The Joys of Mining and Crafting

A while ago I wrote about starting to play Minecraft, and my surprise at how utterly captivating I found it. Safe to say, I'm still enthralled! Earlier this year, the shared server I had been playing on was closed down, and although I started a single-player world of my own too, I missed playing with other people. So at the suggestion of my Beloved, a couple of months ago I braved the world of setting up my own Minecraft server. To my great astonishment, it was surprisingly manageable - and not only did I manage to set it up, but I also successfully installed a number of 'mods' on the server (little add-ons to how more information about items, or to add extra functionality). As if that wasn't enough, I then updated it all a few weeks later to the newer version of the game - and had to update my own copy and Offspring #1's too.

My new base, from a tutorial by Avomance on YouTube. Looking at this, I definitely need to 'texture' the bridge section by adding in some different block types to break up the brick effect.

The next challenge was helping one of my Bonus Children set up all the mods etc. at long distance, but we got that sorted, so they settled in to helping Chaos Gremlin with their base. And apparently I've told my best friend so much about all the fun I have playing Minecraft that she's now joined my world, never having played before. We have a very strange friendship in one way, in that since we moved away from each other physically, we keep up by frequent text and occasional visits - not phone calls, for no reason that either of us knows! However, now that she's on the server, we've actually chatted a few times while playing - pottering through doing things together and chatting is a lovely way to spend time.

As I said in my previous post about the game, unlike I think every other game I've played, Minecraft doesn't have much by way of a tutorial to help new players get started. So here are my top tips:

1. It doesn't matter if you don't think you're creative - there's inspiration aplenty available on the internet, so just look for what inspires you.

2. YouTube is an amazing source of not just inspiration, but also instruction. Lots of helpful tutorials for how to build everything from a basic house to super-complicated redstone contraptions.

3. There's no right way to play - and therefore no wrong way. Some people aim to get through the game from new world to beating the end dragon as quickly as possible; some people try to get all the achievements; some people enjoy parkour races; some people like building complex creations. And some of us just like to build a nice house or two, and make a small area look pretty. Whatever you find fun, that's fine.

4. You can make things, and if they don't work or you don't like them, you can break them down again, or change bits. Nothing has to be permanent.

5. If you build something from a tutorial, that's a great way to get started. But remember it's fine to customise things and make them what you want, whether that's changing the wood and stone used to make them, or repurposing internal rooms, or whatever. It's your build - make it your way.

In terms of gameplay, useful things to know:

a) Crops grow best within 4 blocks of water, so if you're setting up a farm for wheat, carrots or other veggies, it will be most effective if you place a bucket of water every 8 blocks. You can cover this with a trapdoor or slab so you don't fall into it, and it will still work fine.

b) Hostile mobs such as zombies spawn where the light level is 0, so make sure you put torches around your base or wherever you're building, mining, or whatever.

c) Trading with villagers is a great way of getting helpful resources. If you make sure there's a fletching table, you can trade sticks for emeralds, which you can then use to buy better armour, tools, and weapons.

d) You can never have too many chests - it's worth trying to set up an organised storage system early on, because there is very little that's more frustrating than having to search through dozens of chests for your good axe which you know you put down somewhere. If you put a chest down next to another chest facing the same direction, they will automatically combine into a double chest. If you don't want them to combine, hold shift when you place the second chest.

e) And again, YouTube - there's such a wealth of information on there. If you have any questions about anything, there will be a multitude of answering videos there. The Minecraft wiki is also fantastic for information on how to use or craft items, details on villagers, and everything you can think of.

Back of the base, at night

I think part of my enjoyment is that I can still play and have fun even while struggling as much as I have been for the past few months. This is a game that is still accessible and manageable for me while I'm struggling with mental fatigue and lack of focus. At my very worst, I can park my character safely at a farm so that iron, or bamboo, or whatever else will be passively produced while I do nothing. And at my best, I can build something new, or primp and preen an existing build to prettify it.

So I will be continuing to play, to build, to try new things and develop new skills in the game. And hopefully also spending time with my (not-always-very-)near and (definitely-always-very-)dear ones online when we can't be together in person.