Adding a Custom Item to Your Minecraft Mod: A Simple Guide

Welcome back to Just A Mirage, where The AI and I guide you through the exciting world of technology and creativity! In this post, we’ll demonstrate how to add a custom item to your Minecraft mod. By following these straightforward steps, you’ll be able to create your own unique items that enhance the Minecraft experience.

Create an Item Class

First, you’ll need to create a new Java class for your custom item. This class should extend the net.minecraft.item.Item class provided by Minecraft. In this example, we’ll create a custom item called ExampleItem.

package com.examplemod.items;
import net.minecraft.item.Item;
public class ExampleItem extends Item {

    public ExampleItem(Properties properties) {
        super(properties);
    }
}

Define Item Properties

Now, you need to define the properties of your custom item. To do this, create a new method in your main mod class that initializes an instance of your custom item with its desired properties.

private static Item createExampleItem() {
    return new ExampleItem(new Item.Properties()
            .maxStackSize(64)
            .group(ItemGroup.MISC));
}

In this example, we set the maximum stack size for our item to 64 and assign it to the “Miscellaneous” creative tab using the ItemGroup.MISC constant.

Register the Item

Next, you’ll need to register your custom item with Forge. To do this, create a new field in your main mod class to hold a reference to the DeferredRegister for items. The DeferredRegister is a Forge utility that simplifies the registration process.

package com.examplemod;

// Import statements

public class ExampleMod {

    public static final String MOD_ID = "examplemod";
    private static final DeferredRegister<Item> ITEMS = DeferredRegister.create(ForgeRegistries.ITEMS, MOD_ID);

    public ExampleMod() {
        // ...
        ITEMS.register(FMLJavaModLoadingContext.get().getModEventBus());
    }

    private static Item createExampleItem() {
        // ...
    }
}

In your main mod class, make sure to call register() on your DeferredRegister instance, passing the mod event bus as an argument. This ensures that your items are registered with Forge during the appropriate lifecycle event.

Create a RegistryObject

Now, create a RegistryObject for your custom item in your main mod class. The RegistryObject is a wrapper that manages the registration of your item and provides a convenient way to access it.

public static final RegistryObject<Item> EXAMPLE_ITEM = ITEMS.register("example_item", ExampleMod::createExampleItem);

Here, we call the register() method on the DeferredRegister instance, passing the item’s registry name and a method reference to the createExampleItem() method we created earlier.

Add Item Resources

To give your item a texture and display name, you’ll need to create the appropriate resource files. First, create a JSON file for your item’s model inside the `resources/assets/examplemod/models/item’ folder of your modding workspace. Name the JSON file the same as your item’s registry name, in this case,example_item.json`. In this file, define the parent model and texture for your item.

{
  "parent": "item/generated",
  "textures": {
    "layer0": "examplemod:item/example_item"
  }
}

Next, create a JSON file for your item’s texture inside the resources/assets/examplemod/textures/item folder, also named example_item.png. This file should contain the actual texture you want to use for your item. You can create the texture using any image editing software, making sure that the dimensions are compatible with Minecraft (typically 16×16 pixels).

Finally, to give your item a display name, you’ll need to create a language file in the resources/assets/examplemod/lang folder. The file should be named according to the desired language, such as en_us.json for American English. Inside this file, add an entry for your item using its registry name and the desired display name.

{
  "item.examplemod.example_item": "Example Item"
}

Test Your Item

With everything in place, it’s time to test your custom item in the game. Launch Minecraft with your mod installed, and you should see your new item in the creative inventory under the “Miscellaneous” tab (or the tab you specified in the item properties). Enjoy your new custom item!

This post has provided a basic overview of adding a custom item to a Minecraft mod. In future posts, we’ll delve deeper into more advanced features and customization options for your items. Stay tuned to Just A Mirage for more in-depth modding tutorials and guides!

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