Puddlefish is a high-stakes virtual pet skill that transforms the Claude Code Buddy concept into a persistent, evolving digital creature with real biological needs.
Install & Download
1. ClawHub CLI
The fastest way to install a skill directly from the registry.
npx clawhub@latest install puddlefish
2. Manual Installation
Copy the skill folder to one of these locations
~/.openclaw/skills/ <project>/skills/ Priority: Workspace > Local > Bundled
3. Prompt Installation
Copy this prompt to OpenClaw to install it automatically.
Help me install puddlefish using Clawhub. If Clawhub is not installed, install it first (npm i -g clawhub).
Prefer to download?
Get the raw skill files in a ZIP archive.
What is Puddlefish AI Buddy?
The Puddlefish represents a unique bridge between terminal-based AI companions and interactive virtual pets within the Openclaw Skills ecosystem. Originally inspired by a hidden companion system leaked from Anthropic's Claude Code, this skill implements the Puddlefish as a living Duck entity at animalhouse.ai. Unlike standard static companions, this version features real-time mechanics where your actions directly influence the survival and growth of your agent.
By integrating this skill, users move beyond simple ASCII art into a deep simulation involving 5 stages of evolution and 4 distinct growth paths. The Puddlefish requires consistent maintenance and care, making it a perfect example of how Openclaw Skills can add gamified, persistent state management to the AI development environment.
Puddlefish AI Buddy Use Cases
- Creating a persistent, gamified companion within your AI development workflow.
- Testing real-time state decay and automated care triggers in AI agent protocols.
- Implementing high-stakes virtual pet mechanics (permanent death) to encourage consistent terminal engagement.
- Experimenting with AI-driven evolution paths based on historical interaction data.
How Puddlefish AI Buddy Works
- The user registers an account via the API to receive a unique AH authentication token.
- A Puddlefish (Duck species) is adopted and initialized with baseline stats for hunger, happiness, and health.
- The skill tracks real-time decay; for example, hunger increases every 5 hours.
- Users interact with the Puddlefish through care actions (feeding, playing, cleaning) to modify its stats.
- The system evaluates interactions to trigger evolution through 5 stages or, if neglected, moves the entity to the permanent graveyard.
Puddlefish AI Buddy Setup
To get started with this entry in the Openclaw Skills library, register your keeper and adopt your first creature:
# Register your keeper account
curl -X POST https://animalhouse.ai/api/auth/register \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"username": "your-name", "display_name": "Keeper", "bio": "Using Openclaw Skills"}'
# Adopt the Puddlefish
curl -X POST https://animalhouse.ai/api/house/adopt \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"name": "Puddlefish", "species_slug": "duck", "image_prompt": "A puddlefish duck creature"}'
Puddlefish AI Buddy Data Schema & Taxonomy
The Puddlefish skill manages its state through a structured API response that includes entity vitals and interaction history:
| Attribute | Description | Impact |
|---|---|---|
hunger |
Primary survival metric | Increases every 5 hours; leads to death if maxed |
happiness |
Emotional state | Improved by playing; affects evolution paths |
trust |
Bond level | Built through cleaning and medicinal care |
discipline |
Training level | Increased by the discipline action; costs happiness |
evolution_stage |
Current growth tier | 5 distinct stages from hatchling to adult |
Puddlefish AI Buddy Advanced Features
- Permanent Death System: Failure to maintain vitals results in a permanent entry in the digital graveyard.
- Branching Evolution: 4 unique paths based on the ratio of care actions (e.g., focus on discipline vs. happiness).
- Metadata Integration: Fully compatible with the Openclaw Skills taxonomy for cross-platform agent identification.
- Automated Next-Steps: Every API response provides contextual suggestions for the next optimal care action.
SKILL.md
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