New! Minecraft Dungeon Quest Series!

For the next few updates, I'll be releasing my new Dungeon Maps I've made for Minecraft Beta! Each map was built from the ground up by me, and feature an Adventure style of gameplay complete with puzzles, secret areas, exciting trials, and more! Stay tuned for the first of the Minecraft Dungeons, Hell Frontier!

Minecart Intermediates: Slanted Booster

Another boosting structure is the slanting booster. Slanting boosters carry a minecart up a slope and boost it away

A non-resetting slant booster and it's accompanying travel rail.

To build a non-resetting slant booster, a pit of at least 2 blocks width, 4 blocks length and 3 blocks depth must be available.

1. Dig the pit shown below. The pit should be arranged like this. First, dig down one block deep and two blocks wide.

Next, did down two blocks deep, two blocks wide, and two blocks long.

Last, did down one block deep and two blocks wide. You should end up with a pit identical to the one shown.

A pit. Looks kinda like two benches facing each other.

2. Build a track to travel on. Have it travel into and out of the pit. You'll end up with a silly looking track like this:

The track you will be traveling on.

3. In the pit, starting from the direction your traveling cart will enter from, place a track leading from the raised block out of the pit. In the below picture, the minecart will be coming from the right, so a track was placed on the lower block to the right of the pit, then along the bottom of the pit and finally out of it. Your slanting booster is now complete.

The boosting minecart will rest against the wall to the right in this slant booster.

An alternate version of the slanting booster made to carry minecarts up slopes.

If you want to make a booster that will travel up a slope and automatically reset, then you can improve your design with a few simple steps listed below.



4. If your booster is traveling up a slope and you want it to reset itself after use, run your boosting minecart into a block so that it will slide back down into its starting position.

Build the rail for the booster on a slope.

Remove the rail piece on the top of the block.

Replace the removed rail piece with a solid block. Your slant booster is complete.

Your slanting booster will now slide back into place after use.

Spotlight: Team Avolition: Professional Minecraft Griefers

Griefing is the act of purposefully sabotaging the experience of any multi-player game. From people blocking exits and entrances in MMO's to setting traps in spawn locations in FPS's, griefers have come a long way from their humble roots and can you can expect to find them in any major game with an online multi-player component. Minecraft is no different, and in this game griefing has become almost an art form that is, at it's highest level, as complex as the act of building the many structures featured in this blog. And at it's lowest level, griefing is just a lot of random pointless destruction.

Team Avolition, a group of professional griefers, can be considered both. Here is just one of their many "adventures" in griefing.

Please know that Minecraft Dungeon does not condone or endorse anything featured in this video.

Pwegoable's Minecart Launcher Tutorial

It took a while to work out the kinks, but I finally have a working build of Pwegoable's minecart launcher. Credit goes to the youtuber Pwegoable (link to his channel here) who first discovered and posted a tutorial vid of this glitch.

This build is probably the most difficult one I've ever made, and that is not just because Pwegoable's tutorial was somewhat difficult to follow (sorry Pwegoable). This structure simply looks weird. Take a look at this:

The silver blocks make up the structure.

Yeah, looks pretty mysterious to me too, and I'm the one who made it. This is the minecart launcher, a structure that is built at the end of a long stretch of track that acts like a slingshot for double minecarts.  When a double minecart reaches the end of the rail pictured, the minecart turns onto the launcher structure and continues moving, then it reaches the final block and shoots off of it. The extra minecarts act as platforms, allowing the minecart to essentially jump off of its extra carts.

However, this is a very specific build, and a few requirements must be satisfied before the jumps will occur.

1. A multi-cart is required. The multi-cart can be made using my multi-cart station build or Pwogoable's slightly more primitive method of dropping carts onto each other from above. See his tutorial vid for the details.

2. If you are using Pwegoable's double cart making method, a certain amount of spacing is needed between the carts for the launcher to work. See his tutorial vid for details. This spacing is already provided automatically if you use my multi-cart structure. However, with my structure you must be sure not to allow too much spacing or the minecarts will break apart.

3. A relatively long track must lead to the minecart launcher, and that track needs at least one booster. A large amount of momentum is needed for the minecarts to jump, so at least one booster is necessary. The track must be of a good length too. I used a track of about 40 blocks for my prototype.

4. A launcher must be placed at a turn that travels outward one block and one block only. This is the only place where a minecart launcher works.

Here is a grid drawing of the minecart launcher. The launcher has three levels: top, middle, and bottom. The rail is only on the top level.

Top level. The brown represents the rail track. The silver represents the launcher.

The middle level. The brown represents the rail track above and does not need to be added to this level.

The bottom. Only one block needs to be placed here.

