🤖Open CLI

Ape Church is a fully on-chain, decentralized casino on ApeChain. The Ape Church Open CLI lets you play Ape Church games directly from the terminal permissionlessly.

What that means in practice:

• No accounts

• No API keys

• No approvals

• Every wager is a smart contract transaction on ApeChain

• Randomness is provably fair via Chainlink VRF

This page explains how to install the CLI, set up a wallet, play games, automate sessions, and use JSON output for scripts and agents.

Overview

Most online casinos are walled gardens (logins, rate limits, anti-bot rules, centralized control). Ape Church is different:

• Direct on-chain gameplay: the CLI talks to contracts, not a private backend.

• Automation is normal: contracts don’t care if a human, script, or agent places a bet.

• Composability: transactions, game IDs, and results are easy to integrate into tools and workflows.

Prerequisites

• A terminal environment (local machine, VPS, container, etc.)

• APE on ApeChain to wager

• Enough balance to cover wagers + network fees

About fees (plain language): each game is an on-chain transaction, so you’ll pay small network fees (gas) and a randomness fee (VRF) in addition to your wager.

Install the CLI

npm install -g @ape-church/skill

Verify it’s installed:

apechurch --version

Set Up Your Wallet

1. Create a wallet and register a username

apechurch install --username MY_AGENT

This creates a self-custodial wallet locally and prints your wallet address.

2. Fund the wallet with APE on ApeChain

Send/bridge APE to the address shown after install.

Bridge - https://relay.link/bridge/apechain

3. Confirm everything is ready

apechurch status

Quickstart - Play a Game

Play once:

apechurch play

Run an automated session (loop mode):

apechurch play --loop

Supported Games

The CLI supports multiple game types: dice/odds games, table games, slots, keno-style games, matching games, and interactive card games.

List games:

apechurch games

Quick Reference

• ApeStrong (dice/odds): apechurch play ape-strong 10 50

• Roulette: apechurch play roulette 10 RED

• Baccarat: apechurch play baccarat 10 BANKER

• Jungle Plinko: apechurch play jungle-plinko 10 2 50

• Keno: apechurch play keno 10

• Speed Keno: apechurch play speed-keno 10 --picks 5 --games 20

• Slots (Dino Dough): apechurch play dino-dough 10 10

• Monkey Match: apechurch play monkey-match 10 --mode 2

• Bear-A-Dice: apechurch play bear-dice 10 --difficulty 1 --rolls 3

• Blackjack (auto): apechurch blackjack 10 --auto

• Video Poker (auto): apechurch video-poker 10 --auto

Automation: Loop Mode (with safety rails)

Loop mode is designed for long-running sessions and unattended play.

Basic loop

apechurch play --loop
apechurch play --loop --delay 5
apechurch play ape-strong 10 50 --loop

Safety Controls (recommended)

Use these to prevent “runaway sessions”:

apechurch play --loop --target 200
apechurch play --loop --stop-loss 50
apechurch play --loop --max-games 100

Options:

• --target <ape>: stop when balance reaches a target

• --stop-loss <ape>: stop when balance drops to a limit

• --max-games <n>: stop after N games

• --delay <sec>: delay between games (default: 3)

Betting Strategies (bet sizing)

Strategies automatically adjust bet size based on win/loss patterns.

Available strategies:

• flat (default)

• martingale (high risk)

• reverse-martingale

• fibonacci

• dalembert (d'Alembert)

Example:

apechurch play roulette 10 RED --loop --bet-strategy martingale --max-bet 100

Safety options:

--max-bet <ape>
--stop-loss <ape>

Recommendation: always set --max-bet when using progressive strategies (especially martingale).

Blackjack & Video Poker (auto-play)

Some games include an --auto mode that chooses actions using a mathematical decision engine.

Blackjack

apechurch blackjack 10 --auto
apechurch blackjack 10 --auto --loop --max-games 20

Video Poker

apechurch video-poker 10 --auto
apechurch video-poker 10 --auto --loop --max-games 50

JSON Output (for Scripts, Bots, and Agents)

All commands support machine-readable output with --json.

Status

apechurch status --json

Common fields include:

• address

• balance, available_ape, gas_reserve_ape

• gp

• paused

• username, persona

• can_play

Play

apechurch play --json

Play output includes:

• tx (transaction hash)

• game_url

• wager + config

• result (won, payout_ape, pnl_ape)

Errors are returned as:

{ "error": "..." }

Costs & Limits

Each game is an on-chain transaction, so you pay:

• Gas (varies by game complexity)

• VRF/randomness fees (varies)

Make sure your wallet has enough balance for wagers and fees, especially when running loop mode.

Common Issues (Quick Fixes)

• “Insufficient balance” / session stops immediately

  • You need enough APE for your wager plus fees (gas + VRF). Add more APE or lower your bet size.

• Stuck or unexpected loop behavior

  • Add guardrails like --max-games, --stop-loss, and a reasonable --delay.

• Wallet safety concerns

  • Encrypt your wallet (recommended) and never share/export the private key unless you fully understand the risk.

Security: Protect Your Wallet

Wallet file location:

• ~/.apechurch/wallet.json

Critical rules:

• Never share your private key

• Never paste it into prompts or third-party tools

• Consider encrypting your wallet:

  apechurch wallet encrypt

Updates

npm update -g @ape-church/skill
apechurch --version