not let scaffold output constrain the deck structure.

The plan structure:

{
  "schema": "template_fill_pptx_plan.v1",
  "status": "draft",
  "source_pptx": "projects/source.pptx",
  "accepted_warnings": [
    {
      "plan_slide": 3,
      "slot_id": "s03_sh5",
      "code": "text_capacity",
      "reason": "User accepted dense wording"
    }
  ],
  "slides": [
    {
      "source_slide": 1,
      "purpose": "cover",
      "layout_rationale": {
        "layout_pattern": "hero cover",
        "why_fit": "Large title and subtitle slots fit the opening message without redesign.",
        "risk": "Subtitle must stay short."
      },
      "notes": "Speaker notes for this filled slide.",
      "transition": "fade",
      "replacements": [
        {
          "slot_id": "s01_sh4",
          "text": "New title"
        }
      ],
      "table_edits": [
        {
          "table_id": "s01_tbl3",
          "cells": [
            {"row": 0, "col": 0, "text": "Metric"},
            {"row": 0, "col": 1, "text": "Value"}
          ]
        }
      ],
      "chart_edits": [
        {
          "chart_id": "s01_ch4",
          "categories": ["A", "B"],
          "series": [
            {"name": "Series 1", "values": [10, 20]}
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Per-slide plan discipline:

Decision	Rule
status	Keep "draft" until the user has reviewed the page sequence / reuse / deletion decisions. Set to "confirmed" only after approval.
source_slide	Repeat the same value across multiple entries to reuse one source layout for several output slides; order is free and must follow the target story rather than source deck order
layout_rationale	Human review aid for page selection. Include layout_pattern, why_fit, and risk; it is not a mechanical checker gate.
accepted_warnings	Optional audit trail for warnings the user or agent explicitly accepts. check-plan warnings remain non-blocking; errors must be fixed.
notes	Optional spoken speaker notes for the filled slide — see Speaker notes below; write prose, not a copy of the on-slide text
transition	Optional per-slide page transition; overrides the apply --transition default. Accepts an effect name (fade / push / wipe / split / strips / cover / random), none to remove the visual effect, keep to preserve the source, or an object such as { "effect": "push", "duration": 0.6, "advance_after": 5 }
replacements	Target by slot_id whenever possible; shape_id and shape_name are fallback selectors
table_edits	Optional native table cell edits; target by table_id whenever possible and use zero-based row / col
chart_edits	Optional native chart data edits; target by chart_id, set categories, and provide one or more series
Short text	For labels / chapter names / directory items, fit the slot's visual capacity from geometry and font size; do not rely on old placeholder length alone
Body text	May be moderately freer than the original, but keep paragraph count, visual width, and information density near the slot's geometry capacity
Empty slots	Use scaffold --include-empty only when a real placeholder is empty in the source deck
Native tables	Keep the original table row and column count; edit ordinary cells or a merge anchor only. A merge slave is not visible and is rejected by both check-plan and apply. This skill never changes table structure.
Native charts	Each series values list must match the category count. Single-plot classic charts whose every series uses c:cat/c:val are editable; analyzer/checker preflight the structure and the runtime writer revalidates the actual chart XML before mutation.
Chart edit boundary	A single classic plot is editable when every series uses c:cat/c:val, including stock, 3D, surface, and other classic plot types. Date-axis and multi-level categories are accepted with a warning because replacement categories are flattened to one level. Scatter, bubble, ChartEx/unknown frames, multi-plot/combo charts, missing-series charts, and non-c:cat/c:val data models are rejected. Use beautify / main pipeline to redraw unsupported charts, or leave the native chart untouched.
Facts	Every substantive claim must come from the user material

Fit check before apply:

• Cover pages: replace title / subtitle / author only.
• Chapter pages: use short section labels.
• Dense content pages: compress material to bullets matching the existing slot capacity.
• Decorative or image-heavy pages: avoid forcing long prose into label-sized slots.
• Repeated source pages: every repeated entry must carry a distinct purpose and replacement set; avoid visual repetition unless the repeated layout expresses the same rhetorical pattern.
• Reordered source pages: verify the new sequence reads as a coherent story; template page numbers, decorative section markers, and notes must be updated to match the output order.

