Build Assist Wands
by Genzyuro
Build Assist Wands adds three wands, in Wooden, Stone and Iron up to Netherite tiers, that place blocks along a chosen direction for players who build by hand.
What it does
Hold a block in the offhand while a wand is in the main hand, and the wand searches for the next open position in its chosen direction and places the block there. The three wand types cover upward, horizontal and diagonal-upward placement. Vertical walls and pillars, straight bridges and floors, and stair-like diagonal paths are each handled by one type. Sneaking turns the wand effect off, so normal manual placement still works. Some special blocks place the same way they would by hand.
The wands follow the material tiers of vanilla tools: Wooden, Stone, Iron, Golden, Diamond and Netherite. Higher tiers have a larger maximum placement range. Netherite wands cannot be crafted at a crafting table; a player upgrades a Diamond wand to Netherite at a Smithing Table. A wand-specific enchantment extends the search range further. The mod runs on Forge for 1.20.1, and the server and every player need it. Files are released under All rights reserved, so the code is not open source.
Key features
Three placement directions
Upward, horizontal and diagonal-upward wands each search for the first free space in their own direction.
Material tiers
Wooden through Netherite tiers mirror vanilla tools, and each higher tier reaches farther when placing blocks.
Smithing upgrade path
Netherite wands are made by upgrading a Diamond wand at a Smithing Table rather than through a crafting recipe.
Range enchantment
A wand-specific enchantment increases the maximum search range, and the range can be configured for each material tier.
Sneak to place manually
Sneaking disables the wand effect, so regular block placement works as usual while the wand is held.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
How it compares
Basically Gyrokinetic Wand is also a Forge wand for 1.20.1, open source under the MIT License, and runs on client and server just like this mod. Building Wands is open source under the Apache License 2.0 and covers Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt across 1.16.5 – 26.2. Build Assist Wands is limited to Forge and 1.20.1 and is not open source.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Build Assist Wands | Forge | 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2026-07-03 |
| Basically Gyrokinetic Wand | Forge | 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2025-04-15 |
| Building Wands | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.16.5 – 26.2 | Client and server | 2026-08-09 |
Questions
Does Build Assist Wands need another mod to run?
Do players and the server both need the mod?
How is a Netherite wand obtained?
In the catalog
Build Assist Wands is one of 17,631 Equipment mods on ModsFinder, and one of 9,216 Equipment mods for Forge. 34,764 mods support Minecraft 1.20.1.
More from Genzyuro
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What the author says
Build Assist Wands is a small Minecraft mod that adds three types of building-assist wands. When you place a block while holding a wand in your offhand, the wand automatically searches for a placement position based on its type.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/build-assist-wands
- Owner
- Genzyuro
- Published
- 2026-06-17
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-07-03
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15