mob farming-what you should know

[Hylindar]

Today I received a report that one of the mob farms contained 2000 mobs idle in it. When I arrived to help erradicate the problem I was reduced to 1-2 fps. While I don't know the parties responsible, I think it's important to cover a few basic concepts that apply to those who use mob farms.

Don't AFK.
If you are going to grind mobs, then grind them. No sense in standing at the end farm(or any other) and letting the mobs build up to an insanely large number.

Don't break/change things
Many people spend countless hours and resources constructing these monsters. please don't take it upon yourself to change things, especially breaking things.

Do share with others
If you are using a public mob farm, please keep in mind others would like to use it as well.

Rule of thumb for the server is, generally be considerate of other players. I hope we can all help each other in Zed not outlawing mob farms, but I'm sure any trouble caused by them will lead to that eventually. Remember he doesn't like them much to begin with. Let's work together on this guys

[chester1525]

I really am thinking after this incident that mob farms used to gain xp should be outlawed, due to the fact that any person can afk at them long enough to gain a large amount of mobs, thus lagging the server as we are seeing right now. any other mob farms used to collect resources, besides iron golem farms, are ok with me.

[QuDubz]

I really am thinking after this incident that mob farms used to gain xp should be outlawed, due to the fact that any person can afk at them long enough to gain a large amount of mobs, thus lagging the server as we are seeing right now. any other mob farms used to collect resources, besides iron golem farms, are ok with me.

Im not sure how the 2k mobs spawned at the end farm today, but normally there would be farm from that amount, no matter how long you AFK there.
I have been at the Endfarm many times, and afked up to an hour (Or more) in it, and at no point would there be more than 40 endermen at any time.
My guess would me that a plugin somehow errored and allowed all the monsters to spawn (Maybe a plugin that controls mob spawn limits)..

[LadyBountiful]

Fixed now! LB

[Hylindar]

Thanks Lady! Yeah Qudubz, I agree something must have malfunctioned. Something prolly kept the end loaded and something else turned off the limit, who knows. I don't think that the farms should be outlawed, this is meant more as a "Hey guys lets be responsible" but....we'll see.

[SageJiraiya]

From what I understand about minecraft spawning mechanics, the vanilla overworld has a mob cap, in which all non-passive mobs are included.

I do NOT know how zedwick has the server set-up. But, my observations have led me to believe the overworld mob cap is heavily restrained to conserve server power.

The rules change across dimensions though.

For instance, if I had a zombie farm and found that they were spawning slowly and in small numbers, I could set-up a system to send them to the nether, into an unloaded chunk.

Mobs would therefore spawn, add to the mob limit, but then leave, opening up more spots. Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, or more could be sent over to the unloaded nether, never reaching the mob cap.

Of course, as soon as the player reloaded that nether chunk by entering it, all those mobs would be sensed by the server, and with so much, so fast, to handle, it would likely crash.

The player loads chunks 128 meters in every direction around it if I recall correctly, and the spawn of the world is in a constantly loaded chunk.

These mechanics can be manipulated for player benefit, but can be dangerous if out of control.

Don't try it at home kids!

[Zedwick]

^ Sage's quick guide on crashing SMP servers.

[Scottish_Dec]

I understand that mob farms cause lag.. and that is an issue.. But things such as the public end farm as soon as a new player has been online for about an hour there is someone (nobody in particular) that tells them of the end farm if they need levels. I understand this is them trying to be friendly and help the new player out but i think it could be those new people causing the issues at the end farm.. with their lack of experience or their uncaring attitude to other respected players hard work and perhaps that could be prevented by not informing every player about the farm as it is unclaimed ect. But concerning the stopping of xp farms.. This is something that has been on my mind for a long time.. When i first started playing on Zedwork.. it was vanilla with friends, flat out. no restrictions. no game changing rules. But now.. theres limitations on everything.. and i understand most of it is due to lag purposes.. But i cant breed my animals without hitting a block, i feel as though the game is being restricted and although certain things may be glitches.. and i don't want this to come across as rude.. but. what does it matter if its a glitch.. if it ruins the game for another player then ok.. fair enough. If its a glitch to build in a claim.. far enough but if it doesn't affect my playing experience.. i don't really care if someone used ender pearls to go atop of the bedrock in the nether or if they used a sand machine back when they were useable.. i don't mind.. And i think we should have the choice if we want to use the 'glitches' or not and play the game how the player wants.. but i feel as though these are being taken out of the game when they are in the game.. and that if you take out xp farms i feel as though it will be one step too far.. as of now i feel as though there are too many restrictions on the server and i know they are to prevent lag but i want to be able to breed cows and not hit a barrier.. i just find it very annoying.. I don't know if any other members of the server agree with me and I'm sure there will one or more replies saying how i am wrong or that without these the server would be reduced to nothing but lag and i am aware of that there is no need to tell me. But this is my opinion and i am letting it be known that i disagree with all the restrictions being placed upon aspects of the game because it is considered a glitch or that zed doesn't like it.. (no disrespect to zed i highly respect his opinion and he will run the server as he sees fit. i don't expect him to change it because of this one comment he owns the server therefore decides the rules.) But that is my opinion and i am open to anyone who wishes to express theirs and i hope you'll respect mine.
I in no way want this to be insulting to Zed or anyone else on the server, I love all of you guys and zed for providing the server!
-Scotty

[Zedwick]

Unfortunately, running a public SMP server just requires certain sacrifices in order for it to work out for everyone. Restrictions on dumping water/lava outside of claims, fire spread being disabled, the number of mobs which can be spawned into a chunk/area; these are all things which are necessary to keep the server free from grief, to keep the server enjoyable for all.

I dislike mob grinders, I think they're a terribly cheaty way to play the game. But they are a part of many people's Minecraft, I do not look to dictate how you play your game. Spawning 600 zombies from a single spawner, whilst you sit AFK, affects everyone who plays on the server. It causes lag, it reduces the number of mobs which can be spawned in the rest of the world. Animals farms also cause lag when there are hundreds of animals in the area. As it is, you can get near 70 passive mobs in a chunk under the limits imposed. This is a comfortably large number of mobs, I understand some like to cram animals into tiny pens... and.. well.. that's just cruel At spawners, you can get a fairly steady stream of mobs to be killed. Idling at them gives you no benefit, but you can actively grind at them for drops and xp. Other types of mob farms are harder to automatically restrict without affecting natural spawn rates, and they have on occasion caused problems.

If you want to hoard larger number of animals, then you will need to spread them out. It's good for the server, and it's good for players who may be visiting your area. Some people's computers just cannot handle large numbers of mobs.

[Scottish_Dec]

Yeah Zed i know and i understand how much time and effort you out in to make the server the best it can be, and i am grateful for that. But concerning the animals its not that i cant fit the animals in its that i get the error message 'this animal has reached its breading limit' or something similar, so do i have to move that animal to a new chunk to breed it? or is it just worthless?