Joining the partyline#

The partyline is the bots’ private chat network — a direct connection to a bot (and through it, the other linked bots) that operators use for commands that have no in-channel equivalent. Both chanops and botmasters connect the same way; what you can run once you’re on depends on your flags.

Why it exists#

Some commands manage the bot’s internal state — the user records (who’s registered, their flags, their hostmasks) and the ban list — and have no channel equivalent. Managing users (.+user, .chattr, .+host, …) and the ban commands (.+ban, .bans, .stick, …) are partyline-only. So is finding out who else is on (whom) and botnet info (bots).

In-channel IRC (kicking, /mode +b, op/deop) still works for the quick stuff — see the chanop cheat sheet — but anything the bot should remember lives on the partyline.

Connecting#

You need a user record with at least the partyline flag to do anything useful (operators have +o or +n/+m, both of which grant partyline access).

From your IRC client:

/ctcp <bot> chat

The bot opens a DCC CHAT with you. Accept it, then log in:

<bot> Please enter your handle.
you> yourhandle
<bot> Please enter your password.
you> yourpassword

<bot> is whichever bot you have a record on (e.g. XeroKewl, Decisis). You set your password with pass — see the user cheat sheet (or a botmaster set it when creating your record).

Once you’re on#

Commands start with a dot (.command). The essentials:

.help                  list the commands you can run
.help <command>        details on one command
.who                   who's on this bot's partyline
.quit                  leave the partyline

From here, go to your role’s cheat sheet:

• Chanops → chanop cheat sheet
• Botmasters → botmaster cheat sheet
• Everyone → ban maintenance (the deep dive on how the bot’s bans work)

How it differs from the channel#

• Private — only operators with records can see it; nothing you type on the partyline appears in #motorcycles.
• Persistent — you stay connected across channel activity; the bot keeps state (your session, the user records, the ban list) live.
• Stateful commands — partyline commands change what the bot remembers (records, bans, flags), which is exactly why they’re not in-channel.