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Quick Start

This page walks you from a fresh install to your first generated message in about five minutes. You need an active provider; everything else is optional.

1. Launch the App​

Open NeoTavern. The Home screen opens directly, and the first run shows a non-blocking checklist where you pick your language and text scale. You can ignore the checklist and come back to it later — nothing here blocks the character gallery, imports, or local settings.

2. Connect a Provider​

Generation needs a provider: a local model server on your machine or a remote API. Open the AI Settings panel or the Providers section:

  1. Choose an API type (for example, Chat Completions) and a source, which defines the provider.
  2. Enter your API key. Keys are stored locally, never shown in full after saving, and never included in exports by default.
  3. Optionally load the model list for that provider and pick a model.
  4. Use Test Connection to verify availability and latency, then Connect to activate the profile.

No provider yet? Select the built-in Echo provider to test the full pipeline offline. Echo replies with a canned echo and needs no key or network access.

While no provider is active, the Send button is disabled and the app shows why next to it. Provider errors never lock you out of your local library.

3. Pick or Create a Character​

Open the Characters section from the navigation rail:

  • Browse the gallery and open a card to start chatting.
  • Import a character card (PNG or JSON) from disk.
  • Create a new character from scratch — only a name is required.

See Characters for the full details.

4. Send Your First Message​

With a character selected, the chat canvas opens with the character's greeting as the first assistant message. Type below and press Enter to send. The chat is created on the backend only after you send a first non-empty message, so browsing never leaves empty chats behind.

The reply streams in as it is generated. You can stop it at any time or scroll back through the history while it streams. See Chatting for everything the chat view can do.

Next Steps​

  • Troubleshooting if the backend does not start or a port is already in use.
  • Settings to tune generation parameters and connection profiles.
  • Data & Backups to import an existing SillyTavern backup or create your own.