Flatter Signs: A Mode 13h Addon

A Fabric mod for Minecraft 1.20.1 and 1.21.1 that adds billboarding to signs when paired with the Mode 13h shaderpack. Forge (1.20.1) and NeoForge (1.20.1, 1.21.1) work via Sinytra Connector.

Designed as an addon for Mode 13h: MS-DOSify!. Without the shaderpack you can still use the mod, but signs will render as a cross/hatch model (like vanilla grass/flowers), because Mode 13h is what actually converts those models into billboards.

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🧾 Why This Exists

Mode 13h already billboards several objects for that crunchy DOS look — but signs are special: the moment you billboard them, the vanilla text rendering becomes useless (no “real” front face to draw on).

So Flatter Signs solves the readability problem by:

• making signs one-sided (like pre-1.20 behavior, fitting the “no backside” billboard logic),
• and printing the sign’s content in chat with a vanilla-style prefix: <Sign> Hello world!

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✨ Features

📌 Billboard-ready sign models

• Standing signs are turned into a cross/hatch model so Mode 13h can billboard them.
• All wood variants supported.
• Works with signs and hanging signs.

💬 Chat reading (right click)

• Right click a sign to print its text in chat with a <Sign> prefix.
• Shift + right click to edit the sign (since normal right click is now “read”).

🎨 Vanilla mechanics preserved (and made visible)

These interactions affect both the sign itself and the chat output:

• Dye a sign → the text printed in chat matches the dyed color.
• Glow ink sac → sign glows in the dark.
• Honeycomb (wax) → sign becomes non-editable (even with Shift+RMB) but still readable/printable; the sticky sound only plays when you try to edit.

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🪵 Resourcepack-friendly by design

• Signs use the item sign texture, so they stay compatible with any resource pack automatically.
• Wall signs are procedurally generated from the item texture: if your pack keeps the general vanilla sign silhouette, it should “just work” with no extra assets (otherwise, check Configuration below).

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⚠️ Known compromise

Wall Hanging Signs

Wall hanging signs are flat, not billboarded. Their shape makes true billboarding impractical, so this is the best balance between:

• readability,
• visual consistency,
• and not breaking the model into something uncanny.

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⚙️ Configuration

config/flattersigns.json is created on first launch. Every feature has its own toggle, so you can keep only the bits you want if you’re not using Mode 13h. Restart the game after editing it.

• front_only_edit (true): signs are one-sided.
• flat_model_rendering (true): flat/cross models instead of vanilla sign rendering.
• hitbox_tweaks (true): outlines fit the flat models (needs flat_model_rendering).
• crouch_edit_and_chat (true): right click reads in chat, Shift + right click edits.
• default_white_text (true): new signs have white text.
• glow_ink_lighting (true): glowing signs render fullbright, Sodium included; they don't light up their surroundings (needs flat_model_rendering).
• wall_sign_texture_crop_height (11, 1..16): pixel rows of the item texture shown on wall signs.
• wall_sign_texture_crop_offset (0): rows skipped before the crop, at most 16 − height.

The last two are for resource packs whose sign item has a different silhouette.

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🧩 Compatibility

Platform	Minecraft	Works?	Notes
Fabric	1.20.1	✅	Native target
Forge / NeoForge	1.20.1	✅	Via Sinytra Connector + Forgified Fabric API
Fabric	1.21.1	✅	Native target
NeoForge	1.21.1	✅	Via Sinytra Connector + Forgified Fabric API
Without Mode 13h shaderpack	all	✅*	No billboard effect; signs appear as cross/hatch models
Optimized Block Entities	1.20.1	✅	Handled automatically; OBE leaves signs to this mod

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✅ Quick usage cheat sheet

• Read sign: Right click
• Edit sign: Shift + right click
• Dye / glow / wax: Same items, same behavior — now reflected in chat readability too

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🖇️ Credits

• Mod & idea: HandLock_
• Made for: Mode 13h: MS-DOSify! shaderpack

“No backside, eyes up here!”