For server owners

Someone asked you to add a bot

Add Synth Jam Bot

Synth Jam Bot runs signups for jam sessions on your Discord server. Members sign up. A host runs one command, and the bot splits everyone into groups and gives each person an instrument.

Add to Discord

Opens Discord in a new tab. You pick your server there. You need the Manage Server permission, and server owners have it.

Or copy the link
https://discord.com/oauth2/authorize?client_id=1556700540342108261&scope=bot+applications.commands&permissions=51200

1. Add the bot

about a minute
  1. Click Add to Discord above. Log in to Discord if it asks.
  2. Pick your server in the list.
  3. Click Continue, then Authorize.

If your server is not in the list, you probably lack the permission Discord needs to add bots there (usually Manage Server). Ask the server owner to do this step.

What it asks for. It asks to send messages, embed links and attach files. The file permission is for the host-only export. It does not ask for admin and does not need it. Use the button on this page. Do not use any other Add to Server button for this app.

2. Send your Server ID

to the person who asked

The bot runs on someone's computer. They have to switch it on for your server, and they need your Server ID to do that. The ID is a number. It is not a password.

  1. In Discord, open User Settings, then Advanced, and turn Developer Mode on.
  2. Right-click your server's icon and click Copy Server ID. On a phone the menus look a little different: once Developer Mode is on, look for Copy Server ID in the server's menu.
  3. Send that number to the person who asked you.

Wait until the person who asked tells you the bot is switched on. Do not tell your members about the bot yet. The commands do not exist on your server until the bot is switched on.

3. Let your hosts use the host commands

after it's on

Four commands are for hosts: /assign, /reroll, /remove and /export. They start locked. Only people with the Manage Server permission can use them. That stops a stranger from reshuffling your session. Do this step once you hear that the bot is on.

  1. Make a role, such as jam host. Give it no special permissions. Give it to the people who will run sessions.
  2. Open Server Settings, then Integrations, then Synth Jam Bot, then Manage.
  3. Do this for each of the four commands, one at a time:
    • Click the command, such as /assign.
    • Click Add Roles or Members.
    • Tick jam host and click Add.
    • Make sure jam host shows the green tick (allow).
    • Click Save.
  4. Check that nobody has an Allow for @everyone on those commands, or on the whole Synth Jam Bot entry. An Allow for @everyone opens the commands to everyone.
  5. Ask a normal member who is not an admin and has no host role to try them. The four host commands should be blocked for that member. Admins can always use every command, and the owner probably can too, so a test from your own account proves nothing.

Discord may reword some of these labels. The steps keep the same order.

Using it

for you and your members

Members

CommandWhat it does
/signupJoin the pool. Add roles: bass, lead to list the instruments you like, best first. The roles are optional. Run it again to change them.
/withdrawLeave the pool.
/poolSee who has signed up.
/myroleThe bot sends you a private message with your group and instrument.

The instruments are drums, bass, lead, ambience, pads and sequencer. Those are the default names. The person who runs the bot can change the list. If a member types a name the bot does not know, the bot says so privately and shows the valid names.

Hosts

CommandWhat it does
/assignSplits the pool into groups and gives each person an instrument. Everyone sees the result.
/rerollReshuffles everything. Use /reroll group: 2 to reshuffle one group.
/removeTakes one person out of the pool, as in /remove member: @someone. Only you see the reply.
/exportSends you a private Excel file with the pool, the latest groups and recent past sessions.

The signup pool stays between sessions, so the same crew can jam every week.

Good to know

before you announce it
  • It never pings. It does not use @everyone, @here or role pings, and it does not notify people when it lists them.
  • Strangers can sign up. /signup is open to every member. A host can take one person out with /remove. In the same Manage screen you can limit /signup to one role or one channel.
  • No cooldowns. The bot does not slow anyone down. One member could run /signup, /withdraw or /pool again and again. You can limit those commands to one channel in the Manage screen.
  • The export is personal data. It holds member IDs and display names. Keep the file private.
  • It can go offline. The bot runs on someone's computer. It can be offline for a short while when they restart it.
  • One server. The bot answers only in the server it was switched on for.