Minecraft Forums

Quote from Revemohl

Just thought of this earlier today.
How about adding a carpenter's item frame? The usual block to change the frame's structure, a dye to change the color of the leather, and the hammer to change the pattern, just like the bed.

Why stop there? Why not also a Carpenter's Painting? The Hammer could change the size of the painting, and the chisel could cycle through the different paintings? Plus, with the addition of custom paintings which could be added through the configuration settings, it would allow for a massive amount of paintings/images for aesthetic appeal. And I mean, if the idea of the chisel changing the kind of picture is kind of odd then why not make a paintbrush?

Only a suggestion.

Hey guys,

I thought I'd show you all the temple I recently stopped working on. It is a dedication to not only the Zodiac Virgo, but my boyfriend, who happens to be a Virgo. :tongue.gif: Yeah so, it's a monopteral temple, meaning that it is a circular temple with surrounding columns. Unfortunately my laptop is horrible and I've decided to stop construction on it until I build my new computer. Because of the little blocks mod I'm able to create much more elaborate designs and architecture, but because there are so many blocks concentrated within a small area my laptop suffers.

Despite the fact that it is unfinished, I'd very much like to see what people think about the progress so far. I know that what I have so far may not be much to go on, but nonetheless it's something.

Oh, and in case anyone is curious as to how many hours I've put into this so far, I'd say about 17. One column takes around 40 or so minutes to construct.

First off, I would like to say a great big "THANK YOU" for this. Ever since Notch posted the picture of his fiddling with the map height, I've been desperately searching for anything that could compensate or even be better than what he could potentially offer through vanilla Minecraft.

The fact that we are essentially unlimited in terms of horizontal space in the world, yet are capped vertically makes absolutely no sense. People commonly say "we don't need maps to be that big." Or "Minecraft is fine just the way it is, it doesn't need to be adjusted."

And to that I say: "How would you feel if the horizontal space was limited to 256 blocks?" Just the idea of that is unbearable. For me, this whole debate about whether or not Minecraft's altitude limit needs to be extended is not an option up for debate, it's simply a MUST. And just to reiterate the whole ideology; yeah, we have all this space horizontally, but that doesn't mean you have to actually utilize all of it, by no means. So what makes you (speaking generally here, not specifically "you") think that if by having an extended altitude you are required to build up to that point. The ideology of the other side of this "debate" is ridiculous. (that is of course in my own opinion)

Needless to say, I support this, and everything you are doing. I'm hoping that a banner(s) will be made for this; this is something that NEEDS to be heard. And I can only hope that Mojang, at the very least, looks over and notices what you have done.

Congrats and I wish you guys the best of luck and success with this. You have my full support.

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Table of Contents:

Overview
Changes in how things work
Frequently Asked Questions
[WIP] The Cubic Chunks Mod!
Gallery
Supporting this suggestion
Special thanks

[spoiler=Tl:dr]Q: Won't this increase lag?
A: Absolutely not. The title of this suggestion and big red letters at the top of this post aren't lying. If you want to know how, then I suggest you actually read this post.

Q: Will this change terrain? Will this break existing worlds?
A: No. Terrain change is not necessary. Existing worlds can be converted fairly easily with a process described later in this post.

Q: How can sunlight or rain work with infinite vertical space?
A: I suggest you read Coping with sunlight, because it's too complex for a tl;dr.

Q: I have a different question but still don't feel like reading this post. What do I do?
A: Too bad, read the FAQ. I put way too much work into this for the entirety of it to be ignored.[/spoiler]

---

Overview:

In Minecraft, the sky is the limit - literally. It doesn't matter how many thousands of blocks a player has traveled, or what dimension they're in, or even if they're playing in creative or survival, the highest they can ever build is up to a height of 256. Why is that? If Minecraft can have a world that's infinite in the north, in the south, in the east, and in the west, why can't that world be infinite up and down too?

In Minecraft's earliest days, in Classic and Indev, the world was not infinite in any direction. This was because the entire world needed to be generated at the same time, and the entire world needed to be simulated at the same time as well. This led to a conundrum - the bigger the world, the more it lagged.
Notch didn't like this. He knew his players liked to explore and build large creations, so he found a way to make the world truly infinite. When the Minecraft '' class='bbc'>Infdev came out, it brought with it truly infinite worlds. Suddenly, players could travel hundreds of thousands of blocks in any direction, and never encounter a barrier, or become too laggy.
The Infdev update brought about a very large change to Minecraft worlds to accomplish this feat. For the first time, instead every world being just a single huge piece, they were broken up into a two-dimensional grid of pieces, called chunks. Through breaking the world up into pieces, this 'chunk system' enabled infinite worlds by letting Minecraft create new pieces and simulate them only when it needs to.

