RFTools Base in FTB Skies 2

RFTools Base is the foundation mod for McJty's tech mods. The RFTools family, Deep Resonance and XNet all build on it. This pack ships version 1.21-6.0.11.^[1][2][3]

On its own it's mostly a supply mod. It adds Dimensional Shard ore generation (a small amount in the Overworld, more in other dimensions), the Machine Infuser, base crafting materials for the other tech mods, the smart wrench, and a security and owner system.^[1]

Who it's for

If you plan to use any RFTools-family mod, Deep Resonance or XNet, you'll meet this mod first, because their recipes lean on its materials.^[1][3]

Machine Frame is the housing for machines and does nothing on its own, but it shows up in a huge number of recipes. Machine Base is similar, but the machines made from it are a quarter of a block high and usually have redstone input or output. They can also be placed on walls or ceilings.^[4][5]

Dimensional Shard Ore is found underground in small clusters and is affected by Fortune. The shards go into several more complicated recipes and can also be used to infuse machines.^[6]

Where it fits in this pack

The pack has an "rftools_series" quest chapter that starts with the two crafting materials and then branches into three follow-ups:^[7]

• "RFTools and Friends" quest asks you to obtain a Machine Frame and a Machine Base. It is the starting point of the chapter.^[7]
• "Tablet Control" quest comes after it and asks for the Tablet (empty), along with an item from another RFTools mod.^[7]
• "Filter Modules" quest also comes after it and asks for the Filter Module.^[7]
• "Infusing your Machines" quest again follows the first quest and asks for the Machine Infuser.^[7]

RFTools Base is the foundation for the whole RFTools family, plus Deep Resonance and XNet. On its own it gives you crafting materials, the Smart Wrench, the Machine Infuser and Dimensional Shard worldgen. So your first steps are about getting the building blocks and the shard supply that the other RFTools mods rely on.^[1][3]

Step one: Machine Frame and Machine Base

Start with Machine Frame and Machine Base. Neither does anything by itself, but they are the housing for machines and a crafting ingredient in many recipes. The pack's quest chain starts here too, with quest "RFTools and Friends" quest, and the other quests in the chapter unlock after it.^[4][5][7]

The pack changed both recipes, so don't go by what you remember from the mod's defaults. These are the in-pack versions:^[9]

Machine FrameChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot
any gold nugget	Empty slot	any gold nugget
any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_frame

Machine BaseChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any gold nugget	any gold nugget	any gold nugget
any stone	any stone	any stone

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_base

Machine Bases make machines a quarter of a block high, usually with some redstone input or output. That makes them handy on walls and in cramped spaces.^[4]

Step two: Smart Wrench

Make the Smart Wrench early. You use it to change the direction of Machine Base machines, and to toggle the display mode on an Information Screen. Its recipe is the mod's own, not changed by the pack.^{[1][4][9][10]}

Smart WrenchMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Empty slot	Empty slot	any iron ingot
Empty slot	any blue dye	Empty slot
any blue dye	Empty slot	Empty slot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:smartwrench

Step three: get Dimensional Shards

Dimensional Shard Ore generates underground in small clusters. There is only a small amount in the Overworld and more in other dimensions. Fortune affects it, and it drops Dimensional Shard. You need shards for several of the more complicated recipes, and you also use them to infuse machines.^[1][6]

If you don't want to mine for them, the pack has other routes. It added ore-processing recipes that turn the ore into shards in the crushers and similar machines of Create, Mekanism, Immersive Engineering, Ender IO, Actually Additions, Occultism, Modern Industrialization and Oritech. It also added an Industrial Foregoing laser drill recipe that produces the ore, and it changed the Modern Industrialization titanium quarry so its output includes the ore. The Productive Bees centrifuge recipe for a shard honeycomb was changed too. The sources don't give yields, so check them in-game.^[9]

The pack also changed the shard's crafting recipe, so it can be made by hand:^[9]

Dimensional ShardChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any diamond gem	any emerald gem	any gold ingot
any iron ingot	Redstone	Glowstone Dust
Quartz	Prismarine Shard	any glass blocks

