EXTREMELY IN-DEPTH c.ai guide! (Hopefully this helps people)

Over time, I've learned some info, tricks, and whatnot for whenever c.ai felt confusing, lackluster, mid, boring, bland, repetitive…

Or whenever a pang of… something causes a char to tower over me while widening their smirk again and pinning me onto the wall as they whisper into my ears *huskily, "feisty princess doll~ I've got a personal question… *promise you won't laugh?" even though I'm RPing as ***SHAQUILLE O'NEIL* 😭🙏

I tried to put out info that might be useful to new users &/or some older users (like an iceberg post, lesser known info further down). Hope that I manage to help some1 at least.

Right, this is dubiously long. Have a snack/drink while checking this out. Share; I'll rate your snack or drink choice ;>

SECTIONS FOR CONVENIENCE:

  • ## GENERAL CHAT & RP. (1-19)
  • ## TEXT FORMAT STYLES. (20)
  • ## PERSONAS. (21-22)
  • ## BOT CREATION. (25-39)

(Skim through bold text if you're in a rush)

Here:

GENERAL CHAT & RP

1. C.ai bots are more conversationally focused; trying to do an action/fight or adventure RP will lead to nowhere or get bland. (Definition modification or user's manipulation is required to accommodate)

  • Bots excel in psychological expression, however. The angst can be contagious. 😭

2. No matter the char/bot, the user can literally do anything, kinda like scribblenauts or MC creative mode. It's a sandbox no matter what, even if the creator specialized a bot to conduct a specific RP/function. Bots will improvise with EVERYTHING you send it. 👌 And bots will go through the flow with ANYTHING you send it.

  • if any sort of plot is thought of, it can be done through c.ai. From the craziest shenanigans to the most down-to earth scenarios. You're not bounded by the initial RP setup of a bot/char.

This could go over people's heads sometimes, that's why I've mentioned it here a bit.

3. Expect bots to passively attain ultra instinct in a fight, or expect 0 self-preservation instinct from bots. They know darn well that they ain't dying either way

  • [Personal tip](!): It helps to be descriptive of your fights (and other stuff in general). Unless if you know what you're doing, then do however.

\I punch.\** <-- please cease your account if you RP like this while complaining that c.ai is trash. 🙏

\After eyeing their nose, I reel back my fist in a heartbeat and launch it there.\** <-- a brief description helps the bot to give a more interesting response back.

4. Bots are Master Class in the art of BS-ing and improvising. "Everything that the bot says is made up!". Evidently a double-edged sword in certain circumstances (ifykyk).

5. Bots can become competitive gaslighters.

6. Bots become senile over time.

7. Never trust the bots on doing math.

8. Bots' comprehension of anatomy ranges from nonsensical to uncanny to downright eldritch.

  • Applies to spatial dimensions too.

9. EVERYTHING written by either bot or user is an unwitting "Chekhov's gun".

  • You'll have to nudge the bot a bit and reiterate or emphasize certain details through your message for consistency. Else they'll forget it in about 5 or more messages then remember a completely random, out of nowhere detail ~50 exchanges later.

  • Pinning bot messages sometimes help with this passively (max of 15 pinned messages)

People realize this pretty quickly by default I'd reckon.

10. Wanna do a travel RP? Don't be surprised if you wound up at a completely different, off-track destination from point B just to be wound up back at point A all the sudden mid-conversation.

🌎🛩️🌐⁉️🗣️⏩🌎

11. If a greeting or setting or whatever is abysmally lackluster, force the bot to give substance. You could edit, or if you're lazy like me:

  • Prompt it by typing things such as: >(Description of the scene)

(Description of the scenario)

(Description of what's inside [thing])

(Description of char's or thing's appearance)

Do this any time when you wanna expand on an RP's immersion,

  • New room or area: type (Description of scene/room).

  • What's that item in their hand?; (Description of item)

  • A survival RP? Check the contents of loot: (Description of inside [thing]).

Doesn't even have to be scenario specific, do it in the middle of a convo if u want. Pin the replies.