Why does that not apply to the vertical axis? Because the type of 'chunk system' Minecraft uses right now is a linear one, which, by using only a two-dimensional grid to map out chunks, means that it is impossible for chunks to stack on top of one another, and by extension, meaning that a single chunk must cover the entire vertical space. This brings back the problem that the Infdev update was supposed to eradicate, now only with chunks, instead of an entire world; the bigger a chunk is, the more laggy it is. You can't just increase the height limit and make chunks taller, because it will become laggier, and laggier, and laggier to do it.
That's why, to fix this, Minecraft must change over to a cubic chunk system. Under this system, 16³ block chunks are aligned on a three-dimensional grid, completely eliminating maximum height as an aspect of lag.

The immediate benefits:
•Minecraft worlds become as virtually infinite vertically as they are horizontally: The absolute limit being Y = ±30,000,000.
•A large FPS increase: Alpha testers report an FPS increase of 100~200%.
•Increase in running capability: Computers running Minecraft on Tiny render distance will handle only 30% the blocks they do now.

The possible features:
•Spherical render/load distance: Reduce handled blocks by up to 30% by cutting corners made of unneeded chunks.
•Server chunk occlusion/exclusion: Reduce bandwidth usage and defeat hackers by only sending data for visible chunks.
•Three-dimensional biomes: Save biome data per chunk rather than per block column, create volcanoes with magma chambers, underground rivers, tropical skylands floating over icy taigas, and more.

The disadvantages:
•Unloaded gravity-pause: Falling non-player entities and fluids will be forced to pause their fall if they reach unloaded chunks, but will resume falling when those chunks are loaded.
•Slow falling-pause: Players with slower computers and smaller render distances will have falling occasionally paused as they fall into unloaded chunks, until new chunks can be loaded.

The problems:
•Current sunlight and rain calculation methods cannot work with infinite vertical space: The solution to this is described here.
•Current BiomeDecorator cannot work with multiple vertical chunks simultaneously: The BiomeDecorator code must be altered to function correctly with this, or removed.
•Current cave generation method is executed an extra time for each vertical chunk created simultaneously, leading to lag spikes on world generation: Cave generation's method must be altered to suit this system more.
•Current grass/dirt generation algorithm forces additional chunk requests when chunks are loaded, causing chunks to load slower than they should: This algorithm must be replaced with something else.

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Changes in how things work:

Obviously, the implementation of this new chunk system will change quite a few things. These changes are mostly either necessary or in the interest of increased efficiency. Such changes are categorized and explained below.

How worlds will be stored:
[spoiler]How the current storage works, and what changes:
Interestingly enough, the current method of storage, the Anvil format, is derived from the storage method that the original Cubic Chunks mod used. The Anvil format stores individual chunk as a series of 16³ quasi-cubic chunks. These 'fake' cubic chunks allow for easier reference of specific data, but they still can't be separated from each other, meaning that it fails to reap the full benefits of this system. Even so, the change allowed Mojang to double the maximum height with no performance hit. Chunks are stored in groups of 32², inside 'MCRegion' files, for a total of 1024 chunks.
By nature, cubic chunks does away with the 'quasi-cubic' nonsense. In terms of chunk grouping, instead of using groups of 32³ chunks, new "3DRegion" files would contain groups of 16³. This means each 3DRegion file contains 4096 chunks, four times as many as MCRegion files. However, each 3DRegion contains only one fourth the amount of blocks. For per-chunk positional metadata, 3DRegion files would use the same number of bits as MCRegion files, after compression. Calculations show that the same area encompassed by a single MCRegion file would consume 64 kilobytes of extra space with 4 3DRegion files, which is nothing.

Converting existing worlds:
Most people are probably wondering something like "But won't this totally destroy all existing worlds?". Absolutely not; conversion could not be simpler. When a non-cubic world is loaded after the implementation of this system, a conversion process will begin and convert the entire world at once(To avoid making chunk loading take longer during play). First, all existing MCRegion files will be divided into quarters to create 3DRegion files. Then, all existing chunks are divided into sixteenths using the quasi-cubic properties to identify boundaries. After that, conversion is done.

The "isEmpty" flag optimization:
A 1-bit flag is added to each chunk, named "isEmpty". If the chunk consists of 100% air blocks, this bit is 1, any other case makes it 0. When the bit is 1, all data for the chunk besides the isEmpty flag is deleted and ignored, which reduces filesize. Empty chunks are never loaded, and locations where they occur are merely simulated as entities reside in them. The chunk will only load when something requires saving inside it.[/spoiler]

Changes to terrain, ores, etcetera:
[spoiler]Terrain:
By default, nothing will change. Small bits of terrain generation code need to be reconfigured to work properly with Cubic Chunks.

Biomes:
By default, nothing will change.

Ore generation:
By default, nothing will change.

Structures:
By default, nothing will change.

