CombatLogX Plugin Guide

Minecraft servers, by default, have player combat, which is used on many different servers. However, users can quit in the middle of combat, causing issues like robbing the killer of their loot. This, among other problems, makes combat unfair and leads server owners to fix the situation. Combating this is done through CombatLogX, a Bukkit plugin used to prevent players from quitting combat and gaining other advantages. Using this on your Paper server will improve your entire combat system by adding unique features, like a combat timer to indicate to players that they cannot leave until PvP is over. Other features include when it's safe to use commands, abilities, and it even protects dropped loot. There are many other useful features that can help your server, which we will review later so you can get started. In the meantime, let's explore the CombatLogX plugin and how to install it on your Minecraft server in this Holy Hosting tutorial.

Summary

The CombatLogX plugin was originally developed in 2016 by SirBlobman, on Spigot. Over time, it accumulated over 210,000 downloads and helped create quality PvP servers. This is especially true since the plugin is compatible with Minecraft 1.8.8 through 1.19.2, meaning it can be used before the 1.9 combat update. The main function is to prevent players from quitting combat, but there are many other possible features you can explore. Primarily, these are controlled through CombatLogX's configuration, as they are settings. However, expansions allow even greater control, such as boss bars, trap blocking, death effects, and more. By default, server owners have immediate access to all features. With that in mind, let's learn about installing the plugin and its features for in-game use.

Installation

1. Go to CombatLogX on Spigot and click "Download Now".

2. Save the plugin ZIP file in an accessible place on your computer.

3. Head to your Holy Hosting server panel, then click "FTP File Access" in the upper left corner.

4. Log in with your password and enter the "plugins" folder.

5. In the upper left corner, click "Upload" and drag the file to the corresponding area.

6. Wait for it to reach 100%, then go back to the plugins directory.

7. Select the uploaded compressed file and click "Unzip" in the upper right corner.

8. Continue to submit the changes, and when finished, go back to the main panel and restart the server.

9. Join and run the /plugins command to confirm if it was installed correctly.

- Note: BlueSlimeCore is the required plugin for this, which was loaded in the file

Features

Now that the plugin is installed on your Minecraft server, it's time to review the CombatLogX features so you can get started. These will be an overview of what you can expect and the potential changes you can implement. For a detailed description of everything, check out their wiki [here](link). However, almost all features are controlled in their respective configuration files. Whether changing combat timers or creating battle rewards, these are background server settings rather than commands. Fortunately, our easy-to-use panel editor makes it easy to adjust all aspects of the plugin. With all this in mind, check out the sections below to better understand CombatLogX features.

Combat Logging

As the plugin name suggests, the main functionality is to prevent players from quitting combat. This ensures a fair battle between users, as loot is their reward and it becomes unfair when someone leaves in the middle of a fight. By default, this is enabled with some other configurable features that can help your server. The normal time preventing players from logging out is ten seconds, and it would punish players by dropping all their items if they leave before that. Although, as mentioned earlier, you can customize everything in this plugin to suit your needs.

Combat Expansions

CombatLogX is installed with expansions, which are enabled by default to provide more content on your server. These can range from player combat glow to status scoreboard. Due to the large number of expansions, we won't be able to review them all. However, we'll go over some popular ones that can help your server's battle system and how to access their files.

Rewards

When killing a player or a specific monster, automatic commands are executed to give the player a diamond or another item if you configured it. There are monster whitelists and world lists to allow this functionality, all found in the expansion file. Server owners can configure multiple rewards for specific situations, creating an almost infinite amount of possibilities. They can also turn it into a probability-based system to make it a rare occurrence or a daily feature. Rewards could also be created to punish players, meaning in-game money would be taken away after killing a villager or another mob on the blacklist. This expansion works best on survival, skyblock, and similar servers.

Loot Protection

This expansion is simple but important for your players. After a battle, the winner cannot pick up loot for 30 seconds by default, but it has other functions. For example, if a player dies in the void, loot protection will return their items to the killer's inventory. Another instance is if a player logs out in the middle of combat, thus protecting their gear for a short time. These functions are configurable, meaning you can enable them or customize their settings.

Newbie Helper

If your server has a lot of combat, protecting new players might be the best approach. When someone joins, they cannot be attacked for thirty seconds, but they can be attacked by mobs. However, by default, protection is removed if the new player attacks first. This expansion also controls PvP toggling through the /togglepvp command, giving everyone a chance to avoid combat for the specified time. Using this feature on your server could be great for factions, hardcore, and other types due to potential PvP traps or active arenas.

Accessing Expansion Files

1. Head to your server panel and enter the FTP File Access area.

2. Log in with your password, then navigate to the plugins directory.

3. Next, click on CombatLogX and continue to the expansions folder.

4. From here, you can see all the plugin folders and edit their config.yml files.

- Note: In some cases, there will be other files related to the expansion.

5. After editing the file or files, press Save at the top and restart the server from the main panel.

- Alternatively: Use the /clx reload command in-game to apply the changes.

Commands and Permissions

Like other plugins, CombatLogX has permission nodes for players to access abilities or commands. Make sure you are using a plugin, like LuckPerms, to manage these permissions on your server so players can use their features. Otherwise, you could become a server operator to use all commands. Below is the complete list of plugin commands and their permissions for use on your server.

Configuration

The main features are controlled in CombatLogX's configuration file, allowing owners to disable broadcast messages, define ignored projectiles to trigger combat, set timer duration, among other combat-related settings. There are other files you can review and modify, but we'll focus on the main functionality. Follow the steps below to access the file and apply changes.

1. Go to your FTP File Access area from the server panel.

2. Log in and continue to the plugins directory, then enter the CombatLogX folder.

3. From here, click Edit on the config.yml file to start viewing it.

4. Make your changes and click Save at the top.

5. Go back to the main panel to restart the server or use the /clx reload command in-game to apply the changes.

Common Issues

1. The plugin doesn't work:

Confirm whether the plugin is enabled or not installed correctly using the /plugins command in chat. This will show a list of all active plugins, but those that appear in red or are missing are inactive. If this happens with CombatLogX, verify that you installed it in the correct server profile and in the correct FTP directory. Otherwise, make sure your server can support plugins and is using Minecraft 1.8.8 through 1.19 or higher versions. Once the issue is detected, proceed to make the necessary fixes and restart the server.

2. Inability to use commands:

If the plugin works, but you and others cannot use commands, then the issue could be a problem with permission nodes. This happens when a regular user tries to use an unauthorized command, as they don't have access due to default permissions. Install LuckPerms or another similar management plugin to start configuring access types for players/ranks. Alternatively, this entire scenario could be the result of a broken plugin version. If CombatLogX is enabled, permissions are not an issue, then try a different version on its Spigot history page.

3. Inability to disable features:

In cases where a feature or ability is not suitable for your server, disabling it requires a command or configuration change depending on its type. For example, if you want to remove the scoreboard score from being tagged in combat, use the /clx toggle scoreboard command. For others, they should have a toggle option in their respective configuration file, even if it's an expansion. An example would be setting the "enabled" option to "false" for a feature. Alternatively, you can completely delete the expansion JAR file in the FTP panel (then restart the server) to remove it. In some cases, permission nodes are used to control whether players can use it or not, so keep this in mind when trying to disable a feature.