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:dimensionalshard

Step four: Machine Infuser

Next comes the Machine Infuser, which is quest "Infusing your Machines" quest in the pack. It uses Dimensional Shards to make many machines more efficient. For most machines, infusing means lower power requirements, and some get extra benefits. You can even infuse the Infuser itself to cut its own power use. The pack changed this recipe as well:^[7][9][11]

Machine InfuserChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard
any diamond gem	Machine Frame	any diamond gem
Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_infuser

Optional extras

• Filter Module is covered by quest "Filter Modules" quest. Modules go into machines by right-clicking the machine with them, and the Crafter supports this one.^[7][12][18]
• Tablet (empty) is part of quest "Tablet Control" quest. The pack changed its recipe. A Tablet lets you use a Screen Link to open a screen remotely.^[7][9][19]
• Information Screen sits next to a machine and shows energy information by default. It uses a Machine Base in its recipe.^[9][10]

Tablet (empty)Changed by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any gold nugget	any emerald gem	any gold nugget
Redstone Block	Quartz Block	Redstone Block
any gold nugget	Redstone Block	any gold nugget

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:tablet

Filter ModuleMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Empty slot	Hopper	Empty slot
Redstone	any iron ingot	Redstone
Empty slot	Paper	Empty slot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:filter_module

Information ScreenMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any glass panes	any glass panes	any glass panes
Redstone	Machine Base	Redstone

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:information_screen

RFTools Base is the foundation of the RFTools family. It adds the crafting materials the other tech mods build on, the Smart Wrench, a few shared utility items and the Machine Infuser. Most of its mechanics are about how you set up, tune and access machines, so that's what this section covers.^[1][3]

Machine Frames and Machine Bases

Machine Frame and Machine Base are crafting materials. They do nothing on their own, but they show up in lots of recipes. The pack changed both of their recipes, so don't assume the mod's defaults.^[4][5][9]

Machine FrameChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot
any gold nugget	Empty slot	any gold nugget
any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_frame

Machine BaseChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any gold nugget	any gold nugget	any gold nugget
any stone	any stone	any stone

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_base

Machine Bases give you different machines than Machine Frames do. Machines made from a Machine Base are a quarter of a block high and usually have a redstone input or output. When you place one, its facing depends on which edge of the block face your cursor is closest to. Picture an X on that face and look at which quarter you're pointing at. The output faces that way and the input comes from the opposite side. That makes these machines handy in cramped spaces and on walls.^[4]

If you don't like the facing, right-click the machine with the Smart Wrench in Wrench Mode to change it.^[4][20]

Smart Wrench

• Sneak right-click to pick up a tech block, and right-click to rotate it.^[20]
• Right-click in the air to change the wrench's mode.^[20]
• In Select Mode it performs specialized operations on blocks such as the Shield Projector.^[20]

Dimensional Shards

Dimensional Shard Ore generates underground in small clusters in various dimensions. Fortune affects it, and it drops Dimensional Shard. The mod generates a small amount in the Overworld and more in other dimensions. Shards go into several more complicated recipes, and they're also what you use to infuse machines.^[1][6]

The pack gives you extra ways to get shards. Crusher-type machines from several mods turn the ore into shards, and the Industrial Foregoing laser drill and the Modern Industrialization titanium quarry can produce the ore. The pack also changed the shard's crafting recipe and added a Productive Bees centrifuge recipe for it.^[9]

Dimensional ShardChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any diamond gem	any emerald gem	any gold ingot
any iron ingot	Redstone	Glowstone Dust
Quartz	Prismarine Shard	any glass blocks

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:dimensionalshard

This recipe is changed by the pack.

The Machine Infuser

The Machine Infuser spends Dimensional Shards to make machines more efficient. For most machines, infusing lowers their power requirements, and some get extra benefits as well. You can even infuse the Infuser itself so it uses less power. The pack changed its recipe.^[9][11]

Machine InfuserChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard
any diamond gem	Machine Frame	any diamond gem
Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_infuser

This recipe is changed by the pack.