The Void:
After conversion to Cubic Chunks, the void and bedrock layer will still exist and generate as they always have. However, the void(Not the bedrock layer!) will not exist as a hard limit and is able to be moved, but not removed, by editing an associated NBT data tag inside a world's level.dat. This feature, that allows for increasing the maximum depth, is intentionally disabled without external programs, to prevent terrain change of any sort. It is intended to be used by experienced mapmakers and world generation mods only.

Superflat settings:
Existing superflat worlds will not change. However, new superflat worlds will gain a new decoration parameter, 'void'. Inclusion of this parameter will cause the void to form below the lowest defined layer. Exclusion of it will cause all layers below the lowest defined layer to copy the settings of that layer.[/spoiler]

Coping with sunlight:
[spoiler]There used to be a solution here, but it wasn't deemed good enough by Jeb. Suggest solutions in this thread.[/spoiler]

Changes to servers:
[spoiler]Settings:
There's a setting inside the Server.properties file called 'max-build-height'. The setting makes it impossible for any player to place or remove blocks above that height.
With the implementation of Cubic Chunks, a new setting named "maximum-generation-depth" would be added. The void, bedrock layers, and magma layers will generate normally at and above the Y level designated by the value of this setting.

Chunk occlusion/exclusion:
Using the raytracing methods already available in the code and used for explosion calculations, servers can identify which chunks are visible to a player, within safe assumptions, and only send the data for those chunks. This both reduces bandwidth usage, and cripples the usefulness of X-Ray cheats.[/spoiler]

Render/Load distance alterations:
[spoiler]After the implementation of Cubic Chunks, view distances' radii will apply to the vertical axis too. This reduces handled blocks in the cases of tiny and short render distances, and increases them in the cases of normal and far render distances. This can be optimized by utilizing a spherical render distance instead of a cubic one, which would reduce handled blocks in all distances except Far.[/spoiler]

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Frequently Asked Questions:

[spoiler=FAQ]Q: This is impossible.
A: No it's not. See below.

Q: Is this available as a mod?
A: Not yet! But it will be!

Q: I like X-ray! What if I don't want it to be broken?
A: First of all, breaking X-ray hacks will only be possible to do in multiplayer. That said, the system that would break X-ray would be possible to disable by the server owner. If the owner doesn't disable the system, then they don't want you using X-ray, and you should not be doing what the server owner doesn't want in the first place.

Q: I play on a PvP/Anarchy/Raid/Faction server. Won't this system let people pillar up into the sky and create a base thousands of blocks in the air and never be found?
A: No.

Q: I like Minecraft's current height limits. What if I don't want to have an infinite sky or infinite underground?
A: If this system is added, all worlds will not automatically gain an infinite underground. As stated below, the Void will remain in all worlds, even after the conversion to Cubic Chunks. The ability to remove the Void will simply be there. As for infinite space in the sky, the current build limit is over one hundred blocks above any terrain that vanilla Minecraft can possibly generate. It is ENTIRELY your decision on whether or not you take advantage of this height. If you play on a server, like stated above, the server owner can set a maximum build height. If s/he doesn't, then don't play on their server - you don't play on servers where the server owners allow things you don't like. Why would you play on an anarchy server if you hate being stolen from and killed?

Q: Will this affect Redstone at all?
A: No. This system will simply make it possible to make larger redstone circuitry than before.

Q: Won't this break existing worlds?
A: No. Existing worlds can be easily converted by dividing each MCRegion file into 4 pieces, then slicing the existing 256 block-high chunks inside them into 16 individual chunks.

Q: Won't this affect mods? Won't mod authors have a hard time updating their mods?
A: The answer to this question depends solely on the answer to the following two questions: Do parts of the modification code rely on chunk data/metadata? Does the mod author want to take advantage of the features of the new chunk system? If the answers to the first and second question are both "No", then updating a mod to this system should be very easy and quick. If the answer to the first question is "Yes", then those parts of the code will need to be rewritten somewhat, but in most cases, the changes should be fairly quick and easy. The only time that it should be hard to update a mod to this system, is if the answer to the second question is "Yes".

Q: Won't this require a total rewrite of the mod API if that's released first?
A: No. Whether or not even a small part of the mod API needs to be rewritten depends on the way that it is implemented and whether or not there are API inclusions for chunk handling and other chunk-related behavior.

Q: Could a player fall into unloaded chunks if chunks aren't loaded fast enough?
A: No, they could not, and for several reasons. Minecraft has a terminal velocity, though it might not seem like it. This velocity is slower than it should take to load new chunks below the player. In cases with exceptionally slow computers, even if the player did manage to reach an unloaded chunk, their fall would be paused until that chunk can be loaded.

Q: What would happen when water, sand, or a mob falls into an unloaded chunk?
A: Nothing. The water/sand/mob would freeze in place until the chunk is loaded and it can continue moving. You can already see this same thing happening on the horizontal axis.

