Posted:  July 2025

Hey, Vanilly Beans!

Can you believe we’re already halfway through 2025? It feels like just yesterday we were launching Vanilly 2.0 in November. Now here we are, with a whole treasure chest full of memories, mischief, and mayhem. Whether you've been mining diamonds, crafting chaos, or accidentally causing "minor" problems (? we see you), it’s been nothing short of an amazing ride.

✨ A Look Back at the First Half of the Year

The journey so far has been packed with excitement, change, and a whole lot of fun. From staff updates to unforgettable events, Vanilly has been bursting with life. We’ve made some exciting changes to our world, the Pale Oak Biome made its debut, and the spawn area got a fresh seasonal makeover with the addition of a new middle-spawn space perfect for our seasonal changes. Our Traveling Trader now camps out in a brand-new spot, and the Crystal Trader has carved himself a cozy new cave. We even retired an old crate and created a totally revamped seasonal crate area to keep things fresh and fabulous.

?️ Unleash Your Inner Architect – The New Plots Server!

One of our proudest additions this year has been the launch of our brand-new Plots Server! This creative space is all about giving you the freedom to build whatever your heart desires  from majestic castles to utter chaos (we support both equally). It’s also opened the door for more community-focused fun, like upcoming build events just like out Lobby build battle which happened in May. Let’s just say your creativity has already blown us away, and we can't wait to see what comes next.

? Welcoming Some New Faces to the Team

We’re beyond thrilled to officially welcome Aquahh_ as our new Community Manager! ? Aquahh_ has been a part of the Vanilly family for over two years, and in that time, he’s become not just a familiar face, but a true pillar of our community. From being a close friend to many to playing a key role on the staff team, he’s helped shape Vanilly into the vibrant, welcoming space it is today.

Whether he’s planning top-tier events, creating unforgettable moments, or just hyping everyone up in chat, Aquahh_ brings energy, positivity, and passion to everything he does. His dedication to the server and its players is unmatched, and we’re beyond lucky to have him stepping into this leadership role.

Here’s to even more epic memories, laughs, and creative chaos with Aquahh_ leading the way! ?

And let’s give a huge shoutout to Tynaaaa, who has officially stepped into her role as Admin! ?

Tynaaaa has been an incredible addition to the staff team. She became a Trainee the 8th of November, 2024, and JrMod already 22th of November, which was just 14 days! She became Mod 15th of April, 2025, so while she’s still fairly new to that position, she has consistently proven herself to be reliable, capable, and unafraid to speak her mind, even when it’s not the “popular opinion.” 

Which is exactly what is needed to fill such a difficult and mature role as the Administrator role. So everyone please give a warm welcome to our newest Admin ? - Yertle

? Let’s Talk Events Events You (Hopefully) Didn’t Miss in 2025 

So Far We’ve been keeping the fun non-stop with a packed calendar of events that brought the Vanilly community together in the best ways:

? Easter + Spring Build Battle A cozy yet chaotic kickoff to the season where creativity bloomed alongside spring flowers!

? Kahoot Night Trivia, laughs, and a little bit of friendly competition made this night unforgettable.

? Easter Egg Hunt Players were dashing through the world like sugar-fueled rabbits in search of hidden eggs!

? Movie Nights Chill evenings filled with community vibes  even if the popcorn was BYO. ?

?️ Build Battle: New Lobby Edition A fierce and fun competition to reimagine our lobby and wow, you delivered.

?️ Chat Tag Contest Creative chaos in chat form — your tag ideas were hilarious, clever, and absolutely Vanilly.

? Story Time with Smoke Wholesome chaos and community bonding as Smoke spun stories and surprises alike.

? Art Map Event – Summer Theme A showcase of jaw-dropping talent and imagination that turned blocks into masterpieces.

? Crate Drops That Slapped

❄️ Frosty Crate (2024) - Brrtastic!
? Lunar Crate – Festivities were full swing we celebrated the Lunar new year!? 2025 Bundle – Totally not late... ? but absolutely worth the wait.
? Eggstravagent Crate – Our Easter hit, packed with seasonal surprises!
? May the 4th Crate – The force was strong with this one
☀️ Beach Crate – Bright, bold, and perfect for the sunshine vibes make sure to go get your keys !

