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Minecraft Hints and Tips

  • 17-11-2010 3:15pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 179 ✭✭


    Hey Everyone,


    I'm sure that anyone who's clicked onto this thread has probably already played minecraft or you are probably addicted to mining for coal to make torches, and trying to figure out how the bow and arrows work etc.


    Well, I decided it would be a good idea to start a thread where people can ask for help from others who play minecraft.

    Also, I am looking for a server to play on in multiplayer. I attempted to make a server myself, but frankly i've no idea what i was doing so i gave up!:p

    So, let's get started...if you're having a hard time crafting things in minecraft then minepedia is a good place to look for recipies etc..

    http://www.minecraftwiki.net/wiki/Main_Page


    Interesting things I've managed to make/do so far (i've spent hours on end searching for minerals doing this!):

    1. Fishing rod
    2. Bow and arrows
    3. Diamond Pickaxe
    4. Portal to the Nether.
    5. I've grown my own wheat and made bread
    6. Cooked fish
    7. Found 3 dungeons in one cave (scary)
    8. Saddled a pig and went for a joyride.
    9. Built an Indestructable home in the nether, to protect the portal.
    10. Built a railway and a powered minecart

    among other things...anyway let the fun begin!:D

    What do you like doing most in Minecraft? 26 votes

    Mining and discovering new caves
    0% 0 votes
    Building
    42% 11 votes
    Exploring the world
    57% 15 votes


«1

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 979 ✭✭✭Hercule


    I created a network of canals and waterfalls that serve as a kind of log flume ride - its hard to get the boat to go particularly fast


    created a mine cart jump through fire (lava blocks in glass :D)

    another fun and pointless thing to do is to take a bucket of water, one stone block and 64 dirt/sand - keep jumping up and placing the sand underneath you until you cant go any higher - cut away 1 sand block underneath you then place the stone block (may need to be obsidian in future) . empty the bucket of water while jumping and create a massive pillar of water that can be used to move up into the clouds. - create a palace in the sky :D

    Or cut away the sand/dirt and it falls leaving a single stone block and a waterfall in midair.


  • Registered Users Posts: 179 ✭✭dunie001


    I think i might just try making the waterfall alright...sounds interesting.

    I attempted making things with lava before...but it rarely ends well!

    Have you found many diamonds?

    did you go to the nether yet?

    I did...it's good fun...can't survive very long though!;)


  • Registered Users Posts: 81,117 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    Underwater buildings: The trick is to create a container that reaches above water-level and fill it with sand/gravel/dirt (sand is easiest because it takes the least amount of effort to shovel and it "falls"). This forces the water out, then its a matter of shoveling out the filler, and then you're left with your walls. Top it off with a roof below sea level and then clear the topmost parts of the barrier wall to let the water flow back over the top. I reccomend at least a 2 block gap from the surface to your underwater roof, or else you'll be fixing water-turbulence with a bucket for about an hour.

    Actually the technique will work fine even without surface water, tunnels are easy to build - build the outer wall, fill with sand, connect it to your dry-room and dig through. On a multiplayer server you dont have to worry about drowning either. But why I did this afternoon was this:

    ~~~~~~~~~
    GGGGGGGGGGG
    GDDDDDDDDDG
    G~~~~~~~~
    G~~~~~~~~

    (Water; Glass; Dirt)

    ~~~~~~~~~
    GGGGGGGGGGG
    GDDDD[ ]DDDD
    G~~~~~~~~

    That gives you a pocket of air to breath from if your glass building happens to be deep underwater, where it simply takes too long to get back to the surface and still do any work.


  • Registered Users Posts: 715 ✭✭✭bubonicus


    Clouds always move north.

    Also if you look at a rough stone block you will see what looks like an L in the top left corner, When you see it you will never unsee it, but when you are looking at an L, you are facing north, works on the nether blocks too.

    Also I run a server which is usually on 24/7. All are welcome, Don't be put off by the lack of buildings at the spawn point... hint look above.