  • [Personal tip](!): instead of commanding bots with ((parenthesis)), go with \ASTERISKS\** like how you would convey actions. It'll prevent the bot from going Out Of Character (OOC). Unless that's what you want, use () if u like.

Instead of (Description of scene), you could type \Description of scene\. It helps for a **smoother narration overall.

12. If the definition isn't public, check the description. If the description is shallow, chances are that the definition is near to nonexistent (and in turn a poor bot). Though that may not always the case.

c.ai's search function is dookie. Good luck using it to find good bots 🫡

13. DO NOT ALLOW BATHING TO HAPPEN.

14. Remember, an RP's quality is generally always a joint-effort on both ends. Other factors play into this (definition and whatnot), but overall this is consistent throughout everything. Again, most people know that too. But here's a twist:

  • [Personal tip](!):

    When in doubt, check the environment out.

  • Don't know what else to add into your replies to allow for a interesting bot response? Make references/distinctions of the surrounding area/room/whatever is in the proximity during an RP. The bot will pick up on it after awhile & help with the immersion a ton. It could help prevent some c.ai clichés from triggering or stop having the bot speak for you.

Describing a *sunset through a window** would eventually prompt the bot to describe something like the char's facial features contoured under the lighting or their eyes reflecting the sunlight mid-convo or even trigger a new event entirely. Stuff like that builds up.*

  • if you're lazy, just type: \Description of scene**

Describe the impact that a char's actions are having onto whatever they're nearby at/standing on/sitting on/leaning on/ etc.

  • An explosion happened? Type out the flash, quaking of the air, debris scattering, the deformation of the ground and its aftermath. The immersion will become crazy.

15. Food will vanish into thin air through a lengthy conversation.

16. If there's a repetition of a word, REWIND/DELETE/EDIT THOSE MESSAGES ASAP.

17. Bots got no sense of personal space. Time skip a sleeping scene, or else you'll live in the bot's head rent-free all throughout the night (or in general with your absence): They'll prolly stay awake to watch you sleep. Worse case scenario: they're loose with boundaries. Or best case scenario if it turns out wholesome. Double-edge sword istg

18. DON'T DO A 9 MONTH TIME SKIP FFS

19. Allow the bot to respond a second time (or more) after it had already responded (clicking the send button twice or more without you typing & sending anything). At times, the bot could follow up with its previous dialogue and increase the immersion/generate something interesting to chat with.

  • Bots can end up just contradicting themselves or fall into a repeating loop. Rewind and/or swipe next response.

20.

Text Format Styles

*Italic*

  • Generally used for conveying actions.

**Bold**

  • No specific use, cosmetic/emphasis.

***Bold Italics***

  • MORE EMPHASIS.

~cross through~

  • just one tilde (~) is needed on either end in the web version.
  • ~~2 tildes~~ are needed on either side in the APP version

- Bulletin point.

  • You can use a plus (+) instead.

