Reveal.js Presentations

Create HTML presentations using reveal.js. No build step required - just open the HTML in a browser.

What You Create

A reveal.js presentation consists of:

HTML file - Contains slides and loads reveal.js from CDN
CSS file - Custom styles for layouts, colors, typography, and components

Design Principles

CRITICAL: Before creating any presentation, analyze the content and choose appropriate design elements:

Consider the subject matter: What is this presentation about? What tone, industry, or mood does it suggest?
Check for branding: If the user mentions a company/organization, consider their brand colors and identity
Match palette to content: Select colors that reflect the subject
State your approach: Explain your design choices before writing code

Requirements:

✅ State your content-informed design approach BEFORE writing code
✅ Use web-safe fonts (Arial, Helvetica, Georgia, Verdana, etc.) or Google Fonts via
```
@import
```
in CSS
✅ Create clear visual hierarchy through size, weight, and color
✅ Ensure readability: strong contrast, appropriately sized text, clean alignment
✅ Be consistent: repeat patterns, spacing, and visual language across slides
✅ Always use
pt
(points) for font sizes - slides are fixed-size, so
```
pt
```
is predictable and familiar (like PowerPoint/Keynote). Never use
```
em
```
,
```
rem
```
, or
```
px
```
for font sizes.

Color Palette Selection

Choosing colors creatively:

Think beyond defaults: What colors genuinely match this specific topic? Avoid autopilot choices.
Consider multiple angles: Topic, industry, mood, energy level, target audience, brand identity (if mentioned)
Be adventurous: Try unexpected combinations - a healthcare presentation doesn't have to be green, finance doesn't have to be navy
Build your palette: Pick 3-5 colors that work together (dominant colors + supporting tones + accent)
Ensure contrast: Text must be clearly readable on backgrounds

Example color palettes (use these to spark creativity - choose one, adapt it, or create your own):

Classic Blue: Deep navy (#1C2833), slate gray (#2E4053), silver (#AAB7B8), off-white (#F4F6F6)
Teal & Coral: Teal (#5EA8A7), deep teal (#277884), coral (#FE4447), white (#FFFFFF)
Bold Red: Red (#C0392B), bright red (#E74C3C), orange (#F39C12), yellow (#F1C40F), green (#2ECC71)
Warm Blush: Mauve (#A49393), blush (#EED6D3), rose (#E8B4B8), cream (#FAF7F2)
Burgundy Luxury: Burgundy (#5D1D2E), crimson (#951233), rust (#C15937), gold (#997929)
Deep Purple & Emerald: Purple (#B165FB), dark blue (#181B24), emerald (#40695B), white (#FFFFFF)
Cream & Forest Green: Cream (#FFE1C7), forest green (#40695B), white (#FCFCFC)
Pink & Purple: Pink (#F8275B), coral (#FF574A), rose (#FF737D), purple (#3D2F68)
Lime & Plum: Lime (#C5DE82), plum (#7C3A5F), coral (#FD8C6E), blue-gray (#98ACB5)
Black & Gold: Gold (#BF9A4A), black (#000000), cream (#F4F6F6)
Sage & Terracotta: Sage (#87A96B), terracotta (#E07A5F), cream (#F4F1DE), charcoal (#2C2C2C)
Charcoal & Red: Charcoal (#292929), red (#E33737), light gray (#CCCBCB)
Vibrant Orange: Orange (#F96D00), light gray (#F2F2F2), charcoal (#222831)
Forest Green: Black (#191A19), green (#4E9F3D), dark green (#1E5128), white (#FFFFFF)
Retro Rainbow: Purple (#722880), pink (#D72D51), orange (#EB5C18), amber (#F08800), gold (#DEB600)
Vintage Earthy: Mustard (#E3B448), sage (#CBD18F), forest green (#3A6B35), cream (#F4F1DE)
Coastal Rose: Old rose (#AD7670), beaver (#B49886), eggshell (#F3ECDC), ash gray (#BFD5BE)
Orange & Turquoise: Light orange (#FC993E), grayish turquoise (#667C6F), white (#FCFCFC)

