rivencraft/ports/mc263/README.md

Minecraft 26.3 beta port workspace

This is an experimental beta port for issues #97–#104, not gameplay parity with the Minecraft 1.21.1 release. The 26.3 backend persists separate Ages and their seeds. Books, the Book Binder, and the Ink Mixer work, and the Binder can author Standard, Amplified, Island, Flat, Void, or Cave terrain with supported biome-distribution pages. Other terrain families, feature/material effects, portals, and much of the 1.21.1 gameplay remain unported. Use a test world and keep a backup; do not substitute this JAR for the 1.21.1 mod or import 1.21.1 saves.

The entries below record how the port was built, including earlier alpha-only limitations that were addressed by later slices.

The creative tab contains the two Books, Crystal Block and Crystal Shard; the player verified these in game. Unbound Linking Books use the Legacy sprite, and four Crystal Shards craft into a Crystal Block; both were also verified in game. The current local iteration adds Budding Crystal and all four blue crystal growth stages with vanilla-style harvesting. Natural crystal formation generation is not yet ported; use Creative or commands to obtain a Budding Crystal for this test. The player verified the growth chain in game. The next local slice adds the Link Panel Page as a separate creative entry, using the existing item texture. Blank Pages remain unavailable in Creative; the player verified the Link Panel's appearance in game. Ink Vials now use the existing crafting recipe and animated sprite. With paper in the other hand, an Ink Vial prepares a Link Panel for two of its sixteen ink uses, as in the current 1.21.1 default. The player verified the Ink Vial interaction in game. Symbol writing remains unported. A prepared Link Panel can now be combined shapelessly with leather to craft an unwritten Linking Book, as in 1.21.1. This custom recipe rejects a blank Page and extra ingredients. The first Book Binder slice now assembles random-Age Descriptive Books from leather and a Link Panel. Authored pages remain later.

The next local 1.0.1.10-alpha.1 slice exposes all eight combinations of plain, Disarm, Maintain Momentum, and Intra-Linking Link Panels in the Link Pages creative tab. Leather crafting preserves those flags on the Linking Book. Intra-Linking permits same-dimension travel; Maintain Momentum rotates horizontal speed to the destination yaw; Disarm leaves the player's inventory at the departure point after a successful teleport. These are development variants until the Ink Mixer is ported; other Link Panel modifiers are not implemented in 26.3. The player passed this modifier slice in game.

The local 1.0.1.11-alpha.1 slice adds a craftable Book Binder with persistent leather, Link Panel, and output slots. Name an Age in its GUI and press Bind; the server creates a random prototype Age and places its completed Descriptive Book in the output. Disarm and Maintain Momentum carry from the panel into the book; Intra-Linking has no effect on Age creation. Symbol-page authoring and the Ink Mixer remain unported. This slice passes the build and dedicated-server smoke test. The player passed crafting and travel in game, but found that E closed the focused title field and the provisional layout did not match the existing 1.21.1 Binder GUI.

The local 1.0.1.12-alpha.1 follow-up reuses the 1.21.1 Binder layout: title bar, cover and output at opposite sides, and a central Link Panel page strip. The title persists in the block, the missing-panel cue pulses red, and a focused title field consumes inventory/hotbar keys. Click the output once to bind, then click again to take the completed book. Authored symbol strips and the full 1.21.1 Binder grammar remain unported. This same slice also ports the 1.21.1 Ink Mixer block, menu, animation, modifier additives, 16-ink-per-panel cost, and automatic vial exchange. The creative tab includes it and its vanilla-shaped recipe is available. This slice needs an in-game Binder visual/ keyboard check and Ink Mixer interaction check.

The local 1.0.1.13-alpha.1 iteration makes Binder assembly place the new Descriptive Book directly on the cursor with one click. It also renders the five-page strip from the 1.21.1 GUI and refreshes the Mixer's virtual result in the same server click that changes paper or ink. The Mixer now consumes one ink unit and one paper per Link Panel (16 panels per full vial); additive chances reset when a panel is taken. In-game retest of the first-update behavior and Binder visual/click flow is pending.