The infuser has its own power numbers in the server config. The values below match the mod defaults.^[21]

• infuser.maxInfuse is 256, the number of Dimensional Shards before a machine is fully infused.^[21]
• infuser.infuserMaxRF is 60,000, the most RF the infuser can store.^[21]
• infuser.infuserRFPerTick is 600, the RF per tick it can receive.^[21]
• infuser.usePerTick is 600, the RF used per tick while infusing.^[21]

The in-game guide lists what infusion does for machines from the other RFTools mods. A few examples: the Crafter uses less power, the Matter Transmitter uses less power and teleports faster, and the Screen Controller gains range. The Builder also gets a speed bonus.^{[11][12][15][16]}

Modules and the Filter Module

Many RFTools machines accept modules, which are items that modify them or add functions. Usually you can just right-click the machine with the module to insert it.^[18]

The Filter Module whitelists or blacklists items, blocks and tags, and can also require matching on NBT and damage. The Builder, Modular Storage and Crafter support it, among others. Sneak right-click an inventory to add everything in it to the filter, or sneak right-click a block in the world to add that block. In the module's GUI you can add tags or convert a block or item to its tags.^[22]

Filter ModuleMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Empty slot	Hopper	Empty slot
Redstone	any iron ingot	Redstone
Empty slot	Paper	Empty slot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:filter_module

Crafting Card

The Crafting Card holds a recipe, either a regular 3x3 one or a more complex shape, and various machines can use it. The stored recipe doesn't have to be valid, so the card can also stand in as a general set of inputs and an output.^[23]

8× Crafting CardMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Paper	Crafting Table
Redstone	Paper

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:crafting_card

Tablet and remote access

The Tablet (empty) lets you reach machines remotely. Sneak right-click to open its internal GUI, where you can install up to 6 modules. A normal right-click opens the GUI of the current module, and the previous and next destination keys switch between installed modules. The pack changed the Tablet's recipe.^[9][24]

Information Screen

The Information Screen is a small screen you put next to a machine. By default it shows energy information, and it can display power information for any block that supports RF/FE. Some machines, such as the Powercells from RFTools Power, offer extra viewing options. Use a wrench on the screen to toggle the display mode when the attached machine supports it.^[10][25]

RFTools Base is the base mod of the RFTools family, so you won't find power tiers here. Progression follows the pack's quest chapter. It is a short tree: you start with the Machine Frame and Machine Base, then three quests branch off from there.^[3][7]

Stage 1: Frame and base

The first quest in the chain, "RFTools and Friends" quest, asks you to get a Machine Frame and a Machine Base. The other three quests in the chapter come after it.^[7]

The pack changed both recipes, so don't rely on what you remember from the mod's defaults. Use the recipes below.^[9]

Machine FrameChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot
any gold nugget	Empty slot	any gold nugget
any iron ingot	any blue dye	any iron ingot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_frame

Machine BaseChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any gold nugget	any gold nugget	any gold nugget
any stone	any stone	any stone

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_base

Neither block does anything on its own. The frame is the housing for machines and devices. The base is for machines a quarter of a block high, which usually have redstone input or output. The Information Screen is one example that uses a Machine Base.^[4][5][9]

Stage 2: Three branches

Once the first quest is done, three quests follow from it.^[7]

• "Tablet Control" quest wants a Tablet (empty) and a Redstone Module. The pack changed the Tablet recipe. The Redstone Information item stores redstone channels, and you put it in a Tablet to read and change signals from anywhere.^[7][9][26]
• "Filter Modules" quest wants a Filter Module. This one uses the mod's own recipe. Modules are inserted into machines to modify or add functions, and the Crafter supports the Filter Module.^{[7][9][12][18]}
• "Infusing your Machines" quest wants a Machine Infuser, which needs a Dimensional Shard (covered below).^[7][9]

Tablet (empty)Changed by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any gold nugget	any emerald gem	any gold nugget
Redstone Block	Quartz Block	Redstone Block
any gold nugget	Redstone Block	any gold nugget

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:tablet

Filter ModuleMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Empty slot	Hopper	Empty slot
Redstone	any iron ingot	Redstone
Empty slot	Paper	Empty slot

