"Better Than Wolves" can mean three different things: FlowerChild's original mod, the Community Edition that continued it, or the new Forge port for 1.20.1. They are not interchangeable, and choosing the wrong one is the most common source of confusion. Here is how they compare.
The original Better Than Wolves
The Better Than Wolves mod original was created by FlowerChild. It was a total conversion that changed many rules of play to build a richer survival and engineering game, while keeping the spirit of vanilla Minecraft and favouring basic tools over "magic block" solutions.
- Minecraft versions: 1.0 through 1.5.2.
- Loaders: older builds used Risugami's ModLoader or Forge; versions 4.84 and later did not use a mod loader.
- Status: no longer actively developed, and superseded by the Community Edition.
Running it today means setting up a legacy 1.5.2 environment.
Better Than Wolves: Community Edition
Better Than Wolves: Community Edition (CE) is the community continuation of FlowerChild's work. Its Modrinth page describes it as a hardcore survival and tech mod with a deep tech tree, built around windmills, kilns, crucibles and eventually steel.
- Minecraft version: Java Edition 1.6.4.
- Loader: Legacy Fabric, client and server.
- License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.
- Notes: the page says it does not work with the Modrinth launcher and points to the CE wiki for installation.
CE also has its own addon ecosystem, including Nightmare Mode.
Better Than Wolves [MODERN PORT]
The Modern Port by ThatSoulyGuy brings the original mod to Forge 1.20.1. Rather than being a rewrite, it runs the original game code through a compatibility layer.
- Minecraft version: Java Edition 1.20.1.
- Loader: Forge 47.3.0 or newer, with Java 17.
- Optional: JEI 15.3.0.8 or newer for recipe categories.
- Status: ongoing beta with alpha-labelled builds; some visual polish, renderers and models are still in progress.
This is the edition the download on this site points to.
Side-by-side comparison
| Detail | Original | Community Edition | Modern Port |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minecraft | 1.0 – 1.5.2 | 1.6.4 | 1.20.1 |
| Loader | ModLoader / Forge (older), none from 4.84+ | Legacy Fabric | Forge 47.3.0+ |
| Java | Legacy setup | Legacy setup | Java 17 |
| Status | Not developed | Community project | Alpha / beta |
| CE addons | No | Yes | No |
Which one should you play?
Choose the Modern Port if
You want BTW on a modern version of Minecraft, you already use Forge 1.20.1, and you are happy to play an evolving alpha build in a fresh world.
Choose the Community Edition if
You want the most established continuation of BTW, addons like Nightmare Mode, and you do not mind running Minecraft 1.6.4 with Legacy Fabric.
Choose the original if
You specifically want to experience a historical release and are comfortable maintaining a very old game version.
Whichever you pick, keep it in its own launcher profile or instance. Files from one edition will not work in another.
Ready to try Better Than Wolves Mod?
Get the Forge 1.20.1 build and follow the setup steps on the homepage.
