Minecraft is a very diverse game as-is. There are lots of gameplay mechanics that all tie together for the overall experience. You can explore, mine, craft, fight, build and more. Now with the Invasion Mod by Lieu there’s a new element to it all, a strategic, defensive mode where you have to defend your house from increasingly difficult waves of dangerous monsters while your Nexus, which is a new block the mod adds, creates precious resources. It’s a very fun twist to the end-game of Minecraft. Here’s what you need to know about it.
First of all you need to build the Nexus. You craft it by surrounding an obisidan block with redstone on 3 sides and a Phase Crystan (diamond+lapis+redstone) on the top. The Nexus acts like sort of a hub for everything that’s going on with this mod. To activate the Nexus you need to insert a Catalyst to start the mob attack. There are 2 catalysts, the Nexus Catalyst starts Invasion mode and the Stable Catalyst starts Continuous mode. Invasion mode ends only when the Nexus is destroyed by mobs, meaning you can’t stop the process. In this mode, waves get increasingly difficult and their attacks are constant. The Nexus generates Rift Flux, an important resource, very fast in this mode. Losing in this mode leads to an explosion that kills everything close to the Nexus (no blocks destroyed). In Continuous mode Rift Flux is generated slower, but mobs don’t attack all the time, only certain nights. The Nexus still builds up power as it progresses, making mobs stronger and generating more Rift Flux, but it can be controlled with damping agents and even stopped.
But, what is this Rift Flux exactly? Well, dear reader, it’s your reward for slaying all those monsters. It can be generated in the Nexus or crafted from Glowing Remnants mobs drop during waves. You can use it to craft an Infused Sword – the ultimate melee weapon – which can heal you 3 hearts once it’s charged and charging it takes a couple of hits on enemies. The Searing Bow is another craftable, it’s a powerful bow that sets enemies on fire if you charge the arrow enough. Its regular attacks are stronger as well. Rift Flux can also be used to craft regular Minecraft resources like diamonds, redstone etc.
- Tip: Craft a Searing Bow as soon as you can. Setting mobs on fire helps a lot.
The mobs that attack are not just your regular old Minecraft mobs either. They are specially made for sieges. There are all kinds of zombies that carry special items and armor, there are spiders that bounce really high and there’s a special big green mob that throws rocks at your base. That last one is rather nasty.
- Tip: Bring lots of arrows. You’re going to need them to take out the more powerful mobs before they get close.
In addition to those mobs, there are also Pig Engineers that build towers around your base to climb over your walls and zombie pigmen that are especially dangerous because they are resistant to fire and lava, meaning you can’t just put a lava ditch down around your base and expect these fellas to give up. There are also the boring old skeletons to give support from afar.
Sound good? Well you’ll need a good base to fight this battle. I recommend a lava ditch, a high wall and drops of a couple of blocks that can hurt mobs. Zombies can chomp through your walls, so make sure you don’t make them out of dirt. I find it’s best to use 2 block wide cobblestone walls that are at least 3 blocks high. Spiders will climb over these, but lava can kill them. Zombie pigmen will chomp through walls and swim through lava, but they won’t survive a big drop, so make sure you’re well prepared.
I recommend you get this mod and give it a try. It introduces a new spin to Minecraft and makes the end-game when you have plentiful resources much more fun. Challenge your base when you download the mod from here:
What did you think of the mod? How many waves did your base survive? Let me know in the comment section below.