ToolSense

The right tool, automatically.

ToolSense is a lightweight Vanilla+ utility mod that automatically uses the appropriate tool you already carry when breaking blocks — without switching your selected hotbar slot or moving tools around your inventory.

Hold whatever you want. ToolSense handles the tool.

If you're holding a pickaxe and start digging dirt, ToolSense can use the shovel in your inventory. Start chopping a log and it can use your axe. Start mining stone and it can use your pickaxe.

The important part is that nothing visibly swaps.

Your selected hotbar slot stays selected, the item in your hand stays visible, and your tools stay exactly where you put them. The appropriate inventory tool simply becomes the effective tool for that mining operation.

The real tool is used — including its mining speed, enchantments, durability, harvest ability and drops.

How It Works

Suppose you're holding a torch while carrying:

• a pickaxe;

• a shovel;

• an axe;

• and a hoe.

Start breaking stone and ToolSense uses the appropriate pickaxe.

Dig dirt and it uses the shovel.

Break a log and it uses the axe.

Break a block where the hoe is the appropriate mining tool and it can use the hoe.

Your torch remains selected and visible the entire time.

ToolSense does not copy or fake your tools. The actual tool in your inventory performs the operation and receives the appropriate durability wear.

Features

Automatic Tool Selection

ToolSense evaluates the block you're breaking and the tools you actually carry.

It can automatically select an appropriate tool based on Minecraft's normal tool behavior rather than relying on a giant hard-coded list of blocks.

When multiple eligible tools are available, ToolSense considers their legitimate mining performance and uses deterministic selection rules.

This allows ordinary Minecraft and compatible NeoForge tools to participate naturally.

Invisible Tool Use

ToolSense does not physically swap tools.

It does not:

• rearrange your inventory;

• move tools into your hotbar;

• change your selected hotbar slot;

• rapidly switch slots back and forth;

• visibly equip the automatic tool.

Instead, the selected inventory tool becomes the effective mining tool while your actual selected item remains unchanged.

That means you may see a pickaxe, torch, block, empty hand or other selected item while the appropriate inventory tool is doing the mining work.

This is intentional.

Search Modes

ToolSense provides two tool-search modes.

Full Inventory

ToolSense can search your normal player inventory for an appropriate tool.

This is the default mode and provides the biggest benefit: your pickaxe, shovel, axe and other mining tools no longer need to occupy your hotbar just so they're immediately available.

Hotbar Only

ToolSense only considers eligible tools located in your hotbar.

Tools elsewhere in your main inventory are ignored for automatic selection.

This mode is useful for players who want tighter control over which tools ToolSense can automatically use.

The offhand is not part of ToolSense's automatic tool search in 1.0.

Held Tool Priority

ToolSense respects deliberate player choice.

If the tool you're actually holding is already appropriate for the block, ToolSense normally uses that tool rather than replacing it with another tool from your inventory.

For example:

If you're deliberately holding a Silk Touch pickaxe and have a Fortune pickaxe elsewhere in your inventory, ToolSense will not override your held Silk Touch pickaxe just because another pickaxe is available.

Your deliberate held-tool choice comes first.

The exception is optional Durability Protection, which can protect a nearly broken held tool when a safe replacement is available.

Fortune & Silk Touch Control

ToolSense lets you decide how automatic selection should handle Fortune and Silk Touch tools.

There are three preference modes:

AUTO

ToolSense performs normal automatic tool selection.

AUTO does not try to decide whether Fortune or Silk Touch is more valuable for a particular block. It uses the normal selection and performance rules.

FORTUNE

When ToolSense is choosing between suitable inventory tools, it prefers an appropriate Fortune tool when available.

Minecraft's normal Fortune mechanics still determine the actual drops.

SILK TOUCH

When ToolSense is choosing between suitable inventory tools, it prefers an appropriate Silk Touch tool when available.

Minecraft's normal Silk Touch mechanics determine the result.

These preferences affect automatic inventory selection. They do not override an appropriate tool you've deliberately selected in your hand.

Controls

V — Cycle Tool Preference

The default ToolSense control is:

V

Press V to cycle:

AUTO → FORTUNE → SILK TOUCH → AUTO

A brief message displays the newly selected mode.

The key can be changed through Minecraft's normal:

Options → Controls

ToolSense uses Minecraft's standard keybinding system, so normal key-conflict and rebinding behavior applies.

Durability Protection

ToolSense includes optional protection for tools that are close to breaking.

Default

Durability Protection: OFF

Default threshold

5% remaining durability

When enabled, ToolSense avoids automatically selecting tools at or below the configured remaining-durability threshold when a safe alternative is available.

Protection applies to both:

• tools being automatically selected from your inventory;

• and an endangered tool you're currently holding.

Example

You're holding a nearly broken diamond pickaxe.

A healthy pickaxe is elsewhere in your allowed ToolSense search area.

With Durability Protection enabled, ToolSense can use the healthy pickaxe instead.

Player control is preserved

Durability Protection is not a durability lock.

If you're deliberately holding a nearly broken tool and no safe eligible alternative exists, Minecraft still allows you to use it normally — even if that means breaking the tool.

