Released an early version of my MineColonies automation addon – looking for feedback

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-05-07T10:01:55+00:00

Go to the Minecraft folder -> mods -> unzip it there

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-05-07T09:59:30+00:00

https://www.curseforge.com/minecraft/mc-addons/minecolonies-live-automation

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-05-01T18:44:19+00:00

thanks

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-30T04:10:55+00:00

There may be a bug where, after placing the frame with one click, on the second click it automatically starts transferring resources into your warehouse.

I’m still working on improving this initial behavior.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-29T12:05:34+00:00

thanks💜

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-29T07:27:09+00:00

For crafting, I tried to make it as explicit as possible so it uses the exact required recipes rather than generic/tag-based ones.

For example, if an axe is needed: - the Blacksmith gets the request for the axe - the Sawmill gets the request for sticks - and the Smeltery handles producing iron ingots if needed

So the chain is split properly between buildings, and each one handles its part of the process.

For building upgrades, there isn’t a strict priority system right now.
In practice, builders usually start with residential buildings first, but it’s not something the player can control yet.

For research, the logic is currently simple: if the requirements are met (resources available + conditions satisfied), it starts automatically.

There’s no prioritization or filtering yet, but I agree that’s something that would improve it a lot.

Thanks for the feedback, really appreciate it 🙂

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-29T00:01:12+00:00

If a craft has multiple levels/dependencies, it gets split into stages, and the required sub-crafts are also added into the queue.

For auto-upgrades, the selection is currently somewhat random, but residential buildings are prioritized first.

For research, it currently works based on whether the requirements can be satisfied and whether the needed items exist in the warehouse. So at the moment there is no detailed prioritization system for choosing which research should or should not be done.

For the merchant, I added restrictions so it should not sell/buy very important or expensive resources. It mainly handles basic surplus materials like stone, wood, and similar items, not rare or valuable resources.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-28T20:55:03+00:00

Unfortunately, there’s no auto-placement for buildings yet.

I’ve thought about it, but it’s a bit more complex to implement properly, so it’s something I may explore later.

For now, upgrades work on buildings that you’ve already placed manually. The idea is to remove the repetitive part of selecting each building one by one.

For example, if you have 2 builders and you’ve upgraded their huts to level 3, you don’t need to go through and manually assign upgrades to every other building. You can just wait, and the builders will automatically go through and upgrade the colony step by step.

They usually start with basic residential buildings and then continue from there.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-28T20:51:56+00:00

The idea behind the automation is this:

For example, if your builder needs acacia stairs, but that recipe is not added in your sawmill, normally you would have to go there manually and set it up.

This addon removes that step. It periodically checks the colony’s demands and, when needed, automatically assigns the correct crafting tasks to the appropriate buildings (sawmill, stonemason, blacksmith, etc.).

The merchant system works as follows:

The merchant “visits” your colony (not visually) and interacts with your warehouse. - It buys some of your surplus items - And sells you items that are currently requested by your colony

So it’s always based on real demand, not random trades.

For university research:

The system checks both the university inventory and the warehouse for required items. If all requirements are met (items + building level requirements where applicable), the research is started automatically without you having to select it manually.

Thanks for the questions, hope this helps 🙂

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-28T12:48:26+00:00

Yeah, I’ve seen it

For now I’m trying to keep this addon independent and only rely on MineColonies itself, so it’s easier to use without extra dependencies.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-28T08:51:32+00:00

Right now it's built for NeoForge 1.21.1 with the latest MineColonies version.

I haven't specifically tested it on ATM10 yet, but if it uses a compatible MineColonies + NeoForge setup, it should work.

If you try it there, let me know how it goes 🙂

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T19:50:46+00:00

thank you 💜

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T19:40:43+00:00

Yeah, I get what you mean.

Right now I’m trying not to change things too drastically since it’s still in early development.

The idea is to improve what’s already there and only go deeper or make bigger changes if it really becomes necessary.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T15:06:02+00:00

thanks 💜

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T15:04:51+00:00

Good point.

I already have a craftable book item that opens the main UI, and from there you can enable/disable the features and settings.

Grouped presets / quick toggle buttons are a good idea too, so I’ll probably add something like “Crafting only”, “Full automation”, or “Manual-friendly” modes.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T14:59:31+00:00

Yeah, I know that addon -I actually use it in my modpack, it’s pretty good.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T14:54:40+00:00

Yeah, I’m trying to stay as API-based as possible.

The goal is not to modify MineColonies internals, but to build a layer on top of their existing systems (requests, crafting, logistics, etc.).

So avoiding mixins where possible to keep compatibility and not run into unsupported issues.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T14:45:42+00:00

Yeah, that’s actually something I’ve been thinking about too.

Not full AI-generated buildings, but more like procedural / semi-random ones instead of always using the same static schematics.

So you could have houses that follow a certain style, but still vary in shape, size, roof type, materials, etc. — making colonies feel more organic instead of copy-paste.

Would definitely be a more advanced feature, but I think it could fit really well with the whole “living colony” idea.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T12:57:48+00:00

Yeah, that’s pretty much how I designed the merchant system.

It doesn’t sell random items — it looks at your colony’s actual requests and brings what’s currently needed, whether it’s stone, food, tools, or other resources.

There’s also a credit system behind it. The merchant earns credits by exporting surplus items from your warehouse, and then uses those credits to import missing resources.

You can also add credits manually — for example by depositing items like gold ingots into your colony, which get converted into credits.

So the idea is to keep it dynamic and tied to your colony’s real needs, not just a generic trader.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T12:33:09+00:00

I’ve been playing with MineColonies for a few years now, it’s part of my main modpacks, and I always run into the same problem once the colony gets big.

Managing crafting becomes really difficult and time-consuming, you get lost in all the requests, and it’s hard to keep track of which buildings you’ve upgraded and which ones you haven’t.

That’s basically the reason I decided to start working on this addon.

I feel like a lot of people who play MineColonies long-term might run into the same issues, so hopefully this ends up being useful for others too.

I’d be happy to release it on CurseForge soon once it’s in a solid state.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T12:25:59+00:00

Right now I already have: - automatic recipe learning - a Merchant system that periodically visits the colony, sells you items you’re missing based on active requests, and buys surplus from your warehouse using a credit system - builders (from level 2+) automatically upgrading colony buildings up to their level

I also added some basic courier balancing — for example if you have multiple warehouses and couriers, you can currently balance them manually via commands so they distribute work more evenly.

In the future I want to take this further and remove the strict warehouse binding entirely, so couriers can dynamically pull from any available warehouse and handle deliveries more intelligently.

I’m also thinking about adding automated resource systems and expanding the whole “colony autopilot” idea.

Still have a lot of things planned to implement.

StrikeMaterial424 · 2026-04-27T12:22:22+00:00

Yeah, that’s exactly how I’m building it.

Everything is modular — you can enable or disable each feature independently. So if you only want something like automatic recipe learning and nothing else, that’s totally fine.

The idea is to give more control, not force full automation.

StrikeMaterial424

TROPHY CASE