Slide Content Principles

Diverse presentation is key. Even when slides have similar content types, vary the visual presentation:

Use different layouts across slides: columns on one, stacked boxes on another, callouts with icons on a third
Mix container styles: plain text, boxes, callouts, blockquotes
Use visual hierarchy:
```
<strong>
```
for key terms, different colors to distinguish categories
Break up lists with other elements (quotes, callouts, columns)
Don't repeat the same layout pattern on consecutive slides

Keep it scannable:

Short bullet points, not paragraphs
One main idea per slide when possible
Use icons (Font Awesome) to add visual interest

When a slide has less content, make it bigger - don't leave empty space with tiny text.

Workflow

Step 1: Plan the Structure

Based on the user's content, determine:

How many slides are needed
Which slides should be section dividers (centered, larger text)
Where to use vertical slide stacks for drill-down content

Step 2: Extract Template

Use the

create-presentation.js

script (located in the

scripts/

directory next to this SKILL.md file) to extract and customize a presentation template from

template.zip

bash

node <path-to-skill>/scripts/create-presentation.js --structure 1,1,d,3,1,d,1 --title "My Presentation" --output-dir ./presentations

Finding the script path: The script is at

scripts/create-presentation.js

relative to where this SKILL.md file is located. Common locations:

Project skill:

.claude/skills/revealjs/scripts/create-presentation.js

User skill:

~/.claude/skills/revealjs/scripts/create-presentation.js

Options:

```
--slides N
```
- Create N horizontal slides (simple mode)
```
--structure <list>
```
- Mixed layout with comma-separated values:
- ```
1
```
  = single horizontal slide
- ```
N
```
  (where N > 1) = vertical stack of N slides
- ```
d
```
  = section divider slide (centered, no content wrapper)
```
--output-dir, -o <dir>
```
- Output directory for deck folder (default: current directory)
```
--title <text>
```
- Presentation title (default: Presentation)
```
--slug <text>
```
- Custom slug for deck folder (default: random hex)

What gets created: The script extracts

template.zip

to a folder named

deck-{slug}/

containing:

```
index.html
```
- The presentation HTML file
```
lib/
```
- reveal.js library, plugins, fonts, and CSS (all dependencies included, no CDN needed)
```
assets/
```
- Folder for images, documents, and other assets (created automatically)

Examples:

bash

# 10 horizontal slides in ./presentations directory
node <path-to-skill>/scripts/create-presentation.js --slides 10 --output-dir ./presentations

# Mixed structure: intro, 2 content slides, divider, 3-slide vertical stack, divider, closing
node <path-to-skill>/scripts/create-presentation.js --structure 1,1,1,d,3,d,1 --title "Q4 Review" --output-dir ./decks

# Custom slug
node <path-to-skill>/scripts/create-presentation.js --structure 1,1,1,d,3,d,1,1 --title "My Deck" --slug mydeck

Step 3: Customize the CSS

The template includes all necessary CSS in

lib/offline-v2.css

. You can customize styles by:

Editing
lib/offline-v2.css
directly - This file contains all reveal.js styles and theme variables
Adding a custom CSS file - Link your own CSS file in
```
index.html
```
after the main stylesheet

Template includes local fonts in

lib/fonts/

- no need for Google Fonts CDN. Available fonts include:

Montserrat (default theme font)
Overpass, Overpass2
Lato
Open Sans
And many more (see
```
lib/fonts/
```
directory)

Using Google Fonts (optional): If you prefer Google Fonts, add an

@import

in a custom CSS file:

css

@import url('https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Playfair+Display:wght@400;600;700&family=Lato:wght@300;400;600&display=swap');

.reveal {
  font-family: "Lato", Helvetica, sans-serif;
}

.reveal h1, .reveal h2, .reveal h3 {
  font-family: "Playfair Display", Georgia, serif;
}

Typography guidance:

