diff --git a/apps/draupnir/test/appservice/utils/harness.ts b/apps/draupnir/test/appservice/utils/harness.ts
index da047d2c..ff868f7b 100644
--- a/apps/draupnir/test/appservice/utils/harness.ts
+++ b/apps/draupnir/test/appservice/utils/harness.ts
@@ -37,6 +37,7 @@ export async function setupHarnessWithConfig(
 ): Promise<MjolnirAppService> {
   const utilityUser = await newTestUser(config.homeserver.url, {
     name: { contains: "utility" },
+    isAdmin: true,
   });
   if (
     typeof config.adminRoom !== "string" ||
@@ -46,7 +47,19 @@ export async function setupHarnessWithConfig(
       "This test expects the harness config to have a room alias."
     );
   }
-  await ensureAliasedRoomExists(utilityUser, config.adminRoom);
+  await utilityUser
+    .deleteRoomAlias(config.adminRoom)
+    // we ignore errors here because the admin room alias may not exist. Ex wont exist when at clean state.
+    .catch((_: unknown) => undefined);
+  const adminRoomID = await ensureAliasedRoomExists(
+    utilityUser,
+    config.adminRoom
+  );
+  await utilityUser.setUserPowerLevel(
+    "@draupnir-moderation:localhost:9999",
+    adminRoomID,
+    100
+  );
   return await MjolnirAppService.run(
     9000,
     config,
diff --git a/apps/draupnir/test/integration/mjolnirSetupUtils.ts b/apps/draupnir/test/integration/mjolnirSetupUtils.ts
index aa98198d..33a18ae0 100644
--- a/apps/draupnir/test/integration/mjolnirSetupUtils.ts
+++ b/apps/draupnir/test/integration/mjolnirSetupUtils.ts
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ import {
 } from "matrix-protection-suite";
 import { SafeModeDraupnir } from "../../src/safemode/DraupnirSafeMode";
 import { TopLevelStores } from "../../src/backingstore/DraupnirStores";
+import { StringRoomID } from "@the-draupnir-project/matrix-basic-types";
 
 patchMatrixClient();
 
@@ -67,9 +68,9 @@ export interface DraupnirTestContext extends SafeMochaContext {
 export async function ensureAliasedRoomExists(
   client: MatrixClient,
   alias: string
-): Promise<string> {
+): Promise<StringRoomID> {
   try {
-    return await client.resolveRoom(alias);
+    return (await client.resolveRoom(alias)) as StringRoomID;
   } catch (e) {
     if (typeof e !== "object" || e === null) {
       throw new TypeError("Something is throwing garbage");
@@ -81,11 +82,11 @@ export async function ensureAliasedRoomExists(
       throw e;
     }
     console.info(`${alias} hasn't been created yet, so we're making it now.`);
-    const roomId = await client.createRoom({
+    const roomID = await client.createRoom({
       visibility: "public",
     });
-    await client.createRoomAlias(alias, roomId);
-    return roomId;
+    await client.createRoomAlias(alias, roomID);
+    return roomID as StringRoomID;
   }
 }