Minecraft Forums

end has 3 letters...a triangle has 3 sides... and 2 planes can't knock down 3 towers. Loominaty confirmed.

To start my own server...

My server would be 100% vanilla with no lag, hacker-free and infinite block build height. The terrain would look epic and the terrain height can reach up to 10000 blocks so hills, plateaus, and mountains could reach up to heights higher then Mount Everest. Every biome is common around spawn.

There will be absolutely no structures, nor any player placed blocks around spawn. You will just spawn in the wilderness at coordinates 0,0. There will be a 1000 block protected area around spawn. So you can pvp at spawn, but you cant mine. Once you travel out of that area, you are free to do what ever you want. Be carful though, because the difficulty is on hard.

Just the look of this seed is amazing! Without a doubt, this is the most beautiful island I have ever seen! (sorry I can't provide a photo, I need a replier's help)

You spawn on a different island, but the flower island is located at -350x 100z. This island contains a flower forest, a little sunflower plains, a beautiful waterfall, and an ocean monument right next to it!

Seed: "-5704426477535756967"

Quote from Broccoli_Monkey»

The only biomes that don't have any snowfall are deserts, savannahs and jungles. Every other biome will have snow when you get high enough up.

Quote from straightdigger»

No mater how hard I think I can't come up with a single reason why would oceans stop you from having "infinite" height O_o

Quote from earzo700»

What would oceans stop? You do realize they don't go all the way down, right?

NOTICE: This version of Amidst is out of date, and no longer being maintained. A newer version of this program can be found here: https://www.minecraftforum.net/forums/mapping-and-modding-java-edition/minecraft-tools/2626547-amidst-now-has-1-11-support

AMIDST Project Formerly Minecraft Stronghold Finder
Advanced Minecraft Interface and Data/Structure Tracking


About
AMIDST is designed to help enhance the process of finding structures, biomes, and players in minecraft.
By accessing your minecraft files, it's able to draw the biomes of the world out and show where points of interest are likely to be.

What AMIDST can do.
- Find Strongholds
- Find Villages
- Find Witch huts
- Find Temples
- Find Player Spawn
- Map Biomes
- Move Players
- Save an image of the map
- Load map data from different versions of Minecraft.

What AMIDST can't do.
- Show modifications to the world.
- Give information on individual blocks.


READ ME
[INFO] 57Digital appears to have made an iOS verison of this! (iTunes link)
[BUG] Spawn points, villages, temples, and witch huts may be slightly less accurate than normal.
[BUG] Moving your player on the map WILL put you into the sky. It is unclear on how to fix this issue.
[INFO] AMIDST uses Google Analytics to anonymously gather general statistics.
[INFO] AMIDST attempts to check for updates each launch.
[INFO] AMIDST is now completely open-source. Check it out on GitHub.


BUG REPORTING
Please report all bugs with as much detail as possible to the issue tracker.
Feel free to also make a post, or send me an email at: [email protected]


Download
AMIDST v3.7 Supports 1.2.4 - 1.7.4
( Ad free | Adf.ly ) Windows [Exe]
( Ad free | Adf.ly ) Mac OS X [App]
( Ad free | Adf.ly ) Linux [Jar]

Please note: I am unable to create Mac builds for the moment. I suggest using the Linux version as a Mac user. The current link may be broken.


Previous Changes:

Older versions
All versions of AMIDST 3+ are available for download at: https://github.com/s...AMIDST/releases

Special thanks
A big thanks to the people over at http://www.57digital.co.uk/ for their very generous support.

Supporting the project
Aside from using adf.ly, there are a few ways you can help improve AMIDST.

Check out the GitHub page. Bug submissions, feature suggestions, and any improvements to the source code are always welcome.

Due to requests, I have now added a donation link back in.



Media
A video tutorial on v3.0 will be up eventually. Until then, here are some screenshots:

Legal
License information can be found at https://github.com/s...ter/LICENSE.txt


Outdated Versions
If you are interested in the old Minecraft Stronghold Finder, all the old information can be found here:

Downloads & Versions No point in reading this if you don't download it!

