Purgatory Respawn
by EriX24
Purgatory Respawn changes what happens when a player dies in multiplayer, replacing the usual respawn with a spectator state and a way back into the game.
What it does
When a player dies, the mod drops that player's head as an item and places the player in spectator mode, so a death carries a visible cost. A dead player can be revived by right-clicking a skeleton skull that has been renamed to the username of the player to revive, using a paper item to make the skull. A config file controls whether self-revive is enabled and whether the dropped head is created with a paper skull.
The mod is meant for multiplayer and aims to be a lenient alternative to hardcore mode, where a death normally ends the world for that player. A single player can use it to get a similar effect to hardcore, while server owners can use it to soften hardcore rules on a shared server. It also includes a config option that changes how weather affects the world.
Purgatory Respawn is built for Forge on 1.20.1 only, and the mod requires multiplayer. Installation covers the server and each player's game. The code is released under All rights reserved and is not open source, though the source code is publicly available.
Key features
Head drop on death
A dead player leaves a player head item behind, which another player can use to bring them back.
Spectator mode after death
A player who dies is moved into spectator mode until they are revived or respawned.
Skull-based revive
A renamed skeleton skull made with paper, right-clicked by a player, revives the dead player whose name it carries.
Configurable options
Config settings let server owners turn self-revive on or off, and choose whether the dropped head uses a paper skull.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Server owners running Forge 1.20.1 multiplayer worlds who want a lenient hardcore rule, and players who want a single-player challenge built around death and revival.
How it compares
Drop Player Heads is also a Forge 1.20.1 mod, but it is server-side only and open source under the MIT License, so players join without installing it. Hardcore Revive is a datapack for Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt across 1.20 – 1.21.10, with the server required and the client optional, released under the Mozilla Public License 2.0. Purgatory Respawn needs both sides and is only built for 1.20.1.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purgatory Respawn | Forge | 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2025-11-25 |
| Drop Player Heads | Forge | 1.20.1 | Server-side only | 2024-01-27 |
| Hardcore Revive | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.20 – 1.21.10 | Server required, client optional | 2026-02-15 |
Questions
Does Purgatory Respawn have to be installed on both sides?
Which Minecraft version does Purgatory Respawn support?
How does self-revive work?
In the catalog
Purgatory Respawn is one of 29,952 Game mechanics mods on ModsFinder, and one of 13,316 Game mechanics mods for Forge. 34,764 mods support Minecraft 1.20.1.
More from EriX24
Similar mods
What the author says
Adds a unique way to respawn when you die in Minecraft! When you die you will now drop a player head, as well as being put in spectator mode.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/purgatory-respawn
- Owner
- EriX24
- Published
- 2025-11-25
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2025-11-25
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15