> open up their protocol

Both the Rest API (that official clients use internally too), as well as the real-time WebSocket protocol are described here:

https://discordapp.com/developers/docs/reference

https://discordapp.com/developers/docs/topics/gateway

Unfortunately you can't use these APIs to create third party clients because that violates their ToS, they are meant only for writing bots. If they catch you using these APIs with your full account credentials they'll ban your account.

They can't catch you using these apis since these are the same apis the first party client runs off of

Of course they can catch you if your client isn't 100% the same as the original there are going to be differences which "forensic" tools are going to prove.

Forensic net requests? You can MITM the entire traffic. Mimicking it's nature isn't the hardest task in the world if all the data is handed on a silver platter, and it's even easier when their client code is uncompiled JavaScript. There are always people data mining the client.

If you're thinking they're going to check the actual software. Like ass I'm going to let someone into my house to check if I'm breaking their terms of service

I agree on opening the protocol but if what you want is a gateway, it's already open enough for that.

https://github.com/42wim/matterbridge