Fastload in All the Mods - Gravitas

Fastload is a world-loading optimiser. It changes some crucial parts of how Minecraft loads a world so you spend less time staring at loading screens. There's nothing to craft and nothing to unlock: you just get faster world loads.^[1]

This pack ships Fastload 3.4.0, the Reforged build for Minecraft 1.18.2.^[2]

What it changes

• It removes the 441-chunk pre-generator. Vanilla generates a square of chunks in a 10 chunk radius around spawn, which is where 441 comes from, and Fastload considers that a huge waste of time. It loads only the spawn chunk up front and fills in the rest of the spawn region during early rendering.^[1]
• It replaces some of the loading screens with its own versions. Rendering can then begin immediately instead of waiting for the player spawn packet. The loading screens are cancellable, and the pre-rendering phase is configurable.^[1]

Who it's for

Everyone. If you jump between worlds a lot, restart the pack while testing, or just hate waiting to get in, this mod is for you. It is optional on both the client and the server.^[1]

The author suggests pairing it with C2ME, which optimises chunk generation, and Sodium, which optimises chunk rendering. Fastload only handles the world-loading side.^[1]

Unverified The sources I have don't show Fastload on the ATM Star path or tied to any quest in this pack, so it doesn't appear to have a place in the progression.

Good news: there's nothing to craft for Fastload. It's a background mod that changes how worlds load, so you don't need to make any items, and your first steps are just playing normally.^[1]

Nothing in the pack produces this mod's items, and no quests involve it, so there are no recipe blocks or quest steps for this section.^[1]

What it does for you

Vanilla generates a 441-chunk area around spawn when you load in. That's a 10-chunk radius as a square: multiply 10 by 2, add 1 for the chunk you're standing on, then square it. Fastload removes that step. It loads only the spawn chunk, then loads the rest of the spawn region during early rendering.^[1]

It also replaces some of the loading screens with its own, so rendering can begin right away instead of waiting for the player spawn packet. The loading screens can be cancelled, and the pre-rendering phase is configurable.^[1]

Your first steps

1. Create or load a world as usual. Fastload works on its own, on the client, the server or both, since it's optional in either environment.^[1]
2. Look at the mod's settings if you want to tweak loading. The options include a chunk try limit, a debug-logging switch, an instant load switch, and separate render chunk radius values for singleplayer and for servers.^[3]
3. Treat instant load with caution. Its description jokes that you will regret switching it on, so test it in a throwaway world first.^[3]

Unverified The values this pack uses for Fastload's settings, and which of those companion mods are installed here, couldn't be confirmed from the available sources. Check the in-game settings screen for the real values.

Fastload isn't a machine or multiblock mod, so there's no power, fluid or item handling to set up. It changes how a world loads, and that's all it does. It works on the client and on servers, and it's optional on both sides.^[1]

The 441 chunk pre-generator

Normally, loading a world generates chunks in a 10 chunk radius as a square. Double that radius, add 1 for the chunk you're standing on, and square it. That gives 441 chunks. Fastload removes this step because it's a big waste of time.^[1]

Instead, Fastload loads only 1 chunk, the spawn chunk. It loads the rest of the spawn region during early rendering, so chunk generation stays in sync with chunk rendering.^[1]

Loading screens and pre-rendering

Fastload also replaces some of the loading screens with its own. Rendering can then begin immediately instead of waiting for the player spawn packet. The mod lists its loading screens as cancellable and configurable. It also lists a configurable pre-rendering phase.^[1]

Options the mod exposes

The mod's own tooltips describe these settings:^[3]

• Instant load: for impatient players who hate loading screens. The tooltip says to switch it on, load a world, and you'll regret it.^[3]
• Local render chunk radius: how many chunks in a circle render during Fastload's Building Terrain phase in singleplayer.^[3]
• Server render chunk radius: the same radius setting, but for the Building Terrain phase on servers.^[3]
• Chunk try limit: how many times the same chunk count can be returned in a row before pre-rendering is abandoned.^[3]
• Debug: whether debug messages are printed in the logs.^[3]

Unverified The pack has no config files for this mod. The sources don't say what values the pack uses for these options, or whether it changes any defaults. Check the in-game options screen to see what's actually set.

Good to know

The project page suggests pairing Fastload with C2ME, which optimises chunk generation, and Sodium, which optimises chunk rendering. Whether those mods are in this pack isn't covered by the sources.^[1]

There isn't much version history to report for Fastload in this pack. Gravitas 4.0 ships Fastload 3.4.0, and the mod list shows it was already in the pack in Gravitas 3.9 or earlier, so it isn't a new addition.^[2]

The mod's own changelog for 3.4.0 is a single line that just says "bump version", so there are no listed feature or fix changes to point to.^[4]

Unverified The pack changelogs have no entries for this mod, so which exact release first added it, and whether its version changed between Gravitas releases, is unverified.