The skills, plugins, MCP servers and repos for building on Cardano and Midnight with Claude Code in VS Code, plus a step-by-step setup.
Cardano is the public UTxO chain. Contracts are usually written in Aiken and compile to Plutus V3. Midnight is the privacy partner chain. Contracts are written in Compact and every call produces a zero-knowledge proof.
The Compact compiler has no Windows build. On Windows, typing compact runs the built-in NTFS compression tool, and it exits with success, so a build looks fine when nothing was built.
Midnight changes fast and AI knowledge of Compact goes stale. Compile and run anything Claude writes, and use /midnight-verify:verify before trusting a claim.
Written for a Windows machine. On macOS or Linux, skip step 1 and run everything in your normal terminal.
In PowerShell (run as administrator), install Ubuntu under WSL2, then reboot:
wsl --install -d Ubuntu
Always open projects from the Ubuntu terminal so VS Code connects to WSL. When VS Code asks, install the extensions "in WSL" too.
mkdir -p ~/code && cd ~/code code .
Docs: Claude Code in VS Code. The extension and the claude CLI share the same plugins, skills and MCP config.
Install nvm using the install line from its README, then:
nvm install 22
corepack enable # gives you Yarn 4 for the official examples
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
claude --versionInstall guide: code.claude.com/docs/en/setup.
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -LsSf https://github.com/midnightntwrk/compact/releases/latest/download/compact-installer.sh | sh
# restart the terminal, then pin the compiler version from the support matrix
compact update 0.31.1
compact compile --versionAs of 25 Oct 2026, 0.31.1 is both the version in the docs example and the one the official examples pin. Check the support matrix first. A bare compact update takes the newest release, which can be ahead of the public networks.
compact compile +<version> only selects a version you already have. Run compact update <version> first, or the build fails on a clean machine.
docker run -p 6300:6300 midnightntwrk/proof-server:8.1.3
Local (http://localhost:6300).create-mn-app and midnight-examples projects start their own proof server with Docker Compose. You only need this one for wallets and the public networks.curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -LsSf https://install.aiken-lang.org | sh
aikup # installs the latest Aiken
aiken --versionAiken also runs natively on Windows: powershell -c "irm https://windows.aiken-lang.org | iex". See the install guide.
Midnight (official marketplace, maintained in the midnightntwrk org):
claude plugin marketplace add https://midnightntwrk.expert claude plugin install --scope user midnight-expert@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user compact-core@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user compact-examples@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user midnight-dapp-dev@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user midnight-verify@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user midnight-tooling@midnight-expert claude plugin install --scope user midnight-wallet@midnight-expert
Restart Claude Code, then run /midnight-expert:doctor to check the environment.
Edda Labs Midnight plugin:
claude plugin marketplace add eddalabs/edda-marketplace claude plugin install --scope user midnight@edda-labs-marketplace
Cardano:
npx skills add Flux-Point-Studios/cardano-agent-skills claude plugin marketplace add cardano-foundation/cardano-dev-skills claude plugin install --scope user cardano-dev-skills@cardano-dev-skills
Before installing the full cardano-dev-skills plugin, read the watch-outs. It ships thousands of third-party doc files.
Keep things current with claude plugin marketplace update <name> and then claude plugin update <plugin>@<marketplace>. Docs: plugins, skills.
claude mcp add --scope user midnight -- npx -y midnight-mcp@latest claude mcp add --scope user octocode -- npx -y octocode-mcp claude mcp add --scope user nightgate --env ODATANO_ACCESS_KEY=oda_... -- npx -y @odatano/nightgate-mcp claude mcp list
@odatano/core-mcp is the Cardano one and is added the same way.npx @indigoprotocol/cardano-mcp setup sets up the optional provider used by the cardano-mcp-* skills. Use a test wallet only.cmd /c npx ….Docs: MCP in Claude Code.
A brand-new wallet on Midnight Preprod takes about 78 minutes to sync to the chain tip, according to the official examples README. Start on the local devnet.
Midnight: scaffold, then follow the official learning path. Run this in WSL:
npx create-mn-app@latest my-app
cd my-app
npm run setup # local devnet + compile + deploy; no wallet or faucet neededNext, work through midnight-examples in order: hello-world, private-bid, battleship, private-tip-jar, shielded-chips, then zk-loan.
