I respect that he's sick of the forum, and I only hope that my little campaign to get sugar cane added to the "underwater tips" section in no way contributed to his abrupt decision.
But deleting his excellent FAQ just seems to me like an act of spite. Why deprive others of a major example of the tiny minority of truly useful threads? I don't know his motivations. I do know that Newbies still need their FQs Aed.
So I'm reposting it. I don't mean to disrespect Kris18, but once it's on the Internet, what has been posted cannot always be unposted, and I think it would be a disservice to Minecrafters if I just let his compendium slip away uncontested.
He can argue his case to me, or ask the mods to purge this and other such attempts, or whatever. I will listen respectfully and answer his arguments or be convinced by them -- or give up in the face of modly power -- as the case may be.
In the meantime, I present his work, which is not mine and which I take no credit for.
[edit]
The Newbie+ Guide and FAQ
Written by Kris18 with contributions and help from the community
==========
Here is a table of contents, of the table of contents. ( Don't laugh at me. :sad.gif: )
The table showed all questions, and since I can't use javascript here to expand and collapse sections, I've made this:
TABLE OF CONTENTS of the table of contents
[Link] Information
[Link] Out of the way
[Link] Save games and Updates
[Link] What is...
[Link] Game functions and mechanics
[Link] Where is/How do I get...
[Link] Mobs
[Link] Creations/How to make
[Link] Strategy
[Link] Modifying
[Link] Bugs
[Link] Other
[Link] Out of game
[Link] Terminology/Glossary
[Link] Small facts/Tips
==========
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Information
[Link] A few things
[Link] Future Updates/Notch's Quotes
[Link] PLEASE READ
Out of the way
[Link] How do I make [item]?
[Link] Why cant I destroy blocks?
[Link] What materials can mine what?/Why don't I get materials when I destroy blocks?
[Link] How can I identify different ores and other things I dig up? How good are tools made from each material?
[Link] What are the keys/controls, and how do I change them?
[Link] How do I pause my game?
[Link] How do I take/post a picture/screenshot?
Save Games and Updates
[Link] Help! My (save)game is gone!
[Link] Where can I find my savegame(s)?
[Link] How do I backup my game?
[Link] Will my savegame be safe after I update?
[Link] Will I still get the new features in my old savegame?
[Link] How do I update my game?/Why won't my game update?
[Link] What kind of schedule are patches/updates released on?
[Link] What was in the latest patch/update?
What is...
[Link] What is this orange thing? (saddle)
[Link] What is this flaming cage thing?/What is a dungeon? (mob spawner)
[Link] What is this black thing near lava? How do I make it? How do I mine it? (obsidian)
[Link] What is this unbreakable thing at the bottom of the map? (adminium)
[Link] What is a "(map) seed'?
[Link] What is the "void"?
[Link] What is this green thing? (slime)
[Link] What is "red stuff"? What's it for? How can I use it?
[Link] What is a "biome"?
[Link] What is The Nether/Hell/The Slip?
Game Functions and Mechanics
[Link] How do I use my item instead of destroying blocks?
[Link] How do I divide my stack of items?
[Link] How do I show the FPS?
[Link] How do I recover HP?
[Link] How long do day and night last?
[Link] How do I grow grass on dirt?
[Link] How I mine for fish?
[Link] How big is the world? Where's the end?
[Link] How do I fix portal linkings?
[Link] What do cave noises/ambiance mean?
[Link] Why is this forest on fire? I never set it off!
[Link] Suddenly, my view changed and I can see my character! How do I change it back?
[Link] Why are my stairs/furnaces facing the wrong direction? How do I fix it?
Where is/How do I get...
[Link] Where is [ore/mineral]?
[Link] How do I find my map's seed?
[Link] Where is clay? What's it for?
[Link] How do I get records/music discs?
[Link] How do I get (golden) apples?
[Link] Where are cacti ("cactuses")? What can I use cacti for?
[Link] How do I get smooth stone? (I only mine cobblestone!)
Mobs
[Link] What mobs are in the game?
[Link] Why do monsters spawn on me while I'm sleeping?
[Link] Are there dragons?
[Link] What causes a mob to spawn? How can I make/prevent monsters from spawning?
[Link] How do I get wolves? I can't find them!
[Link] Where are slimes? Why can't I find them?
[Link] I've heard about skeletons riding spiders, is it true?
[Link] Can mobs open doors or climb ladders?
[Link] Do mobs have any form of AI?
[Link] Can mobs destroy blocks?
[Link] Why do monsters light on fire?/What happens to monsters in daylight?
[Link] Can mobs reproduce? (cows, pigs, or chickens)
Creations/How to make
[Link] How do I make working double doors?
[Link] How do I make a portal/go to The Nether?
[Link] How do I make a cobblestone factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a water factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a lava factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make an obsidian factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a mob trap?
[Link] How do I make things out of redstone?
[Link] How do I make and use dyes?
Strategy
[Link] Help, I'm lost! How can I get back?!
[Link] How do I get rid of all this water?
[Link] How do I mine effectively?
[Link] How do I mine obsidian safely?
[Link] How do I farm effectively? What is farming?
[Link] How can I breathe/survive underwater longer?
[Link] How do I farm X?
Modifying
[Link] How can I change my spawn point?
[Link] How can I change my texture pack?
[Link] How do I start fires?
[Link] How long do dropped items last? How long do I have to collect them before they disappear?
[Link] How do I hack Minecraft?
[Link] How can I mod Minecraft?
[Link] How can I change my snow world to a normal world, or vice versa?
Bugs
[Link] Why aren't all sounds working/playing? What's the fix?
[Link] Why is this random block all dark/unlit? How do I fix it?
[Link] Why are there steep cliffs/perfectly square cliffs and hills and other weird sudden changes in landscape?
[Link] [some nonsensical or weird thing] happened! Why? Is it normal? (Other glitches)
Other
[Link] What can I do with eggs?
[Link] What can I do with slime balls?
[Link] Who's this "Notch" guy everyone talks about?
[Link] How effective are weapons and armor?
[Link] Who's "Him"/"Herobrine"?
Out of game
[Link] How do I upload my game?/How do I share my game?
[Link] Can someone buy me Minecraft?
[Link] Terminology/Glossary
[Link] Small Facts/Tips
Please note the Terminology/Glossary and Small facts/tips sections after the questions.
Quick Facts:
- This FAQ has over 80 questions answered
- This FAQ has over 450 revisions/edits (although many of them are minor minor edits or fixes)
===================== Information
=====================
A few things:
- Gray stricken text will represent outdated or changed information.
- Most "newbie" questions are answered, so a few more advanced things have been answered
- This guide is brought over from the Alpha Single Player forums. It is mostly geared towards single player. It will slowly develop to be helpful for multiplayer as well, now that Beta has single and multiplayer combined in survival.
- I ripped images from Minepedia, used some unique works from others, and a few of my own creations/images as well.
- Questions also may occasionally have outdated information. I don't know every change in every update, and even if I did, I may not always remember to look through the whole guide to find all references to fix it. If you see something that should be changed, please let me know. Thanks again.
Future Updates/Notch's Quotes
For information on upcoming updates, we usually have a stickied thread. Here's the most recent: Info About Minecraft Beta 1.5
This awesome thread archives and shares things Notch has said, including many things he's considered or plans to add to Minecraft. I'd check out the thread, as you may get a look into the future. :biggrin.gif:
PLEASE READ:
For using this thread, first try searching keywords, and see if it gets you anywhere (ctrl + f for find), or read all the questions. If you are trying to identify an item, then it may have an image, which you could skip through to see.
And please, PLEASE, back up your game often.
===================== THE QUESTIONS
=====================
Help! My (save)game is gone!
If your savegame disappears, do not try to load the world again. Hopefully, and it very well may be, still on your computer.
If it is, back it up.
1) Try using this thread to recover.
If that doesn't work, try:
2) Delete level.dat and rename level.dat_old to level.dat. This will bring you to the last time it was saved. I have not confirmed this to work myself, but I have heard it does from some.
If you don't know how to craft, then I'll explain that briefly here. You can open your inventory and make things 2x2 or smaller on the top. You can make a crafting bench there to make things up to 3x3 in size. Right click it to use.
related: How do I use a furnace?
You can use a furnace by right clicking it. You can heat things up with it, such as turning iron ore ( ) into iron bars/ingots ( ), which is what's needed, not iron ore, to make things. The top is what you're heating up, the bottom is your fuel source (such as coal, lava, or wood).
Why can't I destroy blocks?
In order to destroy a block, you need to hold down the left mouse button until the block is gone. Single or repeated clicks will not work. Different blocks take different times to destroy.
What materials can mine what?/Why don't I get materials when I destroy blocks?
Some blocks require a certain pickaxe or better in order to get materials from it.
Wood/Sand/Gravel/Dirt --- can all be destroyed by hand and will drop material; (note that sand, gravel and dirt can be destroyed quicker with a shovel, and wood faster with an axe)
Coal/Smooth Stone --- a Wooden or better pickaxe;
Iron/Lapis Lazuli --– a Stone or better pickaxe;
Gold/Diamond/Redstone –-- an Iron or better pickaxe;
Obsidian –-- a Diamond pickaxe.
(Thanks for writing this one out for me, guys!)
How can I identify different ores and other things I dig up? How good are tools made from each material?
Please note: durabilities have increased since the January 13th update. Here are the updated durabilities.
How do I update my game?/Why won't my game update?
Play it. If the server is down, you cannot update, and will have to wait until you can connect to minecraft.net
Otherwise, if you can play online, but are not getting the update, then try deleting the .minecraft folder (backing up your saves!) to reset everything, and get the patch.
What are the keys/controls, and how do I change them?
Press esc/escape to pause. Go to options, and from there, there'll be an option to change the keys. There you can see what keys are set to what, and you can click them to change them.
How do I pause my game?
Ways to pause the game
Press escape
Alt+tab out of the game (switching active window)
Ways that don't pause the game
Opening up your inventory
Using a workbench, furnace, or chest
What is this orange thing?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/YGAc9.jpg[/img]This is a saddle. You can use it on a pig to ride it, however you cannot control the pig; its behavior will not change, and the "ride" is boring (in my humble opinion..). It can only be used once. You can only get it from dungeon chests.
What is this flaming cage thing?/What is a dungeon?Key words: flame flaming cage fire spawn
[img]http://i.imgur.com/YGAc9.jpg[/img]This is a mob spawner. It spawns (creates) enemy mobs such as skeletons, spiders etc. The "room" it's in is a "dungeon". It spawns until there are about 5 monsters it has spawned. Once a mob it spawned is killed, it will spawn another. The spawners can be broken, but it will be destroyed; you can't pick it up. You can disable it by placing torches next to it on opposite sides. (If you don't understand that, just place 4 torches around it, one on each side.)
Also in the dungeon, are chests which may contain valuables such as records/music disks or apples. They may also contain other random things such as buckets or bread. The dungeon walls are mostly made of mossy cobblestone. People find these valuable, and aren't found anywhere else.
