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Introduction

The second I heard that a blogging contest was underway, I was entranced. This could be it, my big break! I'm not particularly good at projects or skins, but I'm quite confident in my ability to write, so, feeling ecstatic, I checked what the theme was... and my jaw dropped.

I needed to think up an original minecraft idea that wasn't already submited. That's like creating the blueprints for a new machine no-one else has ever designed in al of time itself! I was still commited, maybe even more so, and thus began my search for the perfect idea. For two whole days I thought and thought, but not once did I get an idea that was even close to feasible. Finally, just this morning, I woke up and realized the one thing minecraft lacks: Gas!

We all learned that there are, for the most part, three different states of matter: Solid, Liquid, and Gas. Minecraft's many blocks represent the solid state of matter, and we have water and lava to fufill the liquid portion, but where was the gas??? I didn't even know of any mods that added gas to the game! I had found my idea! It was time to make things right...

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How Gas Works

In my idea, gas fuctions similarly to liquid, but rather than it having a source that it flows from, it has a source it rises from! There are three specific gasses I'm going to be talking about, but for now I'd like to stay general.

Specific blocks will have the ability to release a gas into the air, and this gas will rise for a pre-set number of blocks, depending on the type. If this gas encounters an obstacle while rising, or another block is simply on top of the source of the gas, it will simply stop. This system prevents gasses from interacting, seeing as vertical pillars don't intersect, meaning no special combinations between gasses can be formed.

The main function of gasses are to add a new element to scenery and traps, but the can be used or any purpose you please! Now that we've established the genral rules behind gasses, let's see what they can do!

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-Smoke-

Smoke, in my opinion, is the most logical gas to be put in Minecraft. People create fake chimneys using brick and cobweb all the time, but nobody has ever stopped to think: Hey! What if smoke was actually released from fire? This is exactly what I'm proposing!

Fire, when on the top of a block, will produce smoke! Smoke looks like the fog that's already implimented in Minecraft, except it has a more sooty texture. It rises a total of 8 blocks from the fire source, and stops when it reaches the limit.

When a player walks through smoke, he is given the blindness effect for 10 seconds, but as always, this can be remedied with milk. Smoke also spreads fire, so chimneys are more than for decoration: they're for protection! Creative community members could use smoke to their advantage as dynamic atmosphere, a maze obsacle, or a sneaky trap!

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-Steam-

This gas is a bit more complex than the other one, but it's use it certainly greater. Steam is created by water, as one would assume, but for the water to produce the steam, it must be heated up! How do you go about heating water? Well, you'll need a "heat source" below the block the water is resting on! Both fire and lava can heat up water, provided they are put in the format I described.

The heated water now will have a slight bubbly look to it, and will produce a clear-ish gas that we recognize as steam. Steam can travel up to 4 blocks above its source, but this can be increased by adding a water block on top of the steaming waer block. Stacking water on top of heated water will continue to grow the steam vent to a maximum of 16 blocks.

When a player walks into steam, they are hurt, much like one is hurt while in lava, except there's no fire involved. This is intresting and all, but the really fun part about steam is that throwing a splash potion into it will momentarily change that steam to the color of said potion, and give anyone within the buff or debuff this potion provides. Not only could this make a more widespread splash potion effect, but steam and dispensers with splash potions could combined to make lightshows! Fun!

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-Poison Gas-

Though a similar effect can be maintained for a short time by throwing a poison splash potions into steam, poison gas is a better alternative for traps. This noxious gas, which looks like a purple-hued steam, is produced by toxic water, now craft-able by putting a water bucket with a poison potion. Once this water is created, you can place it anywhere you like!

This gas rises 4 feet from its source. Poison gas, as the name would lead you to think, poisons you for 30 seconds. Great for fun asthetics and traps as well!

In Conclusion

I've poured my time and effort into creating an idea that I think has a chance to win this contest, but I'm going to need more than willpower and determination: I'm going to need you, the community. If you liked any part of my idea, and want to support me through this challenging quest, please diamond this or leave a constructive comment stating what I could do better. I realize that there is a lack of good photos in this presentation, but I do not own photoshop and if I did I would be rather poor at it. If you wish to make a photo for me to use, I'm all for it!

So, there you go, my original idea for what I'd like to see in Minecraft. Hope you enjoyed! - Tomandgreen