If every condition is satisfied and the launcher is made correctly, then players will have a pretty entertaining build to their credit. Note that this build is currently untested in multiplayer servers, so it may or may not work there. If anyone could give this a try and tell me if it does work, I'd be very grateful.

Minecart Intermediates: Double-Cart/ Multi-Cart Station Update

Here is an improved version of the Double-cart and Multi-cart station from a few days ago. The only major changes in this version is the addition of a lever to change the station from a multi-cart creation mode to a deployment mode.

This version can be toggled from a multi-cart creating mode...

...to a deployment mode.

In order to make this version of the multi-cart station, simply add a track leading to the curving portion of the station's rails. This will be the exit track. Then place a lever in front of the curving rail that meets the exit track.

Just put the lever right here and you're done.

When you deploy your multi-cart (which is done by giving it a slight push and then getting in before it gets away from you!) make sure it is on the side closer to the exit rail. Multi-carts and double-carts don't take too well to difficult turns, but they can handle 90 degree turns pretty well. More or less.

Here are a few things to remember about these kinds of carts:

1. Every turn increases the chance that a multi-cart or double-cart will break apart. The higher degree the turn, the more likely this becomes.

2. Multi-carts and double-carts can travel underwater, not over water. I once mistakenly reported the latter, and for that I apologize. You can drown while riding underwater, but there exists the possibility of underwater train tunnels...

3. Double-carts cannot move past mobs and items, but there is a high chance that multi-carts with more than three carts can. The more carts used in the multi-cart, the higher the chance. A train of 5 carts is essentially unstoppable lest it run into a corner.

That's all for now. Next I'll have a tutorial on the minecart launchers (jumps).

Minecart Launchers/ Minecart Jumps/

In a previous post, I mentioned that multi-carts could be used to achieve minecart jumps. Since I am currently testing my own build of minecart jumps, I will take this time to refer readers to the crafter from whom I first learned about minecart jumps, the youtuber Pwegoable. Pwegoable named his minecart jumping structure a "minecart launcher", and as far as I know he is the only person to have ever discovered this glitch. The below video is his tutorial.

I will have a post on minecart jumps after I'm done testing my own builds.

Spotlight: SeaNanners' Let's play Minecraft

If anyone has never played Minecraft before and need a few videos to show them how much fun the game can be, I recommend the SeaNanners LP (Let's Play) series on youtube. SeaNanners, a youtuber known best for his FPS videos, shows beginner players what to do and what not to do to survive and thrive in minecraft. SeaNanners has a pretty unique personality, but his heart is in the right place!

Remember that SeaNanners is playing on an earlier version of Minecraft and there have been many improvements and additions since, but his videos are a good example of the fun that Minecraft players can make for themselves....

...and the videos are also a good example of why you won't like creepers.

Minecart Intermediates: Multi-Carts

A Multi-cart is another minecart glitch that works on the same principles as a booster with one exception: Multi-carts are self-powered, meaning that they are essentially their own booster. Every booster works on the same physics: that of two minecarts on parallel tracks pushing each other and feeding off of each others energy. Multi-carts, however, are two or more minecarts in one on the same track.

Multi-carts strengths lie in their ability to:
1. Potentially travel forever
2. Power themselves without the need of a booster
3. Travel over flat land and water
4. Be created with ease
5. Do minecart jumps! (SUPER ADVANCED TECHNIQUE! Will describe later.)

Multi-carts are not perfect though, and they can be broken apart if the track they are on has too many turns.

Here are the steps to create a multi-cart station

1. Make a rail loop of at least 4 blocks length.

2. Remove one end of the rail loop.

3. Replace the removed rails with solid blocks.

4. Now place a minecart against each rail so that the carts rest against the blocks. The minecarts should move around the bend and combine. You now have a multi-cart!

Place a cart against one block...

...and then the other. The carts should boost each other...

...and combine! You now have a multi-cart!

6. To make the double cart move, all you have to do is touch it! Now place a rail upon one of the blocks that the multi-cart is NOT resting against, give the cart a tap, jump in quickly, and go for a ride!


As the name multi-cart suggests, you can make triple, quadruple, penta, etc carts simply by putting another cart on the empty rail. The more carts you use, the more powerful your cart momentum is, but more carts also means less stability, so your multi-cart becomes even more likely to break apart when turning on a rail.

The multi-cart is not as well researched as boosters, so expect some unexpected things. If a user is unprepared, it is not unusual for them to lose their multicart as it speeds off into the horizon without its rider, but they can be great tools to use while in the wilderness should you need a fast way to travel across a flatland, an ocean or down a mountain.

I am currently testing multi-carts to see what kind of uses they can be put to, so expect further information on the subject at a later time. That includes details on the minecart jumping which I mentioned earlier in the post.

