GuardDen

GuardDen is a comprehensive Discord moderation bot designed to protect your community while maintaining a warm, welcoming environment. Built with privacy and self-hosting in mind, GuardDen combines AI-powered content filtering with traditional moderation tools to create a safe space for your members.

Features

Core Moderation

• Warn, Kick, Ban, Timeout - Standard moderation commands with logging
• Strike System - Configurable point-based system with automatic escalation
• Moderation History - Track all actions taken against users
• Bulk Message Deletion - Purge up to 100 messages at once

Automod

• Banned Words Filter - Block words/phrases with regex support
• Scam Detection - Automatic detection of phishing/scam links
• Anti-Spam - Rate limiting, duplicate detection, mass mention protection
• Link Filtering - Block Discord invites and suspicious URLs

AI Moderation

• Text Analysis - AI-powered content moderation using Claude or GPT
• NSFW Image Detection - Automatic flagging of inappropriate images
• NSFW-Only Filtering - Enabled by default - only filters sexual content, allows violence/harassment
• Phishing Analysis - AI-enhanced detection of scam URLs
• Configurable Sensitivity - Adjust strictness per server (0-100)
• Public In-Channel Warnings - Optional: sends temporary public channel messages when users have DMs disabled

Verification System

• Multiple Challenge Types - Button, captcha, math problems, emoji selection
• Automatic New Member Verification - Challenge users on join
• Configurable Verified Role - Auto-assign role on successful verification
• Rate Limited - Prevents verification spam

Logging

• Member joins/leaves
• Message edits and deletions
• Voice channel activity
• Ban/unban events
• All moderation actions

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+
• PostgreSQL 15+
• Discord Bot Token (see setup below)
• (Optional) Anthropic or OpenAI API key for AI features

Discord Bot Setup

1. Go to the Discord Developer Portal

2. Click New Application and give it a name (e.g., "GuardDen")

3. Go to the Bot tab and click Add Bot

4. Configure Bot Settings:

   • Disable Public Bot if you only want yourself to add it
   • Copy the Token (click "Reset Token") - this is your GUARDDEN_DISCORD_TOKEN

5. Enable Privileged Gateway Intents (all three required):

   • Presence Intent - for user status tracking
   • Server Members Intent - for member join/leave events, verification
   • Message Content Intent - for reading messages (automod, AI moderation)

6. Generate Invite URL - Go to OAuth2 > URL Generator:

   Scopes:

   • bot
   • applications.commands

   Bot Permissions:

   • Manage Roles
   • Kick Members
   • Ban Members
   • Moderate Members (timeout)
   • Manage Channels
   • View Channels
   • Send Messages
   • Manage Messages
   • Embed Links
   • Attach Files
   • Read Message History
   • Add Reactions

   Or use permission integer: 1239943348294

7. Use the generated URL to invite the bot to your server

Docker Deployment (Recommended)

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://git.hiddenden.cafe/Hiddenden/GuardDen.git
   cd guardden
   

2. Create your environment file:

   cp .env.example .env
   # Edit .env and add your Discord token
   

3. Start with Docker Compose:

   docker compose up -d
   

Local Development

1. Create a virtual environment:

   python -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
   

2. Install dependencies:

   pip install -e ".[dev,ai]"
   

3. Set up environment variables:

   cp .env.example .env
   # Edit .env with your configuration
   

4. Start PostgreSQL (or use Docker):

   docker compose up db -d
   

5. Run the bot:

   python -m guardden
   

Configuration

GuardDen now supports file-based configuration as the primary method for managing bot settings. This replaces Discord commands for configuration, providing better version control, easier management, and more reliable deployments.

File-Based Configuration (Recommended)

Directory Structure

config/
├── guilds/
│   ├── guild-123456789.yml      # Per-server configuration
│   ├── guild-987654321.yml
│   └── default-template.yml     # Template for new servers
├── wordlists/
│   ├── banned-words.yml         # Custom banned words
│   ├── domain-allowlists.yml    # Allowed domains whitelist
│   └── external-sources.yml     # Managed wordlist sources
├── schemas/
│   ├── guild-schema.yml         # Configuration validation
│   └── wordlists-schema.yml
└── templates/
    └── guild-default.yml        # Default configuration template

Quick Start with File Configuration

1. Create your first server configuration:

   python -m guardden.cli.config guild create 123456789012345678 "My Discord Server"
   

2. Edit the configuration file:

   nano config/guilds/guild-123456789012345678.yml
   

3. Customize settings (example):

   # Basic server information
   guild_id: 123456789012345678
   name: "My Discord Server"
   
   settings:
     # AI Moderation
     ai_moderation:
       enabled: true
       sensitivity: 80              # 0-100 (higher = stricter)
       nsfw_only_filtering: true    # Only block sexual content, allow violence
   
