Kotbo 4 min read
Discord starboard: repost the messages people react to
A starboard is a channel where a bot reposts messages that got enough reactions, usually stars. Discord has no native one, so you need a bot. In Kotbo it’s the Starlight module, the Featured messages page of the dashboard: you pick the emojis that count, the threshold and the channel, and the bot handles the rest
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What a Discord starboard is for
On an active server, the meme of the week sinks under hundreds of messages in one evening. The starboard keeps it safe
- The messages that got laughs or reactions stay findable in one channel
- Newcomers see the tone of the server at a glance
- Active members see their messages featured, which brings them back
What Discord offers without a bot
Nothing quite like it. Pinned messages come close, but a mod has to pin them by hand, channel by channel, and they say nothing about what the community liked. For a starboard that fills itself, you need a bot that counts reactions
Setting up a starboard with Kotbo
Everything is set on dash.kotbo.fr, in the Featured messages page. The module starts off: without a channel to post in, it would have nowhere to write
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Create the channel
A #starboard or #hall-of-fame channel, read-only for members if you want it to stay clean
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Pick the highlights channel
In the Publication section, select that channel and the color of reposted messages
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Set the threshold
The score a message needs to be reposted, upvotes minus downvotes. It defaults to 5
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Pick the emojis
One or more upvote emojis, the star or one of your server’s emojis. The first one is used as the counter on the highlight
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Turn the module on
As soon as a message hits the threshold, Kotbo reposts it, and the counter updates with each new reaction
Starboard settings
Beyond the threshold, each section of the page handles one thing
Downvotes
Emojis subtracted from the score, thumbs down by default. Leave the list empty to count upvotes only
Count reactions on the highlight
Votes on the reposted message feed the same score. That’s often where members vote
Watched and ignored channels
Leave empty to watch the whole server, or limit it to a few channels. An ignored channel always wins, handy for #staff or #rules
Bot messages
Ignored by default, turn them on if your bots or webhooks post content worth featuring
Remove below threshold
If the score drops, the highlight is deleted. Turn it off so a message stays posted once it made it
What a highlight contains
The reposted message carries the original so nobody has to go looking for it
- The score and the source channel at the top
- The author with their avatar, the text and the date
- Up to four images grouped as a gallery, other files as links
- A button that jumps to the original message
- If the original message is deleted, the highlight goes too
Seeding votes, or building an idea box
Kotbo adds the vote emojis to each highlight itself, so nobody has to hunt for them. You can also pick channels to seed: every new message there gets the vote emojis. On an ideas channel, that makes a suggestion box where the best ideas rise on their own. Reactions added by the bot don’t count toward the score
Picking a starboard threshold
No single number suits every server. Start low on a small server so the channel doesn’t sit empty, and raise the threshold once it fills faster than people read it. With Remove below threshold, a message that loses its votes drops off on its own, and downvotes give the community a way to say no