Ore Excavation Tool and Block Blacklists, Inverting Them, and Tool Class Restrictions

guide

Ore Excavation decides what it is allowed to dig through using two separate lists: one for tools and one for blocks. Both lists can be flipped so that they do the opposite of their normal job, and the mod also lets you restrict digging to standard tool classes. This guide covers those settings, along with the control that opens the config folder.

Tool Blacklist and Block Blacklist

The tool blacklist and block blacklist are the two filters that govern excavation. A blacklist normally means "do not excavate with this" or "do not excavate this," so anything placed on the list is excluded from the action. The tool list concerns the item you are holding, while the block list concerns the blocks in the area being mined.

Inverting the Blacklists

Each list has an inversion option that reverses its meaning.

Invert Tool Blacklist — flips the tool list so that instead of excluding the listed tools, it restricts excavation to them.
Invert Block Blacklist — flips the block list in the same way, so only the listed blocks are affected rather than everything except them.

Use these when it is easier to name the small set of things you do want instead of the large set you do not. Rather than listing every block you want to avoid, list the few you want to mine and invert the block blacklist. The same logic applies to tools: invert the tool blacklist to allow only the tools you name.

Tool Class Restriction

Only Standard Tools is the setting that limits excavation to standard tool classes. With it active, the mod checks that the tool in use belongs to a standard class before allowing the action, instead of accepting whatever you happen to be holding. This keeps excavation tied to proper tools and prevents unusual items from triggering it.

Opening the Config Folder

Open Config Folder is the action that takes you to the folder holding the mod's configuration. Reach it through its entry in the interface, or trigger it with the corresponding hotkey (set it in the controls menu). Once the folder is open, the blacklists and the other settings described here can be adjusted outside the game.

Excavation can also be gated behind a held key. The Must Hold Key control means the action only proceeds while that key is held down, so you can keep excavation deliberate rather than automatic. Assign it through the corresponding hotkey (set it in the controls menu).

A few other settings shape how excavation behaves and reports back:

Show Shape Outlines — displays the outline of the shape that will be excavated.
Use Block Side Hit — bases the shape on the side of the block you struck.
shape disabled — appears when shape mining is turned off, so no shape-based excavation will occur.

Undo and Its Limitations

Excavation can be undone, and the mod tells you what happened. On success you see success while the last excavation is being reversed. When it cannot complete, one of several messages appears:

no history — nothing is available to undo.
Undo Failed: Area obstructed — something is in the way of restoring the area.
Undo Failed: Unable to repay items — the items needed to restore the blocks cannot be returned.
Undo Failed: Unable to repay XP — the experience needed cannot be returned.
Undo has been disabled! — the undo feature is switched off.

Putting It Together

Treat the two blacklists as your main filters, and invert either one when naming what you want is simpler than naming what you do not. Add Only Standard Tools if you want excavation limited to standard tool classes, and use Must Hold Key if you want the action to require a held key. When you need to change these outside the game, use Open Config Folder.