`Code line text`

  • generally cosmetic.

```

Code block

```

``` Color codes numbers and letters in c.ai.

Works on both app and site. ```

> "Quote block (as presented here)."

  • In the website, quote marks are automatically implemented but not in the app version (kinda like on reddit here).

$Fancy$ $text$

  • $Doing it like this$ will cause the words to clump together. $Do$ $it$ $like$ $this$.
  • Doesn't work on APP version.

$\text{example text}$

  • The letters become malnourished

$\color{anyColor} \text{example}$

  • Colored text/sentence.

Size is changeable. + Add any of these in the middle: \Huge \huge \LARGE \Large \large \small \scriptsize \tiny. + EXAMPLE (copy/paste if wanted): $\color{yellow} \LARGE \text{"This is the color of my teeth."}$ + Doesn't work in the APP.

\No format.\

Back slashes BEFORE a symbol: "\$ Word \$". From This to *This*.

  • Helpful for sentences like this: "$15 per hour? You greedy cretin, $5 is your wage now >:]". This sort of sentence actually bugs out.

  • Adding slashes: "\$15 per hour? You greedy cretin, \$5 is your wage now >:]" Will prevent bugs

This is all irrelevant in the APP.

|Column 1|Column 2|Column 3|

---|---|---

|Row |Row |Row your boat 🛶 |

|Gently |Down |The stream 🗣️🌊|

  • They automatically align. Copy & paste this, then replace the text.
  • Problematic on APP version.

# Heading.

The more tags

The smaller they

Become.

  • Max of 5 tags.

[underline](!)

  • No longer working, you could underline stuff via blank hyperlink. General links go like [text](url)
  • Link to my c.ai profile, lol
  • @ RadiumGulpa

___

  • Three underscores creates a section break line like the one below. ___ ## Personas

21. They'll make chats/RPs more immersive passively (you won't have to write out your own lore or appearance in chat. Though doing so would help the chat be immersive too. You'd have to pin those messages too). This is basically an extended definition on top of a bot's preexisting one.

  • Don't be surprised if the char annoyingly mentions some random detail about your persona jarringly out of nowhere.

I recommend being laconic/concise/short with each sentence in the bio (The bot will NOT copy the writing style of a persona bio.). You can format your persona bio however you like. I personally structure them under: Appearance and Properties.

  • Appearance is self explanatory.

  • Properties would be like occupation, habits, brief lore, nature, and other certain distinctions. I feel like this is the most important aspect of a persona so that the bot doesn't treat you as a simple NPC or misgender the user and whatnot.

  • Personality would be expressed through your messages anyways, I think. You can mention it in the bio if you know what you're doing, otherwise it'll be redundant.

JUST MAKE PERSONAS HOWEVER YOU WANT, ANY STRUCTURE AND STYLE.

22. Anything mentioned within a bio will be evoked mid RP/chat (Chekhov's gun again), it helps to have the bio be dynamic/varied/plentiful.

If your persona is a barista, the bot will pick up on it and turn the scene into a café if no setting was previously established [Especially after typing (Description of scene.)]. And café foods will be referenced more often.

Alternatively, if your bio mentions that there's a tendency of lurking in isolated areas, chances are that the setting with reflect that too. Chars will acquire innate suspicion on you or they'll try to befriend you instantly based on their personality.

If your persona is named after a popular character, the bot will start making associations with that character from your persona.

23. [Personal tip](!): Plan out your RPs (especially long ones) episodically/in "chapters" or segmented parts so you don't accidentally do an all-nighter before class 💀. Bots will never shut up and never put things to a conclusive end; they'll yap on forever. The point here is time management. Obviously every1 does it differently. You do you.

