elucent/Mods

## Mods

Generally, I'm listing these by order of belonging in a modpack. Many of them have some potential cons, and while they're still good mods, may change gameplay significantly from the norm. So I'm mentioning those in descriptions down the list, and will place them lower.

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    Rustic (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/rustic). This mod is sorta like a less focused Growthcraft. It adds a couple new crops, all with unique purposes, most with unique ways of growing them. It adds an alchemy system that lets you create vanilla potions using growable herbs, along with a couple new effects. It contains a brewing system, where you can increase the quality of different brewed drinks which give you fairly useful buffs. It lets you craft furniture and chandeliers and candles to decorate your builds. And there is a form of simplified beekeeping where you can place a couple apiaries near your crops to help them grow. Very simple and vanilla style, not very invasive, and certainly not going to upset any balance or gameplay. I'd say this is one of the best mods to add to a pack these days.

    Immersive Petroleum (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/immersive-petroleum). This is the only good IE addon. It adds oil reservoirs to the world (not in worldgen as blocks, but as a separately tracked sub-bedrock system) which you can harvest, refine, and burn for power. A very nice approach to oil power that doesn't result in clogging your world with pipes and oil wells every hundred blocks. The dev has made a whole slew of different oil-related products available to the player, so it's also not just used for large scale power -- you can create motorboats, asphalt, and special portable generators. It's not a huge mod but it's definitely a good addition to any pack containing IE.

    Modular Routers (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/modular-routers). This is one of the nicest redstone automation mods I've seen in a long while. The mod centers around one block, which can hold a large variety of different functional modules for different purposes. Nothing crazy complex or powerful, just simple utilities like collecting items at range, breaking blocks, throwing items, placing blocks, etc. It's very versatile, so it can fulfill many automation purposes that have been lost to time or may not be supported by other mods -- for example, one of the modules is a nicely configurable replica of the old Tinkers' Mechworks drawbridges. It's lightweight, customizable, and overall just a nice addition to a pack.

    NetherEx (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/netherex). A nether overhaul mod that adds biomes and weapons and mobs to the nether. Very creative, lots of new content here, and still being actively developed. The assets are all very well done, fitting with the vanilla style, which lends a lot of cohesion to the revamped dimension. Would obviously change up the nether experience a fair amount, but I think it's quite well done.

    Chococraft (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/chococraft). A port of the old Chococraft, adds nice Chocobo mounts to the game. You can breed Chocobos to find better, more useful Chocobos to ride. The mod's been around a while, the port seems quite stable, and I've found it pretty popular among players, though obviously it may add some overhead in the form of adding new plants and a new mob to the world.

    Nether Chest (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/nether-chest). This one is very small and neat. It makes a chest made out of nether materials that can hold stacks of 8x max stack size. This goes for tools and stuff as well. Just a small vanilla-style addition that is well-executed.

    Nutrition (https://github.com/WesCook/Nutrition). If you've ever used Spice of Life, Nutrition accomplishes what Spice of Life wishes it could, a million times better. It doesn't change normal hunger mechanics, but gives different nutrient values to different foods -- e.g., a steak may give you 4% protein nutrients, while a loaf of bread may give you 2.5% grain nutrients. The entire mod is very configurable, you can change the icons and coloration of the different food groups, customize which foods have which nutrients, and even remove or add food groups as you wish. And instead of simply being a constant annoyance, Nutrition gives the player a lot of (configurable) wiggle room -- you start out with a solid amount of nutrition in each food group, you only start seeing downsides when you let them get very low, and you get buffs like damage resistance or strength for keeping them very high! Would maybe be a bit too much of a change for a mainline pack, but if you ever want to make something a bit more hardcore or survival-oriented, it's a really well-done mod.

    SaltyMod (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/saltymod). SaltyMod is a bit of a strange food mod, centered around salt. It adds salt ore, rare salt lakes, salt piles...and a ton of different recipes for different food items using salt as an ingredient (https://i.imgur.com/37byn8f.png). The real appeal is the large quantity well-sprited food the mod brings to the table. I find it adds some nice variety without overextending its bounds, and it adds some other fairly useful stuff as well: mineral-rich mud armor intended as a healing accessory, a Rainmaker firework that can cause a downpour, and a semi-secret crop. It does have some weird saturation values for most of its food items, though that's likely a bug and I will be trying to contact the mod dev at some point, but I think it holds up as a neat little food-related mod if we ever want to take a step back from Pam's Harvestcraft. :p

    Scannable (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/scannable). This is a neat one-feature mod that lets you scan the world for resources. You can search for different ores, fluids, or entities using a very pretty-looking Scanner item by equipping it with different modules. Just a nice mod.

