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Deck Design Ppt

  • 9 installs
  • 53 repo stars
  • Updated July 9, 2026
  • appautomaton/presentation

deck-design-ppt is a Claude skill that creates new presentation decks as native editable PPTX files with consulting-quality design.

About

This skill creates new presentation decks as native editable PPTX files with consulting-quality design. A developer or consultant uses it to build a pitch deck, board update, or strategy deck from a brief or topic where the output must be editable in PowerPoint or Keynote. It uses slide masters, theme colors, a 21-pattern communication library, and pptxgenjs to make every element an editable PowerPoint object, and produces a markdown outline before building.

  • Creates native editable PPTX decks with consulting-quality design
  • Every element is PowerPoint-native (text boxes, shapes, charts)
  • Ships a 21-pattern library and five style palettes

Deck Design Ppt by the numbers

  • 9 all-time installs (skills.sh)
  • Ranked #1,469 of 1,880 Design & UI/UX skills by installs in the Skillselion catalog
  • Data as of Jul 28, 2026 (Skillselion catalog sync)
At a glance

deck-design-ppt capabilities & compatibility

Capabilities
deck generation · ui design · presentations
Use cases
presentations · ui design
From the docs

What deck-design-ppt says it does

Create new presentation decks as native editable PPTX files with consulting-quality design.
SKILL.md
npx skills add https://github.com/appautomaton/presentation --skill deck-design-ppt

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Listed on Skillselion
Installs9
repo stars53
Last updatedJuly 9, 2026
Repositoryappautomaton/presentation

What it does

Build a native editable PPTX pitch or strategy deck from a brief using slide masters and a pattern library.

Who is it for?

Building a new editable slide deck or pitch deck from a brief where PowerPoint editability matters.

Skip if: Editing existing .pptx files (use the pptx skill) or pixel-perfect PDF output (use deck-design-pdf).

When should I use this skill?

You want a new editable PowerPoint deck from a brief or topic.

What you get

A native editable .pptx is generated via pptxgenjs with slide masters and pattern-based layouts.

  • Editable .pptx deck
  • Deck outline markdown

By the numbers

  • 21 communication patterns (15 P-series, 6 C-series)
  • Five style palettes
  • Three density levels L1/L2/L3

Files

SKILL.mdMarkdownGitHub ↗

Deck Design — Operational Playbook

What This Skill Does

  • Input: a deck brief + any structured data the user has (tables, time series, bridges, evaluation criteria, etc.).
  • Output: a native editable `.pptx` file with slide masters, theme colors, and all content as PowerPoint-native objects (text boxes, shapes, charts). Every element is individually editable in PowerPoint.

The brief

The brief is everything the user provides about what they want. Before generating anything, extract these signals:

SignalExamplesDefaults if absent
Objective"pitch to Series A investors", "board strategy update", "SBIR Phase II proposal deck"General presentation
Audience"DoD program managers", "VC partners", "internal team"General professional
Brand identityLogo colors, company name, client palettePalette defaults
Tone / firm style"McKinsey-style", "clean and modern", "urgent/high-stakes"Infer from audience + objective
Density"dense and evidence-heavy", "keep it simple", specific L1/L2/L3Infer from audience + objective
DataTables, metrics, timelines, comparisons, evaluationsNone — build from research or request more

Not every brief contains all signals. Extract what's there, infer what you can, and use defaults for the rest. Do not ask the user to fill out a checklist. If the user provides a custom palette, brand guide, or design spec, follow it — the built-in styles are defaults, not constraints.

Storyboard intake (from consultant skill)

When the input is a storyboard artifact (from the consultant skill), the brief extraction is already done. Map directly:

Storyboard fielddeck-design-ppt step
Firm overlayStyle (Phase 1, step 2)
Density levelDensity (Phase 1, step 3)
Per-slide data shapePattern routing (Phase 1, step 6)
Per-slide structured dataBuild script data objects (Phase 2, step 8)

Skip Phase 1 steps 1 and 5. The storyboard provides the content decisions; deck-design-ppt provides the visual execution.