What is this black thing near lava? How do I make it? How do I mine it?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/cfzJf.jpg[/img]This is obsidian. It is the strongest material in the game (besides adminium/bedrock). You can make it by having spring lava collide with water. "Spring" means it's where it's coming from. Water and lava flow, but the space it flows FROM is the "spring"/"source" block. Lava springs cannot be created. You can only mine obsidian with a diamond pickaxe. It will take 15 seconds or so per block. It also is resistant to creeper explosions.
What is this unbreakable thing at the bottom of the map?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/VGCFf.png[/img]Bedrock, also known as adminium, is unbreakable, and occupies the bottom of the map for the most part. There are rare holes in it that you can dig and fall through. These "voids" are a death trap. You lose everything you're carrying if you fall in.
For the Nether, it borders the top and bottom of the map.
What is the "void"?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/zn6k7.jpg[/img]
The void is a rare hole in the layers of bedrock/adminium on the bottom of the map of the normal world. Beyond the hole appears blue. If you fall through it, you die and lose everything you are holding. If you uncover one, some people would suggest covering it (possibly with obsidian) and putting a sign up that tells about the void there.
However, since the Halloween update, the void has changed in its creation; lava may now be created at lower layers. Break through that, and you find a void.
Some people may refer to the space above the adminium in the Nether as a void as well. This one is colored red.
What is this green thing?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/XxnAds.jpg?4762[/img]They're slimes. Slimes do not spawn anymore. Their spawning is normal and fixed now (it used to be broken). They're essentially a block with a face shown by slightly darkened pixels. They come in different sizes. The smallest can only push you while the other size(s) can damage you. Upon death, they drop slime balls, which are currently useless.
What's "red stuff"? What's it for? How can I use it?
"Red stuff" is a common name for "redstone". It's for circuitry, to put it simple. It can make simple door-opening mechanisms, or complicated locks. For how to use, please refer to this, this (old, but still good) or this thread/compendium.
What is a "biome"?
They are the idea and concept that, just like on Earth, different areas have different climates. On Minecraft, biomes are where there are different themed areas, such as forest, desert, snowy, etc.
What's the Nether/Hell/The Slip?
The Nether, formerly called Hell and The Slip (pre-release), was based off of Hell, but renamed due to religious connotations. In there, a material that can be lit on fire forever is the prevalent material, making up almost all of the Nether. There are also many lava-falls, and pools of lava. (Note: You cannot farm cheap obsidian here, as the water evaporates!) It also has its own set of mobs.
Where can I find my savegame(s)?
Please note, savegames are saved in the same place for browser and downloaded.
For Windows, open Run in the start menu, and type In "%appdata%" without the quotes, and press enter. Find ".minecraft" folder. In there, there's the saves folder.
For Mac (I think this is right), FINDER> [YOUR NAME]> LIBRARY> APPLICATION SUPPORT> MINECRAFT> SAVES. In there should be your saves.
For Linux, they're in ~/.minecraft/saves (Thanks Pianosaurus!)
Where can I find [ore/mineral]?
The deeper, the more you can get.
Bedrock/Adminium is in depths 0-4 (going up increases "depth")
Diamond is normal up to depth 16
Redstone is normal up to 16
Gold is normal up to 32
Lapis Lazuli is normal up to 32
Iron is normal up to 64
Coal is normal up to 128 (entire height)
Sea level is 63
Where can I find clay? What's it for?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xO7yl.jpg[/img]Clay blocks are found along the shores of bodies of water. They can be extremely rare, and may take some time to find. Other times, it can be common. It seems almost all luck. A destroyed clay block gives four clay lumps, which can be crafted back into a clay block, or smelted to make bricks. Four bricks can be crafted into a brick block.
This thread has tips and a nice video for finding clay, which I find very helpful. Additionally, some may say editing the texture pack to make clay stand out would be a good idea.
How can I get records/music disks?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/4IOFh.jpg[/img]You can get records/music disks from treasure chests in dungeons. You can also get the records/music disks from getting a skeleton to shoot and kill a creeper. At that point, it will drop a record/music disk. Here is a guide to obtaining gold/yellow records/music disks.
How can I get (golden) apples?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/SqUqC.jpg[/img]
You can get apples from dungeon chests. You can get golden apples by crafting them like this:
Apples recover 2 hearts, while golden apples recover all 10.
Where are cacti ("cactuses")? What can I use cacti for?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xz5Fls.jpg?8116[/img]Cacti hurt you and mobs on contact, and destroy items on contact. You cannot place cacti directly next to any other block (except for diagonally). You get your first cactus by finding it from exploring. From there, you can cut it down and spread the pieces. It will grow up to 3 in height, and you can keep spreading it to get more. They can only be found and placed on sand.
How can I make smooth stone? I only mine cobblestone!
You can make smooth stone by heating up cobblestone in a furnace. (Makes no sense, rite? XP)
How do I use my item instead of destroying blocks?
Left click is always using the item to destroy a block (which is enhanced with a pickaxe or a shovel). Right click is the secondary function. For blocks, redstone and torches, placing them For a hoe, this would be tilling grass/dirt. For food, eating it. For buckets, emptying/filling it. Etc
How do I divide my stack of items?
Pressing left click takes and moves the whole stack. But what if you want parts of it? If you right click a stack, it will take half of it. If you are holding items and right click, it will place 1.
How do I get rid of all this water?
Find the source block(s) the water comes from. There may be one, or there may be many. Every single block may be a source water block. You must get rid of the source blocks. There's no shortcuts.
Method 1) (probably much better of the 2)
Make a hollow container around the area you'd like to get water ridden from. This can be of dirt or something. Fill it up gravel (from the top and it falls). Once done filling up, break the bottom gravel and quickly place a torch. Quick removal!
Method 2)
Replace them with dirt or some other material, and mine/dig it out/up. I suggest starting from the higher points downwards, and not removing all of the blocks until the you replaced a whole layer of water with something else.
How do I make working doubledoors?
Well, it's not the easiest thing to explain, and it would be helpful if you knew how redstone worked, but I'll try to explain:
Have the switch where ever you want it, but it cannot be on a block touching a door. Behind the switch, have redstone going down to an area under the doors (if you're using step activation, it will already be below). Make it split in two. On path will have one more inverter than the other. (a torch leading up a block, and on the side of the block is a redstone torch, which reverses the charge)
You're going to want to build two blocks at the spaces off to the side of the doors. So that you can place redstone torches facing each other, under the blocks the doors are on. Now lead the redstone circuits to these blocks with the torches on them. They must be going straight at the block, not at an angle. It must lead into it in the direction the torches are facing. And you got your design.
If your redstone paths become long enough, the charge will die out after 15 spaces. If that happens, use a repeater before it gets to the end. (2 not gates in a row)
Since doubledoors may have a delay from one door to another of 1 tick (very small), you can synchronize them with a redstone repeater set to 1 on the door with 1 fewer torches leading up to it.
How do I make a portal/go to The Nether?
To get to The Nether, you make this structure out of obsidian, standing upright. White represents air.
[] []
[] []
[] []
You then set fire inside it, and it becomes a portal to The Nether (or back). Stand in it to teleport.
How do I recover HP?
There are a few ways to recover HP.
1) Eat food (such as meat, cooked or uncooked)
2) Recover automatically on peaceful difficulty
3) Die (and recover all, but obviously drop all items)
How do I mine effectively?
The deeper down you go, the more types ores and minerals you can find (see "Where can I find ore?"). If you're looking for minerals, which I suspect you are, I would dig down to the lower layers. Diamond is as common as it gets up to layer 16 (counted from bottom of the map upwards). Lava is at 10. And for reference, sea level is at 63.
You can also press F3 and look at the Y coordinate. That gives you the height you see from. Subtract 1.6 or so, and that gives you the block level you're standing on.
Of the 3 methods I'll show you, what will make the first two methods "effective" or "efficient" is that you can see what's in the blocks surrounding what you've mined, so you will not dig there unless it's something valuable. These will show minimal digging for maximal blocks revealed. The third you'll see when I discuss it.
First we'll discuss horizontal strip mines. I found that explains horizontal strip mines, similarly to how I explain it below. You can check it out, or read, or both. :biggrin.gif:
Horizontal strip mines are most efficient when you mine two parallel lines, and then mine every 3rd (or 4th, as some people prefer, under the justification it would be rare for something to go unnoticed in that one line without appearing in one next to it as well) line you can mine between them, like this:
The pattern may keep going on for as many rows as you'd like. You'd mine one row, move over to where you can dig the next row, and dig back. You stay between the two original parallel lines. You may want to mine in layers 13 and 12, as it's in the middle of lava and the top of the diamond layers.
Vertical strip mines are exactly as they sound, vertical. You would dig downwards, revealing more blocks per block mined than horizontal strip mines, but may be annoying to place so many ladders. As well,the pattern for these mines may be weird:
[] []
[]
[] Overhead view.
[]
[]
[] []
You can extend these. Also, when figuring out which layers you will dig through, you may consider what ores and minerals are found at what layers (see "Where can I find ore?") I don't like vertical strip mining because it uses so much wood for ladders, has to be connected horizontally on top to get from pit to pit, you can easily dig yourself into lava, and diamond is only in a few layers. In my opinion, while the efficiency for block ratios is greater, you'd probably waste a lot more time than a horizontal mine, so I wouldn't suggest this method. Additionally, you don't know what will be below you, be it falling into a room of mobs, a dungeon (and dying) or lava.
Or, completely different, you can go spelunking. This means going around already established natural cave systems and looking for ore deposits in them. The upside is that so much is mined out revealing a lot of blocks, without you needing to reveal them. The downside is, not many caves go into the lower lower layers like that of diamond, and monsters may inhabit those caves!
Don't forget to use torches to light up your mines.
How do I farm effectively? What is farming?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/NJp7q.jpg[/img] CACTUS IMAGE [img]http://i.imgur.com/FMnIz.jpg[/img]
Farming is good for getting you wheat for making bread, which recover 2.5 hearts each. To mine, you use a hoe and till (right click) the dirt or grass and place seeds on it. If you have no seeds, you can till random bits of dirt and grass and eventually you will get some. Wheat requires water nearby to grow and be placed. Tilled soil will get destroyed (converted to regular dirt) if it is constantly stepped on, by the player or other mobs. In addition, hydrated soil will grow faster than non hydrated soil. Light sources such as torches will allow plants to grow at night or underground. You can find out more and strategy here.
While not technically farming, people do call spreading and creating a lot of papyrus/sugar cane/bamboo (first image) "farming", as well with cacti (second image). This also applies to "tree farming" where people plant tree saplings (third image) about 4 spaces apart in order to grow a dense "forest" of trees to get wood from.
How do I mine obsidian safely?
It's not the quickest explanation, so I suggest you read this guide. If you follow it, you can get rich with obsidian and won't die. :biggrin.gif:
How do I farm X
You can farm wheat by placing them on tilled dirt. If you till dirt within 4 blocks of water it will turn dark (not necessarily immediately) and grow wheat much faster.
You can "farm" cacti by placing them on sand. (They cannot be placed adjacent to another block except for diagonal)
You can "farm" sugar cane by placing them on dirt next to water.
You can "farm" trees by placing saplings on dirt, and giving them light and sufficient upwards growth room (about 6 or more).
