Holonovel

Build the Holodeck. Load your campaign.

A holonovel is a Star Trek holodeck program — an interactive story where you step inside as a character and the rules govern. Holonovel builds the server (the Holodeck). Your campaign is the program (the Novel). Your rulebooks become the engine — D&D 5e, Starfinder, or the game on your shelf. Your books. Your server. Your Holodeck.

Table of contents

• Run a server — operators
  • Install
  • Install a ruleset
  • Build your own rulebook
• How it works — evaluators
  • Convert
  • Build
  • World
  • Novel
  • Synthesis
• How it compares — evaluators
• Contribute — contributors
  • Improve the spec

Run a server

Install

The base server — a world-model MCP with rooms, things, exits, parser commands, narrative tools, and out-of-the-box mechanics from Fate, Ironsworn, and Blades in the Dark (Fudge dice, momentum, and stress tracks, no ruleset required). Install it, then install any number of ruleset packages — each drops in alongside the base and never modifies it. Node.js 20+ required.

cd holonovel
npm install
npm run start

Add to your MCP client:

"holonovel": {
  "type": "local",
  "command": ["npx", "tsx", "src/index.ts"],
  "cwd": "<path>/holonovel",
  "environment": {
    "TTRPG_NOVEL": "default"
  },
  "enabled": true
}