holonovel

Story Journal Management

manage_story

Destructive

Record, update, remove, list, or promote typed story journal entries—decisions, moments, revelations, bonds, and consequences—with filtering, pagination, and undoable mutations.

Instructions

Manage the story journal — typed narrative memories (decision, moment, revelation, bond, consequence). record appends an entry and consumes the turn_handle minted by take_turn; update edits a mutable entry; decision and consequence entries are immutable and refuse update or promotion; remove deletes an entry by index; promote copies an entry into lore under a derived or supplied key. list filters by type and paginates with offset and limit, returning previews unless detail is set. Mutations require the GM or Editor badge, persist to the Novel, and are undoable via manage_history (action: undo); list is read-only. Use when: recording, editing, removing, listing, or promoting story beats. Do NOT use when: recording a durable world fact — use manage_lore (action: set).

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description
`key`	No	Optional lore key (promote).
`type`	No	Story entry type (record/update).
`entry`	No	Story entry text (record/update).
`index`	No	Story entry index (update/remove/promote).
`limit`	No	Optional page size (list).
`action`	Yes	record, update, remove, list, or promote.
`filter`	No	Optional type filter (list).
`offset`	No	Optional pagination offset (list).
`turn_handle`	No	Turn handle minted by take_turn (record); consumed on success.

Output Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`text`	No	Human-readable text envelope mirroring the structured result (REQ-001, REQ-548a).
`status`	Yes	Machine-readable result status: OK, NEED_INPUT, WARNING, PARTIAL, or an error category (REQ-002, REQ-548c).

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed1 schema field changedOct 22, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / turn_handle

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Turn handle minted by take_turn (record); consumed on success.",
+  "type": "string"
+}

Addedv1.0.3Sep 29, 2026

TDQS

A4.8/5.0

Behavior5/5

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

Annotations only declare the crude profile (destructiveHint=true, non-idempotent). The description adds far more: decision and consequence entries are immutable and refuse update/promotion, mutations require the GM or Editor badge, changes persist to the Novel, and they are undoable via manage_history (action: undo), while list is read-only. It also discloses that record consumes the turn_handle minted by take_turn — a hidden side effect no annotation conveys.

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?

It is front-loaded on the resource, then the per-action inventory, then the when/when-not routing — a sensible order with no filler sentences. The single dense paragraph is slightly run-on for nine parameters, but every clause carries information.

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

Completeness5/5

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

For a nine-parameter, five-action mutation tool the description covers action semantics, immutability constraints, permissions, side effects, undo path, and sibling exclusion; return values are covered by the existing output schema, so nothing an agent needs is missing.

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

Parameters4/5

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

Schema coverage is 100%, so the baseline is 3, but the description goes further by binding parameters to actions: turn_handle is consumed on record, index applies to update/remove/promote, and list uses filter with offset/limit returning previews unless detail is set. It doesn't cover formatting expectations for entry text, so it stops short of a 5.

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

Purpose5/5

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

The description names a specific resource (the story journal) and then defines each of the five actions — record, update, remove, list, promote — with concrete semantics. It distinguishes itself from siblings by naming manage_lore for durable world facts, so an agent can route correctly without opening the schema.

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

Usage Guidelines5/5

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

Explicit "Use when: recording, editing, removing, listing, or promoting story beats" and "Do NOT use when: recording a durable world fact — use manage_lore (action: set)." That is a named alternative plus the condition that selects it, leaving nothing to inference.

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