Q: What will happen to the Void?
A: It will still exist, along with all its effects. The only difference is that the Void is no longer a hard limit and it can be moved. After the conversion to Cubic Chunks, the Void's location will be stored in a world's ' class='bbc'>level.dat, and this location can be changed with NBT editing tools. When and where the Void exists, chunks will cease to generate.

Q: Will this affect terrain?
A: No. However, terrain generators will gain the ability to use infinite height.

Q: Will this affect ore generation?
A: No. Ore is a part of terrain generation. As stated above, terrain will not be changed.

Q: Won't all current terrain generators be incompatible with this system and need to be rewritten?
A: No. Terrain generators work independently of chunks. When a chunk is generated for the first time, it calls the terrain generator and receives a specific section of the resultant terrain to save inside itself. Because of this, some custom terrain generators can generate steep terrain all the way to Y256, where you can experience a large, flat cut-off. Since there are no chunks above Y256 to call the terrain generator for terrain, no terrain exists there.

Q: What would happen if there's a huge solid ceiling so far above you that it is unloaded? Wouldn't you just see the sky, just with everything being completely dark?
A: Yes. This already happens on the horizontal axis, and it is an issue with sky rendering, not this chunk system. As such, this has nothing to do with this suggestion. Please do not post about this.

Q: If you go deep underground, will your plants grow/ores smelt/animals grow?
A: No, because those chunks would be unloaded, just as if you had walked far away. This is a flaw with any chunk system, regardless of shape. It is a necessary evil that allows Minecraft to have infinite worlds. The only way to fix this would be to introduce a separate new system that works with chunks as they are loaded and unloaded. This suggestion deals with the chunk system itself, and not sister processes. Because of that, that is outside of the scope of this suggestion. Please do not post about this.[/spoiler]

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[WIP] The Cubic Chunks Mod! (Tall Worlds Mod):

Cuchaz has taken it upon himself to bring us the glorious Cubic Chunks, since Mojang refuses to do so.

Cuchaz is using a API of his own creation to help assist in the making of this mod, and he's quite far along, as seen in these two tech demo videos:
[spoiler=T-Demo 1: Vertical chunk loading][/spoiler]
[spoiler=T-Demo 2: Broken height cap and no lag!][/spoiler]
With the basic functionality in place - a complete overhaul of the basic chunk system, and height limit removed - this whole concept can already be considered proven. What remains is making sure everything else functions correctly under the new chunk system. In any case, stay tuned for future updates if it interests you(If it doesn't, then you are the weakest link - goodbye!).

You can follow the mod's development in much more depth in its very own topic!

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Gallery:

[spoiler=A mountainside with an experimental engine using Cubic Chunks designed by Nocte. 960 block view radius, and 30 FPS.][/spoiler]
[spoiler=A different view of the mountainside with the same engine by Nocte. This time, with 1600 block view radius and 15 FPS.][/spoiler]
[spoiler="A video demonstrating Nocte's engine."]

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Support & Submission to Mojang:

If you support this, hit the rep button in the bottom-left corner of this post. It is the only good way of accurately measuring support here.

If you wish, you can put the following banner, courtesy of laz2727, into your signature. It helps to attract support from all parts of the forum!

 [url=http://www.minecraftforum.net/topic/1707097-cubic-chunks-infinite-height-elimination-of-x-ray-and-more-60-supporters/page__st__0][img]http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/443/hov.png[/img][/url]

Please help us get word out of this suggestion! Share this with your friends, with Minecraft celebrities if you're familiar with them, or even with Mojangsters like Jeb or Dinnerbone! (Do not share this with Notch. Notch doesn't work with Minecraft anymore.)

The purpose of this suggestion is to have Cubic Chunks implemented in Vanilla. Being available as a modification does not fulfill that purpose. The modification featured in this suggestion is to act as a proof-of-concept only(Note: Its being featured here is to act as a proof-of-concept. The modification itself is on its way to becoming a fully fledged modification).

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Special thanks:
Cuchaz, for taking Barteks' proof and running with it, to give us a truly functional Cubic Chunks mod.
Barteks2x, for updating the Cubic Chunks mod to 1.6.2, proving that it is possible.
Azraile, for posting the original suggestion and allowing me to take ownership of it.
Nocte, for helping resolve flaws and designing Hexahedra.
MineCrak, for a large amount of valuable insight and enthusiasm into the topic of Cubic Chunks.
aaronfranke, for helping resolve flaws.
PanJouda, for creating the original banner.
Flexico, for creating the predecessor to the current banner.
laz2727, for creating the current banner.
Robinton, for creating the original Cubic Chunks mod.
The_Watchman13, for answering all those stupid questions so I don't have to.

