diff --git a/crates/kebab-mcp/src/lib.rs b/crates/kebab-mcp/src/lib.rs
index 1bca86b..9cbafa9 100644
--- a/crates/kebab-mcp/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/kebab-mcp/src/lib.rs
@@ -23,6 +23,35 @@ pub mod state;
 pub mod tools;
 pub use state::KebabAppState;
 
+/// Build the canonical list of tools exposed by the MCP server.
+///
+/// Extracted from [`ServerHandler::list_tools`] so it can be called
+/// directly in tests without constructing a `RequestContext`.
+pub fn build_tools_vec() -> Vec<Tool> {
+    vec![
+        Tool::new(
+            "schema",
+            "Introspection — wire schemas, capabilities, model versions, index stats.",
+            schema_for_empty_input(),
+        ),
+        Tool::new(
+            "doctor",
+            "Health check — verifies config, storage, models, and Ollama connectivity.",
+            schema_for_empty_input(),
+        ),
+        Tool::new(
+            "search",
+            "Full-text / vector / hybrid search over the knowledge base. Returns search_hit.v1 array.",
+            schema_for_type::<tools::search::SearchInput>(),
+        ),
+        Tool::new(
+            "ask",
+            "RAG question answering over the knowledge base. Returns answer.v1 JSON. Pass session_id for multi-turn context.",
+            schema_for_type::<tools::ask::AskInput>(),
+        ),
+    ]
+}
+
 #[derive(Clone)]
 pub struct KebabHandler {
     state: KebabAppState,
@@ -49,28 +78,7 @@ impl ServerHandler for KebabHandler {
         _request: Option<rmcp::model::PaginatedRequestParams>,
         _context: RequestContext<RoleServer>,
     ) -> Result<ListToolsResult, ErrorData> {
-        Ok(ListToolsResult::with_all_items(vec![
-            Tool::new(
-                "schema",
-                "Introspection — wire schemas, capabilities, model versions, index stats.",
-                schema_for_empty_input(),
-            ),
-            Tool::new(
-                "doctor",
-                "Health check — verifies config, storage, models, and Ollama connectivity.",
-                schema_for_empty_input(),
-            ),
-            Tool::new(
-                "search",
-                "Full-text / vector / hybrid search over the knowledge base. Returns search_hit.v1 array.",
-                schema_for_type::<tools::search::SearchInput>(),
-            ),
-            Tool::new(
-                "ask",
-                "RAG question answering over the knowledge base. Returns answer.v1 JSON. Pass session_id for multi-turn context.",
-                schema_for_type::<tools::ask::AskInput>(),
-            ),
-        ]))
+        Ok(ListToolsResult::with_all_items(build_tools_vec()))
     }
 
     async fn call_tool(
diff --git a/crates/kebab-mcp/tests/tools_list.rs b/crates/kebab-mcp/tests/tools_list.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f7c0cd4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/kebab-mcp/tests/tools_list.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+//! Integration: `build_tools_vec` returns 4 tools with correct names and
+//! inputSchema. Uses the extracted `pub fn build_tools_vec()` helper — no
+//! transport or RequestContext needed.
+
+use kebab_mcp::build_tools_vec;
+
+#[test]
+fn tools_list_returns_four_tools() {
+    let tools = build_tools_vec();
+    assert_eq!(tools.len(), 4, "expected exactly 4 tools, got {}", tools.len());
+
+    let names: Vec<&str> = tools.iter().map(|t| t.name.as_ref()).collect();
+    assert!(names.contains(&"schema"), "missing 'schema' tool");
+    assert!(names.contains(&"doctor"), "missing 'doctor' tool");
+    assert!(names.contains(&"search"), "missing 'search' tool");
+    assert!(names.contains(&"ask"), "missing 'ask' tool");
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn search_tool_input_schema_has_required_query() {
+    let tools = build_tools_vec();
+    let search = tools
+        .iter()
+        .find(|t| t.name.as_ref() == "search")
+        .expect("search tool must be present");
+
+    // input_schema is Arc<JsonObject> (serde_json::Map<String, Value>).
+    let schema_val = serde_json::Value::Object(search.input_schema.as_ref().clone());
+
+    let required = schema_val
+        .get("required")
+        .and_then(|v| v.as_array())
+        .expect("search inputSchema must have a 'required' array");
+
+    assert!(
+        required.iter().any(|v| v.as_str() == Some("query")),
+        "search inputSchema 'required' must contain 'query', got: {required:?}"
+    );
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn schema_and_doctor_tools_accept_empty_input() {
+    let tools = build_tools_vec();
+
+    for name in &["schema", "doctor"] {
+        let tool = tools
+            .iter()
+            .find(|t| t.name.as_ref() == *name)
+            .unwrap_or_else(|| panic!("{name} tool must be present"));
+
+        let schema_val = serde_json::Value::Object(tool.input_schema.as_ref().clone());
+        // An empty-input schema has type "object" and no required fields
+        // (or no 'required' key at all).
+        let ty = schema_val.get("type").and_then(|v| v.as_str());
+        assert_eq!(
+            ty,
+            Some("object"),
+            "{name} inputSchema 'type' must be 'object', got {ty:?}"
+        );
+
+        if let Some(required) = schema_val.get("required").and_then(|v| v.as_array()) {
+            assert!(
+                required.is_empty(),
+                "{name} inputSchema 'required' must be empty, got: {required:?}"
+            );
+        }
+    }
+}