Sequential Thinking (Reference) vs write-a-skill
Sequential Thinking (Reference) is an MCP server published by modelcontextprotocol. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). write-a-skill is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by Alireza Rezvani. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Community GitHub marketplaces). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-14. This pair was picked by a reader, not by our comparison rule, so search engines are asked not to index the page.
Where each is published
| Marketplace |  Sequential Thinking (Reference) | |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: sha256:cd3174b2ecf3 Forks (GitHub): 11 787 Pulls (Docker Hub): 421 359 Stars (Docker Hub): 30 Stars (GitHub): 91 222 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Community marketplace alirezarezvani/claude-skills | Not listed | Listed Version: 2.9.0 Forks (GitHub): 3 939 Stars (GitHub): 28 149 Not marked · First seen |
Each figure is the marketplace's own and is never added up across marketplaces. A marketplace that publishes no figure shows none: no number is not zero.
The facts side by side
| Fact | Sequential Thinking (Reference) | write-a-skill |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it | 1 | 1 |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 91 222 (better) | 28 149 (worse) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | 421 359 | No figure on Docker Hub |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 11 787 (better) | 3 939 (worse) |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (mcp/sequentialthinking) | Installs as a plugin bundle |
| Transport (differs) | stdio | Not stated |
| Tools it declares (differs) | 1 | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for | Not published | Not published |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | Not a bundle | 3 |
| Licence (differs) | NOASSERTION | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/modelcontextprotocol/servers | github.com/alirezarezvani/claude-skills |
| Changes in the last 7 days (differs) | 0 | 2 |
| First seen (differs) | 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-14 |
Lines where the two differ have a tinted background and bold values. Where the data itself says which value is better (more marketplaces, a larger figure of the same marketplace, a fresher release, a verified mark on a marketplace that lists both), the better one is also marked green with ▲ and the worse one red with ▼. Where it runs, the transport, the tools, the settings, hooks, the bundle's parts, the licence and the week's changes are marked only as different: more or fewer is not better in itself.
What each says it does
Sequential Thinking (Reference)
Dynamic and reflective problem-solving through thought sequences.
write-a-skill
Skill-author skill: create new agent skills with proper structure, progressive disclosure, and bundled resources. Derived from Matt Pocock's MIT-licensed write-a-skill with: (1) 3 stdlib Python validation tools (description validator, structure validator, review-checklist runner — all enforcing Matt's 6-item checklist), (2) 4 references citing 7-8 authoritative sources each (progressive disclosure principles, description design patterns, quality gates, companion tooling), (3) cs-skill-author persona agent + /cs:write-a-skill slash command. Matt's voice and 3-phase workflow (Gather → Draft → Review) preserved verbatim per MIT.
How to run each
Sequential Thinking (Reference) As a local MCP server: Docker image
claude mcp add --transport stdio sequentialthinking -- docker run -i --rm mcp/sequentialthinkingwrite-a-skill As a Claude Code plugin
/plugin marketplace add alirezarezvani/claude-skills
/plugin install write-a-skill@claude-code-skillsCommands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Tools each declares
The marketplaces of write-a-skill publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
Neither one's marketplaces publish the settings it asks for.
What it can do: Sequential Thinking (Reference) · What it can do: write-a-skill · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. Data comes from public marketplace files in GitHub repositories of their authors. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.