First Steps

The mod is an overhaul of tool progression in the world generation category. Players gather rocks, sticks, leaves and bushes to knap primitive stone tool heads and combine them into tools. A knife speeds up grass gathering and gives a combat option early in the game. Firestarters have limited durability for ignition, and dried grass does not always catch fire on the first try, so several attempts may be needed.

Clay can be gathered and shaped into bricks, pots and jars. A potter's wheel allows larger pottery to be formed. Unfired pottery dries over time when placed near fire, and sherds found through archaeology can be embedded in its sides before firing. A decorated jar works as storage, filling a gap until planks and chests are available. Stone can also be mined without first finding materials, tools or chests.

The mod takes inspiration from other survival games, but it is not a one-to-one recreation, and it is meant as an alternative way to solve problems found in vanilla Minecraft. Many systems are still incomplete and development continues, with planned updates for metallurgy, woodworking and an armour rework; the author reports that the metallurgy update is in progress. First Steps requires Fabric and is published for 1.21.11 only.