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Typst 0.13+ typesetting expert. Auto-loads on .typ files, show/set/let rules, figures, math mode, counters, state, context blocks, @preview, tinymist LSP, or typst compile/watch. Corrects outdated pre-0.12 idioms. Keywords typst, .typ, typesetting, show rule, @preview, tinymist, cetz, touying, Hayagriva.

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Typst (0.13+)

Typst is a markup-based typesetting system. Single-binary compiler, incremental compilation, CSS-like show/set rules instead of LaTeX macro hell.

Pin this skill to Typst 0.13.x idioms. LLM training data is typically pre-0.12 and will emit deprecated forms. The version-drift reference is the load-bearing piece — consult it before writing non-trivial Typst.

Three modes (the thing Claude conflates)

ModeEnter withInside, you write
Markupdefault, [...]prose, #heading[...], @label refs
Code#expr, {...}expressions, let, if, for, function calls
Math$...$math; multi-char names auto-treated as words, single letters as variables

Inside markup you need # before a function call (#image("a.png")). Inside code you don't (image("a.png")). Inside math, # drops back into code ($ #x $).

Three rule-like directives (most-wrong area)

#let name = value           // binding — value or function
#set heading(numbering: "1.") // "from here on, use these defaults"
#show heading.where(level: 1): it => [== #it.body]  // "rewrite matching content"
  • #show target: replacement — replacement is either a function it => ... (receives the element) or direct content.
  • it alone preserves default rendering; destructuring to it.body drops numbering, outline entries, counters. Use it.numbering, it.body, it.level explicitly, or just return it when you only want a side-effect styling like color.
  • Selectors: heading.where(level: 1), figure.where(kind: image), regex("\d+"), "literal string".
  • Set rules inside [...] don't leak out of that block.

context is mandatory for introspection (0.11+)

#context counter(heading).get()      // reading counter → needs context
#context here().page()               // location queries → needs context
#context document.title               // document metadata → needs context

locate(loc => ...) is deprecated — always use #context blocks. See version-drift.

Top 8 gotchas → where to look

  1. Show rule destructuring drops defaults → styling-and-state
  2. locate(), style(styles => ...) removed → version-drift
  3. image(path: ...) renamed to image(source: ...) in 0.13 → version-drift
  4. #set par(spacing:) replaced the old #show par: set block(spacing:) hack → version-drift
  5. Top-level #columns(n)[...] is discouraged; use #set page(columns: n) → version-drift
  6. Template = function that takes body + named args, applied via #show: tmpl.with(...) → templates
  7. @preview/pkg:x.y.z imports are version-pinned per-import; hallucinated versions fail → packages
  8. Math: multi-letter identifiers are treated as words unless #-escaped; alignment uses & → styling-and-state

Content vs str vs symbol

TypeLiteralConvertNotes
content[hello #name][#str_var]The universal display type
str"hello"str(42)Plain string; not str(content) — use .text or repr()
symbolsym.arrow.r—Unicode symbols; valid in markup & math

Compile

typst compile main.typ           # → main.pdf
typst compile main.typ out.svg   # also supports --format svg|png
typst watch main.typ             # live rebuild
typst compile --root . --font-path ./fonts main.typ

See toolchain for tinymist LSP, @local packages, CI.

When the user says "coming from LaTeX"

Strong signal — jump straight to latex-migration. The direct command-mapping table (\newcommand → #let, \usepackage → #import "@preview/...", align env → $ ... & ... \ $) is the fastest path.

