From f61fa54c6578cd5bfee537d202eed3be82997c70 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Dylan Garvis <Dylan@Garvis.dev>
Date: Thu, 29 Jan 2026 21:31:49 -0500
Subject: [PATCH] docs: add README

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 README.md | 61 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 create mode 100644 README.md

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+# Spigot Chat Sync
+
+Sync chat messages and death events across Minecraft servers using NATS.
+
+## Features
+- Chat sync across servers
+- Death message sync across servers
+- Per-server display name
+- Legacy color code formatting
+- Loop prevention by server id
+
+## Requirements
+- Spigot 1.21.1+ (Java 21)
+- NATS server
+
+## Configuration
+Edit `src/main/resources/config.yml` or the generated `plugins/SpigotChatSync/config.yml`.
+
+```yml
+server:
+  id: "server-1"
+  name: "Server 1"
+
+nats:
+  url: "nats://localhost:4222"
+
+subjects:
+  chat: "mc.chat.sync"
+  death: "mc.death.sync"
+
+format:
+  chat: "&7[&b{server}&7] &f{player}&7: &f{message}"
+  death: "&7[&b{server}&7] &f{message}"
+```
+
+Only remote messages are formatted; local chat/death output stays unchanged.
+
+## Build
+
+```bash
+mvn package
+```
+
+Or via Docker:
+
+```bash
+make docker-jar
+```
+
+The shaded jar will be in `target/`.
+
+## Usage
+1. Install the jar on each server.
+2. Set a unique `server.id` and a friendly `server.name` on each server.
+3. Point all servers to the same NATS instance.
+
+## Message Placeholders
+- `{server}`: configured server name
+- `{player}`: player name
+- `{message}`: chat or death text
+- `{time}`: local server time in HH:mm