? Stats & Shenanigans

If we tried to count how many blocks have been placed this year, we’d be here until 2026 — it’s a lot. As for how many pets were lost to lava… let’s not reopen old wounds. And when it comes to the amount of caffeine consumed by staff? We’re honestly defying the laws of biology at this point. Here are some fun leaderboards we have had the last few weeks.

From all of us at Vanilly, thank you for being part of this wild, cozy, chaotic family. You make this server the warm and welcoming (and occasionally chaotic) place we love. Here’s to the second half of 2025 — we’re ready for more builds, more events, more laughs, and yes… more crates.

Stay awesome, — The Vanilly Team ☁️

It's been a month since the launch of Vanilly 2.0, and we’re thrilled to share the changes and improvements we’ve made to the server! The update marks a significant milestone, allowing us to start fresh with a cleaner, more refined system. Here’s a summary of what’s new and why we made this leap from 1.0 to 2.0.

Why the Update?

The move to Vanilly 2.0 was born out of necessity and ambition. Over the last two years, we’ve gained invaluable experience managing the server on a medium-scale production. Vanilly 1.0 became increasingly difficult to maintain due to a growing list of band-aid fixes and workarounds. These quick solutions, while functional in the short term, made further development and improvement nearly impossible.

A fresh start with 2.0 allowed us to clean up the code, implement better systems, and focus on creating a more engaging experience for players. Additionally, we’ve embraced new features like cosmetics, improved mechanics, and better player customization to keep Vanilly exciting and fun for everyone.

Key Changes in Vanilly 2.0

• Proximity Voice Chat:
  Immerse yourself in the game with proximity voice, now available on Discord.
• Crates and Keys:
  Introduced the Emerald Crate, new custom models and textures for crate keys, and refined rewards across all crates.
• Improved UI and Menus:
  Added confirmation menus for redeeming tags and vouchers.
• Cosmetics:
  Added weapon and tool skins, pets, and seasonal items like the Advent Calendar.
• Chat and Rank Overhaul:
  Redesigned vote ranks, added store ranks to /ranks, and migrated most old tags from 1.0.
• Adjusted mob limits and introduced better management tools to improve server performance and gameplay balance.

Fun Server Stats

Vanilly has seen incredible activity since the launch of 2.0! Here’s a look at what the community has accomplished so far:

• 3,292 Player vs Player Kills
• 1,008,913 Mob Kills
• 27,537 Deaths
• 3 Years, 3 Months, 25 Days, 9 Hours, 15 Minutes, and 37 Seconds Total Playtime
• 9 Hours, 8 Minutes, and 47 Seconds Average Playtime Per Player
• 3,176 Unique Players
• 79 Player Peak (Server Record)

These numbers highlight the vibrant and active community that makes Vanilly so special.

What’s Next for Vanilly?

Vanilly 2.0 is just the beginning. Our goals include rolling out more features like a player options menu and enhancing the online map with toggles for player visibility. We're also listening closely to community feedback to keep the server growing and evolving.

Thank you for joining us on this journey! We’re excited about what’s ahead and can’t wait to see how you’ll make Vanilly your home.

Howdy, people of Vanilly!

We are thrilled to announce the release of 1.21, aptly named the Tricky Trials. This update has added a few new mobs, some cool Auto Crafting, and dungeons!

What’s New in the Tricky Trials Update?

• New Adventures: Explore the perilous Trial Chambers, a challenging underground structure filled with new obstacles and treasures.
• New Mobs and Weapons: Face off against the exciting new Breeze mob and wield the powerful new Mace weapon.
• Innovative Blocks and Items: Discover a variety of new blocks, items, and decorative elements to enhance your gameplay and creativity.
• Artistic Enhancements: Enjoy new paintings, music discs, and ambient sounds that enrich the Minecraft world.

