Early Weapons
by berrygamez69
Early Weapons adds craftable weapons that use the common materials players collect in the first part of a survival world, such as wood, stone, iron, gold, leather, sticks and flint.
What it does
Each weapon is crafted from vanilla materials that players usually gather early, so a weapon can be made before diamonds or netherite are found. The aim is to give early-game combat more variety and to give materials that are often discarded a practical use during the first stage of survival. Weapons are tuned to be faster or slower than one another, and some apply knockback, so each one suits a different combat style rather than replacing the vanilla options.
The mod is meant for players who need a usable weapon quickly, such as speedrunners, hardcore players and anyone who wants more combat choice before rare ores are mined. It is built to stay within vanilla mechanics and does not add overpowered gear. Early Weapons runs on Forge and NeoForge in the client and server environment, so the server and every player need it. Files cover 9 release versions 1.18.2 – 1.21.5, and the code is licensed under All rights reserved, so it is not open source.
Key features
Weapons from common materials
Weapons are crafted from wood, stone, leather, iron, gold, sticks and flint, which players collect within the first few in-game days.
Varied attack speed and reach
Some weapons strike faster but deal less damage, while others are slower and heavier, so each option has its own trade-off.
Knockback effects
Certain weapons push targets back on hit, giving a tactical option against groups of enemies in the early game.
Vanilla-friendly balance
New weapons are kept below the power of diamond and netherite gear, so progression through the vanilla ore tiers stays intact.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
1.21.x3 of 3 versions with builds
1.20.x3 of 3 versions with builds
1.19.x2 of 2 versions with builds
1.18.x1 of 1 version with builds
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Players who want more early-game weapon variety in vanilla-style survival, as well as players on modded servers that already run Forge or NeoForge.
How it compares
Simple Weapons for Better Combat is Forge only, covers 1.18.2 – 1.19.2, and is not open source. Tools & Weapons Overhaul is Forge only, covers 1.20 – 1.20.1, and is not open source. Early Weapons covers a wider range of versions, 1.18.2 – 1.21.5, on Forge and NeoForge.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early Weapons | Forge and NeoForge | 1.18.2 – 1.21.5 | Client and server | 2025-06-09 |
| Simple Weapons for Better Combat | Forge | 1.18.2 – 1.19.2 | Client and server | 2023-05-30 |
| Tools & Weapons Overhaul | Forge | 1.20 – 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2024-09-10 |
Questions
Does Early Weapons need a loader other than Forge?
Does the server need Early Weapons installed?
Which game versions have Early Weapons files?
In the catalog
Early Weapons is one of 17,631 Equipment mods on ModsFinder, and one of 9,216 Equipment mods for Forge. 15,307 mods support Minecraft 1.21.5.
Similar mods
What the author says
Early Weapons, where the goal is to enhance the early-game experience of Minecraft by introducing a range of new weapons that are immediately accessible but carefully balanced to ensure they do not overshadow the natural progression of the game. These weapons are designed to be crafted from common vanilla…
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/early-weapons
- Owner
- berrygamez69
- Published
- 2025-06-09
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2025-06-09
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15