Version 1.4.1 <---- Download if you have 1.9-pre 5 or 4
Download EXE or JAR
The EXE version now works!

Changes:
-Updated for 1.9-pre4!
-Fixed a bug where it sometimes wouldn't work.

Older Versions:
Version 0.4.2 <---- Download if you have 1.8.1
Download ad free (JAR) (EXE)
Download through adf.ly (JAR) (EXE)

Version 1.3.1 <---- Download if you have 1.9-pre 3
Download EXE or JAR

Changes:
-Should work with 1.9-pre 3. Officially.

Version 1.2 <---- Download if you have 1.9-pre 1 or 2
Download EXE or JAR

Changes:
-Fixed several memory leaks that forced the program to stop working after awhile.
-Made a few things use way less memory.
-Fixed a bug that would prevent any villages/markers from being accurate when a X/Z offset was used.

Version 1.1
Download EXE or JAR

Changes:
-Supports searching for nether-structures.
-Automatically saves your preferences.
-Changed icon for strongholds so they're more noticeable.
-Added zoom in/out button to the map.
-Mouse wheel also zooms in/out on the map.
-Changed the title to reflect the current version ;P

Version 1.0-beta
Download EXE or JAR

Changes:
-Added a biome map.
-Added searching for villages.
-New UI
-More options
-List of stuff.
-I dunno, I spent way too many hours working on this, and now I'm tired.

Version 0.5
Download through adf.ly
(Non-adf.ly version will be available within a day or two-- I just wanted to test something, I hope no one hates me for it D: )

Changes:
-NOW WORKS WITH 1.9! Besides that, it's the same-old

Version 0.4.2 (and 0.4.1)
Download ad free
Download through adf.ly

Changes:
-(0.4.2) Fixed a UI bug that would make this application useless in Mac OS X.
-(0.4.1) Negative numbers now work! (Sorry about that!)

Version 0.4
Download ad free
Download through adf.ly

Changes:
-Now is incredibly accurate! You should just be able to dig down. However, in rare cases you'll end up between the walls, just dig to the side or something.
-Added support for the "invalid biome" issue. So it'll at least tell you that there's no stronghold there.
-A reminder from the last version (Which was only out a day) seeds like "poppycock" will now be properly read!

Version 0.3
Download ad free
Download through adf.ly

Changes:
-Added support for non-number seeds. (i.e. if your seed was "watermelon" it was now correctly convert to a number as it would in minecraft) WARNING: Don't accidentally have a space in your seed number! It will mess things up!

Version 0.2
Download
Changes:
-Changed labels of stronghold 2/3 so they actually display the right numbers.
-Greatly changed the formula for finding the second and third stronghold. This should be MUCH more accurate for both of those.
-Added my name to the top!

Version 0.1
Download
Bugs:
-I've only tested the first stronghold coordinates, the other two will probably NOT be accurate.
-Occasionally the coordinate won't be accurate. (It's pretty rare)

Original topic is here. Additionally, the download to AMIDST v2.1 can be found here:

 [url=http://www.minecraftforum.net/topic/1707097-cubic-chunks-infinite-height-elimination-of-x-ray-and-more-60-supporters/page__st__0][img]http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/443/hov.png[/img][/url]

Have you ever spawned in a desert and thought, "I'm screwed because I have no food or wood for thousands of blocks"? Worry no more! What I would like to be added is palm trees!

Generation

Palm trees would be grown in two places: Beaches and deserts. Since both places are sandy areas, palm trees and their saplings would be adapted to grow on sand (but you could do it on dirt as well).

