Cube Areas

A cube area is a cuboid (box) region defined by two corner blocks. Every area belongs to a specific world and its dimension is detected automatically based on the world name. Areas are stored as individual YAML files in Areas/ and persist across restarts.

Area Properties

Property Description
IDUnique identifier used in all commands. Case-sensitive. Can contain / to place the area in a subfolder (e.g. zones/pvp/arena). Cannot be changed after creation — see Folder Organization.
CoordinatesTwo opposite corner blocks: (x1, y1, z1) to (x2, y2, z2). The corners can be in any order.
WorldThe world name where the area exists (e.g. world, world_nether).
DimensionAuto-detected: minecraft:overworld, minecraft:the_nether, or minecraft:the_end.
ColorHex color code (#RRGGBB) used to render the area outline in the client mod. Set with /area color.
AliasOptional human-readable name displayed in the client mod interface alongside the area ID.
PriorityInteger value (default 0). Determines which area's rules take effect when areas overlap.
SkyboxOptional PNG texture name. When set, replaces the sky for players inside the area. Requires the client mod. See Skybox.

Folder Organization

Area IDs can contain / slashes to organize areas into virtual subfolders. The ID becomes the relative file path — for example, an area with ID zones/pvp/arena is stored at Areas/zones/pvp/arena.yml and its folder hierarchy is created automatically. Flat areas follow the same pattern under Areas/.flat/.

Using subfolder IDs in commands

Because / is a special character in command parsing, IDs that contain it must be wrapped in double quotes when typed in a command. Tab-completion automatically suggests them pre-quoted so you never have to type the quotes manually.

# Creating an area inside a subfolder
/area create cube "zones/spawn" -50 60 -50 50 90 50

# Applying a rule to a specific nested area
/area cube rules add "zones/pvp/arena" no_break

# Tab-completion will suggest: "zones/pvp/arena" (already quoted)

Bulk folder operations

Many commands support a bulk mode: if the ID argument ends with /, the command applies to every area whose ID starts with that prefix. This lets you manage a whole group of areas in a single command.

# Add no_pvp to every area in zones/pvp/
/area cube rules add "zones/pvp/" no_pvp

# Remove all player limits from areas in events/
/area cube limit remove "events/"

# Apply a color to all areas under worlds/nether/
/area color "worlds/nether/" #FF6600

# Set priority 5 on every area in the lobby/ folder
/area cube priority "lobby/" 5

Flat Areas

A flat area is a 2D planar zone defined by a bounding box and a crossing plane position. Unlike cube areas, flat areas do not contain players — instead they detect when a player crosses from one side of the plane to the other. Useful for one-way entry triggers, border detection, or directional events.

How flat areas work

When a flat area is created, the server automatically detects the flat axis (X, Y, or Z) based on the bounding box geometry. The flatPosition parameter sets the exact coordinate value of the crossing plane on that axis.

The client mod tracks which side of the plane the player is on. When the player transitions from one side to the other while within the area's bounds, a crossing event fires:

  • Positive side — the player moved toward the increasing direction of the axis.
  • Negative side — the player moved toward the decreasing direction of the axis.

Flat Area Properties

Property Description
IDUnique identifier. Single word, case-sensitive.
Bounding boxDefines the region where crossing detection is active. Players outside the bounds are ignored.
Flat positionThe coordinate value on the flat axis where the crossing plane sits (e.g. 0 for z=0).
Flat axisAuto-detected (X, Y, or Z) from the area geometry. The axis with the smallest span becomes the flat axis.

Example

# A flat area at z=0 that spans x:-100 to 100, y:60 to 80, z:-5 to 5
# flatPosition=0 → the crossing plane is at z=0
/area create flat border 0 -100 60 -5 100 80 5

# When a player walks from z=-1 to z=1 they cross toward the positive side
# When they walk from z=1 to z=-1 they cross toward the negative side

Skybox

Each cube area can have a custom skybox — a PNG texture that replaces the vanilla sky while the player is inside the area. The transition fades in smoothly on entry and fades out on exit. This feature requires the client mod.

Setup

  1. Prepare the PNG texture

    Create a panorama-style PNG image (recommended: 2048×1024 or any 2:1 ratio). Name it anything without spaces.

  2. Distribute the texture to clients

    Each player must have the file at:

    .minecraft/config/ProtectedArea/assets/skybox/<name>.png
  3. Assign the skybox to the area
    /area cube skybox add <area_id> <name>

Commands

/area cube skybox add spawn night      # Assign texture "night.png" to area spawn
/area cube skybox remove spawn         # Remove the skybox from area spawn
/area cube skybox info spawn           # Show the current skybox for area spawn

Basic Rules

Basic rules are global restrictions applied to the entire area. When a rule is active, it applies to all players in the area unless they have an exception. Rules are additive — an area can have any combination of them.

