We’ve tried many services: we dabbled on IRC, worked closely with the Matrix team and even attempted a Discord server. Ultimately we’ve landed with Revolt.

It is our home from now on.

Joining Revolt

Our Revolt instance requires users to register an account:

Notice how an invite code is needed to complete registration:

In order to receive one, the user submits an application. We ask all applicants to reveal their human identity during the application process. Applying is trivial - fill in an email address, real name and optionally a personal website. The more believable the application (read: not a bot) the higher the chances of getting an invite.

The application is submitted to support@handmadecities.com. The founder or his volunteer staff typically reviews it within three business days.

After approval, users can register with any username. This offers some degree of privacy when interacting with the community at large.

Two Emails

When a user is approved to join, they should have two emails in their Inbox:

  1. First email is to register a new account with the invite code.
  2. The remaining one is an invite to join the actual server.

One should follow the proper order of operations.

Going Mobile

Revolt’s mobile app doesn’t support custom domains yet. Instead, we must install our Revolt instance as a Progressive Web App (PWA).

Please visit revolt.handmadecities.com on the phone’s native browser (e.g. Safari on iOS), then look for an Add to Homescreen option (or similar):

Our Revolt instance should now be available like any other app.

Turning on Mobile Notifications

First select the gear icon to go into settings:

Then we find and choose Notifications:

Now ensure the setting Enable Push Notifications is checked.

Verified Human Badge

The Verified Human badge is granted to users we’ve met in person:

The most efficient way to receive a badge is to attend a meetup, because the host can invite people into the chat during this time (automatically marking them verified.)

Alternatively an existing Verified Human may vouch for someone they’ve met in real life.

Limitations

Revolt is known as Discord Lite because of some missing features. The quirks or limitations are as follows:

  1. Can’t point Revolt app to custom domain. This is discussed under Going Mobile.
  2. Missing bells & whistles. There’s no message pinning. No threads. Strange restrictions apply with emoji reactions.
  3. Lack of end-to-end encryption. Discord has this issue too. Handmade Cities policy is to safeguard private DMs and never inspect their contents.

These are all minor irritations to us, not deal breakers.

Revolt Rebrand

Handmade Cities is aware Revolt is rebranding to Stoat. However, their efforts are in flux and nothing has fully stabilized. Since we operate our own instance, we will retain the Revolt brand this year (2026) and decide whether to switch to Stoat in 2027.