Minecraft 1.8 PvP Server: the Real Version or 1.8 Combat on the Latest

1.8.9 in your game, 1.8.8 on the server

1.8.9 is what almost everyone uses for PvP, but on the server side the version you run is 1.8.8: Spigot and Paper stopped there, and both speak the same language as the game. A player on 1.8.9 joins a 1.8.8 server without any problem.

What changed afterwards is combat. Since 1.9 there's a cooldown bar between hits and the shield; in 1.8, every click counts. That's why PvP servers, practice arenas and lots of minigames are still on 1.8.

The two routes

A server on real 1.8.8: combat, hits and knockback are exactly those of 1.8, because it is 1.8. It runs on Java 8 and uses little. The downside: it's a version from 2015 with no support. Paper still lets you download it, but as a legacy version, with no new fixes; almost no modern plugin works on it, and you can't join from Bedrock (phone, console).

A server on the latest version with 1.8 combat: the OldCombatMechanics plugin removes the attack cooldown and lets you tune the rest (shields, golden apples, potions) per world or per player. With ViaVersion, ViaBackwards and ViaRewind, people on 1.8.9 can join and so can people on the latest. You get today's plugins, the new blocks and, if you want, Bedrock with Geyser. The downside: it's a very good imitation, not 1.8; players coming from 1.8.9 see new blocks swapped for similar ones.

In short: if it's a PvP-only server for people who play on 1.8.9, go 1.8.8. If PvP is one part (a survival with an arena, minigames) or you want friends on newer versions to join, go latest with OldCombatMechanics.

Route 1: the server on 1.8.8

On your PC: download Paper 1.8.8 from the legacy versions section of papermc.io, put it in a folder and start it with Java 8 (with Java 17 or 21 it won't start). Accept the EULA in eula.txt, start it again and open port 25565 on your router if your friends aren't at your place.

Plugins for 1.8 are found on SpigotMC filtering by “Tested Minecraft Versions: 1.8”. Of the well-known ones, the old branches work: WorldEdit 6 and its WorldGuard to build and protect arenas, and old versions of EssentialsX and LuckPerms. Download the version whose page says 1.8, not the latest.

Settings usually changed on a PvP server: pvp=true in server.properties (on 1.8 it really is there; on modern versions it's a game rule), spawn-protection=0 if the arena is next to the spawn point, and a low view distance (6–8) so it runs smoothly with lots of people. 1.8 has no “simulation distance”: that line is ignored.

Route 2: the latest version with 1.8 combat

One thing ViaRewind doesn't do on its own: bring the combat back. The player joins on 1.8.9, but the hit rules are the server's. That's why you need OldCombatMechanics as well as ViaRewind.

1. Paper on the latest version

   The normal plugin server. If you already have it, change nothing.

2. OldCombatMechanics

   Download it from its page on Hangar (hangar.papermc.io) and put it in the plugins folder. Check first that there's a build for your server's version: it lags behind Minecraft. If it doesn't have one yet, keep the server on the newest version it supports.

3. ViaVersion, ViaBackwards and ViaRewind

   The three together let 1.8.9 players join a modern server. ViaRewind is the one that adds 1.8 and 1.7; it needs the other two.

4. Tune the combat

   In the OldCombatMechanics config you choose what goes back to how it was in 1.8 and in which worlds: for example, 1.8 combat in the arena and normal in the survival world.

How it's done on NapNodes

Any Minecraft server (the free one too) can switch to another version from the panel: “Mods & plugins” → “Server type” tab. There you choose Paper and the version from a list that comes from Paper; when you pick a 1.x from before 1.17, such as 1.8.8, the server installs itself with Java 8. You don't have to touch anything about Java.

What the panel won't do is downgrade with a world inside: a world created on a new version breaks on an old one. If your server already has a world from the current version, move it aside first (in “Files”, rename the world folder, as explained in the guide to resetting the world) and the server will create a new 1.8.8 one. Or upload your 1.8 world or arena.

The plugins tab only shows the ones that work with your version, and for 1.8.8 there are few. Download the rest from their page and upload them in “Files”, inside the plugins folder; they load on “Restart”. PvP is turned on or off in “Settings”, under “Players can attack each other (PvP)”.

1. Make a backup

   In “Backups”, if you have a world you want to keep. The free server has no backups: in “Files”, compress the world folder and download it.

2. Move the current world aside

   In “Files”, rename the world folder (for example, to world-before). If the server is new, skip this step.

3. Choose Paper 1.8.8

   In “Mods & plugins” → “Server type”, click Paper, pick 1.8.8 in the list and “Change”. It takes a few minutes and the panel tells you when it's done.

4. Upload your plugins

   The 1.8 ones, in “Files” → plugins. Then “Restart” and check in the “Console” that they load without errors.

5. Join on 1.8.9

   With the address from the “Address to play” card on “Home”, under “Multiplayer”.

How much RAM a 1.8 PvP server needs

Not much: 1.8 uses far less than today's versions. For a group of friends with a few plugins, 2–3 GB is plenty; the free Minecraft server runs with 3 GB and so does the smallest plan. What PvP really feels is the CPU: on 1.8 almost everything runs on a single core, and with lots of people fighting at once it matters that the core is fast and not shared. On NapNodes your plan's RAM and CPU are yours alone, with no overselling.

On the modern route (latest version with OldCombatMechanics) it counts like any of today's Paper servers: the RAM calculator tells you how much for your players and plugins.

Common problems

“Outdated server! I'm still on 1.8.8” when joining with a newer version: the server is on 1.8.8 and your game isn't. Join on 1.8.9 or add ViaVersion to the server (on 1.8.8 you need an old ViaVersion release that supports it).

The server won't start after switching to 1.8.8: it's almost always a modern plugin. The console tells you which; remove it from the plugins folder and hit “Start” again.

“Unsupported class version” or “UnsupportedClassVersionError” in the console: that plugin is built for modern Java and won't load on 1.8.8. Look for its old version.

Bedrock players can't join: Geyser doesn't work on 1.8.8. If you need them, it's route 2.

Frequently asked questions