Core Concepts
Discord Platform
- Bots - Automated Discord applications
- Slash Commands - Modern command interface
- Interactions - Buttons, select menus, modals
- Embeds - Rich message formatting
- Voice Channels - Audio communication
- Permissions - Role-based access control
Bot Development
- discord.js - Node.js Discord library
- discord.py - Python Discord library
- Gateway - WebSocket real-time events
- REST API - HTTP endpoints
- Intents - Event subscriptions
- Sharding - Scaling for large bots
Key Features
- Application Commands - Slash commands, context menus
- Components - Buttons, selects, modals
- Voice - Audio playback and recording
- Webhooks - External message posting
- Audit Logs - Server action tracking
- AutoMod - Automated moderation
Best Practices
Bot Design
- Use slash commands over prefix commands
- Implement proper error handling
- Provide helpful feedback
- Use ephemeral messages appropriately
- Respect rate limits
- Cache data when possible
UI/UX
- Use embeds for rich content
- Implement interactive components
- Provide clear button labels
- Use consistent color schemes
- Include timestamps
- Add helpful footers
Moderation
- Implement logging system
- Use permission checks
- Provide audit trails
- Handle appeals process
- Rate limit commands
- Monitor bot actions
Performance
- Use intents efficiently
- Implement sharding for large bots
- Cache frequently accessed data
- Batch API calls
- Use webhooks for messages
- Monitor bot latency
Anti-Patterns
Common Mistakes
- Missing intent permissions
- Not handling rate limits
- Overly complex commands
- Poor error messages
- Hard-coding guild IDs
- Missing permission checks
Design Issues
- Too many commands
- Unclear command names
- No help documentation
- Inconsistent responses
- Spam-prone features
- Missing loading indicators
Security Problems
- Exposing bot token
- Missing input validation
- Overly permissive roles
- No command cooldowns
- Weak moderation tools
- Insecure data storage
Reference Documentation
Detailed material lives alongside this skill and is read on demand:
- Implementation Examples — Discord.js Bot (JavaScript), Discord.py Bot (Python)
Resources
Official Documentation
- Discord Developer Portal - API reference
- discord.js Guide - JS guide
- discord.py Documentation - Python docs
- Discord Best Practices - Guidelines
Learning Resources
- Discord.js Tutorial - Video series
- discord.py Examples - Code samples
- Discord Bot List - Popular bots
- Awesome Discord - Curated resources
Tools & Libraries
- discord.js - Node.js library
- discord.py - Python library
- Discord Bot Studio - No-code builder
- Top.gg - Bot discovery
Community Resources
- Discord Developers Server - Official server
- discord.js Server - Library support
- discord.py Server - Python support
- r/discordapp - Reddit community