The local 1.0.1.14-alpha.1 follow-up compares the current 26.3 Binder against the new dev-image sequence. The Binder no longer paints five permanently empty pages: the first strip page appears when a Link Panel is inserted or carried, and the missing-panel cue remains above it. Clicking that page inserts/removes the Link Panel using the same server-owned cursor flow as 1.21.1. Its tooltip also shows the stored panel. Multi-page symbol writing and strip scrolling cannot be exercised yet because symbol pages are still unported to 26.3.

The local 1.0.1.15-alpha.1 Binder polish uses the Link Panel's actual 16×16 item icon for the missing-panel cue instead of a full-size page sprite. The red pulse and tooltip remain confined to that icon.

The local 1.0.1.16-alpha.1 slice adds the bundled 1.21.1 symbol-page identities to the 26.3 creative menu, grouped by category. Their names and descriptions are reused from the 1.21.1 translations, and the Page item now persists each symbol ID. These pages currently use the generic symbol-page artwork; the Legacy-style runtime glyph compositor has not been ported. They cannot yet be inserted into the Binder or change Age generation. This is the page-data foundation for the next authored-writing slice.

The local 1.0.1.17-alpha.1 follow-up derives biome pages from the active 26.3 biome registry instead of only the older bundled list. It excludes the TerraBlender staging placeholder and separates cave/Nether biomes. Full-block materials and true source-fluid blocks also receive registry-derived pages, covering eligible new and modded blocks. Five 26.3 feature symbols cover poplar trees, fallen poplars, shelf mushrooms, red shrubs, and abandoned camps. These feature pages are identities only until their Age-generation handlers are ported. Biome, material, and feature pages still use generic artwork and cannot yet be placed in the Binder.

The local 1.0.1.18-alpha.1 follow-up restores the 1.21.1 animated redaction for Corrupted Page names and descriptions. It does not yet port the dynamic glyph artwork used for other symbol pages.

The local 1.0.1.19-alpha.1 slice ports the runtime glyph compositor for symbol Page items. It uses the shared Legacy component sheet and page parchment with a bounded 256-texture client cache; generated textures are released on resource reload. Registry-derived biome and material pages use the same deterministic four-word poem pattern as 1.21.1. No per-symbol PNGs are generated in the source tree. Binder insertion and authored Age generation are still unported.

The local 1.0.1.20-alpha.1 visual follow-up enlarges symbol artwork on Page items, slightly thickens the component strokes, and centers number glyphs at a larger size so they remain readable in inventory and creative-menu icons.

The local 1.0.1.21-alpha.1 slice ports the Binder's ordered, scrollable symbol-page strip. Pages persist in its block inventory and can be inserted, removed, and moved via the cursor or shift-click. A Binder with symbol pages cannot yet produce a book: authored Age compilation is the next port step, and silently producing a random Age would consume the player's writing incorrectly.

The local 1.0.1.22-alpha.1 visual follow-up gives large Binder pages the transparent, full-size Legacy glyph composition. Item icons retain their separate parchment-backed, reduced-size artwork.

The local 1.0.1.23-alpha.1 follow-up places Binder glyph overlays in a later 26.3 GUI stratum than the page atlas, preventing texture batching from drawing the opaque page backgrounds over the dynamic artwork.

The local 1.0.1.24-alpha.1 follow-up renders Binder page glyphs through their working special item model, scaled to the page thumbnail. Direct GUI blitting of the generated texture remained blank in the 26.3 client.

The local 1.0.1.25-alpha.1 follow-up marks temporary Binder preview stacks for glyph-only special-model rendering. The full-size transparent artwork now uses the working item pipeline without drawing a second, smaller page outline.

The local 1.0.1.26-alpha.1 corrects the temporary preview component's codec registration, which NeoForge 26.3 requires during bootstrap.

