The Session Controls Hub
Starting and ending a server session, running a vote first, and the live status message that updates itself while it's running.
Table of contents
Once your server key's connected, the session hub is how you actually run a session from Discord — start it, let people know, keep them updated while it's live, and shut it down cleanly after.
Setting it up
Dashboard → ER:LC → Session hub. Pick a channel — that's where the whole thing lives. The first time you set one, Varko seeds it automatically: posts the controls panel, and an idle "shut down" status underneath, the same way a fresh sessions channel looks on day one anywhere.
The controls panel
Four buttons, host-only: Start Session, Shutdown, Start Poll, Stop Poll. Reachable three ways that all land on the exact same panel — the session slash command, its prefix equivalent, or a button right on the dashboard. Whichever one someone used, it's the same panel either way, and it keeps itself current — the buttons disable themselves automatically depending on what's actually running, so Start Session is greyed out while one's already live, and so on.
Starting a session
Hit Start Session, and Varko posts a live status message with the server's name, current player count, join code, and (if you've set one) a Quick Join button. That message keeps itself updated roughly every 30 seconds while the session runs — the player count ticks over on its own, nobody has to refresh or re-post anything.
Running a vote first
Not every session should just start cold. Start Poll posts a single question with a vote button showing a live count — "Vote (6/10)," updating as people click. You set both the question and how many votes count as "enough" in settings. Starting the actual session automatically closes out any poll that's still open, since its job is done the moment the session begins for real.
Who can use it
Session hosts — a role list you set in ER:LC settings, same safe-default shape as everything else here: leave it empty and only the server owner can use the panel. Set it once you've decided who should actually be running sessions day to day.
Notify Me
A standing button on the panel, open to literally anyone, not just hosts. Press it and you get a role — whichever one you've configured as the "ping on session start" role in settings — so people who want to know the moment a session goes live can opt in themselves instead of you having to maintain a list by hand.
Ending it
Shutdown posts a clean "the server is now shut down" message and the live status message stops updating. If you change the session channel while one's actually running, Varko's smart enough not to post a false "shut down" line into the new channel underneath a panel that's telling everyone a session is still live.
More in Guides
Managing the Roster
Editing a member's callsign, department, and rank, suspending someone, and reading the roster the way staff actually need to.
The Dispatch Board: Calls, BOLOs, and Priorities
Creating and running a call from the moment it comes in to the moment it closes, and keeping BOLOs current while you're at it.
The Moderator Panel: Infractions and Cleanup
Two different screens that both sound like moderation — logging discipline against a person, and cleaning up records and BOLOs. They're gated by different permissions on purpose.