TerraFirmaCraft[]
Note that this wiki is for the 1.7.10 version, and may be inaccurate for the more recent 1.12 releases.
TerraFirmaCraft is a massive rewrite for the entire game of Minecraft, aimed at turning the "Survival" aspect of the game to that of a more realistic setting. TFC makes the game much harder, and so is recommended for experienced players only! If you feel you are such, continue reading!
If you're having trouble installing Terrafirmacraft, refer to our installation guide.
A New World[]
A rock on the ground as of build 78 and up.
*Being upgraded for version 79. Caution: Some details may still be outdated.
The first thing you will notice when you create a new world are rocks laying around on the ground. These are important, as they are the first thing you will need: rocks, the foundation for your first tools. Smash them and they drop as items you can pick up.
Once you have collected at least two rocks of the same type, put them in your active slot and right-click anywhere. This will bring you to the knapping interface. Use this to produce the heads for tools, the first of which should be an axe.
Axe Head Plan
Next, you will need sticks. If you haven't already, find a tree, and try to knock it down with your fist. Wait, didn't I mention this mod goes for realism? Yes, that's right, smashing it with your fist does absolutely nothing! In order to get sticks, turn your gaze upward to the leaves. Smash some leaves, and you will notice sticks begin to fall. After all, in reality, you wouldn't be able to knock down an entire tree, you'd have to break branches to get your first lumber!
If no trees are available in your area, look on the ground for sticks and smash them.
Combine the axe head with a stick, and presto, you've got an axe! Use it to hack at the base of a tree. Once you destroy the log, you will notice all of the lumber above it falls down for you to gather, just like in reality! Oh, but wait, look in your inventory and you'll notice that the logs have unfortunately taken up quite a bit of space! Unlike in normal Minecraft, where you can hold entire forests' worth of wood in your pocket, lumber in TerraFirmaCraft is heavy, and you can only hold so much of it. Use your inventory wisely! To save inventory space, you can create log piles (shift right-click on the ground while holding a log).
One of the first things you should probably make is somewhere to cook your food, right? Let's start by making a basic firepit. Take three sticks, and throw them on the ground. Then, taking two more, place them diagonally in the crafting grid to make a firestarter. This is essentially two sticks that you rub together to start a fire. Use it on the block beneath the three sticks, and after a few tries you should get a fully functional firepit!
Shelter[]
Now that you have a firepit, use it to make torches. You're going to need them soon! Right-click the firepit and place a stick into the middle top box, wait a couple of seconds, and voila! Torches. Notice how you can't put more than one stick in at the time. This is another part of TFC's realism, stuff just won't cook itself you know, you have to be there to cook it. Also, notice the temperature gauge - if the temperature is dropping (and it probably already has after you make your first couple of torches), you'll need to add logs into the top fuel slot on the left side.
Also, don't be surprised if you find your torches going out after your 2nd night. Torches don't stay lit forever! Use a torch in your hand and right-click on the burnt-out torch to relight it for another 2 days.
Now that you have torches, you'd better think of making a shelter pretty quickly. By the time night comes, you'll have a hell of a time trying to survive in TFC. Without weapons and armour, you won't have much chance against your enemies.
Cheap hut[]
Using logs to build your hut can quickly deplete your logs, they're also hard to remove after being placed. Instead, use dirt (or combine rocks to make cobblestone) to place out a 1 block high wall. Next, you could place logs as you normally do in Minecraft, or you can place them as log piles by shift-right clicking. The difference is that you can easily remove the log in the log pile, without wasting precious durability on your axe. However, this solution will only provide you with a 2 block high wall, since nothing can be stacked on top of a log-pile unless it is completely filled with 16 logs. Doors also cannot be made without lumber, which comes far later in TFC.
If you are able to gather a minimum of 37 logs (2 stacks + 5) you can use the following plans to build a hut with a roof:
Layer 1 includes a full, 16 log, log pile as the bottom section of the "door" (shown in a red box).
Layer 2 includes a normally placed log (the top red box) and a log pile placed on Layer 1's full log pile to act as the top of the "door".
Layer 3 is comprised completely of normally placed logs. The log placed in the red box is used as the starting point of the roof and can be removed after the roof is completed.
Hole in the ground[]
Note: As of 0.79.15.538, if not earlier, this method of survival doesn't seem to work as grass no longer appears to be free floating.
Unless you find some form of cave or other natural shelter, your best bet is to dig a hole in the ground and try to cover the entrance and endure the night.
Digging a hole is a lot easier with a shovel, go ahead and knap a shovel head and make a shovel now. Careful how you dig, dirt no longer floats in the sky like before. Dirt is affected by gravity, like sand in vanilla minecraft, but not only that, it needs support on the sides below or it will slide down! Lucky for you, grass will hold the dirt stable, so dig a level below the grass to use it as a roof, and fill up the entrance to your hole. Open your inventory and check the calendar-tab to see the time of day, daylight starts at about hour 5.
