Tools and Weapons 26.1.2

Learn how to create your own tools and configure their properties.

Tools are essential for survival and progression, allowing players to gather resources, construct buildings, and defend themselves.

Creating a Tool Material

You can create a tool material by instantiating a new ToolMaterial object and storing it in a field that can be used later to create the tool items that use the material.

public static final ToolMaterial GUIDITE_TOOL_MATERIAL = new ToolMaterial(
		INCORRECT_FOR_GUIDITE_TOOL, // incorrect blocks for drops
		455, // durability
		5.0F, // speed
		1.5F, // attack damage bonus
		22, // enchantment value
		GuiditeArmorMaterial.REPAIRS_GUIDITE_ARMOR // repair items
);

The ToolMaterial constructor accepts the following parameters, in this specific order:

Parameter	Description
incorrectBlocksForDrops	If a block is in the incorrectBlocksForDrops tag, it means that when you use a tool made from this ToolMaterial on that block, the block will not drop any items.
durability	The durability of all tools that are of this ToolMaterial.
speed	The mining speed of the tools that are of this ToolMaterial.
attackDamageBonus	The additional attack damage of the tools that are of this ToolMaterial will have.
enchantmentValue	The "Enchantability" of tools which are of this ToolMaterial.
repairItems	Any items within this tag can be used to repair tools of this ToolMaterial in an anvil.

For this example, we will use the same repair item tag we will be using for armor. We define the tag reference as follows:

public static final TagKey<Item> REPAIRS_GUIDITE_ARMOR = TagKey.create(BuiltInRegistries.ITEM.key(), Identifier.fromNamespaceAndPath(ExampleMod.MOD_ID, "repairs_guidite_armor"));

If you're struggling to determine balanced values for any of the numerical parameters, you should consider looking at the vanilla tool material constants, such as ToolMaterial.STONE or ToolMaterial.DIAMOND.

Creating the Tool Material Tag

For our incorrectBlocksForDrops tag, we can create a tag similar to vanilla's minecraft:incorrect_for_*_drops tags, which determines the blocks that will not drop when mined with the material. Let's define the tag reference as follows:

public static final TagKey<Block> INCORRECT_FOR_GUIDITE_TOOL = TagKey.create(BuiltInRegistries.BLOCK.key(),
		Identifier.fromNamespaceAndPath(ExampleMod.MOD_ID, "incorrect_for_guidite_tool"));

Next, we define the tag's contents using a tag JSON. Let's make Guidite tools be able to mine the same blocks as wooden tools, plus Copper Ore and Deepslate Copper Ore:

{
  "values": ["#minecraft:incorrect_for_wooden_tool"],
  "fabric:remove": ["#minecraft:copper_ores"]
}

Note that this example inherits from a weaker tool material and removes entries that our stronger material can mine, inheriting all of the other blocks that wood cannot.

TIP

We could also do the reverse: inherit from a stronger tool and append additional blocks that Guidite tools are unfit for.

As an example, if we wanted to create a tool that worked like iron but couldn't mine Diamond Ore, values would need to contain #minecraft:incorrect_for_iron_tool and #minecraft:diamond_ores.

If you want to make your tool material mine the same blocks as an existing one, you can include the respective tag in your tag's definition without any additions or removals. This is recommended over passing the existing tag as your material's incorrectBlocksForDrops so that users can configure the incorrect blocks for each of the materials independently.

Registering Tool Items

Using the same utility function as in the Creating Your First Item guide, you can create your tool items:

public static final Item GUIDITE_SWORD = register(
		"guidite_sword",
		Item::new,
		new Item.Properties().sword(GUIDITE_TOOL_MATERIAL, 1f, 1f)
);

The two float values (1f, 1f) refer to the attack damage of the tool and the attack speed of the tool respectively.

For shovels, axes, and hoes, you should create a ShovelItem, AxeItem, or HoeItem instead of a generic Item, as these implement tool-specific right-click actions:

public static final Item GUIDITE_AXE = register(
				"guidite_axe",
				settings -> new AxeItem(GUIDITE_TOOL_MATERIAL, 5.0F, -3.0F, settings),
				new Item.Properties());

INFO

ShovelItem, AxeItem, and HoeItem call the shovel, axe, or hoe method of Item.Properties in their constructors.

Remember to add them to a creative tab if you want to access them from the creative inventory!

CreativeModeTabEvents.modifyOutputEvent(CreativeModeTabs.TOOLS_AND_UTILITIES)
		.register((creativeTab) -> creativeTab.accept(ModItems.GUIDITE_SWORD));

You will also have to add a texture, item translation and item model. However, for the item model, you'll want to use the item/handheld model as your parent instead of the usual item/generated.

Assets

You will also have to add a texture, translation, client item, and item model. However, for the item model, you'll want to use the item/handheld model as your parent instead of the usual item/generated.

For this example, we will be defining the following client item, model and texture for the "Guidite Sword" item:

INFO

This model can be data generated. For more information, see the documentation on generating item models.

itemModelGenerator.generateFlatItem(ModItems.GUIDITE_SWORD, ModelTemplates.FLAT_HANDHELD_ITEM);

A similar pattern applies to the "Guidite Axe" item.

itemModelGenerator.generateFlatItem(ModItems.GUIDITE_AXE, ModelTemplates.FLAT_HANDHELD_ITEM);

Tagging Tool Items

PREREQUISITES

For more information, see the documentation on generating item tags.

It's also recommended to place your tool in the appropriate item tags. Tools have their own individual tags, such as ItemTags.SWORDS, which are used for enchantability and other specific logic, like whether to apply sweeping damage.

In your item tag provider, add the following lines to addTags:

valueLookupBuilder(ItemTags.SWORDS)
				.add(ModItems.GUIDITE_SWORD);
valueLookupBuilder(ItemTags.AXES)
				.add(ModItems.GUIDITE_AXE);

That's pretty much it! If you go in-game you should see your tools in the "Tools and Utilities" tab of the creative inventory menu.