Diagenesis
by kyleplo
Diagenesis changes how ore veins are placed underground, making them rarer and larger, with each underground area assigned its own vein types.
What it does
Ore veins are rebuilt around a set of vein types that are divided into a few groups. Underground areas are assigned one of these types, independently of the biome above them, so the same ore can appear in very different rock across a world. Veins are significantly larger than in vanilla, but they show up less often, so finding a specific ore takes longer while the overall ore distribution stays close to vanilla.
The mod adds a strategy layer to mining. Stone near a valuable ore can hint that ore is close by, so a player reading the rock has a reason to dig in a chosen direction rather than sweeping at random. The changes apply to world generation only, so existing terrain is unaffected and new chunks follow the new rules.
Diagenesis is published for Fabric and NeoForge for 1.21.11 only, with files dated 2026-03-09. It runs on the server alone, so players join without installing it. It is released under the GNU Lesser General Public License v3.0 or later and is open source, with public source code and an issue tracker.
Key features
Rarer, larger veins
Ore veins spawn less often than in vanilla, but each one is significantly larger when it does appear.
Vein types by area
Underground areas are assigned one of a few vein types, which sets the rock an ore is found in.
Stone hints ore nearby
Certain stones signal that a valuable ore lies close by, adding a reason to pick a direction while mining.
Vanilla-like distribution
Total ore amounts stay similar to vanilla, so the change is in how ore is grouped, not how much exists.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Players who want ore to be scarcer and more spread out, and server owners who set the terrain rules for their world, which only the server needs to load.
How it compares
Large Ore Veins is the closest alternative, since it also makes ore veins larger, but it is a NeoForge mod for 1.21.1 under the GNU Lesser General Public License v3.0 only, and it requires the server while the client stays optional. Desert Lapis is a Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt mod for 1.21.11 under the MIT License, requiring the server with the client optional. Diagenesis is Fabric and NeoForge only, for 1.21.11, and is server-side only.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diagenesis | Fabric and NeoForge | 1.21.11 | Server-side only | 2026-03-09 |
| Large Ore Veins | NeoForge | 1.21.1 | Server required, client optional | 2026-05-31 |
| Desert Lapis | Fabric, Forge, NeoForge and Quilt | 1.21.11 | Server required, client optional | 2026-02-24 |
Questions
Does Diagenesis need to be installed on the client?
Which loaders does Diagenesis support?
Does Diagenesis change existing terrain?
In the catalog
Diagenesis is one of 8,515 World generation mods on ModsFinder, and one of 4,027 World generation mods for Fabric. 19,862 mods support Minecraft 1.21.11.
More from kyleplo
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What the author says
Diagenesis overhauls ore vein and rock generation by making ore veins rarer but much larger and adding additional strategy to mining. Ores and vein types are now divided into a few types: - Copper/Granite - Coal/Andesite - Gold/Diorite - Iron/Tuff - Redstone/Smooth Basalt - Diamond/Blackstone - Lapis Lazuli/Calcite …
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/diagenesis
- Owner
- kyleplo
- Published
- 2026-03-09
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-03-09
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15