[BUG] 2.1.129 prints "47 skill descriptions dropped" — same files load clean on 2.1.128

Summary

Claude Code 2.1.129 prints 47 skill descriptions dropped in the statusline / /doctor on startup for a config that loads cleanly on 2.1.128 with the same files. All skills function normally in both versions — the warning appears to be a false-positive (or at least a count mismatch) introduced by the new validator added in 2.1.129.

Likely related to / regression of the cap raised in 2.1.105 ("listing cap from 250 → 1,536 chars + startup warning when descriptions are truncated") and the display-truncation issue tracked in #44780.

Repro

1. ~/.claude/skills/ with 50 SKILL.md files, all valid YAML frontmatter, all description: ≤ 937 characters (under both the 1024-char API spec cap and the 1,536-char listing cap).
2. No block-scalar (> / >-) descriptions — all single-line plain or double-quoted scalars.
3. No nested skill subdirs without SKILL.md (checked).
4. No Claude Desktop skills (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json has empty mcpServers and no skills folder).

On 2.1.129

Statusline shows: 47 skill descriptions dropped · "/doctor" for details

On 2.1.128 (downgraded, same files)

No warning. All 50 skills load cleanly. Confirmed via /context showing identical skill counts and token sizes on both versions.

Inventory

• Total SKILL.md files: 50
• Descriptions over 250 chars: 22 (does not match "47")
• Descriptions over 1024 chars: 0
• Descriptions over 1,536 chars: 0
• Top 5 longest descriptions (chars): pdf-engine 937, mastra-ai 781, dudoxx-sandbox-creator 735, ddx-vhost-manager 733, create-nestjs 725
• Plus 24 agents in ~/.claude/agents/ (longest description 692 chars) and 11 commands in ~/.claude/commands/ (longest 204 chars)
• Plugins installed: 3 (claude-mem-thedotmack, pyright-lsp-claude-plugins-official, typescript-lsp-claude-plugins-official) — none provide SKILL.md files (find ~/.claude/plugins/data -name SKILL.md → 0 results)

What I Tried Before Discovering Downgrade Fixes It

1. Trimmed all descriptions to ≤1024 chars (was 5 over, all under now).
2. Converted block-scalar (description: >) frontmatter to single-line scalars.
3. Removed skills/_shared/ and skills/plans/ (subdirs without SKILL.md) — moved _shared/ to ~/.claude/lib/skill-helpers/.
4. Verified no over-cap descriptions in agents/commands.
5. Verified no other skills directories on disk.

None of the above changed the "47 dropped" count on 2.1.129.

Expected

Either:

• No warning when descriptions are within the documented cap, OR
• Warning shows the actual dropped count (not 47 when only 22 plausibly exceed any known threshold), OR
• /doctor lists which specific skills failed and why (current output is opaque).

Actual

Statusline says "47 dropped" without indicating which skills or why. /doctor is interactive (CLI/TUI) so the exact list is not easy to capture programmatically.

Environment

• macOS Darwin 25.4.0
• Claude Code: 2.1.129 (broken) ↔ 2.1.128 (works)
• Shell: zsh
• ~/.claude/ tree: 50 skills, 24 agents, 11 commands, 3 plugins, custom hooks
• No Claude Desktop skills; claude_desktop_config.json has empty mcpServers

Asks

1. Document the actual cap that fires the "X descriptions dropped" warning in 2.1.129 (250? 1024? 1536? something else?). Current docs and changelog are inconsistent.
2. Make /doctor non-interactive (or add a --json flag) so the dropped list can be captured.
3. Print at least the skill name alongside the count: 47 dropped: <name1>, <name2>, ....
4. If this is a known regression in 2.1.129, tag it and ship a 2.1.130 fix.

Related

• #44780 — skill-creator should warn when description exceeds 250-char display limit
• 2.1.105 changelog — "raised the listing cap from 250 to 1,536 characters and added a startup warning when descriptions are truncated"