Pattern library (21 communication patterns)

TierNamespaceWhat it answersUse when
Tier 1P-series (p01p15)"What communication move is this slide making?"All decks
Tier 2C-series (c01c06)"What dense consulting composition does this slide require?"MBB-style engagement deliverables

All patterns work across all 5 styles — the palette controls the visual identity, not the pattern.

Patterns are reference implementations, not constraints. Use them when they fit the content. When a slide needs a layout that no pattern covers, build custom using pptxgenjs directly — the grid constants, theme tokens, and slide master chrome still apply. The pattern library is a starting vocabulary, not a ceiling.

How To Generate A Deck (Algorithm)

Phase 1 — Understand

1. Analyze the brief. Extract signals from The brief. Research what the brief references — web search for market data, benchmarks, competitors; user-provided data is the primary source. 2. Pick style: consulting-mckinsey / consulting-bcg / consulting-bain / founder / sequoia. See Style Routing. 3. Pick density level. See Density Profiles. 4. Load firm reference (consulting decks only). See Firm Style. 5. Extract data shapes (table, timeline, bridge, grid ratings, etc.). 6. Route each slide to a pattern using the Routing Table, or build custom if no pattern fits.

Phase 1.5 — Outline

Before writing any code, produce a deck outline in markdown. This prevents sparse slides, content overlap, and mid-build surprises.

The outline must include: 1. Governing thought — one sentence that states the deck's answer. 2. Slide list — for each slide: action title, pattern, content summary, and data shape. 3. Flow test — read all action titles in sequence. Do they tell a complete story without the slide bodies? If not, fix the narrative before proceeding. 4. Density check — for each slide, confirm the content fills the body zone without overflowing. Patterns use dynamic vertical centering — content that is too sparse will float; content that exceeds slot budgets will crowd. 5. Data sufficiency — for each slide, confirm you have the data its pattern needs (chart series, metric values, table rows). If not, research to fill gaps before building.

Save the outline as {slug}-outline.md alongside the build script. It serves as both a planning artifact and documentation for future edits.

Phase 2 — Build

7. Read the slot budget for each pattern just-in-time: masters/patterns/<pattern>.slots.md. 8. Write the build script. Assemble the slide list with structured data for each pattern:

const { createDeck } = require('./skills/deck-design-ppt/masters');

createDeck('consulting-mckinsey', [
  { pattern: 'p01-cover', data: { title: '...', subtitle: '...' } },
  { pattern: 'p10-agenda', data: { items: [...] } },
  { pattern: 'p04-scorecard', data: { title: '...', cards: [...] } },
  { pattern: 'p03-evidence', data: { chart: {...}, callouts: [...] } },
  { pattern: 'c05-divider', data: { sectionNum: '02', title: '...' } },
  { pattern: 'p08-closer', data: { title: '...', nextSteps: [...] } },
], 'strategy-update.pptx');

9. Run it: node build-deck.js — produces the .pptx directly. No HTML, no browser, no rendering step.

Phase 3 — QA

10. Generate thumbnail grid for visual review and fix any issues:

Use the pptx skill's thumbnail script to generate a preview grid of the deck.

Output Organization

Save deliverables to the current working directory (or a user-specified output folder). Use kebab-case naming derived from the deck title:

  • {slug}.pptx — the deliverable
  • build-{slug}.js — the build script (reproducible)
  • {slug}-outline.md — the deck outline (content plan)

Intermediate artifacts (QA thumbnails, temp rasterizations) go to the system temp directory — do not leave them in the workspace.

Architecture

Self-contained: package.json + node_modules/ are inside the skill folder. All require() calls resolve locally — no workspace-level install needed. Run npm install inside this skill folder if node_modules/ is missing.

