Claims and Siege
Claim Protection using Grief Prevention
Claims protect your builds from other pirates. Other players cannot build or break blocks within your claim. However, they can access chests unless you lock them by placing a block above. Similarly, ships can be piloted by others unless secured with a piston.
Use /guide claims at any point in-game to get an overview of how claims work and to see your claim block count.
Creating Claims
First join treasure chest
Upon joining the server, place the Chest in your inventory to automatically create a 7×7 claimed area, put a block on top of your chest to lock it.
Claim tool; golden shovel
The Golden Shovel is the main tool you will use to create new claims & change the size of existing claims.
Take any golden shovel and right click the two opposite corners of the claim you wish to make.
Note that claims have to use at least 100 claimblocks and be at least 3 blocks wide. Created claims can be checked by right clicking the land with a stick.
Step 1. Hold any golden shovel and right click it onto the ground on the first corner of the claim you wish to create.
Step 2. Go to the opposite corner of the claim you wish to create and right click your second corner.
Step 3. Check your claim by right clicking any Stick onto the claimed area.
Using the /claim command
If you are in a rush and don’t have a golden shovel on you, you can use /claim to make a quick 11×11 claim.
How to Resize your Claim
You can also easily resize your claim by right clicking on any corner with a golden shovel and then right clicking the spot to which you want to expand or retract your claim to.
Step 1. Right click a stick onto your claim to find the corners, then using a Golden Shovel right click one of the corners (Glowstone blocks)
Step 2. Right click the Golden Shovel where you want to resize the claim to, that simple!
Claim tools
There is a /kit stick to quickly get a claim checking tool but if you cant find gold and lose your starting golden shovel, you can look at /shops for a cheap one.
Checking claim blocks
You can check your claim block count with /claims and /claimblocks for a list of your claims & counts, and also when you hold a Golden Shovel you are reminded.
Locking chests in claims
Put a block on top of your chests in a claim. This is a vanilla mechanic, the only thing to be aware of is that during a siege some blocks can be broken, you can see these in /softblocks and /winblocks. from /guide siege.
How Can I get More Claimblocks?
Every player can obtain claimblocks activly playing, you are given 60 claim blocks for every hour played.
Other ways to obtain claim blocks are
- Just play! they automatically generate.
- Use /vote daily and win them from the Vote chest at /warp cove
- Buy them with in-game money /buyclaimblocks <no>
- Purchase them from the store.
Subdividing Claims (Subclaims)
You can create subclaims inside a larger claim. This is useful for:
- Assigning private areas to teammates
- Making restricted storage rooms
- Role-based trust (e.g., builder zone, officer vault)
To create a subclaim:
- Hold a golden shovel
- Use /subdivideclaims
- Use the golden shovel to define a new area.
- Use /trust, /containertrust, or /accesstrust per subclaim.
đź”’ Subclaims have separate trust from the main claim.
Grief Prevention Command List
🧠Claim Commands
Here are essential commands for managing claims:
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| /guide claims | Claims guide |
| /claim | Auto-claim the land you’re standing on. |
| /abandonclaim | Deletes the claim you’re in. |
| /AbandonAllClaims | delete all your claims at once |
| /trust <player> | Grants full access to the claim. |
| /containertrust <player> | Grants access to chests, furnaces, etc. |
| /accesstrust <player> | Grants button/switch usage only. |
| /permissiontrust <player> | Lets player set permissions |
| /untrust <player>/<all> | Removes player from the claim. |
| /trustlist | See who is trusted in the claim. |
| /claimslist | View all your claims and blocks used. |
| /subdivideclaims | Allows creation of sub-claims within claims. |
| /BasicClaims | Changes shovel back to normal claim mode |
| /siege <player> | Initiates a siege on the claim you’re in |
| /trapped | Escape from a claimed area you are trapped in |
| /BuyClaimBlocks | Buy claim blocks using /bal |
| /SellClaimBlocks | Sell claim blocks for server money |
⚔️ Pirate Siege System (PvP Claims)
About Pirate Siege
The PirateCraft Siege system allows players to initiate PvP combat against others who are hiding within claims. This system is carefully balanced to prevent abuse and protect both attackers and defenders.
You can only initiate a /siege on a claimed area if the targeted player is currently inside their claim.
A claim under siege allows the attackers to break /softblocks during the siege period. If they win the siege, they can then break /winblocks in that claim to try and get into chests for looting!
While being sieged, containers in the claimed area will be disabled and nobody will be able to build there.
Besieged players cannot toss items on the ground, or log out. So a player under siege must either wait it out, fight, or try to escape.
Anyone may join in on the attacking side by entering the claim.
Why Siege a claim?
Sieging a claim isn’t just about combat — it’s about conquest, revenge, and plunder. Here’s why players engage in siege warfare:
- Loot and Pillage chests, furnaces, barrels, brewing stands etc
- Break a Defensive Turtle, flush them out and force a fight, breaking stalemates in faction or crew conflict.
- Territorial Warfare, Sieging is part of claim-based dominance. Crews might siege over territory disputes
- Send a Message, A siege is a declaration of intent. Used for revenge or asserting dominance.
- Tactical PvP Gameplay, Claim-limited block breaking, Team roles: attacker, defender, and secondaries
Siege Commands
Commands for use in siege.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| /siege <player> | Start a siege on a player |
/siege | Current siege information |
| /surrender | Defenders can surrender a siege |
| /switchteam | As a secondary attacker/defender, switch sides |
| /siegeaccept | Accept switch request |
| /siegedeny | Deny switch request |
🧠How to Start a Siege
To begin a siege:
- Use /siege <player> while standing in or near their claim.
- They must be inside it.
- Sieges can only be started if:
- You haven’t sieged this player recently (cooldown applies).
- Neither of you are currently in a siege, you can join a siege by walking into the besieged claim!
- Its not near server reboot time
- You are not trusted on the claim
- The claim is not in a protected region (e.g., spawn zones, admin claims).
🏰 What Happens During a Siege?
- A siege lasts for 20 mins
- Both players are blocked from teleporting out
- Nobody can place blocks in the besieged claim
- Claim doors and chests remain locked, but players can fight each other freely.
🏳️ Ending a Siege
Sieges can end in the following ways:
| Outcome | Description |
|---|---|
| Kills | Attacker or defender gets killed |
| Escape | Defender runs away or attacker walks too far. |
| Logout | One player logs out during the siege. |
| Surrender | Defender uses /surrender |
| Out of time | Neither party dies or escapes, and the siege expires. |
| Admin ends Tie | An admin ends the siege in a tie |
If the defender loses, doors unlock and “win blocks” /winblocks become breakable, giving the attacker access to loot. If your chests are exposed, they can be raided.
After a short time, unauthorized players are ejected from the claim to prevent camping.
Once a siege ends, there’s a 1-hour cooldown before that defender or claim can be sieged again.
You can Prepare
It may seem like the attacker has the advantage, but a well-prepared defender can prepare not only through an impenetrable build, but integrate useful strategic elements like drawbridges, arrow slits, one-way doors, secret escape routes, and lava pipelines. Further, the attacker is vulnerable to surprise attack by the defender’s allies, because in most cases the attacker will be out in the open.