Always use
pt
(points) for font sizes - slides are fixed-size, so
```
pt
```
is predictable and familiar (like PowerPoint/Keynote)
Base text should be around 16-18pt for readability
When a slide has less content, increase font sizes to fill space appropriately
Use larger sizes (24pt, 32pt, 48pt) for headings based on hierarchy

Custom CSS example: Create a

custom.css

file in your deck folder and add it to

index.html

html

<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="lib/offline-v2.css">
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="custom.css">

Then customize in

custom.css

css

.reveal .slides section {
  padding: 40px 60px;
  text-align: left;
}

.reveal h1 { font-size: 48pt; }
.reveal h2 { font-size: 36pt; }
.reveal h3 { font-size: 24pt; }
.reveal p, .reveal li { font-size: 16pt; }

IMPORTANT - CSS Integration: When you create custom CSS files (like

custom.css

), they will be automatically integrated into

lib/offline-v2.css

when you run the finalization script (Step 7). The finalization script will:

Append all custom CSS files to
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
Remove external CSS file references from
```
index.html
```
Delete the separate custom CSS files

This ensures a single, consolidated CSS file for easier distribution.

Step 4: Fill in the HTML Content

Edit the

index.html

file in your deck folder to add content to each slide. Always use HTML markup, never markdown (even though the template includes a markdown plugin). Follow these patterns:

Standard slide structure:

html

<section id="unique-slide-id">
  <h2>Slide Title</h2>
  <div class="content">
    <!-- Content here -->
  </div>
</section>

Multi-column layouts - always use inline CSS grid (do NOT create utility classes like

.grid-2

html

<!-- Equal columns -->
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr); gap: 30px;">
  <div>Column 1</div>
  <div>Column 2</div>
</div>

<!-- Three columns -->
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(3, 1fr); gap: 25px;">
  <div>Column 1</div>
  <div>Column 2</div>
  <div>Column 3</div>
</div>

<!-- Unequal columns -->
<div style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1fr 2fr; gap: 30px;">
  <div>Narrow sidebar</div>
  <div>Wide main content</div>
</div>

Why inline styles for grids? Each slide's layout needs vary - column ratios, gaps, etc. Inline styles give you full control per-slide without creating dozens of utility classes.

Important HTML patterns:

Every
```
<section>
```
should have a unique
```
id
```
attribute for stable identification
Use
```
class="section-divider"
```
for centered section title slides
Wrap main content in
```
<div class="content">
```
for consistent spacing. This is a flexbox container that fills the remaining vertical space below the title, ensuring content flows properly.
Use
```
<div class="footnote">
```
for attribution or source text at bottom

Step 5: Check for Content Overflow

Run the overflow checker to ensure no slides have content that extends beyond boundaries:

bash

node <path-to-skill>/scripts/check-overflow.js deck-{slug}/index.html

Note: Replace

deck-{slug}

with your actual deck folder name.

The script checks each slide for:

Vertical overflow: Content taller than slide height
Horizontal overflow: Content wider than slide width

If overflow is detected, reduce content or adjust font sizes on affected slides.

Step 6: Visual Review with Screenshots

CRITICAL: You MUST review screenshots of EVERY SINGLE SLIDE. Do not skip slides or review only a sample. Visual issues are common and can only be caught by examining each slide individually.

Capture screenshots of all slides:

bash

cd deck-{slug}
npx decktape reveal "index.html?export" output.pdf \
  --screenshots \
  --screenshots-directory "screenshots/$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)"

Note: The

?export

query parameter disables chart animations for cleaner PDF rendering. Charts will still animate when viewing the HTML directly in a browser.

This creates a timestamped folder (e.g.,

screenshots/20241210_143052/

) so you can track versions and compare before/after fixes.

Then use the Read tool to examine each screenshot image file.

