DonutSMP Spawner Guide
Spawners are one of the most valuable items on DonutSMP. When placed, they mimic mob drops without actually spawning entities to reduce server lag. Players right-click spawners like a chest to collect drops. Spawners can be purchased from the shard shop, traded with other players via the DonutSMP Discord, or acquired by raiding enemy bases at high risk for high reward.
Spawner Types
Mechanics & Placement
Players can stack spawners by holding Shift and right-clicking with the same spawner type, with the maximum stack being the signed 32-bit integer limit. However, stacking has diminishing returns where the more spawners in one pile, the less each additional spawner contributes to output. For skeleton spawners, the bones per minute output follows a diminishing returns curve that asymptotes at approximately 1,505.35 bones per minute no matter how many spawners are stacked. Use the calculator below to compare stacking versus spreading:
(1x)
01 spawner(s)
Spreading spawners is significantly better than stacking. A server update changed spawner mechanics so they only need to be in separate blocks rather than separate chunks to count as different piles. This means players can place spawners directly next to each other instead of stacking them, don’t need to spread them far apart, have each spawner in a separate block contributing full efficiency, and can still build compact farms. If a player has 10 skeleton spawners, stacking them in 1 block produces heavily diminished returns with far less than 10x output, while spreading across 10 blocks has each spawner producing near-full output for approximately 10x total production. Effective farm design includes creating grid patterns with 1 spawner per block, building multi-layer farms vertically, using hoppers or collection systems beneath spawners, and automating collection for passive income.
Security & Trading
Spawners are pie-chartable, meaning players can detect base locations by analyzing spawner positions on the server. This makes Donut+ valuable as the extra home slots allow spreading spawners across more bases. Location strategy involves never keeping all spawners in one location, using multiple bases across different regions, keeping some spawners in hidden hard-to-raid locations, and building decoy bases to mislead raiders. Home management includes spreading spawners across all /home slots, keeping backup spawners at secret locations, and avoiding setting homes directly on top of spawners.
Operational security requires not bragging about spawner wealth in global chat, trading spawners carefully as scams are allowed, and taking screenshots or records of spawner locations. Raid protection involves building obsidian protection around spawners, using multiple layers of defense, hiding spawner rooms underground, creating maze-like base designs, and monitoring bases regularly for signs of discovery.
Spawners can only be found naturally in the world and cannot be purchased. Skeleton spawners represent the best long-term investment with values increasing over time. Most spawner trading happens on the DonutSMP Discord where players can buy spawners for whatever the current market price is, sell excess spawners for profit, trade specific types they need, and must be cautious of scammers. Skeleton spawners with spread placement produce approximately 1,500 bones per minute per spawner, providing passive income while online. For information about planned changes that may affect spawner values, see updates.