Minecraft:Far Lands (Java Edition)/Beta 1.8 to 1.14.3

Template:Italic title Template:Disclaimer The Far Lands were a terrain bug that occurred in versions of Template:MC up to Beta 1.7.3. They were caused by errors in the math that governs terrain generation, resulting in abnormal structures resembling excessively stretched-out terrain. They were fixed in Beta 1.8 Pre-release, and moved far beyond the boundary to 53,905,378,846,979,748 blocks from spawn. Reaching this distance is impossible without extensive modding. In addition, most of the distance effects were fixed. The Y Far Lands (aka the Sky and Ground Far Lands) were overlooked, but were fixed in 1.13 with the world generation rewrite. Prior to the removal of the first iteration of Minecraft:Custom worlds, it was possible to force the Far Lands to generate by setting the Coordinate Scale to extreme high values.

Beginning in 1.14.4, additional changes to the way the fix worked pushed the Far Lands to even further distances.

Explanation

The Far Lands were a terrain generation bug that occurred at ±12,550,824 along the X and Z-axes prior to Beta 1.8, as well as the Y-axis (technically) before Java 1.13. The Far Lands generated because of an integer overflow error within Minecraft. The Minecraft:noise generator that draws Minecraft's height map increases by 684.412 for every four blocks, causing an integer overflow at approximately ±12,550,824 (sometimes ±12,550,821.) Multiplying the aforementioned numbers and dividing the noise scale by 4 results in the 32-bit signed integer max value, which when overflowed, results in an extreme noise seed.

In Minecraft:Beta 1.8, as part of changes to terrain generation, the following code, referred to as the "modulo" patch, was added within the NoiseGeneratorOctave.java file: <syntaxhighlight lang="java"> for (int var16 = 0; var16 < this.octaves; ++var16) { double var17 = (double)p_76304_2_ * var27 * p_76304_8_; double var19 = (double)p_76304_3_ * var27 * p_76304_10_; double var21 = (double)p_76304_4_ * var27 * p_76304_12_; long var23 = MathHelper.floor_double_long(var17); long var25 = MathHelper.floor_double_long(var17); var17 -= (double)var23; var21 -= (double)var25; var23 %= 16777216L; var25 %= 16777216L; var17 += (double)var23; var21 += (double)var25; this.generatorCollection[var16].populationNoiseArray(p_76304_, var17, var19, var21, p_76304_5_, p_76304_6_, p_76304_7_, p_76304_8_ * var27, p_76304_10_ * var27, p_76304_12_ * var27; var27 /= 2.0D; } return p_76304_1_; </syntaxhighlight>

This was present in every following version, including Beta 1.8, up to 1.14.3. It essentially prevents the noise generator from suffering integers overflowing by clamping the input before being passed. It also allows for the terrain to "wrap around" and continue generating normally even at high distances. By removing everything from long var23 to the last (double)var25;, the patch is undone, and the Far Lands can be moved back within vanilla boundaries at their original locations.

Location

File:Far Lands in 1.8.1.png

Far Lands generating in 1.8.1 with the patch removed

If the modulo patch is undone, on the X and Z axis, the Far Lands and Farther Lands initiate as they did in Beta 1.7 and below (±12,550,824), with an identical chance of offset at positive positions. However, due to the new height limits and new world generation, they are actually 256 blocks high. On the Y-axis, the Far Lands initiate at around twice the former number, which is therefore ±25,101,648. The Farther Lands also generate at ±2,008,131,840 on the Y-axis, however, they cannot be generated without lowering the selector noise period.

The new position due to the modulo patch is at X/Z: 53,905,378,846,979,748. As such, this makes them impossible to view in vanilla gameplay, due to imposed limitations and how Minecraft is designed.

Structure

Whether enabled by simply removing the modulo patch or going to the new location where they generate,The edge Far Lands and corner Far Lands, as well as their Farther variations, generate relatively identically to their pre-Beta 1.8 counterparts, but utilizing the entire height limit. In versions prior to 1.7.2, they remained capped at y=128 despite the change in world height; afterwards, they will generate up to y=256. By modding the world height to continue indefinitely, they can continue up until they reach the sky Far Lands at y=+25,101,648 (and equivalently the ground Far Lands at y=-25,101,648).

