replica-recon
Everything else in the pack builds from what this skill writes. A bad recon
map means a bad clone, so take the time here.
Output goes in the user's project:
replica/recon.md the recon map (template: recon-map.md in this folder)
replica/features.csv the feature matrix (template: features.csv in this folder)
replica/screens/ reference screenshots of the original. Never shipped.
The rules, before anything else
This skill rebuilds functionality and UX patterns, clean-room style. It
studies what the app does and how a user moves through it. It does not take
anything the app owns.
- Public sources and the user's own account only. Never log into an
account that is not the user's, never ask for a password, never get past a
paywall or a login by any trick.
- Reading, not scraping. No crawlers, no bulk downloads, no loops. If a
browser tool is connected to the user's own browser, read pages at human
speed with the user present.
- No source code, no private APIs. Do not read or save the app's
JavaScript bundles, decompile its binary, or log its network calls to copy
endpoints. Public API docs are fine to read.
- Check the terms. Some products' terms forbid using an account to build a
competing product. If the user's account is under terms like that, say so
and work from public sources only.
- Screenshots are reference. They live in
replica/screens/, are used to
compare layouts, and never go into the clone.
Step 1: scope
Ask three things, or propose answers and get a yes:
- Which app, which platform. Web, iOS, Android, desktop.
- Which slice. "All of Notion" is not a project. "Notion's pages, blocks
and sharing" is. Default to the core loop: the one flow users pay for.
- Who it is for. The user's own business, a niche, a product to sell.
Step 2: list the sources
Build a sources table first, with a URL on every row. In order of value:
| source | what it gives you |
|---|
| help center / docs | the most complete feature list there is, and the settings |
| pricing page | which features matter (they gate them) |
| changelog | what was added recently, what the team thinks is important |
| app store listing | screenshots of every key screen, the pitch, ratings |
| public walkthrough videos | real flows, click by click |
| marketing site | positioning, the core loop in their words |
| the user's own account | the real thing, every state, driven by the user |
| public API docs | the data model, almost for free |
Step 3: screen inventory
One row per screen. IDs are stable: S01, S02... Every other file refers to them.
ID | screen | route or how you get there | purpose | key components | states seen
States matter: empty, loading, filled, error, permission denied, mobile. An
empty state you did not record is an empty state you will not build.
Step 4: user flows
F01, F02... Each one is a goal and the screens it passes through:
F01 Guest books a meeting
S07 booking page -> S08 pick a time -> S09 details form -> S10 confirmed
edge: no slots this week, time zone differs, slot taken while filling the form
Count the clicks on the happy path. It becomes the number to beat.
Step 5: components
Every repeated UI part: buttons, inputs, date pickers, modals, tables, toasts,
nav. Name, variants, states, which screens use it. This becomes
replica-design's component list.
Step 6: inferred data model
Entities, fields and relationships, each with its evidence and a confidence:
Booking id, event_type_id, start_at, end_at, guest_name, guest_email,
status (confirmed | cancelled | rescheduled), answers (json)
evidence: S09 form fields, S10 confirmation, help article "Cancel a booking"
confidence: high
Mark guesses as guesses. replica-architect turns this into a real schema.
Step 7: feature matrix
Write replica/features.csv (columns: feature, area, priority, original,
clone, notes). Priority is must / should / could. clone starts at no for
every row and gets filled in during the build. replica-diff scores it.
Step 8: what cannot be cloned
List it honestly, as skip rows with a reason: licensed content (a music
catalogue, a stock library), the network and its users, data the app owns,
partner deals, hardware, regulated licences (banking, health). "Clone any
app" means the features and the flow, not what the app owns.
Step 9: size it
Screens, flows, entities, and the hard parts (realtime, sync, payments,
calendar or email integrations, offline). Give a size: S (a weekend), M (a
few weeks), L (a quarter), XL (rescope it). No promises of a perfect clone.
Output
replica/recon.md and replica/features.csv, then a five-line summary: the
core loop, screen and flow counts, the three hardest parts, what is out of
scope, and the next step: /replica-architect.