Better Join Messages

How it works

With this server side mod, you can customize all of your Minecraft server’s join and leave messages.

It supports…

• Minecraft colour codes (e.g. &l for bold, &e for yellow)
• HEX colour codes (usage: &#RRGGBB in messages)
• in-game customization using commands or server-side configuration using the betterjoinmessages.json file
• many placeholders for using in the custom messages (more down below)
• global and local broadcasting in a configurable distance
• enable, disable and customize first-time join messages, greet new players and tell everyone else with a special message the first time they join, then switch to your regular join message afterward

Configuration

The config file is located at config/betterjoinmessages.json (fabric).

| Option | Description | Default |
|—|—|—|
| joinMessage | Custom message sent when players join | &e{player} joined the game |
| leaveMessage | Custom message sent when players leave | &e{player} left the game |
| firstJoinMessage | Custom message sent when a player joins the server for the first time | §a{player} joined the game for the first time!" |
| firstJoinEnabled | Enables or disables the first-time-join message | true |
| sendGlobal | Determines whether the messages should be visible global | true |
| distance | Only players within this range can see the messages if sendGlobal is set to false| 50.0 |

Leave messages empty or set them to whitespace to disable broadcasts completely.

Commands

You can customize everything through in-game commands as followed:

Requirement: All /bjm commands require Operator Permission Level 2 (GAMEMASTERS / OP) or server console access.

| Command | Argument | Description |
|—|—|—|
| /bjm join | <message> | Updates the regular player join message template. |
| /bjm leave | <message> | Updates the leave/disconnect message template. |
| /bjm firstjoin | <message> | Updates the message template sent when a player joins for the first time. |
| /bjm firstjoinToggle | <true/false> | Enables (true) or disables (false) first-time join messages.
| /bjm global | <true/false> | Toggles between global broadcast mode and proximity/distance-based chat mode. |
| /bjm distance | <distance> | Sets the broadcast radius in blocks when global mode is disabled. |
| /bjm seenplayersReset | (none) | Clears the entire list of recorded players (all players will trigger a first-join message on their next login). |
| /bjm seenplayersReset | player/UUID | Removes a specific player (by username or UUID) from the seen players registry. |
| /bjm status | (none) | Displays a formatted configuration overview and live message preview to the caller. |
| /bjm reload | (none) | Reloads the configuration file (betterjoinmessages.json) from disk. |

Placeholders & Formatting

Placeholders

• {player} → Raw Minecraft account name (Scoreboard name).
• {displayname} → Formatted player display name (supports team prefixes, suffixes, and nickname mods).
• {onlineplayer} → Current number of players online on the server.
• {maxplayers} → Maximum player slots on a server.
• {uniqueplayers} → Total count of players who have ever joined the server.

Formatting

• RGB Hex colours: &#RRGGBB (e.g. &#55FFFF, &#FF5500)
• Legacy colours: &9, &a
• Text styles: &l (bold), &o (_italic_), &n (underlined), &m (strikethrough), &k (obfuscated)
• Reset code: &r

Showcase

This video shows what the in-game configuration and the custom messages look like.

Note: The in the video shown commands are those from 1.2.0. All features added in 1.3.0 (new place holders, HEX colours, new commands etc.) are not presented!

If you need help with my mod, for example with the configuration, please join my discord, we are very happy to help you!

Part of the Better Chat Ecosystem!

This mod works perfectly well with my other mod, which adds local and global chat, go check it out!