Phases and rules
A game runs on its arena's own map, in phases. Durations and the rules of each phase are in config.yml phases.
| Phase | Default (s) | What happens |
|---|---|---|
STARTING_COUNTDOWN | 30 | Players wait in the arena's lobby point (or on a spawn of their own) and pick a kit. When it ends with fewer than min-players (2), it starts over. |
CHEST_RUSH | 10 | Everyone goes to a random spawn of their own, kits are handed out, players stand frozen. |
INVINCIBLE | 30 | Everything but PvP is allowed; mobs start spawning. On maps with spawn pistons the tubes open. |
BATTLE | 300 | Everything is allowed. |
FINAL_TP | 10 | The survivors go to deathmatch points (spawns if there are too few), frozen and unhurt. |
DEATHMATCH | 240 | The final fight. In its last 60 seconds lightning strikes a random survivor every 10 seconds; it goes on until one is left. |
ENDING | 10 | The winner gets creative and fireworks. Then the arena resets from its template and a new game starts. |
The game ends as soon as fewer than two players are alive; every game has a winner.
Rules per phase
✓ allowed, · not allowed.
| Rule | COUNTDOWN | CHEST_RUSH | INVINCIBLE | BATTLE | FINAL_TP | DEATHMATCH | ENDING |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
damage | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
pvp | · | · | · | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
fall-damage | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
build | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
open-chests | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
move | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
hunger | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | · |
pickup-items | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | · | ✓ | ✓ |
drop-items | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
mob-spawning | · | · | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Rules apply to players who are alive. With damage off nothing hurts, lava and drowning included.
Players and spectators
- An arena takes as many players as it has spawns, plus
spectator-slots(20) spectators. - Players joining a full arena or a running game, and eliminated players, become spectators.
- Ghost spectators (
spectator-mode: GHOST): fly in adventure mode, invisible to players, touch nothing (hits, arrows, blocks, doors, chests, items), mobs ignore them. They hold the arena menu, play again (the game that starts soonest) and leave.SPECTATORuses Minecraft's own spectator mode instead. - Leaving during a game counts as being eliminated.
The lobby world
The world outside the arenas, where players arrive, pick an arena and come back to. It has no phases; its rules are lobby.rules (by default only moving is allowed). lobby.world picks a world; empty uses the installed lobby map. Give survivalgames.bypass to whoever builds the lobby.
Hotbar items
Right-click items, so players never need commands. They can't be dropped, moved or lost.
| Where | Item | Does |
|---|---|---|
| Lobby, countdown | Compass | Arena menu: join, switch arena, leave |
| Countdown | Chest | Kit menu |
| Lobby, countdown | Nether star | Hide / show other players |
| Lobby, countdown | Book | Language menu |
| Ghost | Compass, paper, red bed | Arena menu, play again, leave |
Slots and items: config.yml hotbar.
On screen
Kit tags in chat and tab (<Ares> Player), a sidebar with coins, kills, wins and kit, and a boss bar counting down to the start (a wither bar on 1.8). Each can be turned off in config.yml display.