Ravenclaw's Ping Equalizer

Summary

Ravenclaw's Ping Equalizer is a client-side Fabric mod designed to create a fairer PvP environment by allowing players to artificially increase their network latency. Unlike visual-only mods, this tool introduces real packet delay at the network layer.

Real-time Effect: The delay happens in the Netty event loop; the server and other opponents perceive your higher ping as genuine. Purpose: To normalize latency in competitive play (e.g., leveling the field between a 10ms player and a 100ms player).

Commands

Add Delay — /pe add <ms> Adds a fixed amount of latency to your connection. Example: /pe add 50 adds 50ms to your native ping.

Total Target — /pe total <ms> Automatically adjusts delay to stabilize your ping at a specific target. Example: /pe total 100 attempts to keep you at 100ms.

Validate — /pe validate <user> Queries the validation server to check if a specific player is running a verified, integrity-checked instance of the mod.

Status — /pe status Displays your current settings and validation status. (Client-side only)

Disable — /pe off Disables the equalizer and returns connection to native speed.

Packet Manipulation

The mod hooks into the Minecraft client's Netty pipeline. Outgoing packets are intercepted and held in a scheduled task queue for the duration of the configured delay before being flushed to the network. This ensures the latency is "real" regarding server-side hit registration and movement processing.

Obfuscation & Integrity

To prevent abuse (such as players modifying the code to report high ping while actually having low ping), the distributed JAR file is heavily obfuscated. This makes reverse-engineering difficult and ensures that the logic reporting the delay to the validation server remains secure.

Cryptographic Validation

To ensure fair play in competitive environments, the mod utilizes a centralized validation system. This allows staff and other players to verify that players are actually using the mod as intended and not spoofing their latency.

Integrity Handshake

Upon initialization, the client calculates a cryptographic hash of its own JAR file and sends it to the API endpoint (/api/hash/{modHash}). The server verifies the hash against a whitelist of known, official versions and returns a signed validity token, version number, and deprecation status. If the mod has been tampered with, validation fails.

Secure Heartbeat

Every few seconds, the client sends a heartbeat payload to the central server containing:

Identity: Player UUID and username, as well as signed Mojang proof of ownership of that account. This does not reveal any private information. State: Mod version and active ping settings (mode/delay). Signatures: A digital signature validating the packet content.

Privacy & Security

How IPs are handled

As with any website or online game, the validation server is able to see an IP address at the moment a connection is made. The IP address is not stored.

Protection: The IP address is immediately hashed, converting it into an irreversible identifier that allows recognition for security purposes without retaining the original address. No Logs: Logs of real IP addresses are not kept.

IP hashes are theoretically brute-forceable. However, a private salt is applied during hashing that is known only to me. The salt is never shared, logged, or used for any purpose other than preventing abuse, and I will never attempt to brute force the hash.

What is NOT collected

Only the minimum information required to verify fair play is transmitted. The following data is never accessed, transmitted, or stored:

Passwords or authentication tokens. Chat messages or private communications. Gameplay inputs, keystrokes, or client interaction data.

Ethics & Usage

Rule Compliance: While this mod is intended for fairness, some public servers may flag artificial latency manipulation as suspicious behavior. Always check server rules before using. MCTiers Usage: This mod is explicitly allowed on MCTiers for the sole purpose of equalizing ping in high-tier testing. It must not be used to gain an unfair advantage. Transparency: All status changes (enabling/disabling delay) post a public chat message. This prevents closet usage where a player might secretly toggle lag to gain an advantage.