AstroWay Astrology API (full catalogue)

Plum Blossom (Mei Hua) Cast

astroway_iching_plum_blossom

Read-onlyIdempotent

Casts a hexagram from the moment of the question by the Mei Hua Yi Shu method: Chinese lunar year branch, lunar month and day (from the ephemeris, Beijing days) and the hour branch give the upper trigram, the lower trigram and one moving line; the response shows every term and sum, the Legge reading, and ti and yong (the asker and the matter) with their five-phase verdict.

[Group: I Ching (Standalone)] [Endpoint: POST /v1/iching/plum-blossom] [Required: date, time] [Cost: 10 credits (Tier 1)]

Tool call template

Replace each placeholder with a value matching the input schema. Only required parameters are included; add optional parameters as needed.

{
  "id": 1,
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "arguments": {
      "date": "<date>",
      "time": "<time>"
    },
    "name": "astroway_iching_plum_blossom"
  }
}

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`date`	Yes	Date of the question, YYYY-MM-DD.
`time`	Yes	Clock time of the question, HH:mm or HH:mm:ss; gives the hour branch.
`fields`	No	Compact mode: comma-separated dotted paths to keep, relative to `data`, e.g. "planets.name,planets.longitude,houses.cusp". Omit for the whole response.
`timezone`	No	IANA zone name such as Europe/Kyiv, or auto to look the zone up from latitude and longitude. The server takes the offset that zone kept at this local date and time, summer time included, and uses it in place of timezoneOffset. A clock time that happened twice takes the first occurrence; one skipped when clocks went forward takes the offset from before the change. Abbreviations such as EST are refused. Before 1970 the tz database is not reliable for every place, so send timezoneOffset when the local clock is known.
`precision`	No	Compact mode: round fractional numbers to this many decimals. Longitudes carry 14 by default; 2 is finer than any chart is drawn.
`timezoneOffset`	No	Hours from UTC at the place of the question; places the lunar day. Defaults to 8, China Standard Time. Ignored when timezone is sent.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`date`	No
`time`	No
`focus`	No
`lines`	No
`terms`	No
`source`	No
`tiYong`	No
`primary`	No
`lunarDate`	No
`resulting`	No
`meiHuaSource`	No
`changingLines`	No
`readingRuleSource`	No

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

AddedNov 7, 2026

TDQS

A3.5/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare readOnly, idempotent, non-destructive and closed-world, so safety is covered; the description adds real value by explaining the deterministic derivation (lunar year branch, month, day, hour branch → upper/lower trigram and one moving line) and what the response contains (every term and sum, Legge reading, ti/yong five-phase verdict), plus cost and endpoint metadata. It does not flag the pre-1970 tz-database caveat or reliability limits of the computed moment, which would have pushed this higher.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

One dense but well-ordered sentence that moves from input derivation to output contents, followed by compact structured tags for group, endpoint, required params and cost. The main sentence is run-on and could be split, but nothing is filler.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

With an output schema present and 100% parameter coverage, the definition covers what is needed to call the tool: the required date/time, the method, and the shape of the result. The remaining gap is comparative guidance against the many other I Ching tools, which matters given this crowded sibling set.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100%, so the parameters are already documented; the description only adds the interpretive link that 'time' supplies the hour branch and that the lunar inputs come from the ephemeris in Beijing days. It says nothing about the roles of timezone, timezoneOffset, fields or precision, leaving the schema to carry those.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose4/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description names a specific verb and resource ('Casts a hexagram') and pins down the exact method (Mei Hua Yi Shu from the moment of the question), so an agent can distinguish it from coin-toss or question-based I Ching siblings by the input it requires. It stops short of naming a sibling explicitly, so differentiation is by inference rather than stated contrast.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines2/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

There is no when-to-use / when-not-to-use guidance and no mention of the obvious alternatives in the sibling list (astroway_iching_throw_coins, astroway_iching_by_question, astroway_iching_reading). The phrase 'from the moment of the question' implies the caller must have a timestamp, but the agent is left to infer that this is the time-based cast rather than one of several I Ching entry points.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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