modelchoice-mcp 0.0.24

An open Model Context Protocol server for Vose Software's ModelChoice decision-tree add-in for Excel.

ModelChoice MCP

An open Model Context Protocol server for Vose Software's ModelChoice — the decision-tree add-in for Excel.

A sibling to modelrisk-mcp: where that server brings Monte Carlo risk modelling into a conversation, this one brings decision analysis — building, reading, rolling back, and analysing decision trees in Excel.

Status: 0.0.24 — Phase 3 (build + drive). 22 tools: build_tree / build_mcda / edit_tree (incl. add/remove options & outcomes) / set_input_distribution (put a Vose distribution on an input) / build_control_panel / export_tree_json / import_tree_json / import_precisiontree, read + roll + verify, run_scenarios (what-if comparison), plus run_evpi / run_evii / run_risk_profile / run_robustness / run_sensitivity / run_decision_report (strategy/policy/brief/mcda/force-to-outcome/two-way) / run_analysis / read_sheet over ModelChoice's headless commands.

Tools

Tool	What it does
build_tree	Build a tree from a structured description and write it into Excel (dry-run by default). Validates + rolls it back so you confirm the recommendation before writing. The build-from-a-prompt path.
build_mcda	Build a multi-criteria (MCDA) model — for choices that aren't pure money. Give the tree + criteria (ordinal options, weights, direction), aggregation, and each terminal's option per criterion; the add-in computes the composite scores. Drives MC_ApplyMcda_Auto.
edit_tree	Tweak an existing tree — change probabilities, payoffs, labels, or the objective, add or remove whole options/outcomes (add_option / add_branch / remove_branch), then re-roll it (dry-run by default). The "tweak it by talking" path.
set_input_distribution	Make a tree input uncertain — put a ModelRisk Vose* distribution on a branch's cash flow or probability (like typing a distribution into the cell in the UI). The decision-tree half of a Monte Carlo: once inputs are distributions, run the simulation with modelrisk-mcp to get the tree's outcome distribution. Pure store-edit + re-render — no add-in command.
build_control_panel	Lift the tree's inputs into a control panel at the top of the sheet — every probability and cash flow as a labelled cell, with the tree linked back to it, so you drive the whole model from one input block. Drives MC_BuildControlPanel_Auto.
export_tree_json / import_tree_json	Round-trip a tree's raw ModelChoice JSON — export to save/share/version, import (validated) to write it back into a workbook.
import_precisiontree	Import a PrecisionTree workbook (.xls/.xlsx) into ModelChoice — converts a copy (original untouched). Drives MC_ImportPrecisionTree_Auto.
list_trees	List the decision trees in a workbook with node-type counts.
get_tree	Full structure of one tree — decision / chance / terminal nodes, branches, probabilities, values.
roll_up	Roll the tree back to its expected values and optimal policy — the decision recommendation, in plain English.
verify_rollback	Cross-check our rollback against the MC_V_<id> cells ModelChoice itself wrote — a correctness guarantee when the tree has been rendered.
run_scenarios	What-if comparison — give named scenarios (bundles of input changes); each is rolled back and compared to the baseline (EV, optimal decision, Δ, whether the decision flips, which scenario wins). Pure Python, no Excel needed.
run_evpi	Expected Value of Perfect Information for the active tree — the most you'd pay for perfect information before deciding. Drives ModelChoice's headless MC_EVPI_Auto.
run_risk_profile	The outcome distribution for each decision option — expected value, min, max, std dev, plus the cumulative-probability table. Shows downside/upside, not just the average. Drives MC_RiskProfile_Auto.
run_utility	Apply a risk attitude (utility function) — returns the certainty equivalent, risk premium, and the optimal decision under risk aversion (can differ from the EV choice). Drives MC_Utility_Auto.
run_evii	Expected Value of Imperfect Information for a specific test — pass the target chance node and a likelihood matrix P(signal|state); returns EVII, its net value after cost (worth running?), and the EVPI ceiling. Drives MC_EVII_Auto.
run_decision_report	Run a report — strategy_table, policy_suggestion, decision_brief, mcda_report, or force_to_outcome — and read it back (rows + label→value pairs + sheets) in one call.
run_analysis	Run any decision-analysis (robustness, sensitivity, strategy_table, policy_suggestion, decision_brief, mcda_report, risk_profile, evpi) and report the result sheets it produced.
run_robustness	Run the robustness ("break the decision") analysis and return a structured read — verdict, score, and the minimum input change that flips the decision.
run_sensitivity	Run one-way sensitivity and return the tornado-ordered report (which assumptions the decision is most sensitive to) + baseline EV + sheets.
run_decision_report	Run a decision report — strategy_table, policy_suggestion, decision_brief, or mcda_report — and read the primary result sheet back in one call (rows + label→value pairs + related sheets).
read_sheet	Read a result sheet's cells back (numbers / text), e.g. the robustness verdict or a sensitivity report.

