MCO Case Book
This page is an archive / review of specific scenarios for which legality may not be clear, or for which edge cases exist. Specifically, this is a compilation of notable decisions made by admins and moderators in the chat (with links to those messages) regarding what is or is not acceptable on the server in response to questions or actions by players.
The best effort is made to capture the full range of staff opinions surrounding each scenario. However, this document should not be treated as authoritative.
Disclaimer / How to use this case book
This document captures what may be allowed and not necessarily what is definitely allowed. As such, this document should be read as a collection of possible scenarios that may be explored or planned around rather than common law.
Check in with a moderator or admin before attempting anything that is not explicitly allowed by the Rules. Many of these situations are resolved on a case-by-case basis and opinions may additionally differ among staff members.
How not to use this case book
This case book should not be used as a tool to debate with staff. Whatever staff say should be obeyed.
Methodology
The methodology for these reviews, unless noted otherwise, is as follows:
- For each case, a set of one or more regular expressions was used to look for possible instances of that case within the given time period.
- 100 messages above and below each search result are inspected to gain context and look for a decision, if any.
- Cases are included either if a definitive decision was reached or otherwise interesting information is given.
- Where possible, case decisions are linked directly to the source message on the Discord server.
Reviews are meant to be comprehensive and contain all results across the stated time periods unless noted otherwise. However, certain instances of a case may be missed due to human error either in identiying the decision or verifying staff status.
As a side note, the following Bash code can be used to search for cases and provide context:
cat $CHAT_LOG | grep --ignore-case "$SEARCH_TERM" --color=always --before-context=100 --after-context=100 --group-separator "@REPLACE@" | sed "s/@REPLACE@/\n\n\n/" | less --raw-control-chars
For daily IRC logs, the following can be piped to grep instead:
find $LOG_DIR -name '*.log' | while read f; do sed "s/^/$(basename ${f%.*})/" < "$f"; done
Scenarios
The following sections compile specific scenarios, associated cases, and a short discussion interpreting the results.
In result tables, (M) indicates that the staff member was a moderator at the time that the message was sent and (A) indicates that the staff member was an administrator. Moderator or administrator status was ascertained using Category:Moderators, Category:Admins, or, in cases where that user is no longer a moderator or administrator, by searching for information on the user profile or chat logs. The username shown is what appeared in the logs at the time the message was sent.
On placing signs
As noted by the Grief page, certain blocks such as shulker boxes may be placed temporarily and not count as grief. In some cases, signs can be placed permanently and not count as grief.
Review
Search range: all messages from 2022-01-01 to 2023-08-11
Search terms:
sign.*grief
| Date | Staff members | Decision | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
2017-12-16; ban note for  Alspal |
 techkid6 (A) |
Placing excessive signs in a short period of time to spam staff alerts is bannable | Screenshot of signs available on Imgur |
| 2022-01-02 |  Void42_ (A) |
Placing signs is not grief unless it is to try to claim someone else's build | |
| 2022-02-05 |  SenatorApple (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2022-02-16 |  Jaysax_ (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | Also notes that temporary crafting table, shulker, and ender chest placement is not grief (Supported by SenatorApple (A))
|
| 2022-02-17 | Jaysax_ (M),  essocx (M) |
Placing signs is not grief; excessive signage is | |
| 2022-02-22 | Jaysax_ (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2022-03-10 | SenatorApple (A) |
Placing signs on the spawn board is not grief | |
| 2022-03-16 |  rhyzofan (M) |
Placing signs count towards grief | |
| 2022-04-02 | SenatorApple (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2022-04-03 |  Anna_28 (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief; placing signs that interact with redstone contraptions is | |
| 2022-04-18 | Void42_ (A) |
Removing other peoples' signs on your builds is not grief | |
| 2022-04-20 | Void42_ (A) |
Removing other peoples' signs near your builds is not grief if
they do not relate to ownership or permission | |
| 2022-04-26 | Jaysax_ (M) |
Placing signs is not grief, within reason | |
| 2022-05-03 | techkid6 (A) |
Placing signs after being told not to by the land owner is grief | |
| 2022-05-07 | Jaysax_ (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2022-05-30 |  BryBer (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief in most circumstances | |
| 2022-05-31 |  Azeur (M) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2022-08-18 | Azeur (M), Anna_28 (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2022-08-29 |  xmaragd (M) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief; excess signage is | |
| 2022-09-03 | Jaysax_ (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2022-09-03 |  teaacup (M) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2022-10-16 |  WaffleNomster (A) |
Removing other peoples' signs on your builds is not grief | |
| 2023-01-29 | Void42_ (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief | |
| 2023-01-30 | Void42_ (A) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief unless it is to try to claim someone else's build, and removing other peoples' signs on your builds is not grief | |
| 2023-02-14 |  MelonHeadKid (M) |
The ability to place signs freely seems to be revokable | |
| 2023-03-01 | teaacup (M) |
Placing signs for communication is not grief; excess signage is | |
| 2023-03-14 |  Xanpi3000 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-04-06 |  Luigifan100 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-04-22 |  Unkle_Genny (M) |
Placing signs is not grief unless excessive | |
| 2023-04-29 |  doublehelix457 (A) |
Placing something that outputs a Craftbook signal is grief | |
| 2023-05-21 | teaacup (M) |
Placing fraudulent permission-granting signs is grief | |
| 2023-05-24 | Luigifan100 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-07-08 | Luigifan100 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-07-11 | Luigifan100 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-08-09 |  Cosmic_potato_04 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-08-10 | Luigifan100 (M) |
Placing signs is not grief | |
| 2023-11-23 |  Krenath (A) |
The content determines if it is grief; "trash-talking" is grief | Player banned for "Placed offensive signs on another player's build near Satellite" (5 minutes prior to this message link), after which Krenath responded to the topic in chat. |
Unrelated, but a message from Anna_28 notes that signs should probably not be placed on cakes, as it does not count as griefing if the sign is destroyed when the cake is eaten.
