I know people are probably tired of everyone continuously bitching about the state servers these days but in all honesty Minecraft itself is close to flawless which makes servers and everything that comes with them pretty much the only things worth ranting about. As some of you know (if you read my other blog or are friends with me elsewhere) I loathe lazy and corrupt server owners. Only thing good about them is they give me something to complain about here which is kind of a plus and it just so happens I will be doing just that.

Everyone (or nearly everyone) who plays Minecraft dream of having a server. I mean, who wouldn't? Servers are awesome aren't they? Now I wouldn't necessarily say this is true. Servers are only as awesome as the owner who makes them. What I mean by this is if you own a server and put lots of effort into it, chances are it will be pretty high quality but if you make a server just for the feeling of power or bragging rights chances are your server will fail. Surprisingly enough this seemingly logical veiwpoint is not seen by many server owners. Well you're in luck server owners and want-to-be server owners! I'll be going into the very important (and generally ignored) parts of server management. I hope you get something out of this as you learn that running a successful server is not as easy as it seems.

There are three main things that a server requires in order to be successful:

-Uniqueness: Minecraft is a game of infinite possibilities. Even if it looks like everything that can be done has been done, it hasn't. Many server owners don't bother with uniqueness. If they see something that is popular they copy it in hopes of gaining the same popularity if not more. Sometimes it pays off but only if you keep it unique, interesting, and you put a lot of effort into it (I'll get to that later). So, if you are not going to spend time trying to come up with a new server concept or greatly improve an existing one, don't bother making a server. Just look at the PMC server lists. A good portion of them consist of PVP faction servers. Now, I don't necessarily have anything against said servers but from what I've seen most are EXACTLY the same. There is no uniqueness to them. I can look at one and ask myself "Why should I bother with this specific server? There are hundreds just like it." This is why uniqueness is such an important aspect of a server. If you want people to join you need something that other servers don't have and something to make your server stand out amongst the rest.

- Commitment: Making and running a server is hard work. When people see a server, they generally see the "exterior" and ignore the fact that it has complicated inner workings as well that require fine tuning and constant maintenance. When they actually get around to making a server they see this and don't bother with it as it is too much effort. Their minds go straight to the goal and skip the important processes that are required to achieve it. Even after a server has been completed it is never really done. You must always be adding new things to keep your community content as well as keeping a watchful eye to make sure things run smoothly. This includes appointing staff and being very active on the server which can be time consuming. If you are not willing to make such a commitment, starting a server is not for you. I cannot stress this enough.

- Community: All of the above means nothing if you don't have a good user base. Unity is very important when you have a server. If your users are immature nobody will want to join and the ones who are already there won't enjoy it as much regardless of how much time and effort you put into it. It is your job as an owner to be a role model of sorts and to find new users who will benefit your community. If you are not willing to work as a collective and only see your users as numbers then don't bother with a server.

Well, that just about sums it up. All in all, don't bother making a server if you aren't willing to work for it and if you've read this and genuinely think you could handle the tedious work involved then I wish you luck! Hopefully this helps you succeed in making a high quality server. We really need them these days.