| name | skill-creator |
| description | Author a new agent Skill (a SKILL.md directory in the open Agent Skills format) from the Anthropic template. Use when the user wants to create a skill, scaffold a SKILL.md, package a repeatable workflow as a reusable skill, turn instructions into a skill, or capture a procedure so the agent can auto-invoke it later. Produces a valid SKILL.md (name + description frontmatter, optional scripts/ and references/) and saves it into the project's skills directory. |
| metadata | {"version":"1.0"} |
Skill Creator
Scaffold a new, spec-valid agent Skill from the Anthropic template and save it so the agent can discover and auto-invoke it.
A skill is a directory <name>/SKILL.md: YAML frontmatter (name, description) plus markdown instructions the agent follows when the description matches the task. It can bundle scripts/ and references/. See references/agent_skills_spec.md for the full contract.
Workflow
Copy this checklist and check off steps as you go:
Progress:
- [ ] 1. Gather skill intent (name, purpose, triggers)
- [ ] 2. Draft from the template
- [ ] 3. Write the body (instructions/workflow)
- [ ] 4. Add scripts/ and references/ if needed
- [ ] 5. Validate the frontmatter
- [ ] 6. Save into the project (save_skill)
- [ ] 7. Confirm + note how it activates
1. Gather Intent
Ask the user (or infer from context):
- name — short, lowercase, hyphenated (e.g.
convert-vasp-outputs). This becomes the directory name and the invocable name.
- purpose — one sentence on what the skill does.
- triggers — the user requests / phrasing that should make the agent reach for this skill. These become keywords in the
description.
2. Draft From the Template
Start from references/SKILL_template.md. Fill the frontmatter:
name: must equal the directory name.description: pack it with what it does AND when to use it (trigger phrases) — this is the only thing the agent sees when deciding to invoke. Keep it ≤ 1536 characters.
3. Write the Body
After the frontmatter, write the instructions the agent will follow. Prefer a copyable checklist (like this one) for multi-step workflows. Reference bundled files by relative path, e.g. [reference](references/notes.md), or run a bundled script with ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/foo.py so paths resolve regardless of cwd.
4. Add Supporting Files (optional)
scripts/ — runnable helpers the body invokes.references/ — long docs/templates loaded on demand (keep them OUT of SKILL.md so they cost no tokens until used).
5. Validate
Confirm before saving:
- Frontmatter is valid YAML between
--- fences.
name is present, lowercase-hyphenated, and equals the intended directory name.description is present and ≤ 1536 characters.- Any
[link](references/...) and ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/... paths exist.
6. Save
Save via the save_skill MCP tool with the spec (frontmatter dict: name, description, optional tags), the body markdown, and any reference_files (a {relative_path: contents} map). This writes <project>/skills/<name>/ and mirrors it into the platform's native skill directory (e.g. .claude/skills/) immediately (no KB indexing — search_skills is for the not-yet-installed catalog).
7. Confirm
Tell the user the skill was saved and is ready to use. Future sessions auto-discover it natively; to apply it in the current session, read skills/<name>/SKILL.md and follow it — that is all native invocation does. Do not tell the user a restart or any other action is needed.
