Dr init

Initialize Darkroom Project

Create a new project using a Darkroom starter. Darkroom maintains two:

Starter	Stack	When to use
satus	Next.js 16 + App Router + RSC + React 19	Content-driven sites, SEO-critical, Vercel-friendly, projects that benefit from Server Components / Server Actions
novus	React Router 7 + Vite + React 19	SPA-leaning apps, projects that prefer the loader/action data model, projects without need for RSC, projects deploying to non-Vercel infra

Step 1 — Pick the starter

If the user already specified ("/dr-init satus", "/dr-init novus", "create new react-router project"), use that. Otherwise ask:

Which starter?
- satus (Next.js)   — App Router, Server Components, Vercel-optimized
- novus (React Router) — RR7, Vite, classic loader/action model

When the user is unsure, prefer satus for marketing/content sites and novus for app-heavy SPAs.

Step 2 — Clone

satus (Next.js)

bunx degit darkroomengineering/satus $ARGUMENTS
cd $ARGUMENTS
bun install

novus (React Router)

bunx degit darkroomengineering/novus $ARGUMENTS
cd $ARGUMENTS
bun install

Step 3 — Post-setup

Both starters:

1. Update package.json — change name, description.
2. Configure environment — copy .env.example to .env (or .env.local for satus).
3. Start dev — bun dev.
4. Open debug — Cmd/Ctrl + O (satus) or Cmd + . / Ctrl + O (novus).

What each starter includes

satus

• Next.js 16 + App Router
• React 19 + React Compiler
• TypeScript strict mode
• Tailwind CSS v4
• Biome
• Lenis smooth scroll
• Hamo performance hooks
• Image / Link component wrappers
• CSS Modules with s alias
• @/ path alias

novus

• React Router 7 + SSR via Vite
• React 19 + React Compiler
• TypeScript strict mode
• Tailwind CSS v4
• Biome
• Optional: WebGL (R3F), Anime.js, Theatre.js
• Sanity CMS integration (optional)
• t3-env + Valibot for typed env
• CSS Modules with s alias
• ~/ path alias

Project structure

satus

app/                 # Next.js routes
components/          # React components
lib/
├── hooks/          # Custom hooks
├── integrations/   # Third-party clients
├── styles/         # Global CSS, Tailwind
└── utils/          # Pure utilities

novus

app/
├── root.tsx        # Root layout
├── routes/         # Route modules (file-based)
└── routes.ts       # Optional explicit route config
components/         # React components
hooks/              # Custom hooks
integrations/       # Third-party clients
styles/             # Global CSS, Tailwind
utils/              # Pure utilities

Don't use

• create-next-app / create-react-app — missing Darkroom standards
• Manual setup — too many things to configure

Output

After initialization:

• Confirm project created and which starter was used
• List the next steps (env, dev server)
• Offer to start the dev server

Lenis smooth scroll

Both satus and novus starters ship Lenis wired up. For non-Darkroom projects needing Lenis setup, see commit history of the retired lenis skill (git log --all -- skills/lenis/).