     # Automod settings
     automod:
       message_rate_limit: 5        # Max messages per 5 seconds
       scam_allowlist:
         - "discord.com"
         - "github.com"
   

4. Validate your configuration:

   python -m guardden.cli.config guild validate 123456789012345678
   

5. Start the bot (configurations auto-reload):

   python -m guardden
   

Configuration Management CLI

Guild Management:

# List all configured servers
python -m guardden.cli.config guild list

# Create new server configuration 
python -m guardden.cli.config guild create <guild_id> "Server Name"

# Edit specific settings
python -m guardden.cli.config guild edit <guild_id> ai_moderation.sensitivity 75
python -m guardden.cli.config guild edit <guild_id> ai_moderation.nsfw_only_filtering true

# Validate configurations
python -m guardden.cli.config guild validate
python -m guardden.cli.config guild validate <guild_id>

# Backup configuration
python -m guardden.cli.config guild backup <guild_id>

Migration from Discord Commands:

# Export existing Discord command settings to files
python -m guardden.cli.config migrate from-database

# Verify migration was successful
python -m guardden.cli.config migrate verify

Wordlist Management:

# View wordlist status
python -m guardden.cli.config wordlist info

# View available templates
python -m guardden.cli.config template info

Key Configuration Options

AI Moderation Settings:

ai_moderation:
  enabled: true                    # Enable AI content analysis
  sensitivity: 80                  # 0-100 scale (higher = stricter)
  confidence_threshold: 0.7        # 0.0-1.0 confidence required
  nsfw_only_filtering: true        # true = only sexual content (DEFAULT), false = all content
  log_only: false                  # true = log only, false = take action

notifications:
  send_in_channel_warnings: false  # Send temporary PUBLIC channel messages when DMs fail (DEFAULT: false)

NSFW-Only Filtering Guide (Default: Enabled):

• true = Only block sexual/nude content, allow violence and other content types (DEFAULT)
• false = Block ALL inappropriate content (sexual, violence, harassment, hate speech)

Public In-Channel Warnings (Default: Disabled):

• IMPORTANT: These messages are PUBLIC and visible to everyone in the channel, NOT private
• When enabled and a user has DMs disabled, sends a temporary public message in the channel
• Messages auto-delete after 10 seconds to minimize clutter
• Privacy Warning: The user's violation and reason will be visible to all users for 10 seconds
• Set to true only if you prefer public transparency over privacy

Automod Configuration:

automod:
  message_rate_limit: 5            # Max messages per time window
  message_rate_window: 5           # Time window in seconds
  duplicate_threshold: 3           # Duplicate messages to trigger
  scam_allowlist:                  # Domains that bypass scam detection
    - "discord.com"
    - "github.com"

Banned Words Management: Edit config/wordlists/banned-words.yml:

global_patterns:
  - pattern: "badword"
    action: delete
    is_regex: false
    category: profanity
    
guild_patterns:
  123456789:                       # Specific server overrides
    - pattern: "server-specific-rule"
      action: warn
      override_global: false

Hot-Reloading

Configuration changes are automatically detected and applied without restarting the bot:

• ✅ Edit YAML files directly
• ✅ Changes apply within seconds
• ✅ Invalid configs are rejected with error logs
• ✅ Automatic rollback on errors

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
GUARDDEN_DISCORD_TOKEN	Your Discord bot token	Required
GUARDDEN_DISCORD_PREFIX	Default command prefix	!
GUARDDEN_ALLOWED_GUILDS	Comma-separated guild allowlist	(empty = all)
GUARDDEN_OWNER_IDS	Comma-separated owner user IDs	(empty = admins)
GUARDDEN_DATABASE_URL	PostgreSQL connection URL	postgresql://guardden:guardden@localhost:5432/guardden
GUARDDEN_LOG_LEVEL	Logging level	INFO
GUARDDEN_AI_PROVIDER	AI provider (anthropic/openai/none)	none
GUARDDEN_ANTHROPIC_API_KEY	Anthropic API key (if using Claude)	-
GUARDDEN_OPENAI_API_KEY	OpenAI API key (if using GPT)	-
GUARDDEN_WORDLIST_ENABLED	Enable managed wordlist sync	true
GUARDDEN_WORDLIST_UPDATE_HOURS	Managed wordlist sync interval	168
GUARDDEN_WORDLIST_SOURCES	JSON array of wordlist sources	(empty = defaults)

Per-Guild Settings

Each server can be configured via YAML files in config/guilds/:

General Settings:

• Command prefix and locale
• Channel IDs (log, moderation, welcome)
• Role IDs (mute, verified, moderator)

Content Moderation:

• AI moderation (enabled, sensitivity, NSFW-only mode)
• Automod thresholds and rate limits
• Banned words and domain allowlists
• Strike system and escalation actions

Member Verification:

• Verification challenges (button, captcha, math, emoji)
• Auto-role assignment

All settings support hot-reloading - edit files and changes apply immediately!