    Server address - bubonicus.gotdns.com


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 17,129 Mod ✭✭✭✭cherryghost


    Tallon has a water ride extending out to an area that captures animals at the end (dunno if he meant that though) :pac: Similar to a mob spawn trap but it was made for fun :D

    Remember folks. 4 steel ingots with some red sandstone in the middle makes a compass, that directs you back to your spawn area :)


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  • Registered Users Posts: 81,117 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    Keep looking: there are extremely elaborate cave systems everywhere. Entrances to them normally appear near shorelines. You should rarely, if ever, have to "excavate" to find something interesting.

    And when you do stumble upon a cave system devise a way to track the way you came: its very, very easy to get lost.

    Finally, whether for mining or crafting, your first piece of diamond should always be used on a Shovel. You will always encounter gravel and its a lot easier to chew through than stone. Doing this also very often leads you the goods quicker.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,686 ✭✭✭Kersmash


    Anyone got a good tutorial for basic switches, etc. done with redstone?


  • Registered Users Posts: 81,117 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    Coal is the only mineral found above Sea Level

    You can never have enough furnaces; stuff takes forever to smelt. When coal is in short supply, use wood which doesn't burn as long but is more abundant.


  • Registered Users Posts: 715 ✭✭✭bubonicus


    Kersmash wrote: »
    Anyone got a good tutorial for basic switches, etc. done with redstone?

    I found this on the minecraft forums here.

    hope that helps, seems simple enough, but i have never tried using it yet.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,403 ✭✭✭The Gnome


    Overheal wrote: »
    Coal is the only mineral found above Sea Level

    You sure? I think I remember getting iron above sea level a good few times.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 81,117 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    The Gnome wrote: »
    You sure? I think I remember getting iron above sea level a good few times.
    I found that information on minepedia


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 22,569 ✭✭✭✭Tallon


    Great thread lads.

    I'll ad a few tips later


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 17,129 Mod ✭✭✭✭cherryghost


    Ideal building tips:

    Glass:
    Glass is easy to produce. All you need is a furnace, coal and sand

    Iron/Gold/Diamond building blocks:
    Costly to make, requires 9 ingots of the same make

    Bricks:
    Requires 4 clays to make a brick, clays can be obtained deeper below the earth

    Boat:
    Requires a u-shaped manufactured wood on the workbench

    Flint:
    One flint and iron ingot to make Flint & Steel, to light fires

    Reeds/Paper/Books/Bookshelf:
    Reeds can be farmed in dirt directly beside water. 3 reeds makes 3 papers, 3 papers make a book, 3 books surrounded with wood makes a bookshelf.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,993 ✭✭✭Wossack


    for navigating around tunnels, I try and keep my torches on the right hand side walls of the caves/tunnels. That way, to find your way out, you just keep the torches on your left.
    If theres an instance where you need to light the left side (big open caves etc), just try and place the torches on the floor instead.
    Tis fairly crude, and certainly doesnt work all the time, but I find it handy

    Mark points of interest (the start of a new cave system, cool rooms, lava pools, large mineral deposits you're not equiped to dig at the time etc etc), with redstone torches

    Keeping a pool of lava at the bottom of a shaft near your store room gives you a handy way to dispose of junk easily. While pressing 'q' (default?) drops a single item of what your holding, dragging and dropping a stack out of your inventory drops it all at once. Handy for dumping all those dirt blocks


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,403 ✭✭✭The Gnome


    Overheal wrote: »
    I found that information on minepedia

    Hmmmm, maybe I'm misremembering. I'll keep an eye out and try take a screenie.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,182 ✭✭✭Genghiz Cohen


    I have a stack of redstone torches to mark the major intersections and exits of a cavern.
    Also get the Metal Gear Solid soundtrack, great mining music.

    I make arrows by placing unusual bricks down, like cobblestone is not naturally occurring so seeing 3 of them in this order
    CC C
    points me right.
    C CC
    Left
    C

    C
    C
    Up and so on.

