Minecraft server rules that players actually follow

Minecraft server rules work best as a short numbered list, eight to twelve rules, each with a plain example, plus a published punishment ladder so everyone knows what happens when a rule is broken. That's the whole secret. Long walls of legal-sounding text don't get read, and rules like "be respectful" with nothing behind them start more arguments in your ticket channel than they settle. Below is a template you can copy, the ladder to go with it, and how to enforce both without looking like you play favorites.

A Minecraft server rules template you can copy

This list fits a public survival or SMP server. Rename, cut and add to fit your mode, but keep the numbers: staff can then say "rule 4" and nobody argues about wording.

1. Be decent in chat. No slurs, hate speech, threats or harassment, in public chat or private messages. Example: repeatedly messaging someone who asked you to stop.
2. No cheating. No hacked clients, x-ray (mods or texture packs), auto-clickers, or mods that give an unfair advantage. Allowed: minimaps without entity radar, performance mods, shaders.
3. No griefing or stealing. Don't break, change or take anything that isn't yours, claimed or not. Example: taking items from an unlocked chest at someone's base.
4. No exploiting bugs. If you find a dupe or a way past a protection, report it to staff. Using it is a ban; reporting it may earn a reward.
5. No lag machines. Don't build anything meant to lower server performance. Staff may remove large farms that hurt TPS and will tell you why.
6. No spam or advertising. No flooding chat, caps lock storms, or posting other servers' addresses.
7. Keep it all-ages. No sexual content, gore or drug references in chat, signs, books, builds or skins.
8. Protect privacy. Never share anyone's real name, address, photos or other personal information, including your own.
9. No scamming. Deals made in game must be honored. No fake trades, fake giveaways or "I'll pay you later."
10. One account per person. Alts to dodge punishments or farm vote rewards are banned along with the main account.
11. Staff have the final say. Disagree through an appeal, not by arguing in public chat.
12. Rules can change. We'll announce changes in Discord. Playing here means you accept the current rules.

The punishment ladder

A ladder turns "the mod was in a bad mood" into "that's what the rules say." Publish it next to your rules. Staff can skip steps for serious cases, but should note why.

With EssentialsX, the timed steps map straight to commands: /mute Steve 1h spam and /tempban Steve 3d griefing. Offenses should age out; a warning from eight months ago shouldn't turn a small slip into a ban.

How to enforce rules fairly

Players forgive strict rules. They don't forgive rules that bend for the owner's friends. Four habits keep enforcement clean:

1. Evidence first. A screenshot, a chat log line, or a CoreProtect lookup (/co lookup u:Steve t:1d) before any punishment. "Someone told me" isn't evidence.
2. Log everything. Every warn, mute and ban goes in a staff channel with the rule number, the evidence and the step on the ladder. The next staff member sees the history.
3. Tell the player why. The punishment reason should name the rule: "Rule 3, griefing at 120, -40." A player who knows why has less reason to argue.
4. Offer an appeal. One place to appeal (a Discord ticket or a form), handled by someone other than the staff member who issued it. Answer every appeal, even with a no.

Conflicts of interest need a rule of their own: staff never punish their friends or people they're arguing with. They hand it to someone else. Our staff guide covers training and trial periods.

Rules that cut down on reports

Most reports come from a few gray areas. Settle them in the rules before they turn into drama:

• Unclaimed land. Say whether building near someone, or taking from unclaimed chests, is allowed. If your server has claims, say "unclaimed is fair game" or "griefing is banned everywhere," but pick one.
• PvP consent. On survival servers with PvP on, say whether killing players at their base, or repeatedly at spawn, counts as harassment.
• Traps and pranks. Allowed? Only in the wild? Only if they don't steal items?
• Farm size. Give a number (a cap on villagers or animals per chunk area) instead of "don't make big farms."
• Language. If you need English in public chat so staff can moderate, say so and offer a channel for other languages.

Rules for different game modes

The template covers general behavior. Game modes add their own lines.

Extra rules for kids-friendly servers

If you market your server to kids, parents will read your rules before their child plays. We can't vouch for any server, but these are the lines worth adding on top of the template:

• No asking for or sharing ages, schools, locations, photos or social media accounts.
• No moving conversations off the server to private apps.
• No dating or romantic roleplay.
• A chat filter that's on for everyone, with staff reviewing what it catches.
• Clear contact details for parents, by email, on your website.

Our kids servers guide shows what parents are told to check, so you can see your server from their side.

Where to publish your rules

• In game. EssentialsX's /rules command shows the contents of rules.txt in the Essentials plugin folder, with pages. Mention /rules in your join message.
• On Discord. A read-only rules channel. Consider requiring people to accept it before other channels unlock. Our Discord guide covers the setup.
• On your listing. A short line like "No griefing, no hacks, friendly chat" in your server description helps players find the right fit before they join.

What is a Minecraft server with no rules called?

A Minecraft server with no rules is called an anarchy server. The server doesn't ban hacked clients, griefing, stealing or chat abuse, and the world is usually never reset. The one people mean when they search for "the Minecraft server with no rules" is 2b2t, the oldest anarchy server, running since 2010. Its address is its name, 2b2t.org.

"No rules" is never entirely true, though. Anarchy owners still have to follow Mojang's EULA and the law, and their hosting provider's terms. Some also make exceptions for things like server-crashing exploits, since a crashed server is no fun for anyone. Semi-anarchy servers go further: they allow PvP and griefing, but ban hacked clients or keep chat rules.

We track 78 anarchy servers online right now. Browse anarchy and semi-anarchy servers, or read what an anarchy server is before you try one.

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