KoboldAI

KoboldAI pioneered the open-source AI roleplay frontend space before SillyTavern's rise. It takes a story-editor approach rather than a chat interface — more like collaborative fiction writing than conversation, with persistent memory, author's notes, and a world info system built in.

## Story Editor Interface

KoboldAI's primary interface is a scrolling story document, not a chat log. The AI continues the story from wherever you leave off. You write a passage, the AI extends it, you edit or steer, the AI continues. This feels more like collaborative writing than chatting, and is better suited for long-form narrative than chat-style roleplay.

Key controls: - **Retry**: regenerate the last AI output - **Back**: step back to before the AI's last addition - **Story memory**: a persistent context block the AI always has access to, for tracking character names, world rules, ongoing plot - **Author's note**: injected near the end of the context to influence tone and direction - **World info**: dictionary-style entries that inject when keywords appear

## Model Support

KoboldAI connects to: - Local models via its own launcher (KoboldCpp, the most common) - Google Colab (free GPU cloud for those without local hardware) - OpenAI API - NovelAI API - Horde (distributed crowdsourced inference)

KoboldCpp, the companion tool, runs LLMs locally with GGUF/GGML model formats — compatible with all major open-source models (LLaMA, Mistral, Qwen, etc.).

## Community

KoboldAI has an active Discord and subreddit. Community members share model configs, adventure modules, and presets. The format for adventure modules (.json scenario files) is well-established.

## Who It's For

KoboldAI is ideal for writers who want AI as a story co-author rather than a conversational character. Its editor interface supports long-form fiction better than most chat-centric alternatives.