Skybolt Resonance Mod FAQ
10 questions players actually ask, answered.
Do I need shaders for the lightning to look good?
No—Skybolt Resonance works with vanilla rendering out of the box. The mod uses emissive layers and built-in particle effects to create cinematic lightning, though it also works beautifully with custom shader pipelines if you choose to use them.
Why am I not seeing ball lightning?
Ball lightning is rare and spawns randomly after certain lightning strikes during storms. Keep watching during heavy thunderstorms in open areas—the glowing orbs drift through the air after impact, so you may need to wait through several storms to spot one.
How do I make lightning strike more often?
Lightning frequency depends on vanilla storm intensity and your world's difficulty settings. To see more strikes, wait for heavy thunderstorms in open terrain, or use commands to trigger storms more frequently if your server/world allows it.
What are the Lichtenberg scars and how do I keep them?
Lichtenberg scars are branching burn marks left on ground blocks after direct lightning strikes. They're purely visual and won't disappear unless you manually remove the affected blocks, so they'll persist as permanent reminders of where storms have struck.
Does the mod work in multiplayer?
Yes, Skybolt Resonance works in multiplayer servers. All players see the same lightning effects, hear synchronized thunder with distance-based delays, and can observe shared ball lightning and ground scars.
Why is my thunder delayed from the lightning?
That's intentional—the mod calculates sound delay based on your distance from the lightning strike, simulating real physics where light travels faster than sound. The farther away the strike, the longer the delay before you hear the thunder.
Can I disable certain effects like shockwaves or ground scars?
Check your mod configuration file for toggles on individual effects like impact shockwaves, particle bursts, Lichtenberg scars, or ball lightning spawning. Most effects can be customized or disabled depending on your mod version and loader.
Does this mod affect performance?
Skybolt Resonance adds procedural generation and particle effects during storms, so performance impact depends on your hardware and storm intensity. Most systems handle it well, but you can reduce particle density or disable certain effects in the config if needed.
What happens when lightning strikes water?
Water strikes create unique surface effects including ripples, rising steam, spray, and electrical arcs across the water surface. Nearby mobs in or near the water may briefly carry electrical sparks after the impact.
Do the lightning bolts look different each time?
Yes—the mod uses seed-based procedural generation to create unique fork structures, branch patterns, and tapering channels for every lightning bolt, so no two strikes look identical.