Make a bot

Bot Builder

Bot Builder makes a bot from simple rules, like "when someone says good morning, reply". There's no code and nothing to install: it's part of the Roar desktop app.

#How it works

A Bot Builder bot is a real bot, with its own name, picture and BOT tag. You give it rules. Each rule waits for something (a command, a word, a new member, a timer) and then does something (replies, reacts, gives a role, posts).

The bot runs inside your Roar app, on your computer. It's online while Roar is open and signed in, and goes offline when you close Roar. For a bot that's always on, see when to move to code.

#Make a bot

1. Open Bot BuilderIn the desktop app, open User Settings → Bot Builder (under Advanced).
2. Create itPress Create Builder Bot, give it a name (and a picture if you like), and press Create Bot. Its account is made on your node straight away.
3. Add rulesPress Add Rule, pick what kind of rule it is and fill it in. Add as many as you like, then press Save. Untick a rule's On box to pause it.
4. Add it to serversBack on the Bot Builder page, press Add to Server on your bot. Other admins can add it too, with Copy Application ID and Server Settings → Bots.
5. DoneThe bot is online while Roar is open, even when it's down in the tray. Stop and Start turn it off and on; Edit changes its rules.

#The rules

Channels and roles go by name, in every server the bot is in: once the bot is online, the rule editor lists the ones it can see. So a welcome rule for welcome works in any of your servers that has a #welcome channel.

#Fill-ins

Put these in any message and the bot swaps them for the real thing:

#An example: a helper bot

Here's a friendly helper for a small server, using all five kinds of rule:

1. Slash command /hello: Hi {user}! 👋
2. Keyword reply: when a message contains good morning, reply Good morning, {user}! ☀️ and react ☀️, at most once a minute per channel.
3. Welcome message in welcome: Welcome to {server}, {user}! Read the rules and say hi.
4. Auto-role: give everyone who joins the Member role.
5. Timed message in general, every 60 minutes: Remember to drink some water 💧

For the auto-role, the bot needs a role with Manage Roles that sits above Member in Server Settings → Roles. A bot starts with only what @everyone can do.

#Good to know

• Keep Roar open. The bot only answers while your app runs on that PC. It runs in one copy of Roar at a time.
• It's still a bot account. It shows up on your Developer page too, and it counts towards your 25 bots.
• It ignores other bots, so two bots can't answer each other forever.

#When to move to code

Bot Builder covers the everyday jobs. Write your bot with Roar.js when you want:

• a bot that's online all the time, even when your computer is off;
• things rules can't do: games, scores, reading other websites, remembering things, embeds;
• to share the bot's code, or run it for lots of servers.

Everything Bot Builder does fits in a few lines of Roar.js. The helper bot above, as code:

import { Bot } from "roar.js";

const bot = new Bot({ token: process.env.ROAR_TOKEN });

bot.command("hello", "Say hi", (i) => i.reply(`Hi ${i.user}! 👋`));

const lastMorning = new Map(); // channel → time, for the one-minute cooldown
bot.on("message", async (msg) => {
  if (msg.author.isBot || !msg.content.toLowerCase().includes("good morning")) return;
  if (Date.now() - (lastMorning.get(msg.channelId) ?? 0) < 60_000) return;
  lastMorning.set(msg.channelId, Date.now());
  await msg.reply(`Good morning, ${msg.author}! ☀️`);
  await msg.react("☀️");
});

bot.on("memberJoin", async (member) => {
  await member.guild.channel("welcome")?.send(`Welcome to ${member.guild.name}, ${member}! Read the rules and say hi.`);
  await member.addRole("Member");
});

bot.once("ready", () => {
  setInterval(() => {
    for (const guild of bot.guilds.values()) guild.channel("general")?.send("Remember to drink some water 💧");
  }, 60 * 60_000);
});

bot.start();

#Other bots without code

• Welcomer and Levels are ready-made bots on every node: add them from Server Settings → Bots. More →
• AI Bots (User Settings → AI Bots in the desktop app) turn an AI service you have an account with into a chat bot that answers when it's mentioned. You bring your own key from the AI service, and it runs in your app like a Bot Builder bot.