The build kit lives in masters/:

FilePurpose
masters/index.jscreateDeck(palette, slides, output) — orchestrator
masters/grid.jsSpatial constants (margins, body zone, footer Y). One grid, all patterns use it.
masters/theme.jsPalette name → theme object (colors, fonts, flags)
masters/layouts.jsDefines slide masters (COVER, CONTENT, DIVIDER, CLOSER) parameterized by theme
masters/patterns/*.js21 pattern functions — each fills content into the body zone
masters/patterns/*.slots.mdCharacter budgets per pattern (loaded just-in-time)
masters/examples/*.js8 advanced visual reference scripts (dumbbell, gauge, process flow, composite, scenario, multi-panel, data table, gantt)

Slide masters are parameterized by the theme — one set of master definitions works for all 5 styles. The theme controls:

  • Header bar (yes/no + color)
  • Footer rule, logo, page number colors
  • Canvas background
  • Accent color for titles, highlights

Pattern functions receive a slide (already has master chrome), the pptx instance, content data, and the theme. They only place content in the body zone — never touch the header, footer, or margins.

Grid constants (grid.js) define the spatial contract:

  • bodyY / bodyEndY — body zone boundaries
  • marginL / contentW — horizontal margins
  • footerRuleY / footerTextY — footer positions
  • centerY(contentH) — vertically center content in body zone

Style Routing

If the deck is…Use paletteNotes
Consulting / board / exec update / engagement deliverableconsulting-mckinsey, consulting-bcg, or consulting-bainMatch firm by content shape
Startup pitch / product narrative / growth storyfounderClean, modern blue
Crisis / urgency / downturn memo / "burn/runway" rhetoricsequoiaDark, dramatic, red accent

Palette files in palettes/ define colors, fonts, chart rules, and mode variations.

Firm Style (Consulting Decks)

For every consulting deck, pick the firm style whose philosophy best fits the content:

Content shapeBest fitWhy
Conclusion-first, variance analysis, "what happened and why"McKinseyVerdict-driven titles + waterfall exhibits
Framework evaluation, multi-criteria scoring, "how options compare"BCGEvaluation matrices + panel mini-headers
Diagnostic, decision support, "here are the facts, here's what we think"BainFacts-vs-Perspectives frame

Load the corresponding firm reference:

Firm styleReference
McKinseyreferences/mckinsey.md
BCGreferences/bcg.md
Bainreferences/bain.md

When density level requires references/craft.md (L2+), the firm file layers on top.

Density Profiles

ContextLevelPattern scopeAlso read
Startup pitch, roadshow, board updateL1 NarrativeP-series only
Corporate strategy, business reviewL2 StructuredP + selective C-seriesreferences/craft.md §1–§4
MBB engagement, due diligence, deep analysisL3 DenseFull library; C-series expectedreferences/craft.md §1–§7

Routing Table

User input shape / intentPatternNotes
Cover page / identityp01-coverSlide 1 in almost every deck
2×2 positioning / quadrant mapp02-matrixNeeds 2 axes + 4–8 items
Claim + chart proof (line, bar)p03-evidenceNative PowerPoint chart + sidebar callouts
4–8 KPIs / metrics / health checkp04-scorecardCards with number + label + trend
Timeline / progressionp05-narrative-arcMilestones on a horizontal axis
Binary choice (A vs B)p06-forkCriteria grid with recommendation
Process / mechanism / flywheelp07-machineNumbered steps with connector
Closing ask / next stepp08-closerCentered recommendation + bullets
Comparison table (rows × columns)p09-data-tableFinancial tables, delta coloring
Agenda / table of contentsp10-agendaSection list with active highlight
Product / platform demop11-product-showcaseProduct area + feature cards
Team / founders / engagement teamp12-team-grid4 cards with name + role + bio
Dense evidence: exhibit + sidebarc01-multi-evidenceChart + metrics row + drivers sidebar
Start/end with intermediate deltasc02-waterfallStacked bar bridge + interpretation panels
Color-coded evaluation gridc03-eval-gridCriteria × options with RAG fills
Facts vs perspectives (two-column)c04-facts-perspectives57/43 split — data left, judgment right
Section divider (full-bleed)c05-dividerDark background, section number + title
Stacked vertical bar chartp13-stacked-barSegmented bars with legend, annotation sidebar
Ranked horizontal barsp14-horizontal-barData-driven widths, highlight row, value labels
Bubble matrix (size = magnitude)p15-bubble-matrixArea-proportional circles on rows × columns grid
Gantt / workplan timelinec06-workplanCalendar grid, row spans, milestone markers

Advanced visuals (build custom — masters/examples/)

No pre-built pattern. Study the script, adapt the technique.

