Automatic tool selection

Automatic tool selection is off until you turn it on with /autotool. Once it is on, when you begin mining a block, it checks the nine slots in your hotbar. If another slot holds an item that can produce a drop from that block and breaks it faster than what you are holding, the server switches your selected slot. You see the selection change and use the item normally. This is one of the small helpers in Tools & Quality.

What it checks

The item must be in your hotbar. Items elsewhere in your inventory are not considered. The server checks which hotbar items would produce a drop from the block and compares their breaking speeds. It switches only when it finds a faster eligible item than the one you are holding.

For example, keeping a pickaxe and an axe on your hotbar lets the feature choose between them as you move from stone to logs. The chosen tool is actually placed in your hand, so its durability and enchantments work as they normally would.

Limits

• It selects tools for mining blocks, not weapons for attacking mobs or players.
• It does not pull a tool from the rest of your inventory into the hotbar.
• Blocks that break instantly may not trigger a switch.
• It does not add speed or harvesting ability to a tool; it chooses among tools you already carry in the hotbar.

Everyone starts with it off. Run /autotool to turn it on, and run it again whenever you want to keep a particular tool in hand. Your choice is saved when you leave and rejoin.

See also

• Tree felling — fell a whole natural tree with an axe
• Tool stats — read an item's use history
• Inventory tweaks — other item-handling helpers