    RetroComputers (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/retrocomputers). This mod recreates the old Redpower computers. It's pretty cool, kinda new, and the developer is fairly active (currently, they're working on a lightweight port of Redpower redstone cables). It's definitely in its early stages, but I'd keep an eye out for it and it could probably be added into a pack right now -- it's just not totally complete. It also interfaces with this next mod!

    Teckle (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/teckle). Teckle ports over a couple other old Redpower aspects: namely, its pipes. It has compatibility with RetroComputers, adding a Computer-interfacing sortron. Very lightweight piping system, I'm not sure it'd have a place in FTB, but it's cool and simplistic nonetheless.

    Defiled Lands (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/defiled-lands). This is probably not a mod that is right for FTB but it's worth keeping an eye on. It adds biomes to the world reflective of the old Thaumcraft tainted lands, but not quite as dangerous, nor as spreadable (defiled biomes will spread a little, but they won't actually spread beyond about three blocks of their initial bounds). The biomes feature unique mobs with unique abilities, and a summonable boss whose drops can provide some powerful (but not overly so) weapons. Obviously it could be fairly invasive, though I think this could be downplayed by simply making the biomes quite rare -- I think the mod works best as an interesting thing to come across during an adventure, a brief boss battle/exploration encounter to enjoy, making the world feel more interesting and varied. But it may not be for everyone.

    Factory Tech (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/factory-tech). This is the newest tech mod I've seen that has any real uniqueness or style to it. It's not the best implemented...not by a long shot, but it has a neat premise. Instead of being based on any simple power system, every machine in the mod will work as long as it's supplied with enough parts. This leads to large scale automation setups where item routing and manufacturing is key. It's a bit obtuse in places, and there's a lot of stuff with not the best documentation. But it's also very recent so, keep an eye on it. I'm not sure it'd be the best fit alongside most tech mods, but it'd be cool to see in another Horizons, or any other pack that features some more obscure content.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That's just about everything I had in mind for now. Some of the mods I've most enjoyed that I think fall under the radar are currently in the process of coming to 1.12 from 1.11, so I'll append them to this list when they're available.

also quark pls

	Generally, I'm listing these by order of belonging in a modpack. Many of them have some potential cons, and while they're still good mods, may change gameplay significantly from the norm. So I'm mentioning those in descriptions down the list, and will place them lower.

	~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	Rustic (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/rustic). This mod is sorta like a less focused Growthcraft. It adds a couple new crops, all with unique purposes, most with unique ways of growing them. It adds an alchemy system that lets you create vanilla potions using growable herbs, along with a couple new effects. It contains a brewing system, where you can increase the quality of different brewed drinks which give you fairly useful buffs. It lets you craft furniture and chandeliers and candles to decorate your builds. And there is a form of simplified beekeeping where you can place a couple apiaries near your crops to help them grow. Very simple and vanilla style, not very invasive, and certainly not going to upset any balance or gameplay. I'd say this is one of the best mods to add to a pack these days.

	Immersive Petroleum (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/immersive-petroleum). This is the only good IE addon. It adds oil reservoirs to the world (not in worldgen as blocks, but as a separately tracked sub-bedrock system) which you can harvest, refine, and burn for power. A very nice approach to oil power that doesn't result in clogging your world with pipes and oil wells every hundred blocks. The dev has made a whole slew of different oil-related products available to the player, so it's also not just used for large scale power -- you can create motorboats, asphalt, and special portable generators. It's not a huge mod but it's definitely a good addition to any pack containing IE.

	Modular Routers (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/modular-routers). This is one of the nicest redstone automation mods I've seen in a long while. The mod centers around one block, which can hold a large variety of different functional modules for different purposes. Nothing crazy complex or powerful, just simple utilities like collecting items at range, breaking blocks, throwing items, placing blocks, etc. It's very versatile, so it can fulfill many automation purposes that have been lost to time or may not be supported by other mods -- for example, one of the modules is a nicely configurable replica of the old Tinkers' Mechworks drawbridges. It's lightweight, customizable, and overall just a nice addition to a pack.

	NetherEx (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/netherex). A nether overhaul mod that adds biomes and weapons and mobs to the nether. Very creative, lots of new content here, and still being actively developed. The assets are all very well done, fitting with the vanilla style, which lends a lot of cohesion to the revamped dimension. Would obviously change up the nether experience a fair amount, but I think it's quite well done.