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Note: Many calculations and information can be found among the many posts of this topic. There are too many for me to cite here, but if you wish, you can search for them yourself.

Quote from Rozarik

Has anyone had any success in adding microblocks to their game through the config file?
...

Try here:
http://www.minecraftforum.net/topic/1885652-164forge-multipart-projectred-v40512-10172013/page__st__1640#entry24385257

Quote from Rozarik

I supported this project a year and half ago when it first started in beta. And I will continue to support this with all my ability. This solution solves so many existing problems within Minecraft that its benefice is not possible to debate. Mojang needs to be aware of this, and before Dinnerbone finishes his new lighting system. (If it will ever be finished?)

I'm not sure if they'll see it or not, but I'll be sending a link to this thread's front page to as many let's players as I can. This is a massively rising topic on r/minecraft at the moment but it still needs more attention. If anything, Calacblog, I also suggest creating an account and posting the same content on other popular minecraft forums, namely Worldofminecraft, and also yogscast. And I don't know if you have any connections with people but even a video detailing the workings behind this in a visual manner would help even more people understand it, while also distilling the common question "How can infinite heights be less laggy."

I only hope that this succeeds in the greatest way possible, Calacblog, because not only does it need to, it deserves to.

Great work man, and don't give up!!!

Thanks! Appreciate the support. Unfortunately, I won't be posting this in all those locations because if I do it, it could be perceived negatively as attention-seeking. But! If you want to it or something similar, that would be fantastic because it'd show a higher level of support.

Also, it's Calacbolg(An intentional misspelling of Caladbolg, a mythical celtic sword with the power to control lightning).

Updated the OP, added a new FAQ, fixed some incorrect information in Data Storage, and edited the answer to one of the FAQs.

How to have Higher and Deeper Worlds
For 1:1 Large Scale Reproductions and More!

+ [ How to have Many versions of Minecraft Installed on Windows PC at same time ] + Post # 40
+ [ How to have Many versions of Minecraft Installed on Windows, Mac, or Linux at same time ]
++ [ MCNostalgia + Original MCNostalgia - How to get older version of Minecraft ] ++
+++ [ Get your own Dropbox 2GB+ Online Storage for Free ] +++


News: [Click Below] [ 2012-8-8 ] - MineUp Height Mod for MC v1.2.5 has been Released!
- Spoilers Require Javascript to be ON in your Internet browser in order to work when clicking the [Show] button. Reload web page once Javascript is ON -
______________
----- INDEX -----

• Options = 6 [ MineUp ] [ Spoutcraft ] [ Cubic Chunks ] [ Height Mod ] [ MapHeight 256 ] [ ymod ]

• Cubic Chunks Installation and Download + Extras (1.5.4 Test 7 - for MC 1.0.0)
• Cubic Chunks [ Screenshots ] [ Videos ]

• World Save Converter ( Cubic / Anvil / MCRegion Linear / ymod + NBT Viewer )
• Cubic Chunks Terrain Generator (Info and Java Source Code) * Experiment with High Terrain now!

• Support Tools and Mods ( Tools and Mods that directly support Height Mods )

• Downloadable Higher Worlds
• 3D Chunks Info
• Find .minecraft folder
• ymod readme texts
• ymod Installation and Download

• Screenshots

• [ This Thread ]

• [ Bottom of Post ]
• [ Bottom of Tutorial ]

* Robinton's Mods - [ An Emergency Source ] -- Not complete
_________________

* If you use the Windows OS; Easily run different versions of Minecraft, or different Mod combinations, in separate folders with no swapping! Just use a separate short-cut link for each one. This [ Video ] shows how. And this [ Post ] shows a text example.

-- This is a great way to have a separate folder install of Minecraft just for your Higher Worlds! I am doing this with different versions of the Cubic Chunks Height Mod for testing and it works perfectly!

** Warning about using MCPatcher if using alternate .minecraft locations.

MCNostalgia has been completely updated all the way through the 1.9pre1 version of minecraft. This means that anyone can downgrade their current version of Minecraft back to v1.7.3 or 1.8.1 or most any other version they desire. It has instructions for Windows, Mac and Linux. The 7z utility can be found here.
_________________


Options

There are now 6 general purpose Mods you can use with Minecraft to allow the creation and use of worlds with different Heights (Height Mods). Each mod uses different sized and types of 'chunks' in order to accomplish this. A "Chunk" is the minimum number of world blocks that will be loaded into one memory unit at once. No smaller amount will be loaded.

• 3D Chunks tend to be Cubic clusters of blocks like (16x16x16 ) and can be managed with such great flexibility that you can have virtually Unlimited Height with little to no performance impact, just like how playing in a world with a horizontal/flat size of 20000x20000 blocks and 128 height poses no significant performance impact compared to one that's 1000x1000 blocks and 128 high.

