More Biomes

   I'm going to take more time to show you some of the cool biomes in Minecraft today.

   Here are some of them:



   This is the Nether, basically the underworld of Minecraft. There's lava everywhere, the ground is made of netherrack and soulsand, and giant flying fireball-shooting white jellyfish are everywhere.

   If you're lucky, you'll find a Nether Stronghold. Nether Strongholds are very rare, and have loot that is essential to beating the game. There is a special but dangerous mob here, the Blazes, who can fly and shoot fireballs in quick succession.

   This next photo is the End. The End is the home of the Endermen. It is a strange dimension, with floating islands made out of a mysterious material named Endstone. Here, the Enderdragon rests. The Enderdragon is the final boss in the game, and he can only be defeated by destroying all of the crystals at the top of all the obsidian towers in the End, then taking out the Enderdragon itself. This may seem easy, but the Enderdragon will charge at you and throw you off the towers. Once he is defeated, he will drop around 100 levels worth of XP and a portal that leads you back to the Overworld. It also drops a Dragon Egg, but as of now the egg has no use in the game.

   Maybe later on, you can hatch a baby dragon and tame it. :D

   This following picture is the Jungle. The Jungle is one of the wildest places in Minecraft- leaves grow EVERYWHERE on the ground, and giant towering jungle trees are everywhere. The trees are so big, you can literally make a mansion on one. The Jungle is also the home of the Ocelot, which you can make into a tame cat by feeding it raw fish. However, Ocelots are VERY shy, so if you move at all they will dash away. You have to stand absolutely still to make it walk up to you.

   That's all for now. I'll post more pictures when I get more.

 

Biome Pictures

Just wanted to show a few of the biomes, for those who don't play Minecraft. I'll post more pictures in the future.

A Word on Admins and OPs

A lot of people on my server have been asking questions about how to become and OP and what OPs do and other things. To clear things up for people on my server and other people, I'm going to say a few things on Admins, OPs, Members, etc.

To start with, I'm going to explain the main hierarchy of a server. The list of ranks on a basic server are listed below, as well as what they are.

Members: People who play on the server but do not have any special commands. This is a "Civilian"-type rank.

OPs: OPs (stands for Operators) are people who do not own the server, but have powers and generally help out with some of the Admin's jobs. This is a "Policeman"-type rank.

Admins: Admins are the owners of the server, or people very close to the owner. Admins preside over all the other ranks, and have the final say in everything. This is a "President" or "Dictator"- type rank.

Those are the main "ranks" of a basic server. However, on some there may be more.

Many people on my server have asked me how they can become an OP, and this next part is dedicated to that question. There are some general rules you need to pass on my server, and they are very similar on other servers I have seen. Here's the list:

-How to become an OP on most servers-

1. You must have played on the server for a long time. You can't just join then ask to be an OP a week later. Around 3 months or more is recommended.

2. You must be very skilled at surviving in Minecraft. This includes knowing how to craft, being good at fighting monsters, know what the different blocks are, etc.

3. You must be good at building. Admins and other OPs may rely on you to help with a building project, and you must be good to help. It also shows off your skill at Minecraft and your knowledge of blocks.

4. You must be liked by many players on the server. It's no use being an OP when everyone on the server hates you. :D

5. You must not have griefed and you must be able to be trusted with OP powers. Admins will not OP someone when they feel that they cannot be trusted to use their powers to help.

GOLDEN RULE (Applies an almost EVERY server): NEVER ask to be an OP. It only annoys the admins, and they will OP you when they feel you are ready and they need more OPs. If they don't OP you, it may be just because they have no need for a new OP.

If you don't qualify for one of these, you might still become an OP by excelling in the other categories. Trust me- I've seen servers where a guy comes on, and 20 minutes later he asked to be an OP. Me and the admin were discussing whether to ban him or not. :D

Also, many people have asked if THEY can make their own server. I think these are the main reasons people want to create a server when they see mine:

1. They feel that I do a horrible job and they want to make their own so everyone will be better off.
2 (Most Likely): They want to have the power of being an admin and having control.

