| name | nvim-plugin-docs |
| description | Investigates a Neovim plugin's documentation through a fixed priority chain — Context7 first, then the local clone in ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/<repo>, then the plugin's GitHub repo. Use whenever you need a plugin's setup options, require-module name, API, keymaps, or lazy-load triggers before installing or configuring it. Also covers Mason-provisioned LSP servers, conform formatters, and nvim-lint linters (e.g. intelephense, phpstan) — these don't have a local lazy clone, so the chain adapts (see Tier 2). |
| allowed-tools | mcp__plugin_context7_context7__resolve-library-id mcp__plugin_context7_context7__query-docs mcp__plugin_github_github__search_repositories mcp__plugin_github_github__get_file_contents Read Grep Glob WebFetch |
Investigate a plugin's docs
Input: $ARGUMENTS is a plugin identifier — usually author/repo (e.g. folke/flash.nvim), sometimes just a require module or repo name.
Derive the local dir name
Take the repo part verbatim as the local directory name under the lazy store. Examples:
| Input | Local dir |
|---|
folke/flash.nvim | ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/flash.nvim |
numToStr/Comment.nvim | ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/Comment.nvim |
rebelot/heirline.nvim | ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/heirline.nvim |
Note: this differs from the spec-file naming rule in nvim-add-plugin (no .nvim strip, no case-fold). The dir name is the repo verbatim.
Tier 1 — Context7 (preferred)
resolve-library-id with libraryName: <author>/<repo>.query-docs for the specific question (setup options / module name / API / keymaps / lazy-load events).
Known-good IDs (skip resolve for these):
| Plugin | Context7 ID | Covers / full catalog |
|---|
| Neovim runtime docs | /neovim/neovim | starting.txt, lua.txt, options.txt, syntax.txt, … |
| lazy.nvim | /folke/lazy.nvim | spec format, startup sequence, lazy-loading |
| nvim-lspconfig | /neovim/nvim-lspconfig | per-server defaults; full server list: :help lspconfig-all |
| conform.nvim | /stevearc/conform.nvim | full builtin list: :help conform-formatters |
| nvim-lint | /mfussenegger/nvim-lint | full builtin list: README "Available Linters" table |
| heirline.nvim | /rebelot/heirline.nvim | component/condition/util API |
If Context7 returns good coverage for the question, report the answer and stop.
Tier 2 — local lazy clone (exact installed version)
Use this when Context7 is thin, the question is version-specific to the pinned commit, or the answer needs to match what is actually running (per lazy-lock.json). The local clone is always the exact installed version.
Path: ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/<repo>/
Priority within the clone:
doc/*.txt — Vim help files (most complete, structured).README.md — quickstart and usage summary.lua/ source — for actual setup() defaults and option tables not documented elsewhere.
Use Glob to find files, Read to read them, Grep to search within them.
Tier 2 short-circuits Tier 3. The local clone is the GitHub repo checked out at the pinned commit, so if the dir exists it is authoritative — answer from it and stop; never fall through to Tier 3 for a locally-installed plugin (going online would only re-fetch the same docs).
Mason-provisioned tools have no local clone. LSP servers, conform formatters, and nvim-lint linters (intelephense, phpstan, phpcs, …) are installed by Mason, not lua/plugins/ — there is no ~/.local/share/nvim/lazy/<name>/ for them. Skip straight to Tier 3, and note the target repo is usually not the same as a Tier 1 wrapper ID: Context7's /neovim/nvim-lspconfig (or /stevearc/conform.nvim / /mfussenegger/nvim-lint) only documents that wrapper's own defaults (cmd, root_markers, a minimal settings snippet) — the tool's own full settings schema and behavior lives in the tool's own docs/website/repo (e.g. intelephense's settings are at bmewburn/intelephense-docs and intelephense.com/docs, not neovim/nvim-lspconfig).
Tier 3 — online repo (only when not installed locally)
Reach this tier only when the plugin dir is absent — a new plugin not yet added, or one you are evaluating before installing.
- GitHub MCP
get_file_contents to read doc/, README.md, wiki/ from the <author>/<repo> repo.
search_repositories (query repo:<author>/<repo>) for the About tagline and repo metadata.- WebFetch
https://github.com/<author>/<repo> as last resort.
Output contract
Report the answer with:
- (a) Which tier it came from — Tier 1 (Context7), Tier 2 (local clone at the path you read), or Tier 3 (GitHub: URL or file cited).
- (b) The exact
require("<module>") name — the module name often differs from the repo name. Always call it out explicitly. Example: numToStr/Comment.nvim → require("Comment") (capital C, not the repo slug). This mismatch class is common and load errors silently swallow it.
Cross-links
- To add a plugin after investigating its docs, use
/nvim-add-plugin. This skill is its step-4 engine.
- For Neovim-core / LSP / treesitter behavior (not a third-party plugin), the known IDs above apply directly — no tier fallback needed.
