Vulcade
Vulcade is a Fabric client mod that runs post-processing shader packs on Minecraft 26.2's Vulkan renderer, a backend that Iris does not support.
What it does
Minecraft 26.2 moved away from its long-standing OpenGL pipeline, adding a graphics backend abstraction and shipping a Vulkan renderer alongside it as experimental. Vulcade fills the gap that existing shader mods leave open: Iris works only with OpenGL, so switching the graphics API to Vulkan means giving up shaders entirely.
A shader pack is a folder or .zip with a vulcade.json manifest, a post-effect chain JSON, and .fsh shaders arranged like a resource pack. The chain format follows vanilla's post-effect format, so anyone who has written a vanilla post shader already knows it. Each pass receives SamplerInfo, OutSize and InSize, plus vanilla's Globals block with GameTime, ScreenSize and camera position. The mod is client-side only and is licensed under the MIT License, but it is not open source. It is published for 26.2 only, with the 1.0.0-beta file on the beta channel.
Key features
Bloom and sun glare
A bright pass with a blur applied in several separable stages, plus a warm halo that tracks the sun's position on screen.
Volumetric light shafts
God rays that work like sun brightness through an aperture, with ore glow that lets ores, torches and lava stand out in dark caves.
Filmic colour grading
An ACES tonemap, contrast with warm highlights against cool shadows, and a vibrance adjustment.
Per-scene looks
Separate chains apply underwater, with refraction wobble, and in the Nether and End.
Four quality profiles
Low, Medium, High and Ultra profiles change the actual number of passes, and a pack can be picked and the quality toggled from an in-game screen.
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
Crystal Glow is a Fabric client mod for 1.21 – 26.2 and is released under All rights reserved, so its code is not open source. Custom Glint is a Fabric client mod for 1.21 – 26.3 under All rights reserved, and Anchor Glow is a Fabric client mod for 1.21 – 26.1.2 under All rights reserved. Vulcade targets the Vulkan renderer on 26.2 only, while these mods cover longer version ranges.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vulcade | Fabric | 26.2 | Client-side only | 2026-07-31 |
| Crystal Glow | Fabric | 1.21 – 26.2 | Client-side only | 2026-08-10 |
| Custom Glint | Fabric | 1.21 – 26.3 | Client-side only | 2026-10-14 |
| Anchor Glow | Fabric | 1.21 – 26.1.2 | Client-side only | 2026-05-05 |
Questions
Does Vulcade need Fabric API?
Can Vulcade run Iris shader packs?
Does Vulcade support full lighting-model shaders?
In the catalog
Vulcade is one of 12,078 Decoration mods on ModsFinder, and one of 6,982 Decoration mods for Fabric. 13,894 mods support Minecraft 26.2.
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What the author says
Loadable shader packs that work on Minecraft 26.2's Vulkan renderer. Minecraft 26.2 replaced the 17-year-old OpenGL pipeline with a graphics backend abstraction and shipped an experimental Vulkan renderer alongside it. The catch: existing shader mods don't support it. Iris is OpenGL-only, so switching Graphics API to…
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/vulcade
- Owner
- minhkhanh160911
- Published
- 2026-07-31
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-07-31
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15