Honestly, I don't see why people even bother making a server for reason 2. It's actually EXTREMELY hard to make a server, run it, and then maintain control of it. Here's the things that happen in the daily life of an admin:

1. People keep killing each other.
2. People keep robbing each other.
3. People keep destroying each other's houses.
4. You have to keep all the OPs in line.
5. You have to clean up the messes 1-3 have caused.
6. You have to deal with people claiming your OPs are idiots and should be de-OPed.
7. You have to deal with people claiming other people should be banned.
8. You have to hunt through the console (the server "brain" basically) and get evidence to find proof for accusations people make.
9. You have to deal with people asking to be OP.
10. You have to deal with n00bs asking how to do something.
11. You have to deal with people begging for stuff.


All of the above happen 1-10 times in a week, killing, asking for stuff, destroying houses, and asking for OP being the most common. Begging and asking for OP are far ahead, with maybe 30 times asked a week (Some in-game, some from people at my school).

It's quite difficult, running a server that's as big as mine. Hold on, I'm gonna do a count of the people that ACTIVELY play on the server....

21 play about every day, and about 12 more either play every once in a while or rarely ever play.

o_0. That's a lot.

Hope this helped you understand some things!

A Very Fun "Tradition"

As you've probably read from the last few posts, I've been playing the Super Hostile adventure map series. (By the way, I co-play it with my brother, another veteran of Minecraft.) Well, me and my brother were trying to pass an EXTREMELY hard dungeon with a wool at the other end, and me and my brother made it there alive (Not without dying 90 times) and got the wool. But by then, there were already ghasts outside the wool chamber, so me and my brother just said, "Screw this, we're blowing up this dungeon." It was SO ANNOYING that we just went in Creative and blew up the whole dungeon. Then we went to the surface and blew up the rest of the map, It was fun, so me and my brother made up a little "tradition":

Every time we give up or succeed on a Super Hostile map, we're just going to go into Creative and blow the whole place apart. Then I'll just load the next map in and we'll play the next one. That's how frustrating these maps are.

If you ever play the Super Hostile map series on multiplayer, I would suggest doing the same. It's a great way to blow off steam and "get revenge" on those really hard dungeons that you died in a million times.

Tale of Kingdoms Mod

About a month ago, I found a mod for Minecraft called Tale of Kingdoms. It's a really great mod, and as you've probably guessed, it involves kingdoms.

When you first spawn in a new world, nearby you will find a Guild Castle. The castle is guarded by members, and at the highest floor you will find the GuildMaster. Talk to him, and you will join the Guild- Now, whenever you kill a monster, you will gain Honor. Gain enough Honor, and you will be able to become a king and rule your own kingdom. You also gain Gold Coins when you kill monsters, which you can use to buy items at the several shops in the castle.

Also, note to everyone- I recommend using Mo' Creatures with this mod, as it adds a lot more variety to the monsters instead of just killing zombies and skeletons. It's also fun to use a pegasus to fly around the kingdom. :D

Once you become a King, talk to the City Builder and he will follow you to where you want to build your kingdom and he will build it. From then on, you can give cobblestone and logs to the City Builder so he can build more shops and houses for your kingdom. Once you build all the buildings in a Tier, you can unlock the next Tier which will expand your city walls and unlock more buildings.

However, there is a dark side to this mod- Shortly after you become a king and leave the Guild Castle, an army from the Nether will invade the Guild Castle, killing everyone in it and destroying the Castle. To take revenge, you must train an army in the Barracks and go into the Nether to avenge the Guild.