Apology for Recent Lag Issues

We acknowledge that all players have experienced lag issues following the update. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and appreciate your patience as we work to resolve these performance concerns. Your feedback is invaluable, and we are committed to constantly improve the server and lessen the lag. 1.21 has been rough!

We are incredibly excited to see how you interact with the new features and content in the Tricky Trials Update. Dive in, explore, and enjoy all the thrilling new additions to Minecraft!

Happy mining, and thank you for being part of our community!

Hey guys! We just wanted to talk about the things we’ve seen and how much we’ve grown over the last year, and truly thank you for your commitment to Vanilly! It’s because of you that we’re able to keep Vanilly alive, and continue to see all the changes that we are able to do because of the suggestions we get from of our playerbase.

Vanilly’s Biggest Accomplishments of 2023

Opened/Experienced several game modes
Several of our players were here for the launch and closure of our Lifesteal server, and they truly were our driving force in attempting to adapt and overcome a gamemode that was completely opposite to what our Network had been prior. We appreciate the time and commitment that those players lost in its closure, and hope we can expand on the Vanilly experience to continue to interest you all in sticking around! Looking forward to having this year to dedicate time to the long term future and expansion of existing gamemodes within the Vanilly Network. For Survival, event servers like arcade and creative were added to boost the variety in the events that we can host for you. In 2024, we hope to adjust and maximize these gamemodes to better fit the expectations of our playerbase and community!

Featured in an article for “Best Survival Minecraft Servers of 2023”
This one is still crazy to us. Thank you all for your undying support, it shows. Being compared to these other servers that have been active for longer and carry a higher play count, it's still astonishing to us that we're number one on this list, and it's because of the community we have.

Passed the threshold of our player cap
Remember the Egg Hunt back in March? I’m sure you do! We hit our player cap and then some; achieving 114/80 players online!

2,071 users on our discord
So many new faces in game and friends we’ve seen pass through our community We honestly don’t know where to begin in thanking you all for your support. Hitting our one year anniversary recently and transitioning into 2024, it’s been incredible seeing the server and community grow together! It’s a struggle to piece all of our words together, so we thought it best to share our thoughts individually.


Loralon [Owner]: I can't believe we've passed 1 year already and are starting a new year together, the time flew by so fast! Vanilly really grew into quite the big server, bigger than I could ever imagine and I want to thank our staff team for all the work they've put into the server and the community for just simply being the best there is. I have to give a special shoutout to Envy and Nesiaq for really being the "front" of the server especially during my nearly 3 months leave to South Korea and shoutout to Yertle for the best co-owner you could want. I have learned a lot this past year with Vanilly. I learned that you simply can't please everybody and there will always be bugs and challenges to keep things interesting. I may have been less online lately but I still very much love Vanilly and the community we have. So here's to another amazing year on Vanilly!

Yertle [Owner]: Wow, I can’t believe the year we’ve had! It surely doesn't feel like it. It's hard to sum up a year in a comment, but I will try my best. I am lucky to be a part of this community, and to have met all the people I have met so far. I am forever grateful to everyone who has joined and appreciated what Vanilly is. I could have never done this without Loralon, and our staff team. After the initial launch of Vanilly, it was a "solo" effort. Just Loralon and I bouncing ideas back and forth and creating something we deemed necessary for the Minecraft community. A well moderated family friendly server, that is mainly focused on having a Vanilla feeling, while still being enjoyable for the majority of people. Massive shoutout to Envious_Sin and nesiaq for being the main "front" of the community while the owner(s) can shift their focus on doing the back-end stuff that's needed every day, could not have made it this far without you guys.

Envious_Sin [Community Manager]: I’ve been looking for the words for months now to express my gratitude for the Vanilly community, and I have yet to find the exact words. There truly isn’t enough time or space in this post for me to even begin to express everything I’m grateful for in/about Vanilly. Thank you all for the late nights in arcade and early mornings in artmap. The love I have for this community is overwhelming at times, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I’m so thankful to be a part of this community and be a part of the development and growth both in game and on discord. Before Vanilly, I had only played on small modded servers mostly! I l came back to vanilla just because it had been so long and I wanted to try being involved in a more active community. I’m so thankful for not only my warm welcome into the community, but the faith Yertle, Loralon, and Nesiaq had in me to take over as Community Manager. Every day has been a new set of challenges, accomplishments, and honestly so much fun, 2023 was an incredible year and I’m fired up and ready with new ideas for 2024!

