Hermes Skins Customization

Skill by ara.so — Hermes Skills collection.

Custom visual themes for the Hermes CLI agent. Skins control banner colors, ASCII art, spinner text, response labels, and branding — not behavior or personality.

Installation

bash

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/joeynyc/hermes-skins.git
cd hermes-skins

# Copy skins to your Hermes config directory
mkdir -p ~/.hermes/skins
cp skins/*.yaml ~/.hermes/skins/

Quick Start

Apply a Skin

bash

# Session-only (via Hermes command)
/skin pirate

# Permanent (edit ~/.hermes/config.yaml)
echo "display:
  skin: pirate" >> ~/.hermes/config.yaml

Browse Available Skins

Check

~/.hermes/skins/

or the repository's

skins/

directory:

pirate — Jolly Roger skull-and-crossbones
vault-tec — Fallout green CRT terminal
bubblegum-80s — Neon pastels and radical vibes
skynet — Cyberdyne red military AI
lain — Serial Experiments Lain NAVI aesthetic
neonwave — Synthwave grid horizon
sakura — Cherry blossom tree
netrunner — Cyberpunk neural interface
mythos — Eye of Providence Greek mythology
nous — Nous Research amber and gold
mother — Weyland-Yutani MU-TH-UR 6000
dos — Norton Commander dual-pane
telemate — DOS BBS terminal
empire — Death Star targeting console
catppuccin — Mocha pastels with ASCII cat

Built-in skins:

default

ares

mono

slate

poseidon

sisyphus

charizard

Creating a Custom Skin

Minimal Skin Example

Create

~/.hermes/skins/cyberpunk.yaml

yaml

name: cyberpunk
description: Neon terminal theme with magenta and cyan accents

colors:
  # Banner colors
  banner_border: "#FF00FF"
  banner_title: "#00FFFF"
  banner_accent: "#FF1493"
  
  # Text colors
  prompt: "#FF00FF"
  user_input: "#00FFFF"
  
  # Response colors
  response_box_border: "#FF00FF"
  response_label_text: "#000000"
  response_label_bg: "#00FFFF"
  
spinner:
  thinking_verbs: ["jacking in", "decrypting", "uploading", "syncing neural net"]
  
branding:
  agent_name: "CYBERDECK AI"
  response_label: " ⚡ NETRUN "
  prompt_symbol: "▶ "

Note: Undefined keys inherit from the

default

skin.

Full Skin Example

For production skins, define all 28 color keys to avoid mismatched defaults:

yaml

name: neon-city
description: Full cyberpunk theme with neon blues and hot pinks

colors:
  # Banner section
  banner_border: "#FF006E"
  banner_title: "#00F5FF"
  banner_accent: "#FFBE0B"
  banner_subtitle: "#8338EC"
  banner_meta: "#FB5607"
  
  # Prompt section
  prompt: "#FF006E"
  user_input: "#00F5FF"
  
  # Response section
  response_box_border: "#FF006E"
  response_label_text: "#000000"
  response_label_bg: "#00F5FF"
  response_text: "#FFFFFF"
  
  # Tool activity
  tool_prefix: "#FFBE0B"
  tool_name: "#8338EC"
  tool_details: "#FB5607"
  
  # System messages
  info: "#00F5FF"
  warning: "#FFBE0B"
  error: "#FF006E"
  success: "#3A86FF"
  
  # Interactive UI
  status_bar_bg: "#1A1A2E"
  status_bar_text: "#00F5FF"
  status_bar_highlight: "#FF006E"
  
  completion_menu_bg: "#16213E"
  completion_menu_text: "#FFFFFF"
  completion_menu_selected_bg: "#FF006E"
  completion_menu_selected_text: "#000000"
  completion_menu_border: "#00F5FF"

banner:
  art: |
    ⠀⣠⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣤⣄⡀
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⢀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⣿⡟⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⣿⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⣿⡇⢀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⡀⠀⣿⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⣿⡇⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⠀⣿⠀NEON⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⣿⡇⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⠀⣿⠀CITY⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⣿⡇⠀⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠉⠀⠀⣿⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⡇
    ⢸⣿⠀⠀⠙⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠋⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿⡇
    ⠀⠙⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠛⠋⠀

spinner:
  faces: ["◢", "◣", "◤", "◥"]
  thinking_verbs:
    - "interfacing"
    - "decrypting datastream"
    - "compiling neural pathways"
    - "syncing wetware"
    - "routing through ICE"
    - "jacking in"

branding:
  agent_name: "NEON CITY AI"
  welcome_message: "◆ NEURAL LINK ESTABLISHED ◆"
  goodbye_message: "◇ CONNECTION TERMINATED ◇"
  prompt_symbol: "▶ "
  response_label: " ⬢ UPLINK "
  tool_activity_prefix: "◈ SYS:"