• Linear Chunks tend to be vertical columns of blocks like (16x128x16) where, in the case of Minecraft, the vertical size can be multiples or divisions of 128 where each one starts at the bottom of a map and ends at the top of the map. ( 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096). Normal "Vanilla" Minecraft used 128 tall Linear Chunks before the Anvil update changed Minecraft to use Linear-stacked Quasi-Cubic Chunks. It has been commonly found that 256 tall linear chunks are the tallest "playable" size, even then they are slower than a 3D Chunks world many thousands of blocks high. Each time a linear Chunk is doubled it increases the memory and cpu usage. * Using linear chunks smaller than 128 might speed up the game a little for slower computers (Awaiting reports).

• Stacked DIMensions : This unique Height Modification method can "stack" more than one World on top of each other in-game so that the multiple worlds/Dimensions will look and act in-game as if they are all part of one seamless world. Despite this, each DIMension or 'Layer' can still exist in a separate manageable DIM folder or as the main world in a World Save folder Region folder. It has been shown that this method can work quite well when done right. It also allows for the possibility of swapping the contents of Layers (DIM folders) with the worlds in different world saves. Each 'Layer' could be individually edited and modified by 3rd party tools so long as those layers are of a size those tools are compatible with.

** You will Corrupt a World made for a specific Height if you enter it using normal Minecraft or the wrong Size mod version - Back up your World Save and ".minecraft" folder first!**




MineUp (GravityCraft + MineUp): [ Anvil + StackedDIM ] SSP
Currently Supported and Developed by [ Ivorius ] (MC b1.8.1, 1.2.5)

MineUp is a very unique and facinating type of Height Mod. It's main method of gaining more Vertical space is to Stack traditional Worlds and Dimensions (DIM folders), called "Layers" in MineUp, on top of each other and make them act and look like they are all part of one connected world. It works surprisingly well!

Starting with MC 1.2.5 MineUp now uses Anvil worlds for stacking and even allows you to change the Height of these Layers themselves! (Although you might want to leave the Layers the default 256 height for now to retain compatibility with 3rd party World Editors.) MineUp is now an Anvil Height Mod within a Stacked Height Mod.

Another unique and really cool feature in MineUp is the Custom World Generation menus available in Minecraft once you have installed it (Now Graphical since MC 1.2.5). When creating a new world you are able to decide how many Layers you want it to have AND what kind of world each layer will be. You have several choices for each layer and it's position, currently with options like ones that will make a layer into a normal 'Overworld', or an 'Empty' layer that could be used to make the sky higher, a 'Skylands' layer (Yes it is exactly what you think it is ), an 'Underground' layer that can be used to make the ground deeper (ores and features from normal world y=5 to y=30), and a 'Nether' layer (Yes, you can finally have the Nether in your normal world!).

* You will still have Portal access to a physically separate "Fast Travel" world ( 8 to 1 ) but now you can decide what kind of world it will be too.

The Next Incredibly unique and exceptional Layer feature blows my mind.. You can make a layer into an Upside-Down World!! And starting with MC 1.2.5 you can even have an Upside-Down Nether! That's right, both the blocks in that layer as well as the gravity will be upside down, this affects Entities and everything. Depending on how you set up the layers you can literally dig down from the surface of your world all the way to the opposite side of the world! Your Gravity will flip when you mine through the layer boundary.


Starting with MC 1.2.5 MineUp has been merged with Ivorius's famous GravityCraft code, adding various player accessible Gravity Manipulation tools and Recipes that when combined with the wild worlds you can put together and upside down gravity zones will allow you to better navigate and master your environment. Ivorius has extended and improved almost every feature and capability of both MineUp and GravityCraft and merged them into one code base, all of it now fully Anvil compatibile.

** You don't want to directly enter an old world after installing MineUp, but you can set up a new world structure with the layers you want then afterwards delete the files for a specific layer and replace them with the files from another world, even one of your older anvil worlds or a downloaded one. Ivorius is considering extending the built-in options for dealing with such things in future versions.

+ Ivorius has also given us the gift of an API that will allow modders to tap into the Gravity and Layer manipulation abilities of this mod; you can create custom World layers and Gravity affects and zones that extend this mods abilities even further and allow custom integration of other mods with these unique environments! The API itself is heavily commented allowing you to dive in and learn what you can do with it.

All-in-all, the possible experiences and adventures that can be had with this Mod are virtually unlimited, and with the API for this mod the options for customizing it and adding new types of Dimensions/Layers will only get better yet. Go to the new Thread dedicated to the merged 'GravityCraft + MineUp' mod to find out more as well as see pictures and videos of what you can expect and to receive support for it's use. This mod requires a ModLoader to be installed first.

* Do yourself a favor and use one the methods listed at the top of this OP post to set up a separate MC 1.2.5 folder that you can install MineUp into now. You'll be glad you didn't wait.

