A barrier between joining and participating — a captcha, a reaction, a rules agreement or a waiting period — intended to filter out automated and drive-by accounts.
Every gate trades safety against attrition, and the trade is real: a captcha stops bulk
accounts and also loses genuine members who cannot be bothered. Discord’s own verification
levels and Onboarding cover much of this natively and free.
A delayed-role gate is often the better ratio — near-zero friction, and it defeats the raid
pattern that joins and posts within seconds.