Coordinates in Minecraft Education Edition

Understanding Coordinates

In the first module of this course, you will continue learning how to code various mods that can be utilized while playing survival mode in Minecraft. These lessons will be just like the ones at the end of Minecraft Modding I.

But first, in order to complete the next several projects, you will need a solid understanding of the coordinate system in Minecraft. That is why this lesson and the next one will deal exclusively with coordinates.

Relative vs World Coordinates

What does it mean when we tell the mod to place a grass block at the position (0, 0, 0)?

The first number in the position is X, which is east/west in the world
The second number is Y (up and down)
The last is Z (north and south)

When you run this mod, the block will place right where the player is standing (and it will move the player out of the way to do so).

But if you run the command /gamerule showcoordinates true to display the player coordinates, you will see that your player is not at the position (0, 0, 0).

So why did the block spawn where you stood rather than at the real ( 0 , 0 , 0)? This happened because the place block uses relative coordinates.

A relative coordinate (marked with ~) represents a position in the game relative to where the player is. For example, (~0, ~0, ~0) is where the player is, while (~3, ~0, ~0) is 3 blocks east of the player.

Where the player and block actually are in the game is their world coordinates. This next picture shows the difference between the world coordinates and the relative coordinates of the player and block.

If you really wanted to place the block at the world position (0, 0, 0), you can use the world block instead.

For one final example, what if you wanted to spawn 2 blocks, one below the player and another 3 spaces above? You will need to change the Y value for both blocks.

Run the code in the picture above. The final result would look like this.

Challenge

Create a mod that places a note block 2 blocks to the north of the player, a sponge 2 blocks east, dirt 2 blocks south, and cobblestone 2 blocks west. Make sure an instructor checks your work.