Getting Started

Shardwire’s first successful setup is intentionally small:

1. Start a bot bridge.
2. Connect an app bridge.
3. Subscribe to a typed event.
4. Check that the negotiated capability surface matches what you expect.

Prerequisites

• Node.js >=18.18 for the package runtime.
• A Discord bot token in DISCORD_TOKEN.
• A shared secret in SHARDWIRE_SECRET.
• A local loopback URL such as ws://127.0.0.1:3001/shardwire.

ws:// is for loopback only. Use wss:// for remote deployments.

Install

npm install shardwire

Bot process

import { createBotBridge } from 'shardwire';

const bridge = createBotBridge({
  token: process.env.DISCORD_TOKEN!,
  intents: ['Guilds', 'GuildMessages', 'GuildMembers', 'MessageContent'],
  server: {
    port: 3001,
    secrets: [process.env.SHARDWIRE_SECRET!],
  },
});

await bridge.ready();
console.log('bot bridge ready');

App process

import { connectBotBridge } from 'shardwire';

const app = connectBotBridge({
  url: 'ws://127.0.0.1:3001/shardwire',
  secret: process.env.SHARDWIRE_SECRET!,
  appName: 'dashboard',
});

app.on('messageCreate', ({ message }) => {
  console.log('message', message.channelId, message.content);
});

await app.ready();
console.log(app.capabilities());

What to verify immediately

• bridge.ready() completes without secret or transport validation errors.
• app.ready() authenticates and returns negotiated capabilities.
• The event you subscribed to appears in app.capabilities().events.
• Your bot intents cover the events you expect to produce.

Where to go next

• Read Bridge Architecture for the runtime split.
• Read Capabilities & Scoped Secrets before adding more app consumers.
• Read Diagnostics before you deploy.