a_c_a_c, a cheap a_n_i_v clone

A Twitch chatbot that learns from chat and generates messages using a Markov chain. Similar to BinyotBot and a_n_i_v.

Want it in your chat?

I host an instance of the bot. To request it for your channel, open a hosting request.

Community

Want to request a_c_a_c, need help, want to suggest features, or report bugs? Join my Discord:

Features

• Learns from chat messages as they arrive.
• Saves chat history and generated messages to files. No database needed.
• Supports a different message frequency and ignored-bot list for each channel.
• Can ignore users copying the bot's messages.
• Filters generated messages using blocked strings or full messages.
• Sometimes generates funny responses.

Requirements

• A Twitch account with an OAuth token.
• Docker or a release binary.
• Go 1.25+ if building from source.

Configuration

Use a .env file or environment variables for the bot's settings, and a YAML file for the channels it joins.

Environment variables

For Twitch chat, set BASE_PATH, TWITCH_USER, TWITCH_OAUTH_STRING, CHANNEL_CONFIG, and COUNTDOWN. Set ENV=production to enable sending messages.

Variable	Description	Example
ENV	Only production enables sending messages to chat.	production
BASE_PATH	Directory for message history: channel.txt, channel-sent.txt, and channel-rejected.txt.	./data
COUNTDOWN	Default number of chat messages between responses. Must be an integer, even if every channel has its own frequency.	200
IGNORE_PARROTS	Set to true to avoid learning from copies of the bot's messages.	true
TWITCH_USER	Twitch username used by the bot.	a_c_a_c
TWITCH_OAUTH_STRING	OAuth token for that account.	oauth:123123123123123
PROHIBITED_STRINGS	Comma-separated strings to block in generated messages.	https://,twitch.tv,@
PROHIBITED_MESSAGES	Comma-separated full messages to block.	acac
CHANNEL_CONFIG	Path to the channel configuration file.	./channels.yaml

Channel configuration

bots lists usernames to ignore in every channel. Each channel can add its own ignored usernames through extra_bots.

frequency sets the number of chat messages between responses. If omitted or set to 0, it uses COUNTDOWN.

bots:
  - "nightbot"
  - "streamelements"

channels:
  - name: "my_favorite_streamer"
    frequency: 200
    extra_bots:
      - "mod_helper"
      - "my_favorite_moderation_bot"
  - name: "streamer_two"

The example configuration also includes allow_bits. That setting currently has no effect because the bits-filtering code is disabled.

Usage

Binary

Download a binary from releases.

Create a data directory and save your channel configuration as channels.yaml. Create a .env file in the directory where you run the bot:

ENV=production
BASE_PATH=./data
COUNTDOWN=200
IGNORE_PARROTS=true
TWITCH_USER=your_bot_account
TWITCH_OAUTH_STRING=oauth:your_token
CHANNEL_CONFIG=./channels.yaml

Then run:

./acac

Use ENV=dev to run without sending messages to chat.

Docker

With the .env, data directory, and channels.yaml from above:

docker run --env-file .env \
  -v "$(pwd)/data:/data" \
  -v "$(pwd)/channels.yaml:/channels.yaml:ro" \
  -e BASE_PATH=/data \
  -e CHANNEL_CONFIG=/channels.yaml \
  ghcr.io/notarock/a_c_a_c:latest

Message history is saved in the mounted data directory.

Before adding the bot

Get the streamer's permission before adding it to a channel, and follow Twitch's Terms of Service.

The bot learns from whatever people say in chat. Expect gibberish and potentially offensive messages.

I am not responsible for whatever it says. Everyone in chat is.

Contributing

Open an issue for bugs or feature requests. For code changes, fork the repository and submit a pull request.

License

MIT License.