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Build a custom coding skill with ZCode

Build a custom coding skill in ZCode, call it with $ in chat, bring in your Claude Code skills and add plugins from a marketplace in 20 minutes.

By Recaply EditorsIntermediate20 min6 stepsUpdated

A hand drops a sheet of paper into a wooden crate that holds 2 wrenches and a screwdriver

What you need

  1. Step 1: Install ZCode and connect GLM

    4 min

    ZCode needs a connected model before its Agent can answer, and a Coding Plan sign-in routes requests for you.

    1. Download ZCode from zcode.z.ai and install it.
    2. On first launch, click Connect in the bottom-left corner and sign in with your Z.ai account.
    3. Pick your project folder as the workspace.
    4. In Settings > Model Settings, select Z.ai and set the switch in the top-right corner to Coding Plan.

    You should see GLM-5.3 in the model menu of the chat box.

    The Agent doesn't reply?

    You skipped the sign-in. Click the model name in the chat box, then Manage Models, and connect your Z.ai account.

    The Coding Plan tab in Usage Stats shows how much of your 5-hour and weekly quota is left.

  2. Step 2: Write the skill file

    5 min

    A skill is a folder with one SKILL.md file that tells the Agent when to use it and how to work.

    1. Create the folder ~/.zcode/skills/pr-review-checklist. The folder name is the skill's name.
    2. Inside it, save a file named SKILL.md with the text below. Change the checklist to fit your team.
    3. To skip writing it by hand, go to Settings > Skills and click New Skill. The Agent drafts the skill with you in chat.
    Your SKILL.md
    ---
name: pr-review-checklist
description: Review code changes before a pull request. Use when the user asks to review a diff, a branch or their current changes.
---

# PR review checklist

Review the current changes in this order:

1. Correctness: logic errors, edge cases, off-by-one mistakes.
2. Regressions: anything that changes existing behaviour.
3. Tests: new code paths without a test.
4. Security: secrets in code, unchecked input, risky API calls.
5. [YOUR TEAM'S RULE]

List each problem with its file, line and a suggested fix. End with a one-line verdict: ready, or needs changes.

    You should see a SKILL.md file inside ~/.zcode/skills/pr-review-checklist.

    The skill doesn't show up?

    Check that the top of the file has both name and description. A description over 1,024 characters drops the whole skill, so keep long rules in the body.

    For one project only, put the folder in .zcode/skills inside that project instead.

  3. Step 3: Turn the skill on and call it

    3 min

    ZCode loads new skills only after a refresh, and $ calls a skill by name.

    1. Go to Settings > Skills and click Refresh.
    2. Find pr-review-checklist and check that its switch is on.
    3. In the chat box, type $, pick the skill, then type your request after it.
    Your prompt
    $pr-review-checklist review my current changes

    You should see a review that follows your checklist in order and ends with a verdict.

    The skill works with $ but never starts on its own?

    Make the description say exactly when to use it. Then turn off skills you don't use, since too many crowd out the descriptions the model reads.

  4. Step 4: Bring in your Claude Code skills

    2 min

    Skills you already wrote for Claude Code or Codex CLI work in ZCode, so you don't have to write them again.

    1. In Settings > Skills, click the Import icon in the top-right corner.
    2. Select the skills you want from the list ZCode finds.
    3. Pick Symlink to follow later edits, or Copy for a separate copy. Then pick Global or Project.

    You should see the imported skills in your list, each with its switch on.

    An imported skill stopped working?

    A symlinked skill needs its source folder. If you moved or deleted it, import the skill again with Copy.

  5. Step 5: Add a marketplace and install a plugin

    4 min

    A plugin bundles skills, commands, subagents and MCP servers, so one install adds a whole set of tools.

    1. Go to Settings > Plugins. Browse Public, or Personal, where the Claude Code marketplace is already added.
    2. To add another source, click Create > Add marketplace and enter a GitHub repo as owner/repo.
    3. Click Install on a plugin card.
    4. Type / in the chat box to find the plugin's commands and skills.

    You should see the plugin marked Installed and its commands in the / menu.

    The page says "Open a workspace to manage plugins"?

    Open a project folder first. If the catalog still won't load, check that you can reach GitHub, then click Refresh.

    Enabled plugins can run programs and read the Agent's environment variables. Read a third-party plugin's code and its hooks/hooks.json before you install it.

  6. Step 6: Keep your plugins current

    2 min

    Plugins change, and the manage page lets you update, pause or remove each one.

    1. Click the gear icon at the end of the Installed row to open Manage installed.
    2. Click Check for updates. Plugins with a new version get a badge.
    3. Use the switch on the right to turn a plugin off, or click it to uninstall.

    You should see every plugin with its version, its source and an on or off switch.

    An update you expected doesn't appear?

    Open Marketplace sources with the gear icon above the search box and click Refresh this marketplace. Then check again.

You get

Your own coding skill in ZCode, your Claude Code skills alongside it, and plugins you can update in one place

Try next

Run Claude Code on GLM-5.3 with the GLM Coding Plan6 steps · 20 minInstall agent skills in OpenCode6 steps · 5 minInstall agent skills in GitHub Copilot6 steps · 5 min

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