-- A little MineUp and GravityCraft History, MineT3485 and Ivorius:




Spoutcraft: [ Linear Chunks ] SSP + SMP ( bukkit + SpoutPlugin )
Currently Supported and Developed by [ Spout Team ] ( MC ? - 1.2.5 )

The Spoutcraft Client/Launcher allows for Linear Chunk Higher Worlds for SSP Single Player and also auto-adjusts to whatever height a bukkit server with the SpoutPlugin is set to for SMP. It supports the following Heights: ( 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048 ) configurable in the [Create World] Menu. Sealevel is set to half the height of the World, and the Terrain generates up to as high as the size of the world.

* World Painter, as of v0.5, is now compatible with Spoutcrafts Higher Worlds!

It is my understanding that even a Vanilla Minecraft client can connect to and play in a Higher World Server hosted with bukkit + SpoutPlugin, though it wouldn't have all the other benefits of the Spoutcraft launcher/client. It is the goal of the Spout Team to eventually convert to using the 3D Chunks method instead of the Linear Chunks method, which would allow for almost unlimited Vertical space like the Cubic Chunks Height Mod. Robinton and Nocte are in contact with the Spout Team.

Spoutcraft is not just a general purpose Height Mod, the Height capabilities are just one of it's newer standard features. It is both a Minecraft Launcher and Client that adds many improvements over the Vanilla Minecraft Client including Optifine-like improvements and features/options and more. And when logged into a Spout or bukkit server with SpoutPlugin it offers even more in-game benefits. More research is being done regarding Spoutcraft's Higher World features. Thanks go to bflipped for all of the initial Spoutcraft research and Info as well as the following video:

[Click Below for a bflipped Video introducing Spoutcraft and it's Higher World capabilities ]




Cubic Chunks: [ 3D Chunks ] SSP + (SMP mc1.0.1 Test 7)
Currently Supported and Developed by [ Robinton ] (MC b1.7.3 - 1.0.0 Test 7)
[ Screenshots ] [ Videos ]

This uses 3D Chunks (16x16x16) and, as of version 1.4.4, allows a total vertical size of 65504 blocks! (-32752 to +32752) with smoother performance then 256 level Linear Chunks. Levels 0-128 are lined up with the same levels as a normal MC map. It works very well in SSP Single-Player and the SMP Server mod is available for early testing. Higher custom terrain generation for it is being worked on and is now available, including inclusion of the BiomeTerrainMod code and conversion of WorldEdit. It will change the Bedrock of a map into normal stone, allowing you to keep on digging. It works very well but is still being updated, optimized and developed. The Cubic Chunks Mod will start to auto-convert any Vanilla world you open with it, chunk by chunk, causing some fps drop until all chunks encountered are converted. Or you can use Robinton's converter described below to get it all done at one time:

* The author has made a separate World Save Converter - You are able to change a Cubic world back into a normal Vanilla one, or pre-convert your Vanilla world into a Cubic world faster! And convert ymod worlds too!

* The Creators of MCEdit, WorldEdit and WorldPainter are keeping an eye on the Cubic Chunks Mod and might add support for it! Let them know you want it! * PhoenixTerrainMod Functionality is being added to the Cubic Chunks mod!!!

Click Here for the Cubic Chunks Mod Download and Installation instructions.




Height Mod: [ Linear Chunks ] SSP + SMP + [ bukkit indev next ]
No longer supported or developed by [ fishtaco567 ] ( MC beta 1.9pre1 - 1.1.0 )

* Get the newest GUI-Client and Config-Server mods for the functionality listed below. [2011-12-13]

Create and play in a World with any of the following heights: ( 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048 ), including a vanilla 128 world, using one mod. It's Terrain will be proportionate to the Height but both the Terrain mid and max points and the Water level can be customized during World Creation in the "More Options" Menu of the GUI-Client (SSP mode) just like the overall World Height. The same thing can be done in a Config file when using the Config-Server mod. The Height of each World is kept in a txt file inside of each World's Save folder, so each World is self-contained. + There is now a Forge compatibility patch for the GUI-Client as well as a Caves and Ores patch for both the Client and Server.

** Using the GUI-Client (Currently labeled "Gui") you can connect to a server that uses this mod's Config-Server and automatically play in it's World of any Height! You won't need to use a different version of the mod for different heights or even tell the client what the server's World Height is, it will figure it out automatically. ++ A bukkit version of this mod's SMP server is being developed next.

