Hermitcraft-style SMP
The Hermitcraft feeling, open to you.
Hermitcraft is invite-only. Hydro is the same whitelisted, Vanilla, long-term idea, and anyone 18+ can apply. We've been running since 2018.
Hermitcraft is invite-only. Hydro is the same whitelisted, Vanilla, long-term idea, and anyone 18+ can apply. We've been running since 2018.
If you've watched Hermitcraft, you know what you're after. It isn't the YouTubers so much as the setup: a small, trusted group sharing one Vanilla world, building big projects over months, running shops, pranking each other, and coming back season after season.
The problem is that Hermitcraft is invite-only, and most public servers are the opposite of it. You get land claims, economy plugins, crates, ranks for sale and a map reset every few months. Whitelisted community SMPs sit in between: you apply once, and then you're part of a vetted group that plays the game straight.
Hydro Vanilla SMP has worked that way since 2018. Here's how it compares, honestly.
| Hermitcraft | Hydro Vanilla SMP | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can join | Invite-only content creators | Anyone 18+ who applies on Discord. Staff read every application |
| Gameplay | Vanilla survival plus Vanilla Tweaks datapacks | Vanilla survival plus quality-of-life datapacks (13 from Vanilla Tweaks). Fabric is only there for performance |
| World length | Seasons of roughly 1–2 years | A Forever World: Season 13 started 11 July 2025 and only ends when the community votes for it |
| Economy | Player shops, diamonds as currency | Player-run shops. No economy plugin and nothing to buy from the server |
| Platforms | Java | Java and Bedrock in one shared world |
| Recording | Everyone uploads | Optional. Plenty of members stream or record, and nobody has to |
| Cost | — | Free. No pay-to-win and no ranks for sale. The store is cosmetic or donations only |
Most "Hermitcraft-style" servers you'll find on forums are a few weeks old. Hydro's public stats track 3,400+ players who've played in this world, with 1,300+ active in the last 90 days and 300+ of them on Bedrock. You can check all of it yourself on the live stats page or the live map.
No. Hermitcraft is a private, invite-only server for established content creators, and there are no applications. If what you want is the same kind of whitelisted, Vanilla, long-term SMP, Hydro is one you can apply to.
No. Hydro Vanilla SMP is an independent community server founded by Tehlo in 2018. We describe it as Hermitcraft-style because it follows the same model: whitelisted, Vanilla survival, a long-term world and player-driven builds and shops.
No. Most members just play. You're welcome to record or stream, and nobody is required to.
Yes. 13 of the server's datapacks are from Vanilla Tweaks, alongside a few custom quality-of-life datapacks. The full list is on the Server Info page.
Season 13 is a Forever World with no scheduled reset. It only ends if the community votes for it, and when a season does end the world download is released.
Nothing. There is no pay-to-win and there are no paid ranks. The store only offers cosmetics and donations that help pay for the hardware.
Applications take a couple of minutes, and a staff member reads every one, usually within a day. You must be 18 or older.