MARP Slides Skill
Author slide decks as plain Markdown using the MARP ecosystem (Marpit + Marp Core + marp-cli) and export to PDF, PowerPoint, or self-contained HTML. Decks are single .md files, git-friendly, and themable with plain CSS.
When This Skill Triggers
- User asks for a MARP deck by name
- User wants "markdown slides" or "slides from markdown"
- User wants a
.mdfile they can commit to git and regenerate deterministically - User mentions
marp-cli, Marpit directives, or asks to theme slides with CSS - User wants CLI-exportable PDF or PPTX sourced from a text document
When NOT to Use This Skill
| User wants | Use instead |
|---|---|
| Reveal.js / browser-native HTML presentation with scroll nav | html-presentation |
Edit a binary .pptx with native PowerPoint features (animations, transitions set in PowerPoint) | document-skills:pptx |
| Static poster or single-page visual | concept-to-image |
| Animated explainer video | concept-to-video |
Step 0: Gather Requirements
Before generating anything, confirm in a single message. Use defaults silently for anything the user declines to specify — never ask twice.
| Parameter | Options | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Export target | pdf, pptx, html, all | pdf |
| Theme | dark-dashboard, light-editorial, or MARP built-in (default, gaia, uncover) | dark-dashboard |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9, 4:3 | 16:9 |
| Slide count | integer or auto | auto |
| Visual density | minimal (text-first), standard (mixed), dashboard (charts + metric cards) | standard |
| Branding | logo path, accent color hex | none |
Step 1: Load References On-Demand
Do NOT read all reference files up front. Based on user intent, load only what is needed. This keeps the skill within armory's token-efficiency budget.
| User intent | Load |
|---|---|
| Any deck (always required) | references/DIRECTIVES.md — Marpit directives, frontmatter schema, image syntax |
| Custom theme or CSS styling | references/THEMES.md — dark-dashboard and light-editorial starter CSS |
| Charts, dashboards, metric cards, SVG visuals | references/COMPONENTS.md — SVG chart recipes, cards, status tags, icons |
| Export to PDF/PPTX/HTML or image | references/EXPORT.md — marp-cli flags, Chrome dependency, --html flag |
| User wants a concrete example to match | references/examples/ — 3 curated decks: dashboard.md, editorial.md, technical.md |
Step 2: Compose the Deck
- Start with frontmatter. Every deck begins with a YAML front-matter block setting
theme,paginate,header,footer, and optionally globalstyle. SeeDIRECTIVES.mdfor the full schema. - Split slides with
---. A horizontal rule on its own line creates a new slide. Frontmatter must come before the first slide break. - First slide = title. Use
<!-- _class: lead -->to center the title slide, and<!-- _paginate: skip -->to hide it from the page count. - Middle slides = content. Prefer one idea per slide. If density is
dashboard, use metric cards and SVG charts fromCOMPONENTS.md. If density isminimal, use large headings and whitespace. - Last slide = summary/CTA. Mirror the lead class on the closing slide for visual symmetry.
- Background images use extended syntax:
,,. Multiple![bg]tags on one slide arrange horizontally; addverticalfor a column layout.
Step 3: Verify Before Handoff
- Frontmatter block present and valid YAML
theme:matches a known name (built-in or custom in the file's globalstyle:block)- Every slide break is
---on its own line with blank lines around it - Relative image paths only (MARP's
--allow-local-filesrequires this for PDF export) - If using raw HTML (SVG, custom divs), confirm the export command uses
--html - Run the export command once locally to confirm no directive warnings
Step 4: Export
See references/EXPORT.md for the full command reference. Minimal invocation:
npx @marp-team/marp-cli@latest slides.md --pdf --allow-local-files --htmlThis skill wraps the MIT-licensed MARP ecosystem. See root ATTRIBUTIONS.md for upstream credits.
Design Rules
- One idea per slide. MARP clips overflow silently — there is no warning for content that runs off the bottom.
- Paginate: skip on title and divider slides. paginate: hold on appendix slides.
- Relative paths only for images. Absolute paths break in VS Code preview and PDF export.
--htmlis required for any SVG,<div>,<details>, or inline styling. Without it, MARP escapes HTML tags to text.- Cap lists at 6 rows on content slides. Use
detailscollapsibles or a second slide for more. - Headings carry meaning:
h1for slide title,h2for subtitle,h3for uppercase section labels. Consistent hierarchy = consistent visual rhythm. - Never hardcode theme CSS into every slide. Define it once in the global
<!-- style: | -->directive or a separate.cssfile loaded viatheme:.