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Map-Improvements

Map-Improvements

Replaces vanilla's confusing pixel-art maps with clear, true-color cartography and realistic terrain shading.

1.1Kdownloads
14followers
1.1Kdownloads
14followers

Compatibility

Minecraft: Java Edition

1.21.11
1.21.1
1.20.1–1.20.6
1.19.4

Platforms

Supported environments

Client and server

Links

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Creators

Details

Licensed GPL-3.0-only
Published 10 months ago
Updated 3 days ago

Map Improvements — Reimagined Cartography

Vanilla maps flatten your world into a mosaic of mismatched pixels. Minimap mods trade that mosaic for a widget in the corner — fast, functional, and utterly forgettable.

Map Improvements takes a different path. It rebuilds the map from the ground up as a high-resolution painting of your world, one you can hold in your hand, frame on a wall, and actually want to look at.

Vanilla map vs Map Improvements — same terrain Same world. Same terrain. Only one of them lets you see it.

Features

Drawn, Not Painted Over

Most map mods render one flat pixel per block. We render a small texture for every block — its shape, its material, its edges.

Look at the "After" image again: that lake has a visible bottom. Those trees have contours. Vanilla shows you where things are. We show you what they look like.

Two Worlds on One Map

Vanilla maps have no caves. Ours do.

Switch layers to see the surface, or the cave system beneath it. The cave view uses true line-of-sight — walls, cliffs, and stone block your view exactly as they would in person. You only see what is actually reachable.

Built to Keep

Drop a marker with an icon, a color, and a label — anywhere on the map. Pair with Map Atlases and a stack of paper maps becomes a single, seamless atlas of your entire journey. Markers, edits, and full atlas management live there.

Under the Hood

  • True 32-bit color, smooth biome tints, sun-aware slope shading.
  • Scales up to 512×512 cells per map — vanilla is stuck at 128×128.
  • Adjustable render radius, per-block rules, sensible defaults.

Compatibility

  • Supported Versions: 1.20.1 | 1.21.1
  • Multiplayer: Fully supported. Servers need the mod installed.
  • Recommended Companion: Map Atlases

Why Map Improvements?

  • For Explorers — a beautiful, permanent record of where you have been.
  • For Builders — a true overview of the terrain you are shaping.
  • For Everyone — a map worth looking at, not just a map worth having.

Rediscover the magic of holding a map.

⚠️ Project Status

Version 1.0.0 — Beta.

Map Improvements is a complete rewrite of Minecraft's cartography. The rendering pipeline is stable and tested, but very large maps can still take a noticeable moment to render on first open — this is a known area we are actively improving.

Two versions are available today: 1.20.1 and 1.21.1. More will follow.

Try it. See if it changes the way you look at your world.