What is Minecraft?

What is Minecraft?

Minecraft is a block related game created by a man named Notch. There are several versions of Minecraft which are being improved with updates every now and then. Minecraft has several mods and texture packs that are available to improve graphics and gameplay. Mods are installations that add new items and may change gameplay a slight bit to make the game better, there are mods that can add such items as guns and more. Texture packs are installations that improve graphics and may change the look of some items. For example, the average bow and arrow in Minecraft could be modified into something sacred or attractive.

A Minecraft screenshot. (As you can see everything is in blocks.)

A Minecraft screenshot with a texture pack installed. 

Minecraft Walkthrough (May contain spoilers)

When you start in Minecraft you will appear in a landscape. The landscape could be a snowy area, a jungle etc. In order to survive you must have a house and be capable to find food. The most common building component for a house is wood, which can be found in trees. You can break the tree by left clicking on it, once you pick up the wood block, you can put it in your crafting screen to make four wooden planks. Press 'E' to open your inventory and put the wood block in your 2x2 square screen. To  place down blocks that you make or collect, right click the ground with the desired block in your invent. Once you think you have enough wooden planks to make the walls of your house, it should be time for you to add a door to access your house in and out with ease. To make a door you need 6 wooden planks in a 2x3 rectangle. You may now realise that that you only have a 2x2 crafting screen, however you need a 3x3 screen in order to make a door. To make a crafting table You need to fill the 2x2 crafting screen with wooden planks. 

Like so.

Like so.

Once you have the walls of your house, you may want to add some windows. There are two types of windows you can add to your house. One is glass and one is glass panes. To make glass, you need sand which can be found on a beach. Once you have collected your sand, you need to smith it with a furnace that is made of cobblestone which can be mined with a pickaxe, which can be made with 2 sticks and 3 wooden planks. The fuel used to smith the glass can be wood or wooden planks.

 

 

This is how you craft sticks.

  This is how you can craft a furnace.                           

                                          

This is how you craft a pickaxe.

 This is how you make one glass block.

This is how you make glass panes, you need six glass blocks.

I wont go too much into a walkthrough, but at least you have the basic idea on how to build a house.

Mobs at Night

The dangerous time of Minecraft, night time. During night time, if you're not on the peaceful difficulty, mobs will spawn. A mob is an NPC that is capable of moving and maybe, attacking you or blowing up your house.

      

For new players, I suggest you start of on 'peaceful' mode, in peaceful mode, no hostile mobs will spawn and you will be perfectly safe. The time of Minecraft will still be night and day on peaceful though.

Hostile Mobs:

Zombie: A zombie is a melee fighter that can deal heavy damage if not wielding armour. Their attack speed is moderate. Spawn only at night or in dark places. Will burn in sunlight.

Loot from Zombies: Rotten flesh

 Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- Yes

Immune to fall damage?

- No

Immune to day light?

- No

Skeleton: A skeleton is a range figher who wields the classic bow and arrow. They can be hard to deal with in large numbers. Their attack speed is fairly slow but can cause heavy damage if not wielding armour. Spawn only at night or in dark places. Will burn in sunlight.

Loot from Skeletons: Bones and/or possibly a bow or bow with a 'power I' upgrade.

Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- Yes

Immune to fall damage?

- No

Immune to day light?

- No

 

 Creeper: A creeper is a walking bomb, it walks up to you and blows up. However if you get out of its range fast enough, the creeper will cancel its explosion. When a creeper explodes, it dies straight away. Best way to fight these creatures is with a bow and arrow. Spawn only at night or in dark places. Will not burn in sunlight, but will still remain in the day for a short amount of time before despawning.

Loot from Creepers: Gunpowder and/or a music disc if killed by a skeleton.

Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- Yes 

Immune to fall damage?

- No

Immune to day light?

- Yes

Endermen: Semi-hostile creatures. To make these creatures hostile, you must either attack them, or look at them in the eye with your crossheir. Enderman cause devestating damage and can look rather intimidating. Endermen can also teleport closer to you when they become hostile. A good way to escape from an Endermen is to run into water as Endermen take damage from water. When Endermen take damage from water, they immediately teleport away and become neutral again. Spawn only at night or in dark places. WIll not burn in sunlight, but will still remain in the day for a short amount of time before despawning.

Loot from Endermen: Ender Perals.

Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- Immediately teleport when making contact with water 

Immune to fall damage? 

- No

Immune to day light?

- Yes

Spider: A hostile creature during the night and in dark places, neutral during the day unless was hostile during the night. Spiders are capable of climbing structures and attack relatively fast.

Loot from Spiders: Spider eyes and/or string.

Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- Yes

Immune to fall damage?