You cannot "farm" mushrooms, flowers, or pumpkins.
How do I fish?
You can fish by using a fishing rod on water.
You can make one like this:
[img]http://imgur.com/TWQGo.png[/img]
Once you "cast" your fishing rod, wait. When the line bobs under the water (which is not always instant), right click to reel in. The fish will fly up towards you, and likely behind you.
You can cook fish in a furnace. Here's the health benefits:
Uncooked = 1 heart
Cooked = 2 1/2 hearts
Note: Your rod has 33 duration. (Multiplayer glitch gives infinite.)
How do I grow grass on dirt?
Please check out this image guide.
How do I make a cobblestone factory/generator? This cobblestone factory/generator is pretty, and compact. This seems nice and kinda compact. Here's a link to another one. It's a bit bigger, but also looks neat.
For another design, here's my simple cobblestone factory (albeit you don't 100% of the time get the cobblestone):
[img]http://i.imgur.com/MHJ5R.jpg[/img]
The uppermost blocks of water and lava are spring/source. You place them. The others flow from those 2 spaces. This is my compact generator. Stand in the weak flow of water in front and mine the cobblestone and it will keep regenerating
How do I make a water factory/generator?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/luFMA.jpg[/img]
Make wall around a 2x2 section (or dig to make it). Place water in opposite corners and the other two will fill in. You can then take water out and it will always fill back up. The image above is what it will look like when finished.
How do I make a lava factory/generator?
Sadly, you cannot make one. Lava sources cannot be created. Only destroyed and moved.
However, you can obtain massive amounts of lava from the Nether.
How do I make an obsidian factory/generator?
Because you cannot make a lava factory/generator, you cannot make an obsidian one. Obsidian is created when water and a lava source meet.
But you can use oversights/cheap ways in order to create obsidian.
1) (as described word for word by bbqroast)
1. Get 20 obsidian.
2. Build a economic portal (dirt corners). (portal A)
3. Enter the nether and walk in one direction for 12-16 blocks (one portal per chunk??)
4. Build another portal. (portal :cool.gif:
5. Use it to go back to the surface using portal B.
6. Break the new potal on the surface walk back to portal A and repeat steps 3-6.
Each time you leave the nether in portal B the game makes 14 more obsidian.
2)
Bring some of the Nether's awesome quantities of lava back to the normal world and make obsidian
How do I make a mob trap?
Please visit this guide for instructions on traps based around mob spawners.
Please visit this thread for a mob tower trap. (It's a good starter trap, just use the blueprints for v2!) This trap is nice as well.
But ultimately, THIS trap is the best. (advanced mob tower trap)
How do I make things out of redstone? Here is the Redstone FAQ and General Tutorial. Please go there for redstone answers.
If that thread isn't helpful enough, this compendium might be useful.
How can I change my spawn point?
You can change it by sleeping in a bed. It will then be where you slept. However, I believe the compass will still point to your original spawn point.
You'd have to edit the game with tools like MCedit or NBTEdit. If you want to cheat and edit it, this thread can guide you through it.
How can I change my snow world to a normal world, or vice versa?
Simple answer, you can't.
..or you can hack it.
How can I change my texture pack?
To add a texture pack, get your texture pack into a zip file. Then, open minecraft, go to the Mods and Texture Packs option, open the Texture Pack folder, and place the zip in there. Pack.png will be the thumbnail, and Pack.txt will be the description.
SaiyanKirby wrote:After a short test, stuff in the "misc" folder of minecraft.jar doesnt get taken from texture packs if you switch using the in-game thing. That means that you still have to edit the .jar if you want custom grass/foliage colors or custom pumpkin blurs
Still accurate, but unnecessary: For windows, open Run in the start menu, and type In "%appdata%" without the quotes, and press enter. There may be a folder, "roaming". Go there. If not, skip that. Find ".minecraft" folder. In there, there's the bin folder, then minecraft.jar. You're going to open minecraft.jar with zip or winrar and replace the appropriate files.
For Linux, unzip the texture pack to a temporary directory, and open it in a terminal. Some packs unzip all texture files to a subdirectory. If so, enter the subdirectory too. Run "zip -rf ~/.minecraft/bin/minecraft.jar *". You can now delete the temporary directory. (Thanks Pianosaurus!)
For Mac, open a new window in Finder and go to <UserName>:Library:Application Support:minecraft:bin . Within this folder should be the minecraft.jar file, right click > Open With > Achive Utility (or your favorite compression app) and replace the appropriate files. (Thanks WolfC4ke!)
How do I start fires?
You make fires by using flint and steel. This is how to make it:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xGZDE.jpg[/img]
If you don't know how to make the items in the image, please visit Minepedia's crafting page.
How long do dropped items last? How long do I have to collect them before they disappear?
They last for about 5 minutes.
How do I hack Minecraft?
You can hack your inventory with InvEdit.
You can hack more with MineEdit or MCEdit.
How do I mod Minecraft?
You can install some of the mods here.
What mobs are in the game?key words: monster spawn mob mobs enemy enemies slime skeleton spider
For a list of mobs, please check out Minepedia's mob page.
What causes a mob to spawn? How can I make/prevent monsters from spawning?
If it's a neutral mob, it needs grass and light level 9 or above to spawn.
If it's an enemy mob, it needs a darkness level of 7 or lower to spawn. (For those who don't understand, there can't be a source of light within 3 or 4 blocks of it.) Enemies also need a difficulty higher than peaceful to spawn.
For the most up-to-date information, check out this thread.
For more details, please check out this thread. (dated to pre-Halloween Update)
Where are slimes? Why can't I find them?
Slime spawning has been fixed, so just continue looking!
They only spawn in the bottom 16 layers, and need large spaces to spawn in.
People say they were "regional" or "very rare" and whatnot... but now it seems they have been removed from spawning at all.
They're rare, and nobody knows how to find them. It's seemingly random, and we don't know of any patterns. But when you DO find them, you may very well find them in a huge group.
I've heard about skeletons riding spiders, is it true? Also known as: Holy ****, Batman! What's that skeleton doing on a spider?!
Yes, skeletons can ride spiders. Like seen here:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/D3pAG.jpg[/img]
Can mobs open doors or climb ladders?
For doors, not directly. They can open doors by stepping on pressure plates, however. They can climb ladders.
Also, since the January 13th update, spiders can climb most walls.
Do mobs have any form of AI?
It seems, with the implementation of the Halloween Update, some mobs have acquired AI. Skeletons seem to favor shooting and hiding (they circle you counter-clockwise when attacking). And pigmen, people believe, have pack AI; neutral from the start, they will not attack you, but if you attack one of them, they ALL seem to hate and attack you.
Can mobs destroy blocks?
For the most part no. The only way they can is a creeper explosion, or a ghast's flaming projectile. Obsidian and adminium/bedrock is the only block that can withstand a creeper explosion.
Why do monsters light on fire?/What happens to monsters in daylight?
Some monsters light on fire in daylight. Spiders and creepers do not burn, while skeletons and zombies do. As well, spiders turn docile (non-violent) during the day. Note that flaming monsters can be doused and are immune to lighting on fire when in water.
Can mobs reproduce? (cows, pigs, or chickens)
No, they cannot. However, they may spawn in groups/herds.
What do cave noises/ambience mean?
Minecraft Wiki wrote:Ambience (sometimes called cave noises) is a set of sounds that occasionally plays when the player is in close proximity to an unlit cave. Despite their name, they are not sounds that one would expect to hear inside of a cave, such as falling pebbles, but rather supernatural noises frequently likened to ghostly train whistles, rice rockets, and demon roars.
Ambient sounds require that a space at least 3×3×3, entirely at light level zero, be positioned ten to twenty blocks away from the player in any direction. The space does not need to be sealed off - a sound can even play from a space that the player can actually see - nor does the player need to be underground to hear it. The sounds can also come from player-created spaces, even if that space is a box above the clouds.
Contrary to popular insistence, ambience is not an indicator of nearby ore, dungeons, or mobs. Following them can still lead the player to such things indirectly, since they emanate from unexplored caves."
That, and they can very well scare the **** out of you.
Why aren't all sounds working/playing? What's the fix?
This is a weird one, but you can press F3 + s and should fix itself. Not sure why it doesn't work in the first place...
Why are my stairs/furnaces facing the wrong direction? How do I fix it?
The system has a bit faulty guessing in which direction stairs face. You can fix it one of two ways:
1) Place blocks on both sides of it.
2) Place stairs before or after it in the staircase.
As for furnaces, just surround it (except for the way you want it to face), destroy the furnace, and then place it again. You can remove the surrounding blocks.
AS OF THE HALLOWEEN UPDATE:
notch @ twitter wrote:
Guess what.. Furnaces should now face the opposite direction the player is facing when you plant them.
notch @ twitter wrote:
And so do stairs now. They will never auto-turn ever again!
Why is this random block all dark/unlit? How do I fix it?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/WFrUL.jpg[/img]
This is a glitch. Place something near it and it will fix itself.
Why are there steep cliffs/perfectly square cliffs and hills and other weird sudden changes in landscape?
This is a glitch that occurs during map generation. Nothing can be done about it, but to just work with it. (This also causes complete gaps between chunks that are noticeable in the cartograph.)
Help, I'm lost! How can I get back?!
You can try to get back by looking for landmarks and tracing your steps, or you can die. Or you can make a compass if you're lost! It may take a bit of time to gather the materials from scratch, but here's how to make it. You could prevent getting lost by bringing a compass with you ahead of time, or making your own landmarks (such as high light up towers you can see from afar).
You can make a compass like this:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/HjlWh.jpg[/img]
The red will always point towards your spawn point.
Also, using debug information (cheating), you can press and hold F3 to view your coordinates in the top-left. You can move accordingly, if you know what your destination's coordinates are.
How big is the world? Where's the end?
This blog post by Notch says that it goes up to about 8x the size of the earth. Not in volume, but in area.
This blog post by Notch says that it goes up to 8x the area of the Earth.
Also worth noting, the world is created as you go, so it is generated only around where you have been.
What can I do with eggs?
You can throw them! Toss them, and 1/8 (12.5%) chance it will spawn a chicken!
Also, you can make cake! (It's not a lie! :biggrin.gif:)
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xKPjZ.png[/img]
(That white stuff is "sugar" from sugarcane (aka reed/bamboo/papyrus), which can be crafted by placing one sugarcane in the crafting box)
What can I do with slime balls?
They're currently useless.
Who's this "Notch" guy everyone talks about?
Notch is the creator of Minecraft. He's a Swedish man by the name of Markus Alexej Persson. People often praise him and treat him like a god. (which he is not... I think...)
Are there dragons?
No, there are not dragons (while there may be in the future, but we are not sure). If you saw an image that has been spread around a bit, it's fake. A complete mob list can be found here.
What kind of schedule are patches released on?
There is no fixed schedule for patches (while, depending on the creator, Notch's schedule, it may be 0-3 times a week). Most of the time, however, there's a "Seecret Friday Update" in which Notch adds in the "fun" things that are not necessary. He usually doesn't tell us what he added, and you are left to find that out for yourself (or from others).
What was in the latest patch/update?