The local 1.0.1.27-alpha.1 slice applies the first authored Age subset: Standard terrain plus at most one Biome page. The selected biome is persisted with the Age and used by a fixed-biome Overworld noise generator on creation and reload. Ordered page IDs are stored on the finished book. Other page combinations remain in the Binder and cannot yet be assembled, preventing silent loss of unsupported writing. Multi-biome distribution, other terrain profiles, and feature/material pages still need their 26.3 generation ports.

The 1.0.1.28–1.0.1.32 slices add Tiled, Grid, Native, and five scaled biome distributions; multiple authored Biome pages; Amplified and Island terrain; and saved terrain/biome plans across reload. A Binder or Ink Mixer beside another block no longer hides that block's faces. Unsupported authoring still stays in the Binder rather than silently producing an incorrect Age.

The local 1.0.1.33-beta.1 slice adds Flat and Void terrain to Binder authoring. Flat uses vanilla's superflat layers; Void has no generated floor and uses the selected Biome for its environmental rules. Each accepts zero or one authored Biome page. Unsupported multi-biome Flat/Void books remain in the Binder until their custom generator is ported. The operator probe can create test Ages with rivencraft_port age create <name> <seed> flat|void.

The local 1.0.1.34-beta.1 follow-up starts Flat's solid layers at Y=0 (bedrock at 0, dirt at 1–2, grass at 3) and lands players at the ground surface instead of creating an elevated fallback platform. This affects newly generated Flat chunks; previously generated Age chunks are not rewritten.

The local 1.0.1.35-beta.1 follow-up enables biome decoration on newly generated Flat chunks, allowing the selected biome's trees, vegetation, and other placed features to appear on the Flat surface. Void remains undecorated.

The local 1.0.1.36-beta.1 slice accepts multiple Biome pages with Flat and Void terrain. It ports the 1.21.1 authored-biome Flat generator to 26.3, so Tiled, Grid, and scaled regions affect climate in both terrain types and surface decoration in Flat. Void continues to generate no floor or biome decoration. The operator-only age create_multi probe creates two-biome test Ages for the dedicated-server smoke test.

The local 1.0.1.37-beta.1 slice adds the Cave terrain page to Binder authoring. It uses Minecraft's caves noise settings, accepts Cave and Nether biome pages (including multi-biome distribution), and searches below Y=64 for a safe arrival instead of landing on the roof. The 26.3 vanilla Cave preset defaults to water below Y=32, so this port derives a dry Cave setting with air as its default fluid and the sea level below the world floor. This applies to newly generated Cave chunks; it does not drain existing chunks. Cave-specific Nether surface materials from 1.21.1 are not ported yet. The dedicated-server smoke now creates and reloads Cave Ages alongside the other terrain families.

The dry-Cave follow-up is packaged as 1.0.1.38-beta.1; no 26.3 release is published until the in-game check passes and publication is explicitly requested.

The local 1.0.1.39-beta.1 follow-up rejects fluid at both feet and head height during safe-landing searches. It also refuses to carve the fallback platform into submerged space if no dry footing can be found.

The 1.0.1.40-beta.1 port slice seeds terrain and biome selection for Descriptive Books with no authored symbol pages. It uses the same terrain and biome-controller rank weights as the 1.21.1 line, freezes the resulting plan in the Age index, and accepts the result after restart. The operator-only age create_random <name> <seed> probe exercises this path. Random feature, sky, weather, and instability choices are not yet ported; this slice covers terrain and biomes only.

The 1.0.1.41-beta.1 slice establishes an Age-scoped decoration wrapper for 26.3 and accepts one Block material page immediately before a Rocks feature page. Newly generated surface chunks place small rock clusters made from that block without modifying the shared biome registry. The selected block and generator survive a restart. Cave and Void terrain remain unsupported for this first surface-feature path; unsupported combinations stay in the Binder. Random feature selection, unpaired materials, duplicate feature pages, and instability scoring remain future port steps.

The local 1.0.1.42-beta.1 follow-up lets a Rocks page choose a deterministic full-block material when no Block page precedes it. Repeated Rocks pages now add independent placement attempts (up to 32) instead of being rejected. The ordered material choices are frozen in the Age index and restored after a restart; old single-material beta Ages still load. An explicit Block page must still directly precede the Rocks page it modifies. Most other feature pages and material-feature pairings remain unported.