*** GUI-Client automatically supports Worlds made with Vatec97's DynamicHeight mod! {As of 2011-12-12}




MapHeight 256: [ Linear Chunks ] SSP + SMP
No longer supported or developed by [ zarrab ] ( MC 1.0.0 - 1.1.0 12w06a )

A straightforward Height Mod for both Single Player and Multi-player SMP. This Mod purposely supports 256 High Worlds only in order to balance increased height and system performance due to limits of the Linear Chunks method. There are Vanilla and Forge compatible versions of this Mod. This Mod IS Optifine compatible if special instructions are followed. The Ocean level can be set to y = 64, 96 or 128. The Terrain Height will always be able to go up to 256 high and cannot be adjusted.

This Mod apparently can use 256 High Worlds made with fishtaco's HeightMod, but there are issues you will need to be aware of when doing this. bflipped has made the following Video detailing these issues. There are other videos and pics in the official MapHeight 256 thread.

[Click for a bflipped Video about using 256 Height Mod Worlds with MapHeight 256 Mod]

ymod: [ Linear Chunks ] SSP
No longer supported or developed by [ yatima2975 ] ( MC beta 1.2_02 - b1.3_01 )

** I HIGHLY Recommend only using ymod v 0.1.5, which needs to be used with Minecraft beta 1.2_02 . This version's World/Map files are supported by both MCEdit and the Cubic Chunks World Save Converter.

This uses linear vertical chunks like normal Minecraft does but can give you a height up to 1024 blocks if you wish, technically you can set it to ANY height but other heights have not been tested. The last version made only works with Minecraft version beta 1.3_01 and the prior version works with beta 1.2_02, but it is possible that it might be updated in the future. There are instructions below for how to set this up as well as how to roll back your Minecraft to that version.

* ymod map/world save folders can Now be converted into Cubic Chunks Worlds and played with the Current Minecraft modded with the Cubic Chunks Height mod! Thanks to a Save File Converter written by the creator of the Cubic Chunks mod, Robinton!

Click Here for the ymod Mod Download and Installation instructions.




DynamicHeight: [ Linear Chunks ] SSP
No longer supported or developed by [ Vatec97 ] ( MC beta 1.9pre1 - 1.0.0 )

This mod requires only one install to use different height worlds; it includes a GUI that lets you choose the height of each world you create: ( 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048 ). This mod will automatically work with it's world saves of any supported Height including Vanilla 128 worlds. The client saves the height data directly to the World Save folder, so each world is self-contained. The Terrain and Water level is changed by the World height chosen when creating a world, so you can have taller terrain.

* Automatically supports Worlds made with fishtaco567's Height Mod! {As of 2011-12-13 v2.1.5}



* notch has fixed the sky-box lighting method for beta 1.8 so that all of the chunks no longer need to update because of sunlight changes. That clears at least one more obstacle from the path of an official height increase! At least regarding lag.

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Cubic Chunks Mod - Installation and Download + Extras!

[Click to Open, Read and Download]

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Okay, so here's the problem with a modding API: More seperation of mods from vanilla Minecraft will result in less options for modders. Less options for modders will result in more third party software that will allow for access to modding capabilities.

From what I've seen of your intentions for this API, it seems that you wish to prevent modders editing the Minecraft classes themselves. Well, unfortunately, that's not how it works. When a modder plans to modify, they modify. They don't "plug it in", as is the case for the Bukkit API. The problem is that no matter how comprehensive your API is, somebody is going to want to step outside the boundaries of what it can do.

The only thing you can do for such a person is provide options for them so that they don't HAVE to edit Minecraft classes. Forcing them to use a plug-in type system is just going to backfire and cause them to employ third party software to do what can't be done with the API.

I know the plug-in system works well for Bukkit, but servers are completely different from clients. When running a server, you don't add or change anything. If you do, you would need players to download a custom client. In the case of custom clients and servers, Bukkit is completely useless as the modder would need to do the work himself/herself anyway. In short, plug-ins aren't mods and never will be, and so mods will always exist.

I can make you the perfect API right now: Official support of MCP, inclusion of ModLoader (or something similar) in vanilla Minecraft, javadocs and no more obfuscation. Doing those four things would provide modders with everything they need and help them make their mods more compatible. You can't force a modder to use an API, but you can provide them with the opportunites to make better and more compatible mods.

What I'm trying to say is that you should support modding instead of regulating it. After all, Minecraft was built by the community as well as Mojang. The more that is taken from modders, the less they can give in return.

Crap. I didn't realize so many people still cared about this mod. Just to clarify, I'm going to begin work again the day 1.3 Official is released. Progress will be slow as I have lost what little knowledge of coding I had and I have band camp coming up soon. I don't know if any of you have ever been to band camp but it manages to take up pretty much all your time, even at the high school level. And once school hits I will definitely have no time. I CAN guarantee that at some point between January 2013 and June 2013 I will make rapid progress on this mod. Unless of course between now and then the world ends or I have some tragic life changing event (the world ending). I hope I will have the motivation and the time to be able to make decent progress in the coming month. But it sure is good to know I have some loyal fans!