WorldManager – MV Alternative
WorldManager is a modern world management plugin for Paper servers, designed as a direct replacement and improvement over the long-standing Multiverse-Core. Built with the Paper 1.21 API and modern Java tooling, it provides a fast, safe, and highly configurable system for creating, importing, managing, and teleporting between worlds.

Unlike legacy world managers, WorldManager fully embraces asynchronous operations, per-world registries, and configurable rules, ensuring performance, reliability, and ease of use. Nearly every feature is accessible through both direct commands and an intuitive in-game /world GUI, making it just as friendly for casual admins as for power users.

1. Goals
WorldManager was developed to solve the common frustrations that many server administrators encounter with Multiverse-Core and similar plugins. The goals are:

• Modern Implementation: Fully Paper 1.21 compatible, written with Java 21, and leveraging async APIs where possible.
• Ease of Use: Centralized /world command with subcommands and GUI options.
• Safety First: Built-in checks to prevent data loss or accidental deletions.
• Persistence: Per-world settings stored in worlds.yml and reapplied automatically when worlds are reloaded.
• Configurability: Messages, safety checks, GUI rows, teleport warmups, cooldowns, and per-world rules are all configurable.
• Extensibility: Modular design, backups, and migration tools ensure the plugin can evolve without breaking worlds.
  

In short: WorldManager is designed to be a drop-in alternative to Multiverse-Core that feels native to modern Paper servers.

2. Core Features
2.1 World Lifecycle Management
WorldManager provides complete control over every stage of a world’s lifecycle.

• Create Worlds: Instantly generate new worlds with /world create <name> [env]. Supports NORMAL, NETHER, and THE_END environments, plus optional parameters for seed, structures, and custom generators.
• Import Worlds: Use /world import <folder> to bring existing world folders into the server. The process is asynchronous, providing progress percentages and ETA updates to prevent lag.
• Unload Worlds: Free up server memory with /world unload <world>. Safety checks ensure no players are inside before unloading.
• Delete Worlds: Permanently remove world folders from disk with /world delete <world>. Requires the world to be unloaded first.
• Backups and Migration: Automatically creates timestamped backups of worlds.yml and offers /world migrate to update the schema safely.
  

2.2 Teleportation and Navigation
Teleportation is a major component of world management, and WorldManager makes it seamless.

• Teleport Command: /world tp [player] <world> teleports you or another player directly to the spawn of a target world.
• Back Command: /world back returns you to your previous location, swapping places with your current one.
• History Command: /world history lists previous teleport locations for quick reference.
• Teleport Options: Warmup timers, cooldowns, and movement cancellation are fully configurable.
  

2.3 World GUI
All world operations are accessible through an in-game inventory GUI opened with /world gui.

• Browse loaded worlds with icons, player counts, and environments.
• Favorite worlds with /world fav add <world>, then access them quickly in the GUI.
• Teleport directly from the GUI with a single click.
• Configurable row size in config.yml ensures the GUI scales to the number of worlds.
  

2.4 Per-World Settings and Enforcement
Each world can be customized with specific rules, enforced automatically by the plugin.

• GameRules: Keep-inventory, random-tick speed, natural regeneration, mob griefing, fire tick, max entity cramming, and more.
• World Rules: Gamemode, difficulty, PvP, spawn location, time lock, weather lock, keep-spawn-loaded.
• Mob Allowlist: Restrict which mobs can spawn naturally in a given world.
  

Changes are applied instantly with /world config <world> <key> <value> and persisted in worlds.yml.