Visual typeScriptTechnique
Dumbbell chart (before→after)dumbbell-chart.jsAxis scaling, arrow shapes, SVG gradient bg
Gauge / arc indicatorsgauge-arcs.jsArc math, stacked distribution bars, bar-anchored text
Process flow diagramprocess-flow-diagram.jsNode graphs, icon rasterization, SVG gradients
Multi-zone compositemulti-zone-composite.jsZone layout, data-driven bars, rich text footer columns
Scenario comparison cardsscenario-cards.jsNested columns, multi-level bullets
Multi-panel segmented barsmulti-panel-analysis.jsStacked bars, dashed brackets, rotated labels
Data table with takeawaysoutsourcing-mix-table.jsRow fills, chip highlights, chevron connectors
Gantt workplangantt-workplan.jsCalendar grid, requirement bubbles, status markers

Composition Rules

  • Start with p01-cover (most decks) or c05-divider (mid-deck section entry).
  • Do not repeat the same pattern back-to-back. Alternate patterns by content type.
  • One slide = one argument. Every action title advances a distinct claim.
  • Use interstitials intentionally: p10-agenda at section openings; c05-divider for chapter breaks.
  • Footnotes: bracket style ([1]), restart numbering per slide.
  • Density level governs composition. Do not use L3 techniques on an L1 deck.
  • Section rhythm. For decks >8 slides, group into 3-4 sections. Open each section with p10-agenda (active item) or c05-divider. Close with a synthesis slide before the next section.
  • Firm composition minimums. McKinsey: ≥1 waterfall (c02) per variance analysis. BCG: panel mini-headers on every multi-panel slide. Bain: ≥40% of analytic slides use c04-facts-perspectives in diagnostic mode.
  • Chart variety. Do not use the same chart type (bar, line, table) on consecutive slides. Alternate data shapes to maintain visual engagement.
  • Content fit. Each pattern's slot budget (*.slots.md) defines character limits and item counts. Before routing, verify your content fits: too few items produces a sparse slide; too many causes crowding. When in doubt, check the slot file's data schema and item ranges.
  • Visual balance. Content is vertically centered in the body zone (between title and footer). Short content centers naturally; dense content fills the zone. If a slide looks top-heavy or bottom-heavy in QA, adjust the content volume — don't force positioning.
  • Spatial constraints. PPTX uses absolute positioning — no responsive layout. Content must fit between bodyY and bodyEndY. Anchor elements to zone boundaries and use valign + fit:'shrink' — never manually estimate text heights for Y positioning.

Slot Budgets (Progressive Loading)

Slot budgets are stored per-pattern at masters/patterns/<pattern>.slots.md. Load just-in-time when building each slide — do not read all 21 upfront.

What NOT To Do

  • Do not create HTML slide files. Use the createDeck() API directly.
  • Do not use Playwright or browser rendering for slide content. All slide content must be native PPTX objects (text, shapes, charts) so the output is editable. Exception: rasterizing assets with no PPTX-native equivalent (e.g., SVG gradients, icon fonts) — see masters/examples/ for techniques.
  • Do not scatter colors — define a consistent palette once and reference it throughout.
  • Do not position headers or footers in pattern functions — the slide master handles chrome.

Related skills

FAQ

Is the output editable?

Yes, it produces a native editable .pptx where every element is a PowerPoint-native object.

When to use this vs deck-design-pdf?

Use this for editable PowerPoint/Keynote slides; use deck-design-pdf for pixel-perfect PDF output.

Design & UI/UXuibranding

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