Resources

As well as obtaining palm wood from these trees, you can get dates or coconuts from them as well. Both foods grow as blocks on the tree, just like cocoa beans. What grows on it depends on the biome it's in (beach=coconuts, desert=dates, anywhere else=nothing). To harvest dates you just break them off the tree. You get 1-3 dates from each, depending on if they are ripe. Dates restore 1.5 hunger bars. To get a coconut, you can break it by hand, but an axe is better. When you break it, if it's ripe you get half of a coconut. You can eat (or drink) the coconut milk, which restores 2 hunger bars and clears status effects, and you are left with the empty coconut shell used for decoration or even headgear (gives one protection bar).

Pictures

What the beach palm tree looks like:

The desert palm would look a little smaller, like this:

Please support this idea!

Expanded Inventory

5 NEW INVENTORY SPACES
(2x2 crafting grid moved lower to make room)

Use Restrictions - Packs are the primary item to be placed in the Backslot. Packs specifically refer to items that expand the player's inventory options when placed in the back slot and do not include Capes and Satchels. Packs may only be placed in a quickslot or a slot of the 2x2 crafting grid, and may not be placed in the player's inventory. (since the inventory would be that of another pack the player would need to be wearing already - no packs inside of packs) They may still be placed inside of dispensers and chests.
Durability - All packs have durability, and as the player takes damage some of that damage will be applied against the durability of the pack.(Not the case for Capes/Parachutes) Damage taken specifically from behind (shot in the back by an arrow) may have an even higher percentage of the damage applied to the pack. When the durability of a pack drops to 0, the pack will be destroyed, scattering the items the player had placed in the standard inventory slots, and permanently losing any items that the player had in non-standard inventory slots (any slots that are unique to that specific type of pack.
The durability of backpacks is relative to the difficulty. Easy has a finite but extensive durability,(Peaceful has the same amount, but the backpack will never receive any damage) Normal has a less durability than Easy, and Hard has the least durability. Switching to an easier difficulty can allow the backpack to last longer but it will always retain the amount of damage it has already taken, so if the backpack has been damaged extensively on easy difficulty, it may break immediately on switching to a harder difficulty.
Equipping - Packs, Capes, and Parachutes can all be equipped from the quickbar by pressing right click while holding them. Right clicking while holding a Parachute will default to equipping to the Backup Chute slot if the player is already wearing a Parachute or Chutepack, and otherwise equip to the Back slot. Right clicking while holding a Chutepack can only equip to the Back slot.
Unequipping a pack from the Back slot will drop all items held in the inventory onto the block the player is standing on, unless it is being switched out with a pack of the same type. Switching a pack out for a pack of a different type will only drop those items that do not have a corresponding slot in the inventory of the new pack. Items in the quickslot are never dropped or lost.

Non-Packs


Capes -

When crafting a Cape, the cloth being crafted with must all be the same color. This will determine the base color of the resulting Cape. Capes can be equipped directly to the Back slot or crafted with a Backpack to make a Capepack. Capes by themselves make no changes to the player's inventory and take no damage when the player is injured.

Players will also be given the option to edit an "emblem" file, similar to the one they use to alter their player appearance. The emblem would overlay on the cape provided one is equipped, and would allow players to make their capes multiple colors. (As suggested by Halfwing:smile.gif: Multiple different emblems could be included on this file, and would be specific to the color cape that the player is wearing. If the player crafts a black cape, then the emblem in the "black cape" section would be overlaid on it. This emblem could be different than the one that would display when the player puts on a White Cape or Red Cape, etc.
There will also be Team Capes which cannot be crafted but can only be created by an admin and given directly (through players or chests, etc) which will point to a set of team cape emblems that are stored server side. Team capes will ignore player specific emblems.


(inspired by Glyph255)
Satchels -

Even when players are wearing a backpack, people still find themselves running short on mobile storage. To address this issue we introduce the Satchels, similar to chests in general function, method of access, and that they are not stackable, the key differences are that the Satchel only has 4 slots of storage, but picking it up does not remove the items from a satchel, allowing them to be carried as a group while only using a single slot.
With the implementation of the Back Slot, Satchels will also be able to be worn on the back in order to access it's inventory. This becomes less practical to do while wearing any of the Packs, but provides a relatively convenient method of storage until for when the player is without. Whatever is placed in the satchel inventory will be retained in it even when the satchel is removed from the back slot.