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:filter_module

Stage 3: Dimensional Shards and the Machine Infuser

The pack changed the Machine Infuser recipe, and it needs a Dimensional Shard along with a Machine Frame. The shard recipe is also changed by the pack.^[9]

Machine InfuserChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard
any diamond gem	Machine Frame	any diamond gem
Dimensional Shard	Redstone	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:machine_infuser

Dimensional ShardChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any diamond gem	any emerald gem	any gold ingot
any iron ingot	Redstone	Glowstone Dust
Quartz	Prismarine Shard	any glass blocks

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:dimensionalshard

Shards matter well beyond this one quest. They go into several of the more complicated recipes and can be used to infuse machines. Two shard items are handy to know: the Infused Diamond, whose recipe the pack changed, and the Infused Enderpearl, which keeps the mod's own recipe.^[6][9]

Infused DiamondChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard
Dimensional Shard	any diamond gem	Dimensional Shard
Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:infused_diamond

Infused EnderpearlMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard
Dimensional Shard	any ender pearl	Dimensional Shard
Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsbase:infused_enderpearl

Getting shards

Dimensional Shard Ore generates underground in small clusters, and the mod's guide says it appears in various dimensions. Breaking it drops shards.^[6]

The pack also adds shard sources that don't involve mining by hand. Processing the ore gives shards in the Create crusher, Mekanism crusher, Immersive Engineering crusher, Ender IO SAG Mill, Actually Additions crusher, Modern Industrialization macerator, Occultism crusher and Oritech pulverizer. For automation, an Industrial Foregoing laser drill with the light blue laser lens produces the ore, and the Modern Industrialization quarry with a titanium drill can output it too. The pack also changed a Productive Bees centrifuge recipe that yields shards.^[9]

5× Dimensional Shard, 2× Dimensional ShardAdded by the pack

Crushing (create)

• any dimensional shard ore

Recipe id: ftb:create/crusher/ores/dimensional_shard

One of the pack's ore-to-shard processing recipes. The other mods' machines have matching recipes added by the pack.

RFTools Base is the base mod for the whole RFTools family, plus Deep Resonance and XNet. Its Machine Frame is described as a ubiquitous crafting ingredient, so most of the connections below come from recipes that use it.^[3][5]

Getting Dimensional Shards from other mods

Dimensional Shard Ore drops Dimensional Shard when broken, and the shards go into several of the more complicated recipes. The pack gives you a few routes to that ore through other mods, so you don't have to rely only on digging for it.^[6][9]

• Industrial Foregoing: the pack adds a laser drill recipe where the Light Blue Laser Lens produces Dimensional Shard Ore.^[9]
• Modern Industrialization: the pack changed the titanium quarry recipe. The Titanium Drill gives Dimensional Shard Ore alongside Fluorite Ore, Iridium Ore, Uranium Ore and Uraninite Ore.^[9]
• Productive Bees: the pack changed a bee conversion recipe that takes Infused Diamond and gives the Productive Bees dimensional shard.^[9]

Dimensional Shard OreAdded by the pack

Laser Drill Ore (industrialforegoing)

• Light Blue Laser Lens

Recipe id: industrialforegoing:laser_drill_ore/ores/dimensional_shard

Fluorite Ore, Iridium Ore, Uranium Ore, Uraninite Ore, Dimensional Shard OreChanged by the pack

Quarry (modern_industrialization)

• Titanium Drill

Recipe id: modern_industrialization:quarry/titanium

XNet and the rest of the family

XNet is the item, fluid and power distribution mod, and its main blocks are built on the Machine Frame: Controller, Router, Wireless Router and Redstone Proxy. The Router connects multiple networks, and the Wireless Router does the same wirelessly.^{[9][27][28][29]}

The same pattern runs through the other RFTools mods. Builder machines such as the Builder, Scanner and Projector use a Machine Frame. So do power blocks like the Endergenic, and storage blocks like the Modular Storage. Smaller redstone blocks such as the Timer, Logic and Wire use the Machine Base instead.^[4][9]

Dimensional Shards and Infused Diamonds also gate the upgrade steps. The Module Template needs both, and the ModulePlus Template builds on it. Shield Projector Tier 3 and Tier 4 each take a shard on top of the previous tier.^[9]

