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+# RPKit
+
+RPKit is a suite of plugins for Minecraft roleplay servers. It includes standard libraries, which allow easy interfacing with a specific subset of functionality, and reference implementations of these.
+
+This repository is [Dans-Plugins](https://github.com/Dans-Plugins)' fork of [RP-Kit/RPKit](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit).
+
+## Quick Links
+
+- [Website](http://rpkit.com/) (upstream project)
+- [Wiki](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit/wiki) (upstream project)
+- [Discord](https://discord.gg/C9br2MdPcc) (upstream project)
+- [Upstream repository](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit)
+
+## Table of Contents
+
+- [Support](#support)
+- [Installation](#installation)
+- [Compiling the Project](#compiling-the-project)
+- [Contributing](#contributing)
+- [Authors and Acknowledgements](#authors-and-acknowledgements)
+- [License](#license)
+
+## Support
+
+For general questions about RPKit, the upstream project's [Discord server](https://discord.gg/C9br2MdPcc) is the place to ask.
+
+For a bug or feature request in *this fork*, please open a [GitHub issue](https://github.com/Dans-Plugins/RPKit/issues/new). Issues concerning upstream RPKit itself belong on the [upstream tracker](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit/issues/new).
+
+## Installation
+
+RPKit is not a single plugin. Each module is built and installed as its own JAR, and modules come in two kinds:
+
+- `rpk--lib-bukkit` — the API for an area of functionality.
+- `rpk--bukkit` — the reference implementation of that API.
+
+Every module declares the modules it needs under `depend:` in its own `plugin.yml`. For example, `bukkit/rpk-players-bukkit/src/main/resources/plugin.yml` depends on `rpk-core-bukkit` and `rpk-player-lib-bukkit`. `rpk-core-bukkit` is required by everything.
+
+1. Obtain the module JARs, either by building them from source (see [Compiling the Project](#compiling-the-project)) or by downloading them from the upstream [releases page](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit/releases). Each module is a separate download; if you are not sure which ones you need, take all of them.
+2. Place the JAR files in the `plugins` directory of your server.
+3. Start your server. Each plugin creates its own data folder named after itself — for example `plugins/rpk-players-bukkit/` — and writes its default configuration there. Modules that use a database also write a `database.yml` into that folder, defaulting to SQLite with a database file of its own named after the module (`rpk-players-bukkit` uses `jdbc:sqlite:rpkit_players.db`, `rpk-chat-bukkit` uses `jdbc:sqlite:rpkit_chat.db`, and so on); `MYSQL` is the other supported dialect.
+4. Edit the generated `config.yml` and `database.yml` files to taste.
+5. Restart your server.
+
+## Compiling the Project
+
+**JDK 17 is required.** The build pins Gradle 7.6, Kotlin 1.7.22 and `jvmTarget = "17"`; JDK 21 fails with `Unsupported class file major version 65`, and JDK 11 fails to resolve the build's plugins. Continuous integration builds this project on Temurin 17.
+
+To compile the project, run the following command in the root directory of the project.
+
+Windows:
+
+```cmd
+.\gradlew.bat clean build
+```
+
+Linux:
+
+```shell
+./gradlew clean build
+```
+
+This compiles all 71 modules listed in `settings.gradle` and writes each module's JARs to that module's `build/libs` directory. The Bukkit modules live under `bukkit/`, so `rpk-chat-bukkit`'s output lands in `bukkit/rpk-chat-bukkit/build/libs`. Each Bukkit module produces both a plain JAR and a shaded `-all.jar`; the shaded one is what belongs in your server's `plugins` directory.
+
+## Contributing
+
+To contribute to this fork, please [fork](https://github.com/Dans-Plugins/RPKit/fork) the repository and submit a pull request against `main`. Please ensure that your code is well-tested and follows the existing code style — in particular, every source file carries the Apache-2.0 licence header, and every command permission node is declared in its module's `plugin.yml`.
+
+Contributions intended for RPKit itself, rather than for this fork, should be sent to the [upstream repository](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit).
+
+## Authors and Acknowledgements
+
+### Developers
+
+| Name | Contributions |
+| ---- | ------------- |
+| Ren Binden (`alyphen`) | Creator of RPKit |
+| [Dans-Plugins](https://github.com/Dans-Plugins) | Maintainer of this fork |
+
+Thanks are owed to everyone who has [contributed to upstream RPKit](https://github.com/RP-Kit/RPKit/graphs/contributors).
+
+## License
+
+RPKit is licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0. See the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for more information.