The local 1.0.1.43-beta.1 slice replaces the temporary 3×3 Rocks piles with Minecraft 26.3's forest-rock block-blob feature and its placement rules, matching the 1.21.1 Age feature path more closely. The selected material and repeat count still come from the frozen Age plan. Only newly generated chunks use the new rock shape; previously generated chunks remain unchanged.

The local 1.0.1.44-beta.1 slice ports ordered Flowers, Trees, and Huge Trees pages to surface Ages. Their 26.3 vanilla placed features run after biome decoration, with the Age's own seed; repeated pages make independent placement attempts. Cave/Void terrain and cave/Nether/End biome pools are not treated as surface vegetation. The feature plan survives server restart; already generated chunks do not gain new decoration.

The local 1.0.1.45-beta.1 slice ports the Dungeons page for Standard, Amplified, and Island noise terrain. It uses the 1.21.1 placement definition (eight monster-room attempts per page per chunk across the build height), stores repeat count with the Age, and rejects Dungeons pages on Flat, Void, or Cave terrain. New chunks only; existing chunks are not regenerated.

The local 1.0.1.46-beta.1 slice adds Surface Lakes, Deep Lakes, and Small Lakes on surface noise terrain. A Fluid page immediately before a lake page selects its fluid. Unmodified pages choose a seeded fluid from the same source- fluid pool exposed in Creative, with repeated choices and their order saved with the Age. Surface/Small Lakes retain the 1.21.1 one-in-twelve attempt rule; Deep Lakes retain vanilla underground placement. These pages currently require Standard, Amplified, or Island terrain. Existing chunks do not redecorate.

The local 1.0.1.47-beta.1 slice adds authored Floating Islands alongside Standard, Amplified, Island, Flat, and Void terrain. A preceding Block page sets the island core material; otherwise each occurrence resolves a seeded material from the full-block pool. The 1.21.1 shape, high altitude, rarity, and biome-dependent grass/dirt cap are retained. Repeated pages use independent island seeds. Cave terrain remains unsupported for this feature.

26.3 combines base noise, surface, and cave carving in one terrain operation. Floating Islands run after that operation and before decoration, so the added islands are not cut by the base terrain's carvers. The saved feature plan is used again after restart and for new chunks; existing chunks keep their blocks.

The local 1.0.1.48-beta.1 slice adds authored Tendrils on every terrain type, including Cave and Void. A preceding Block page selects the material; unmodified occurrences resolve seeded materials from the full-block pool. Repeated pages use independent paths, with up to 32 occurrences per feature. Mixed Floating Islands/Tendrils retain their authored order in the saved plan.

Tendrils retain the 1.21.1 branching path algorithm, source rates, and vertical distribution concentrated below Y=128. They can replace existing terrain while preserving bedrock. As with Floating Islands, they run after 26.3's combined terrain operation and before decoration. Build checks are automated; in-game generation, appearance, and restart validation are handed to the player.

The local 1.0.1.49-beta.1 slice adds the Skylands feature page. Its seeded seven-octave filter removes base terrain at/below a varying cutoff near Y=76 and removes liquid above it, preserving the upper solid terrain. It accepts all terrain types and no Block modifier. On low Flat terrain this removes the base layers; on Void it leaves the empty base unchanged.

The filter runs once before authored Floating Islands and Tendrils, matching 1.21.1; duplicate Skylands pages do not compound the filter. Its flag is saved with the terrain-feature plan. Existing chunks are unchanged. Try Amplified terrain for a clear visual check; generation and restart validation are manual.

The local 1.0.1.50-beta.1 slice ports Spheres and Spikes using the 1.21.1 generation algorithms. Spheres add solid nodes on all terrain types, including Cave and Void, while preserving bedrock. Spikes require solid surface terrain: Standard, Amplified, Island, or Flat. Their circular footprint stays in one chunk and must have solid ground beneath every column.