Configuration Reference

Color Keys (All 28)

Banner Section

```
banner_border
```
— Border characters
```
banner_title
```
— Main title text
```
banner_accent
```
— Accent elements
```
banner_subtitle
```
— Subtitle text
```
banner_meta
```
— Version/meta info

Prompt Section

```
prompt
```
— Prompt symbol color
```
user_input
```
— User-typed text

Response Section

```
response_box_border
```
— Response box border
```
response_label_text
```
— Label text color
```
response_label_bg
```
— Label background
```
response_text
```
— Response content

Tool Activity

```
tool_prefix
```
— Tool prefix icon
```
tool_name
```
— Tool name
```
tool_details
```
— Tool details/args

System Messages

```
info
```
— Info messages
```
warning
```
— Warning messages
```
error
```
— Error messages
```
success
```
— Success messages

Interactive UI

```
status_bar_bg
```
— Status bar background
```
status_bar_text
```
— Status bar text
```
status_bar_highlight
```
— Status bar highlights
```
completion_menu_bg
```
— Autocomplete menu background
```
completion_menu_text
```
— Menu text
```
completion_menu_selected_bg
```
— Selected item background
```
completion_menu_selected_text
```
— Selected item text
```
completion_menu_border
```
— Menu border

Banner Art

Use multiline strings with braille Unicode (

⠀⠁⠂...⣿

) or ASCII art:

yaml

banner:
  art: |
    ╔════════════════════════════════╗
    ║   █████╗ ██╗                  ║
    ║  ██╔══██╗██║                  ║
    ║  ███████║██║                  ║
    ║  ██╔══██║██║                  ║
    ║  ██║  ██║██║                  ║
    ║  ╚═╝  ╚═╝╚═╝                  ║
    ╚════════════════════════════════╝

Spinner Configuration

yaml

spinner:
  faces: ["⠋", "⠙", "⠹", "⠸", "⠼", "⠴", "⠦", "⠧", "⠇", "⠏"]
  thinking_verbs:
    - "processing"
    - "analyzing"
    - "computing"
    - "calculating"
    - "synthesizing"

Branding Text

yaml

branding:
  agent_name: "MY AI ASSISTANT"
  welcome_message: "System initialized. Ready for input."
  goodbye_message: "Shutting down. Goodbye."
  prompt_symbol: "➜ "
  response_label: " RESPONSE "
  tool_activity_prefix: "→ Tool:"

Common Patterns

Dark Theme Template

yaml

name: my-dark-theme
description: High-contrast dark theme

colors:
  banner_border: "#00FF00"
  banner_title: "#FFFFFF"
  banner_accent: "#00FF00"
  banner_subtitle: "#AAAAAA"
  banner_meta: "#666666"
  
  prompt: "#00FF00"
  user_input: "#FFFFFF"
  
  response_box_border: "#00FF00"
  response_label_text: "#000000"
  response_label_bg: "#00FF00"
  response_text: "#E0E0E0"
  
  tool_prefix: "#00FF00"
  tool_name: "#FFFF00"
  tool_details: "#CCCCCC"
  
  info: "#00AAFF"
  warning: "#FFAA00"
  error: "#FF0000"
  success: "#00FF00"
  
  status_bar_bg: "#1A1A1A"
  status_bar_text: "#00FF00"
  status_bar_highlight: "#FFFFFF"
  
  completion_menu_bg: "#2A2A2A"
  completion_menu_text: "#E0E0E0"
  completion_menu_selected_bg: "#00FF00"
  completion_menu_selected_text: "#000000"
  completion_menu_border: "#00FF00"

Retro CRT Terminal

yaml

name: retro-crt
description: Amber phosphor CRT terminal

colors:
  banner_border: "#FFAA00"
  banner_title: "#FFCC44"
  banner_accent: "#FFAA00"
  banner_subtitle: "#CC8800"
  banner_meta: "#AA6600"
  
  prompt: "#FFAA00"
  user_input: "#FFCC44"
  
  response_box_border: "#FFAA00"
  response_label_text: "#000000"
  response_label_bg: "#FFAA00"
  response_text: "#FFCC44"
  
  tool_prefix: "#FFAA00"
  tool_name: "#FFCC44"
  tool_details: "#CC8800"
  
  info: "#FFCC44"
  warning: "#FFAA00"
  error: "#FF6600"
  success: "#FFDD66"
  
  status_bar_bg: "#000000"
  status_bar_text: "#FFAA00"
  status_bar_highlight: "#FFCC44"
  
  completion_menu_bg: "#1A0A00"
  completion_menu_text: "#FFCC44"
  completion_menu_selected_bg: "#FFAA00"
  completion_menu_selected_text: "#000000"
  completion_menu_border: "#FFAA00"

spinner:
  faces: ["▖", "▘", "▝", "▗"]
  thinking_verbs: ["PROCESSING", "COMPUTING", "ANALYZING"]

branding:
  agent_name: "TERMINAL-6000"
  prompt_symbol: "C:\\> "
  response_label: " OUTPUT "

