Tool Refinery: Supercharge Your Minecraft Tools with Custom Upgrades
Vanilla Minecraft tools are reliable, but after a while, swinging the same diamond pickaxe or stone axe can feel a bit predictable. The Tool Refinery mod changes that entirely, introducing a crafting-based upgrade system that lets you tweak speed, damage, and durability in creative ways. Instead of hunting for enchantment tables and hoping for good RNG, you gather specific ores and shards, then surround a tool with them on a crafting grid. The result is a deeply satisfying progression loop that rewards exploration and smart resource management. Whether you want a pickaxe that rivals the next tier in speed or a sword that packs an extra punch without taking a second hotbar slot, this mod hands you the tools—literally—to make it happen.
How to Upgrade Tools
The core mechanic is straightforward. You place a stone, iron, or diamond tool in the center of a crafting table and surround it with the upgrade item of your choice. The tool must be at full durability, but you can repair it first using an anvil, then apply the upgrade. Each material grants a distinct buff, and you can even stack two different upgrades on the same tool for hybrid benefits. This system avoids the grind of enchanting while still demanding that you venture underground to mine new ores.
Gathering Upgrade Materials
Five upgrade items exist in the mod. Four of them—Zircon, Garnet, Iodine, and Azurite—come from their respective ores, which generate at roughly the same rarity as iron. You will find them while branch mining or exploring caves, so they never feel frustratingly scarce. The fifth material, Obsidian Shards, is obtained by smelting obsidian in a furnace, yielding nine shards per block. If you ever have surplus shards, you can convert them back into obsidian, which is a neat quality-of-life feature for builders who hoard the dark block.
Upgrade Items Explained
Each upgrade item tailors a tool to a specific playstyle. Here is how they work:
- Zircon: Adds a speed boost of 2.0F, effectively bumping the tool’s mining or attack speed to match the next tier. A stone pickaxe becomes as fast as iron, and an iron tool matches diamond. Ideal for early-game acceleration.
- Garnet: Increases melee damage by one point. This lets you combine a tool’s primary function with a bit of extra combat power, freeing up an inventory slot you would normally reserve for a sword.
- Iodine: Provides a much larger speed boost than Zircon, but at a cost—it reduces the tool’s durability. It is a high-risk, high-reward option for players who value rapid resource gathering over longevity.
- Azurite: Massively extends durability. Applying this to a diamond tool can push its uses past 2000, making it a long-term investment that pays off during massive building projects or extended mining sessions.
- Obsidian Shards: The ultimate upgrade, as it combines the effects of Zircon, Garnet, and Azurite in one go. A tool infused with obsidian shards becomes faster, deadlier, and far more durable, all without the negative durability hit of iodine.
Upgrading the Tool
To perform an upgrade, open a crafting table and place the undamaged tool in the center slot. Then completely surround it with eight units of the chosen upgrade item. The recipe works for stone, iron, and diamond tools only. If your tool has taken any durability loss, repair it at an anvil first—once restored to full health, it becomes eligible for enhancement. For players who want to skip manual file management, the foxygame.net launcher offers a streamlined way to install Tool Refinery directly from its built-in mod menu, letting you dive into tool customization without wrestling with folder structures or version conflicts.
Double Upgrades
The mod allows you to apply two distinct upgrades to a single tool. After you have crafted a tool with one upgrade, simply place that upgraded tool back into the crafting grid and surround it with a different upgrade material. The second buff stacks with the first, opening up powerful combinations. For instance, you could pair Azurite’s durability with Zircon’s speed to create a near-indestructible fast pickaxe, or mix Garnet’s damage boost with Obsidian Shards for a weapon that hits hard and lasts ages. Experimentation is encouraged, and the only limit is that you cannot apply the same upgrade twice.
Future Updates and Configurations
The mod’s roadmap hints at exciting expansions. Version 1.3.1 plans to introduce bow upgrades, though initially limited to one upgrade per bow, with unique effects that still use the same core materials. Version 1.3.2 is slated to bring gold tool upgrades, a new mob, and an additional upgrade item that boosts harvest levels—allowing tools to mine blocks they normally could not. That harvest-level upgrade will not combine with Obsidian Refined tools, keeping balance in check. Server administrators and modpack creators will appreciate the configuration options that let them tweak ore spawn rates or disable certain upgrades to fit their world’s difficulty curve.
Conclusion
Tool Refinery breathes fresh life into Minecraft’s tool progression without overwhelming complexity. By mining a handful of common ores and smelting obsidian, you gain granular control over speed, damage, and durability, turning even a humble stone pickaxe into a specialized workhorse. The double-upgrade system rewards creativity, and the upcoming content promises to expand the system to bows and gold tools. If you are tired of the standard enchantment grind and want a more deliberate way to shape your gear, this mod delivers a satisfying, craft-focused alternative. Grab your pickaxe, find some zircon, and start refining your arsenal today.