Far Lands

Sky Far Lands

File:Far lands on Y.png

The Far Lands generating on an unmodded modern custom world, before 1.13. A high coordinate scale was also used to generate this, resulting in repetitive terrain.

The Far Lands generate at positive values of the Y-axis past y=25,101,648. Minecraft:Monoliths generate up to this point if the player can get them to generate.

Setting the Height Scale extremely high can generate the Far Lands in the sky up to the height limit.

This is possible in Vanilla.

Vertex Far Lands

When the Sky or Ground Far Lands meet with the vanilla Corner Far Lands, many interesting terrain features can be sighted. The content of these intersections appears to vary throughout worlds, with some being completely blank, some completely solid, and some generating like regular Far Lands material. In some cases, diagonal patterns with large absent chunks generate.<ref>Template:Ytl</ref>

• The Sky Far Lands.
  The Sky Far Lands.
• The Ground Far Lands.
  The Ground Far Lands.
• The Ground Far Lands.
  The Ground Far Lands.
• An intersection of all 3 sets of Far Lands, where the Y-axis is positive.
  An intersection of all 3 sets of Far Lands, where the Y-axis is positive.
• A more extensive view of the previous scenario.
  A more extensive view of the previous scenario.
• File:Vertex Far Lands (positive) (1).png
• An intersection of all 3 sets of Far Lands, where the Y-axis is negative.
  An intersection of all 3 sets of Far Lands, where the Y-axis is negative.
• File:Vertex Far Lands (negative) (1).png
• Inside the Sky Vertex Far Lands, with crazy terrain.
  Inside the Sky Vertex Far Lands, with crazy terrain.
• Inside the Ground Vertex Far Lands, with a diagonal pattern.
  Inside the Ground Vertex Far Lands, with a diagonal pattern.
• The Ground Farther Lands inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
  The Ground Farther Lands inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
• The Sky Corner Far Lands.
  The Sky Corner Far Lands.
• Inside the Sky Corner Far Lands.
  Inside the Sky Corner Far Lands.
• The Ground Corner Far Lands.
  The Ground Corner Far Lands.
• Inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
  Inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
• The Farther Lands inside the Sky Corner Far Lands.
  The Farther Lands inside the Sky Corner Far Lands.
• The Farther Lands inside the Sky Vertex Far Lands.
  The Farther Lands inside the Sky Vertex Far Lands.
• The Farther Lands inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
  The Farther Lands inside the Ground Corner Far Lands.
• The Farther Lands inside the Ground Vertex Far Lands.
  The Farther Lands inside the Ground Vertex Far Lands.

Depth noise Far Lands

Like low/high and selector noise which respectively control the Far and Farther Lands, depth noise can be made to overflow at a given position. By default, it overflows at 42,949,672.96 blocks. Due to the Far Lands initiating before it, the overflow in depth noise is effectively impossible to see. However, if depth noise is made to overflow before tradition far lands, achievable by pushing the far lands farther out than this distance or moving the depth noise far lands closer, the effects can be seen immediately as it overflows, the terrain jumps up a few blocks. Terrain after this point is slightly more boring than before due to depth noise controlling subtle variation, which no longer exists after the overflow due to it almost always being at the max possible value. Every so often, very long "rifts" characteristic of depth noise far lands can be seen, which extend for extremely long. These rifts end once they hit the point twice the distance of the first overflow, and rifts as a whole past this point do not seem to be able to come into existence. Rifts have also only been noted on the positive X axis and are yet to be found on the Z axis.

Dimensions

The End

The End was implemented after the Far Lands were removed, meaning that the End Far Lands never generated naturally.

• The edge Far Lands on Java Edition.
  The edge Far Lands on Java Edition.
• The corner Far Lands on Java Edition.
  The corner Far Lands on Java Edition.
• A map created in the corner Far Lands on Java Edition.
  A map created in the corner Far Lands on Java Edition.
• The edge Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
  The edge Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
• The corner Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
  The corner Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
• A map created in the corner Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
  A map created in the corner Far Lands on Java Edition before 1.9.
• An end city in the Far Lands.
  An end city in the Far Lands.
• The Farther Lands in the End.
  The Farther Lands in the End.
• The Corner Farther Lands in the End.
  The Corner Farther Lands in the End.