Minecart Intermediates: Infinite Booster

As a matter of principle, I don't present any structures that are inherently flawed or dangerous to a crafters world or data, but the next booster is simply so powerful that its benefits occasionally outweigh its shortcomings. To kick off the Minecart Intermediates, I will present the Infinite Minecart booster, a booster that, as its name suggest, gives infinite momentum to the minecarts it boosts. This boost comes at a cost, however. Older versions of boosters caused minecraft to crash when they would literally accelerate infinitely. Newer boosters were redesigned to have mandatory stops which reset their momentum.

Nowadays, Minecraft does not allow a booster's momentum to crash a game, but cart's momentum can still go far above what it is supposed to, and problems can occur when that happens. The Infinite Booster, while able to power a cart along an infinite number of rails, is able to cause every problem associated with momentum.

It won't crash your game, but you will run into glitches like:
1. Booster minecarts glitching onto other rails that they are not placed upon.
2. "Mine Cars", which are minecarts that can move on surfaces other than minecart rails. This only happens to the booster carts.
3. Lag!
4. Unstoppable carts that will simply push the player out of the way when he/she tries to stop it.
5. Strange things may happen to your computer due to increased processor load. Somehow while testing this build, my screen display settings changed and my brightness turned itself to max. I am not kidding. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

And technically a glitch, but a positive one, or in other words, the only postitive one:
6. A minecart with high speed, infinite momentum, and the ability to push stray enemies out of its way.

In many cases, a cart with infinite momentum, maximum speed, and the ability to shoulder past enemies who it normal cases would cause a cart to stop would be very useful. Here are the steps to make one:

1. Make a 3 by 3 square of minecart tracks.

Make a 3 by 3 square rail...

2. Fill the track with 5 minecarts.

...and put on 5 minecarts. The minecarts might fall off due to a glitch, but you can just pick them up and put them back onto the rails.

3. Wait until the minecarts begin to circle. The minecarts might not go in the direction you wish, but this can be solved easily in the next step. The minecarts also tend to combine, which is why there seems to be only 2 minecarts in the picture, when there are actually 5.

5. If the minecarts swirl in a direction you don't wish to travel, either build a one-way p-junction or loop a rail around the booster and build your track in the direction you wish.

You can either make a p-junction to go in the direction you want(in this case, left)...

...or just loop around to the left manually.

Now all you have to do is put a minecart on the track where it touches the booster's rails and get ready for a REALLY long ride. The longest I could stand riding on the giant, island-sized circlular track I made to test this was half an hour, but maybe you can manage longer. When I say infinite, I mean infinite. Any cart that touches this booster cart will travel forever on rails until it hits a solid block or falls into a hole. If you were to break one of the rails that the booster carts are traveling on, the booster carts will escape and also travel forever, with or without rail tracks, until they hit a solid block or fall into a hole.

I'll say for the record that despite all of its strengths, I dislike this booster and I will never use it in any of my future designs. I say this because it does pose a real threat to a user's computer. The CPU usage this glitch causes leads to many unintended effects, and I really don't know how severe they can be. I wasn't kidding when I said that my power settings really did change itself to max once when I put the 5 minecarts onto the booster. The only reason I'm including this build is to inform users of its dangers so that if they ever see it again, they can decide for themselves whether or not to use it. It's all up to you.

-WorldCraft

Minecart Basics: One-way junction

Now we're beginning to get to the good stuff. Here's a tutorial on how to make one way rails in minecraft.

One of the simple things that can mess up a minecart system is a stray minecart. A minecart headed in an unintended direction can screw up boosters, stop other minecarts, cause wars and famine, and generally be a nuisance. However, there are simple ways to get solve problems caused by stray minecarts. One is to take advantage of the t-junction in order to turn stray carts around without affecting other carts. Take a look at this rail structure here.

This weird looking loop can only be traveled though in one direction, making it an effective barrier against stray carts. These rail forms are called one-way junctions. Anything coming from the left will go straight, and anything coming from the right will be turned around and made to go to the left, making this rail one-way.

Things coming from the left...

...will continue unhindered.

But things from the right will travel around the loop...

...and then also go to the left.

An illustration of how a minecart travels a p-junction. Courtesy of MSPaint.

The one-way junction in the pictures above are made by curving a t-junction into itself, making a "P" shape. These are called P-junctions (I made up that name myself! Hurr Durr!). This isn't the only form a one-way junction can take, although it is the simplest. All of the following rail forms are also one-way.

There are hook-junctions:

A one-way junction + a hook resetter

J-junctions:

A one-way junction + a resetting booster

And what I like to call a franken-junction.

WTH is that? A p-junction + a hook junction + a booster + another hook junction + a j-junction?!

Please come back, Notch! We need you!

