How to turn PvP on or off on a Minecraft server

Your version is in the Settings tab, in the Server software card under Minecraft version.

Two quick checks if you are unsure. The Game rules card only shows a PvP switch when your version has the PvP game rule. In the Console, gamerule pvp answers with the current value on a version that has the rule, and with an error on a version that uses server.properties.

The PvP switch under Server settings is there on every version, because it writes the line in server.properties. On 1.21.11 and newer, change PvP with the game rule. If your file still has a pvp line, give it the same value, so both settings agree.

1. Start the server. The card reads the game rules from the running world.
2. Open the World tab and click Show game rules in the Game rules card.
3. Switch PvP off.
4. To turn PvP back on, flip the same switch again.

The panel sets the rule in the overworld, the Nether and the End together. It works without a restart: from that moment, players who are online can no longer damage each other.

The other switches on this card, such as keep inventory and mob griefing, are explained in keep inventory and game rules.

In the Console tab, type the command without a slash and click Send. In the game, an operator types the same command with a slash in front.

On Paper, a plain gamerule from the console only changes the overworld. The Nether and the End keep their own value. To set all three from the console, run the rule in each dimension:

execute in minecraft:overworld run gamerule pvp false
execute in minecraft:the_nether run gamerule pvp false
execute in minecraft:the_end run gamerule pvp false

Which operator level a player needs for gamerule is listed in Minecraft server commands.

On versions without the PvP game rule, PvP is the pvp line in server.properties. The server reads that file at startup, so each change needs a restart.

In the Settings tab

1. Open Settings and go to Server settings.
2. Type pvp in Search settings, or find PvP in the Gameplay group.
3. Set the switch to Off.
4. Click Save changes in the bar at the bottom of the screen.
5. Click Restart at the top of the panel.

In the Files tab

1. Open Files and click Edit next to server.properties in the top folder.
2. Change pvp=true to pvp=false.
3. Click Save and restart the server.

The other lines of that file are covered in server.properties explained.

WorldGuard switches PvP per area on Paper, Purpur and Spigot. It can only block PvP that the game allows. For an arena, keep the PvP game rule on, or the pvp line on older versions, and let WorldGuard deny PvP everywhere else.

1. Install WorldGuard and WorldEdit from the plugin catalog in the Plugins tab and restart. FastAsyncWorldEdit can take the place of WorldEdit, but install only one of the two: with both in the plugins folder, neither works.
2. Stand in the world and type /rg flag __global__ pvp deny. PvP is now off in that whole world.
3. Select the arena with the WorldEdit wand, the way stop griefing shows for a spawn region, and type /rg define arena.
4. Type /rg flag arena pvp allow. Inside the arena, players can fight again.

If the arena lies inside a larger region that denies PvP, such as your spawn, give the arena a higher priority. With equal priority, deny wins.

On Paper every world keeps its own game rules, so PvP can be on in one world and off in another without a plugin. Set the rule in the world itself:

• In the game: stand in the world and type /gamerule pvp false. Only that world changes.
• From the console: name the world with execute in, for example execute in minecraft:the_nether run gamerule pvp true.

For PvP in the Nether only, set the overworld and the End to false and the Nether to true. The Game rules card sets all three worlds to the same value, so after using the card, set the Nether again by command.

Worlds you add with Multiverse-Core, such as a separate PvP world, work the same way: go there with /mv tp and the name of the world, then set the game rule. Multiverse-Core also stores a PvP value for each world it manages, which you change with its modify command; /mv help shows the exact form for the version you installed. Give both the same value. On older versions without the game rule, use that Multiverse value or a WorldGuard __global__ flag in each world.

Whether separate worlds on one server or a network of servers suits you better is covered in build a server network.

Teams are part of the normal game and need no plugin. Players in a team with friendly fire off cannot hurt each other, while PvP against everyone else stays on. A player can be in one team at a time.

team add red
team join red Alex Sam
team modify red friendlyFire false

Type these lines in the Console, or in the game with a slash. team leave Alex takes a player out of the team again, and team modify red color red shows the names of that team in red.

Plugins add PvP rules the game itself does not have. These are the kinds server owners use most:

On 26.2, every example except PvPManager is in the plugin catalog of the Plugins tab. A plugin from outside the catalog you upload yourself, after checking that it supports your Minecraft version; install plugins shows how.

Common options in toggle plugins are a cooldown, so nobody switches PvP off in the middle of a fight, and a protection period for new players. The commands and options are in the config file the plugin creates in its own folder after the first start. Limit who may use the toggle with LuckPerms.

Fabric, Forge and NeoForge do not run plugins. The game rule, server.properties and teams work there the same way; for PvP per area, use a protection or claims mod with a PvP option.

• PvP was changed in server.properties on 1.21.11 or newer. On these versions, switch the game rule in the World tab.
• Players still fight in the Nether or the End. The rule was set with a plain gamerule from the console. Use the Game rules card or the execute in lines.
• The server was not restarted after a change in server.properties.
• The test player is in creative or spectator mode. Those players take no damage from other players, with PvP on or off.
• A plugin has its own PvP rule. WorldGuard regions, land claim plugins such as GriefPrevention and toggle plugins all have PvP options. When a WorldGuard region denies PvP, the attacker sees "Hey! Sorry, but you can't PvP here." and /rg info with the region name shows its flags.