Auto responder
Make Buddy reply automatically when someone sends a trigger word or command like !rules, with placeholders and per-channel control.
On this page
The auto responder lets you teach Buddy simple custom commands. When a member sends your
trigger, say !rules or ip, Buddy replies with the text you wrote. It's perfect for
answers you type over and over: server rules, the Minecraft IP, how to get roles, or a link
to your website.
Before you start#
Free servers can have up to 5 auto responses. Premium raises the limit (see Premium). The dashboard shows how many you've used at the top of the page.
Set it up#
It's under Automation & alerts in the sidebar.
In Add an auto response, type the word or command Buddy listens for in Trigger, for example !rules.
Type what Buddy should say in Response. Placeholders like {author} are listed under the form.
Pick a channel in Only respond in to limit the trigger to that one channel, or pick one in Never respond in to keep Buddy quiet there. Leave both on Disabled to answer everywhere.
Click Add response. It shows up in Your auto responses and works straight away.
To change a response, click the pencil in Your auto responses. The edit page has a Trigger and response card and a Channels card. Click the bin icon to delete one.
Set it up from Discord#
Run /setup feature:Auto Responder (or /setup → Automation & alerts → Edit next to
Auto responder). Press New response to add one: the form asks for the Trigger, the
Response and, optionally, Only respond in and Never respond in. Pick a response from
the menu to edit it: Edit trigger & response changes the text, the menus change the channels,
Preview shows you the reply (nobody is pinged) and Delete removes it. The panel shows how
many of your plan's auto responses you've used, and won't let you add a trigger that another
response already uses.
How triggers are matched#
Buddy compares the whole message to your trigger:
- The message must be exactly the trigger, with nothing before or after it. If your trigger is
!rules, the message!rulesworks, butwhat are the !rulesdoes not. - Capital letters don't matter:
!RULES,!Rulesand!rulesall match. - Spaces at the start or end are ignored.
- Special characters are fine. Triggers with
',&,",<or>(likewhat's the iporq&a) match normally. - If two auto responses have the same trigger, only the one you created first answers.
- Messages from bots never trigger a response, and neither do messages removed by your message filters.
Each trigger can fire at most once every 10 seconds per channel. If several people send
!rules at once, Buddy answers the first one and ignores the rest for 10 seconds, so a
trigger can't be used to flood a channel.
Settings explained#
| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | The exact message Buddy listens for. Not case-sensitive. | Empty |
| Response | What Buddy posts in reply, as a normal message in the same channel. Supports placeholders. | Empty |
| Only respond in | If set, Buddy answers this trigger only in that channel. This takes priority over Never respond in. | Disabled (every channel) |
| Never respond in | If set (and Only respond in is not), Buddy answers everywhere except this channel. | Disabled |
Placeholders#
| Placeholder | Becomes |
|---|---|
{author} | A mention of the member who sent the trigger |
{server} | Your server's name |
{members} | Your current member count |
{role:ROLE_ID} | A mention of a role, e.g. {role:123456789012345678} |
{user:USER_ID} | A mention of a member |
{channel:CHANNEL_ID} | A link to a channel, e.g. {channel:123456789012345678} |
To copy an ID, turn on Developer Mode in Discord (User Settings > Advanced), then right-click the role, member or channel and choose Copy ID.
You can also use normal Discord formatting in the response: **bold**, *italics*,
[links](https://example.com) and line breaks all work.
Examples#
A rules shortcut:
| Trigger | Response |
|---|---|
!rules | {author}, please read the rules in {channel:123456789012345678} before posting. Thanks! |
!rules
@Alex, please read the rules in #rules before posting. Thanks!
A few more ideas you can copy:
| Trigger | Response |
|---|---|
!ip | Our server IP is play.example.com (Java & Bedrock). |
!roles | Pick your roles in {channel:123456789012345678}! |
!staff | Need help? Ping {role:123456789012345678} or open a ticket. |
!members | {server} has {members} members. Thanks for being one of them! |
Because the whole message has to match, a prefix like ! keeps Buddy from replying when
someone just happens to say "ip" or "rules" on its own in conversation.
Premium#
| Free | Premium | |
|---|---|---|
| Auto responses per server | 5 | Higher, depending on your plan |
When you reach the limit, the form is replaced with a note saying you've reached it. Delete one or upgrade to add more. Exact numbers per plan are on the Premium page.
Troubleshooting#
Buddy doesn't reply#
- Send the trigger on its own. Extra words before or after it stop the match.
- Check Only respond in. If it's set, Buddy only answers in that one channel.
- Make sure the channel isn't the one in Never respond in.
- Check Buddy can View Channel and Send Messages there.
- Wait 10 seconds and try again; the same trigger has a short cooldown per channel.
- If the message was deleted by a message filter (for example a blocked word), Buddy won't answer it.
It answers in threads I didn't expect, or not in a thread#
Only respond in and Never respond in compare the exact channel. A thread counts as its own
channel, so a trigger limited to #help won't answer inside threads of #help, and a trigger
blocked in #general will still answer inside threads of #general.
I can't add another auto response#
You've reached your plan's limit. The usage bar at the top of Add an auto response shows how many you've used. Delete one you don't need, or upgrade to Premium.
The channel I want isn't in the list#
Run /setup in Discord and choose Update Channels and Roles for Website, then refresh the
dashboard.