You can check the details of each patch/update here on the wiki.
How effective are weapons and armor?
Weapons will help greatly in reducing the hits to kill a mob. Armor can also absorb much much damage. They are not required, but are suggested. They DO wear out, however.
How long do day and night last?
They last about 10 real life minutes each.
Suddenly, my view changed and I can see my character! How do I change it back?
This is the third person view. You can switch between 3rd and 1st person view by pressing F5.
How do I fix portal linkings?
To be brief, a portal is created somewhere else (but close) when something is in its way. You have to manually create the portal where it should go in the Nether.
More details and a better explanation can be found here.
Who's "Him"/"Herobrine"?
"Him", also known as "Herobrine", was a hoax of a player with a default skin appearing in game on survival single-player. He doesn't exist, isn't real, and hasn't been implemented into a game. Notch has no plans of implementing Him into the game. Proof 1 Proof 2
A more complete background and story can be found here.
How can I breathe/survive underwater longer?
There's a couple things you can do. You can make a wall, and place a block off from it, then another under it and destroy it for a small air gap. Or doorways, ladders, or signs work for creating air gaps. You may place torches to make air gaps as well, which will immediately get filled back in with water, but not before you can get a full breath again, if you're up against the wall!
For a "breathing station" I like to build 4 doors all adjacent to one space. Open all the doors, and place a "roof" over that middle space, stand under it, and place a torch on it so you can see near it, and where your little "air space" is from a distance.
This similar idea can also be used on a larger scale, as doors don't allow water through. One could place more doors around a bigger area, which then could hold items in chests, or whatever you wish.
How do I show the FPS?
You can show the FPS by pressing and holding F3.
How do I backup my game?
First, you must find your save games. You copy the files to somewhere else, and it's backed up. Optionally, you may want to zip or rar it. To restore your backup, copy your backup back and replace the folder again.
Note: You can do this for individual saves in the saves folder as well.
[some nonsensical or weird thing] happened! Why? Is it normal?
The Minecraft wiki has a list of known bugs. If it is here, it's a bug. If not, it's likely a function/feature. If not answered elsewhere in the guide, feel free to reply asking!
How do I make and use dyes?
Everything you need to know can be found on the wiki.
Will my savegame be safe after I update?
Yes, unless Notch says he will "break" (destroy) saves with the new patch/update.
Occasional people claim their saves break on some updates. I'd advise you still back up your game often.
Will I still get the new features in my old savegame?
It depends. Yes, but it may be limited.
If it's something created in map generation, you'll need to load new chunks (explore new areas). Past examples would be the introduction of redstone, lapis lazuli, a change in formations generated.
If it's not something created in map generation, it will not require loading new chunks. Past examples are the introduction of recipes, being able to create portals, and new mobs.
Why is this forest on fire? I never set it off!
Sadly, this happens, and ruins a lot of trees, and possibly some of your creations. This is caused by surface lava setting off one tree, then it keeps spreading.
You really can't stop it, as the fire will spread too quickly. Your best option is to remove trees close to your creations, so they don't get lit on fire.
Hopefully, there are no eternal fires created. Stay put until the fires are gone (or for a considerable amount of time if it is all out of sight), not allowing new chunks to load and spread to them.
Once the fires are gone, replant trees, if you would like to.
What is a "(map) seed"?
Please refer to this thread for an explanation.
How do I find my map's seed?
You can find your map's seed by opening your savegame's level.dat in NBTedit.
How do I get wolves? I can't find them!
Wolves are easy to find if you know how, but a pain in the butt if you don't. Here's a good strategy to find them:
- Find a forest or taiga biome. (for the most part, they only spawn in those)
- Clear out all trees.
- Light up biome with torches.
- Optional: Surround biome with fences as a safety measure (keep hostile mobs out)
- Build a dirt stack (or anything really) with a ladder up to the top. Watch over biome for wolf spawns. Especially during the night, where peaceful mobs will only spawn on that lit up patch.
Why do monsters spawn on me while I'm sleeping?
They spawn on you because there's a dark area within 2 spaces of your bed. Here's a simple way to stay safe:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/JXNos.png[/img]
Or you could make your walls 2 blocks thick.
--------------------Divider for non-MC----------------------
How do I take/post a picture/screenshot?
If you'd like to get rid of the hub, press F1 while doing the screenshotting part:
Pressing F2 saves a screenshot in the screenshots folder in the .minecraft folder, which can be found the same way as looking for your save games, but going to "screenshots", not "saves".
OR
Press the print screen button on your keyboard. Then paste your screenshot in paint and save it.
THEN
To upload it so we can see it, go to a site such as imgur.com. (I strongly suggest imgur.com) Upload it there. Use it on the forums by pasting the URL of the image with [img] tags.
How do I upload my game?/How do I share my game?
Find your savegame that you want to share/upload. Zip it in winzip, rar, or something else. Upload that to a site such as mediafire or megaupload. If you're giving it to someone else, give them the link it gives you.
Can someone buy me Minecraft?
NO. (well, actually, good luck finding someone to give it to you. Few will even consider.)
But I'll give you some ideas.
If you can't get it because of PayPal:
1) Ask a friend or relative if they can buy it for you on PayPal, and you give them physical cash back.
2) I believe you can use a debit card on PayPal now.
3) Just establish an account.
If you can't get it because you don't want to pay for it:
1) Ask for it as a gift for some occasion. (holiday, birthday, something good)
2) Get a job. Or just give up some money... it's not that much, especially if you can afford a computer and Internet.
3) There are occasional competitions or give-aways by individuals.
If you can't get it due to age:
Yes you can, do some chores, or mow a lawn or some small job under neighbors or your own parents.
Remember about the gifting feature.
===================
Terminology/Glossary
(please note many of these have questions that may go along with them to give greater detail)
Adminium - See "bedrock".
Alpha - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before beta and after infdev. (More)
Beast Boy - A removed human-like mob. (More)
Bedrock - An unbreakable block at the bottom of maps.
Beta - The current stage of development for Minecraft Survival, preceded by alpha. (http://www.minecraftwiki.net/wiki/Beta)
Biome - An area of a certain climate. (very vague, see the question)
Black Steve - A removed human mob. (More)
Cartograph(er) - A program made to view your survival game's map.
New: here
Original: here
Alternate mapper: here
Mac alternative: here
Chunk - A 16x16x128 section of a map. Maps are generated by the chunk
Dungeon - A room composed partially of cobblestone with a monster spawner in the center. (More)
Hell - See "The Nether".
Herobrine - Also known as "Him", is a hoax character with the default skin and completely white eyes. (more)
Him - See "Herobrine"
Indev - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before infdev. (More)
Infdev - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before alpha and after indev. (More)
MCmap Live - Used as a mac alternative to the cartograph. Thread here
Minecraft - A sandbox/adventure MMO created by Notch. (Did you really need that definition? :tongue.gif:)
Mob - A non-player "being". Such as a spider, skeleton or pig.
The Nether - Formerly called Hell and The Slip, it is a scary parallel world to the main one. (More)
Mojang/Mojang Specifications/Mojang AB - The company developing Minecraft.
Notch - The creator of Minecraft.
Rana - Meaning "frog" in Italian, Spanish, and Latin, Rana was a mob of a girl dressed as a frog. (More)
Redstuff - Another name for "redstone".
The Slip - See "The Nether".
SMP - Short for Survival Multiplayer.
SSP - Short for Survival Single Player.
Steve - While sometimes referring to the default skin or the character itself, it was a removed human mob. (More)
Vanilla server - An unmodified server.
The Void - A rare hole in the bottom layer of adminium. Falling into it is deadly. No longer appears in new chunks.
Small facts/tips
- Minecraft is only in the beta stage, meaning it is very prone to bugs and glitches. Please back up your game often!
- Don't dig directly up or down in risk of falling into lava or mob-infested rooms, or taking the floor under mobs or lava
- You can only fall from 3 or less blocks/meters without taking damage.
- The Cartograph can be used to view your survival map as a whole.
- Water is very handy to carry around with you, in case you accidentally touch lava!
- A compass points towards your spawn point, and is great to have while exploring, in case you get lost! (more)
- When building, carry dirt with you for scaffolding!
- When mining, you can place a torch on the floor, and sand and gravel will fall onto the torch and break. (Either be very quick [but not too quick, or it won't fall!], or separate the stone and gravel/sand with stone and then break the stone.)
- Looking for a legendary thread?
- If you're bored, you can check out this thread or this thread (repost)(original) for suggestions and ideas!
- Or you can check out this thread for awesome/amazing Minecraft videos. Feel free to contribute to it!
- If you need a flatmap, check out this thread or this thread for downloads!
Thanks to:
Pianosaurus, for stealing my posts answering many questions before I got around to it, and providing some information.
SaiyanKirby, for proofreading and helping edit after the Halloween Update
About 5 others for bits and pieces of information. :biggrin.gif:
Juze, for proofreading and finding errors.
arirish, for answering questions, and providing some information.
Aiero, for providing terms for the glossary. (See also: MineTionary)
Xenogard, for answering questions.
TrippleDot, for answering questions.
Magixx, for answering questions.
SparcMan, for answering questions.
citricsquid, for moving this to the new beta section. :smile.gif:
Somewhat. I've been getting private messages, so I'm responding. I've also noticed this thread on the way.
FinalFan, you have in no way contributed to me quitting. I request, however, you remove this. I got rid of it for a reason.
What was your reason? Just because your quitting I don't understand why you had to remove that guide, it was very useful. Also, I don't think it's against the rules to do what he is doing.
What was your reason? Just because your quitting I don't understand why you had to remove that guide, it was very useful. Also, I don't think it's against the rules to do what he is doing.
I'm fairly certain it's a respect thing. Due to the nature of the forums and everything that's happened behind the scenes with the mods that a lot of the forum doesn't know about, he feels under-appreciated and wants his work to be recognized.
These forums are full of some serious idiots/trolls/derps/etc. and I can understand why someone would want to leave these forums and take their material with them. I do my best to wade through the daily BS on here and fish out the good content and learn who to avoid and skip over when surfing the forums. Unfortunately, moderating forums like this at the speed crap gets posted to them is a full time unpaid job.
In regards to Kris18 and his newbie guide, I started playing MC about 3 weeks ago and that guide was priceless for a new player like myself. Kudos to you for putting it together and I am lucky to have had the ability to learn from it while it was posted.
But deleting his excellent FAQ just seems to me like an act of spite. Why deprive others of a major example of the tiny minority of truly useful threads? I don't know his motivations. I do know that Newbies still need their FQs Aed.
So I'm reposting it. I don't mean to disrespect Kris18, but once it's on the Internet, what has been posted cannot always be unposted, and I think it would be a disservice to Minecrafters if I just let his compendium slip away uncontested.
He can argue his case to me, or ask the mods to purge this and other such attempts, or whatever. I will listen respectfully and answer his arguments or be convinced by them -- or give up in the face of modly power -- as the case may be.
In the meantime, I present his work, which is not mine and which I take no credit for.