A less than honourable way to survive the night, but a way to survive nonetheless! Use this time to knap out some extra tool heads, and maybe a javelin or two.
Thatch hut[]
Note: This section refers to version 78. It is no longer a viable construction as of version 79.
Possible Hut Floorplan
If you fancy building a more permanent shelter, consider using thatch - a simple to make, and structurally sound construction material. First, knap a knife blade (or two) and then create a knife. Use the knife to get at least 132 straw to create enough thatch for a small hut. Thatch is created using 4 straw in your crafting grid, so craft as much thatch as you can. Once you've crafted your thatch use it to create your hut. I tend to use the following floor plan:
Place the thatch 2 high for the walls and then cover it with 9 more thatch for the ceiling. Place a torch inside (if you have one) and then you can close it off with 2 more thatch blocks for the night. Thatch now burns (as of 78.16) so you can no longer create a pit kiln inside your hut, other fires (such as torches and firepits) are still safe though.
Sustenance[]
Cattail grows in fresh water.
By now you might have noticed the blue and green bars depleting. Once the blue bar reaches half way, you will be too thirsty to sprint. At quarter level, you will be punished with a slow effect, greatly reducing your movement speed. Find some fresh water to replenish your thirst (oceans or hot springs will not do)! Look for the cattail plant growing in fresh water. Hold the right mouse button on the fresh water, whilst not holding any item in your hand, to drink the water.
That green bar represents your fill, or the inverse of your hunger. When that reaches 0, you will starve to death. There are several sources of food you can look for.
Meat[]
Often the best source of food in the early game is meat. Make yourself a javelin. In fact, make yourself 3 javelins. Knap some stones, and combine sticks. If you find some animals, kill them by throwing the javelins on them. Charge the javelin before throwing by holding down the right-mouse button. Walk over thrown javelins to pick them up again. Even sheep will yield mutton if killed. One animal should be enough to last a day or two, after you cook the meats at the firepit. Once you get more skilled in butchery, you'll have more meats than you can actually make use of.
Vegetables[]
While you are looking for animals to kill, keep your eyes open for wild crops to harvest. Every TFC world starts out in early summer, so at first most wild crops will still be too young to produce any edible yield. You could try to remember where they are and come back later to see if they are ripe. Once ripe, they can be broken to produce some vegetables and seeds. Alternatively, you could break them before they are ripe, which will get you just seeds. You can use seeds to start a farm. As with meat, vegetables are more filling when cooked. Also, watch out for food decay, which can be removed by crafting the food item with a knife.
Fruit[]
Wild fruit trees can also be a source of food, if you catch them in the right part of the season. Fruit trees can be recognized easily because they all have the same shape. They generally have bright flowers in the spring and early summer. Each fruit appears during a different part of the season, typically mid-summer to fall. Just right click on a fruit to harvest. Like all food, fruit can be cooked.
Seaweed[]
You can also eat seaweed if you're near an ocean, and it's often the easiest source of food in the early game. Seaweed is considered a vegetable in TFC, and can provide you with some nourishment when times are hard! Just break the seaweed blocks to harvest some delicious salty snacks.
Pots and Vessels[]
A goldenrod flower, growing on top of a clay deposit.
Now, are you annoyed with having to spend long hours in the water just to replenish thirst? I know I am! It's time to make some pots and jugs. Look for areas where yellow flowers grow in a bunch. These yellow flowers, called Goldenrod, only grow on clay, so once you spot them, dig! When you have at least 5 clay, hold them in your hand and right-click (like with knapping) to bring up the clay-interface. Shape a jug and some vessels (make a spare jug as well, they have a small chance to break after each use).
Clay Jug and Vessel (respectively)
Now it's time to burn those pots. Collect 8 straw using your knife on tall grass. Dig a hole 1 block deep away from any burnable blocks (ie. thatch or logs). Shift-right-click the bottom of the hole while holding your clay jug or vessel. This will place the clay objects at the bottom of the pit. Now hold the straw in your hand, and right-click (not shift-right-click) at the bottom to lay 8 straw there (you can hold the mouse button down, it'll stop at 8). Next put 8 logs on top of the straw by right-clicking (unlike the straw, the logs will not stop automatically if you are holding down the mouse button, so be careful). Now set the logs on fire with your fire-starter. Be patient. The fire will burn for the better part of the day.
Once the fire has died, shift-right-click the ready ceramic jugs and vessels at the bottom of the pit to get them out. You can now carry water along on your journeys, instead of constantly returning to a water source for your thirst. The water jug also replenishes more than half thirst almost instantly, so it's a lot more efficient than drinking by right-clicking!
Congratulations! You are now a survivor of stone-age Terrafirmacraft. As you continue to gain experience with TFC, you'll want to brush up on farming, leather-making and smelting, among other things. We'll be back later with a mid-game guide and a metallurgy guide - Stay tuned!