What Is the Simply Tools Mod?
If you have ever wished your pickaxe could clear out a whole wall of stone in one swing, or that your shovel could flatten a beach without endless clicking, the Simply Tools mod is exactly what you need. Designed as the spiritual successor to the beloved Vanilla Hammers and Vanilla Excavators, this Forge mod brings area-of-effect mining to Minecraft version 1.19 and above. It does not overcomplicate things with flashy GUIs or overpowered gadgets — instead, it adds a small set of practical tools that respect the vanilla survival balance while saving you enormous amounts of time.
Core Features and How They Work
The mod introduces two primary tool types: hammers and excavators. Both are crafted using familiar recipes that mirror the shape of a pickaxe or shovel but with extra material blocks to give them their wide-area power. Once you hold one in your hand, the mining behavior changes in a satisfying way.
Hammers — The 3x3 Pickaxe
A hammer acts exactly like a pickaxe but breaks blocks in a 3x3 square centered on the block you target. This means you can carve out tunnels, strip-mine for diamonds, or clear large underground rooms with a fraction of the effort. The tool respects the material tier, so a wooden hammer will only break stone-tier blocks, while a netherite hammer tears through ancient debris and obsidian just as quickly as a regular netherite pickaxe — but nine blocks at a time. Durability is consumed per block broken, so a hammer will wear down faster than a single pickaxe, but the time saved makes the trade-off more than worthwhile.
Excavators — The 3x3 Shovel
Excavators work on the same principle but for shovel-compatible blocks. Dirt, sand, gravel, soul sand, and even snow layers vanish in a 3x3 area with each swing. Terraforming a hillside, clearing a desert for a build, or digging out a massive farm plot becomes a smooth, almost meditative process. The excavator inherits all the enchantment compatibility of a shovel, so you can still apply Efficiency, Unbreaking, and Silk Touch to fine-tune your digging experience.
Integration with MoreVanillaLib and MoreVanillaTools
Simply Tools shines on its own, but it truly unlocks its potential when paired with MoreVanillaLib. This optional library adds special visual and gameplay effects to most tools. For example, a hammer might leave a subtle particle trail or play a deeper sound when breaking blocks, reinforcing the feeling of weight and power. The effects are purely cosmetic by default, but they can be configured, making the mod feel more polished without straying from the vanilla aesthetic.
Additionally, if you have MoreVanillaTools installed, the material roster expands automatically. Any new tool materials introduced by that mod — such as emerald, copper, or amethyst — will also generate corresponding hammers and excavators. This cross-mod compatibility ensures your tool collection stays consistent and that no material feels left out. The synergy between these mods is seamless and requires no extra configuration.
Installation and Dependencies
Getting Simply Tools up and running is straightforward. The mod is built for Forge on Minecraft 1.19 and newer versions, and it has one hard requirement: LibX must be installed. LibX is a lightweight library mod that handles shared code for many modern Forge projects, so you might already have it if you use other popular mods. Simply drop the Simply Tools jar and the LibX jar into your mods folder, and you are ready to craft your first hammer. If you want the enhanced effects, add MoreVanillaLib as well; for extended material support, include MoreVanillaTools. All of these can be found on reputable mod distribution platforms. For those who prefer a streamlined setup, the mod can be easily installed via the foxygame.net launcher — a convenient, flexible, and modern Minecraft launcher where you can download mods right from the menu, automatically resolving dependencies like LibX without manual file management.
Why Choose Simply Tools Over Other Area-Mining Mods?
The Minecraft modding scene is filled with tools that promise 5x5 mining or vein-mining, but many of them feel unbalanced or drift too far from vanilla progression. Simply Tools keeps things grounded. Here are a few reasons it stands out:
- Vanilla-friendly design: Recipes, durability, and enchantments work exactly as you would expect. No new workstations or complicated upgrade paths.
- Balanced resource cost: Crafting a hammer requires three blocks of the material across the top row, making it a meaningful investment early on.
- Selective area mining: The 3x3 zone only affects blocks that the tool can normally mine, so you will never accidentally break something you should not.
- Active Forge support: The mod is maintained for modern versions, ensuring compatibility with other popular Forge mods in your pack.
Practical Tips for Survival Builders
Once you have a hammer and excavator in your hotbar, your building workflow changes dramatically. For underground bases, use the hammer to hollow out large rooms without needing TNT dupers or haste beacons early on. When gathering sand for glass, an excavator clears an entire desert shoreline in minutes. Just remember to carry a regular pickaxe for precision work — hammers are too blunt for breaking a single block of a redstone contraption. Repairing these tools with the Mending enchantment is highly recommended because their durability drops quickly when you mine nine blocks per swing.
Conclusion
Simply Tools delivers exactly what its name promises: a clean, no-nonsense expansion of your mining and digging capabilities. By taking the proven concept of Vanilla Hammers and Vanilla Excavators and polishing it for modern Forge environments, the mod gives survival players a quality-of-life upgrade that feels earned rather than cheated. The optional synergy with MoreVanillaLib and MoreVanillaTools only sweetens the deal, making it a strong candidate for any modpack that values efficiency without sacrificing balance. Whether you are a veteran builder tired of repetitive block-breaking or a newcomer looking for a gentle introduction to utility mods, Simply Tools deserves a spot in your mods folder. Craft a hammer, swing it at a mountainside, and watch your projects take shape faster than ever before.