	Chococraft (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/chococraft). A port of the old Chococraft, adds nice Chocobo mounts to the game. You can breed Chocobos to find better, more useful Chocobos to ride. The mod's been around a while, the port seems quite stable, and I've found it pretty popular among players, though obviously it may add some overhead in the form of adding new plants and a new mob to the world.

	Nether Chest (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/nether-chest). This one is very small and neat. It makes a chest made out of nether materials that can hold stacks of 8x max stack size. This goes for tools and stuff as well. Just a small vanilla-style addition that is well-executed.

	Nutrition (https://github.com/WesCook/Nutrition). If you've ever used Spice of Life, Nutrition accomplishes what Spice of Life wishes it could, a million times better. It doesn't change normal hunger mechanics, but gives different nutrient values to different foods -- e.g., a steak may give you 4% protein nutrients, while a loaf of bread may give you 2.5% grain nutrients. The entire mod is very configurable, you can change the icons and coloration of the different food groups, customize which foods have which nutrients, and even remove or add food groups as you wish. And instead of simply being a constant annoyance, Nutrition gives the player a lot of (configurable) wiggle room -- you start out with a solid amount of nutrition in each food group, you only start seeing downsides when you let them get very low, and you get buffs like damage resistance or strength for keeping them very high! Would maybe be a bit too much of a change for a mainline pack, but if you ever want to make something a bit more hardcore or survival-oriented, it's a really well-done mod.

	SaltyMod (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/saltymod). SaltyMod is a bit of a strange food mod, centered around salt. It adds salt ore, rare salt lakes, salt piles...and a ton of different recipes for different food items using salt as an ingredient (https://i.imgur.com/37byn8f.png). The real appeal is the large quantity well-sprited food the mod brings to the table. I find it adds some nice variety without overextending its bounds, and it adds some other fairly useful stuff as well: mineral-rich mud armor intended as a healing accessory, a Rainmaker firework that can cause a downpour, and a semi-secret crop. It does have some weird saturation values for most of its food items, though that's likely a bug and I will be trying to contact the mod dev at some point, but I think it holds up as a neat little food-related mod if we ever want to take a step back from Pam's Harvestcraft. :p

	Scannable (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/scannable). This is a neat one-feature mod that lets you scan the world for resources. You can search for different ores, fluids, or entities using a very pretty-looking Scanner item by equipping it with different modules. Just a nice mod.

	RetroComputers (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/retrocomputers). This mod recreates the old Redpower computers. It's pretty cool, kinda new, and the developer is fairly active (currently, they're working on a lightweight port of Redpower redstone cables). It's definitely in its early stages, but I'd keep an eye out for it and it could probably be added into a pack right now -- it's just not totally complete. It also interfaces with this next mod!

	Teckle (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/teckle). Teckle ports over a couple other old Redpower aspects: namely, its pipes. It has compatibility with RetroComputers, adding a Computer-interfacing sortron. Very lightweight piping system, I'm not sure it'd have a place in FTB, but it's cool and simplistic nonetheless.

	Defiled Lands (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/defiled-lands). This is probably not a mod that is right for FTB but it's worth keeping an eye on. It adds biomes to the world reflective of the old Thaumcraft tainted lands, but not quite as dangerous, nor as spreadable (defiled biomes will spread a little, but they won't actually spread beyond about three blocks of their initial bounds). The biomes feature unique mobs with unique abilities, and a summonable boss whose drops can provide some powerful (but not overly so) weapons. Obviously it could be fairly invasive, though I think this could be downplayed by simply making the biomes quite rare -- I think the mod works best as an interesting thing to come across during an adventure, a brief boss battle/exploration encounter to enjoy, making the world feel more interesting and varied. But it may not be for everyone.

	Factory Tech (https://minecraft.curseforge.com/projects/factory-tech). This is the newest tech mod I've seen that has any real uniqueness or style to it. It's not the best implemented...not by a long shot, but it has a neat premise. Instead of being based on any simple power system, every machine in the mod will work as long as it's supplied with enough parts. This leads to large scale automation setups where item routing and manufacturing is key. It's a bit obtuse in places, and there's a lot of stuff with not the best documentation. But it's also very recent so, keep an eye on it. I'm not sure it'd be the best fit alongside most tech mods, but it'd be cool to see in another Horizons, or any other pack that features some more obscure content.

	~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	That's just about everything I had in mind for now. Some of the mods I've most enjoyed that I think fall under the radar are currently in the process of coming to 1.12 from 1.11, so I'll append them to this list when they're available.

	also quark pls