[edit]
The Newbie+ Guide and FAQ
Written by Kris18 with contributions and help from the community
==========
Here is a table of contents, of the table of contents. ( Don't laugh at me. :sad.gif: )
The table showed all questions, and since I can't use javascript here to expand and collapse sections, I've made this:
TABLE OF CONTENTS of the table of contents
[Link] Information
[Link] Out of the way
[Link] Save games and Updates
[Link] What is...
[Link] Game functions and mechanics
[Link] Where is/How do I get...
[Link] Mobs
[Link] Creations/How to make
[Link] Strategy
[Link] Modifying
[Link] Bugs
[Link] Other
[Link] Out of game
[Link] Terminology/Glossary
[Link] Small facts/Tips
==========
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Information
[Link] A few things
[Link] Future Updates/Notch's Quotes
[Link] PLEASE READ
Out of the way
[Link] How do I make [item]?
[Link] Why cant I destroy blocks?
[Link] What materials can mine what?/Why don't I get materials when I destroy blocks?
[Link] How can I identify different ores and other things I dig up? How good are tools made from each material?
[Link] What are the keys/controls, and how do I change them?
[Link] How do I pause my game?
[Link] How do I take/post a picture/screenshot?
Save Games and Updates
[Link] Help! My (save)game is gone!
[Link] Where can I find my savegame(s)?
[Link] How do I backup my game?
[Link] Will my savegame be safe after I update?
[Link] Will I still get the new features in my old savegame?
[Link] How do I update my game?/Why won't my game update?
[Link] What kind of schedule are patches/updates released on?
[Link] What was in the latest patch/update?
What is...
[Link] What is this orange thing? (saddle)
[Link] What is this flaming cage thing?/What is a dungeon? (mob spawner)
[Link] What is this black thing near lava? How do I make it? How do I mine it? (obsidian)
[Link] What is this unbreakable thing at the bottom of the map? (adminium)
[Link] What is a "(map) seed'?
[Link] What is the "void"?
[Link] What is this green thing? (slime)
[Link] What is "red stuff"? What's it for? How can I use it?
[Link] What is a "biome"?
[Link] What is The Nether/Hell/The Slip?
Game Functions and Mechanics
[Link] How do I use my item instead of destroying blocks?
[Link] How do I divide my stack of items?
[Link] How do I show the FPS?
[Link] How do I recover HP?
[Link] How long do day and night last?
[Link] How do I grow grass on dirt?
[Link] How I mine for fish?
[Link] How big is the world? Where's the end?
[Link] How do I fix portal linkings?
[Link] What do cave noises/ambiance mean?
[Link] Why is this forest on fire? I never set it off!
[Link] Suddenly, my view changed and I can see my character! How do I change it back?
[Link]
Why are my stairs/furnaces facing the wrong direction? How do I fix it?Where is/How do I get...
[Link] Where is [ore/mineral]?
[Link] How do I find my map's seed?
[Link] Where is clay? What's it for?
[Link] How do I get records/music discs?
[Link] How do I get (golden) apples?
[Link] Where are cacti ("cactuses")? What can I use cacti for?
[Link] How do I get smooth stone? (I only mine cobblestone!)
Mobs
[Link] What mobs are in the game?
[Link] Why do monsters spawn on me while I'm sleeping?
[Link] Are there dragons?
[Link] What causes a mob to spawn? How can I make/prevent monsters from spawning?
[Link] How do I get wolves? I can't find them!
[Link] Where are slimes? Why can't I find them?
[Link] I've heard about skeletons riding spiders, is it true?
[Link] Can mobs open doors or climb ladders?
[Link] Do mobs have any form of AI?
[Link] Can mobs destroy blocks?
[Link] Why do monsters light on fire?/What happens to monsters in daylight?
[Link] Can mobs reproduce? (cows, pigs, or chickens)
Creations/How to make
[Link] How do I make working double doors?
[Link] How do I make a portal/go to The Nether?
[Link] How do I make a cobblestone factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a water factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a lava factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make an obsidian factory/generator?
[Link] How do I make a mob trap?
[Link] How do I make things out of redstone?
[Link] How do I make and use dyes?
Strategy
[Link] Help, I'm lost! How can I get back?!
[Link] How do I get rid of all this water?
[Link] How do I mine effectively?
[Link] How do I mine obsidian safely?
[Link] How do I farm effectively? What is farming?
[Link] How can I breathe/survive underwater longer?
[Link] How do I farm X?
Modifying
[Link] How can I change my spawn point?
[Link] How can I change my texture pack?
[Link] How do I start fires?
[Link] How long do dropped items last? How long do I have to collect them before they disappear?
[Link] How do I hack Minecraft?
[Link] How can I mod Minecraft?
[Link]
How can I change my snow world to a normal world, or vice versa?Bugs
[Link] Why aren't all sounds working/playing? What's the fix?
[Link] Why is this random block all dark/unlit? How do I fix it?
[Link] Why are there steep cliffs/perfectly square cliffs and hills and other weird sudden changes in landscape?
[Link] [some nonsensical or weird thing] happened! Why? Is it normal? (Other glitches)
Other
[Link] What can I do with eggs?
[Link] What can I do with slime balls?
[Link] Who's this "Notch" guy everyone talks about?
[Link] How effective are weapons and armor?
[Link] Who's "Him"/"Herobrine"?
Out of game
[Link] How do I upload my game?/How do I share my game?
[Link] Can someone buy me Minecraft?
[Link] Terminology/Glossary
[Link] Small Facts/Tips
Please note the Terminology/Glossary and Small facts/tips sections after the questions.
Quick Facts:
- This FAQ has over 80 questions answered
- This FAQ has over 450 revisions/edits (although many of them are minor minor edits or fixes)
=====================
Information
=====================
A few things:
-
Gray strickentext will represent outdated or changed information.- Most "newbie" questions are answered, so a few more advanced things have been answered
- This guide is brought over from the Alpha Single Player forums. It is mostly geared towards single player. It will slowly develop to be helpful for multiplayer as well, now that Beta has single and multiplayer combined in survival.
- I ripped images from Minepedia, used some unique works from others, and a few of my own creations/images as well.
- Questions also may occasionally have outdated information. I don't know every change in every update, and even if I did, I may not always remember to look through the whole guide to find all references to fix it. If you see something that should be changed, please let me know. Thanks again.
Future Updates/Notch's Quotes
For information on upcoming updates, we usually have a stickied thread. Here's the most recent:
Info About Minecraft Beta 1.5
This awesome thread archives and shares things Notch has said, including many things he's considered or plans to add to Minecraft. I'd check out the thread, as you may get a look into the future. :biggrin.gif:PLEASE READ:
For using this thread, first try searching keywords, and see if it gets you anywhere (ctrl + f for find), or read all the questions. If you are trying to identify an item, then it may have an image, which you could skip through to see.
And please, PLEASE, back up your game often.
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THE QUESTIONS
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Help! My (save)game is gone!
If your savegame disappears, do not try to load the world again. Hopefully, and it very well may be, still on your computer.
If it is, back it up.
1) Try using this thread to recover.
If that doesn't work, try:
2) Delete level.dat and rename level.dat_old to level.dat. This will bring you to the last time it was saved. I have not confirmed this to work myself, but I have heard it does from some.
How do I make [item]?
Probably the most common thing you'll craft is a pickaxe. Here's how to craft it:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/utuGD.jpg[/img]
For all crafting recipes, please visit Minepedia's crafting page.
If you don't know how to craft, then I'll explain that briefly here. You can open your inventory and make things 2x2 or smaller on the top. You can make a crafting bench there to make things up to 3x3 in size. Right click it to use.
related: How do I use a furnace?
You can use a furnace by right clicking it. You can heat things up with it, such as turning iron ore ( ) into iron bars/ingots ( ), which is what's needed, not iron ore, to make things. The top is what you're heating up, the bottom is your fuel source (such as coal, lava, or wood).
All furnace "recipes" can be found here.
Why can't I destroy blocks?
In order to destroy a block, you need to hold down the left mouse button until the block is gone. Single or repeated clicks will not work. Different blocks take different times to destroy.
What materials can mine what?/Why don't I get materials when I destroy blocks?
Some blocks require a certain pickaxe or better in order to get materials from it.
Wood/Sand/Gravel/Dirt --- can all be destroyed by hand and will drop material; (note that sand, gravel and dirt can be destroyed quicker with a shovel, and wood faster with an axe)
Coal/Smooth Stone --- a Wooden or better pickaxe;
Iron/Lapis Lazuli --– a Stone or better pickaxe;
Gold/Diamond/Redstone –-- an Iron or better pickaxe;
Obsidian –-- a Diamond pickaxe.
(Thanks for writing this one out for me, guys!)
How can I identify different ores and other things I dig up? How good are tools made from each material?
Please note: durabilities have increased since the January 13th update. Here are the updated durabilities.
Diamond. 1562 uses
Iron, 251 uses
Stone, 132 uses
Wood, 60 uses
Gold, 33 uses
Coal
Redstone
Lapis Lazuli
How do I update my game?/Why won't my game update?
Play it. If the server is down, you cannot update, and will have to wait until you can connect to minecraft.net
Otherwise, if you can play online, but are not getting the update, then try deleting the .minecraft folder (backing up your saves!) to reset everything, and get the patch.
If you play with a pirated version, you cannot update. =http://www.minecraft.net/Buy the game.
What are the keys/controls, and how do I change them?
Press esc/escape to pause. Go to options, and from there, there'll be an option to change the keys. There you can see what keys are set to what, and you can click them to change them.
How do I pause my game?
Ways to pause the game
Press escape
Alt+tab out of the game (switching active window)
Ways that don't pause the game
Opening up your inventory
Using a workbench, furnace, or chest
What is this orange thing?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/YGAc9.jpg[/img]This is a saddle. You can use it on a pig to ride it, however you cannot control the pig; its behavior will not change, and the "ride" is boring (in my humble opinion..). It can only be used once. You can only get it from dungeon chests.
What is this flaming cage thing?/What is a dungeon?Key words: flame flaming cage fire spawn
[img]http://i.imgur.com/YGAc9.jpg[/img]This is a mob spawner. It spawns (creates) enemy mobs such as skeletons, spiders etc. The "room" it's in is a "dungeon". It spawns until there are about 5 monsters it has spawned. Once a mob it spawned is killed, it will spawn another. The spawners can be broken, but it will be destroyed; you can't pick it up. You can disable it by placing torches next to it on opposite sides. (If you don't understand that, just place 4 torches around it, one on each side.)
Also in the dungeon, are chests which may contain valuables such as records/music disks or apples. They may also contain other random things such as buckets or bread. The dungeon walls are mostly made of mossy cobblestone. People find these valuable, and aren't found anywhere else.
What is this black thing near lava? How do I make it? How do I mine it?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/cfzJf.jpg[/img]This is obsidian. It is the strongest material in the game (besides adminium/bedrock). You can make it by having spring lava collide with water. "Spring" means it's where it's coming from. Water and lava flow, but the space it flows FROM is the "spring"/"source" block. Lava springs cannot be created. You can only mine obsidian with a diamond pickaxe. It will take 15 seconds or so per block. It also is resistant to creeper explosions.
