How To Raid on Twitch [A Beginner-Friendly Guide]

In October 2022, Twitch pulled out Host Mode from the platform, leaving a few unique options to support the favorite streamers of 140 million monthly active participants. One of these options is Raid.

Raiding sends all viewers to another channel while live streaming on the platform. Viewers get transferred to a targeted channel, contributing to someone else’s viewership. By doing this, streamers can potentially contribute to the growth of other streamers.

Start your streaming journey by incorporating Twitch Raid and witness its benefits firsthand. This article will tell you everything you need to know.

How Twitch Raid Works

When you raid a streamer, your viewers will be sent to your raiding channel. This allows your viewers to join the chat of the raided channel, watch their content, and interact with the new streamer and their community.

Accompanied by on-screen animations and sound effects, the raided streamer receives a notification of the influx of new viewers.

You may find it easy to mix Twitch Raid with Twitch Hosting, but the two features differ. While both features assist streamers in connecting and nurturing relationships, they have distinct characteristics that set them apart.

Examine the differences between these two features in the following section.

Raid vs. Host: Exploring the Differences

Raiding and hosting aim to foster community building within the Twitch platform. They both facilitate viewer interaction and engagement by encouraging viewers to discover and connect with other streamers.

One of the key distinctions between Twitch raiding and hosting lies in interaction. In a nutshell, raiding creates an immediate and direct interaction, while hosting is more indirect, as viewers remain on the host’s channel.

Look at this image below for a detailed comparison:

Now that you know the difference between Twitch raiding and hosting, it’s time to delve into Twitch Raid’s benefits and how to start one.

Benefits of Raiding A Twitch Channel

Raiding allows the raided channel to display its content to a larger group of people. While also promoting a positive environment among streamers and viewers through interactions, conversations, and reactions during the stream.

The following are other benefits that you’ll get when you use Twitch Raid:

• Growth in viewership
• Nurture community engagement
• Aids in growing your community
• Creates memorable experiences
• Cross-promotion and networking opportunity

Understanding Twitch raids can transform your streaming journey and create a lasting impact. Read on to find out the steps to raid a channel.

How To Raid on Twitch

When you raid another streamer’s channel, you introduce your viewers to new and exciting content. It’s also a way to keep them engaged and entertained even after your stream ends.

Here are the steps to properly raid a channel:

Step 1: Inform Your Audience

Clearly communicate to your viewers that you intend to raid another streamer. Do not ambush them. 

Provide a brief introduction of the streamer you intend to raid so your audience knows what to expect. Notifying your audience allows them to have the option to participate, and it also creates anticipation.

Once you’re done informing your audience, you’re ready to initiate the raid.

Step 2: Initiate the Raid

Twitch offers two options to facilitate seamless raiding. Once you do either, you can click the purple 'Raid Now' button to send everyone from your channel to another channel.

Let’s dig into each of them below:

Option 1: Utilize The Twitch Chat Commands

Using the chat command is the easiest way to begin a raid, but you need to know the channel’s name beforehand. Planning and checking out a few channels before going live is recommended.

To proceed, follow the steps below:

1. On My Chat, type ‘/raid’ and enter the channel name you want to raid. For example: /raid TechJury

2. Once you hit Enter, a pop-up with a 10-second countdown will be displayed.

3. After 10 seconds, click on Raid Now.

If no 10-second window prompt pops up, it could be that the streamer you’re about to raid has permissions that don’t allow raids.

Option 2: Through Your Stream Manager Panel

Another way to start a raid is through the Quick Actions menu. This alternative is better employed if you haven’t decided who to raid yet, as this will allow you to browse through some options registered in your suggested channels list.

Here’s how: 

1. On your Twitch Dashboard, click on your user profile icon, then select Creator Dashboard.

2. Under the Creator Dashboard, click Stream Manager.

3. Click Raid Channel.

4. Browse the channels list and select the channel you want to raid.

5. Finally, click the Start Raid button.

Now that you’ve learned how to use the raid feature on Twitch. It’s time to learn how to moderate incoming raids to avoid malicious attacks from other channels.

