NeXTQuarry: The Ultimate Automated Mining Plugin for Minecraft Servers
Running a Minecraft server often means balancing player convenience with gameplay fairness. You want your community to have fun, but you also do not want to break the survival experience. NeXTQuarry steps in as a brilliant solution, adding automated quarries that mine resources while players are off doing other things. The best part? Your players do not need to install any mods on their end. Everything runs server-side, making it one of the most accessible mining plugins available today.
What Exactly Are NeXTQuarries?
Think of a quarry as a mechanical miner that carves out a massive area block by block. Instead of spending hours swinging a pickaxe, a player can set up a quarry, fuel it with coal, and let it do the heavy lifting. The machine digs out a predetermined area, collecting resources along the way. Of course, convenience comes at a cost. These machines are expensive to craft, require constant fuel, and operate rather slowly without upgrades. The plugin intentionally keeps things balanced so that quarries feel like a meaningful investment rather than an overpowered shortcut.
The plugin supports three distinct tiers of quarries, each larger and more capable than the last. A tier 1 quarry covers an 18 by 18 block footprint and excavates a 16 by 16 area. Tier 2 expands to 34 by 34 blocks with a 32 by 32 digging zone. Tier 3 is the largest, spanning 50 by 50 blocks and clearing a massive 48 by 48 area. Choosing the right tier depends on your resource needs and how much coal you are willing to burn.
Commands and Permissions at a Glance
NeXTQuarry keeps its command structure simple and intuitive. Players can access everything they need through a handful of commands, while server administrators retain full control over who can do what.
The main command /nextquarry provides plugin information and displays a player's current permissions. For item management, /nextquarry items opens an inventory containing all NeXTQuarry items, which is perfect for testing or creative mode builds. If you need crafting guidance, /nextquarry craft displays the complete recipe book.
Permissions are organized into user and admin nodes. By default, all user permissions are enabled for everyone, including the ability to place tier 1, 2, and 3 quarries, remove and edit them, and access the crafting menu. The admin permission node, enabled for ops by default, grants the ability to break or edit any quarry regardless of ownership, place quarries in restricted worlds, and bypass placement limits. Admins also gain access to /nextquarry give for item distribution.
- nextquarry.user.* — All user permissions enabled by default
- nextquarry.user.tier1 — Place tier 1 quarries
- nextquarry.user.tier2 — Place tier 2 quarries
- nextquarry.user.tier3 — Place tier 3 quarries
- nextquarry.user.remove — Remove owned quarries
- nextquarry.user.edit — Edit owned quarries
- nextquarry.user.craft — Access the craft command
- nextquarry.admin — Full administrative control
Upgrades That Transform Your Quarry
A bare quarry is slow and basic, but upgrades change everything. Each upgrade slot can hold specific enhancements, and stacking certain upgrades multiplies their effects. The Speed Upgrade makes your quarry mine faster, though it burns through fuel more quickly. You can install up to three of these for maximum velocity. The Chest Miner Upgrade allows the quarry to loot chests it encounters underground, which is fantastic for raiding dungeons and mineshafts without ever stepping foot inside them. Only one is needed per quarry.
The Fuel Finder Upgrade automatically redirects any coal the quarry digs up straight into its fuel bay, extending runtime without manual refueling. The trade-off is that you collect less coal for yourself. The Fuel Efficiency Upgrade reduces overall fuel consumption while increasing work output, and you can stack up to three. For ore processing, the Smelter Upgrade automatically smelts ores using the same fuel rate as a regular furnace, and its efficiency can be boosted further with fuel efficiency upgrades. The Liquid Miner fills empty buckets in the quarry's chest with any liquids it encounters, though excess liquids are lost if storage runs out.
Managing all these upgrades and configurations might seem daunting, but the plugin's design keeps everything accessible. Players who enjoy tinkering with modded setups often look for streamlined ways to handle their Minecraft installations. A convenient, flexible, and modern approach is using the foxygame.net launcher, where you can download mods right from the menu and keep everything organized without digging through folders manually. It fits neatly into a workflow where server-side plugins like NeXTQuarry do the heavy lifting while your client stays clean.
Supported Plugins and Block Protection
NeXTQuarry plays nicely with popular protection and logging plugins. Block protection is respected from WorldGuard, Factions, and Residence, meaning quarries will not violate protected regions. For block logging and rollbacks, the plugin manually logs changes for CoreProtect, ensuring that any quarry activity can be tracked and reversed if necessary. This compatibility makes NeXTQuarry a safe addition to servers that already rely on these essential tools.
Configuration and Data Usage
After the first server start with NeXTQuarry installed, a configuration file named config.yml appears in the NeXTQuarry folder inside your plugins directory. Every configurable option is documented directly in the file, from toggling automatic updates to disabling the developer join message. The plugin collects anonymous usage data by default, which you can disable if you prefer. The data helps present statistics but contains no personal information. Automatic updates are also enabled by default and can be turned off in the configuration.
Recipes and Crafting
Crafting a quarry requires significant resources, reinforcing the balanced gameplay philosophy. The tier 1 quarry serves as the entry point, with tiers 2 and 3 requiring progressively rarer materials. The Fuel Injector is used to open a quarry's fuel bay by right-clicking, where you insert coal to power the machine. The Quarry Wrench opens the upgrade slots interface, allowing you to insert and manage upgrades. Each tool and upgrade has its own recipe, viewable through the in-game recipe book accessed via commands.
Important Warnings and Notices
Before deploying NeXTQuarry on a live server, back up your world. The block changes made by quarries are not reversible by the plugin itself, so any mistakes could be permanent without a rollback plugin like CoreProtect. Manage permissions carefully and avoid giving admin nodes to untrusted players. The plugin changes the developer's join message by default, which can be disabled in the configuration file if desired. These precautions are standard for any plugin that modifies the world on a large scale, and following them ensures a smooth experience for everyone.
Final Thoughts on Automated Mining
NeXTQuarry strikes a rare balance between automation and fairness. It gives players the freedom to pursue other activities while resources accumulate, yet it never feels like a cheat. The fuel requirements, upgrade limitations, and tiered progression create a satisfying sense of investment. Server owners benefit from the plugin's broad compatibility with protection and logging tools, while players enjoy a mod-free experience that just works. Whether you are running a small community server or a large network, NeXTQuarry adds a layer of depth that keeps players engaged and resource gathering interesting.