What is this unbreakable thing at the bottom of the map?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/VGCFf.png[/img]Bedrock, also known as adminium, is unbreakable, and occupies the bottom of the map for the most part. There are rare holes in it that you can dig and fall through. These "voids" are a death trap. You lose everything you're carrying if you fall in.
For the Nether, it borders the top and bottom of the map.
What is the "void"?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/zn6k7.jpg[/img]
The void is a rare hole in the layers of bedrock/adminium on the bottom of the map of the normal world. Beyond the hole appears blue. If you fall through it, you die and lose everything you are holding. If you uncover one, some people would suggest covering it (possibly with obsidian) and putting a sign up that tells about the void there.
However, since the Halloween update, the void has changed in its creation; lava may now be created at lower layers. Break through that, and you find a void.
Some people may refer to the space above the adminium in the Nether as a void as well. This one is colored red.
What is this green thing?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/XxnAds.jpg?4762[/img]They're slimes.
Slimes do not spawn anymore.Their spawning is normal and fixed now (it used to be broken). They're essentially a block with a face shown by slightly darkened pixels. They come in different sizes. The smallest can only push you while the other size(s) can damage you. Upon death, they drop slime balls, which are currently useless.What's "red stuff"? What's it for? How can I use it?
"Red stuff" is a common name for "redstone". It's for circuitry, to put it simple. It can make simple door-opening mechanisms, or complicated locks. For how to use, please refer to this, this (old, but still good) or this thread/compendium.
What is a "biome"?
They are the idea and concept that, just like on Earth, different areas have different climates. On Minecraft, biomes are where there are different themed areas, such as forest, desert, snowy, etc.
What's the Nether/Hell/The Slip?
The Nether, formerly called Hell and The Slip (pre-release), was based off of Hell, but renamed due to religious connotations. In there, a material that can be lit on fire forever is the prevalent material, making up almost all of the Nether. There are also many lava-falls, and pools of lava. (Note: You cannot farm cheap obsidian here, as the water evaporates!) It also has its own set of mobs.
You can reach there by making a portal.
For more, please see the wiki.
Where can I find my savegame(s)?
Please note, savegames are saved in the same place for browser and downloaded.
For Windows, open Run in the start menu, and type In "%appdata%" without the quotes, and press enter. Find ".minecraft" folder. In there, there's the saves folder.
For Mac (I think this is right), FINDER> [YOUR NAME]> LIBRARY> APPLICATION SUPPORT> MINECRAFT> SAVES. In there should be your saves.
For Linux, they're in ~/.minecraft/saves (Thanks Pianosaurus!)
Where can I find [ore/mineral]?
The deeper, the more you can get.
Bedrock/Adminium is in depths 0-4 (going up increases "depth")
Diamond is normal up to depth 16
Redstone is normal up to 16
Gold is normal up to 32
Lapis Lazuli is normal up to 32
Iron is normal up to 64
Coal is normal up to 128 (entire height)
Sea level is 63
Where can I find clay? What's it for?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xO7yl.jpg[/img]Clay blocks are found along the shores of bodies of water. They can be extremely rare, and may take some time to find. Other times, it can be common. It seems almost all luck. A destroyed clay block gives four clay lumps, which can be crafted back into a clay block, or smelted to make bricks. Four bricks can be crafted into a brick block.
This thread has tips and a nice video for finding clay, which I find very helpful. Additionally, some may say editing the texture pack to make clay stand out would be a good idea.
How can I get records/music disks?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/4IOFh.jpg[/img]You can get records/music disks from treasure chests in dungeons. You can also get the records/music disks from getting a skeleton to shoot and kill a creeper. At that point, it will drop a record/music disk. Here is a guide to obtaining gold/yellow records/music disks.
How can I get (golden) apples?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/SqUqC.jpg[/img]
You can get apples from dungeon chests. You can get golden apples by crafting them like this:
Apples recover 2 hearts, while golden apples recover all 10.
Where are cacti ("cactuses")? What can I use cacti for?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xz5Fls.jpg?8116[/img]Cacti hurt you and mobs on contact, and destroy items on contact. You cannot place cacti directly next to any other block (except for diagonally). You get your first cactus by finding it from exploring. From there, you can cut it down and spread the pieces. It will grow up to 3 in height, and you can keep spreading it to get more. They can only be found and placed on sand.
How can I make smooth stone? I only mine cobblestone!
You can make smooth stone by heating up cobblestone in a furnace. (Makes no sense, rite? XP)
How do I use my item instead of destroying blocks?
Left click is always using the item to destroy a block (which is enhanced with a pickaxe or a shovel). Right click is the secondary function. For blocks, redstone and torches, placing them For a hoe, this would be tilling grass/dirt. For food, eating it. For buckets, emptying/filling it. Etc
How do I divide my stack of items?
Pressing left click takes and moves the whole stack. But what if you want parts of it? If you right click a stack, it will take half of it. If you are holding items and right click, it will place 1.
How do I get rid of all this water?
Find the source block(s) the water comes from. There may be one, or there may be many. Every single block may be a source water block. You must get rid of the source blocks. There's no shortcuts.
Method 1) (probably much better of the 2)
Make a hollow container around the area you'd like to get water ridden from. This can be of dirt or something. Fill it up gravel (from the top and it falls). Once done filling up, break the bottom gravel and quickly place a torch. Quick removal!
Method 2)
Replace them with dirt or some other material, and mine/dig it out/up. I suggest starting from the higher points downwards, and not removing all of the blocks until the you replaced a whole layer of water with something else.
How do I make working doubledoors?
Well, it's not the easiest thing to explain, and it would be helpful if you knew how redstone worked, but I'll try to explain:
Have the switch where ever you want it, but it cannot be on a block touching a door. Behind the switch, have redstone going down to an area under the doors (if you're using step activation, it will already be below). Make it split in two. On path will have one more inverter than the other. (a torch leading up a block, and on the side of the block is a redstone torch, which reverses the charge)
You're going to want to build two blocks at the spaces off to the side of the doors. So that you can place redstone torches facing each other, under the blocks the doors are on. Now lead the redstone circuits to these blocks with the torches on them. They must be going straight at the block, not at an angle. It must lead into it in the direction the torches are facing. And you got your design.
If your redstone paths become long enough, the charge will die out after 15 spaces. If that happens, use a repeater before it gets to the end. (2 not gates in a row)
Here's an image of one that keeps the redstone simple.
[img]http://imgur.com/OCez5.jpg[/img]
If you didn't understand, this thread may be helpful, and can show you the "gates" I'm talking about.
Here's one designed by SaiyanKirby for compactness. You can connect redstone to make it work from the other side of the door.
[img]http://i.imgur.com/DB5Ee.png[/img]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/9aph6.png[/img]
Since doubledoors may have a delay from one door to another of 1 tick (very small), you can synchronize them with a redstone repeater set to 1 on the door with 1 fewer torches leading up to it.
How do I make a portal/go to The Nether?
To get to The Nether, you make this structure out of obsidian, standing upright. White represents air.
[] []
[] []
[] []
You then set fire inside it, and it becomes a portal to The Nether (or back). Stand in it to teleport.
How do I recover HP?
There are a few ways to recover HP.
1) Eat food (such as meat, cooked or uncooked)
2) Recover automatically on peaceful difficulty
3) Die (and recover all, but obviously drop all items)
How do I mine effectively?
The deeper down you go, the more types ores and minerals you can find (see "Where can I find ore?"). If you're looking for minerals, which I suspect you are, I would dig down to the lower layers. Diamond is as common as it gets up to layer 16 (counted from bottom of the map upwards). Lava is at 10. And for reference, sea level is at 63.
You can also press F3 and look at the Y coordinate. That gives you the height you see from. Subtract 1.6 or so, and that gives you the block level you're standing on.
Of the 3 methods I'll show you, what will make the first two methods "effective" or "efficient" is that you can see what's in the blocks surrounding what you've mined, so you will not dig there unless it's something valuable. These will show minimal digging for maximal blocks revealed. The third you'll see when I discuss it.
First we'll discuss horizontal strip mines. I found that explains horizontal strip mines, similarly to how I explain it below. You can check it out, or read, or both. :biggrin.gif:
Horizontal strip mines are most efficient when you mine two parallel lines, and then mine every 3rd (or 4th, as some people prefer, under the justification it would be rare for something to go unnoticed in that one line without appearing in one next to it as well) line you can mine between them, like this:
[] =Mined. = Unmined
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] []
[] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] Overhead view.
[] []
[] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
The pattern may keep going on for as many rows as you'd like. You'd mine one row, move over to where you can dig the next row, and dig back. You stay between the two original parallel lines. You may want to mine in layers 13 and 12, as it's in the middle of lava and the top of the diamond layers.
Vertical strip mines are exactly as they sound, vertical. You would dig downwards, revealing more blocks per block mined than horizontal strip mines, but may be annoying to place so many ladders. As well,the pattern for these mines may be weird:
[] []
[]
[] Overhead view.
[]
[]
[] []
You can extend these. Also, when figuring out which layers you will dig through, you may consider what ores and minerals are found at what layers (see "Where can I find ore?") I don't like vertical strip mining because it uses so much wood for ladders, has to be connected horizontally on top to get from pit to pit, you can easily dig yourself into lava, and diamond is only in a few layers. In my opinion, while the efficiency for block ratios is greater, you'd probably waste a lot more time than a horizontal mine, so I wouldn't suggest this method. Additionally, you don't know what will be below you, be it falling into a room of mobs, a dungeon (and dying) or lava.
Or, completely different, you can go spelunking. This means going around already established natural cave systems and looking for ore deposits in them. The upside is that so much is mined out revealing a lot of blocks, without you needing to reveal them. The downside is, not many caves go into the lower lower layers like that of diamond, and monsters may inhabit those caves!
Don't forget to use torches to light up your mines.
Some ideas and concepts stolen from this guide.
How do I farm effectively? What is farming?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/NJp7q.jpg[/img] CACTUS IMAGE [img]http://i.imgur.com/FMnIz.jpg[/img]
Farming is good for getting you wheat for making bread, which recover 2.5 hearts each. To mine, you use a hoe and till (right click) the dirt or grass and place seeds on it. If you have no seeds, you can till random bits of dirt and grass and eventually you will get some. Wheat requires water nearby to grow and be placed. Tilled soil will get destroyed (converted to regular dirt) if it is constantly stepped on, by the player or other mobs. In addition, hydrated soil will grow faster than non hydrated soil. Light sources such as torches will allow plants to grow at night or underground. You can find out more and strategy here.
While not technically farming, people do call spreading and creating a lot of papyrus/sugar cane/bamboo (first image) "farming", as well with cacti (second image). This also applies to "tree farming" where people plant tree saplings (third image) about 4 spaces apart in order to grow a dense "forest" of trees to get wood from.
How do I mine obsidian safely?
It's not the quickest explanation, so I suggest you read this guide. If you follow it, you can get rich with obsidian and won't die. :biggrin.gif:
How do I farm X
You can farm wheat by placing them on tilled dirt. If you till dirt within 4 blocks of water it will turn dark (not necessarily immediately) and grow wheat much faster.
You can "farm" cacti by placing them on sand. (They cannot be placed adjacent to another block except for diagonal)
You can "farm" sugar cane by placing them on dirt next to water.
