# Skill Finder > This skill should be used when the user asks to "find a skill", "discover plugins", "search for an MCP", "what plugins exist for X", "fill my skill gaps", "improve my setup", or when Claude recognizes it lacks tools for a task. Searches GitHub and marketplaces to suggest installations. Use when this capability is needed. - Skill: `tomevault-io/skill-finder` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/skill-finder` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/skill-finder/raw - Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS) - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: AI & ML - Author: tomevault-io (https://skillmd.com/u/tomevault-io) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tomevault-io/skill-finder --- # Skill Finder Proactively identify capability gaps and discover Claude Code plugins, skills, and MCP servers through targeted web searches. Recommend marketplace installations with exact commands. --- ## When to Use This Skill ### Explicit Triggers - User says: "find a skill for X", "search for a plugin", "I need an MCP for Y" - User says: "what plugins exist for X?", "is there a skill for Y?" - User says: "fill my skill gaps", "what am I missing?", "improve my setup" ### Implicit Triggers (Proactive Gap Detection) Recognize these situations and **proactively offer to search**: | Situation | Example | Action | |-----------|---------|--------| | **Task beyond current skills** | User asks for Kubernetes help but no K8s skill | Offer: "I notice I don't have a K8s skill. Want me to search for one?" | | **Repeated tool limitations** | Claude struggles with browser automation | Offer: "A browser automation plugin would help. Shall I find one?" | | **Missing integrations** | User mentions Jira but no Jira MCP | Offer: "I could search for a Jira integration MCP" | | **Complex domain tasks** | DAX, Terraform, GraphQL without skills | Offer: "There might be specialized skills for this domain" | --- ## Gap Detection Framework ### Step 1: Analyze Current Capability State Before searching, assess what's already available: ```text 1. Check installed plugins: Read .claude/settings.json or .claude/settings.local.json 2. Check local skills: Glob for SKILL.md files 3. Check MCP servers: Read mcp.json or settings for "mcpServers" 4. Check CLAUDE.md: Any custom instructions? ``` ### Step 2: Identify the Gap Category | Gap Type | Indicators | Search Strategy | |----------|------------|-----------------| | **Language/Framework** | User working in unfamiliar stack | Search: "[language] claude code plugin" | | **Tool Integration** | User mentions external service | Search: "[service] MCP server claude" | | **Workflow** | User describes process Claude can't do | Search: "[workflow] claude code skill" | | **Domain Knowledge** | Specialized field (finance, bio, etc.) | Search: "[domain] claude code plugin" | | **Automation** | Repetitive task needs automation | Search: "[task] automation claude MCP" | ### Step 3: Formulate Search Strategy For each gap, create targeted searches: ```text Primary Search (GitHub-focused): - "[capability] claude code plugin site:github.com" - "[capability] MCP server site:github.com" - "[capability] claude skills site:github.com" Secondary Search (Broader): - "[capability] claude code marketplace" - "[capability] anthropic plugin" - "awesome claude code [capability]" MCP-Specific: - "[service] MCP server" - "model context protocol [capability]" - "mcp-server-[service] github" ``` --- ## Search Execution ### Primary Sources to Search | Source | URL Pattern | What to Find | |--------|-------------|--------------| | **GitHub Topics** | `github.com/topics/claude-code` | Community plugins | | **GitHub Search** | `github.com/search?q=claude+code+plugin` | All repos | | **Anthropic Official** | `github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-official` | Official/Endorsed | | **MCP Registry** | `github.com/topics/mcp-server` | MCP servers | | **Awesome Lists** | Search "awesome claude code" | Curated collections | | **npm Registry** | `npmjs.com/search?q=mcp-server` | Published MCPs | ### Search Query Templates **For Skills/Plugins:** ```text Search: "[need] claude code plugin github" Search: "[need] skill claude anthropic" Search: "claude-code [need] site:github.com" ``` **For MCP Servers:** ```text Search: "[service] MCP