What to Look For

The overflow script catches most layout issues, but these problems require visual inspection:

Color inheritance in containers: Text inside boxes or callouts may inherit the wrong color from parent elements. If you have light text on a dark page background, text inside a light-colored
```
.box
```
or
```
.callout
```
will be unreadable unless you explicitly set dark text color for that container.
Fix pattern - explicitly set text and bullet colors for light containers:
css
```
.box-light p,
.box-light li {
  color: var(--text-dark);
}

.box-light ul li::before {
  background: var(--primary-color);  /* bullet color */
}
```
Custom bullet/list styling: If you override default list styles, bullets may not contrast well on all container backgrounds.
Icons not rendering: If Font Awesome fails to load, you'll see empty squares or nothing where icons should be.
Overflow edge cases: The script catches most overflow, but complex nested layouts occasionally slip through.
Unexpected text wrap: Text that you expected to fit on one line actually overflows to two lines. This is especially common in column layouts, where the header of one column may wrap while the rest don't, making things uneven.

Re-capture specific slides after fixes:

bash

npx decktape reveal "presentation.html?export" output.pdf \
  --screenshots \
  --screenshots-directory "screenshots/$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)" \
  --slides 2,5,7-9

Then re-examine the updated screenshots to verify fixes. The new timestamped folder makes it easy to compare with the previous version.

Step 7: Finalize Presentation

CRITICAL: After completing your presentation content and custom CSS, you MUST run the finalization script to integrate styles and clean up artifacts.

Run the finalization script:

bash

node <path-to-skill>/scripts/finalize.js deck-{slug}

What the finalization script does:

Creates
assets/
folder - Standard directory for images, documents, and other assets (also created automatically by
```
create-presentation.js
```
)
Integrates custom CSS - Finds all
```
*.css
```
files in the deck root (except
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
) and:
- Appends their content to
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
  with clear markers
- Removes the separate CSS files
- Removes external CSS
```
<link>
```
  tags from
```
index.html
```
  (keeps only
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
  )
Cleans build artifacts - Removes temporary files:
- ```
screenshots/
```
  directory (from decktape screenshot generation)
- ```
output.pdf
```
  (from decktape PDF export)

Why finalization is important:

Single CSS file: All styles consolidated in
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
for easier distribution
Clean HTML: No external CSS references that could break if files are moved
Production ready: Removes temporary build artifacts
Standard structure: Ensures
```
assets/
```
folder exists for organizing images/docs

When to run finalization:

After completing all slide content
After adding any custom CSS files
Before sharing or deploying the presentation
After generating screenshots/PDFs (to clean up artifacts)

Note: The

assets/

folder is created automatically by

create-presentation.js

, but the finalization script ensures it exists if you're finalizing an older deck.

CSS Components Reference

Boxes

css

.box {
  background: var(--box-bg);
  border: 1px solid var(--box-border);
  border-radius: 8px;
  padding: 20px;
}

.box-outlined {
  border: 1px solid var(--box-border);
  border-radius: 8px;
  padding: 20px;
  background: transparent;
}

Callouts

css

.callout {
  border-left: 6px solid var(--primary-color);
  padding: 15px 20px;
  margin: 15px 0;
  background: #f9f9f9;
  border-radius: 8px;
}

/* Color variants */
.callout-blue { border-left-color: #2196F3; background: #e3f2fd; }
.callout-orange { border-left-color: #ff9800; background: #fff3e0; }
.callout-green { border-left-color: #4caf50; background: #e8f5e9; }
.callout-gray { border-left-color: #666; background: #f5f5f5; }

Blockquotes

css

.reveal blockquote {
  border-left: 4px solid var(--primary-color);
  padding-left: 20px;
  margin: 20px 0;
  font-style: italic;
  background: none;
  box-shadow: none;
  width: 100%;
}

.reveal blockquote cite {
  display: block;
  margin-top: 10px;
  font-style: normal;
  color: var(--muted-color);
}

Icons (Font Awesome)

Font Awesome is included in the scaffold. Usage:

html

<i class="fa-solid fa-lightbulb"></i>
<i class="fa-solid fa-check"></i>
<i class="fa-solid fa-gears"></i>

