A new challenger has arrived: Taverns is now on Linux and Steam Deck

What is Taverns?

Taverns (tav.gg) is a free community platform for gaming and hobby groups, made by MEKASMITH Co., Ltd. A Tavern is your community, and halls are the text, voice, forum and Stage rooms inside it. Roles, permissions, events and moderation work the way community organizers expect.¹

Taverns runs in any browser and in free apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad and Android, all on one account, so you can start a voice chat on your desktop and pick it up on your Deck or your phone.¹²

How do you install Taverns on Linux?

Taverns for Linux is a free download for 64-bit (x86_64) Linux. Pick whichever way fits your setup; all three install the same app.²

• AppImage (any distro): Download Taverns-x86_64.AppImage from the Linux page, make it executable in its Properties, and double-click it. It is the one to use on Fedora, Arch, openSUSE and other distros, and it keeps itself up to date.²
• apt (Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, Pop!_OS): Add the Taverns apt repository with the four commands in the Linux install guide, then Taverns updates with the rest of your system on every apt upgrade.²
• .deb (Debian and Ubuntu): Download Taverns-amd64.deb and open it in your software app, or run sudo apt install ./Taverns-amd64.deb in a terminal. It sets up the same updates for you.²

On Ubuntu 24.04 or newer, use apt or the .deb: Ubuntu can block the AppImage from starting. The .deb also adds Taverns to your app menu, which an AppImage does not do on its own.²

How do you install Taverns on a Steam Deck?

1. Switch to Desktop

   Hold the power button, then pick Switch to Desktop.³

2. Grab the app

   Open a browser (no browser yet? Get Firefox from Discover), go to tav.gg/steamdeck and press Download for Steam Deck.

3. Make it playable

   In Dolphin, right-click the file in Downloads, open Properties > Permissions and tick Is executable.³

4. Launch it

   Double-click it and sign in. It keeps itself up to date from then on.³

Press STEAM + X for the on-screen keyboard while you type, and double-click Return to Gaming Mode on the desktop when you are ready to play again.³

What else is new on Taverns?

The Linux app arrives with a big feature drop. All of it is on the web at tav.gg, in the desktop apps for Windows, Mac and Linux, and in the iPhone and Android apps once they are up to date.

• Tavern folders: Drag one tavern onto another to make a folder, then name it and pick its colour. Folders follow you to every device, and on a phone you press, hold and drag.
• Never lose your place: An unread bar shows where you left off, an @mentions chip jumps to the message that pinged you, and Jump to present takes you back to the newest.
• Message link previews: Paste a link to a Taverns message and the chat shows the message itself, to anyone allowed to see it.
• Fix a picture before you send it: Big pictures shrink to fit on their own, and you can crop, rotate and flip chat images, avatars, icons, emoji and stickers before they upload.
• 360 photos and videos: Open one and drag to look around.
• AI image labels: Mark a picture you post as AI-made, and turn on Blur AI images in your settings if you would rather not see them.
• Forum upgrades: Post templates, New and mention marks on post cards, and one-tap Archive and Reopen.
• Poll results: When a poll ends, its results land in the hall for everyone.

For the people who run a tavern:

• Guest preview: Staff of a public tavern choose which halls visitors can look around in before they join.
• Role menus: Members pick their own roles from a menu, no bot needed. Staff choose which roles are on offer.
• A welcome in your own look: New members get a welcome popup in the tavern’s banner, icon and colours, with featured halls and role menus.
• Post as the tavern: Staff can post under the tavern’s name and icon, for announcements that speak for the whole community.
• Two banner crops: Frame your banner separately for the hall list and for wide cards.
• Save media switch: Hide the save, share and download buttons in a hall. It is a deterrent, not a lock: screenshots still work.
• 18+ and sensitive streams: Mark a voice hall screen share as sensitive, or 18+ in an age-restricted hall, and viewers see a cover with a Watch button first.
• Spectating switch: Turn off watching without joining in a voice hall.

They join Stage halls for watching videos together, files up to 2 GB in chat, and 700 custom emoji and 1,000 stickers per tavern, all free, as the launch Short shows.⁸