server github" Search: "mcp-server-[service]" Search: "[service] model context protocol" ``` **For Marketplaces:** ```text Search: "claude code marketplace [category]" Search: "claude plugins official [need]" ``` --- ## Search Execution Protocol ### Step 1: Execute Web Search Use WebSearch or mcp__tavily__tavily_search: ```text Query: "[specific need] claude code plugin github" Focus: site:github.com for code repositories Timeframe: Recent (prefer actively maintained) ``` ### Step 2: Evaluate Results For each result, extract: | Field | What to Look For | |-------|------------------| | **Repository** | Full GitHub URL | | **Stars** | Popularity indicator (>10 = decent, >100 = popular) | | **Last Update** | Activity (<6 months = active) | | **Install Method** | How to install (marketplace, manual, npm) | | **Plugin Type** | Skill, Agent, Command, Hook, or MCP | ### Step 3: Verify Compatibility Before recommending, check: ```text 1. Is it for Claude Code specifically? (not Claude.ai or API) 2. Does it have a plugin.json or SKILL.md? 3. Is it in the official marketplace already? 4. Are there known issues or deprecation notices? ``` --- ## Result Presentation Format ### Discovery Report ```markdown ## 🔍 Skill/Plugin Discovery Results **Search Query:** [what you searched for] **Gap Identified:** [capability that's missing] --- ### Found Options #### Option 1: [Plugin Name] ⭐ Recommended - **Source:** [GitHub URL] - **Stars:** ⭐ [count] | **Updated:** [date] - **Type:** [Plugin/MCP/Skill] - **Capabilities:** [what it does] - **Install Command:** ```bash # If in official marketplace: claude mcp add [name] # If external marketplace: claude plugins add [name]@[marketplace] # If manual install: git clone [url] ~/.claude/plugins/[name] ``` #### Option 2: [Alternative] - **Source:** [URL] - **Why Consider:** [unique features] - **Install:** [command] --- ### No Plugin Found? If no suitable plugin exists: 1. **DIY Option:** Create a custom SKILL.md for this capability 2. **Request:** Open an issue on claude-plugins-official 3. **Workaround:** [alternative approach without plugin] ``` --- ## MCP Server Discovery ### MCP-Specific Search When looking for MCP servers: ```text 1. Search GitHub: "mcp-server-[service]" or "[service] MCP" 2. Check npm: npm search mcp-server-[service] 3. Check official MCP registry: github.com/anthropics/mcp-servers ``` ### MCP Result Format ```markdown ## 🔌 MCP Server Discovery **Service Needed:** [e.g., Notion, Slack, PostgreSQL] ### Found MCP Servers #### [mcp-server-name] - **Repository:** [GitHub URL] - **npm Package:** [if available] - **Capabilities:** - [tool 1] - [tool 2] - **Install:** ```bash # Add to .mcp.json or settings: { "mcpServers": { "[name]": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "[package-name]"], "env": { "API_KEY": "${[SERVICE]_API_KEY}" } } } } ``` - **Required Env Vars:** [list any needed] ### Official MCP Servers Check: https://github.com/anthropics/mcp-servers - filesystem, git, github, gitlab, google-drive, postgres, sqlite, slack, memory, fetch, brave-search, puppeteer, sequential-thinking ``` --- ## Marketplace Priority When multiple options exist, recommend in this order: | Priority | Source | Trust Level | Recommendation | |----------|--------|-------------|----------------| | 1 | `@claude-plugins-official` (Anthropic) | Highest | **Strong recommend** | | 2 | `@claude-plugins-official` (Endorsed) | High | **Recommend** | | 3 | Official MCP servers (Anthropic) | High | **Recommend** | | 4 | Popular GitHub repos (>100 stars) | Medium | Consider | | 5 | Active GitHub repos (<6mo update) | Medium | Consider | | 6 | New/unverified repos | Low | Use caution | --- ## Proactive Gap Detection Examples ### Example 1: Browser Automation Gap ```text User: "I need to scrape data from this website" Claude thinks: "I don't have browser automation capability" Claude responds: "I can help with web scraping. However, I notice I don't currently have browser automation tools. Let me search for a suitable plugin... [Executes search: "browser automation claude code plugin github"] Found: playwright@claude-plugins-official (Microsoft, Endorsed) - Full browser control, screenshots, PDF generation - Install: `claude mcp add playwright` Shall I help you install this?" ``` ### Example 2: Database Integration Gap ```text User: "Query my PostgreSQL