Squads and chat
Private squads with one end-to-end encrypted timeline.
A squad keeps your friends' conversation in one place while you browse. Each squad has one private, end-to-end encrypted timeline. You choose separately whether to share what you are viewing.
Create a squad
Open Add squad and create a squad with a name; add an avatar and intro later. You become its captain. In squad settings, choose Copy invitation link and send it to the friends you want to invite.
Join with a link
Open the invitation link, or paste it under Join with a link.
Choose View invitation to check the squad's name, avatar and size.
Join. If the captain has turned on a join code, enter the 4-character code first.
Joining never starts sharing your pages.
An invitation page can show the squad's name, avatar, intro and size before sign-in. It is not a web chat client. With a loaded extension, continue in its side panel; if the page cannot open it directly, copy the full invitation link and paste it in the panel. Get started explains the current release status.
| Invitation link | Rule |
|---|---|
| Validity | 7 days, usable by many people; copying again does not extend it |
| Count | One per squad at a time; regenerating invalidates the old link |
| Revoked or expired | Members who already joined stay |
Discover squads
Captains whose accounts are at least 24 hours old can start recruiting for 7 days. The website publicly shows the squad name, avatar, intro, captain's nickname and avatar, member count, and applicable level/rank/new-squad labels. It does not expose the full member list, online list, viewing or chat. Public recruitment pages may be indexed by search engines.
In Discover squads, choose a squad and request to join. You join once the captain approves; an application is not immediate membership. Ending recruitment stops new applications, but existing requests keep their own expiry and valid invitation links still work.
Discover squads and My requests load 50 entries at a time as you scroll. Search accepts up to 60 visible characters. After recruitment ends, cached public lists and details may remain for up to 60 seconds, and avatars for up to 5 minutes.
Successful recruitment posts are limited to 2 per account per day and 20 per IP per day. Successful applications are limited to 5 per account per hour, 20 per account per day and 60 per IP per hour.
Requests expire after 7 days; after a rejection you can request again in 24 hours.
You can also receive a direct invitation under Add squad › Received invitations. Accepting joins without a join code or captain approval, subject to current membership limits. Direct invitations last 7 days. An expired link, full squad or join block needs resolving before a retry can succeed.
Encrypted chat
Squad messages are end-to-end encrypted; Palside stores ciphertext and holds no decryption keys. New members receive only messages sent after they join, and a new device shows only messages received after sign-in.
Type a message and press Enter to send, or Shift+Enter for a new line. Add one image or one token card per message; a reply can accompany it. Messages allow up to 4,000 visible characters. Images accept PNG, JPEG or WebP up to 5 MiB and are processed before upload. Check screenshots for sensitive information before sending.
Search and Images / links / tokens browse only messages this device is allowed to read and can decrypt. They do not collect browsing history or restore missing message keys. At startup, the current squad loads up to 10 pages of 100 messages; other squads keep only the latest 100 from the first sync. Opening a squad loads more history, and scrolling up continues loading. Search shows “Not loaded yet” for squads you have not opened.
If sending does not finish
Drafts stay locally per squad for 7 days after their last edit; they do not sync across devices. When disconnected, keep editing and send manually after reconnecting. If a submitted message says its result is unknown, check that original send rather than composing a second copy. A confirmed send is not a read receipt.
You can edit your own message text or withdraw your message while still a member and before it expires. The captain can remove another person's message, but cannot edit its text. Withdrawal cannot recall screenshots or copies someone saved.
Limits and retention
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Members per squad | Up to 30, including the captain |
| Per account | Join up to 20 squads, own up to 5 |
| Squad name / intro | Up to 40 / 200 visible characters |
| Message retention | Captain chooses 1 / 7 / 30 days or Forever; default Forever |
Images follow message retention but last at most 30 days after sending. An expired image shows “Image expired” in place; text that is still valid remains. Each account can upload 50 MiB per day. A squad you have left stays in the list for at most 30 days after leaving, or less if its retention is shorter.
When server disk space falls below 15% free, new chat images, avatars and report screenshots are refused with a service-busy message. Try again later. Existing images remain readable under their original access rules.
Shortening retention also affects existing messages; extending it applies only to new messages and does not restore expired ones. Reopening or quoting content does not extend its life.
Squad levels
Levels use activity points from the last 30 days: 150 for Lv2, 450 for Lv3 and 720 for Lv4. Reaching a threshold allows an upgrade; staying below the current level’s threshold for 7 days lowers the squad to the corresponding level.
Captain and members
There are two roles: captain and member. The captain can edit the profile, manage invitations and requests, remove members, transfer and disband; members can leave at any time.
A captain must transfer ownership to a member who accepts, or disband the squad, before leaving or deleting their account. Leaving, removal or disbanding stops new messages and viewing access. Eligible, decryptable, unexpired history remains read-only; rejoining does not fill the time you were away.
Removed people cannot rejoin by invitation or recruitment until the captain lifts the block.
Want your squad to know what you are looking at? Continue with share viewing.