Discussion
In general, placing signs for communicative purposes is not grief. However, there are a few exceptions:
- Signs with text especially cannot be excessively spammed in a short amount of time; this constitutes a technical attack.
- Signs cannot be used to fraudulently claim ownership.
- Signs cannot be used to grant permissions without the permission to do so.
- Signs cannot be excessively placed on other peoples' builds in an unsightly way.
- Signs that interact with redstone contraptions (e.g. Craftbook) cannot be placed.
Additionally, signs placed on a build after instruction from the owner to not do so may also be considered grief.
On the minimum distance from other builds
According to the page on Grief, addition grief is initially defined as follows (emphasis added):
The addition of any block or blocks to another player's build without that player's permission.
Apart from direct interaction, building near another build is also considered grief (emphasis added):
- Placing any blocks on or around another player's work that affect it undesirably (desirability is determined by the owning player), e.g.:
- (...More bullet points...)
- Placing torches or other blocks to impede the construction of a build
- Surrounding a town or structure with unsightly builds
This section seeks to investigate how far a build must be to not be considered addition grief.
Review
Search range: all messages from 2022-01-01 to 2023-08-11
Search terms:
how far.*buildhow close.*buildtoo close
| Date | Staff members | Decision | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-05-26 | Anna_28 (A) |
As long as the other build isn't impacted; no exact requirement | |
| 2022-06-07 |  EpicBaby (M) |
100-200 blocks | Note from EpicBaby: This was said in response to a player asking for advice on how far away
he should start his build. This is just my rule of thumb to allow for sufficient expansion. |
| 2022-07-30 | Jaysax_ (M) |
Substantially far | |
| 2022-12-30 | Void42_ (A) |
As long as progress of the other build isn't impeded | Contact can be made with the other build if it is not impeded; noted that people typically keep 3-5 block gaps for good measure |
| 2023-04-18 | SenatorApple (A) |
As long as the other build isn't obstructed | Intent to block a build or not may be considered as a factor in determining the response |
| 2023-05-06 | Luigifan100 (M) |
As long as expansion of the other build isn't impeded |
Discussion
Not many results could be found for this scenario, reflecting that there appears to be no definitive answer for how far something must be built from an existing structure to not be considered grief. What constitutes addition grief appears to be determined by the opinion of the player owning the other build, or, if that player is not around, what their opinion would probably have been. It's recommended to seek staff advice on a case-by-case basis.
On Automatic Controls
Many players use tools beyond the vanilla Minecraft client. Exactly what types of automation are allowed is a subject of long-standing debate.
Review
The primary official written guidance is on the Modifications page, which has under Allowed Mods:
- Macro / Keybind Mod or other keybind mods, like AutoHotkey.
But under 100% Disallowed Mods:
- Area damage mods that allow you to break blocks or attack players without clicking to hit them.
- Mods that allow the player to autonomously navigate the world without human intervention (e.g. Baritone).
| Date | Staff members | Decision | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-11-12 |  Txkeykeeper (M) |
Auto-fishing mod is Cheating | Player banned for "cheating by using an autofishing mod. kept casting and did not respond in rm101" |
| 2022-10-13 | Anna_28 (A) |
Movement with scripting is not Cheating | Anna suggested use of scripting to automate collecting boat route Buoy data |
| 2023-10-11 | Azeur (M) |
"you can autofish using an afk fish farm, just not using an autofish mod" | |
| 2023-11-15 |  ScarClaw72 (M) |
Auto-fishing mod is Cheating | Player was banned. |
| 2024-01-16 | Luigifan100 |
"afk FISHING is not allowed" | |
| 2024-02-21 | SenatorApple (A) |
Auto-fishing mod is Cheating | In a (successful) ban-appeal, SenatorApple said "the auto fishing mod you used is also cheating" |
| 2024-02-22 | Anna_28 (A) |
Auto-attacking mobs is Cheating | When asked "is auto clicker even allowed?", Anna_28 replied "it is not, they will probably be banned if they can't follow the rules". This player was not banned, instead was teleported to spawn by admin. They were using two accounts to auto-attack mobs at an XP farm. This also resulting in significant lag, which is circumstantial but might contribute to the tone. |
Discussion
The automation can be thought of as broken into this list.
- Specific mods, and specific uses of mods, are not allowed categorically. This includes any use of Baritone, and apparently any auto-fishing performed by any Minecraft mod.
- AFK fishing is allowed, at an afk-fishing farm, where the ability to afk-fish is entirely based on holding down a button.
- A player's Movement, Commands, and Messaging (in chat etc) are generally allowed.
- This is regardless whether ran by a Minecraft mod, custom client, or general macro, as long as it is not explicitly banned.
- Triggering these actions based on in-game events is still an open question. For example, MacroMod can detect the player's health decreasing, and trigger sending a
/healcommand based on the number of hearts remaining. In general, it appears that anything with a player in front of a vanilla client could observe, is also valid for triggering a scripted action. (citation needed)