Speaker notes (the notes field) — distilled from the ppt-master main pipeline's Logic Construction Phase, scaled to one note per planned slide:

Each notes value is pure spoken narration: write only what a presenter would say aloud, so the same text also works if the deck is later sent through notes_to_audio.py. The note explains and connects; it must not just restate the words already on the slide.

Rule	Detail
Length	2–5 natural sentences carrying the page's core message; cover / chapter / ending pages can be one or two sentences
Transitions	Carry page-to-page flow in the opening sentence as natural prose ("在明确了背景之后……" / "Having framed X, let's turn to Y") — never bracketed [过渡] / [Transition] tags
Plain prose only	No # heading line, no - bullet lists, no 要点：① … / Key points: lines, no 时长：2分钟 / Duration: annotations — embedded notes keep them verbatim and TTS would read them aloud
Number readability	Spell out figures when literal TTS pronunciation is awkward (Chinese "百分之六十八" over "68%"; plain English integers and percentages are fine)
One language	Match the deck's language; do not mix languages inside one note
Source-bound	Every substantive claim comes from the user material, same as replacements

Example notes value for a Chinese content slide:

"notes": "在看清整体市场格局之后，我们把镜头拉近到成都二手房的头部板块。当前挂牌均价同比上涨约百分之十二，但成交周期反而拉长到九十天以上，说明买方观望情绪在加重。这组数据是后面定价策略的基础，请重点留意。"

---

Step 5: Check Text Capacity

Run the data-based capacity check before applying the plan:

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/template_fill_pptx.py check-plan "<project_dir>/analysis/<stem>.slide_library.json" "<project_dir>/analysis/fill_plan.json" -o "<project_dir>/analysis/check_report.json"

Interpret the report:

Warning type	Action
Short label exceeds visual width	Rewrite shorter or choose a layout with a larger label slot; do not shrink font by default
Title too long	Rewrite first; only use font-size changes as a last resort
Body much longer than source slot	Compress, split across another selected page, or choose a larger source page
SmartArt source content remains unchanged	Pick another source slide unless the original SmartArt wording is intended; otherwise record the accepted warning
Missing target	Fix slot_id / shape_id; do not apply the plan

check-plan emits stable code fields in its JSON results so warnings can be tracked without parsing message text. Warnings are advisory and do not fail the command; record any intentionally accepted warning in accepted_warnings when it matters for review. Errors are blocking and must be fixed before apply.

Default fitting policy: Check fit against visual capacity, not raw character count. CJK characters, Latin letters, numbers, and punctuation occupy different visual widths; old placeholder text is only a weak signal. Use capacity_visual_width when present, together with slots[].geometry and slots[].text_metrics.font_size_px, to decide whether to rewrite, split, or choose a different source layout. Do not use per-item font shrinking as a default strategy because it breaks template consistency.

Note: check-plan is a pre-apply estimate. The post-apply OfficeCLI gate (Step 7.2) measures the rendered result; treat Step 5 as the cheap first filter, not the final word on fit.

---

Step 6: Apply the Plan

⛔ BLOCKING GATE: The user has reviewed the planned output order, omitted pages, reused pages, and material-to-layout fit. Set <project_dir>/analysis/fill_plan.json top-level status to "confirmed" only after that review. apply rejects an unconfirmed plan by default; --force exists only for deliberate recovery/debug use.

Run:

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/template_fill_pptx.py apply "<project_dir>/sources/<source.pptx>" "<project_dir>/analysis/fill_plan.json" -o "<project_dir>/exports/<output.pptx>"

By default apply gives every cloned slide a fade transition (0.5s), preserving the v1 route contract. Override it with --transition <effect> (fade / push / wipe / split / strips / cover / random) and --transition-duration <seconds>; pass --transition none for no visual motion, or --transition keep to preserve each source slide's existing transition unchanged. A per-slide transition field overrides the CLI. advance_after keeps click advance enabled and adds timed advance; it also works with none (timing-only transition) and keep (source effect preserved, Choice/Fallback timing updated together).

apply appends a timestamp automatically. For example, -o "<project_dir>/exports/demo.pptx" writes demo_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.pptx. If the filename already ends with _YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS, it is left unchanged.

