Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Retro Zine HTML Deck agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The Retro Zine HTML Deck skill gives an AI agent a ready-made slide template with a beige, zine-like look, green accents, and handmade-style type, delivered as a single self-contained HTML page. This guide explains what the skill changes, how to install it, how to ask for it in plain language, and what to check before using it. If you have never used an agent skill before, the steps below start from the basics.
Retro Zine HTML Decknexu-io/open-design · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the Retro Zine skill ZIP from the page where you found this guide.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or in the project's .claude/skills/ folder for one project.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. Open Settings, go to Capabilities, then Skills, and upload the ZIP.
- 4Describe your deck. Ask for an HTML deck or HTML slides on your story, with audience and goal.
- 5Answer the agent's questions. Provide audience, decision target, source materials, deadline, and must-keep numbers when asked.
- 6Review and adjust. Open the generated HTML file and ask for layout duplicates or new slides in the same style.
What the skill makes the agent do
Without the skill, an agent builds slides from scratch in whatever style it chooses. With the skill installed, the agent starts from this template, which is a printed-looking zine design built as one HTML file. The source describes it as a riso-printed zine in HTML form, with Bebas Neue and Caveat typography and a decorative system of corner brackets, paper grain, and geometric shapes.
The agent is told to replace the template's placeholder content with your headlines, text, names, and numbers, and to keep the design intact. It can also add slides by duplicating an existing layout, remove slides from the end, and design a new layout that uses the same fonts, palette, and decorative elements.
- Starts from the template's beige paper look with green accents
- Swaps in your own headlines, body copy, numbers, names, and dates
- Keeps fonts, colours, and decorative elements consistent across slides
- Adds, removes, or duplicates slides to match your content length
- Designs new layouts in the same style when the template lacks one
Install the Retro Zine skill from the ZIP file
Download the skill ZIP from the page where you found this guide. Unzip it so the skill folder ends up in one of the two locations below. A personal install works for every project on your computer. A project install applies only to the project folder that contains it.
The folder contains example.html, SKILL.md, and template.json. SKILL.md is the file the agent reads to learn how to use the skill, so keep it in the skill folder.
- Personal install: place the unzipped folder inside ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: place the unzipped folder inside the project's .claude/skills/ folder
~/.claude/skills/Upload the skill in the Claude apps
If you use the Claude apps rather than a local setup, you can upload the skill directly. Open Settings, go to Capabilities, then find the Skills section and upload the skill ZIP. Once it is added, you do not need to copy any files by hand.
- Open Settings in the Claude app
- Go to Capabilities
- Open Skills and upload the Retro Zine ZIP
How to trigger the skill with natural requests
You do not need a special command. Describe the deck you want and mention the kind of slides, such as an HTML deck or HTML slides, and the agent should pick up the skill when your request matches its description. The skill's tags include photo-essay, story, personal, and html slides, so requests about a story or photo essay in HTML fit well.
The example prompt in the skill metadata asks for a deck with a clear decision goal. It also asks the agent to request missing essentials first, such as the audience, decision target, source materials, deadline, and must-keep numbers, before writing slides. Answering those questions produces a more usable plan.
- Make an HTML deck for a neighborhood photo essay about local shops closing, for community readers
- Turn these interview notes into HTML slides in the zine style
- Add two more slides to this deck using the same layout as the portrait slide
- Design a timeline slide in the same zine look for this story
Check what the skill needs and what it does not do
The listing states that the skill requires nothing beyond the agent itself, does not run scripts, and does not use the network. The output is a static HTML page, so the agent edits and writes a file rather than loading live data or running code from the skill.
The skill's SKILL.md mentions an upstream MIT licence and a LICENSE file that must be redistributed with copies of the template. That file is not among the files listed for this download, so check the ZIP contents and keep the upstream notice with any copy you share. The listing itself shows Apache-2.0.
- No scripts are run by the skill
- No network use is described
- Requires field in the listing is empty
- Keep the upstream licence notice with any redistributed copy
Tips for better results
The template works best when your material fits a story with portraits, voices, and a clear argument. Give the agent real headlines and numbers, and note which figures must not change. The skill says the zine look intentionally feels handmade, so it suits community, indie, and creator decks more than polished corporate work.
Ask the agent to keep the layout system unchanged when you request edits. The skill warns against changing fonts, colours, the grid, or decorative elements, so you can keep the look consistent across revisions.
- Provide the audience and the decision you want readers to reach before drafting
- Match image placeholder sizes when you supply your own photos
- Ask for a page-number update after you add or remove slides
- Review the final HTML in a browser before sharing it
What people use it for
- A community writer creating a photo essay about neighbourhood shops and the people who run them
- A small publisher making a warm, printed-feel deck for a local story or project update
- A designer who wants a lo-fi alternative to polished digital slide templates for a creative pitch
- A local-news team presenting interview-based stories to a community audience
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the Retro Zine HTML Deck agent skill?
Download the skill ZIP and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder. In the Claude apps, you can instead upload the ZIP under Settings, then Capabilities, then Skills.
Is the Retro Zine HTML Deck skill free?
The listing shows an Apache-2.0 licence. The SKILL.md notes that the template is vendored from an MIT-licensed upstream project and that the upstream licence must be kept with copies. The listing does not show a price.
What does the skill need to run?
The listing says nothing is required beyond the agent setup, it does not run scripts, and it does not use the network. The output is a static HTML page.
Can the agent make a deck longer or shorter?
Yes. The skill tells the agent to duplicate an existing slide of the most suitable layout when more slides are needed, and to drop slides from the bottom when fewer are needed, then update page-number labels.
What if the template does not have the layout I need?
The skill tells the agent to design a new layout from scratch using the same fonts, palette, decorative elements, and spacing rules, rather than switching to a different template.
How does this compare with other slide templates?
This template has a deliberately handmade, lo-fi zine look. The skill itself says it is not a fit for corporate or tech decks that need modern digital polish, so pick a more polished template for those.
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Our verdict
Choose this skill if you are making a community, indie, or photo-essay deck and want a printed, handmade feel with no scripts or network features to manage. Pick a different template if your deck needs modern digital polish, live data, or code that runs inside the file.
Download the skill