You can "farm" trees by placing saplings on dirt, and giving them light and sufficient upwards growth room (about 6 or more).
You cannot "farm" mushrooms, flowers, or pumpkins.
How do I fish?
You can fish by using a fishing rod on water.
You can make one like this:
[img]http://imgur.com/TWQGo.png[/img]
Once you "cast" your fishing rod, wait. When the line bobs under the water (which is not always instant), right click to reel in. The fish will fly up towards you, and likely behind you.
You can cook fish in a furnace. Here's the health benefits:
Uncooked = 1 heart
Cooked = 2 1/2 hearts
Note: Your rod has 33 duration. (Multiplayer glitch gives infinite.)
How do I grow grass on dirt?
Please check out this image guide.
How do I make a cobblestone factory/generator?
This cobblestone factory/generator is pretty, and compact.
This seems nice and kinda compact.
Here's a link to another one. It's a bit bigger, but also looks neat.
For another design, here's my simple cobblestone factory (albeit you don't 100% of the time get the cobblestone):
[img]http://i.imgur.com/MHJ5R.jpg[/img]
The uppermost blocks of water and lava are spring/source. You place them. The others flow from those 2 spaces. This is my compact generator. Stand in the weak flow of water in front and mine the cobblestone and it will keep regenerating
How do I make a water factory/generator?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/luFMA.jpg[/img]
Make wall around a 2x2 section (or dig to make it). Place water in opposite corners and the other two will fill in. You can then take water out and it will always fill back up. The image above is what it will look like when finished.
How do I make a lava factory/generator?
Sadly, you cannot make one. Lava sources cannot be created. Only destroyed and moved.
However, you can obtain massive amounts of lava from the Nether.
How do I make an obsidian factory/generator?
Because you cannot make a lava factory/generator, you cannot make an obsidian one. Obsidian is created when water and a lava source meet.
But you can use oversights/cheap ways in order to create obsidian.
1) (as described word for word by bbqroast)
1. Get 20 obsidian.
2. Build a economic portal (dirt corners). (portal A)
3. Enter the nether and walk in one direction for 12-16 blocks (one portal per chunk??)
4. Build another portal. (portal :cool.gif:
5. Use it to go back to the surface using portal B.
6. Break the new potal on the surface walk back to portal A and repeat steps 3-6.
Each time you leave the nether in portal B the game makes 14 more obsidian.
2)
Bring some of the Nether's awesome quantities of lava back to the normal world and make obsidian
How do I make a mob trap?
Please visit this guide for instructions on traps based around mob spawners.
Please visit this thread for a mob tower trap. (It's a good starter trap, just use the blueprints for v2!)
This trap is nice as well.
But ultimately, THIS trap is the best. (advanced mob tower trap)
How do I make things out of redstone?
Here is the Redstone FAQ and General Tutorial. Please go there for redstone answers.
More help: this
If that thread isn't helpful enough, this compendium might be useful.
How can I change my spawn point?
You can change it by sleeping in a bed. It will then be where you slept. However, I believe the compass will still point to your original spawn point.
You'd have to edit the game with tools like MCedit or NBTEdit. If you want to cheat and edit it, this thread can guide you through it.How can I change my snow world to a normal world, or vice versa?Simple answer, you can't.
..or you can hack it.
How can I change my texture pack?
To add a texture pack, get your texture pack into a zip file. Then, open minecraft, go to the Mods and Texture Packs option, open the Texture Pack folder, and place the zip in there. Pack.png will be the thumbnail, and Pack.txt will be the description.
This thread may or may not be more helpful.
This thread has a great list of texture packs.
Still accurate, but unnecessary:
For windows, open Run in the start menu, and type In "%appdata%" without the quotes, and press enter. There may be a folder, "roaming". Go there. If not, skip that. Find ".minecraft" folder. In there, there's the bin folder, then minecraft.jar. You're going to open minecraft.jar with zip or winrar and replace the appropriate files.
For Linux, unzip the texture pack to a temporary directory, and open it in a terminal. Some packs unzip all texture files to a subdirectory. If so, enter the subdirectory too. Run "zip -rf ~/.minecraft/bin/minecraft.jar *". You can now delete the temporary directory. (Thanks Pianosaurus!)
For Mac, open a new window in Finder and go to <UserName>:Library:Application Support:minecraft:bin . Within this folder should be the minecraft.jar file, right click > Open With > Achive Utility (or your favorite compression app) and replace the appropriate files. (Thanks WolfC4ke!)
How do I start fires?
You make fires by using flint and steel. This is how to make it:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xGZDE.jpg[/img]
If you don't know how to make the items in the image, please visit Minepedia's crafting page.
How long do dropped items last? How long do I have to collect them before they disappear?
They last for about 5 minutes.
How do I hack Minecraft?
You can hack your inventory with InvEdit.
You can hack more with MineEdit or MCEdit.
How do I mod Minecraft?
You can install some of the mods here.
What mobs are in the game?key words: monster spawn mob mobs enemy enemies slime skeleton spider
For a list of mobs, please check out Minepedia's mob page.
What causes a mob to spawn? How can I make/prevent monsters from spawning?
If it's a neutral mob, it needs grass and light level 9 or above to spawn.
If it's an enemy mob, it needs a darkness level of 7 or lower to spawn. (For those who don't understand, there can't be a source of light within 3 or 4 blocks of it.) Enemies also need a difficulty higher than peaceful to spawn.
For the most up-to-date information, check out this thread.
For more details, please check out this thread. (dated to pre-Halloween Update)
Where are slimes? Why can't I find them?
Slime spawning has been fixed, so just continue looking!
They only spawn in the bottom 16 layers, and need large spaces to spawn in.
People say they were "regional" or "very rare" and whatnot... but now it seems they have been removed from spawning at all.They're rare, and nobody knows how to find them. It's seemingly random, and we don't know of any patterns. But when you DO find them, you may very well find them in a huge group.I've heard about skeletons riding spiders, is it true?
Also known as: Holy ****, Batman! What's that skeleton doing on a spider?!
Yes, skeletons can ride spiders. Like seen here:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/D3pAG.jpg[/img]
Can mobs open doors or climb ladders?
For doors, not directly. They can open doors by stepping on pressure plates, however. They can climb ladders.
Also, since the January 13th update, spiders can climb most walls.
Do mobs have any form of AI?
It seems, with the implementation of the Halloween Update, some mobs have acquired AI. Skeletons seem to favor shooting and hiding (they circle you counter-clockwise when attacking). And pigmen, people believe, have pack AI; neutral from the start, they will not attack you, but if you attack one of them, they ALL seem to hate and attack you.
Can mobs destroy blocks?
For the most part no. The only way they can is a creeper explosion, or a ghast's flaming projectile. Obsidian and adminium/bedrock is the only block that can withstand a creeper explosion.
Why do monsters light on fire?/What happens to monsters in daylight?
Some monsters light on fire in daylight. Spiders and creepers do not burn, while skeletons and zombies do. As well, spiders turn docile (non-violent) during the day. Note that flaming monsters can be doused and are immune to lighting on fire when in water.
Can mobs reproduce? (cows, pigs, or chickens)
No, they cannot. However, they may spawn in groups/herds.
What do cave noises/ambience mean?
That, and they can very well scare the **** out of you.
Why aren't all sounds working/playing? What's the fix?
This is a weird one, but you can press F3 + s and should fix itself. Not sure why it doesn't work in the first place...
Why are my stairs/furnaces facing the wrong direction? How do I fix it?
The system has a bit faulty guessing in which direction stairs face. You can fix it one of two ways:
1) Place blocks on both sides of it.
2) Place stairs before or after it in the staircase.
As for furnaces, just surround it (except for the way you want it to face), destroy the furnace, and then place it again. You can remove the surrounding blocks.
AS OF THE HALLOWEEN UPDATE:
Why is this random block all dark/unlit? How do I fix it?
[img]http://i.imgur.com/WFrUL.jpg[/img]
This is a glitch. Place something near it and it will fix itself.
Why are there steep cliffs/perfectly square cliffs and hills and other weird sudden changes in landscape?
This is a glitch that occurs during map generation. Nothing can be done about it, but to just work with it. (This also causes complete gaps between chunks that are noticeable in the cartograph.)
Help, I'm lost! How can I get back?!
You can try to get back by looking for landmarks and tracing your steps, or you can die. Or you can make a compass if you're lost! It may take a bit of time to gather the materials from scratch, but here's how to make it. You could prevent getting lost by bringing a compass with you ahead of time, or making your own landmarks (such as high light up towers you can see from afar).
You can make a compass like this:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/HjlWh.jpg[/img]
The red will always point towards your spawn point.
Also, using debug information (cheating), you can press and hold F3 to view your coordinates in the top-left. You can move accordingly, if you know what your destination's coordinates are.
How big is the world? Where's the end?
This blog post by Notch says that it goes up to about 8x the size of the earth. Not in volume, but in area.This blog post by Notch says that it goes up to 8x the area of the Earth.
Also worth noting, the world is created as you go, so it is generated only around where you have been.
What can I do with eggs?
You can throw them! Toss them, and 1/8 (12.5%) chance it will spawn a chicken!
Also, you can make cake! (It's not a lie! :biggrin.gif:)
[img]http://i.imgur.com/xKPjZ.png[/img]
(That white stuff is "sugar" from sugarcane (aka reed/bamboo/papyrus), which can be crafted by placing one sugarcane in the crafting box)
What can I do with slime balls?
They're currently useless.
Who's this "Notch" guy everyone talks about?
Notch is the creator of Minecraft. He's a Swedish man by the name of Markus Alexej Persson. People often praise him and treat him like a god. (which he is not... I think...)
Here's his wiki page.
Are there dragons?
No, there are not dragons (while there may be in the future, but we are not sure). If you saw an image that has been spread around a bit, it's fake. A complete mob list can be found here.
What kind of schedule are patches released on?
There is no fixed schedule for patches (while, depending on the creator, Notch's schedule, it may be 0-3 times a week).
Most of the time, however, there's a "Seecret Friday Update" in which Notch adds in the "fun" things that are not necessary. He usually doesn't tell us what he added, and you are left to find that out for yourself (or from others).What was in the latest patch/update?
You can check the details of each patch/update here on the wiki.
How effective are weapons and armor?
Weapons will help greatly in reducing the hits to kill a mob. Armor can also absorb much much damage. They are not required, but are suggested. They DO wear out, however.
How long do day and night last?
They last about 10 real life minutes each.
Suddenly, my view changed and I can see my character! How do I change it back?
This is the third person view. You can switch between 3rd and 1st person view by pressing F5.
How do I fix portal linkings?
To be brief, a portal is created somewhere else (but close) when something is in its way. You have to manually create the portal where it should go in the Nether.
More details and a better explanation can be found here.
Who's "Him"/"Herobrine"?
"Him", also known as "Herobrine", was a hoax of a player with a default skin appearing in game on survival single-player. He doesn't exist, isn't real, and hasn't been implemented into a game. Notch has no plans of implementing Him into the game.
Proof 1
Proof 2
A more complete background and story can be found here.