Each page accepts a preceding Block material or resolves a seeded random material when unmodified. Repeated pages have independent placement seeds, up to 32 per feature. Spheres run during terrain construction, after Skylands; Spikes run after biome decoration. Both use the existing saved solid-feature plan. New chunks only; in-game appearance and restart checks remain manual.

The local 1.0.1.51-beta.1 slice ports Obelisks. It preserves the 1.21.1 one-in-128 candidate chance per chunk/occurrence, 4×4 plinth, and 2×2 shaft extending 12 blocks above it. Placement requires dry, sturdy ground across the base, at most two blocks of surface variation, and clear/replaceable space for the complete structure. The footprint stays within its chunk.

Obelisks support Standard, Amplified, Island, and Flat terrain. A preceding Block page sets their material; otherwise a seeded full-block material is selected. Repeated pages make independent attempts, up to 32 occurrences. Spikes and Obelisks share surface-stage classification and preserve their authored order within that stage. World and restart validation are manual.

The local 1.0.1.52-beta.1 slice ports Crystal Formations using the 1.21.1 surface-mound algorithm and the existing blue crystal blocks. Each occurrence has a one-in-fifteen candidate chance per chunk; suitable dry, nearly level ground produces a 3×3 mound with budding crystal and occasional small buds. The existing budding blocks continue growing crystals through random ticks.

Crystal Formations accepts Standard, Amplified, Island, and Flat terrain, but not Cave/Void terrain or Block/Fluid modifiers. Up to 32 repeated pages make independent attempts. The ordered feature plan survives restart, and only newly generated chunks receive formations. For a quick manual test, bind a Flat/Plains Age with several Crystal Formations pages, inspect the blue mounds and bud growth, then revisit after restarting the world.

The local 1.0.1.53-beta.1 slice ports Dense Ores. Each page replays eligible ore placements from the Age's actual biomes, preserving their height ranges, replacement rules, and biome filters. Vanilla and modded ore features are recognized by their ore targets; custom placements can opt in through the rivencraft:dense_ores placed-feature tag, just as in 1.21.1.

Up to 32 pages add independent passes on Standard, Amplified, Island, or Cave terrain. Flat/Void and Block/Fluid modifiers are unsupported; an explicitly authored biome pool must contain at least one ore-producing biome. The count survives restart. Only new chunks gain extra ore, and this slice does not yet port the later instability system or random-Age feature selection.

For manual validation, create a Standard/Plains Age with several Dense Ores pages and inspect underground ore abundance, then restart and explore more chunks. A Cave Age with a Nether biome can check Nether ore placements too.

The local 1.0.1.54-beta.1 slice ports the Star Fissures page. On first book/ operator arrival, it carves the 1.21.1 Legacy-shaped rift near the arrival chunk and places a starfield portal at the dimension's minimum Y. Cave terrain keeps its bedrock roof. All terrain types are supported; repeated pages still create one fissure, and Block/Fluid modifiers are not accepted.

The first arrival and completed generation are saved per Age, so revisits and restarts do not recarve the rift. Touching its bottom returns entities to a safe location near the shared Overworld spawn, not a bed, with the original fissure sound. The portal is unobtainable and inert in the Overworld. Random-Age feature selection remains later work; author a Star Fissures page to test this slice.

For manual validation, create a Flat/Plains Age with Star Fissures. Look near the arrival point (generally east/south), descend through the rift, and touch the starfield to return. Re-enter after restarting; check that the same fissure and its portal still work. A Cave Age checks that carving leaves the roof intact.

From the repository root:

./gradlew -p ports/mc263 build

This standalone Gradle build uses Minecraft 26.3, NeoForge 26.3.0.99, ModDevGradle 2.0.148, and Java 25. The repository root remains the independent Minecraft 1.21.1/Java 21 build:

./gradlew build

The beta JAR is under ports/mc263/build/libs. Continue the port and its full dual-version validation in issues #98–#104 before calling 26.3 stable.

The dedicated development server uses build/run-server, with its own world and properties. Set a nonconflicting server-port there before running if another Minecraft server is active. The prototype restores all indexed Ages during the Overworld load, before initial chunk preparation completes.