How Does Offline Raid Protection Work on Rust Console?

Short Answer

Offline raid protection (ORP, sometimes called ZORP) makes a player's base harder or impossible to raid while its owners are offline. On a Rust Console server running Helios, it works as a zone placed around the base, and that zone moves through three states:

State	When it applies	What it does
Online	At least one tracked member is online	Zone exists but does not protect the base
Pending	Everyone tracked has logged off; countdown running	Still no protection; this is the raid window
Protected	Countdown finished	Building, building damage, and base damage are disabled inside the zone

The Pending state is the part that decides whether players think the system is fair. It is a deliberate delay between the last player logging off and protection switching on, so someone cannot escape an active raid by disconnecting.

Who Creates the Zone

A common misunderstanding: players create their own ORP zones, staff do not create them.

• Staff configure how the system behaves with /orp settings.
• Players create or replace their own zone in-game using the ORP quick-chat trigger "Can I Build Here", then confirm with a Yes/No prompt.

The zone is centered on the player's position at the moment they create it, so players must be standing at their base when they trigger it.

Prerequisites

• A connected server in Helios.
• Manage Server permission in Discord.
• Premium enabled for that server.
• Server-side custom zone commands available, because ORP zones are created through zone commands.
• For Clan mode: clan data set up and members linked correctly.

The Full Lifecycle

1. Staff configure ORP with /orp settings.
2. A player triggers the ORP quick-chat in-game at their base.
3. Helios checks whether that player is allowed a zone (minimum team size, minimum distance from other zones).
4. The player confirms via a Yes/No prompt.
5. Helios creates one zone centered on their current base position.
6. While any tracked member is online, the zone stays Online.
7. After the last tracked member logs off, the zone moves to Pending and the activation timer starts.
8. When the activation timer ends, the zone becomes Protected.
9. When the protection timer expires, the zone is removed entirely.
10. If a tracked member comes back online at any point, the zone returns to Online.

The Settings That Matter Most

Configure these with /orp settings server:"<SERVER>".

Setting	What it controls	Why it matters
Team / Clan mode	Whether tracking follows in-game teams or Helios clans	Clan mode needs clan data and correct linking, or tracking silently misses members
Activation Time	How long a base must be empty before protection starts	The single biggest fairness lever. Too short and players escape raids by logging off
Expires In	How long protection lasts before the zone is removed	Too long protects inactive players and stalls the wipe
Size	Zone radius around the base	Too large and it covers neighbours or blocks legitimate building
Minimum Distance	How close two zones may be	Prevents players stacking zones to blanket an area
Minimum Team	Linked members required before a zone can be created	Stops solo alt accounts claiming protection
Protected / Online Color	Visible state difference	Lets players and staff see zone state without asking
Radiation	Whether protected zones apply radiation damage	Optional and aggressive; most servers leave this off
Feed	Discord channel for ORP activity	Your only practical audit trail for disputes

Choosing Activation and Expiry Times

There is no universally correct value, but the trade-off is predictable:

• Short activation (a few minutes): protection feels responsive, but players can dodge an in-progress raid by logging off. Raiders will complain.
• Long activation: raids stay winnable, but genuinely offline players lose bases in the gap. Base owners will complain.
• Short expiry: wipes stay active; inactive players lose bases quickly.
• Long expiry: protects players who have stopped playing, which slowly freezes the map.

Pick values, write them into your server rules, and change them between wipes rather than mid-wipe. Changing them mid-wipe is what generates most disputes.

Common Problems

Players say ORP did not activate

Check the zone state at the time. If it was still Pending, the activation timer had not finished, which is working as intended. Enable the ORP Feed so you can answer this from a log rather than from argument.

A player cannot create a zone

Usually one of: they are below Minimum Team, they are too close to an existing zone (Minimum Distance), or in Clan mode their account is not linked correctly.

Protection covers more than the base

The Size value is too large for your server's build density. Reduce it between wipes and tell players the new radius.

Zones behave inconsistently after a wipe

ORP zones are map-specific. Treat re-validating ORP as a standard wipe-day task; see the Wipe Day Checklist.

Related Pages

• Offline Raid Protection setup
• Zones Setup
• Clans
• Offline Raid Protection feature overview