How can I breathe/survive underwater longer?
There's a couple things you can do. You can make a wall, and place a block off from it, then another under it and destroy it for a small air gap. Or doorways, ladders, or signs work for creating air gaps. You may place torches to make air gaps as well, which will immediately get filled back in with water, but not before you can get a full breath again, if you're up against the wall!
For a "breathing station" I like to build 4 doors all adjacent to one space. Open all the doors, and place a "roof" over that middle space, stand under it, and place a torch on it so you can see near it, and where your little "air space" is from a distance.
This similar idea can also be used on a larger scale, as doors don't allow water through. One could place more doors around a bigger area, which then could hold items in chests, or whatever you wish.
How do I show the FPS?
You can show the FPS by pressing and holding F3.
How do I backup my game?
First, you must find your save games. You copy the files to somewhere else, and it's backed up. Optionally, you may want to zip or rar it. To restore your backup, copy your backup back and replace the folder again.
Note: You can do this for individual saves in the saves folder as well.
[some nonsensical or weird thing] happened! Why? Is it normal?
The Minecraft wiki has a list of known bugs. If it is here, it's a bug. If not, it's likely a function/feature. If not answered elsewhere in the guide, feel free to reply asking!
How do I make and use dyes?
Everything you need to know can be found on the wiki.
Will my savegame be safe after I update?
Yes, unless Notch says he will "break" (destroy) saves with the new patch/update.
Occasional people claim their saves break on some updates. I'd advise you still back up your game often.
Will I still get the new features in my old savegame?
It depends. Yes, but it may be limited.
If it's something created in map generation, you'll need to load new chunks (explore new areas). Past examples would be the introduction of redstone, lapis lazuli, a change in formations generated.
If it's not something created in map generation, it will not require loading new chunks. Past examples are the introduction of recipes, being able to create portals, and new mobs.
Why is this forest on fire? I never set it off!
Sadly, this happens, and ruins a lot of trees, and possibly some of your creations. This is caused by surface lava setting off one tree, then it keeps spreading.
You really can't stop it, as the fire will spread too quickly. Your best option is to remove trees close to your creations, so they don't get lit on fire.
Hopefully, there are no eternal fires created. Stay put until the fires are gone (or for a considerable amount of time if it is all out of sight), not allowing new chunks to load and spread to them.
Once the fires are gone, replant trees, if you would like to.
What is a "(map) seed"?
Please refer to this thread for an explanation.
How do I find my map's seed?
You can find your map's seed by opening your savegame's level.dat in NBTedit.
How do I get wolves? I can't find them!
Wolves are easy to find if you know how, but a pain in the butt if you don't. Here's a good strategy to find them:
- Find a forest or taiga biome. (for the most part, they only spawn in those)
- Clear out all trees.
- Light up biome with torches.
- Optional: Surround biome with fences as a safety measure (keep hostile mobs out)
- Build a dirt stack (or anything really) with a ladder up to the top. Watch over biome for wolf spawns. Especially during the night, where peaceful mobs will only spawn on that lit up patch.
More information on wolves.
Why do monsters spawn on me while I'm sleeping?
They spawn on you because there's a dark area within 2 spaces of your bed. Here's a simple way to stay safe:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/JXNos.png[/img]
Or you could make your walls 2 blocks thick.
You can read more on the Bed's wiki page.
--------------------Divider for non-MC----------------------
How do I take/post a picture/screenshot?
If you'd like to get rid of the hub, press F1 while doing the screenshotting part:
Pressing F2 saves a screenshot in the screenshots folder in the .minecraft folder, which can be found the same way as looking for your save games, but going to "screenshots", not "saves".
OR
Press the print screen button on your keyboard. Then paste your screenshot in paint and save it.
THEN
To upload it so we can see it, go to a site such as imgur.com. (I strongly suggest imgur.com) Upload it there. Use it on the forums by pasting the URL of the image with [img] tags.
How do I upload my game?/How do I share my game?
Find your savegame that you want to share/upload. Zip it in winzip, rar, or something else. Upload that to a site such as mediafire or megaupload. If you're giving it to someone else, give them the link it gives you.
Can someone buy me Minecraft?
NO. (well, actually, good luck finding someone to give it to you. Few will even consider.)
But I'll give you some ideas.
If you can't get it because of PayPal:
1) Ask a friend or relative if they can buy it for you on PayPal, and you give them physical cash back.
2) I believe you can use a debit card on PayPal now.
3) Just establish an account.
If you can't get it because you don't want to pay for it:
1) Ask for it as a gift for some occasion. (holiday, birthday, something good)
2) Get a job. Or just give up some money... it's not that much, especially if you can afford a computer and Internet.
3) There are occasional competitions or give-aways by individuals.
If you can't get it due to age:
Yes you can, do some chores, or mow a lawn or some small job under neighbors or your own parents.
Remember about the gifting feature.
===================
Terminology/Glossary
(please note many of these have questions that may go along with them to give greater detail)
Adminium - See "bedrock".
Alpha - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before beta and after infdev. (More)
Beast Boy - A removed human-like mob. (More)
Bedrock - An unbreakable block at the bottom of maps.
Beta - The current stage of development for Minecraft Survival, preceded by alpha. (http://www.minecraftwiki.net/wiki/Beta)
Biome - An area of a certain climate. (very vague, see the question)
Black Steve - A removed human mob. (More)
Cartograph(er) - A program made to view your survival game's map.
New: here
Original: here
Alternate mapper: here
Mac alternative: here
Chunk - A 16x16x128 section of a map. Maps are generated by the chunk
Dungeon - A room composed partially of cobblestone with a monster spawner in the center. (More)
Hell - See "The Nether".
Herobrine - Also known as "Him", is a hoax character with the default skin and completely white eyes. (more)
Him - See "Herobrine"
Indev - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before infdev. (More)
Infdev - The stage of development for Minecraft Survival before alpha and after indev. (More)
MCmap Live - Used as a mac alternative to the cartograph. Thread here
Minecraft - A sandbox/adventure MMO created by Notch. (Did you really need that definition? :tongue.gif:)
Mob - A non-player "being". Such as a spider, skeleton or pig.
The Nether - Formerly called Hell and The Slip, it is a scary parallel world to the main one. (More)
Mojang/Mojang Specifications/Mojang AB - The company developing Minecraft.
Notch - The creator of Minecraft.
Rana - Meaning "frog" in Italian, Spanish, and Latin, Rana was a mob of a girl dressed as a frog. (More)
Redstuff - Another name for "redstone".
The Slip - See "The Nether".
SMP - Short for Survival Multiplayer.
SSP - Short for Survival Single Player.
Steve - While sometimes referring to the default skin or the character itself, it was a removed human mob. (More)
Vanilla server - An unmodified server.
The Void - A rare hole in the bottom layer of adminium. Falling into it is deadly. No longer appears in new chunks.
Small facts/tips
- Minecraft is only in the beta stage, meaning it is very prone to bugs and glitches. Please back up your game often!
- Don't dig directly up or down in risk of falling into lava or mob-infested rooms, or taking the floor under mobs or lava
- You can only fall from 3 or less blocks/meters without taking damage.
- The Cartograph can be used to view your survival map as a whole.
- Water is very handy to carry around with you, in case you accidentally touch lava!
- A compass points towards your spawn point, and is great to have while exploring, in case you get lost! (more)
- When building, carry dirt with you for scaffolding!
- When mining, you can place a torch on the floor, and sand and gravel will fall onto the torch and break. (Either be very quick [but not too quick, or it won't fall!], or separate the stone and gravel/sand with stone and then break the stone.)
- Looking for a legendary thread?
- If you're bored, you can check out this thread or this thread (repost) (original) for suggestions and ideas!
- Or you can check out this thread for awesome/amazing Minecraft videos. Feel free to contribute to it!
- If you need a flatmap, check out this thread or this thread for downloads!
Thanks to:
Pianosaurus, for stealing my posts answering many questions before I got around to it, and providing some information.
SaiyanKirby, for proofreading and helping edit after the Halloween Update
About 5 others for bits and pieces of information. :biggrin.gif:
Juze, for proofreading and finding errors.
arirish, for answering questions, and providing some information.
Aiero, for providing terms for the glossary. (See also: MineTionary)
Xenogard, for answering questions.
TrippleDot, for answering questions.
Magixx, for answering questions.
SparcMan, for answering questions.
citricsquid, for moving this to the new beta section. :smile.gif:
And anyone who made suggestions or gave feedback.
http://ghoulifiedgaming.blogspot.com/
Sad to hear Kris18 leave.
AngelCraft 64 Texture Pack v2.0.2 (Beta 1.8.1)
Nerd, geek, server admin, guy wearing a rainbow skin (with an office suit of epicness)? That's me.
You are awesome and I think you should be respected. :biggrin.gif:
Yeah, if the mods don't come down on this soon I'll be fixing it up some.
What mods are you talking about?
AngelCraft 64 Texture Pack v2.0.2 (Beta 1.8.1)
Nerd, geek, server admin, guy wearing a rainbow skin (with an office suit of epicness)? That's me.
What staff?
AngelCraft 64 Texture Pack v2.0.2 (Beta 1.8.1)
Nerd, geek, server admin, guy wearing a rainbow skin (with an office suit of epicness)? That's me.
http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/04/19/download-the-minecraft-demo/
AngelCraft 64 Texture Pack v2.0.2 (Beta 1.8.1)
Nerd, geek, server admin, guy wearing a rainbow skin (with an office suit of epicness)? That's me.
http://ghoulifiedgaming.blogspot.com/
Nope, he left IRC too.
AngelCraft 64 Texture Pack v2.0.2 (Beta 1.8.1)
Nerd, geek, server admin, guy wearing a rainbow skin (with an office suit of epicness)? That's me.
What's an IRC? you're a mod so I know you won't flame XP
http://ghoulifiedgaming.blogspot.com/
I'm not sure what should be done.
It's a type of chat protocol, kindof like IM.
Somewhat. I've been getting private messages, so I'm responding. I've also noticed this thread on the way.
FinalFan, you have in no way contributed to me quitting. I request, however, you remove this. I got rid of it for a reason.
Oh yeah, I called it! Yeah, some people around here are dumb.
http://ghoulifiedgaming.blogspot.com/
What was your reason? Just because your quitting I don't understand why you had to remove that guide, it was very useful. Also, I don't think it's against the rules to do what he is doing.
I'm fairly certain it's a respect thing. Due to the nature of the forums and everything that's happened behind the scenes with the mods that a lot of the forum doesn't know about, he feels under-appreciated and wants his work to be recognized.
viewtopic.php?f=1020&t=35905#p614290
These forums are full of some serious idiots/trolls/derps/etc. and I can understand why someone would want to leave these forums and take their material with them. I do my best to wade through the daily BS on here and fish out the good content and learn who to avoid and skip over when surfing the forums. Unfortunately, moderating forums like this at the speed crap gets posted to them is a full time unpaid job.
In regards to Kris18 and his newbie guide, I started playing MC about 3 weeks ago and that guide was priceless for a new player like myself. Kudos to you for putting it together and I am lucky to have had the ability to learn from it while it was posted.