Packet Filter System

Packet Filter System - Player Guide

What is the Packet Filter System?

The Packet Filter System is a powerful client-side filtering tool that lets you customize what visual effects and animations you see from other players, monsters, and pets. This helps reduce screen clutter, improve performance on busy maps, and focus on what matters to you during gameplay.

Key Benefits:

Better Performance: Less visual effects = smoother gameplay, especially in crowded areas like War of Emperium (WoE)
Reduced Lag: Fewer animations being processed means lower CPU usage
Visual Clarity: Remove distracting effects to focus on important combat information
Customizable Experience: Filter by entity type (party, guild, others, etc.)

How to Use the Packet Filter

Basic Command

@packetfilter

Type this command alone to see your current filter settings and the help guide.

Command Syntax

@packetfilter <FilterType><WhoToFilter>

FilterType: A single letter indicating WHAT to filter (see Filter Types below)
WhoToFilter: One or more letters indicating WHO to filter (see Entity Types below)

Examples

@packetfilter CSP        → Hide chat from yourself (S) and party members (P)
@packetfilter ASPO       → Hide attacks from self, party, and other players
@packetfilter BSPG       → Hide buff effects from self, party, and guild
@packetfilter EOPGCBH    → Hide emotions from everyone except monsters
@packetfilter H          → Turn off ALL filters (reset to default)

Filter Types (WHAT to Filter)

C - Chat Messages

Blocks normal chat bubbles, including special songs:

Dancer's Scream
Bard's Frost Joker

Use when: Too many chat bubbles are blocking your view in towns or events

E - Emotions

Blocks emotion icons (e.g., /swt, /heh, /gg)

Does NOT block pet performances

Use when: Players are spamming emotions during PvP or boss fights

I - Item Use Effects

Blocks the visual effects when items are used:

Potion drinking animations
Food consumption effects
Other item activation visuals

Use when: Multiple players are using items rapidly in one area

A - Normal Attack Animations

Blocks basic attack animations from others

Your own attacks are ALWAYS shown
Only affects what you see from other players/monsters

Use when: Too many auto-attackers are creating visual spam

B - Buff Effects

Blocks support skill animations and effects:

Blessing, Increase AGI, etc.
Does NOT block bard/dancer songs (use M for that)

Use when: Priests/Support classes are constantly buffing in crowded areas

S - Status Effects

Blocks status effect icons and overlays:

Poison, Stun, Freeze indicators
Status ailment visual effects

Use when: You want a cleaner view of character models

T - Single Target Offensive Skills

Blocks damage skill animations aimed at specific targets:

Magnum Break, Bash, Holy Light
Your own offensive skills are ALWAYS shown

Use when: Multiple players are using targeted damage skills

G - Ground/AoE Spell Effects

Blocks area-of-effect and ground-based skills:

Storm Gust, Lord of Vermillion
Sanctuary, Pneuma
Some skills cannot be fully filtered

Use when: Wizards/Sages are casting massive AoE spells

M - Music from Bards/Dancers

Blocks bard and dancer song effects:

Bragi, Service for You
All ensemble skills

Use when: Bards and Dancers are using songs and you want a cleaner view

D - Direction Changes

Blocks when other players change facing direction:

Character turning animations
Face direction updates

Use when: Minimizing network traffic or reducing micro-movements on screen

U - Costume View

Hides costume items on other players:

Costume headgears
Costume garments
Costume enchant visuals

Use when: You prefer seeing original character designs or reducing visual clutter from costumes

H - Headgear View (NEW)

Hides headgear equipment on other players:

Upper headgear
Middle headgear
Lower headgear

Use when: You want to see character faces clearly or reduce visual complexity

Note: This does NOT affect your own headgear display

Entity Types (WHO to Filter)

You can filter effects from specific entity types by combining these letters:

Letter	Entity Type	Description
S	Self	Your own character
P	Party	Party members
G	Guild	Guild members
C	Clan	Clan members
B	Battleground	BG teammates
O	Others	All other players not in above categories
H	Homunculus/Pets	Your and others' homunculus, pets, mercenaries, elementals
M	Monsters	All monsters and MVPs

Important: You can combine multiple entity types in a single command!

