You ever get that feeling in Minecraft where you have too much stuff and nothing to do with it? It’s the classic sandbox trap. You build a massive iron farm, chests overflow with ingots, and then... you just stare at them. That’s why Create: Above and Beyond changed everything for me. Honestly, it's not just another modpack. It’s a job. But, like, the best kind of job where you actually want to clock in on a Saturday morning with a cup of coffee.
Most packs just throw quests at you. "Go mine ten diamonds," they say. Boring. Create: Above and Beyond is different because it was designed by the actual Create mod team. They didn't just slap a bunch of mods together and call it a day. They rewired the entire progression of the game to center around one goal: getting to space.
The Logistics of the Moon
You aren't just punching trees and making a portal here. You’re building a supply chain. Think Factorio, but with the verticality and charm of a Victorian-era workshop. The pack is divided into five distinct chapters. Each one forces you to automate a specific "Mechanism."
First, you’re messing with Kinetic Mechanisms. These are basic. You’ve got saws, you’ve got deployers, and you’re basically just trying to figure out how to keep a water wheel spinning without it overstressing. But then, things get weird. By the time you hit Chapter 3, you’re dealing with explosive production lines and liquid logic. It’s a massive leap. If you haven't played it, the scale is hard to describe. You aren't building a machine; you're building a factory floor that spans three chunks and makes a noise like a steam engine having a panic attack.
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The endgame? Advanced Rocketry. You aren't just clicking a button to go to the moon. You have to manufacture the fuel, build the hull, and automate the guidance systems. It’s a grind, sure, but every single step feels earned.
Why the Market System is a Total Game Changer
Usually, in modded Minecraft, currency is a joke. You find some emeralds, you trade with a villager, you're done. In Create: Above and Beyond, there is a literal "Market" tab in your quest book. You can sell your automated goods—like logs, ores, or complex meals—for silver coins.
Why do you want coins? Because you can buy "Profession" permits.
You want to get into Occultism? Buy a permit.
Need a specific ore that's a pain to mine? Trade for it.
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It creates this incredible loop where you aren't just hoarding resources. You’re thinking like a CEO. "Is it more efficient for me to mine this iron, or should I automate a potato farm, sell the fries, and buy the iron with the profit?" It sounds like work. It is work. But when that first shipment of silver coins hits your inventory, it’s a rush.
It’s Actually Hard (And That’s Good)
Let’s be real: most modpacks are power fantasies. Within three hours, you usually have flight and infinite ore. Not here. Create: Above and Beyond uses a mod called Straw Golem Reborn and forbids most traditional "magic block" shortcuts. You want to move items? Use belts. You want to sort items? Build a brass tunnel system.
The complexity comes from the recipes. They’ve been "KubeJS-ed" to death. This means the developers manually changed almost every crafting recipe to ensure you must use the machines. You can't just craft a furnace in a grid and call it a day. You need to blast-process it. You need to use the mechanical press. It forces you to interact with the world instead of just staring at a crafting table GUI.
The Mod Synergy You Didn’t Know You Needed
The brilliance lies in the mods you've probably ignored in other packs:
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- Thermal Series: Usually the star of the show, but here it's a supporting actor providing secondary processing.
- Occultism: Used for dimensional storage and specialized ore crushing via "crusher spirits."
- Pretty Pipes: A low-lag, visual way to move items before you have the fancy brass logistics.
- Farmer’s Delight: Essential for the "Cuisine" side of the market.
It’s a tightly knit ecosystem. If you remove one mod, the whole thing collapses. That’s rare in the modding world. Usually, packs are bloated with "filler" mods that just add twenty types of flowers you’ll never look at. Everything in Above and Beyond has a purpose.
The Learning Curve is a Vertical Wall
Don't go into this expecting a casual weekend. You will fail. You will accidentally overstress your kinetic network and watch your entire factory grind to a halt. You will run out of Andesite Alloy at the exact moment you need fifty more belts.
But that’s the point.
The community surrounding this pack—especially on Discord and Reddit—is still active years after release because the puzzles are so satisfying. There isn't just one way to solve Chapter 2. You might use a series of fans and lava to process your ores, while your friend might use a complicated sequence of mechanical plungers. It rewards creativity over following a wiki.
Dealing With the "Andesite Bottleneck"
If you’re starting out, here’s the reality: you’re going to need a lot of Andesite. Like, an offensive amount. The first thing most players do is try to mine it manually. Don’t do that. You’ll burn out in twenty minutes.
The secret is the "Bedrock Cobblestone Generator." By placing lava and water over a block of bedrock, you can generate infinite cobble, which you then grind down. But wait—Above and Beyond changes this. You have to use the "Igneous Extruder" from Thermal, or better yet, automate the mixing of gravel and flint to simulate the process.
How to Survive the First Ten Hours
- Focus on the Quests: The quest book isn't just a guide; it's the instruction manual. If you skip a step, you'll find yourself unable to craft basic tools later.
- Automate the Small Stuff: Even if it’s just a single mechanical saw cutting wood, it saves you time. Time is your most valuable resource.
- Don't Fear the Math: You’ll need to calculate "Stress Units" (SU). Keep your power sources (Water Wheels, Windmills) upgraded.
- Use the Ponder System: Hold 'W' over any Create item. It shows you a 3D animated tutorial. It’s the best feature ever added to a Minecraft mod, period.
The Final Frontier
When you finally launch that rocket, it’s not just an animation. You’ve built the industry that put you there. You look down at your sprawling factory, the belts humming, the spirits crushing ore, the silver coins clinking in the vault, and you realize you didn't just play Minecraft. You engineered an era.
Create: Above and Beyond stays relevant because it respects the player's intelligence. It doesn't hand out rewards for showing up. It demands precision, planning, and a bit of architectural flair. If you’re tired of "Kitchen Sink" packs where you become a god in an hour, go get this. It’s available on the CurseForge or Prism launchers. Just... maybe clear your calendar for the next month.
Real Actions to Take Now
- Download the Prism Launcher: It handles the specific Java versions required for 1.16.5 much better than the standard launcher.
- Check the "TIPS" section in the Quest Book: It contains specific recipes for "Andesite Casing" that are much cheaper than the standard ones.
- Prioritize Brass: Get to the Nether as soon as possible. Brass is the gatekeeper for "Smart" logistics, and without it, your factory will be a mess of tangled belts.
- Set up a Silver Coin farm: Automate "Sweet Rolls" or "Burgers" early. Having a steady flow of cash lets you skip the most tedious mining grinds by buying resources directly from the shipping bin.