3. Commands
All commands are registered under /world (or alias /wm). Below is the full list of implemented subcommands:


Command Description Permission
/world list Lists all loaded worlds with player counts worldmanager.list
/world info <world> Displays settings for a world worldmanager.info
/world tp [player] <world> Teleport self or another player to world spawn worldmanager.tp / worldmanager.tp.others
/world back Return to your previous location worldmanager.back
/world history View teleport history worldmanager.history
/world gui Open the world selector GUI worldmanager.gui
`/world fav <add remove list> [world]`
/world create <name> [env] Create a new world worldmanager.create
/world import <folder> [env] Asynchronously import a world folder worldmanager.import
`/world unload [save:true false]` Unload a world safely
/world delete <world> Delete an unloaded world folder worldmanager.delete
/world setspawn <world> Set spawn for a world worldmanager.setspawn
/world config <world> <key> <value> Update per-world configuration worldmanager.config
/world config <world> allowed-mobs ... Manage allowed mob list worldmanager.config
/world migrate [force] Backup and rewrite worlds.yml worldmanager.migrate
4. Permissions
WorldManager uses a granular permission system, allowing you to fine-tune which players can access specific commands.

• worldmanager.use – Parent node for all commands (defaults to OP).
• Child permissions include:
  
  • worldmanager.list, worldmanager.info, worldmanager.tp, worldmanager.tp.others, worldmanager.back, worldmanager.history, worldmanager.gui, worldmanager.favorites, worldmanager.create, worldmanager.import, worldmanager.unload, worldmanager.delete, worldmanager.setspawn, worldmanager.config, worldmanager.migrate.
    

Custom access can also be defined per-world via worldmanager.access.<world>.

5. Configuration
5.1 config.yml
The main configuration file handles:

• Messages: All messages are customizable with color codes.
• Options:
  • prevent_unload_with_players – Stops unloading if players are present.
  • tp_warmup_seconds, tp_cooldown_seconds, tp_cancel_on_move – Teleportation options.
  • gui_rows – Number of rows in the GUI.
  • tp_history_max – Number of entries stored for teleport history.
  • backup_worlds_on_save – Enables automatic backups of worlds.yml.
  • autoload_registered_worlds – Automatically load worlds on startup.
    

5.2 worlds.yml
This file acts as the persistent registry for all managed worlds. Each world entry includes:

• Alias
• Gamemode
• Difficulty
• PvP
• Spawn
• Keep-spawn-loaded
• Time/weather lock
• Allowed mobs
• GameRule-backed properties

On reload or startup, these rules are automatically applied to the world.

6. Example Usage

1. Creating a new world

/world create survival NORMAL
Creates a new Overworld called “survival”.

1. Importing an existing world

/world import SkyLands NORMAL
Asynchronously imports SkyLands from the server folder, with progress and ETA shown in chat.

1. Teleporting a player

/world tp Steve SkyLands
Teleports player Steve to the spawn of SkyLands.

1. Locking time in a world

/world config SkyLands lock-time true
/world config SkyLands time day
Locks the time of SkyLands to day.

1. Managing mob spawns

/world config SkyLands allowed-mobs add ZOMBIE
/world config SkyLands allowed-mobs remove CREEPER
Allows Zombies but prevents Creepers from spawning in SkyLands.

7. Safety and Reliability
WorldManager emphasizes server safety:

• Worlds cannot be unloaded if players are still inside (unless overridden).
• Deleting a world requires it to be unloaded first.
• Automatic backups are created whenever worlds.yml changes.
• Migration tools ensure your world registry is always up to date.
  

8. Developer Hooks
For developers, WorldManager registers itself as a service, allowing integrations through Bukkit’s service manager. Plugins can hook into:

• World teleport events (cancellable).
• World lifecycle events (create, import, unload, delete).
• Registry API for querying managed worlds.
  

9. Why Choose WorldManager?
WorldManager combines the best of Multiverse-Core’s features with modern innovations:

• Asynchronous world operations to prevent lag.
• Persistent per-world registry with automatic enforcement.
• GUI support for ease of navigation.
• Granular permissions for better server control.
• Optimized for Paper, not just Bukkit/Spigot.
  

It’s a complete world management solution that balances simplicity for casual admins with depth for advanced server operators.