THE SOVEREIGN TABLE · EARLY PLAYTEST

Your country.
Three independent AI rulers.

Download the playable game, negotiate with other governments, build coalitions, and command wars across multiple turns. Potluck runs the AI on your own computer.

Mac 0.8.0 · Apple Silicon ↓ Mac 0.8.0 · Intel ↓ Windows 0.10.0 · x64 Test build ↓

Windows 0.10.0 · Portable 0.10.0 · Mac Apple Silicon 0.8.0 / Intel 0.8.0
No separate Node.js install or terminal needed for desktop installers. Apple Silicon is for M1 and newer Macs. Mac apps are signed and notarized. Windows is a test build and may show a publisher warning.

New: your AI checks itself

Version 0.10.0 automatically checks for a short reply once your AI connects, then tells you how long it took in plain language. You can skip the check, play Demo, or open optional details. Recent results are remembered during your session so you do not have to keep testing.

The update is available for Windows and the portable ZIP. Both Mac installers are still on 0.8.0 while the updated apps await Apple notarization. Those Mac installers do not include the new setup experience.

Close the game before updating. Your desktop campaigns are saved separately and stay in place. This update simplifies game setup; automatic model download and loading still need a future Potluck update. Device details appear only when Potluck reports verified information. It does not add GPU acceleration to Potluck.

01 · INSTALL THE GAME

Download, open, play

On Mac, open the DMG and drag The Sovereign Table into Applications, then open it. On Windows, open the installer to add the game to your user account and Start menu.

Follow your operating system’s normal installation and first-open prompts. The download page itself does not run the game.

02 · ONE SETUP BUTTON

Let the game get Potluck

In the updated game, choose Play with AI rulers, then click Install AI helper. Mac 0.8.0 calls these Use local Potluck and Set up Potluck. The game downloads and verifies the official Potluck app, installs it for your user account, and opens it. If Potluck is already installed in its usual location, the button opens it.

Potluck is a separate download of roughly 440–500 MB. Allow about 4 GB of free space during setup, plus room for your model.

03 · PREPARE YOUR RULERS

Approve your model

Inside Potluck, choose a model that fits your computer, approve its download, then load it. Enable Settings → Connect tools. One loaded model serves all three rulers.

These choices still happen in Potluck. The game does not silently download models or turn on cloud inference. Qwen3 4B Instruct has been tested with the game on a Mac.

04 · TAKE YOUR SEAT

Return to the table

The game checks Potluck automatically. In version 0.10.0, it also checks for a short reply automatically and shows you the result. Choose your country and start a campaign when ready; you can skip the reply check. Keep Potluck running while you play.

Your campaign is saved separately from the installed app. Scripted Demo is also available while you set up local AI.

A first mission

  1. Choose France in the 1992 scenario and send Britain a trade proposal.
  2. Ask Council: “Build a coalition with Britain to sanction Russia for two quarters.”
  3. Review the initiative, negotiate its duration and confirm the commitment.
  4. Advance turns and see whether each ruler follows through.

Desktop saves stay in your application data folder, outside the app. AI runs locally, with no cloud inference charge per turn. The separate model download and local processing use disk space, memory and power.

New: the War room

Declare war on a country, then command offensives or fortify three strategic fronts. Supply, readiness, exhaustion and economic strain decide how long you can fight. Offer peace or surrender through the same turn orders.

Existing campaigns upgrade with no invented wars. This version models strategic fronts; national border changes, automatic allied entry and nuclear escalation remain future work.

Tell Rob what happened

Send your operating system, model name, country and turn number, plus anything confusing, slow or surprising. Keep gateway keys and configuration files private.

Portable version and existing saves

Prefer the original package or use Linux? Download the portable ZIP (0.4 MB). It requires Node.js 24 LTS and a separately installed Potluck app. Extract the whole ZIP, then open Start-Mac.command or Start-Windows.cmd, or run sh Start-Linux.sh. See START-HERE.txt inside.

Existing portable saves remain in the original folder’s .data directory. Keep that folder when updating the portable game. The desktop app starts with a separate save location; it does not automatically import portable campaigns.

Portable ZIP SHA-256: b87581e05cf9dcafb888ecc119c527fd400fca8bb98f65f725cba4d76668476a

Desktop download checksums

Installer sizes and SHA-256 checksums