Commands

Note: Configuration commands (!config, !ai, !automod, etc.) have been replaced with file-based configuration. See the Configuration section above for managing settings via YAML files and the CLI tool.

Moderation

Command	Permission	Description
!warn <user> [reason]	Kick Members	Warn a user
!strike <user> [points] [reason]	Kick Members	Add strikes to a user
!strikes <user>	Kick Members	View user's strikes
!timeout <user> <duration> [reason]	Moderate Members	Timeout a user (e.g., 1h, 30m, 7d)
!untimeout <user>	Moderate Members	Remove timeout
!kick <user> [reason]	Kick Members	Kick a user
!ban <user> [reason]	Ban Members	Ban a user
!unban <user_id> [reason]	Ban Members	Unban a user by ID
!purge <amount>	Manage Messages	Delete multiple messages (max 100)
!modlogs <user>	Kick Members	View moderation history

Configuration Management

Configuration is now managed via YAML files instead of Discord commands. Use the CLI tool:

# Configuration Management CLI
python -m guardden.cli.config guild create <guild_id> "Server Name"
python -m guardden.cli.config guild list
python -m guardden.cli.config guild edit <guild_id> <setting> <value>
python -m guardden.cli.config guild validate [guild_id]

# Migration from old Discord commands
python -m guardden.cli.config migrate from-database
python -m guardden.cli.config migrate verify

# Wordlist management  
python -m guardden.cli.config wordlist info

Read-only Status Commands (Still Available):

Command	Description
!config	View current configuration (read-only)
!ai	View AI moderation settings (read-only)
!automod	View automod status (read-only)
!bannedwords	List banned words (read-only)

Configuration Examples:

# Set AI sensitivity to 75 (0-100 scale)
python -m guardden.cli.config guild edit 123456789 ai_moderation.sensitivity 75

# Enable NSFW-only filtering (only block sexual content)
python -m guardden.cli.config guild edit 123456789 ai_moderation.nsfw_only_filtering true

# Add domain to scam allowlist
Edit config/wordlists/domain-allowlists.yml

# Add banned word pattern
Edit config/wordlists/banned-words.yml

Whitelist Management (Admin only)

Command	Description
!whitelist	View all whitelisted users
!whitelist add @user	Add a user to the whitelist (bypasses all moderation)
!whitelist remove @user	Remove a user from the whitelist
!whitelist clear	Clear the entire whitelist

What is the whitelist?

• Whitelisted users bypass ALL moderation checks (automod and AI moderation)
• Useful for trusted members, bots, or staff who need to post content that might trigger filters
• Users with "Manage Messages" permission are already exempt from moderation

Diagnostics (Admin only)

Command	Description
!health	Check database and AI provider status

Verification (Admin only)

Command	Description
!verify	Request verification (for users)
!verify setup	View verification setup status
!verify enable	Enable verification for new members
!verify disable	Disable verification
!verify role @role	Set the verified role
!verify type <type>	Set verification type (button/captcha/math/emoji)
!verify test [type]	Test a verification challenge
!verify reset @user	Reset verification for a user

CI (Gitea Actions)

Workflows live under .gitea/workflows/ and mirror the previous GitHub Actions pipeline for linting, tests, and Docker builds.

Project Structure

guardden/
├── src/guardden/
│   ├── bot.py              # Main bot class
│   ├── config.py           # Settings management
│   ├── cogs/               # Discord command groups
│   │   ├── admin.py        # Configuration commands (read-only)
│   │   ├── ai_moderation.py # AI-powered moderation
│   │   ├── automod.py      # Automatic moderation
│   │   ├── events.py       # Event logging
│   │   ├── moderation.py   # Moderation commands
│   │   └── verification.py # Member verification
│   ├── models/             # Database models
│   │   ├── guild.py        # Guild settings, banned words
│   │   └── moderation.py   # Logs, strikes, notes
│   ├── services/           # Business logic
│   │   ├── ai/             # AI provider implementations
│   │   ├── automod.py      # Content filtering
│   │   ├── database.py     # DB connections
│   │   ├── guild_config.py # Config caching
│   │   ├── file_config.py  # File-based configuration system
│   │   ├── config_migration.py # Migration from DB to files
│   │   ├── ratelimit.py    # Rate limiting
│   │   └── verification.py # Verification challenges
│   └── cli/                # Command-line tools
│       └── config.py       # Configuration management CLI
├── config/                 # File-based configuration
│   ├── guilds/             # Per-server configuration files
│   ├── wordlists/          # Banned words and allowlists
│   ├── schemas/            # Configuration validation schemas
│   └── templates/          # Configuration templates
├── tests/                  # Test suite
├── migrations/             # Database migrations
├── docker-compose.yml      # Docker deployment
├── pyproject.toml          # Dependencies
├── README.md               # This file
└── MIGRATION.md            # Migration guide for file-based config

Verification System

GuardDen includes a verification system to protect your server from bots and raids.