- No, but can catch on to blocks to stop falling.

Immune to day light?

- Yes

Slimes: Similar to magma cubes, slimes will split into more slimes when killed. Slimes can only be found deep in the mines, near bedrock. Slimes come in three sizes, large, medium and small. All sizes will drop slime balls which is what slimes leave behind after death.

Loot from Slimes: Slime balls.

Immune to lava?

- No

Immune to drowning?

- No

Immune to fall damage?

- No

Immune to day light?

- Yes

 Hostile Nether Mobs:

Ghast: A ghast is a massively large creature that has the ability to fly. Its main attack is a a ranged fire ball. It explodes on impact and lights objects and other mobs on fire. It is almost impossible to attack it with melee, so the best way to fight these creatures is with a bow and arrow. These creatures can also only be found in the nether. Their attack speed is slightly slower than zombies.

Loot from Ghast: Ghast tears and/or gunpowder.

Immune to lava?

- Yes

Immune to drowning?

- No water in Nether

Immune to fall damage?

- Impossible to fall since they can fly

Immune to day light?

- No day light in nether

 Zombie Pigmen: Semi-hostile creatures. To make these creatures hostile is by attacking them normally. However that is highly 'NOT' reccomended as they normally lurk in packs of at least 3 to about 15 max. Zombie Pigmen hit relativly hard and can endure quite a few hits, even with a weapon. 1 on 1 can be easy, but 1 on 15 is suicidal. Their attack speed is slightly faster than zombies.

Loot from Zombie Pigmen: Rotten flesh and or one gold nugget.

Immune to lava?

- Yes

Immune to fall damage?

- No

  

 Blazes: Blazes are creatures with the ability to fly and can only be found near nether fortresses. Their ability is to shoot fire balls similar to ghast. However instead of blowing up an area dealing area of effect damage, they only light blocks on fire. If you get hit by a fire ball, you will take damage from the impact of the ball and take a few more hits due to the fire burning you, unless you have drunken a potion of fire resistance.

Loot from Blazes: Blaze rods.

Immune to lava?

Magma Cubes: Magma cubes are square like creatures that are extremely hostile. Magma cubes are similar to slimes, when killed, they split into more and smaller magma cubes. The largest magma cube is extremely dangerous as they can jump very high and push you easily 5 blocks back. In the nether, there isn't much safe ground around. Best way to deal with these creatures may very well be a bow and arrow.

Loot from Magma Cubes: Magma cream (Only from the large and medium size magma cubes)

 (These are small magma cubes)

 What is all this loot???

Rotten Flesh: Rotten Flesh is a consumable item that restores your hunger bar, however has a small chance of poisoning you in the process. The poison will make your hunger bar decrease a lot faster than it will normally would.

Bones: Can be used to craft bonemeal. Bonemeal is used to make crops grow instantly. Bones can also be used to tame wolves. Tamed wolves will help out in combat and will defend the player against any hostile mob except creepers and nether mobs.

Spider Eyes: Spiders eyes have two purposes. One of them is for making potions, such as splash potions of poison. The other purpose is for food, when eaten, spider eyes will restore the player's hunger bar, however at the same time deal a few points of damage.

Gunpowder: Gun powder is used for making TNT. TNT is mainly used for clearing land or as defenses and traps.

Music Disc: A music disc is a disc that plays music when put into a jukebox. There are quite a few disc which you can collect. The only way to get a disc is if a skeleton brings the death on a creeper.

Ender Perals: Ender perals can be used for two purposes. One of them is for teleporting. When a player right clicks an ender peral, the player will throw the ender peral in the direction of his/her crossheirs. When the peral lands, that is where the player will teleport to. The player will also take a few hearts of damage at the cost of teleporting. The second purpose of ender perals is for making them into 'Eyes of Ender'. Eyes of Ender can be used to locate 'The End'.

Ghast Tears: Ghast tears can be used to make potions of regeneration, which heal the player overtime. Ghast tears can be a hard ingredient to gather as ghast usually lurk over lava, and when killed the drops will fall beneath them into lava and be destroyed immediately.

Gold Nuggets: Gold Nuggets are tiny fragments of gold from gold ingots. To piece together a gold ingot from nuggets, you need nine gold nuggets and put them in a crafting bench to from an ingot. 

Blaze Rods: Blaze rods can be used for two purposes. One of them is for making potions of strength, which increase the amount of damage you do with attacks. The other is for making Eyes of Ender. Eyes of Ender can be used to locate the portal which leads to 'The End'.

Magma Cream: Magma cream can be used to make potions of fire resistance.

Slime Balls: Slime balls can be used to make sticky pistons, which can be used for traps, automatic farms, etc.