The script:

Behavior	Result
Clones selected source slides	Original slide design, relationships, images, layouts, and animations are preserved where PowerPoint supports them
Replaces text nodes	Text frames remain editable in PowerPoint
Writes notes fields	Speaker notes are embedded as native PowerPoint notes slides
Applies --transition / per-slide transition	Applies the requested visual-transition and slide-advance policy; keep may preserve no carrier and none may remove it
Rebuilds presentation slide list	Output deck contains only the planned slide sequence
Adds timestamp to PPTX filename	Matches the ppt-master SVG-to-PPTX export convention
Drops orphaned source parts	Output carries only the selected pages and the layouts / media / charts they still reference (reachability prune)

Animation policy: Template-fill preserves each cloned slide's existing object animation XML (the SVG pipeline's generated object animation defaults are not applied here). Page transitions are the one motion layer this skill writes directly, and apply adds a fade transition by default; change it with apply --transition / a per-slide transition field, or opt out with --transition keep (preserve source) or --transition none. keep preserves direct and mc:AlternateContent transition effects without converting unknown effects to fade; explicit replacement removes the old logical carrier before writing one new carrier. If the user asks to change object-level animation order / timing / effects, treat that as a separate direct-PPTX animation customization task.

---

Step 7: Validate Output

Three layers, in order: content read-back → OfficeCLI measurement gate → native render pass. The export is not final until all three pass or every remaining finding is explicitly accepted.

7.1 Content read-back

python3 .claude/skills/ppt-master/scripts/template_fill_pptx.py validate "<project_dir>"

The validator finds the latest PPTX in <project_dir>/exports/, runs ppt_to_md.py into <project_dir>/validation/readback.md, and writes <project_dir>/validation/validate_report.json. exports/ must contain only final deliverables.

Verify:

Check	Expected
Output filename	Ends with _YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.pptx
Slide count	Matches len(fill_plan.slides)
Key title text	Appears in the extracted Markdown
Native table cells	Updated values appear in the extracted Markdown table
Native chart data	Updated labels / values are readable from the extracted Markdown when ppt_to_md.py can surface them
Multi-line body text	Preserves intended line / paragraph breaks
Speaker notes	Read-back note count matches planned notes fields
Missing target errors	None from template_fill_pptx.py apply

7.2 OfficeCLI measurement gate

🚧 GATE: This scan is required, not optional. check-plan (Step 5) estimates fit; this gate measures the actual rendered frames. Editing stays in fill_plan.json + apply — OfficeCLI only measures and judges.

officecli validate "<project_dir>/exports/<file>.pptx"
officecli view "<project_dir>/exports/<file>.pptx" issues --json

Save the issues --json output to <project_dir>/validation/officecli_issues.json.

Triage validate results (schema errors are triage signals, not automatic failures):

Result	Action
No errors	Record pass, continue
Known-benign class (e.g. negative chart axId failing UInt32 — python-pptx-lineage chart parts; PowerPoint tolerates it)	Record the exact error text as tolerated, continue
New / unclassified schema errors	Run the Step 7.3 render first; if content renders intact, record as tolerated with the exact error text; if parts fail to render, treat as an apply defect and fix the plan or report

Fix loop for issues findings — repeat until the scan is clean or every remaining finding is recorded in accepted_warnings:

Finding	Action
Text overflow on a filled frame (measured needed-vs-usable height)	Shorten the text in fill_plan.json for that slot — the report's suggested height indicates how much to cut. Re-run Step 5 check-plan, re-run Step 6 apply, re-scan.
Overflow on a frame this plan never touched (pre-existing in the source deck)	Not a fill defect. Record in accepted_warnings with reason: "pre-existing in source template".
Overflow on an intentionally dense slot the user already approved	Record in accepted_warnings with the user's reason.
broken_part_ref / notes_unresolved_rid	Package defect from apply — fix the plan or re-run apply; if it persists, report the defect instead of shipping.

