# Cobblemon Catch Ball Rules

Cobblemon Catch Ball Rules is a Fabric mod for Minecraft 1.21.1 that lets server owners decide which Pokemon species can only be caught with specific Poke Balls.

If a species is restricted and the player throws the wrong ball, the capture fails immediately.

If the ball is allowed, Cobblemon handles the rest with its normal catch logic.

## Features

- Restrict specific Pokemon to specific Poke Balls

- Keep rules in a simple JSON config file

- Support Cobblemon balls and custom balls from add-ons or modpacks

- Preserve Cobblemon's normal capture formulas for valid balls

- Reload the config with a command instead of restarting the server

- Optionally refund blocked balls

- Optionally show a custom player message when a catch is blocked

## Requirements

- Minecraft `1.21.1`

- Fabric Loader

- Cobblemon `>=1.7.3 <1.8.0`

## Server And Client Support

- Gameplay enforcement is server-side

- The mod can also be installed on the client and loads cleanly there

- In practice, this is mainly a server-side rules mod

## Installation

1. Install Fabric Loader for Minecraft `1.21.1`

2. Install Cobblemon for the same Minecraft version

3. Put this mod in your `mods` folder

4. Start the game or server once to generate the config file

## Config File

Path:

config/cobblemon_catch_ball_rules.json

Example:


{
  "consumeBlockedBall": false,
  "showPlayerMessage": true,
  "rules": [
    {
      "pokemon": ["mew", "mewtwo", "lugia"],
      "allowedBalls": ["cobblemon:master_ball"],
      "message": "&6&lLegendary rule! &r&7This Pokemon can only be captured with a &6Master Ball&7."
    }
  ]
}

## Config Options

- `consumeBlockedBall`

When `false`, the mod refunds the blocked ball. When `true`, the blocked ball is still consumed.

- `showPlayerMessage`

When `true`, the player sees the rule message after a blocked catch. When `false`, the catch is blocked silently.

- `rules`

A list of species-specific catch restrictions.

Each rule contains:

- `pokemon`: a list of species names or species IDs

- `allowedBalls`: a list of allowed Poke Ball item IDs

- `message`: the message shown when a catch is blocked

## Writing Rules

Pokemon values can use either short names or full IDs:

- `"mew"`

- `"cobblemon:mew"`

Ball values should use full item IDs:

- `"cobblemon:poke_ball"`

- `"cobblemon:ultra_ball"`

- `"cobblemon:master_ball"`

Custom balls from other mods or add-ons also work as long as you use the correct item ID.

The `message` field supports Minecraft legacy formatting codes with either `&` codes or section-sign codes.

## Example Rules

Legendary Pokemon that only allow Master Balls:

{
  "pokemon": ["mewtwo"],
  "allowedBalls": ["cobblemon:master_ball"],
  "message": "&4&lBlocked! &r&7This Pokemon can only be captured with a &6Master Ball&7."
}

Ultra Beasts that only allow Beast Balls:

{
  "pokemon": ["nihilego", "buzzwole", "pheromosa"],
  "allowedBalls": ["cobblemon:beast_ball"],
  "message": "This Pokemon reacts only to a Beast Ball."
}

Pokemon that allow more than one ball:

{
  "pokemon": ["articuno"],
  "allowedBalls": ["cobblemon:ultra_ball", "cobblemon:master_ball"],
  "message": "Articuno can only be captured with an Ultra Ball or Master Ball."
}

## Commands

Reload the config without restarting:

/ccbr reload
/cobblemoncatchballrules reload

This command requires operator permission.

## Troubleshooting

- If the config file is missing, the mod creates a default one automatically

- If the config file is invalid JSON, the mod regenerates it with defaults and logs the error

- If a rule seems ignored, check the species ID, ball ID, and whether the species matches one of your configured rules

Cobblemon: Catch Ball Rules