Gradient Chat v2.5

GradientChat
36 Chat Gradients. GPU Animation When You Want It. Static Colors When You Do Not.

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36 Gradients  ◆  Shader Pack  ◆  MySQL + YAML  ◆  PlaceholderAPI  ◆  Paper 1.21

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GradientChat with EnchantedMC Addon:



GradientChat without EnchantedMC Addon:



What GradientChat Solves

Most gradient plugins paint chat once per character and stop. Animation means the server re-sending packets every few ticks. That costs CPU, fights chat formatter plugins, and still looks choppy on busy networks.

GradientChat splits the job. Without a resource pack, every gradient uses the same ColorUtil path as the GUI preview: correct per-character hex, bold and italic support, PlaceholderAPI hooks for scoreboards and menus. With the shader pack (Nexo, Oraxen, ItemsAdder, or vanilla ZIP), selected gradients and inline tags animate on the client GPU using GameTime. No tick loop on the server for shader mode.

Players pick a style in a 54-slot GUI, unlock more through permissions or presents, or build their own hex gradients in-game. Chat formatters like LPC read %gradientchat_message% so the formatted line keeps the gradient the player actually typed.

• Fire  Red-orange core through gold. Default unlock candidate for new players.
• Sunset  Amber, coral, and violet dusk tones across the message.
• Volcanic  Deep magma red into char black edges.
• Phoenix  Bright flame yellow with ember red falloff.
• Desert  Sand gold into burnt sienna.
• Autumn  Orange leaf through brown bark.
• Cherry  Soft blossom pink into rose.
• Valentine  Hot pink heart tones for seasonal events.
• Cotton  Warm cream and blush, readable on dark chat.

• Ocean  Deep navy into aqua surf.
• Ice  Frost white through glacier blue.
• Winter  Icy blue with silver highlights.
• Midnight  Near-black purple with star pinpoints.
• Coral  Reef teal into seafoam.
• Tropical  Lagoon green and palm cyan.
• Spring  Fresh leaf green with yellow highlights.
• Nature  Forest green gradient, high readability.
• Meadow  Soft grass tones for calm SMP chat.

• Neon  Electric pink and cyan punch.
• Cyberpunk  Magenta street glow into dark violet.
• Cybernetic  Chrome blue with circuit green accents.
• Matrix  Terminal green on black-green base.
• Lightning  White flash into storm purple.
• Prism  Full spectrum sweep in one message.
• Royal  Gold trim on deep purple. VIP staple.
• Rainbow  Six-band classic rainbow. Shader scroll when pack is active.
• Sunrise  Peach horizon into morning blue.

• Galaxy  Nebula purple with blue star clusters.
• Cosmic  Deep space violet into black-blue.
• Shadow  Charcoal fade, minimal distraction.
• Emerald  Jewel green with dark jade edges.
• Blood  Crimson drip into dried red.
• Crimson  Dark red wine tones.
• Poison  Toxic green with sickly yellow.
• Magic  Arcane violet with sparkle pink.
• Pastel  Low-saturation blend for subtle donors.

Ship the included resource pack or merge it into Nexo, Oraxen, or ItemsAdder. Fragment shaders hook rendertype_text and rendertype_text_see_through so chat, signs, and most Text Display entities can animate without server ticks.

On reload the plugin writes gradientchat_presets.glsl from your config colors. Copy that file into your merged pack so shader colors always match the GUI. Slide speed, character spacing, and preset IDs are all in config.yml.

Dual path encoding:

• R=251 selected chat gradient: preset ID in blue, character index in green, GPU scroll or ColorUtil static
• R=253 inline tags: rainbow, custom hex gradient, pulse, wave per message

shader_fallback_static: true  ◆  ColorUtil when the client has no pack
shader_force_gpu_encoding: true  ◆  always encode for Nexo-only pack delivery
shader_slide_seconds  ◆  one full scroll cycle timing for every animated preset

◆ Gradient GUI

• 54-slot menu: 36 gradient heads, bold and italic toggles, info panel, reset, custom gradient entry
• Live lore preview with configurable sample text
• Unlock progress line: owned gradients vs total available
• Sounds and particles on open, select, and deny

◆ Custom Gradient Builder

• In-game color picker GUI, 2 to 4 hex stops per gradient
• Tiered limits via permissions: 1, 2, 3, 5, or unlimited slots
• Stored per player in MySQL or YAML under plugins/GradientChat/data/

◆ Present System

• Right-click present item unlocks a random gradient the player does not own yet
• Full item lore, sounds, and particle burst on open
• /gradientpresent for staff rewards and crate plugins

◆ Chat and Formatter Integration

• AsyncChatEvent at HIGHEST priority so LPC, Essentials, and similar formatters receive the already gradient-encoded message
• %gradientchat_message% caches the last outgoing line for format strings
• Private /msg and /tell support when enabled in config
• Optional block list for /broadcast and /say

◆ PlaceholderAPI

• %gradientchat_apply_[gradient]_[text]% static color on any string
• %gradientchat_animated_[gradient]_[text]% server-ticked animation for scoreboards and DeluxeMenus
• %gradientchat_player_[text]% uses the viewer active gradient and styles
• %gradientchat_current_gradient%, has_gradient, is_bold, is_italic, gradient_count%

◆ Data Storage

• MySQL via HikariCP: async load and save, flush on shutdown
• YAML flat-file when database.enabled is false
• Stores selected gradient, bold, italic, and custom gradient definitions

◆ Inline Effect Tags  (permission per tag)

• text hue cycle on GPU, static spectrum fallback
• text two-color scroll
• text brightness oscillation
• text per-character phase wave

• SMP and survival  Donor gradients, present loot, and custom builder give long-term chat identity without a rank plugin rewrite.
• Hub and lobby networks  Lightweight when shaders are off. Turn GPU mode on for showcase hubs with a merged Nexo pack.
• RPG and prison  Gate each gradient behind its own permission. Use presents as quest rewards.
• Networks with LPC or DeluxeMenus  Placeholders and cached message output are built for external formatters, not against them.

◆ Commands

 

◆ Key Permissions