#83 placed ensure_internal_mcp_server() in tui_gateway/entry.py — but
that file is only on the path for the TUI-gateway subprocess. Direct
`hermes --provider X --model Y` invocations land in hermes_cli/main.py
(per [project.scripts] hermes = "hermes_cli.main:main") and skip the
autowire entirely, leaving config.yaml without hermes-internal and
workers without G2/G3/G4 MCP tools.

This adds the same autowire call inside hermes_cli/main.py's CLI
startup block, between discover_plugins() and discover_mcp_tools().
The block is gated on args.command in {None, chat, acp, rl} so it
fires for the bare invocation and all agent-running subcommands but
NOT for management commands (`hermes mcp add`, `hermes hooks list`,
etc. — those don't need the autowire).

Ordering: autowire must run BEFORE discover_mcp_tools so the freshly-
written hermes-internal entry is visible in the same boot. The
load_config mtime-cache in hermes_cli/config.py auto-invalidates on
save_config, so the second read sees the new entry.

The #83 tui_gateway/entry.py call stays — it's correct for the TUI
path. Idempotent: calling both is safe.

Tests (tests/test_autowire_cli_path.py — 3 cases, all pass):
- hermes_cli/main.py contains the call at all
- Call appears BEFORE the discover_mcp_tools import (ordering)
- Call is INSIDE the _AGENT_COMMANDS-gated block (no fire for
  management commands)

The existing 20-case suite from #83 still passes — 23 total green.

…loses #86) (#87)

Post-#82/#83/#85 the autowire surfaces ~36 MCP tools from
hermes-internal, pushing fresh workers to 52 total tools and into the
tool-paralysis ceiling (text responses with affirmation pattern, no
tool_call emission for verticals that should be one-shot).

#75 (HERMES_TOOLS_SUBSET) was supposed to let operators narrow the
surface per worker, but it had three gaps for MCP tools:

1. Subset filtering only ran in agent_init.py:838 (built-in tool path)
2. cli.py:9790 (/reload-mcp + auto-reload on config change) re-assigns
   agent.tools without re-applying the filter — regression risk where
   any post-init MCP server reload nukes the subset
3. Even when filtering at agent.tools, the registry still carried the
   unwanted MCP tools, costing schema-conversion + collision-check
   work per tool per boot

Fix: apply the allow-list at MCP tool registration in
tools/mcp_tool.py::_register_server_tools. Excluded tools never enter
the registry, so both initial discovery AND /reload-mcp paths honor
the subset uniformly + the registry stays clean.

Three edits:

1. hermes_cli/tool_subset.py (new) — shared helpers `get_subset_allow()`
   + `is_tool_allowed()`. Single source of truth for env parsing +
   allow-list semantics so the two call sites (agent_init + mcp_tool)
   can't drift in casing/whitespace/empty-vs-missing handling.

2. tools/mcp_tool.py::_register_server_tools — read the subset once
   per server registration (O(1) check per tool, not O(N) env parse),
   apply inside both the per-tool loop AND the utility-tools loop
   (list_resources/read_resource/list_prompts/get_prompt).

3. agent/agent_init.py — refactored the inline #75 filter to use the
   shared helper. Behavior unchanged; dedupes parsing logic.

Subset compares against the **prefixed** MCP name
(`mcp_<server>_<tool>`) — exact match, predictable behavior. Fuzzy /
unprefixed matching is a separate feature request.

Tests (tests/test_mcp_subset_filter.py — 14 cases, all pass):
- get_subset_allow: unset/empty/whitespace-only/single/multi/padded/
  MCP-prefixed parse cases
- is_tool_allowed: None passes through, exact match, exclusion, no
  substring matching, MCP prefixed vs unprefixed (contract test)
- Source-level: _register_server_tools imports the shared helper +
  calls it inside main loop
- Source-level: same call inside the utility-tools loop (regression
  catcher for "fix the main loop, forget utility tools")
- Source-level: agent_init.py uses shared helper, no stale inline
  parser

37 total green (14 new + 20 from #83 + 3 from #85).

Final layer of the post-#67 cascade. After this lands + container
rebuild, workers can be configured with HERMES_TOOLS_SUBSET to a 5-tool
surface that includes their specific MCP needs (e.g.
"doc_view,mcp_hermes-internal_grafted_context_fetch,..."), out of
tool-paralysis range.