It's a really cool mod, and I suggest it to everyone. Here's the link:
Tale of Kingdoms Main Page

Super Hostile is Very Hostile

Recently, I just started playing a new adventure map series called Super Hostile. If you don't know what adventure maps are, they are maps created by a person that either has specified goals, a storyline, or you just have to explore. The Super Hostile map series is a group of the hardest maps in Minecraft history. Here  is what a sign in one of them reads:

"This map is hard, I hate you and I want you to die."

It certainly speaks the truth- I've never seen anyone play one of them without dying at least 10 times. The ultimate goal in every map is to find every color of wool and complete the Victory Monument, which is hidden somewhere in the level. All of them have tricks designed to be purely cruel, like a diamond just out of your reach or a chest of treasure with a trap that blows the chest up when you go near it. There are many maps in the series, I'm going to give a brief description of them:

MAP 00: Training

This level is just designed to give you the basics of Minecraft, and some VERY helpful tips that will help you survive.

MAP 01: The Sea Of Flame

In this map, you find yourself on an island of sand, stone and obsidian surrounded by a sea of lava with only one tree (which has a trap hidden inside). You must build a shelter of sand and stone and explore the vast underground areas, with places like the Pigman Temple and the Snow Caves.

MAP 02: The Endless Deep

A map covered by an ocean, where you spawn on an airship. The map includes several secrets, such as a massive underwater dungeon.

MAP 03: The Infernal Sky

A massive series of floating islands- Don't fall off!

MAP 04: The Kazio Caverns

A intricate network of massive cave systems. The whole map takes place underground, and you are surrounded by a massive cube of bedrock, so you will be underground the entire time. This map has amazing variety.

MAP 05: The Black Desert

Welcome to the Black Desert, a place of eternal pain and despair. The entire sky is covered by obsidian, leaving the desert below pitch black (Hence "The Black Desert"). Your only refuge is small holes in the sky where light pours through. Attempt to survive in this wasteland, or die trying!

MAP 06: Canopy Carnage

This map if filled with exotic, massive trees that reach to the top of the world. Falling out of one is instant death! There are many hidden treasures in the trees, as well as chests on the forest floor and a temple. Unlike all the other maps, Canopy Carnage has an abundant source of wood available the second you load the map.

MAP 07: Legendary 

This map is called Legendary because of it's difficulty- Vechs (creator) came up with a name to describe it's hardness, "ROMhack" (probably because you need to hack to beat it :P). This map has several different environments to explore, and is one of the hardest in the series. In the words of Vechs:

You will die. You will suffer. You will yell at your computer screen. You will never beat this map, you will only occasionally hear about someone else who did. Good luck, because you will need it.

MAP 08: Nightmare

Unlike the other maps, this one starts hard and stays that way. This one is also a ROMhack difficulty level.

MAP 09: Sunburn Islands

Feel like you need a break from all this madness? Then head over to Sunburn Islands, which is quite easy(for a Super Hostile map, anyways...). The whole 

map is on a series of sandy islands. Veterans will find this one easy as pie.

Think you're ready for the challenge? If you're up to it, here's the link:

Vech's Super Hostile Maps

Have a fun time dying!

Full Version of Minecraft 1.0 is OUT!

Hurray!

On October 18 (Friday), the full version of Minecraft came out! Now I have lots of bragging rights, because I've played through Alpha, Beta, and the full version. :P

They added lots of new things. 1.9 was kinda mixed together with the full version (they're the same thing), so now you can use potions and enchantments. On my server (Yes, I own a server, might do a post about that later on), I have a Sharpness III (extra damage) and Fire Aspect II (sets mobs and players on fire) sword, which is awesome. They also added Nether Fortresses, which are basically strongholds in the nether made of NetherBrick, NetherFence and NetherStairs (new items). They're the only place where you can find Blazes that drop Blaze Rods, an essential ingredient for potion-making and stronghold-finding. They also have Magma Cubes in the Nether, which are basically red slimes that set you on fire. Monsters are now a lot harder- it now takes 1 or 2 more hits with a diamond sword to kill them.

