Ore Distribution Scanner

Minecraft 1.20.1 to 26.3: Fabric on every version, NeoForge from 1.20.4 and Forge on 1.20.1 to 1.21 except 1.20.5.

⭐ What It Does

• Scan without stopping the server - /ods scan sweeps the terrain around you on a background worker. Loaded chunks are read live, unloaded ones straight from the region files.
• It never changes your world - the scan is read-only: it generates no chunks and edits no block.
• Scan as much or as little as you want - one dimension, a comma-separated list, or all, with an optional radius. /ods status reports progress and /ods cancel stops it.
• Counted properly, not averaged into mush - every ore is counted by type and exact Y level, bucketed per biome and normalized by how much of that biome was actually sampled.
• Thin data is labeled, not hidden - a biome sampled below the threshold is flagged low-confidence instead of being quietly folded into the average.
• The answer appears where you already look - JEI, EMI and REI draw the distribution as a graph: depth left to right, frequency as gold bars, condensed to the ore's real generation band.
  • A biome selector steps between the dimension-wide aggregate and each sampled biome.
  • Low-confidence biomes draw as discrete bars with a warning badge instead of a smooth plot.
  • Hovering a point gives the exact average per chunk and the raw sample count behind it.
• Or read it in chat - /ods info and /ods list print the same results, and both work from a dedicated server console with no client attached.
• Results stick - saved per world and re-sent to a player when they rejoin.
• Tells you when it updates - once per start it checks for a newer version for your Minecraft version and loader and says so in chat only when there is one; one setting turns it off.
• Everyone can use it - all commands are permission level 0 by default, so it works in singleplayer without cheats. Raise scan_permission_level to restrict the write-ish commands to operators.
• Modded ores are covered - ore selection runs off ore tags, with a whitelist and blacklist for blocks that fall outside them.

📋 Requirements

• Minecraft 1.20.1 to 1.21.11 or 26.1 to 26.3 on Fabric, with Fabric API.
• Minecraft 1.20.1, 1.20.2, 1.20.3, 1.20.4, 1.20.6 or 1.21 on Forge.
• Minecraft 1.20.4 to 1.21.11 or 26.1 to 26.3 on NeoForge.
• JEI, EMI or REI, if you want the graphs in a recipe viewer.
• Mod Menu on Fabric, only to open the settings screen.

📥 Installation

1. Install your loader, plus Fabric API if you are on Fabric, and a recipe viewer if you want the graphs.
2. Install with the CurseForge app, or download the jar for your loader into your mods folder. Each loader's jar works on every Minecraft version listed for it above.
3. Load a world and run /ods scan. When it finishes, look up any ore in your recipe viewer.

⚙️ Configuration

The settings are in config/ore_distribution_scanner.toml on every loader, and in a settings screen opened from Mod Menu on Fabric or the Config button in the mod list on Forge and NeoForge. On Forge and NeoForge, settings from an earlier version's config/ore_distribution_scanner-common.toml are carried over the first time this version starts.

• scan_radius_chunks, biome_cluster_size, chunk_budget and progress_update_interval_seconds shape each scan.
• low_confidence_sample_threshold sets how few sampled chunks mark a biome low-confidence.
• scan_permission_level sets who may run /ods scan, cancel, clear and reload; 0 lets everyone.
• ore_whitelist and ore_blacklist add or remove block ids from what counts as an ore; on the settings screen they are typed as ids separated by commas.
• [updates] holds check_for_updates, on by default; turn it off to skip the update check.
• The update check reads https://alkeari.com/updates/ore-distribution-scanner.json once per game start and sends nothing else.
• Only when a newer version is out for your Minecraft version and loader does it say so in chat, with a link.

/ods reload re-reads the file without a restart. Editing the ore whitelist or blacklist asks you to rejoin so the recipe viewers pick the change up.

Scan data lives in an ore_distribution_scanner folder inside the world save. /ods clear <dimension> deletes one dimension's data and /ods clear all confirm deletes the lot.

🖥️ Compatibility

• Existing worlds. It reads what is already there, so an existing world is exactly what it is for. Nothing is generated and nothing is changed.
• Client or server. The scan and the commands run on the server or the integrated server; the graphs are drawn by your recipe viewer on the client.
• Recipe viewers. JEI, EMI and REI each draw the graphs wherever they have a build. On Fabric 1.20.3 and on Fabric and NeoForge 1.20.5 only REI has a build, so use REI there.
• On Fabric 1.20.3, REI needs Architectury API 11.1.17, the 1.20.4 build, which also runs on 1.20.3.
• Forge 1.20.3 has no recipe viewer build, so there the results are in chat only.
• Recipe viewer builds. JEI: every version and loader above except 1.20.3, 1.20.5, 1.21.2, 1.21.3 and 1.21.6. EMI: Fabric, Forge 1.20.1 and 1.20.2, and NeoForge, up to 1.21.1 except 1.20.3 and 1.20.5.
• REI builds: Fabric and NeoForge on every version above, and Forge 1.20.1, 1.20.2 and 1.20.4.
• Incompatible: Just Enough Resources and EMI Ores. Both also draw ore depth graphs, so with either installed you see two different graphs for the same ore. Use one of them or this mod, not both.
• Just Enough Resources draws its graphs in JEI from built-in vanilla figures, and EMI Ores in EMI from the world generation settings.

🐛 Support

• Leave a comment on this page.
• Include your Minecraft version, your loader and its version, the mod version, your recipe viewer, and your other mods.
• The mod's text is also in German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian and Simplified Chinese.
• Those translations are machine written; if a line reads wrong, say which one and how it should read.

📄 License

License terms are in the Alkeari License Agreement.

Every release, its changes and how to send feedback are on the project page at alkeari.com/projects/ore-distribution-scanner.

If you want to see how it works, you can read the source code at github.com/Alkeari/OreDistributionScanner-PUBLIC.

💛 Donate

If you would like to donate, you can do so on Ko-fi, Patreon, PayPal, Stripe or GitHub Sponsors.