While this effectively allows a player to potentially quadruple their carry space, this is not without disadvantages;
- The items each satchel contains cannot be accessed unless the satchel is placed on the ground or in the Back Slot, nor is there anyway to distinguish satchels from each other or verify the contents of a satchel without placing in the Back Slot, or placing it on the ground and opening it.
- Once a satchel is placed on the ground, it is susceptible to disappearing (along with any items it had) if the player wanders out of map range. To prevent their disappearance, Satchels must be carried by the player.
- Satchels are also highly susceptible to destruction. Although this makes it easy for the player to pick up the satchel with a single hit, if a Zombie, Spider or Skeleton touches it, it will destroy the satchel and spill its contents, and any explosions (creeper or otherwise) or fire or lava will instantly destroy the satchel along with any items it might have been containing.
- If water touches a satchel, that satchel will be dropped as if broken, but provided it is picked up, its contents will not be lost.
- Satchels cannot be stored in other Satchels or in Chests.

When placed on the ground and accessed as a chest, the satchel gui will look like this:



Parachutes -

The Parachute can be worn directly on the player's Back slot or crafted with a Backpack to make a Chutepack. It can be activated by pressing the jump button when the player has fallen more than 3 blocks but still hasn't landed. It will stay open, slowing the player's fall to safe speeds, until the player releases the jump button. There is a noticeable amount of time between when the player hits the jump button and when the Parachute actually activates and begins slowing the player's fall. This should be whatever time it takes to fall 4 more blocks. When the parachute is activated, the empty Satchel will be left in the Back or Backup Slots.

A Parachute only has a 45-50% chance at deploying successfully, and may instead result in the Parachute breaking into 1-5 cloth and 1-3 string (though never 5 cloth AND 3 string at the same time) that scatters out above the player's head as they continue to fall. To make up for this, wearing the Parachute replaces the 2x2 crafting grid with 2 slots that can only hold two more parachutes for backup (though this is called the backup parachute, it is actually used first) In order to use these backup parachutes, the player must let go of the jump button and press it again before they hit the ground.
When the player lands or if they let go of the jump button while the Parachute is still slowing their fall, it will break and drop a "Tangled Chute" which must be crafting with a satchel to turn it back into a usable Parachute.



Packs


Backpack -

A backpack is the most basic form of mobile storage. It provides the player with 3 rows of 9 columns of inventory slots, bringing the player up to Minecraft's standard inventory amount.

If the Backpack is broken, all items in the inventory will scatter. Items in the quickslot and 2x2 grid will be unaffected. If the Backpack is switched out for a pack that alters the 2x2 grid, then any items in the 2x2 grid will be dropped at the player's feet. If the Backpack is switched out for a pack that alters the standard inventory, then any items in the altered slots will be dropped at the player's feet.


Carrypack -

Equipping the Carrypack will replace the 2x2 crafting grid with 3 rows of 4 columns(12 total) of inventory slots along with the regular backpack inventory for a grand total of 39 slots (plus 9 quickslots) effectively giving the player 8 more inventory slots over the standard Backpack. The extra 12 slots the Carrypack grants will not be accessible when using Chests, Workbenches, Furnaces,Dispensers and any other blocks with their own inventory.

If the Carrypack is broken, then all items in the main inventory will scatter away from the player, and all items in the extra 12 spaces that the Carrypack grants will be lost permanently. If the Carrypack is switched out for a non-Carrypack, then all items in the extra 12 spaces will simply be dropped at the player's feet.


Capepack -

The Capepack can be made by crafting the Cape or Team Cape with a Backpack, but whatever durability the Backpack started with will be carried over to the Capepack. The Capepack functions the same as the Backpack in terms of altering the player's inventory, but will give the appearance of having a Cape equipped.