But I haven't gotten to the main attraction- The End. The End, as the name says, is the final piece of the game, and you need to have mastered both the Nether and the Overworld to find it. In strongholds, there is now a mysterious portal. Activate it and go through it, and you shall enter the End, domain of the Endermen and the powerful Ender Dragon. The Ender Dragon is the final boss- beat it, and you will have completed the game. Here's a picture of the Ender Dragon:

The Ender Dragon- Way bigger than you.

The End is made out of EndStone (the ground) and these GIANT obsidian pillars with End Crystals on top of them. 

The Ender Dragon may seem easy to beat- until you realize that those crystals regenerate the dragon's health.

When the Ender Dragon flies past a pillar, a beam of light will shoot out from the crystal towards the dragon and restore it's health. So, before you bring the fight to the dragon, you have to get to the top of every obsidian pillar and break the crystals (You can also shoot the crystals with an arrow). Every once in a while, though, the Ender Dragon will dive towards you, and if you are on a pillar, knock you flying and make you fall to the ground. Once you break every crystal, you can start attacking the dragon. It's almost impossible to hit the dragon with a sword (except when it's diving towards you) so your main weapon will be a bow and STACKS AND STACKS of arrows. The dragon has 100 hearts, so it will take a long time to kill it. When you finally kill it, beams of purple light will shoot out of it and it will disinegrate, leaving behind a dragon egg, a portal back to the real world, and THOUSANDS of experience points. When I beat the Ender Dragon, I collected all the experience and went from level 10 to level 97. When you hit the Dragon Egg, it will teleport- the only way to collect it is to put a torch under the block the egg is on and break the block it's on. Currently, the dragon egg has no use (maybe it'll hatch into a tame baby ender dragon?), but it will most likely have one later on. When you go through the portal, the credits play, along with a poem that makes barely any sense at all. Then you spawn back in the Overworld, and you have beaten the game

Also, moon phases have been added :D

It's been a long time since I first started playing Minecraft (About a year!), and it's come a long way- first the Nether, then dogs, then the Adventure Update, and finally the End. I hope the future updates will be just as amazing.

When I was your age, there was no such thing as the Nether...

 For a while now, I've noticed how much Minecraft has changed since I first started playing. There's been a lot of changes, and a few things taken out of the game...

I started playing in Alpha, about a month or two before the Halloween update was released. Around 1.6, people will know that weather was added to the game. Do you know it was actually RE-ADDED? When I first started playing, they had two kinds of worlds that would randomly generate: You would either spawn in a Normal world or a Winter world. In the Normal world, there was no weather at all, but in a Winter world, it was ALWAYS snowing, and there was snow everywhere. I honestly perferred to play on the Normal world though, because the snow could get very annoying.

Also, back when I started playing, you didn't need shears. You just punched a sheep once, and it dropped 1, 2, or (if you were very lucky) 3. Back then, there wasn't really any use for wool other than paintings and decoration (although colored wool hadn't been added) since beds hadn't been added. No wolves, either- They're actually not very helpful, but they're kinda OK at fighting and the "drying off" animation is really cool. The hunger bar wasn't there either, so you could just spam cooked pork and be basically invincible. Speaking of food- No cooked chicken or steak, those were only added recently.

There haven't been many new mobs recently, although I've seen the release of Squids, Endermen, SilverFish, and soon, Ender Dragons. Yes, I know I'm sounding like an old man ("When I was your age, we had none of those fancy-pants pistons and there was no such thing as a Nether!"), but I'm still amazed at all the new stuff. Keep working hard, Mojang!

1.9 Update!

      1.9 is coming soon, and one of the best parts about it will be Potion Making. You'll be able to find ingredients, then add them together to make all kinds of potions. It'll be really cool. Here are all the effects you can get-

Instant Health- Restores 3 hearts.

Instant Health II- Restores 6 hearts.

Potion of Swiftness- Increases movement speed, sprint speed and jump length.