Minecraft.net and it's associated minecraft servers (a.k.a. all of them) are down, as well as most users' home minecraft client. Personally, this is the second time in a very short while that my minecraft has gone down(the second time this week!), but that's only because I mostly only play the single player mode. The multiplayer mode (a.k.a. servers) has gone down several times in the past, but only for short amounts of time.

However, ever since Notch took a vacation, Minecraft and Mojang has basically been falling apart. The website has gone down several times, and when the website is down then all client side servers are down, and some sort of faulty download has been crashing home clients. I'm not one to judge too harshly, but if Mojang can't operate without Notch, then it isn't a real company or studio.

Anyway, here's another funny video from the wonderful world of Minecraft. I've gotten my minecraft up and working again, so expect another tutorial in the near future.

My Minecraft is not working again...

Once again, I can't get minecraft to play, neither on my laptop nor on minecraft.net. I'll be taking some time to get to the bottom of this and hopefully fix my game in a way that won't corrupt anymore. In the mean time, please enjoy this funny minecraft related video!

Minecart Basics: T-shaped Intersection

For the next chapter in crafting, we have the T-shaped intersection, which is known in crafting circles as a t-junction. A t-junction occurs when a rail reaches another rail that curves. T-junctions resemble forks in a road, with one major exception: Unlike with forks, the rider has no control over where their minecart travels when it it reaches a junction.

T-junctions look like this:

It does indeed look like a T.

A T-junction is a turning track with a straight track leading to it.

T-junctions allow carts to turn in different directions depending on what direction the cart is coming from. For instance, a cart traveling on the straight track on the right of the screen will continue traveling on a straight path to the left.

The cart coming from the right...

...ignores the curve and travels to the left.

However, if that same cart is coming from the left, then it will turn at the junction instead of traveling straight.

But the cart coming from the left turns...

T-junctions can make effective one-way streets for minecarts, as well as many other things like delayed boosters, two-way resetters, and more. It can even make "minecart labyrinths", mazes made entirely out of minecart rails that are made to be ridden through like a roller coaster. Later, I'll show you some useful constructs you can make from t-junctions.

Minecart Rail Basics: The South-West Rule

An important part of understanding minecarts in Minecraft lies in knowing the south-west rule. Not knowing the rule can cause a crafter a lot of grief as he or she tries to figure out why a minecart at an intersection only travels to the left or right, or why a booster resetter seems to only work when facing one direction. The south-west glitch of minecarts comes from the fact that blocks essentially "begin" at their north-east corner, which somehow lends many blocks different properties depending on the direction they are facing.

The south-west rule of minecarts states that minecarts will favor the south or the west direction when meeting at an intersection and the north or east direction when joining tracks. This means that when a minecart travels to a T-shaped intersection, it will travel either to the west or the south, and that when a booster resetter is made, the hooked end must face either the north or the east (unless you use the bypass I spoke of in previous posts.

Here are a few example of the south west rule in action on intersections:

Notice how one track overlaps another? If the track on top runs east to west...

...your cart will travel west!

If track on top runs north to south...

...then your cart will run south!

Note that the track on top decides which way the minecart will turn at an intersection.

And here is an example of the north-east rule in action on hooked resetters:

Only the resetters facing north and east are working at first...

But of course, the hooked resetter can be fixed easily as described earlier.

...but with some redstone torches, that's not a problem!

Minecart Basics: Resetting Boosters

Now for the next subject in Minecart crafting, we come to resetting boosters. The booster we previously made was a non-resetting booster, meaning that after every use, the booster had to be manually reset. For minecart systems to that are to be used many times by large numbers of people, a non-resetting booster just won't do, especially in minecart systems that require multiple boosters.

So instead, we'll make a booster that resets by itself so that we don't have to worry about it. For this, we will use the booster we made in the previous post.

We'll make it faster, stronger...

And we will also make a hook resetter that we also made in an even previous-er post. First we'll clear out a 2 by 2 square.

Clear out a space for the reset. 2 by 2 should do.

Next, we'll make a circle of rails. Notice the positioning of the straight track and how it doesn't yet connect to the circle.

Make a circle of rails

After that, we'll connect a rail to the circle. We do this by removing one rail on the circle and immediately replacing it.

Connect the rail

Remove a piece of the rail that touches the straight track

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And replace it. Tadah!

However, due to the south-west rule, if your booster is facing the south or the west your hook may not come out right. In this case, you can use a bypass method I found. Just place a redstone torch next to the circle and it will right itself to the shape you wish.

Just be careful about where you place your redstone torch. If it's too close to your other rails, you may find that your minetrack has gained a surprising new shape...

Wtf happened to my rails!?

You might need to position your booster a bit farther away, but it won't hurt the mechanism much.

And boom. Your minecart will return to its starting position after reaching the hook, effectively resetting it. Sandwich time!