Hard rule: never patch <project_dir>/exports/*.pptx in place. Exports are derived artifacts; every fix goes through fill_plan.json → apply → re-scan.

Loop bound: if the same finding survives 3 fix rounds, stop looping and surface it to the user with the measured numbers and the attempted rewrites — the slot may simply be too small for the required message, which is a page-selection decision (Step 3), not a wording problem.

Missing OfficeCLI → state the install command (npm install -g @officecli/officecli@1.0.135) and record in <project_dir>/validation/ that the gate was skipped. Do not present the export as verified; get the user's explicit acceptance before treating it as final.

7.3 Native render pass

Render every output page and read the images (with PowerPoint installed, default --render auto drives native PowerPoint — ground truth):

officecli view "<project_dir>/exports/<file>.pptx" screenshot --page 1-<N> \
  -o "<project_dir>/validation/pptx_render/deck.png"
# per page: --page <k> -o .../p<k>.png ; whole-deck contact sheet: --grid

Check	Signal
Filled text fits its frame	No clipped lines or truncated paragraphs in filled slots
Unchanged pages look unchanged	Cloned pages must match the source deck design pixel-for-purpose
Fonts	Source deck fonts render; tofu boxes mean font substitution
Images / icons / SmartArt	No blank rectangles or missing assets on cloned slides
Tables / charts	Edited values render with the source formatting intact

On a visual defect, route the fix through the same loop as 7.2: adjust fill_plan.json, re-apply, re-render. Under --render html (no Office installed) apply the known-deviation allowances from verify-pptx-export Step 3 — wrap points ±1 character, chart legend placement, and master date/slide-number placeholders are engine artifacts, not defects.

Note: deeper post-export triage (package part inspection, SVG-route comparison) lives in ppt-master verify-pptx-export; this skill's gate covers the fill-specific failure surface.

## ✅ Template Fill Complete

- [x] Standard PPTX intake extracted from the source deck, including `<stem>.slide_library.json`
- [x] `fill_plan.json` selects only pages that fit the target story
- [x] User reviewed the story structure and `fill_plan.json` has `status: "confirmed"`
- [x] `check-plan` run; errors fixed; warnings reviewed / optionally recorded in `accepted_warnings`
- [x] Output PPTX generated through direct OOXML text replacement
- [x] Speaker notes embedded when `notes` fields are present
- [x] `template_fill_pptx.py validate` read-back check passed
- [x] OfficeCLI `validate` triaged and `issues --json` clean (or every remaining finding recorded in `accepted_warnings`)
- [x] All pages rendered to `validation/pptx_render/` and visually checked; fixes routed through `fill_plan.json` → `apply`

---

Current Boundary

Capability	Status
Select / reorder / repeat source slides	Supported
Replace text in existing text frames	Supported
Edit native PowerPoint table cell text	Supported for ordinary cells and merge anchors; merge slaves fail closed
Edit native PowerPoint chart categories / series data	Supported for single-plot classic c:cat/c:val charts; runtime XML validation remains authoritative
Read SmartArt node text / hierarchy / layout	Supported in intake and planning
Preserve existing native SmartArt unchanged	Supported by recursive private-part cloning
Preserve original visual design	Supported by cloning slide parts directly
Page-to-page transitions	Supported via apply --transition or per-slide transition
Replace images	Not in v1
Object-level entrance animations	Not in v1; preserved from source only, set as a separate task
Edit chart formatting / axes / legend layout	Not in v1
Edit or generate native SmartArt	Not supported; regenerated visual routes use ordinary editable shapes
Measured visual overflow detection	Required — Step 7.2 OfficeCLI gate; falls back to Step 5 capacity judgment only when OfficeCLI is absent, and the export is then presented as unverified
Material-divergence reshaping (§c content strategy)	Not applicable — this skill fills text into existing slots, it does not author an outline from a source, so the ppt-master content_divergence free-text field has no role here