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PATCH
Update a character
PATCH /v1/characters/{id} updates the mutable fields of a character: name, attributes, and nudity while the character is still a draft. Send only the fields you want to change. Omitted fields are preserved. The reference images themselves (refs[]) are immutable by design. The cover defaults to the head_front view; change it from the dashboard. To change the visual identity, re-render a single view via POST /v1/characters/{id}/refs/{view}/regenerate or rerun the whole synthesis via POST /v1/characters/{id}/resynthesize.

Changing nudity

nudity (nude or clothed) is a property of the whole reference set, so it can only move while nothing has been rendered — that is, while the character’s status is draft. Sending it on any other status returns 400 character_status_invalid with param: nudity — that check runs first, so it is what you see even on a team that could not have taken the value anyway. On a draft, an explicit nudity: "nude" from a team that always renders clothed returns 400 nudity_not_allowed (param: nudity).
After the character leaves draft the choice is fixed — create a new character to change it. See Views and lifecycle.

When to use

  • Renaming a character.
  • Updating attributes.additional_details to add notes you want to surface in your UI.
  • Setting nudity on a draft before you build it.
  • Giving a draft with no uploaded photos the attributes a build needs. Once the draft holds any uploaded photo, attributes no longer satisfy the identity rule — one of the photos must show the face.
This endpoint does not trigger any inference or charge credits — it is purely metadata.

Examples

Limits

  • Rate limit: bucket characters_post — 30 requests/min sustained, 60 burst per team.

Errors

Common pitfalls

  • The platform applies a strict whitelist server-side. Sending fields outside the v1.0 mutable set (name, attributes, and nudity on a draft) — for example refs, id, team_id, status, or aurous_version — returns 400 invalid_request with error.param naming the first rejected field and a message listing every offending key. This is intentional: a silent-ignore policy would let a buggy client believe a non-existent field had taken effect. If you need a field to be mutable, send a feature request — new mutable fields land in v1.1 schema bumps.
  • PATCH on a deleted character returns 404 resource_not_found — revive flows are not part of v1.0.
  • attributes is not deep-merged; sending attributes: { eye_color: "blue" } replaces the whole object. Re-send all fields you want preserved.

Authorizations

X-Api-Key
string
header
required

Your team API key (starts with al_live_).

Headers

Aurous-Version
string

Optional API version pin (YYYY-MM-DD). Omit the header to receive the platform default, currently 2026-08-26.

Pattern: ^\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}$
Example:

"2026-08-26"

Path Parameters

id
string
required

Opaque character ID

Example:

"char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR"

Body

application/json
name
string

New display name (1-80 chars). Refs are immutable post-creation; use :id/refs/regenerate or :id/resynthesize to change them.

Required string length: 1 - 80
Example:

"Aurora the Bold"

attributes
object

Updated character attributes (full replace, not merge).

nudity
enum<string>

Whether this character's reference set is nude or clothed. Accepted only while status is draft; a change on any other status returns 400 character_status_invalid. On teams that always render clothed an explicit nude returns 400 nudity_not_allowed.

Available options:
nude,
clothed
Example:

"clothed"

Response

Updated character

id
string
required

Opaque character ID.

Example:

"char_01HXMQ7Z3K8Y2NABCDEFGHJKMR"

object
enum<string>
required

Discriminator

Available options:
character
Example:

"character"

name
string
required

Display name.

Example:

"Aurora the Adventurer"

status
enum<string>
required

Lifecycle state. draft: references are being assembled; nothing has been charged and the character cannot be used for generation. New lifecycle states may be added in future — treat any status other than ready as "not yet usable". synthesizing: references are being built. ready: usable on POST /v1/images — both create flows advance here on their own. reviewing: reached only after POST /:id/resynthesize or POST /:id/build; call POST /:id/save to return to ready. failed: the build failed; error_message carries the reason and POST /:id/build (builder characters) or POST /:id/resynthesize retries. deleted: soft-deleted (filtered out of the list endpoint).

Available options:
draft,
synthesizing,
reviewing,
ready,
failed,
deleted
Example:

"ready"

nudity
enum<string>
required

What the reference set is rendered as — nude unless you chose clothed, or — when you omitted nudity — your team's default is clothed. An explicit value always wins. Fixed once the references are built.

Available options:
nude,
clothed
Example:

"clothed"

refs
object[]
required

Reference images, one per view the character has. A character built today has eight; an older one can have fewer than eight (typically six, some of the oldest four). Do not assume a count — read views[], the canonical read model for new integrations, or build.missing_views. refs[] lists only the references that exist.

views
object[]
required

One entry per named view, in canonical order — every reference that maps to a named view, keyed by view, plus what is missing or was rejected. A reference from before named views existed (refs[].view is other) appears only in refs[].

build
object
required

What a build would render and cost right now. Always present.

created_at
string
required

Creation timestamp (ISO 8601).

Example:

"2026-05-08T10:00:00Z"

updated_at
string
required

Last-update timestamp (ISO 8601).

Example:

"2026-05-08T10:00:00Z"

client_reference_id
string | null

Caller-supplied reference echoed back (the value sent on create). Null if unset.

Example:

"bot_8472"

attributes
object | null

Character attributes. Null when unset.

error_message
string | null

Machine-readable failure code from the most recent synthesize/resynthesize attempt. One of synthesis_failed, synthesis_timeout, provider_unavailable — a closed set to switch on, not customer-facing prose. Null when the most recent attempt succeeded (or none has run yet). Set on failed, but NOT failed-exclusive: a failed resynthesize restores the character to its prior working status (reviewing) rather than overwriting a good generation, so a reviewing row can carry a non-null code here — check this field for failure, not status. Cleared on the next resynthesize attempt and on success.

Example:

null

aurous_version
string

API contract version applied at the time this row was minted (D25 — frozen for replay across future version bumps).

Example:

"2026-08-26"