Compatibility
Minecraft: Java Edition
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Details
StepErosion
StepErosion is a lightweight Paper plugin that makes your Minecraft world feel alive - paths form naturally wherever players walk most often.
How it works
Every step a player takes is tracked using a sliding time window. Once a block accumulates enough footsteps within that window, it erodes to the next stage:
GRASS_BLOCK ──[20 steps]──► DIRT ──[50 steps]──► DIRT_PATH
Paths are not permanent - if a DIRT_PATH block goes unwalked for long enough, it slowly reverts back to DIRT, simulating natural recovery.
Features
- Gradual erosion — blocks degrade step-by-step based on real player activity
- Natural recovery — dirt paths revert to dirt after inactivity
- Sliding window — only recent footsteps count; old traffic fades away
- Persistent — erosion state is saved to disk and survives server restarts
- Explosion-aware — TNT and creeper blasts clear erosion data for destroyed blocks
- Spread-aware — grass naturally overgrowing dirt resets its erosion progress
- Fully configurable — thresholds and time windows are all adjustable in config.yml
- Debug command —
/selets admins inspect, simulate, and reset erosion data
Configuration
erosion:
dirt-threshold: 20 # steps to erode GRASS → DIRT
path-threshold: 50 # steps to erode DIRT → DIRT_PATH
step-window-ticks: 1728000 # 1 day — sliding window size
recovery-window-ticks: 5184000 # 3 days — idle time before path reverts
Commands & Permissions
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
/se info |
Show erosion data for the block under your feet |
/se list |
List all currently tracked blocks |
/se reset |
Clear erosion data for the block under your feet |
/se simulate <n> |
Simulate N footsteps on the block under your feet |
/se config |
Display active configuration values |
/se reload |
Reload config.yml without restarting the server |
Permission: steperosion.admin (default: op)
Requirements
- Paper 26.1.2+ (2026 build series)
- Java 25+
⚠️ Region Plugin Compatibility
Currently, StepErosion does not integrate with region protection plugins such as Towny, WorldGuard, GriefPrevention, PlotSquared, or similar plot-based solutions.
This means erosion can occur in protected areas if players are allowed to walk there.
Full region plugin support is planned for a future update.


