Growing and Harvesting Crystal Clusters

What Clusters Are

Ametrine Crystal Clusters and Aquamarine Crystal Clusters are the visible growths you find on ore blocks underground. They are both a decorative block and a renewable-ish source of shards if you can encourage them to spread or regrow. Check the wiki's Processes page for whether clusters regrow on their own or require a specific block underneath — some gemstone mods let clusters grow on Budding blocks, and Mythic Upgrades follows a similar pattern.

Harvesting Without Losing Them

Use a pickaxe to break clusters so they drop as items rather than shattering. Silk Touch preserves the cluster block itself, which is useful if you want to relocate a cluster to your base for decoration. Fortune increases shard yield from clusters that drop shards. Do not use a sword or bare hand — you will destroy the cluster and get nothing.

Relocating and Displaying

If you want a crystal garden at home, mine clusters with Silk Touch and place them on a suitable base block. Cluster blocks emit a soft glow, so they double as low-level lighting. Arrange them in a ring around a Crystal Pillar for a centerpiece, or embed them in a Crystal Bricks wall for a geodesic look. Keep a few clusters in a chest as backup shards in case you run low on ingots mid-project.