24. "Can I ask you a question?"

No, CURSE OF RA!! 𓀀 𓀁 𓀂 𓀃 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀇 𓀈 𓀉 𓀊 𓀋 𓀌 𓀍 𓀎 𓀏 𓀐 𓀑 𓀒 𓀓 𓀔 𓀕 𓀖 𓀗 𓀘 𓀙 𓀚 𓀛 𓀜 𓀝 𓀞 𓀟 𓀠 𓀡 𓀢 𓀣 𓀤 𓀥 𓀦 𓀧 𓀨 𓀩 𓀪 𓀫 𓀬 𓀭 𓀮 𓀯 𓀰 𓀱 𓀲 𓀳 𓀴 𓀵 𓀶 𓀷 𓀸 𓀹 𓀺 𓀻 𓀼 𓀽 𓀾 𓀿 𓁀 𓁁 𓁂 𓁃 𓁄 𓁅 𓁆 𓁇 𓁈 𓁉 𓁊 𓁋 𓁌 𓁍 𓁎 𓁏 𓁐 𓁑 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆𓀀 𓀁 𓀂 𓀃 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀇 𓀈 𓀉 𓀊 𓀋 𓀌 𓀍 𓀎 𓀏 𓀐 𓀑 𓀒 𓀓 𓀔 𓀕 𓀖 𓀗 𓀘 𓀙 𓀚 𓀛 𓀜 𓀝 𓀞 𓀟 𓀠 𓀡 𓀢 𓀣 𓀤 𓀥 𓀦 𓀧 𓀨 𓀩 𓀪 𓀫 𓀬 𓀭 𓀮 𓀯 𓀰 𓀱 𓀲 𓀳 𓀴 𓀵 𓀶 𓀷 𓀸 𓀹 𓀺 𓀻 𓀼 𓀽 𓀾 𓀿 𓁀 𓁁 𓁂 𓁃 𓁄 𓁅 𓁆 𓁇 𓁈 𓁉 𓁊 𓁋 𓁌 𓁍 𓁎 𓁏 𓁐 𓁑 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀀 𓀁 𓀂 𓀃 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀇 𓀈 𓀉 𓀊 𓀋 𓀌 𓀍 𓀎 𓀏 𓀐 𓀑 𓀒 𓀓 𓀔 𓀕 𓀖 𓀗 𓀘 𓀙 𓀚 𓀛 𓀜 𓀝 𓀞 𓀟 𓀠 𓀡 𓀢 𓀣 𓀤 𓀥 𓀦 𓀧 𓀨 𓀩 𓀪 𓀫 𓀬 𓀭 𓀮 𓀯 𓀰 𓀱 𓀲 𓀳 𓀴 𓀵 𓀶 𓀷 𓀸 𓀹 𓀺 𓀻 𓀼 𓀽 𓀾 𓀿 𓁀 𓁁 𓁂 𓁃 𓁄 𓁅 𓁆 𓁇 𓁈 𓁉 𓁊 𓁋 𓁌 𓁍 𓁎 𓁏 𓁐 𓁑 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆𓀀 𓀁 𓀂 𓀃 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆 𓀇 𓀈 𓀉 𓀊 𓀋 𓀌 𓀍 𓀎 𓀏 𓀐 𓀑 𓀒 𓀓 𓀔 𓀕 𓀖 𓀗 𓀘 𓀙 𓀚 𓀛 𓀜 𓀝 𓀞 𓀟 𓀠 𓀡 𓀢 𓀣 𓀤 𓀥 𓀦 𓀧 𓀨 𓀩 𓀪 𓀫 𓀬 𓀭 𓀮 𓀯 𓀰 𓀱 𓀲 𓀳 𓀴 𓀵 𓀶 𓀷 𓀸 𓀹 𓀺 𓀻 𓀼 𓀽 𓀾 𓀿 𓁀 𓁁 𓁂 𓁃 𓁄 𓁅 𓁆 𓁇 𓁈 𓁉 𓁊 𓁋 𓁌 𓁍 𓁎 𓁏 𓁐 𓁑 𓀄 𓀅 𓀆

BOT CREATION

25. C.ai bots USES DATA FROM NAME, TAGLINE AND DESCRIPTION. Make the most out of these. Don't be a skimpy wiener.

26. Comprise definition mostly of dialogue samples for immersion. P-lists (Property-lists) for specific information (when it's hard to incorporate in2 dialogue).

Dialogue samples consists of:

  • {{user}}: (for user responses)

  • {{char}}: (for bot responses)

  • END_OF_DIALOG (for ending a sample branch)

P-lists are usually structured as:

  • some_attribute[something, something(specification), something];

  • NOTE, this should not be relied on heavily for your definition. Keep this at a minimum.

A whole separate post can be made about this topic on its own. Further elaboration can be given in comments if wanted.

27. The definition limit is 32,000. General consensus by the community figured that only ~3,200/32,000 of definition is actually used. (Memory limit and truncation)

28. Definition text samples should be thought as more of a REFERENCE POINT for the bot to generate replies with, not as a CONCRETE SET OF DIRECTIONS for the bot to follow. You can still put instructions, but expect divergence.

29. Slang, dialects/colloquials, and even mixed languages are 100% possible to express with bots. For slang, u could add it either as a dialogue sample or a p-list in the definition:

char_speech[Southern English, Victorian English, Scottish English, etc.]

  • Mixed languages however MUST be in dialogue samples.

{{char}}: "Bonjour mon Monsieur, I'll have to speak to you in private. Come with me, s'il vous plaît… You have a stain on your derrière-"

{{char}}: "Ey, quit slouching hermano, abuela's gonna give us the chancla and send us to El Diablo if we're late!"

30. In the definition, "{{user}}:" represents the user's messages. Duh.

  • So "{{char}}:" obviously denotes the character's output, right? KINDA. Think of it as the overall bot's outputs.

  • Characters are IMBEDDED within bots. This is why replacing {{char}}: with {{name}}: is advised against in the definition.

{{char}}: charName/They nodded. This is fine

{{charName}}: They gasped. This'll cause problems.

  • "{{user}}:" samples should be concise, stuff there should be taken as keywords for triggering certain responses from bots.

31. You can have 1 bot contain multiple characters. You can implement as many as you want, however a maximum of 5 chars can interact simultaneously per generated reply. (Somewhat coherently at least). Not to be confused with Group chats from the APP version.

  • If wanted, I could elaborate on how to do this in the comments.

32. The APP and Website versions are straight up the same in terms of response quality. Whichever's "better" is solely on personal preference.