Common Use Cases

For WoE (War of Emperium)

@packetfilter BSPG       → Hide buffs from self, party, guild (reduce clutter)
@packetfilter TSP        → Hide allied offensive skills for better view
@packetfilter GSP        → Hide friendly AoE spells
@packetfilter ASPO       → Hide attack animations from allies and others

For Crowded Events

@packetfilter CO         → Hide chat from other players
@packetfilter EO         → Hide emotions from other players
@packetfilter IO         → Hide item use effects from others
@packetfilter UO         → Hide costumes from other players
@packetfilter HO         → Hide headgears from other players

For Boss Hunting

@packetfilter GM         → Hide ground spells from monsters (reduce visual spam)
@packetfilter TM         → Hide monster offensive skills
@packetfilter MO         → Hide music from other players

For Better Performance

@packetfilter GOPGCB     → Hide all ground spells from players (massive FPS boost)
@packetfilter AOPGCB     → Hide attack animations from other players
@packetfilter EOPGCB     → Hide emotions from everyone except monsters
@packetfilter UOPGCB     → Hide costumes from other players
@packetfilter HOPGCB     → Hide headgears from other players

For PvP Focus

@packetfilter BPG        → Hide buffs from party/guild (see enemy buffs only)
@packetfilter CPG        → Hide allied chat (reduce distraction)
@packetfilter MPG        → Hide allied music effects

Viewing Current Filters

@packetfilter

Type the command without any parameters to see:

Which filters are currently active
What entity types are being filtered for each type

Example output:

Enabled [C]hat filter.
    -> Other players
Enabled [E]motion filter.
    -> Other players
Enabled [B]uff filter.
    -> Self
    -> Party
    -> Guild

Clearing All Filters

@packetfilter H

Using H by itself will reset ALL filters back to default (showing everything).

Important Notes

Always Visible

Your own actions are ALWAYS shown to you
You cannot hide your own attack animations, buffs you cast on yourself, or your own offensive skills
This prevents gameplay confusion

What Cannot Be Filtered

Certain ground spells may not be fully filterable due to client limitations
Critical game mechanics (warp portals, NPC effects) are never filtered
System messages and announcements

Performance Tips

Filter "Other Players" (O) first if you want maximum performance gain
Filtering ground spells (G) gives the biggest FPS boost in crowded areas
Headgear filters (H) and costume filters (U) reduce memory usage

Filter Persistence

Your filter settings are saved to your account
They persist across logins and character switches
You don't need to reapply filters after restarting the game

Troubleshooting

"Invalid format" Error

Make sure you use the correct letter codes
Check that you haven't repeated the same entity type (e.g., "BSSP" has S twice)
Entity types are case-insensitive: "bsp" = "BSP" = "BsP"

Filter Not Working

Some skills may bypass filters due to client limitations
Relog if filters don't apply immediately
Use @packetfilter alone to verify the filter is active

Game Feels Empty

You may have filtered too much - try clearing with @packetfilter H
Gradually add filters instead of filtering everything at once

Quick Reference Table

Goal	Recommended Command
Reduce WoE lag	`@packetfilter GOPGCB` + `@packetfilter AOPGCB`
Hide player spam	`@packetfilter CO` + `@packetfilter EO`
Focus on enemies	`@packetfilter BPG` + `@packetfilter MPG`
Maximum performance	`@packetfilter GOPGCB` + `@packetfilter AOPGCB` + `@packetfilter HOPGCB` + `@packetfilter UOPGCB`
Clean visual (no cosmetics)	`@packetfilter UOPGCB` + `@packetfilter HOPGCB`
Reset everything	`@packetfilter H`

Advanced Filtering Strategies

Layered Filtering

You can apply multiple filter types sequentially:

@packetfilter GOPGCB     → First hide ground spells from others
@packetfilter AOPGCB     → Then hide attacks from others
@packetfilter EOPGCB     → Then hide emotions from others

Selective Visibility

Keep party/guild visible while hiding everyone else:

@packetfilter AO         → Hide attacks from Others only
@packetfilter GO         → Hide ground spells from Others only
@packetfilter EO         → Hide emotions from Others only

Minimal Combat View

For hardcore players who want ONLY their own actions visible:

@packetfilter GOPGCBH    → Hide ground spells from all entities
@packetfilter AOPGCBH    → Hide attacks from all entities
@packetfilter BOPGCBH    → Hide buffs from all entities
@packetfilter TOPGCBH    → Hide target skills from all entities

Credits

Version: 1.0.4 with Headgear Filter
Release Date: September 2025
Patch Level: Production-ready with headgear visibility toggle

For server administrators: This feature requires source-level implementation. Contact your server administrator if the @packetfilter command is not available.

Last Updated: October 2025
Compatibility: rAthena with Packet Filter v1.0.4+ patch applied