Summary

The Far Lands were never actually removed from the game in Beta 1.8. Rather, what was fixed was integers and noise values overflowing at the 32-bit limit, and thus putting the new start way beyond the boundaries of a normal Minecraft world. As such, by patching the game to reverse this change, or by using a BigInteger mod, the Far Lands can be brought back. However, their location, makeup and progression depends entirely on the version and/or method used. If the game is modded to simply undo the modulo patch that fixed the original Far Lands, then they will generate at their original starting point of X/Z: ±12,550,821. The limit to how much of the Far Lands will generate is dependent on what mods and/or version is being used. If only the patch is reversed, then it will vary due to various vanilla features throughout different versions that affected the edge of the world.

The only way to see the new locations of the Far Lands is by using a 64-bit mod or BigInteger mod that does not patch the fix. If a 64-bit mod is used, the distance effects will continue to progress as one goes further; while the BigInteger mods end up patching these.

Coordinates	Effects	Image (if avaliable)
Accessible through 64-bit and BigInteger
X/Z: -53,905,378,846,979,752 X/Z: 53,905,378,859,432,511	The Far Lands begin generating due to the "modulo" patch breaking down, resulting in noise value overflowing at this point. Because of the three-block offset that sometimes happened in the vanilla Far Lands, this offset is instead measured with a 12,452,760 block difference (but not a scaling of the original offset).<ref>breaking Minecraft's FINAL Distance Limit…, YouTube, April 1, 2021</ref> If a Stripe Lands fix is not enabled, the Far Lands will appear two-dimensional.	File:MC-distance13.png Without the fix File:MC-distance12.png With the Stripe Lands fix
X/Z: ±576,460,752,303,423,488 (±259)	If using a 64-bit mod, world renderer begins to break down, causing terrain to flicker in and out, like at the 32-bit.
X/Z: ±4,312,430,307,758,379,833	By this point, Selector Noise has gradually broken down at this point, causing the Farther Lands to generate.
X/Z: ±9,223,372,036,854,775,807 (±263)	The 64-bit limit and the maximum the Far Lands will generate using a 64-bit mod, since world renderer breaks completely at this distance in this case, giving way to an endless void like in the 32-bit cases. The game will always crash when approaching this limit. Due to the effects mentioned above however, it will be almost completely invisible, if a Stripe Lands fix is not enabled.	File:64-bit limit Far Lands end.png Empty void after rendering breaks at the 64-bit limit at X: 9,223,372,036,854,776,000.
BigInteger only
X: ±Template:Abbr X: ±Template:Abbr X/Z: ±Template:Abbr	The Far Lands begin degrading into thinner slices due to the decay process, in three stages at the aforementioned distances. However, there are no comb-like artifacts nor dotted lines of terrain generation, as lerp failure, which was responsible for these artifacts, was fixed in Minecraft:Beta 1.9-pre2.
X: ±Template:Abbr Z: ±~Template:Abbr	The Far Lands end completely at this point, though the end point is different on each axis, as they continue until at least 20 quindecillion on the Z axis. This marks the end of Minecraft terrain generation, unless extensive modding on top of this patches the noise overflow and Far Lands. As stated before, the end point is inconsistent due to how the decay works and does not result in a specific point each time, and will vary by seed.	File:Fringe Lands end.png

Effects

While completely unrelated to terrain, these effects occur coincidentally with Far Lands due to their shared extreme distances and are worth noting as a result.

Floating-point precision errors with entities and particles

Even in modern versions of Minecraft, the floating-point precision errors still exist, but only with translucent block rendering, natural snow generation and snowfall at extreme heights.

Darkness

Template:Main In vanilla Minecraft 1.14, the lighting system breaks beyond 2²⁵ (X/Z ±33,554,432)<ref>Template:Bug</ref> (though this distance is available only via editing source codes), however, it isn't like what would happen beyond X/Z=32,000,000 in older versions. Instead, everything abruptly becomes absolutely dark and ignores light sources. By pressing F3, it shows that the sky light level is 0, thus undead mobs do not burn when exposed to the sky. The chunks, however, are still solid and block physics still function. Night Vision can help to counteract the visual darkness; it is currently unknown whether the Minecraft:Conduit Power effect works or not.