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Clockwork Bosses

Clockwork Bosses lets you build complex boss fights around vanilla mobs (wardens for now). You can set arena triggers, health phases, attack sequences, custom skins and audio, player buffs/potions, and loot. Start with stable release 0.2.0 for Minecraft 26.3 on Fabric. You'll also find sections for the local 0.3.0-beta.6 build and work that's still in progress. Those are labelled separately so you know what applies to your version.

Start with a preset, make an arena, place the encounter in your arena, then tune it in the in-game editor. You can get a fight running without opening any configs, and you can edit bosses on the fly!

Current release

The current release is 0.2.0. The mod and Workshop connection now come in one jar, including sound uploads. If you're upgrading, remove the old companion jar but keep its config and data. The website still runs on Cloudflare, so you don't need to host it yourself. If the Workshop connection goes down, your fights keep running.

Workshop setup and migration covers /boss workshop open, its temporary aliases, who can use it, and how your existing settings are copied without changing their contents. Commands that load files do that work in the background. Wait for the completion message in chat before moving on.

The release passed 5,216 core audit assertions, all workshop suites and 40 native GameTests both without and with Lithium. Packaged-server checks cover disabled/unavailable workshop, migration, commands and clean shutdown. Client checks cover native models and glow-mask pixels with tested EMF/ETF versions. Melee wind-up now continues while either combatant moves; reach and visibility are checked at impact. The tendril tint mask excludes body/face UVs.

Rendered multiplayer chase/latency and the reported whole-skin flash still need an in-game confirmation. Compatibility and testing separates current checks from earlier beta relay and release evidence. A new jar requires a server/client restart; this preparation did not deploy it.

Experimental addon development

The action API is included in stable 0.2.0 and beta.6, but it's still experimental revision 1. You can add your own actions and editor settings and use the encounter systems already in the mod. The mod being stable doesn't mean an addon built for one version will work with another.

• Addon API: what addons own, interruption cleanup and compatibility limits.
• Lightning addon walkthrough: the example from registration through execution and cleanup.
• API reference: methods, settings, capabilities and encounter events.

Build an addon against the exact core version it will run with. Some addons also require a client installation; native-only server addons do not automatically require one.

Start here

1. Install the mod and run your first encounter.
2. Choose a template or player-count preset.
3. Use the in-game editor, or connect the hosted Workshop.
4. Set activation and arena boundaries.
5. Work through the playtest checklist before opening the encounter to players.

Stable 0.2.0 includes optional client support, permission nodes, the compact editor, pupils, shared schema and spatial audio. Permissions and LuckPerms explains delegated access. Provider-specific playtests still need their own results.

Local beta.6 adds encounter PvP protection, safer potion placement with Better Combat and cosmetic eyebrow expressions. It is packaged and automatically tested, but has not been deployed. The hosted beta compatibility gap remains recorded separately. Versions and release status is the starting point for those distinctions.

Boss Observatory and Test Mod covers the separate development testing tool. Its local stability runner and report viewer are available in source; the complete native GUI/shared-service workflow is unfinished.

Build your encounter

• Phases and subphases: health stages, attack patterns, Recovery, and roar interludes
• Combat and targeting: attack timing, target rotation, and warnings
• Player support: arena buffs, minimum max health, and reusable potions
• Skins and face controls: player skins, custom PNGs, eyes, and eyebrows
• Sounds and music: event clips, voice lines, and encounter tracks
• Darkness and visual effects: auras, glow, and phase transitions
• Loot: searchable item rewards and datapack loot tables

Keep these three things in mind

• Match installed client/server builds. Stable 0.2.0 supports clients without Clockwork Bosses through the native fallback. Clients using the editor, custom visuals or audio need the matching core build. Other mods can still require clients. Restart after a jar update.
• Save and Reload saved do different jobs. Save writes the file. Reload saved applies saved templates to loaded bosses. Save first.
• Templates and presets are separate. Editing a preset changes future copies, not encounters already using an active template.

For exact syntax, see Commands. For file edits, see Configuration reference. If something looks off, start with Troubleshooting.

Release scope

The earlier 0.1 release recorded 4,384 config/media assertions, 1,038 native GUI assertions, and 28/28 native server tests both with and without the supplied server pack. A packaged production jar also passed startup and a spawn/activate/save/remove check in a disposable local pack server.

Those checks do not cover every modpack, real multiplayer latency, or full-pack client play. See the testing page for what those checks cover and what still needs testing.