Challenge Types

Type	Description
button	Simple button click (default, easiest)
captcha	Text-based captcha code entry
math	Solve a simple math problem
emoji	Select the correct emoji from options

Setup

1. Create a verified role in your server
2. Configure the role permissions (verified members get full access)
3. Set up verification:

   !verify role @Verified
   !verify type captcha
   !verify enable
   

How It Works

1. New member joins the server
2. Bot sends verification challenge via DM (or channel if DMs disabled)
3. Member completes the challenge
4. Bot assigns the verified role
5. Member gains access to the server

AI Moderation

GuardDen supports AI-powered content moderation using either Anthropic's Claude or OpenAI's GPT models.

Setup

1. Set the AI provider in your environment:

   GUARDDEN_AI_PROVIDER=anthropic  # or "openai"
   GUARDDEN_ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-...  # if using Claude
   GUARDDEN_OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...  # if using OpenAI
   

2. Enable AI moderation per server:

   !ai enable
   !ai sensitivity 50  # 0=lenient, 100=strict
   !ai nsfw true       # Enable NSFW image detection
   

Content Categories

The AI analyzes content for:

• Harassment - Personal attacks, bullying
• Hate Speech - Discrimination, slurs
• Sexual Content - Explicit material
• Violence - Threats, graphic content
• Self-Harm - Suicide/self-injury content
• Scams - Phishing, fraud attempts
• Spam - Promotional, low-quality content

How It Works

1. Messages are analyzed by the AI provider
2. Results include confidence scores and severity ratings
3. Actions are taken based on guild sensitivity settings
4. All AI actions are logged to the mod log channel

NSFW-Only Filtering Mode (Enabled by Default)

Default Behavior: GuardDen is configured to only filter sexual/NSFW content by default. This allows communities to have mature discussions about violence, politics, and controversial topics while still maintaining a "safe for work" environment.

When enabled (DEFAULT):

• ✅ Blocked: Sexual content, nude images, explicit material
• ❌ Allowed: Violence, harassment, hate speech, self-harm content

When disabled (strict mode):

• ✅ Blocked: All inappropriate content categories

To change to strict mode:

# Edit config/guilds/guild-<id>.yml
ai_moderation:
  nsfw_only_filtering: false

This default is useful for:

• Gaming communities (violence in gaming discussions)
• Mature discussion servers (politics, news)
• Communities with specific content policies that allow violence but prohibit sexual material

Public In-Channel Warnings (Disabled by Default)

IMPORTANT PRIVACY NOTICE: In-channel warnings are PUBLIC and visible to all users in the channel, NOT private messages. This is a Discord API limitation.

When enabled and users have DMs disabled, moderation warnings are sent as temporary public messages in the channel where the violation occurred.

How it works:

1. Bot tries to DM the user about the violation
2. If DM fails (user has DMs disabled):
   • If send_in_channel_warnings: true: Sends a PUBLIC temporary message in the channel mentioning the user
   • If send_in_channel_warnings: false (DEFAULT): Silent failure, no notification sent
   • Message includes violation reason and any timeout information
   • Message auto-deletes after 10 seconds
3. If DM succeeds, no channel message is sent

To enable in-channel warnings:

# Edit config/guilds/guild-<id>.yml
notifications:
  send_in_channel_warnings: true

Considerations:

Pros:

• Users are always notified of moderation actions, even with DMs disabled
• Public transparency about what content is not allowed
• Educational for other members

Cons:

• NOT PRIVATE - Violation details visible to all users for 10 seconds
• May embarrass users publicly
• Could expose sensitive moderation information
• Privacy-conscious communities may prefer silent failures

Development

Running Tests

pytest
pytest -v                           # Verbose output
pytest tests/test_automod.py        # Specific file
pytest -k "test_scam"               # Filter by name

Code Quality

ruff check src tests                # Linting
ruff format src tests               # Formatting
mypy src                            # Type checking

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Support

• Issues: Report bugs at https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues
• Documentation: See docs/ directory
• Configuration Help: Check CLAUDE.md for developer guidance

Roadmap

• AI-powered content moderation (Claude/OpenAI integration)
• NSFW image detection
• NSFW-only filtering mode (default)
• Optional public in-channel warnings when DMs disabled
• Verification/captcha system
• Rate limiting
• Voice channel moderation
• Slash commands with true ephemeral messages
• Custom notification templates
• Advanced analytics dashboard