ToolSense protects tools from automatic use. It does not prevent you from deliberately using your own equipment.

The threshold is inclusive: a tool at or below the configured remaining-durability percentage is considered protected.

Real Minecraft Tool Behavior

ToolSense uses the actual tool from your inventory.

The effective tool retains applicable normal Minecraft/NeoForge behavior, including:

• mining speed;

• tool tier and harvest requirements;

• block drops;

• durability;

• tool breakage;

• Efficiency;

• Fortune;

• Silk Touch;

• Unbreaking;

• standard mining-speed modifiers;

• compatible custom durability behavior;

• and other supported mining mechanics.

ToolSense does not create free durability or manually recreate Fortune/Silk Touch loot calculations.

Minecraft and NeoForge remain responsible for the underlying mining, durability and loot behavior.

An unequipped ToolSense tool does not become eligible for unrelated equipment mechanics simply because ToolSense can use it for mining. For example, ToolSense does not turn inventory-wide tools into equipped Mending targets.

Left-Click Mining Only

ToolSense 1.0 is intentionally focused on breaking blocks.

It does not automatically select tools for right-click actions.

For example, an axe elsewhere in your inventory will not automatically:

• strip a log;

• scrape copper;

• remove wax.

An inventory shovel will not automatically create a path.

An inventory hoe will not automatically till farmland.

The item you actually have in your hand controls right-click actions.

ToolSense also does not automatically switch equipment for:

• combat;

• armor;

• food;

• block placement;

• inventory sorting;

• or general item management.

Pickaxes, Axes, Shovels, Hoes & Shears

ToolSense supports normal block-breaking behavior for the standard mining tools, including:

• pickaxes;

• axes;

• shovels;

• hoes.

Compatible shear-based block breaking is also supported through Minecraft's normal mining mechanics, including appropriate blocks such as leaves, cobwebs and wool.

ToolSense does not automatically shear animals or perform other right-click shearing actions.

Some special vanilla behaviors intentionally remain controlled by the tool actually in your hand. For example, ToolSense does not automatically use inventory shears to disarm tripwire.

Empty-Hand Mining

You do not need to be holding another tool for ordinary ToolSense substitution.

ToolSense can automatically use compatible inventory pickaxes, axes, shovels, hoes and naturally compatible shears while your selected hand is empty.

One special limitation exists for bamboo's sword-specific instant-mining behavior: automatic inventory sword nomination for that special behavior requires a non-empty visible held item in ToolSense 1.0.

Ordinary mining behavior is unaffected.

Multiplayer

ToolSense is server-authoritative.

For multiplayer, install ToolSense on:

the server AND connecting clients.

The server independently determines which real tool is valid for the mining operation and applies the actual durability, harvesting and loot behavior.

The client does not get to tell the server which inventory slot should be treated as the tool.

Other players continue to see the item you actually have selected rather than ToolSense's invisible effective tool.

Modded Tool Compatibility

ToolSense is designed to work automatically with tools using standard Minecraft and NeoForge mining behavior.

This includes standard tool components, mining rules, attributes and other supported mechanisms.

However, some heavily customized modded tools assume that they must be physically equipped in the player's main hand for their custom mining or durability code to work correctly.

ToolSense takes a conservative approach:

If ToolSense cannot safely establish that custom mining economics can operate while the tool is unequipped, it may ignore that tool for automatic selection rather than risk incorrect durability or drops.

You can still hold and use such a tool normally.

This means ToolSense favors correct gameplay over blindly claiming compatibility with every custom tool.

For Mod Authors

Most standard tools require no ToolSense-specific integration.

For custom tools with specialized mining, durability or enchantment-economic callbacks, ToolSense provides:

@VirtualMiningCompatible

A custom item may explicitly declare that its complete mining/durability implementation is safe when ToolSense supplies:

• the real ItemStack;

• the real player;

• while that ItemStack is not physically equipped.

The declaration is intentionally not inherited. Each concrete custom item implementation must make its own compatibility declaration.

Do not add @VirtualMiningCompatible merely to force ToolSense to select an item. The complete mining and durability path must actually be safe while unequipped.

Configuration

ToolSense provides configuration for its core behavior, including:

ToolSense Enabled
Turns automatic tool selection on or off.

Search Scope
Choose between:

• FULL_INVENTORY

• HOTBAR_ONLY

Durability Protection
Enable or disable automatic protection of endangered tools.

Durability Protection Threshold
Sets the remaining-durability percentage at which a tool becomes protected.

Default configuration:

• ToolSense: Enabled

• Search Scope: Full Inventory

• Durability Protection: Off

• Protection Threshold: 5%

• Tool Preference: Auto

• Preference Key: V

Fortune/Silk Touch preference is a player preference and is controlled with the ToolSense keybind.

Requirements

Minecraft: 1.21.1
Mod Loader: NeoForge
NeoForge: 21.1.250
Java: 21

For multiplayer, ToolSense must be installed on both the client and server.

ToolSense 1.0.0

ToolSense is designed around one simple idea:

You shouldn't have to shuffle between ordinary tools every few seconds just because the block in front of you changed.

Carry the tools you want.

Select the item you want.

ToolSense handles the rest.

The right tool, automatically.