Potion of Swiftness II- Increases movement speed, sprint speed, and jump length even more.

Potion of Poison- Poison similar to the Cave Spider's, will bring your health down to half a heart.

Potion of Poison II- Drains your health quicker.

Potion of Harming- Lose 3 hearts instantly.

Potion of Harming II- Lose 6 hearts instantly.

Potion of Strength- +1.5 damage done when you attack.
There's quite a few other potions as well. Think of the possibilities... You could poison someone on 1.9 multiplayer! :D

There's also enchanting. You can make an enchanment table with 4 Diamonds, 4 Obsidian and a book, and you can place it anywhere. To use it, open the book and put any tool or piece of armor into the slot. The table will choose a random 3 enchantments, each with a certain amount of skill points you need to use to buy it. When you select an enchantment, it will apply that enchantment to your item and it will gain a blue glow. Also, if you put bookshelves near an enchantment table, it will boost the power of the enchantment table and allow it to put better enchantments on your item- for a higher price, of course.

They've also added more monsters and things to the Nether, the equivalent of hell in Minecraft. There are fire slimes, Blazes, NetherBrick, NetherFence, and all kinds of stuff.

There is also a new world- The End. To get to it, you craft an Ender Eye by putting together Blaze Powder (gotten from Blazes) and Ender Pearls (gotten from Endermen). When you throw an Ender Eye into the air, it will travel in the direction of a Stronghold, an underground fortress with all kinds of loot. If you explore the whole thing, you will eventually find a room with lava, a SilverFish spawner (little monsters that attack you), and a portal frame. You will see there are 12 slots. Fit an Ender Eye into each slot, and the portal will open. Walk through it, and teleport to the End. The End is a monotonous world with hundreds of EnderMen and Ender Dragons (A new creature in the update).

Also, now they are adding NPCs into the update! They will live in the towns you might find in your world, so now your world will be populated by other humans.

That's about it! Hope you enjoyed reading this.

Herobrine's Myth

      A few friends of mine and me were talking about the Herobrine myth. I'd like to share my ideas about it. "Herobrine" is rumored to be a "devil" of Minecraft. People have claimed to see him in single player, and sometimes have pictures too. Here's what Herobrine looks like.

    I think the Herobrine myth is kind of silly. The fact that Herobrine appears in single player is impossible. That would mean:

1. That a hacker has broken into the Minecraft code, and rigged it so Herobrine appears in single player

2. That if the above were true, that Notch would have NOT found the edited code and NOT fixed it yet.

   Or it could also mean that Notch is a liar and HAS added Herobrine, although Notch has stated SEVERAL times that Herobrine is not real and has stated that twice on the update logs.

   And, also, only about 100 or so people have claimed to see Herobrine in single player. The thing is, there are 3.7 million people who have brought the game. If Herobrine really was real, wouldn't more people have seen him? 

   Those are my arguments on the Herobrine myth. What do you think? Comment on the post, so I can see what you think.

Started Up Again!

           

             Wow! It's been quite a long time since I posted on this blog. About a year...?

         Anyways, this blog used to be about LittleBigPlanet only, but now I'm including all my favorite games! But I'll be doing Minecraft as my central subject. In case you don't know...

        Minecraft is a really fun survival game. When you play, a random world is generated, and you have to survive. The world is made out of squares and rectangles, which actually look awesome. Here's a picture...

      There are other creatures inhabiting the world, too- pigs, sheep and cows, but also zombies, spiders, and the dreaded Creeper.

      Worst things in all of Minecraft. They creep up on you (Hence the name "Creeper") and then explode, leaving a crater in the ground and probably killing you. They are completely silent, so you can't hear them until they're right behind you, which is when you hear the telltale hiss right before the explosion.

     The game's pretty fun. You can go mining for diamonds, or make a portal to the underworld (the Nether) and fight Ghasts and Zombie Pigmen for excellent rewards. You can make almost anything you want. The possibilities are as limited as your imagination.