⭐ New Features

• Added Public Read-Only Companion API
  • Other mods can now safely check whether an entity is a Loyal Companions pet.
  • Other mods can check companion ownership without accessing internal companion data directly.
  • Added API methods for companion level, owner, and stats.
  • Added helper methods for detecting companion damage sources.
• Added Update Checker
  • Loyal Companions can now check for newer versions using the MKI update checker system.
  • The update checker can be disabled in the config.
  • If no internet connection is available, no warning is shown.
  • Update notifications are only shown when a newer version is available.

🧩 Public API Additions

Added new read-only API methods to:

com.mki.loyalcompanions.api.LoyalCompanionsApi

• isCompanion(Entity entity)
• isOwnedCompanion(Entity entity, UUID ownerUuid)
• getCompanionOwner(Entity entity)
• isOwnedByPlayer(Entity entity, ServerPlayer player)
• getCompanionLevel(Entity entity)
• getCompanionAttack(Entity entity)
• getCompanionStrength(Entity entity)
• getCompanionDefense(Entity entity)
• getCompanionVitality(Entity entity)
• isActiveCompanion(Entity entity)
• isStoredCompanion(ItemStack stack)
• isCompanionDamageSource(DamageSource source)
• getCompanionAttacker(DamageSource source)

This is especially useful for other mods that need to detect companion attacks, such as dungeon, boss, or damage-scaling mods.

if (LoyalCompanionsApi.isCompanion(attacker)) { // Handle companion damage safely }

🔄 Update Checker

• Added automatic update checking support.
• Added update checker config file:

config/loyalcompanions-update.json

• Update checker can be enabled or disabled.
• Timeouts and notification behavior can be configured.
• Update checks are delayed after server start to avoid startup issues.
• No message is shown when the player is offline or no newer version is available.

🐾 Persistence Improvements

• Improved Singleplayer Companion Persistence
  • Active companions are no longer aggressively stored and removed when closing a singleplayer world.
  • This prevents companions from disappearing during the integrated server shutdown/save flow.
  • Singleplayer worlds now allow Minecraft to save active companion entities normally.
• Improved Server Shutdown Handling
  • Removed aggressive companion removal during server shutdown.
  • This reduces the risk of pets being deleted before the world has finished saving.
  • Dedicated server logout handling remains active where appropriate.
• Improved Dimension Change Handling
  • Active companions are now checked when the player changes dimensions.
  • If a companion remains in another dimension, it is safely stored and restored near the owner in the new dimension.
  • This helps prevent pets from being lost when travelling between the Overworld, Nether, and End.

🐛 Fixes

• Fixed possible companion loss when closing a singleplayer world.
• Fixed active companions being removed too aggressively during server shutdown.
• Fixed companions potentially staying behind or disappearing during dimension changes.
• Fixed missing public API methods needed by external mods.
• Added safer companion detection for external damage-handling systems.