mcblend vs McpeTool

mcblend is a free, open-source Blender add-on for creating and modifying Minecraft Bedrock Edition models. It imports and exports entity and attachable models, including cubes and polymeshes. For animation, it exports keyframes and poses, and can bake animations into Minecraft format, including work using inverse kinematics and constraints. It can also turn Blender camera movement and field-of-view animation into JavaScript data for Minecraft Script API cutscenes and scripted camera playback; additional game logic is needed to apply that data to a player's camera.

The add-on arranges UV coordinates for cube faces and can create a template texture. Polymeshes use Blender's regular texturing features. It also draws on Blender's rigging and physics tools and can set up rigid bodies automatically. Installation uses a ZIP downloaded from GitHub releases and added through Blender's Add-ons preferences; the documentation instructs users to install Blender 5.2. Models must use exactly one armature, with each cube or polymesh as a separate object parented to armature bones. Polymeshes are experimental in Minecraft and may not remain supported. Updates require removing the old add-on and installing a new version.

McpeTool is a free, offline utility for reading and writing Minecraft Bedrock Edition world data. Its command-line interface and local HTTP API provide get, put, and delete operations. Database commands list, retrieve, write, and delete key/value pairs in a world’s LevelDB store. Level-data commands retrieve or replace level.dat contents using JSON, YAML, hex dump, base64, or binary formats. NBT data can be converted to JSON and YAML, and relevant commands accept or produce base64 and binary data. The API starts a local HTTP server and handles GET, PUT, and DELETE requests for database keys. The tool runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows and can be self-hosted or used through its API. It is MIT-licensed and intended as a basic access layer for people building more capable world editors. McpeTool cannot be used while Minecraft is running the world because LevelDB allows only one process at a time. The maker calls it a work in progress, says input validity is not currently checked, and advises backing up worlds before changes.