Minimal Monochrome

yaml

name: minimal-mono
description: Clean grayscale aesthetic

colors:
  banner_border: "#FFFFFF"
  banner_title: "#FFFFFF"
  banner_accent: "#CCCCCC"
  banner_subtitle: "#AAAAAA"
  banner_meta: "#888888"
  
  prompt: "#FFFFFF"
  user_input: "#EEEEEE"
  
  response_box_border: "#CCCCCC"
  response_label_text: "#000000"
  response_label_bg: "#FFFFFF"
  response_text: "#DDDDDD"
  
  tool_prefix: "#CCCCCC"
  tool_name: "#FFFFFF"
  tool_details: "#AAAAAA"
  
  info: "#BBBBBB"
  warning: "#CCCCCC"
  error: "#FFFFFF"
  success: "#AAAAAA"
  
  status_bar_bg: "#1A1A1A"
  status_bar_text: "#CCCCCC"
  status_bar_highlight: "#FFFFFF"
  
  completion_menu_bg: "#2A2A2A"
  completion_menu_text: "#CCCCCC"
  completion_menu_selected_bg: "#FFFFFF"
  completion_menu_selected_text: "#000000"
  completion_menu_border: "#888888"

spinner:
  faces: ["—", "\\", "|", "/"]
  thinking_verbs: ["thinking", "working", "processing"]

branding:
  agent_name: "Assistant"
  prompt_symbol: "> "
  response_label: " Reply "

Skin Loading Order

Hermes loads skins with this priority:

```
~/.hermes/skins/<name>.yaml
```
(user custom)
Built-in skins in
```
skin_engine.py
```
```
default
```
skin (fallback)

Missing values inherit from

default

. Unknown skin names silently fall back to

default

Troubleshooting

Skin Not Loading

bash

# Check file exists
ls -la ~/.hermes/skins/

# Verify filename matches name field
cat ~/.hermes/skins/myskin.yaml | grep "^name:"
# Should output: name: myskin

# Check for YAML syntax errors
python3 -c "import yaml; yaml.safe_load(open('~/.hermes/skins/myskin.yaml'))"

Colors Not Applying

Define all 28 color keys — partial definitions inherit mismatched defaults
Use hex format
```
#RRGGBB
```
(6 digits)
Test in a terminal with true color support

ASCII Art Rendering Issues

yaml

# Use multiline string with | or >
banner:
  art: |
    Line 1
    Line 2
    Line 3

# NOT this:
banner:
  art: "Line 1\nLine 2"  # May not render correctly

Spinner Not Changing

bash

# Restart Hermes after editing skins
# Session-only skin changes require:
/skin reload  # If supported
# Or restart the agent

Testing Your Skin

bash

# Apply temporarily
hermes --skin myskin

# Or use the /skin command during session
/skin myskin

# Test all elements by triggering:
# - Banner (startup)
# - Prompt (type a message)
# - Response (get a reply)
# - Tool activity (trigger a tool call)
# - Errors (type invalid command)
# - Spinner (long-running task)

Generate Screenshots

If contributing to the repository:

bash

cd hermes-skins
python3 generate_screenshots.py
# Creates screenshots/<skinname>.png for each skin

Best Practices

Always define all 28 colors for production skins
Test ASCII art with different terminal widths
Use descriptive thinking verbs that match the theme
Keep branding text concise — long labels break layouts
Validate YAML syntax before submitting PRs
Include a description in the YAML and README

Resources

Full Schema Documentation
Hermes Agent Repository
Braille Unicode Patterns — U+2800 to U+28FF
True Color Terminal Test

hermes-skins-customization

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Hermes Skins Customization

Installation

Quick Start

Apply a Skin

Browse Available Skins

Creating a Custom Skin

Minimal Skin Example

Full Skin Example

Configuration Reference

Color Keys (All 28)

Banner Section

Prompt Section

Response Section

Tool Activity

System Messages

Interactive UI

Banner Art

Spinner Configuration

Branding Text

Common Patterns

Dark Theme Template

Retro CRT Terminal

Minimal Monochrome

Skin Loading Order

Troubleshooting

Skin Not Loading

Colors Not Applying

ASCII Art Rendering Issues

Spinner Not Changing

Testing Your Skin

Generate Screenshots

Best Practices

Resources