Getting Started

Run instantly with npx

No installation needed — npx downloads and runs the wrapper automatically:

npx @mcptoolshop/portlight new "Captain Hawk" --type merchant

The first run downloads the Portlight binary (~15 MB). Subsequent runs start instantly from cache.

Install globally

For repeated play, install once:

npm install -g @mcptoolshop/portlight

Then use portlight directly:

portlight new "Captain Hawk" --type merchant
portlight market
portlight buy grain 10
portlight sail al_manar
portlight advance
portlight sell grain 10

Your first session

1. Create a captain — nine types available. Start with Merchant (better prices), Smuggler (black market), or Navigator (faster ships). Run portlight captain-select to browse all nine.
2. Check the market — portlight market shows local prices. Look for cheap goods.
3. Buy cargo — portlight buy grain 10 loads your hold
4. Pick a route — portlight routes shows where you can sail and what sells there
5. Sail — portlight sail al_manar starts the voyage
6. Advance — portlight advance progresses through the voyage (weather, events, arrival)
7. Sell — portlight sell grain 10 at the destination for profit
8. Reinvest — upgrade your ship, lease a warehouse, or pursue a contract
9. Explore — portlight map shows the world, portlight tui launches the interactive dashboard

Saving your game

Portlight auto-saves your progress. You can also manage saves manually:

portlight save           # save current game
portlight load           # load a saved game

Save files are stored alongside the game binary in your local cache directory.

Also available via pip

If you have Python installed, the game is also available natively:

pip install portlight

Supported platforms

Platform	Architecture
Windows	x64
macOS	x64, arm64
Linux	x64