Nesiaq [Administrator]: Over the course of this year, I have seen so much happen and change! Going from 15 people at our 1 month anniversary photo to averaging 40 players daily; some players have come and gone, but some have stayed! Some even come back to check in every now and again. I am thankful to the community and staff who have made Vanilly what it is today, we have grown so much. Even though I cannot express my feelings wholeheartedly to you all, I am so excited to see what 2024 brings, how the server will grow, what will happen, how the game modes will change and what events we have in mind for you all. Experiencing 2 Christmas' and 2 New Years with you guys feels so unreal, I am excited to spend more holidays with you all! 2022 to now has by far been the most fun and happy moments I have ever had on a Minecraft server, even though we have experienced a lot of different emotions it is what has made me who I am today. Thank you to every single person who has joined this Community, regardless of what has happened so far I truly appreciate you all. Thank you all for being patient with us as a staff team and I would like to thank Envious_Sin for being patient with me throughout the time they’ve joined the staff. They've hosted a lot of events for Vanilly and have made them all fun! Thank you to Yertle and Loralon for giving me this opportunity.


That’s our year in review! Thank you all for joining us on this adventure and we're so excited to see what 2024 has in store for Vanilly. Have fun, stay safe, and see you all in game soon!

Introduction:
Welcome to Vanilly, your go-to destination for a delightful and family-friendly Minecraft experience! At Vanilly, we believe in creating a warm and inviting community where players of all ages can come together to explore, build, and thrive in a simple survival setting. Join us on this exciting journey as we delve into what makes Vanilly a unique and enjoyable Minecraft server.

1. The Vanilly Experience: Simple Survival, Pure Fun
   • At Vanilly, we keep things simple. Our focus is on providing a classic Minecraft survival experience, where players can immerse themselves in the beauty of the game without unnecessary complications.
   • Whether you're a seasoned player or a newcomer to the world of Minecraft, our server offers a welcoming environment for everyone. We understand the importance of creating a space where families can enjoy the game together, fostering a sense of community and camaraderie.
2. Family-Friendly Atmosphere: Where Everyone Belongs
   • Vanilly is proud to be a family-friendly server. We have implemented strict guidelines to ensure that the content and interactions on our server are suitable for players of all ages.
   • Our dedicated staff works tirelessly to maintain a positive and respectful atmosphere, making Vanilly a safe space for families to enjoy Minecraft without worry. We believe in the power of gaming to bring people together, and we're committed to preserving that experience for every player.
3. Community-Centric Approach: More Than Just a Server
   • What sets Vanilly apart is our emphasis on building a strong sense of community. We encourage players to connect, collaborate, and share their Minecraft adventures with one another.
   • Our community events, contests, and discord provide opportunities for players to engage beyond the virtual world. From building competitions to themed events, there's always something exciting happening on Vanilly.
4. Vanilly's Unique Features: Enhancing Your Minecraft Journey
   • While we embrace the simplicity of survival gameplay, Vanilly also introduces unique features to enhance your Minecraft experience. From custom plugins to carefully curated additions, we've crafted an environment that adds an extra layer of excitement without straying from the core essence of the game.
5. Getting Started on Vanilly: Join the Adventure
   • Ready to embark on a Minecraft adventure like no other? Joining Vanilly is easy! Simply connect to our server with the ip play.vanillymc.net, and dive into the world of possibilities that await you.
   • Our helpful guides and welcoming player community are always available to assist newcomers, ensuring that you feel right at home from the moment you step into Vanilly.

Conclusion:
Vanilly isn't just a Minecraft server; it's a vibrant community where players come together to create, explore, and enjoy the beauty of the game in a family-friendly setting. Join us on this incredible journey and experience Minecraft as it was meant to be—simple, fun, and filled with friendly faces. We can't wait to welcome you to the Vanilly family!