Rule Key Description Note
no_breakPlayers cannot break any block inside the area.
no_placePlayers cannot place blocks or use buckets (lava, water) inside the area.
no_interactBlocks all player interactions: containers, doors, buttons, levers, entities, and vehicles.
no_mobgriefingEntities such as creepers and endermen cannot destroy or modify blocks inside the area.
no_pvpPlayers cannot deal damage to other players inside the area.
no_entityattackPlayers cannot attack any entities (mobs, animals, etc.) inside the area.
no_damagePlayers inside the area take no damage from any source.
no_dropPlayers cannot drop items on the ground inside the area.
no_collectPlayers cannot pick up items from the ground inside the area.
no_spawnNatural entity spawning is prevented inside the area.
no_entryAn invisible collision barrier prevents players from entering the area.CLIENT MOD
no_exitAn invisible collision barrier prevents players from leaving the area. Entry is still allowed.CLIENT MOD

Advanced Rules

Advanced rules apply restrictions to specific blocks or entities rather than everything. They exist alongside basic rules and give you granular control. There are two categories: YES rules and NO rules.

Priority between basic and advanced rules

YES rules always take precedence over their corresponding basic NO rule. For example: if an area has the no_break basic rule active, adding a yes_break advanced rule for minecraft:oak_log means players can still break oak logs even though breaking is globally disabled.

Similarly, NO advanced rules add restrictions that don't require a global basic rule. You can block breaking a specific block even in an area with no no_break rule.

YES Rules — Allow specific actions

Rule Type Target Description
yes_breakBlocksAllow breaking a specific block even when no_break is active.
yes_placeBlocksAllow placing a specific block even when no_place is active.
yes_interactBlocks / EntitiesAllow interacting with a specific block or entity even when no_interact is active.
yes_dropItemsAllow dropping a specific item even when no_drop is active.
yes_collectItemsAllow collecting a specific item even when no_collect is active.

NO Rules — Block specific actions

Rule Type Target Description
no_breakBlocksBlock breaking a specific block, even without the global no_break rule.
no_placeBlocksBlock placing a specific block, even without the global no_place rule.
no_interactBlocks / EntitiesBlock interaction with a specific block or entity.
no_dropItemsBlock dropping a specific item.
no_collectItemsBlock collecting a specific item.

Example

# Museum: everything locked, but players can read signs
/area cube rules add museum no_break
/area cube rules add museum no_place
/area cube rules add museum no_interact
/area cube advanced rules add museum yes_interact minecraft:oak_sign

# Prevent placing TNT specifically (no global no_place required)
/area cube advanced rules add storage no_place minecraft:tnt

# Block interacting with villagers
/area cube advanced rules add market no_interact minecraft:villager

Exceptions

Exceptions grant a specific player the ability to bypass one or more rules in a specific area. Exceptions are stored per-area and per-player and persist across restarts.

Exception Key What it bypasses
allEvery basic rule and the player limit. The player is unrestricted in the area.
no_breakThe no_break basic rule and any no_break advanced entries.
no_placeThe no_place basic rule and any no_place advanced entries.
no_interactThe no_interact basic rule and any no_interact advanced entries.
no_pvpThe PvP restriction.
no_entityattackThe entity attack restriction.
no_damageThe no-damage rule (the player will take damage normally).
no_dropThe item drop restriction and any no_drop advanced entries.
no_collectThe item collect restriction and any no_collect advanced entries.
no_spawnMob spawn prevention (not directly applicable to players).
no_mobgriefingMob griefing prevention.
no_entryThe entry barrier. The player can walk into the area normally.
no_exitThe exit barrier. The player can leave the area normally.
limitThe player limit. The player can enter even when the area is full.
# Staff member bypasses all rules in the protected zone
/area cube exception add lobby Marquinho all

# Builder can place and break blocks specifically
/area cube exception add lobby Steve no_break
/area cube exception add lobby Steve no_place

# VIP player can enter the restricted barrier area
/area cube exception add vip_lounge VIPPlayer no_entry

# Player can enter even when area is at capacity
/area cube exception add arena VIPPlayer limit

Priority

When two or more areas overlap at the same position, only the area with the highest priority value governs the rules at that position. All areas have a default priority of 0.

This allows you to create nested areas — a large general zone with one set of rules and a smaller inner zone that overrides them.

# Large lobby: no PvP, no breaking (priority 0 — default)
/area create cube lobby -200 60 -200 200 128 200
/area cube rules add lobby no_pvp
/area cube rules add lobby no_break

# Small inner arena: no rules, PvP allowed (priority 10)
/area create cube arena -30 60 -30 30 128 30
/area cube priority arena 10
# Inside arena: arena rules apply (no restrictions) → PvP works
# Outside arena but inside lobby: lobby rules apply → no PvP, no break