SYS-03·2026· IN DESIGN
Helmlock
Harness v3, local-first kernel
“A 500-line kernel. Everything else is a plugin.”
The next generation of the harness line, designed in public. A small kernel, plugins for everything else, a delivery repo kept separate from a knowledge repo, and files only.
- Kernel
- ~500 LOC
- Database
- none
- Layers
- 3
- CLI
- hl
TypeScriptNode 24HonoReact 19ViteTailwind 4Zodpnpm
view source on GitHub ↗
Why a v3
Mothership proved the ideas and showed where the weight was. Too much lived in the core. Helmlock keeps the gates and the traceability and moves everything else out into plugins.
Architecture
- The kernel covers four things and nothing more: a context tree, a service registry, scoped effects and events.
- Plugins add the rest: the CLI, agent packs, runtimes, voice, remote channels (such as Telegram), ticket workflow and views.
- Two repos. A delivery repo holds skills, agents and the console. A knowledge repo holds the vault. The machinery can change without touching what you know.
- Three layers of configuration: system → workspace → project. Each layer has its own
CLAUDE.md, skills and agents. - Files only. Markdown for prose, TOML for structure, JSONL for history.
Designing in public
Helmlock is planned with its own /plan skill. It turns blueprints, decisions, flows and mockups into one interactive plan page. The design is the first artifact the system produces.