Big Veins, Big Problems: Giant Ore Veins & Smart Scanner
Minecraft's resource gathering gets a complete overhaul with this engineering-focused modpack. Instead of scattered, tiny ore deposits, you encounter massive, rare veins that can hold hundreds of blocks of iron, copper, or diamonds. This changes the entire mining loop, turning every discovery into a major logistical event. The pack is designed for players who want a hardcore technical challenge and are tired of aimless strip mining.
Core Mechanics: Giant Deposits and Targeted Prospecting
The foundation of the pack is the Large Ore Deposits mod, which rewrites world generation. Standard ore blobs are gone. In their place are colossal geological structures that require planning to exploit fully. Finding these veins without preparation is nearly impossible, which is where the Scannable mod comes into play. This compact scanner is inexpensive to craft and allows you to build modules that locate specific ores, making exploration a deliberate, strategic process.
Installation and Version Compatibility
To get started, you need to download Big Veins, Big Problems: Giant Ore Veins & Smart Scanner for Minecraft through a launcher that supports modpack distribution. The pack is available for the Forge loader and is optimized for Minecraft version 1.12.2. The installation process is streamlined: the launcher fetches all required files and dependencies automatically, so there is no need to manually manage mod jars or config folders. This ensures a stable build without version conflicts.
Expert Progression and Forced Automation
The sheer size of the ore veins breaks the game's normal economy. Consequently, the pack's recipes have been reworked to be significantly more expensive and complex. Manual crafting quickly becomes a bottleneck. You will need to automate every production chain, from ore processing to the assembly of complex machinery. The pack's developer strongly recommends mastering Logistics Pipes early on. This pipe-and-request system allows for smart item routing between machines, ensuring that any item you need more than once is produced automatically.
Industrial Tech Stack
This modpack brings together a heavy-hitting lineup of industrial mods that define the core gameplay loop:
- Immersive Engineering for multiblock structures and realistic power transmission.
- Industrial Craft 2, rebalanced with new recipes for a fresh experience.
- Mekanism for advanced ore processing, factories, and a fusion reactor.
- Thermal Expansion and Ender IO for flexible item transport and automation.
- Actually Additions and Extra Utilities 2 for utility gadgets and generators.
- Draconic Evolution for end-game tools and energy storage.
- Avaritia and Project E for the final grind towards creative items.
Extended Crafting is also essential, introducing multi-step assembly tables required for the most expensive recipes. Without it, the path to creative artifacts is completely blocked.
Support Mods for Quality of Life
Beyond the core tech mods, the pack includes dozens of additions to make survival more comfortable and deep:
- BuildCraft and Railcraft for transport systems and trains.
- Tinker's Construct for customizable tools and a smeltery.
- Applied Energistics (without channels) for digital storage and autocrafting.
- RFTools and Compact Machines for compact dimensions and space-saving automation.
- Mystical Agriculture and Sky Orchards for growing resources from seeds.
- Big Reactors and Advanced Generators for powerful energy sources.
- Iron Chests, Iron Backpacks, JourneyMap, and JEI for inventory, navigation, and recipe viewing.
Ore Excavation is a standout addition, letting you mine entire veins quickly, which pairs perfectly with the scale of the deposits. Flux Networks also solves wireless energy transfer across dimensions.
Endgame Goals and Current State
The ultimate objective is crafting legendary creative items from Avaritia. The cost is astronomical, requiring billions of resources and perfectly tuned production lines. Only a fully automated base capable of processing ore from giant veins on an industrial scale will get you there. The developer plans to add magic mods and dimensions like Twilight Forest and Erebus in the future, adding more variety to the endgame path.
Keep in mind that the pack is in active beta. Recipes are not final, and balance changes frequently. The author is open to feedback and bug reports. If you are looking for a hardcore engineering challenge with a unique resource generation system, download Big Veins, Big Problems: Giant Ore Veins & Smart Scanner for Minecraft and test your ingenuity. Every vein is both a gift and a trial, and your problem-solving skills are the most valuable resource you have.