Pixelmon modpack Minecraft server

The Pixelmon Modpack is the official pack from the Pixelmon team. It adds the Pixelmon mod, with Pokémon to catch, battle and breed, alongside The Pixelmon OST soundtrack, Journeymap, JEI and world generation mods such as Terralith and Tectonic. You install it from the Modpacks tab, using the pack's CurseForge listing.

Checked on 27 October 2026 against The Pixelmon Modpack 9.4.1 on NeoForge 21.1.248 and Minecraft 1.21.1.

What the pack needs

• Minecraft 1.21.1 with NeoForge 21.1.248. The pack's manifest.json names both, and the panel installs that NeoForge for you. Pixelmon's own server guide asks for Java 21 from Pixelmon 9.3.0 on, and the panel runs 1.21.1 on Java 21 without you choosing.
• Memory. Pixelmon's server guide asks for at least 4 GB of allocated memory, preferably more. Our own Pixelmon page recommends 6 GB for a small group and calls 4 GB the practical floor. Your plan sets the RAM, so read how much RAM a Minecraft server needs and check the Minecraft plans before you install.
• The same version for players. Pixelmon's guide says players must run the same Pixelmon version as the server, and anyone who does not sees a "Mod Rejection" error.

Install from CurseForge

Use CurseForge, not Modrinth. A test install of The Pixelmon Modpack 9.4.1 from Modrinth on our panel on 23 October 2026 set up no NeoForge, so the server started as plain Minecraft 1.21.1 and Pixelmon never loaded.

The CurseForge file for 9.4.1 has no separate server pack, so Newest that fits your server builds the server from its mod list. CurseForge marks the Pixelmon mod itself as one for players' computers, but the install leaves it on. When this guide was checked, the install turned no mods off and the server started with Pixelmon 9.4.1 loaded.

1. Open your server and choose Modpacks under Content in the left rail.
2. Above the search box, press the CurseForge chip and search for Pixelmon. The filters belong to Modrinth, so they do not narrow this search.
3. Press Install on the row titled The Pixelmon Modpack by PixelmonMod. A window titled "Install The Pixelmon Modpack?" opens.
4. Leave Take a backup first ticked, which is the default. An install clears the old server files, so the backup is your way back. If every backup on your plan is protected, the backup fails with "Every backup is protected, so there's none to replace". Remove protection from one backup or delete one, then try again.
5. If the window has Keep my world, settings and player lists, leave it unticked for the pack's own fresh world. Leave the version dropdown on Newest that fits your server, which takes 9.4.1. Give your players that same release.
6. Tick Start the server when it's ready if you want the server to boot by itself. If the window shows an I agree to the Minecraft EULA box once that is ticked, tick it too.
7. Hold the Hold to Install and reinstall button for three seconds. The install then runs until it completes.

With no server pack, the panel fetches the pack's mods one by one. For 9.4.1 the console shows Downloading the pack's 13 mods, then 13 mods added (2 of them from Modrinth). The pack ships no server engine, so the panel installs NeoForge 21.1.248, the build the pack's manifest.json names, and the console shows Pack installed.

First start

If the server is not running after the install, press Start on the Console tab and accept the EULA when the panel asks. The server is up when the console prints a line containing For help, type. A fresh 9.4.1 install printed Done (30.558s)! on an 8 GB server. Your address is in the left rail with a copy button, and Connect to your server for the first time covers adding it in Minecraft.

Set up Pixelmon's loot chests

Pixelmon writes its server settings as .yml files in config/pixelmon. Stop the server before you edit one in File Manager, because Pixelmon's docs say a change made while the world is online does not take effect until the world reloads.

In pokeloot.yml, the spawn-mode setting decides what happens to a PokéLoot chest once it is looted. The default, FCFS, makes the chest disappear after one player takes the loot. PL leaves it but lets each player loot it once. Pixelmon's server guide says to change this early, to avoid draining the loot over time.

Common problems

• A player is rejected with "Mod Rejection". Their Pixelmon version differs from the server's. They need the same release the install used, on Minecraft 1.21.1. Join a modded server from your launcher shows the steps.
• The install stops part way. The tab shows "The last install didn't finish" with Show install log and Retry install.
• The server lags or runs out of memory. Watch the RAM Usage card on the Console tab. Why is my server lagging has more.
• The console shows a ClassNotFoundException at start. Essential, a mod for players' computers that the install leaves on, logs java.lang.ClassNotFoundException: org.apache.commons.codec.digest.DigestUtils on a fresh 9.4.1 start. The server still reaches For help, type.
• The server crashes at boot. Find and read a crash report shows how to name the mod at fault.