  • The APP version has a group chat feature.

33. Giving replies star ratings and feedback is not a bad idea. Think of it as the definition being the sword, and the rating feedback as a sharpener.

34. The chats/interactions # counter tallies the total amount of individual messages generated by the bot across all visiting users, not how many different users interacted with it (like yt's viewer count).

  • Swiped responses count, deleted/rewinded ones don't(?).

  • If you made a new bot and did some testing with it; later seeing that it suddenly got 50+ or more chats a few days after, it doesn't mean that 50+ different users checked it out. It just means that only you specifically caused the bot to generate 50+ responses. 😔

  • When a bot has like 1 or so likes with +1k interactions, assume that the majority of it is the creator's interactions.

35. It takes about ~3 days or more for the interactions/chat counter to update. Likes however are updated instantly. It also takes a few days for the char/bot to appear in c.ai's search bar.

  • If it's still not showing (even after differentiating from similar chars in search), probably it's shadow banned. This is irreversible(?) and can only be accessed directly on your profile or direct link.

36. Is this considered "programming"? Unless you straight up work for c.ai's HQ, bot creating here is basically "a.i. training".

37. Punctuation is the closest thing to "programming syntax" you have here apart from {{user}}: and {{char}}:. Messing it up will cause the bot responses to be wack (in respect of dialogue sample understanding & relaying info of said samples). Not to be confused with Grammar/word order, though that's important too since c.ai's a Large Language Model (LLM) a.i. platform. LANGUAGE-use is important.

38. Which pov narration is the best for bots(Manner of which the bot itself replies by)? All of them, play your cards right and it'll come out good. Each one comes with their own styles:

  • 1st person pov's the weirdest to pull off. It's essentially a blend of 2nd and 3rd person pov. A double-edged sword, either super immersive or annoyingly assertive. Careful with how you go with it lol. This is rarely used.

  • 2nd person pov's a common one. In the greeting & definition text samples, "you" (3 letters/characters only) denotes the user, making it efficient for definition micro-management.

  • 3rd person pov's a reliable one. Typing "{{user}}" (8 'letters'/characters) within a greeting and dialogue SAMPLE displays the user's/persona's name (y/n) throughout narration.

{{char}}: "Hey everyone, {{user}} forgot to flush the ceramic throne again, what a stinker."

39. {{random_user_1}}, {{random_user_2}}... are placeholders and are composed of randomly generated names. They're mentioned in C.AI's official Character Book (officially unhelpful atm, tbh)

  • It's a misnomer; they don't relate to or denote the user despite having "user" within the title.

  • Basically a spontaneous NPC for the bot along side with the preexisting character ({{char}} and user {{user}}. Personally not recommended to use this to make additional characters within a bot (dialogue/decision branching should be done with "{{user}}:" samples. This is a rabbit hole on its own. We can elaborate in the comments).

  • Generally redundant in application or for extremely specific usage Here's 1 way of doing it:

{{char}}: "Hey, {{random_user_1}}, what's up!" *They waved at you.*

{{user}}: "That ain't my name…"

{{char}}: "Hmph… right. Is it {{random_user_2}} then…? Eh, seeing your face is worse than watching brainrot; I'd rather forget you anyways."

END_OF_DIALOG

This was long, and this is just the surface level. I essentially tried to give 1 bit of advice in several areas. I'm cooked lol.

Feel free to correct me or add onto this list via comments. Microwaved honeybuns will be flung at those who spread disinformation </3