xkcd – OpenClaw Skill

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name: xkcd description: Fetch xkcd comics - latest, random, by number, or search by keyword. Display comics with title, image, and alt text (the hidden joke). Generate custom xkcd-style stick figure comics using image generation. Perfect for daily comic delivery via cron, on-demand requests, or creating original xkcd-inspired content. homepage: https://xkcd.com metadata: {"clawdbot":{"emoji":"📊","requires":{"bins":["uv"]}}}

xkcd

Fetch comics from xkcd.com or generate xkcd-style images.

Commands

Latest Comic

uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py

Random Comic

uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py --random

Specific Comic

uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py 327         # Bobby Tables
uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py 353         # Python
uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py 1053        # Ten Thousand

Search by Keyword

uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py --search "python"
uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py --search "space" --limit 3

JSON Output

uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py --format json
uv run {baseDir}/scripts/xkcd.py --random --format json

Output Format

Default markdown output includes:

• Title: Comic title with number
• Image: Direct image URL
• Alt text: The hidden hover text (often the best part!)
• Link: Permalink to xkcd.com

Generating Custom xkcd-Style Comics

Use an image generation skill (e.g., nano-banana-pro) with this prompt pattern:

Create an xkcd-style comic: [your scene description]

Style: simple black and white stick figures, hand-drawn wobbly lines,
minimal background, clean white background, comic panel layout

Example prompt:

Create an xkcd-style comic: Two programmers at computers. First says
"I spent 6 hours automating a task." Second: "How long did the task take?"
First: "5 minutes." Second: "How often do you do it?" First: "Once a year."

Cron Examples

# Daily latest comic at 9 AM
cron add --schedule "0 9 * * *" --task "Fetch latest xkcd and send via Telegram"

# Random classic every Monday
cron add --schedule "0 10 * * 1" --task "Fetch random xkcd comic and share"

Classic Comics

• #327 "Exploits of a Mom" — Bobby Tables / SQL injection
• #353 "Python" — import antigravity
• #303 "Compiling" — sword fighting while code compiles
• #386 "Duty Calls" — someone is wrong on the internet
• #1053 "Ten Thousand" — lucky 10,000 learning something new
• #979 "Wisdom of the Ancients" — unanswered forum posts
• #927 "Standards" — how standards proliferate

API

Uses the official xkcd JSON API (no auth required).

• Latest: https://xkcd.com/info.0.json
• Specific: https://xkcd.com/{num}/info.0.json