References

  • version-drift — read this first for any non-trivial task. Do-not-emit list for deprecated pre-0.12 idioms.
  • styling-and-state — set/show/let semantics, context, counters, state, math mode rules.
  • templates — the #show: tmpl.with(...) pattern, packaging, author/title conventions.
  • latex-migration — translation tables for common LaTeX idioms.
  • packages — task → canonical @preview package picker with pinned versions.
  • toolchain — CLI, tinymist, fonts, @local dev namespace, CI rendering, package publishing.
| math; multi-char names auto-treated as words, single letters as variables |\n\nInside markup you need `#` before a function call (`#image(\"a.png\")`). Inside code you don't (`image(\"a.png\")`). Inside math, `#` drops back into code (`$ #x typst — Agent Skill guide | OpenParable ).\n\n## Three rule-like directives (most-wrong area)\n\n```typ\n#let name = value // binding — value or function\n#set heading(numbering: \"1.\") // \"from here on, use these defaults\"\n#show heading.where(level: 1): it => [== #it.body] // \"rewrite matching content\"\n```\n\n- `#show target: replacement` — replacement is either a function `it => ...` (receives the element) or direct content.\n- `it` alone preserves default rendering; destructuring to `it.body` **drops numbering, outline entries, counters**. Use `it.numbering`, `it.body`, `it.level` explicitly, or just return `it` when you only want a side-effect styling like color.\n- Selectors: `heading.where(level: 1)`, `figure.where(kind: image)`, `regex(\"\\d+\")`, `\"literal string\"`.\n- Set rules inside `[...]` don't leak out of that block.\n\n## `context` is mandatory for introspection (0.11+)\n\n```typ\n#context counter(heading).get() // reading counter → needs context\n#context here().page() // location queries → needs context\n#context document.title // document metadata → needs context\n```\n\n`locate(loc => ...)` is **deprecated** — always use `#context` blocks. See [version-drift](references/version-drift.md).\n\n## Top 8 gotchas → where to look\n\n1. Show rule destructuring drops defaults → [styling-and-state](references/styling-and-state.md)\n2. `locate()`, `style(styles => ...)` removed → [version-drift](references/version-drift.md)\n3. `image(path: ...)` renamed to `image(source: ...)` in 0.13 → [version-drift](references/version-drift.md)\n4. `#set par(spacing:)` replaced the old `#show par: set block(spacing:)` hack → [version-drift](references/version-drift.md)\n5. Top-level `#columns(n)[...]` is discouraged; use `#set page(columns: n)` → [version-drift](references/version-drift.md)\n6. Template = function that takes `body` + named args, applied via `#show: tmpl.with(...)` → [templates](references/templates.md)\n7. `@preview/pkg:x.y.z` imports are version-pinned per-import; hallucinated versions fail → [packages](references/packages.md)\n8. Math: multi-letter identifiers are treated as words unless `#`-escaped; alignment uses `&` → [styling-and-state](references/styling-and-state.md)\n\n## Content vs str vs symbol\n\n| Type | Literal | Convert | Notes |\n|---|---|---|---|\n| `content` | `[hello #name]` | `[#str_var]` | The universal display type |\n| `str` | `\"hello\"` | `str(42)` | Plain string; **not** `str(content)` — use `.text` or `repr()` |\n| `symbol` | `sym.arrow.r` | — | Unicode symbols; valid in markup & math |\n\n## Compile\n\n```bash\ntypst compile main.typ # → main.pdf\ntypst compile main.typ out.svg # also supports --format svg|png\ntypst watch main.typ # live rebuild\ntypst compile --root . --font-path ./fonts main.typ\n```\n\nSee [toolchain](references/toolchain.md) for tinymist LSP, `@local` packages, CI.\n\n## When the user says \"coming from LaTeX\"\n\nStrong signal — jump straight to [latex-migration](references/latex-migration.md). The direct command-mapping table (`\\newcommand` → `#let`, `\\usepackage` → `#import \"@preview/...\"`, align env → `$ ... & ... \\ typst — Agent Skill guide | OpenParable ) is the fastest path.\n\n## References\n\n- [version-drift](references/version-drift.md) — **read this first for any non-trivial task.** Do-not-emit list for deprecated pre-0.12 idioms.\n- [styling-and-state](references/styling-and-state.md) — set/show/let semantics, `context`, counters, state, math mode rules.\n- [templates](references/templates.md) — the `#show: tmpl.with(...)` pattern, packaging, author/title conventions.\n- [latex-migration](references/latex-migration.md) — translation tables for common LaTeX idioms.\n- [packages](references/packages.md) — task → canonical `@preview` package picker with pinned versions.\n- [toolchain](references/toolchain.md) — CLI, tinymist, fonts, `@local` dev namespace, CI rendering, package publishing.\n"}],"versionEndpoint":"/skill/api/version"}