If the Capepack is broken, the Cape will be left in the player's Back Slot. The Capepack can also be placed in the crafting grid to drop the Cape in the output, leaving the Backpack (with whatever durability damage the Capepack had) in the input side.


Chutepack -

The Chutepack can also be made by crafting the Parachute with a Backpack, but whatever durability the Backpack started with will be carried over to the Chutepack. The Chutepack allows the player the same chance of surviving a fall as if wearing a Parachute, but trades the ability to store backup parachutes for increasing the player's inventory as if wearing the Backpack. When the Parachute is deployed from the Chutepack, it will revert to a regular backpack and the satchel will be dropped into the 2x2 crafting grid of the backpack inventory.

If the Chutepack is broken from damage, the Parachute will be left in the player's Back Slot. The Chutepack can also be placed in the crafting grid to drop the Parachute in the output, leaving the Backpack (with whatever durability damage the Chutepack had) in the input side.
When the Chutepack drops a Tangled Chute or has a failed deployment, the Chutepack will automatically be replaced with a Backpack.


Groovepack -

The Groovepack changes the 2x2 grid from "crafting" to "playing" and up to 4 records, and ONLY records, can be stored in that 2x2 grid. Placing a record in the "output" slot will cause that record to begin playing. When that record is finished it will be switched with a different record from the Playlist and will begin playing it automatically. This will continue indefinitely, looping through the various records in the Playlist. If the player wants to stop the music, they merely need to remove the record that is in the "output" slot.

If the Groovepack is broken, the Jukebox used to craft it will be lost along with the Backpack. Any records that were still in the 2x2 grid or output will also be lost, but the Groovepack can be placed in the crafting grid to drop an undamaged Jukebox in the output, leaving the Backpack (with whatever durability damage the Groovepack had) in the input side.


Smeltpack -

The Smeltpack changes the 2x2 grid into a smelting setup, allowing the player to smelt ore that they find on the fly. If the Smeltpack takes any damage or touches water, it will interrupt any ongoing smelting and lose whatever was in the fuel slot. If it involves fire/lava, it can have a chance of outright destroying whatever was in the process of being heated.

If the Smeltpack breaks, then all items in the fuel slot, input slot and output slot will be lost. The Smeltpack cannot be decrafted and will not drop anything if it breaks.


Workpack -

With the Workpack equipped, the 2x2 crafting grid will be replaced with 9 inventory slots much like what happens when the Carrypack is worn, but the player also loses 6 columns off of the left side of their inventory, which are replaced with a full worktable crafting grid. Anything that is placed in the workbench slots or in the extra 9 slots that replace the 2x2 crafting grid will not be accessible when opening Chests, Dispensers, etc.

If the Workpack is broken, any items in the Workbench grid, or the extra 9 inventory slots that replace the 2x2 grid will be lost. The Workpack cannot be decrafted and will not drop anything if broken.


Expelpack -

Wearing the Expelpack will replace the 2x2 crafting grid with a 2x3 dispensing grid. While it is worn, items can be placed in the 2x3 grid and left there. While the dispensing grid has items in it, every step the player takes while walking (not jumping or sneaking, or minecart or boat riding) will cycle through the grids and use the item in that grid on the space that the player had previously occupied, provided that area did not already have a block in it. If arrows/snowballs/eggs or any other form of ammunition are in the 2x3 crafting grid, they will be fired directly behind the player.

Hoes, Shovels, Pickaxes, Axes, and Swords may also be placed in these slots, and will be used on the block behind the player with each step. However the tool being used will still need to be aimed at the block in question long enough to finish breaking it to work, so the lower quality the tool, the longer the player must wait after each step. Additionally, whether the item is used successfully or not will still count as a use against its durability (double durability when trying to use the improper tool on a block)
Any item that is not ammunition or possesses a specific function when right clicked (sticks, flint, coal, feathers, etc) will simply be dropped behind the player.
The item that is used is not random, but starts at the upper left corner and cycles clockwise until there are only empty spaces to the end of the cycle, at which point it starts back at the beginning to restart the cycle.