Template Structure

The

template.zip

file contains a complete reveal.js presentation exported from slides.com, including:

reveal.js core (
```
lib/reveal.js
```
,
```
lib/reveal.css
```
) - The presentation framework
Plugins (
```
lib/reveal-plugins.js
```
):
- RevealZoom - Zoom into elements (Alt+Click / Ctrl+Click)
- RevealNotes - Speaker notes view (press S)
- RevealMarkdown - Markdown support (available but skill prefers HTML markup)
- RevealHighlight - Code syntax highlighting
Fonts (
```
lib/fonts/
```
) - Local font files for offline use
Styles (
```
lib/offline-v2.css
```
) - Complete CSS including themes
Offline support (
```
lib/offline.js
```
) - Works without internet connection

Note: The template uses slides.com format but we convert it to standard reveal.js

<section>

format when extracting. All plugins are pre-configured and ready to use.

Advanced Features

For fragments (progressive reveal), speaker notes, custom backgrounds, auto-animate, and transitions, see references/advanced-features.md.

Reveal.js Configuration

javascript

Reveal.initialize({
  controls: true,          // Show navigation arrows
  progress: true,          // Show progress bar
  slideNumber: true,       // Show slide numbers
  hash: true,              // Update URL hash for each slide
  transition: 'slide',     // none/fade/slide/convex/concave/zoom
  center: false,           // Vertical centering of slide content
  autoSlide: 0,            // Auto-advance (ms), 0 to disable
  loop: false,             // Loop presentation
});

Note on
center
: Default is

false

(content aligns to top), which works best for content-heavy slides. Set to

true

for minimal/creative presentations where you want content vertically centered.

Built-in Reveal.js Classes

Use these directly without custom CSS:

```
r-fit-text
```
- Auto-size text to fill slide
```
r-stretch
```
- Stretch element to fill remaining vertical space
```
r-stack
```
- Layer elements on top of each other

html

<h1 class="r-fit-text">BIG TEXT</h1>
<img class="r-stretch" src="image.jpg">

Adding Charts

IMPORTANT: Before adding ANY chart, you MUST read references/charts.md. Charts require specific flexbox/grid patterns to size correctly and avoid overflow. Do not attempt to add charts without reading the full documentation first.

Note: The template does not include Chart.js by default. To add charts, you'll need to include Chart.js and the reveal.js chart plugin. See references/charts.md for details.

Required pattern - charts need flexbox containers and

maintainAspectRatio: false

html

<section style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; height: 100%;">
  <h2>Chart Title</h2>
  <div style="flex: 1; position: relative; min-height: 0;">
    <canvas data-chart="bar">
    <!--
    {
      "data": {
        "labels": ["Q1", "Q2", "Q3", "Q4"],
        "datasets": [{ "label": "Revenue", "data": [12, 19, 8, 15] }]
      },
      "options": {
        "maintainAspectRatio": false
      }
    }
    -->
    </canvas>
  </div>
</section>

references/charts.md covers (required reading):

Layout patterns: full slide, half (horizontal/vertical), quarter, unequal splits (1fr 2fr, 1fr 3fr)
Why the flexbox pattern is required (Chart.js aspect ratio behavior)
All chart types (bar, line, pie, doughnut, scatter, etc.)
Styling and color options
CSV data format (simpler alternative to JSON)

Dependencies

Required for the scripts:

Node.js (for running scripts)
adm-zip (for template extraction):
```
npm install adm-zip
```
cheerio (for HTML parsing):
```
npm install cheerio
```
Puppeteer (for overflow checking):
```
npm install puppeteer
```
Decktape (for screenshots):
```
npx decktape
```
(runs directly)

revealjs

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Reveal.js Presentations

What You Create

Design Principles

Color Palette Selection

Slide Content Principles

Workflow

Step 1: Plan the Structure

Step 2: Extract Template

Step 3: Customize the CSS

Step 4: Fill in the HTML Content

Step 5: Check for Content Overflow

Step 6: Visual Review with Screenshots

What to Look For

Step 7: Finalize Presentation

CSS Components Reference

Boxes

Callouts

Blockquotes

Icons (Font Awesome)

Template Structure

Advanced Features

Reveal.js Configuration

Built-in Reveal.js Classes

Adding Charts

Dependencies