Useful Brush
by ToBinio
With Useful Brush installed, the vanilla brush gains new effects on sand, snow, mossy and infested blocks, and on several animals.
What it does
The mod extends the vanilla brush so it does more than dust archaeology sites. Holding a brush in the main hand lets it brush away sand, red sand and gravel, and remove one layer of snow at a time. An efficiency enchantment also affects the brush as it works.
Brushing certain animals yields drops: chickens and parrots give feathers, sheep give string, and mooshrooms give mushrooms. Mossy blocks can be converted back to their normal form, sometimes leaving moss blocks behind, and infested blocks can be converted to their normal form in the same way.
Useful Brush runs on Fabric and needs Fabric API on the same loader. Because it changes behavior on the server as well as the client, the environment is client and server, so the server and every player need the mod. Files cover 1.20.1 – 1.21.11 across 18 release versions, and the latest Fabric file, 0.2.3+mc1.21.0, targets 1.21.1. The code is released under the MIT License and is open source.
Key features
Brush on sand and gravel
A brush held in the main hand clears sand, red sand and gravel from the blocks it is used on.
Snow removal by layer
Each use of the brush removes one layer of snow, so the change is gradual and controllable.
Efficiency for the brush
The efficiency enchantment has an effect on the brush, speeding up the brushing action.
Animal drops from brushing
Brushing chickens or parrots drops feathers, sheep drop string, and mooshrooms drop mushrooms.
Converting mossy and infested blocks
Mossy blocks and infested blocks can be converted to their normal forms, with moss blocks sometimes dropped.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
1.21.x12 of 12 versions with builds
1.20.x6 of 6 versions with builds
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Requirements
Dependencies declared by the latest file for each loader.
Required 1
Use cases
Who it’s for: Players who want the brush to do more than it does in vanilla, and server owners who want the same brush behavior for all players on a Fabric server.
How it compares
Brush Client is a Fabric mod that runs client-side only and is open source under the MIT License, with files for 1.20.1 – 1.21.1, so a server does not need it. Variant Brush is open source under the GNU General Public License v3.0 only, runs on Fabric and is server required with an optional client, for 1.21.5 – 26.2. Noice Brush is client-side only, not open source, and covers 1.21 – 1.21.8.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Useful Brush | Fabric | 1.20.1 – 1.21.11 | Client and server | 2026-01-07 |
| Brush Client | Fabric | 1.20.1 – 1.21.1 | Client-side only | 2024-08-28 |
| Variant Brush | Fabric | 1.21.5 – 26.2 | Server required, client optional | 2025-03-28 |
| Noice Brush | Fabric | 1.21 – 1.21.8 | Client-side only | 2026-01-03 |
Questions
Does Useful Brush need Fabric API?
Does the server need Useful Brush?
Which game versions does Useful Brush support?
In the catalog
Useful Brush is one of 29,952 Game mechanics mods on ModsFinder, and one of 19,630 Game mechanics mods for Fabric. 19,862 mods support Minecraft 1.21.11.
More from ToBinio
Similar mods
What the author says
a fabric mod which adds more functionalities to the vanilla brush if you have any suggestions about what features could be added just let me know.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/useful-brush
- Owner
- ToBinio
- Published
- 2023-09-15
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-01-07
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15