The Discord AI Bot Template — Production-Ready Community Automation

Version 1.0 · 2026 · Includes: Blueprint PDF + Working Bot Template + Config Guide

1. The 30-Second Version

A complete, production-ready Discord bot template: welcomes members, answers FAQ from your facts, keeps moderation rules enforced 24/7, and quietly captures leads into a file you own — running on your own hardware with your own model. Customize three files, run one command, done.

Deliverables - blueprint.pdf — this guide - bot/bot.py — the working template (stdlib + discord.py + requests) - bot/config.json — your channel IDs, FAQ list, rules - bot/README.txt — the one-page run card - Single-business commercial license

2. What the Bot Does (and how each switch turns)

Feature	Default	Turn it on/off
Welcome + role prompt	on	`config.json → welcome.enabled`
FAQ auto-answer	on, strict-facts mode	append to `faqs[]`
FAQ → AI fallback	off at start	enable after a clean first week
Lead capture	on	every DM/question lands in `leads.jsonl`
Moderation: link policy	links-off in #general	per-channel rules
Moderation: invites	blocked (common raid vector)	per-channel rules
Escalation alerts	on	pings your staff channel

Design rule baked into the template: deterministic first, AI second. Keyword matches for known questions always beat model output. The model only handles what the facts can’t. That’s how you get a bot that never embarrasses the brand.

3. Setup Walk-Through (30 minutes)

Step 1 — Create the application (5 min). discord.com/developers/applications → New Application → Bot tab → paste the token into config.json. Never commit that token anywhere.

Step 2 — Invite the bot (5 min). OAuth2 → URL Generator → scopes bot + applications.commands; permissions: View Channels, Send Messages, Manage Messages, Read Message History, Manage Roles. Open the generated URL in your server.

Step 3 — Wire your facts (10 min). Edit config.json: server ID, welcome channel, staff channel, your FAQ entries. The shipped config has 6 example facts — replace with yours.

Step 4 — Run (2 min).

pip3 install -U discord.py
python3 bot.py

The console prints READY. Drop a question in #general. Watch it answer from facts.

Step 5 — Harden (8 min). Run the 8-point test battery (below), then let it run in “answer-only” mode for a week before enabling moderation actions.

4. The 8-Point Test Battery

□ welcome message lands with correct pings □ every FAQ question in config answers instantly + correctly □ unknown question → clean handoff line (no invention) □ FAQ miss logged (check the console counter — that’s your content backlog) □ link-posting member gets the delete + educational message, not a ban □ invite link gets scrubbed; staff alert fires □ lead question in DMs lands in leads.jsonl □ Ctrl-C stops the bot cleanly (your kill switch)

8/8 = ship. Anything less = fix before customers find it.

5. Growth Notes From Operating Community Bots

The first 2 weeks, run answer-only. Add moderation switches after trust is earned.
Every FAQ miss is a content gift — one new fact per day compounds your bot’s IQ.
Never let the bot argue. Handoff is a feature, not a failure.
One bot, one job. Don’t bolt a shop onto your support bot; ship a second one.

6. Troubleshooting

PrivilegedIntents error → Bot tab → enable Message Content Intent.
Bot online, silent → wrong channel IDs in config; copy IDs with Developer Mode (right-click).
Slow FAQ answers → you enabled AI fallback too early; facts are instant by design.
Rate-limit warning → welcome bursts; space your joins naturally, don’t mass-invite.

7. File Map

discord-ai-bot-template/
├── blueprint.pdf        ← this guide
├── bot/
│   ├── bot.py           ← working template
│   ├── config.json      ← your IDs, facts, rules
│   └── README.txt       ← one-page run card
└── LICENSE.txt

Ship it quiet, let it prove itself, then switch on the next feature.

— All Is One. Build fast.