Managing and Moderating Raids

Although raids are meant to be a collaborative experience, it remains crucial for streamers to manage their channel. Thankfully, some tools can help broadcasters handle incoming raids effectively.

Check these tools you can use to manage and moderate raids:

Incoming Raid Settings

The Raid settings provide a range of choices regarding who has permission to initiate a raid on your channel. Here’s how to modify the Incoming Raid Settings: 

1. Under the Creator Dashboard panel, click Settings.

2. Check Stream.

In particular, you can personalize the following:

• Viewer Count Limitations: This count is based on the total number of viewers they have when they choose to raid you. It doesn’t necessarily account for the final number of participants in the raid since viewers are free to go if they don’t want to join it.

• Account Age Limitations: For a channel to conduct a successful raid on your stream, their account must have been created a specific number of days ago.

• Additional Group Selection: Lastly, you can select groups or categories to limit the channels that can raid your stream. Any incoming raid must fulfill at least one of the selected criteria. 

Additionally, the raiding channel must still adhere to the viewer and account age requirement that you’ve established.

Temporarily Deny Incoming Raids

Twitch offers an option to block all incoming raids for an hour temporarily. Any changes you apply will take effect immediately, even if you’re currently live.

Follow the steps below to deny incoming raids temporarily:

1. Go to your Stream Manager.

2. Click the ‘+’ button.

3. Look for the Stop Raids for 1 Hour button.

4. Click Add.

Easily activate this quick action at any point during your stream to disable all incoming raids. If you want to allow raids again, you have two options:

5. Wait for the timer to expire.

6. Click the quick action button again to re-enable raids.

Managing Raids via Chat Settings

You can effectively manage spam from incoming raids through Chat Settings. If necessary, you can even shut down the raid completely.

The following channel modes can help you customize your chat:

• Emotes-Only Chat: When enabled, it restricts viewers to posting only emotes.
• Subscribers-Only Chat: Only your subscribers can participate in the chat. However, this feature requires a Partner/Affiliate status.
• Followers-Only Chat: This mode only allows your followers to engage in the chat. Also, you can set the duration for which a follower must have been following your channel. For example, followers can chat if they have followed for at least 10 minutes.
• Slow Mode: In this mode, users must observe a time interval between sending messages. You can customize the length of time from three seconds to two minutes, and your subscribers can be exempted through Partner/Affiliate settings.

Reporting or Banning Raiding Channels

While raiding can be a positive and supportive action, streamers sometimes must report or implement a chat ban on raiding channels for several reasons. This can be due to the following:

• An offensive or inappropriate raid is sent to the raided channel.
• Maintaining community standards.
• Mitigating negative behavior and trolls.
• Maintaining chat quality.
• Respecting privacy.
• Protecting the raided channel.

If you need to report or ban a Twitch raid, you need to do this:

1. Click on Chat Settings on your chat window.

2. Under the Tasks section, click Review Recent Raids.

3. Then click Report or Ban.

It’s important to balance positive interaction and maintaining control over your chat space.

Managing Individual Harassment in Chat

Harassment in Twitch chat is a significant issue that can negatively impact streamers and viewers. It can take various forms and target streamers, viewers, and other participants.

To avoid this, learn how to manage chat messages using AutoMod, a tool designed to prevent inappropriate ones.

Here are the steps to take:

1. Go to Creator Dashboard and click the hamburger icon.

2. Click Preferences.

3. Then click Moderation.

4 Look for the AutoMod Controls section and click AutoMod Rulesets.

5. Locate and click the ‘Turn on AutoMod’ option, and adjust the slider bar to the level that best suits your preferences. Then click Save.

The levels range from Level 0 (no filtering) to Level 4 (the most rigid setting). You also have the option to make your custom settings using the drop-down menus and update each moderation category individually.

Final Words

With its ability to foster connections and expand communities, Twitch Raid offers a valuable tool for established and emerging content creators.

Ensure to adhere to proper etiquette when raiding to maximize its potential. Moreover, utilize the tools available to manage and moderate incoming raids to maintain a controlled streaming environment.

You’re now equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to conduct your first Twitch raid confidently. Go ahead and seize the opportunity to create meaningful connections.