    I use Red Stone torches and normal torches to make arrow like so
    R T
    for left
    and so on.


  • Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 17,129 Mod ✭✭✭✭cherryghost


    The bottom of deep and large caves usually stop around 6/7 blocks from the bedstone!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 13,249 ✭✭✭✭Kinetic^


    TNT - blowing stuff up is fun.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 22,569 ✭✭✭✭Tallon


    Kinetic^ wrote: »
    TNT - blowing stuff up is fun.
    Just to add to this. if you dig straight down 64 (Or whatever distance) bricks and plant TNT the whole way back up you will create a ciant cavern


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 13,249 ✭✭✭✭Kinetic^


    Blowing up mountains is lulz! :pac:


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  • Registered Users Posts: 4,879 ✭✭✭Coriolanus


    Some great ideas in here. Definitely going to be trying out some underwater buildings and making an obsidian home in Hell. :D


  • Registered Users Posts: 81,117 ✭✭✭✭Overheal


    Wossack wrote: »
    for navigating around tunnels, I try and keep my torches on the right hand side walls of the caves/tunnels. That way, to find your way out, you just keep the torches on your left.
    If theres an instance where you need to light the left side (big open caves etc), just try and place the torches on the floor instead.
    Tis fairly crude, and certainly doesnt work all the time, but I find it handy
    I had forgotten all about that but it's a rule used Nautically: Right Red Return. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_mark

    You'll notice at inlets and channels there are red buoys on the right (leading inland) and green buoys on the left.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,182 ✭✭✭Genghiz Cohen


    Overheal wrote: »
    n the right (leading inland) and green buoys on the left.

    Black on lakes.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,993 ✭✭✭Wossack


    Overheal wrote: »
    I had forgotten all about that but it's a rule used Nautically: Right Red Return. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_mark

    You'll notice at inlets and channels there are red buoys on the right (leading inland) and green buoys on the left.

    hah, thats pretty cool - must be where I picked it up from


  • Registered Users Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    Overheal wrote: »
    Underwater buildings....
    Quite note on this: Doors do not allow water to pass through, even when open. In survival mode, having an underwater door can be a very handy way of bypassing any MOBs whether you're coming or going.


  • Registered Users Posts: 966 ✭✭✭GO_Bear


    Ok so , Obadisan is hard to find , its where water naturally meets Lava , if you divert two streams , it just gives you normal rock.

    You can take buckets of Lava and water and make a little pit to create obadisan (Works like that for some reason)

    Or get two flows to meet and drop a TNT on top of the meeting point

    And kaboom, **** tons of Obadisan.

    Also I have noticed that you do not find too much at the bedrock. Try and keep 6-10 squares up from it.

    Also . If you make a tunnel in an angle up from the bedrock , and come up under a lake. That is frozen over ...... it can ruin your day when your cave begins to flood


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,793 ✭✭✭oeb


    GO_Bear wrote: »
    Ok so , Obadisan is hard to find , its where water naturally meets Lava , if you divert two streams , it just gives you normal rock.

    It's just where water hits a lava source block.


  • Registered Users Posts: 966 ✭✭✭GO_Bear


    Ahhh , then how come I can make it with TNT ?


  • Registered Users Posts: 179 ✭✭dunie001


    making an obsidian home in Hell.

    You don't need to make it out of obsidian...cobblestone is completely invulnerable in the Nether. Although you do need an iron door instead of the usual timber variety...

    Attempted to make an underwater house...failed epicly when i realised that i would either have to bail out all the water in the middle with a bucket or fill the whole thing in and dig it out again...bugger that!


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  • Registered Users Posts: 179 ✭✭dunie001


    Tallon wrote: »
    Just to add to this. if you dig straight down 64 (Or whatever distance) bricks and plant TNT the whole way back up you will create a ciant cavern

    only problem with that is trying to craft enough TNT...


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