Module TemplateMod recipe

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	any iron ingot	Dimensional Shard
any iron ingot	Infused Diamond	any iron ingot
Dimensional Shard	any iron ingot	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolsutility:module_template

Recipes the pack changed

Some RFTools recipes that mix in vanilla or common-tag materials are marked as changed by the pack, so don't assume the mod's default recipe. Check the recipe block for the real version:^[9]

• Endergenic^[9]
• Power Core (Medium) and Power Core (High)^[9]
• Dimensional Cell and Dimensional Cell (Simple)^[9]
• Storage Scanner^[9]
• Counter and Environmental Controller^[9]

EndergenicChanged by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

any diamond gem	any ender pearl	any diamond gem
Infused Enderpearl	Machine Frame	Infused Enderpearl
any diamond gem	any ender pearl	any diamond gem

Recipe id: rftoolspower:endergenic

Power Core (High)Changed by the pack

Crafting Shaped

Crafting Shaped

Dimensional Shard	any diamond gem	Dimensional Shard
Redstone	Redstone Block	Redstone
Dimensional Shard	any emerald gem	Dimensional Shard

Recipe id: rftoolspower:power_core3

Quests

The RFTools series quest chapter stays inside the RFTools family. It starts with the Machine Frame and Machine Base, and the other quests unlock after it. One quest pairs the Tablet (empty) with the Redstone Information item from RFTools Utility, and others cover the Filter Module and the Machine Infuser.^[7]

The quest ids are "RFTools and Friends" quest, "Tablet Control" quest, "Filter Modules" quest and "Infusing your Machines" quest. None of them has a title in the pack data.^[7]

This mod shows up in one quest chapter in the pack, called "rftools_series". None of its quests have a title in the quest file, so you'll recognize them by their tasks. The chapter is a simple fan shape: one starting quest, then three quests that unlock after it.^[7]

Step 1: the starting quest

Quest "RFTools and Friends" quest is where you begin. It has two item tasks: hand in a Machine Frame and a Machine Base. These are the basic building blocks of the RFTools machines, so it makes sense that the chapter opens with them.^[7]

Step 2: three quests that unlock after it

Once the starting quest is done, three more quests open up. They all depend only on that first quest, so you can do them in any order.^[7]

• Quest "Tablet Control" quest asks for two items: an empty Tablet (empty) and the item rftoolsutility:redstone_information from RFTools Utility.^[7]
• Quest "Filter Modules" quest asks for a single item, the Filter Module.^[7]
• Quest "Infusing your Machines" quest asks for a single item, the Machine Infuser.^[7]

RFTools Base only has a handful of options that matter, and they all belong to the infuser. They live in infuser.infuserMaxRF's file, config/rftoolsbase-server.toml. The good news: this pack leaves every one of them at the mod default, so nothing has been changed here.^[21]

Infuser settings in this pack

• infuser.infuserMaxRF is 60,000. This is the maximum RF the infuser can store. It matches the mod default.^[21]
• infuser.infuserRFPerTick is 600. This is how much RF per tick the infuser can receive. It matches the mod default.^[21]
• infuser.usePerTick is 600. This is the RF used per tick while infusing. It matches the mod default.^[21]
• infuser.maxInfuse is 256. This is the maximum number of dimensional shards before a machine is fully infused. It matches the mod default.^[21]

Because the infuser receives 600 RF per tick and uses 600 RF per tick, a feed of 600 RF per tick is enough to keep it running while it infuses. Its 60,000 RF buffer is the most it can hold.^[21]

FTB Skies 2 1.22.0 includes RFTools Base version 1.21-6.0.11. The mod was first included in FTB Skies 2 1.0.1 or earlier.^[2]

The one change recorded in the mod's own changelog for 1.21-6.0.11 is that the Patchouli manual documentation was updated and expanded.^[30]

Unverified Pack changelog entries for RFTools Base are not shown in the sources here, so any pack-specific changes to it between FTB Skies 2 releases are not covered. Check the FTB Skies 2 release changelogs for those.