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Counsel MCP

by mercurialsolo

Connects MCP clients to Counsel for strategic consultations, question refinement, progress tracking, reports, and advisor sessions.

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Install Counsel MCP

Pick your client, then add it in one click or paste the config.

STDIONode.js
~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
claude_desktop_config.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mercurialsolo-counsel-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "counsel-mcp-server"
      ],
      "env": {
        "COUNSEL_API_KEY": "YOUR_VALUE_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

Settings → Developer → Edit Config, merge this into mcpServers, then fully quit and reopen Claude Desktop.

Values are written into the snippet above so you can paste it as is. They never leave your browser.

Install not yet sandbox-tested— we haven't run this command through our automated sandbox yet. Not a red flag; we're working through the catalog.

Overview

The mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp MCP server connects AI agents to the Counsel API for strategic reasoning and multi-perspective analysis. It exposes tools for starting consultations, checking their progress, retrieving reports, refining questions, reviewing past consultations, and opening interactive advisor sessions. Use it when an agent needs structured input on complex decisions, stakeholder perspectives, brainstorming, or problem scoping. It supports local STDIO connections with API-key authentication and HTTP connections with OAuth 2.0.

Use cases

  • Analyze complex strategic decisions with multiple perspectives
  • Refine questions before launching a consultation
  • Track consultation progress and retrieve synthesis reports
  • Brainstorm or scope problems through an advisor session

Key features

  • Multi-perspective strategic consultations
  • Question refinement
  • Consultation status and report retrieval
  • Past consultation listing
  • Interactive advisor sessions
  • STDIO and HTTP transports

Tools6

What Counsel MCP lets your agent do. Expand a tool for its parameters.

Self-reported~125 tokens of context

Security & health

What it can reach and how reliably it runs — from our own checks, not the maintainer’s claims.

ActiveLast checked 1d ago

Recent health check succeeded.

5/5 checks healthy over the last 77d

Supply-chain signal

No high-severity advisories surfaced by our automated scan.

Critical 0High 0Medium 0Low 0

Scanned 11d ago via OSV.dev · counsel-mcp-server (npm)

Adoption & maintenance

Factual signals from GitHub, npm, and our automated checks — not a rating.

GitHub stars6Stargazers on the source repository.
npm downloads60Package downloads in the last 30 days.
Last commit9mo agoMost recent push to the default branch.
Tools exposed6Callable tools this server registers over MCP.
Directory activity3 viewsConfig copies, upvotes, and views on AllMCPs.

How Counsel MCP works

What mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp MCP server does

The mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp MCP server gives MCP-compatible AI clients access to Counsel's strategic reasoning and advisory workflows. Its consultation flow is designed for complex questions that benefit from multiple perspectives. A consultation can include additional context, named stakeholders, and a selected analysis depth: quick, standard, or deep.

The server also supports a separate advisor workflow for interactive brainstorming and problem scoping. Before launching a consultation, an agent can use the question-refinement tool to make a strategic question more specific.

How it works

The mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp MCP server can run in two transport modes. STDIO mode is intended for local MCP clients and starts through the counsel-mcp-server start command. In this mode, the server authenticates to Counsel with the COUNSEL_API_KEY environment variable.

HTTP mode runs a separate local HTTP process with counsel-mcp-server http. Clients connect to its /mcp endpoint. This mode provides OAuth 2.0 discovery and authentication, so the client handles sign-in and token management rather than receiving an API key. The hosted endpoint is also available at http://counsel-mcp.getmason.dev/mcp for clients that support HTTP transport.

Consultations are represented by an ID. After starting one, an agent can poll its status and request the final synthesis report once processing is complete. Past consultations can be listed with an optional result limit.

Setup and configuration

Self-hosting requires Node.js 18 or newer and a Counsel account. Local clients can launch the package with npx:

config.json
{
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "counsel-mcp-server", "start"]
}

For STDIO connections, add COUNSEL_API_KEY to the client environment. The README provides configurations for Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code with Copilot. HTTP deployments use the http command and can set a custom port, such as 3000.

Tools and capabilities

  • start_consultation: Begin a debate-style analysis with a question, optional context, analysis mode, and stakeholders.
  • get_consultation_status: Check an active consultation by debate ID.
  • get_consultation_report: Retrieve the completed synthesis for a debate ID.
  • list_consultations: Show previous consultations, with a configurable limit.
  • sharpen_question: Improve a strategic question before analysis.
  • consult_advisor: Start an interactive session from an initial question or topic.

Limitations and notes

The server depends on a Counsel account and the Counsel API. STDIO mode requires an API key, while HTTP mode requires an MCP client that supports HTTP transport and OAuth 2.0. Consultation reports are available only after the associated consultation has completed.

Read the full README View source on GitHub

Reviews

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Frequently Asked Questions about Counsel MCP

mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp is an MCP server that connects AI agents to the Counsel API. Its main tools start strategic consultations, check consultation status, retrieve synthesis reports, list past consultations, sharpen questions, and open interactive advisor sessions for brainstorming or problem scoping.

Install it by configuring your MCP client to run `npx -y counsel-mcp-server start`. Self-hosting requires Node.js 18 or newer and a Counsel account. For STDIO mode, provide `COUNSEL_API_KEY` in the client environment.

Yes, mercurialsolo/counsel-mcp works with Cursor through its MCP configuration. Add a server entry that runs `npx -y counsel-mcp-server start`; STDIO mode can authenticate with the `COUNSEL_API_KEY` environment variable.

Run `npx -y counsel-mcp-server http --port 3000`, then configure the client to use `http://localhost:3000/mcp` with HTTP transport. HTTP mode uses OAuth 2.0 and does not require a manually supplied API key.

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