Quote from USING THE DISPENSING GRID »


With this arrangment of items in the Dispensing grid;
[]
[] [] []
Item use would alternate between placing a torch and placing a flower every time the player moved a space. So starting from here;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []

would result with this;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []



[] []
[] []
Item use would would place a torch, then leave 2 empty spaces, then place a flower, then immediately start over again and place a torch, then 2 empty spaces, then a flower, continually starting the cycle over again. So starting from here;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []

would result with this;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] []


[] []
[] [] would leave 2 empty spaces, then place a torch, then leave 2 empty space, then place a flower, then start over by leaving 2 empty spaces, placing a torch, leaving 2 empty spaces and placing a flower, etc. So starting from here;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []

would result with this;
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []
[] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []


[>>-i>] [] []
[] [] []
This setup would fire an arrow behind the player every step the player takes, providing cover fire as they run from an enemy, though the arrows would of course not be retrievable, and the player would not be able to aim easily (though looking down would shoot the arrow higher, but looking up would shoot the arrow into the ground)


The Expelpack cannot be decrafted to retrieve the backpack from the dispenser and nothing will drop if the Expelpack breaks. All items in the dispenser grid will be lost if it breaks.


Creeperpack -

Creepers getting you down? Revenge is a dish best server LOUD! If you die, your pack breaks, or you come into contact with fire or lava, your Creeperpack will explode. You can fill the Bang+ slot with gunpowder for an even bigger explosion.

Why? Why would you do this? You will die if you use this, period. What could you possibly gain from destroying the area around your corpse after you've already died? Curse my foolish pursuit of science! It has led only to sorrow and destruction.

Gauntlets

Gauntlets provide 2 armor points, giving the player a theoretical maximum of 12 armor points, but only 10 points are ever counted at a time. This allows the player to take damage and still have a time where they are fully protected, or to skip wearing a helmet or boots. Wearing Gauntlets also ensures that the protection offered by any other piece of armor is extended to the sides, which would otherwise have a thin area that would be treated as unarmored even while wearing chestplate.

Climbing Gloves
= Hand Pick, [@]=String
[]
[@] [] [@]
[]
Climbing gloves allow you to climb non-ladder blocks. The durability is dependent on the material of the hand picks used, but is still going to be low enough to be prohibitive to use as a standard.
To do this, merely switch to a quickslot with no items, and then hold right click down. The player will now be locked onto the surface of the wall. Climbing walls does not work the way ladders do. Forward and backward will control climbing up and down, while left and right control sideways motion, and if no movement key is pressed, the player will merely hold onto the wall. While climbing, the player cannot let go of right click, nor switch to any non-empty quickslot, nor jump or crouch. Any of those actions will cause the player to let go of the wall and fall. Players do not need a sheer wall for climbing, but can have gaps similar to the way ladders can be placed one block apart.
Each block the player climbs will reduce the durability of the Gauntlets. Some blocks are easier or hard to climb, and may incur double durability, or no loss of durability, and some blocks are simply impossible to climb:

x0 Durability - Mossy Cobblestone, Brick, Bookshelf, Ladder, Fence
x1 Durability - Cobblestone, Dirt, Clay, Wood, Sandstone, Cloth, Coal( / / gauntlets), Iron( gauntlets), Gold( / gauntlets), LapusLazuli( / gauntlets), Workbench, Chest, Jukebox, Dispenser, Noteblock, Logs,
x2 Durability - Stone, Ice, Snow, Coal( gauntlets), Gold( gauntlets), Iron( gauntlets), Diamond( gauntlets), Netherack
Impossible - Sand, Gravel, Obsidian, Bedrock, Glass, Gold( gauntlets), Iron( / gauntlets), Diamond( / / gauntlets) LapusLazuli( / gauntlets), Glowstone,
Special - Air(durability of block below it), Furnace(regular durability, will damage player if actively smelting), TNT(no durability, will activate if climbed over), Leaves(will break if attempting to climb), Cactus(Impossible, attempting will damage player), Soul Sand(No durability, player's speed will be reduced)