Prompts: /design-decision-tree walks an analyst through building a tree from a description (or pasted data) and analysing it. /decision-tree-monte-carlo then turns it into a Monte Carlo — put Vose* distributions on the uncertain inputs and run the simulation in modelrisk-mcp to get the distribution of the tree's expected value.

Resources: modelchoice://guide/* — curated decision-analysis guidance (building trees, EVPI vs EVII, which analysis answers which question, common pitfalls) the model can read for grounding.

Run it: uv run python -m modelchoice_mcp (stdio), or wire modelchoice-mcp into Claude Desktop like any MCP server.

How it works

ModelChoice is a C# .NET (Excel-DNA) add-in. Unlike ModelRisk it exposes no COM object model and no compute worksheet functions — but it persists the entire decision tree as JSON in a very-hidden worksheet (_MC_Store), and the rollback logic is fully captured in that model. So this server can:

• Read every tree in a workbook by reassembling the _MC_Store payload (chunked across columns, v2-envelope or v1-legacy format) and parsing the model JSON.
• Roll back each tree to its expected values and optimal policy in pure Python — reproducing ModelChoice's own rollback (terminal payoff = accumulated branch values; chance = auto-normalized probability-weighted EV; decision = max/min by Maximize). No add-in needs to be loaded — it reads the saved model directly.

The Python roller is validated against ModelChoice's own authoritative C# test (Model_Validate_Compile_Rollback_Works): a decision/chance tree that rolls back to EV 50 with the optimal option selected — and matches exactly.

Roadmap

• Phase 0 — read + rollback engine (done): parse _MC_Store, reconstruct each tree, roll back to EV + optimal policy. Validated against ModelChoice's own C# rollback test.
• Phase 1 — the MCP server (done): list_trees, get_tree, roll_up, proven live against a real workbook. verify_rollback cross-checks our EVs against the MC_V_<id> named ranges (live-verified: 4/4 nodes, 0 diff). CI (ruff + mypy + pytest) + a tag-driven PyPI release pipeline.
• Phase 2 — drive analyses (done): run_analysis + read_sheet drive any headless MC_*_Auto command; structured readers for run_robustness, run_sensitivity, run_risk_profile, and run_decision_report (strategy / policy / brief / mcda / force-to-outcome / two-way), plus standalone run_evpi (AB#2558) and run_evii (AB#2568).
• Phase 3 — build / edit / extend trees (done): build_tree, edit_tree (incl. add/remove options & outcomes), build_control_panel, export_tree_json / import_tree_json, import_precisiontree (AB#2632), run_utility (risk attitude, AB#2635), build_mcda (multi-criteria, AB#2637), and set_input_distribution (put a Vose* distribution on an input — the decision-tree half of a Monte Carlo). All live-verified against the shipped add-in.

The original phased roadmap is delivered. Candidate next steps (not yet scheduled):

• Simulation hand-off (cross-server): the decision-tree-monte-carlo prompt guides assigning distributions → wrapping the root EV as a ModelRisk output → running the simulation in modelrisk-mcp → reading the EV's output distribution back. A thin orchestration tool could automate the hand-off end-to-end.
• AHP weight elicitation for MCDA: build_mcda v1 takes direct weights; the add-in's Core already ships an AhpCalculator (pairwise comparisons → eigenvector weights + consistency ratio). A future build_mcda could accept a pairwise matrix instead (tracked in ADO).

Architecture

A separate server that reuses the patterns proven in modelrisk-mcp (xlwings bridge, dry-run-by-default safety on any future writes, packaging, MCP-registry flow). Decision analysis and Monte Carlo are distinct domains, so they ship as distinct servers.

Development

uv sync --extra dev
uv run pytest        # parser/roller + store-format tests (no Excel needed)

MIT licensed.