How to Fix a Create 2 Mekanism: Sky Edition 2 Server That Keeps Crashing

1. Check your Java version first

This is the single most common cause of a server that won't even start, and it's the fastest thing to rule out. Create 2 Mekanism: Sky Edition 2 runs on Forge for Minecraft 1.20.1, which requires Java 17. If your host or control panel defaults to an older Java runtime, Forge will either refuse to launch or crash within the first few seconds with no useful gameplay-side error at all.

• Confirm the server's Java runtime is set to Java 17, not Java 8 or Java 11
• If you manage Java yourself, check the startup script's JAVA_HOME points at a 17 install

2. Combined Create + Mekanism tick overhead

Once the Java version is confirmed fine, the next most common source of crashes in this specific pack is simply running two large automation ecosystems side by side. Create's mechanical contraptions (shafts, gearboxes, moving structures) and Mekanism's chemical/energy processing chains each carry their own per-tick cost, and when a base scales up both systems at once, the combined overhead compounds faster than either mod alone would produce.

This is a well-documented pattern across every pack that pairs these two mods, not something unique to a bad build — it's the nature of running two tick-heavy automation frameworks in the same world. If a specific player's island has a sprawling factory of both Create contraptions and Mekanism machines, that island is the most likely source of a slow creeping lag spiral.

3. Void world chunk-loading edge cases

Skyblock-format void worlds generate differently from a normal terrain world, and that format can occasionally produce chunk-loading edge cases right at island platform boundaries. This isn't unique to Create 2 Mekanism: Sky Edition 2 — it's typical of void-based skyblock packs in general, where the lack of normal terrain means chunk boundary behavior gets exercised in ways standard worlds rarely hit.

If crashes or freezes consistently happen near the edge of a specific island platform rather than being spread evenly across the map, this is worth ruling out before assuming it's a mod conflict.

4. Config corruption after a risky edit or mod update

If crashes started right after you changed a config file, updated a single mod out of step with the rest of the pack, or edited a Create/Mekanism tuning value by hand, a corrupted or mismatched config is a strong suspect. Both mods expose detailed config options for tick behavior and machine limits, and a bad edit there can produce crashes that look unrelated to the actual change. Reverting to the pack's stock configs and reintroducing changes one at a time is the most reliable way to isolate this.

5. RAM under the pack's realistic floor

The real floor for Create 2 Mekanism: Sky Edition 2 is 7 GB. That number is higher than many skyblock packs because you're running Create's contraption system and Mekanism's processing chains at the same time, and each has its own memory footprint on top of the base Forge/Minecraft overhead. Under-provisioning below 7 GB rarely causes a single instant clean crash — instead it shows up as cascading lag and longer garbage-collection pauses as memory pressure builds, and the server eventually hits a tick timeout and gets force-closed by the watchdog rather than failing cleanly on its own.