ExpandedChests

Huge storage chests for Paper servers, without client mods or resource packs.

ExpandedChests adds craftable high-capacity storage blocks that still feel at home on a vanilla-compatible server.

Players place an expanded chest, open it like normal storage, move through paged inventory screens, sort the whole storage from inside the GUI, and see a clean label above the block with its name and used slot count.

It is built for survival servers that want bigger storage rooms without turning the server into a client modpack.

Why It Exists

Storage pain	ExpandedChests answer
Double-chest walls get huge fast.	Replace rows of boxes with compact tiered storage.
Players forget what each storage block contains.	Each placed expanded chest can show a custom name and `used/total` slots.
Giant inventories often need client mods.	ExpandedChests uses server-side vanilla inventory screens.
Big containers get messy.	Built-in page controls and full-storage sorting keep items manageable.
Java and Bedrock players share one server.	No client mod, no resource pack, no custom client UI.

Storage Tiers

Tier	Capacity	Slots	Visible vanilla block
3x	3 double chests	162	Light gray shulker box
5x	5 double chests	270	Yellow shulker box
10x	10 double chests	540	Light blue shulker box
100x	100 double chests	5400	Black shulker box

The placed block is a vanilla shulker-box anchor. The real storage is saved server-side in the plugin data and opened through paged vanilla inventory menus.

Crafting Recipes

ExpandedChests is meant to feel earned in survival. Every tier is craftable, every higher tier uses the previous tier, and every recipe includes a sign because these storage blocks are meant to be named and readable in-world.

S means any vanilla sign: oak, spruce, birch, jungle, acacia, dark oak, mangrove, cherry, bamboo, crimson, or warped.

3x Expanded Chest

C S C
C I C
C I C

Symbol	Ingredient
`C`	Chest
`S`	Any sign
`I`	Iron block

Output: 3x Expanded Chest, 162 slots.

5x Expanded Chest

C S C
U P U
C U C

Symbol	Ingredient
`C`	Chest
`S`	Any sign
`U`	Gold block
`P`	3x Expanded Chest

Output: 5x Expanded Chest, 270 slots.

10x Expanded Chest

C S C
U P U
C U C

Symbol	Ingredient
`C`	Chest
`S`	Any sign
`U`	Diamond block
`P`	5x Expanded Chest

Output: 10x Expanded Chest, 540 slots.

100x Expanded Chest

C S C
U P U
C N C

Symbol	Ingredient
`C`	Ender chest
`S`	Any sign
`U`	Netherite block
`P`	10x Expanded Chest
`N`	Nether star

Output: 100x Expanded Chest, 5400 slots.

If StorageWorkbench is installed, these recipes can appear in its storage crafting menu when the ingredients are available in the player inventory, nearby vanilla chests, or nearby expanded chests.

Features

Feature	What it does
Four storage tiers	3x, 5x, 10x, and 100x double-chest capacity.
Survival progression	Higher tiers require the previous expanded chest.
Vanilla-compatible blocks	Placed storage uses vanilla shulker-box anchors.
Paged inventory GUI	Large storage opens through normal server inventory screens.
Built-in sorting	Sort the whole expanded chest from inside its GUI.
Visible labels	Shows storage name and occupied slots above the block.
Naming support	Look at a placed expanded chest and run `/ec name <name>`.
Admin item menu	Use `/ec items` or `/ec creative` when you need the custom items directly.
Safety guards	Protects non-empty expanded chests from accidental breaking by default.
World protection	Blocks explosions, pistons, and hopper movement on expanded chest anchors.
Fast lookup	Indexed by block and loaded chunk for companion-plugin access.
Server-side only	No client mod, no resource pack, no custom packets.

Works With The Storage Suite

ExpandedChests can run by itself, but it is designed to sit neatly beside the other storage plugins:

Plugin	Role
StorageWorkbench	Craft from nearby vanilla chests and ExpandedChests through a vanilla-compatible storage crafting menu.
OpenChestSorter	Automatically sorts ordinary single and double chests when players open them.

The responsibility split is intentional:

OpenChestSorter handles ordinary vanilla chests.
ExpandedChests owns expanded storage and its own page-aware sort controls.
StorageWorkbench can craft from both vanilla chests and expanded chests when both plugins are installed.

All three plugins can also run separately.

Compatibility

Target	Support
Platform	Paper
Minecraft versions	1.21.x and 26.1.x
Java for 1.21.x servers	Java 21
Java for 26.1.x servers	Java 25 or newer
Client-side install	Not required
Resource pack	Not required
Required dependencies	None
Optional companions	StorageWorkbench, OpenChestSorter
Geyser/Floodgate	Designed around vanilla blocks, vanilla inventory screens, and vanilla particles.

ExpandedChests is a server-side Paper plugin. It is not a Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, or client-side mod.

Commands

Command	Permission	Description
`/ec status`	`expandedchests.admin`	Shows plugin status and stored expanded chest count.
`/ec items`	`expandedchests.admin`	Opens an admin menu with expanded chest items.
`/ec creative`	`expandedchests.admin`	Opens the same vanilla-compatible creative/admin item menu.
`/ec info`	`expandedchests.use`	Shows information about the expanded chest you are looking at.
`/ec name <name>`	`expandedchests.use`	Renames the expanded chest you are looking at.
`/ec name clear`	`expandedchests.use`	Resets the visible expanded chest name.
`/ec give <3x\|5x\|10x\|100x> [player]`	`expandedchests.admin`	Gives an expanded chest item.
`/ec reload`	`expandedchests.admin`	Reloads config and data.

Permissions

Permission	Default	Purpose
`expandedchests.use`	Everyone	Allows normal expanded chest usage, info, and naming.
`expandedchests.admin`	Operators	Allows admin commands and item menus.

Installation

Stop the Paper server.
Back up the server folder, especially world, world_nether, world_the_end, plugins, and config files.
Copy expanded-chests-1.0.0.jar into the server plugins folder.
Start the server.
Adjust plugins/ExpandedChests/config.yml if needed.

Default configuration

enabled: true

display:
  holograms: true
  open-particles: true
  open-particle-count: 18

behavior:
  prevent-breaking-non-empty: true
  save-on-close: true
  save-interval-ticks: 6000
  protect-from-explosions: true
  protect-from-pistons: true
  protect-from-hoppers: true

debug-logging: false

Performance

ExpandedChests is designed to keep large storage predictable:

Placed expanded chests are indexed by block position.
Nearby lookups use loaded chunk indexes instead of scanning every stored chest on the server.
Storage pages are loaded into vanilla inventories only when players open them.
Open pages are saved back to plugin data before external lookup or item movement.
No database, telemetry, external network calls, or world data migrations.

Safety

ExpandedChests stores contents in plugins/ExpandedChests/data.yml.

The plugin does not generate chunks or rewrite world files, but it does manage item storage. Treat first installation like any storage-plugin rollout:

Make a full server backup.
Test on a copied world or separate test server.
Place each expanded chest tier.
Put items inside and restart the server.
Verify the contents survive restart.
Test breaking empty and non-empty expanded chests.
Test companion plugins only after standalone behavior looks correct.

Known Limitations

A server plugin cannot reliably add custom items to the client-side creative inventory list without a client mod or resource pack. Use /ec items, /ec creative, or /ec give instead.
Expanded storage uses server-side paged inventory screens, so it does not look like a single giant vanilla chest screen.
OpenChestSorter intentionally does not sort expanded chests. Use the built-in expanded chest sort button instead.

License

ExpandedChests is released under the MIT License.