Karate Gloves
= Hatchet, [@]=String
[]
[@] [] [@]
[]
Allows the player to chop wood by hand. (mostly for nostalgia purposes)

Blade Gloves
= Dagger, [@]=String
[]
[@] [] [@]
[]
Allows the player to do extra damage to mobs. wood/gold = 1HP, stone = 1.5HP, iron = 2HP, Diamond = 2.5HP

Farming Gloves
= Trowel, [@]=String
[]
[@] [] [@]
[]
Allows the player to mine snow by hand and right clicking on grass will allow soil to be tilled by hand.

Full Shields

The shield is equipped to the Offhand Slot as to function like armor, but operates slightly different than other armor; rather than absorbing a percentage of the damage to the player based on damage the armor has taken, (resulting in the player still possibly taking damage when hit) shields operate on an all-or-nothing basis until completely destroyed. If the shield is selected from the quickbar, using it as an item will automatically switch it to the Offhand Slot, allowing players to have a backup shield ready for when a badly damaged shield is about to break.
In order to guard with the shield, it must first be Equipped and then the sneak button must be held. During this, all damage from the front is applied completely to the shield first. This prevents damage to other equipped armor and health, but results in the shield getting damaged much faster than regular armor. Damage from all directions other than the front will bypass the shield entirely, even if equipped and active. The shield loses 1 point of durability for each .5 damage blocked.
While sneaking/guarding with the shield, the player will still move slower and not fall off blocks, but they will not be able to move as far out to the edge of a block while holding a shield. This ensures that if the player lets go of the sneak button in order to use left or right click, they wont fall off the block. Also, using left or right click will not use the currently held quickslot item, but the will strike with the shield, which will only knock other mobs back and drain a single point of durability from the shield. This can be particularly useful for reflecting back the attacks of ghasts, which would otherwise only be blocked while guarding with the shield and not reflected, however this does incur double durability. Blocks may also be broken with the shield, but they will also count as an improper use and incur double durability.
The shield will show up in the bottom left hand view of the players screen, obscuring a small portion of the screen when not active, and a larger portion of the screen while active.

(If you don't like the shield having a cross, you can just treat it as a sword. It's open to interpretation)

Full Wood -
Durability; 32 (fire x1, fire if active x2, arrow x1)
This is also the only armor that can be created from wood.
Wooden Shields take damage if the player is on fire while they are Equipped, even though it will not act to absorb any of the damage the player takes.
Wooden Shields will automatically add arrows to the player's inventory if successfully blocked, though full damage of the arrow is given to the shield.
Full Gold -
Durability; 32 (fire x0, fire if active x0, arrow x2/3)
Gold Shields do not absorb fire damage taken by the player while Equipped, but neither is that fire damage counted against the number of uses the shield has.
Gold Shields do not add arrows to the inventory if blocked, but it will cut the damage applied by the arrows to the shield by 1/3.
Full Iron -
Durability; 64 (fire x0, fire if active x1, arrow x1/3)
Iron Shields do no not absorb fire damage taken by the player while Equipped, but can take damage from fire if actively guarding while the player is still on fire.
Iron Shields do not add arrows to the inventory if blocked, but it will cut the damage applied by the arrows to the shield by 2/3.
Full Diamond -
Durability; 256 (fire x 0, fire if active x0, arrow x0)
Diamond Shields do not absorb fire damage taken by the player while Equipped, but neither is that fire damage counted against the number of uses the shield has.
Diamond Shields do not add arrows to the inventory if blocked, but cut all damage applied by the arrow to the shield.


