Create the mind.
Make or choose the Letta, OpenClaw or Hermes agent that will inhabit the companion. Give it the personality and boundaries you want.
The gentle architecture
One little bridge. No master keys in the Nest.
There is a general method, but not one universal agent login. The included Lochan Relay speaks one safe Nest language, then translates it for Letta, OpenClaw or Hermes.
Connected or Roam
Sends the interaction and only the care, weather, game or memory details you permit.
→
Lochan Relay
Checks the pairing phrase and keeps the provider credential private.
→
Your agent
Returns only dialogue, pose, mood, activity, memory and heartbeat timing.
♡
If the bridge is quiet, the companion is still safe. Connected keeps care and play available while its live mind waits. Roam Free can switch the Mind off and immediately return to its local dialogue and behaviour.
The shared path
Five steps, whichever mind you choose.
You only do the provider-specific middle part once. After that, pairing inside either edition takes two small fields.
Copy the relay settings.
Copy connected-relay/.env.example to connected-relay/.env. Choose a long private pairing phrase and enter the exact web address where your Nest lives.
Add one provider.
Use the matching tab below. Provider credentials go in the relay’s private .env file—never into the Nest.
Give the relay HTTPS.
For a phone to reach a relay on your computer, publish only the relay with a named Cloudflare Tunnel. A Quick Tunnel is fine for a short test.
Wake the Mind tab.
Open Connected → Mind, or Roam Free → Mind → Setup and enable an agent mind. Choose the provider, paste the HTTPS relay address ending in /agent/message, add the same pairing phrase, save, then send a test heartbeat.
Mind the boundaries.
Keep local gateways on localhost. Revoke and replace a pairing phrase if it is shared. Check the heartbeat ledger to see exactly when the agent answered.
Provider recipes
Choose the mind behind the glass.
The tabs change only the agent-facing half. The Nest always receives the same narrow reply.
Letta
The smoothest cloud-first route. Create or choose an agent, collect its Agent ID and an API key, then let the relay call Letta’s messages API.
- In Letta, create the agent who will inhabit the companion.
- Copy its Agent ID and create an API key.
- Fill the Letta section of connected-relay/.env.
- Start the relay from the Lochan Nest project folder.
Private .env settings
FABLE_PROVIDER=letta FABLE_PAIRING_CODE=your-long-private-phrase NEST_ORIGIN=https://your-fable-nest.pages.dev LETTA_API_KEY=your-letta-api-key LETTA_AGENT_ID=your-agent-id LETTA_BASE_URL=https://api.letta.com
Start the relay
npm run relay
Copy only the text inside each dark box—no quotation marks or formatting symbols.
OpenClaw
A strong local-agent route. Enable its OpenAI-compatible chat endpoint, keep the gateway on localhost, and let the relay be the only public doorway.
- Set a strong OpenClaw gateway token or password.
- Enable the chatCompletions HTTP endpoint in OpenClaw’s gateway configuration.
- Fill the OpenClaw section of the relay’s private .env.
- Start OpenClaw, then start the Lochan Relay.
OpenClaw gateway configuration
{
"gateway": {
"http": {
"endpoints": {
"chatCompletions": { "enabled": true }
}
}
}
}Private .env settings
FABLE_PROVIDER=openclaw FABLE_PAIRING_CODE=your-long-private-phrase NEST_ORIGIN=https://your-fable-nest.pages.dev OPENCLAW_URL=http://127.0.0.1:18789 OPENCLAW_TOKEN=your-gateway-token OPENCLAW_AGENT=default
Start the relay
npm run relay
Important: an OpenClaw gateway token has owner-level power. Never paste it into the Nest, expose the gateway itself through a tunnel, or bind it publicly. Tunnel the Lochan Relay on port 8788 instead.
Open OpenClaw’s official HTTP API guide ↗Hermes Agent
For keepers already comfortable running a local agent. Hermes has an OpenAI-compatible API server, so the Lochan Relay can use the same safe pattern without teaching the Nest a new language.
- Choose a strong API server key and keep the server on 127.0.0.1.
- Enable the Hermes API server and start the gateway.
- Fill the Hermes section of the relay’s private .env.
- Start the Lochan Relay beside Hermes.
Enable Hermes API server
API_SERVER_ENABLED=true API_SERVER_KEY=your-strong-hermes-key
Private .env settings
FABLE_PROVIDER=hermes FABLE_PAIRING_CODE=your-long-private-phrase NEST_ORIGIN=https://your-fable-nest.pages.dev HERMES_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8642 HERMES_API_KEY=your-strong-hermes-key HERMES_MODEL=hermes-agent
Start both services
hermes gateway npm run relay
Important: Hermes API sessions can use the agent’s tools. Keep its API key private and publish only the narrower Lochan Relay—not port 8642 itself.
Open Hermes’ official API server guide ↗
The final pairing
Turn the local relay into one HTTPS address.
For a quick test, Cloudflare can create a temporary address. For day-to-day use, make a named tunnel with a fixed hostname and route it to http://127.0.0.1:8788.
cloudflared tunnel --url http://127.0.0.1:8788
Quick Tunnel addresses change when restarted. A named tunnel is the suitable long-term route.
Inside Connected or Roam Free → Mind
In Roam, first open Setup and enable the agent Mind.
Connection: choose your provider
Secure relay address:
https://your-relay-address.example/agent/message
Pairing code: the same private phrase from .env
Save, then open Privacy and send a test heartbeat. The reply should appear in the companion’s dialogue and the activity ledger.
The relay shares only the care, interaction, game, time, weather and recent-memory fields you permit. It does not send shell artwork, uploaded companion files or provider credentials.