Anti-Griefing System

How do I protect my blocks?(top)

Most decorative blocks and tile entity blocks (e.g., paintings) are always protected. However, common blocks like dirt, cobblestone, and sand are not protected by default when they are placed by a player.

If you are building something, and you want to ensure that all your placed blocks are protected, please enable Build Mode. To toggle Build Mode, use the command /buildmode. It is off by default every time you log in. You can also specifically turn it on and off by specifying either option. For example, the command /buildmode on would ensure that Build Mode will be turned on.

Any blocks you place while you have Build Mode enabled are automatically protected. Note: except for liquids (lava and water). You should only enable Build Mode when you are building outposts or other structures. If you are mining or traveling between areas, please do not enable it (disable it if you have enabled it), otherwise you will be unintentionally making it harder for other players to mine, travel, or build in those areas.

NOTICE: Build mode is not usable in the Wastelands, as you should not be creating permanent structures there. However, the uncommon blocks, including the decorative and high-value items, will automatically become your property when they are placed, and are also protected from being griefed. If you must build a temporary structure in the Wastelands, use uncommon blocks (see further down for a complete list).

Commands and Player Settings(top)

Please view the Commands: Anti-Grief page for a comprehensive list of relevant Commands and Player Settings.

Who/what are my blocks protected from?(top)

Blocks you place while in build mode cannot be broken by players, by TNT, nor by creeper explosions. However, if you want to prevent players taking items out of containers, such as chests, you still need to lock them with a lock sign (learn more about these on the Locking Items page). Other players are not able to use lock signs on containers you place while in Build Mode. Players are still able to use items placed in build mode. For example, players are able to interact with doors, levers, buttons, etc. Animals you spawn using spawn eggs are not protected.

How can I tell if blocks are protected?(top)

To determine whether or not a block is protected, hold a bone and left-click the block.

Are there exceptions to the protection?(top)

Liquids and powdered snow blocks are not protected, even if they are placed while in Build Mode.

Crops such as sugar cane, lilypads, water, lava and potatoes were previously not protected even if they were placed in Build Mode, but that no longer occurs.

Containers are NOT protected from being opened under the Anti-Griefing update. In order to adequately protect the contents of a container, you MUST use lock signs.

Who can break my protected blocks?(top)

By default, your protected blocks can be broken by your friends (learn about this on the Friends System wiki page), people currently in a group with you, and people you or your friends have vouched for. If you would like to restrict who is able to break your blocks, you can do so in the anti-grief section of /settings. If you would like to completely disable group members from breaking each other's blocks as a result of being in the same group of each other, and you are the leader of the group, use /gr blockbreak.

How do vouches work?(top)

A vouch is a way of giving someone temporary permission to break you or one of your friends' protected blocks. Each vouch lasts 30 minutes, but will expire early if you vouch on behalf of a friend who is offline and that friend connects to the server, or the person who you are vouching for disconnects from the server. You cannot vouch on behalf of friends who are currently online (They can control their own vouches).

• To vouch for someone to break your blocks, use /vouch [player name]
• To vouch for someone to break one of your friend's blocks, use /vouch [player name] [friend's name]. You can only do this if your friends have not disabled friend vouches in their Player Settings.

It is against the EMC rules to vouch for someone on behalf of a friend with the knowledge that they intend to grief that friend's creations, and will be dealt with as such. Vouches are also logged for Staff reference.

Am I allowed to break unprotected blocks that were placed by another player?(top)

No. Griefing is still against EMC's rules. If it was obviously player-built, leave it alone. The system is here to prevent you from doing something you are not supposed to, and covers up to 95% of the issues. If you find a corner case that goes around the system, that does not mean it is okay, and you will be punished if you abuse it.

What if I don't want to use block protection?(top)

If you want to place blocks that should not be protected, you can turn off block protection by using the command /noprotectmode. When this is active, it will show recurring warnings and every block you place while this mode is active will not be protected, no matter what kind of block you place (common or uncommon).

This command can be used in both the Frontier and Wastelands.

List of non-automatically protected blocks(top)

By default, all blocks placed are protected by that player in both the Frontier and Wastelands, except for some common blocks. The blocks listed below will not be protected automatically, and must be placed in /buildmode to be protected. If no blocks wish to be protected, /noprotectmode must be used.

How do I protect existing buildings?(top)

If you already have a build in the Frontier, that is not (fully) protected, and you are not exactly looking forward to rebuilding the whole thing, you can request Senior Staff members to help you out. It will cost you 10,000r per selection, and up to a maximum charge of 50,000r per player per area (the larger the building, the more work the Senior Staff members would have, so the costs would go up).

To request this service, please send a message to the Senior Staff team here.

Please note:

• If you are protecting an established outpost, this must be requested by the outpost's owner. They may request that Senior Staff members apply the protection on behalf of someone else.
• Selections will be limited by the visible structures in the area. Senior Staff members will not be protecting all 50,000 blocks surrounding your outpost, for example.
• Existing permissions will not be overwritten.
• If the requester is not the builder, staff will require permission from the builder to proceed with the service.