Small Shields

(If you don't like the shield having a cross, you can just treat it as a sword. It's open to interpretation)
Small Shields are used and function in roughly the same manner as Full Shields, but have roughly half the number of uses as their full counterpart. ( / = 16, = 32, = 128) Even when actively guarding will only prevent full damage if the attack was taken to a small area surrounding the exact center of the screen. Any damage outside of this area comes from the front it will only be reduced by 1/2 before being applied to armor and HP. Damage from any other direction will still be fully applied to armor and HP.
In the case of arrows, Small shields will only catch or absorb their damage if caught in the center of the screen. Small Shields obscure roughly the same amount of the screen while the player is not actively guarding, but much less of the screen is obscured while guarding with a Small Shield than with a Full Shield (due to the reduced area of protection the small shield offers)

Swords

The Sword may be placed in the shield slot but takes double durability for standard use, and triple durability for using against non-mobs. When holding the Sword in the offhand, sneak will not slow the player down (though it will still prevent falling the same way guarding with a shield does) but will switch between left and right click controlling the main or offhand.
With this the Sword also gains the ability to use right click to temporarily defend as if using a small shield (the "shield" effect only lasts for the middle of the swinging sequence) and if successfully blocked will count damage against the durability of the sword.(1 durability per .5 HP) Using 2 swords allows main and offhand swords to be alternated between for a nearly continuous shielding effect. The offhand sword also has the advantage that whenever it is used to damage a mob, that mob will only be invulnerable to the offhand sword, and not whatever item is in the main hand.

Hand Tools

As seen in Extended 2x2 Grid Crafting. If implemented, Daggers, Hand Picks, Trowels, and Hatchets can be used off hand at regular durability. Like with swords, holding the sneak button with Hand Tools will not slow the player down,(though it will still prevent falling off of ledges) but will merely switch between left & right click controlling the main hand or the offhand item. The Hand Tools also share the same advantage that the invulnerability that follows the damage they deal does not apply to main hand items.
(Note: The Dagger retains the ability to be thrown from the offhand, (and will be picked back up into the offhand if the offhand is empty and the main hand is not) and has the same ability to use Rope that is in the Ammunition Slot when it is thrown that it has when thrown from a quickslot)

Maps
With the addition of Ink/dyes, it becomes possible to make quills:

And with the addition of quills, it becomes possible to have writable books, but those are actually useful, and as such should cost much more to make than just 3 pieces of paper:

With this also brings the ability to make Journals that will keep track of the date, and possibly other statistics, like how many creepers/mobs you injured/killed each day, how many deaths, how many blocks mined, days survived, days since last death, and longest number of days alive, etc.

It also becomes possible to make Atlases:

In order to update an Atlas, it must be placed in the Offhand Slot and the player must have an Ink Quill somewhere in their inventory. With these conditions met, the Atlas will update with the 3x3 area around the player on each step the player takes. If the Atlas is not blank, then it will only continue updating if a part of the Atlas that has been marked is still visible when the Atlas gui is pulled up. If the player does not wish to update the Atlas with the area they are walking on, they merely need to remove the Atlas from their Offhand Slot

(The mockup shown here only uses a 17x19 gird, but if the gui were to fill more of the screen it would be possible to have a larger map area as well)
The player's position will always be centered on the Atlas by default, and can be scrolled using WASD. Pressing the Spacebar at any time while viewing the Atlas GUI will cycle between reorienting onto the spawn point (if it has been marked on the Atlas) or back on the player's current position.
In order to read any Book, Atlas, or Journal, it must be placed in a quickslot and then right clicked. In this screen, notes/annotations may be added if the player has an Ink Quill in their inventory.

With books now having a use, Bookshelves must be made through a different recipe:

This bookcase will appear empty, but will actually function as a storage unit that has the same number of slots as a double chest, but can only store Books, Inks/Dyes, the materials needed to craft them, records, signs, and paintings.

Once an Item is placed in the Inventory of a Bookcase, its side textures will match that of the current Bookshelves. When its inventory is completely empty its side textures will revert back to an empty appearance.

The old book recipe still has a use; creating fake books, and bookshelves, which can allow players to hide their functional Bookcases and also may eventually work with levers and buttons and doors to create secret switches and secret doors.