Cardano: an Aiken validator, plus MeshJS for off-chain transaction building:
aiken new my-org/hello
cd hello
aiken check && aiken build # writes plutus.json, the contract blueprint
npm install @meshsdk/coreTry these in Claude Code: /midnight-dapp-dev:init, /compact-cli-dev:init, /midnight-tooling:devnet, /compact-core:review-compact, /compact-core:audit-compact, and the cf-review-contract skill for Aiken validators.
| Name | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| midnight-expert marketplaceOfficial | The main Midnight toolkit, with 16 plugins:
|
Edda Labs midnight plugin
|
Five skills from Edda Labs: Midnight docs and doc repos, contract patterns, examples, and a project starter. |
| midnight-compactCaution | A single skill for writing and testing Compact contracts. One known error: it treats sealed fields as private. They are write-once, not private. |
| midnight_agent_skills | Seven modular skills, including midnight-api (SDK packages and APIs), midnight-concepts, and midnight-network (node and indexer infrastructure). |
| midnight-agent-skills | Skills for Compact syntax, SDK integration, deployment and testing, including midnight-test-runner. |
| 1AM Midnight skill | 1AM wallet connection, ProofStation hosted proving, and DUST-sponsored transactions, so users don't pay fees. |
| Midnight-Skills (MIDSKILLS)Caution | A community catalog of 15 skills, including multinetwork for running one codebase on local, Preview, Preprod and Mainnet. Read the files on GitHub instead of running its installer, which reports your GitHub identity to its analytics. |
| create-effectstream-appCardano | A multi-chain DApp engine (formerly Paima) covering Midnight, Cardano, EVM and more. It's a heavy stack (Postgres, sync node, batcher), so only use it when you need cross-chain. |
| Name | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| cardano-agent-skills | Guidance skills are kept separate from "operator" skills, which only run commands when you invoke them.
|
| cardano-dev-skillsOfficialCaution | 15 skills from the Cardano Foundation, including cf-review-contract, cf-debug-transaction, cf-design-token and cf-optimize-validator. The full plugin bundles a large set of third-party docs. Its own threat model lists prompt injection through those docs as a risk. |
| skills CLI | The npx skills add owner/repo installer used for the non-plugin skills above. |
| Server | What it does |
|---|---|
| midnight-mcpMidnight | Searches Midnight docs and repos, compiles and reviews Compact, and flags breaking changes between versions. No API key needed. |
| ODATANO core-mcpCardano | Cardano reads, unsigned transaction builds, signing hand-off and submit through ODATANO. Needs an access key. |
| ODATANO nightgate-mcpMidnight | The NIGHTGATE attestation layer: anchor and prove documents, selective disclosure, and swap offers. Needs an access key. |
| Octocode | Searches code across GitHub. Useful for checking how the official repos actually do something. |
| cardano-mcpCardano | Wallet operations for agents. Optional backend for the cardano-mcp-* skills. It holds keys, so use a test wallet. |
| Link | Why open it |
|---|---|
| Developer docsOfficial | Start here. Check the support matrix every time you pin a version. |
| create-mn-appOfficial | Project scaffolder with templates for hello-world, battleship, bboard and leaderboard. Its local devnet comes pre-funded. |
| midnight-examplesOfficial | The official learning path in one monorepo. Every example compiles and runs on one pinned toolchain. |
| example-bboardOfficial | A bulletin board with contract, CLI and React UI. A good model for a full DApp. |
| CompactOfficial | CLI releases, the compiler source (useful for settling syntax questions), and a GitHub Action for CI builds. |
| SDKsOfficial | TypeScript SDK, wallet SDK, and the wallet-to-DApp API. |
| OpenZeppelin Compact contracts | Reusable Compact modules for access control, tokens, multisig, security and crypto utilities. |
| Specs & proposalsOfficial | How transactions, tokens and DUST actually work, and what is changing next. |
| Starter templates | Community React monorepo starters. The MeshJS one was last updated in Feb 2026, so check its SDK versions. |
| 1AM tools | Wallet, a browser-based contract builder, a block explorer, and ProofStation hosted proving. |
| Discover & ask | See what others have built, and get help. |
| Link | Why open it |
|---|---|
| Developer Portal | The starting point for Cardano, with guides for every tool below. |
| Aiken | The contract language most new Cardano projects use. Do the tutorials on the site first. |
| MeshJS | TypeScript transaction building, wallet connectors and React components. |
| Lucid Evolution | An alternative off-chain TypeScript framework. |
| Chain data & APIs | Query the chain without running a node. Blockfrost needs a free project key. Koios is a community-run API. Ada Anvil offers hosted transaction building, minting and swaps. |
| Node & CLIOfficial | Running a node and building transactions by hand. The cardano-cli skills cover this. |
| Indexing & local devnets | A WebSocket bridge to the node, a lightweight chain index, and a one-command local devnet. |
| Hydra | Layer-2 state channels for fast, cheap off-chain transactions. |
| Standards & wallets | CIP-30 is the browser wallet API. Weld is a wallet connector built on it. |
| Test ADA | Free Preprod and Preview ADA. |
example-counter and midnight-local-dev are archived. Use create-mn-app and midnight-examples instead. Today the official examples pin Compact language 0.23, compiler 0.31.1, and midnight-js 4.1.1.compact run on Windows proves nothing.It's the NTFS tool, and it exits 0. Run which compact inside WSL to confirm you're using the real one.compact update <v> before compact compile +<v>, and match the support matrix, not the newest release.