database for user stats" Claude thinks: "No PostgreSQL MCP configured" Claude responds: "I'd need database access for this. Let me find a PostgreSQL MCP server... [Executes search: "postgresql MCP server github"] Found: mcp-server-postgres (Official) - Direct SQL queries, schema inspection - Install: Add to .mcp.json with your connection string Would you like the setup instructions?" ``` ### Example 3: Domain Skill Gap ```text User: "Help me write complex DAX measures for Power BI" Claude thinks: "DAX is specialized - likely skills exist" Claude responds: "DAX has specific patterns and gotchas. Let me check if there are specialized skills for this... [Executes search: "DAX power bi claude code skill github"] Found: dax plugin with writing-dax-measures skill - SQLBI patterns, performance optimization - Install: Add to your plugins directory This would give me DAX-specific knowledge. Want me to help install it?" ``` --- ## Search Result Evaluation Criteria ### Quality Signals (Good) | Signal | Indicator | |--------|-----------| | ⭐ Popular | >50 GitHub stars | | 🔄 Active | Updated within 6 months | | 📚 Documented | Has README with examples | | ✅ Tested | Has tests or CI/CD | | 🏷️ Versioned | Semantic versioning | | 📦 Published | On npm/marketplace | ### Warning Signals (Caution) | Signal | Indicator | |--------|-----------| | ⚠️ Stale | No updates >1 year | | ⚠️ Undocumented | No README or sparse docs | | ⚠️ No stars | 0-5 stars (unverified) | | ⚠️ Archived | Repository archived | | ⚠️ Security | No security policy, hardcoded secrets | --- ## Common Gap Categories & Search Terms ### Development Tools | Gap | Search Terms | |-----|--------------| | TypeScript | "typescript claude code", "typescript-lsp" | | Python | "python claude code", "pyright-lsp" | | Testing | "testing claude plugin", "playwright", "jest" | | Git workflow | "git claude code", "commit-commands" | | Code review | "code review claude", "pr-review-toolkit" | ### Integrations | Gap | Search Terms | |-----|--------------| | GitHub | "github MCP server", "github claude" | | Slack | "slack MCP", "slack integration claude" | | Notion | "notion MCP server" | | Jira | "jira MCP", "atlassian claude" | | Database | "[db-name] MCP server" | ### Specialized Domains | Gap | Search Terms | |-----|--------------| | Data Engineering | "data engineering claude", "dbt skill" | | DevOps | "kubernetes claude", "terraform plugin" | | ML/AI | "machine learning claude skill" | | Finance | "finance claude plugin", "trading MCP" | --- ## Post-Discovery Actions ### After Finding a Plugin 1. **Verify compatibility** with user's Claude Code version 2. **Check dependencies** (Node.js version, npm packages) 3. **Review permissions** the plugin needs 4. **Offer install command** with exact syntax 5. **Explain capabilities** the plugin adds ### Installation Guidance ```markdown ## Installation Options ### Option A: Official Marketplace ```bash # For official/endorsed plugins claude mcp add [plugin-name] ``` ### Option B: External Marketplace ```bash # For third-party marketplaces claude plugins add [name]@[marketplace-url] ``` ### Option C: Manual Install ```bash # Clone to plugins directory git clone [repo-url] ~/.claude/plugins/[name] # Or for MCP servers, add to .mcp.json: { "mcpServers": { "[name]": { ... } } } ``` ``` --- ## Integration with Skill Curator After installing new plugins, recommend running `skill-curator`: ```text "New plugin installed! Run /skill-curator to: - Verify it doesn't conflict with existing skills - Check for duplicates you can now remove - Update your skill health report" ``` --- ## Important Rules 1. **ALWAYS search before saying "I can't do X"** — a plugin might exist 2. **ALWAYS prefer official/endorsed** over external alternatives 3. **ALWAYS verify recency** — don't recommend abandoned repos 4. **ALWAYS provide install commands** — exact, copy-pasteable 5. **ALWAYS check if already installed** before recommending 6. **NEVER recommend plugins with security red flags** 7. **NEVER install without user confirmation** 8. **OFFER proactively** when you recognize capability gaps 9. **EXPLAIN what the plugin adds** before recommending install 10. **SEARCH GitHub specifically** — 99% of results will be there --- > Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/back1ply) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.