How to use shaders in Minecraft Distant Horizons mod

The vast expanse of Minecraft's landscapes has always been one of the game's captivating features, offering players a world filled with diversity and wonder. However, its render distance has long been limited to 32 chunks, preventing players from fully experiencing the endless possibilities.

While some mods attempted to extend this limit, they often strained even high-end systems, making gameplay impractical due to low framerates. However, with the introduction of the Distant Horizons mod, everything changed. In this article, we explore how players can combine shaders with this groundbreaking mod.

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Minecraft guide to use shaders with Distant Horizons mod

128 chunks render distance (Image via Mojang)

The Distant Horizons mod is hailed as the ultimate Minecraft enhancement, as it offers impressively high render distances while maintaining minimal performance impact. It is indispensable for players who revel in constructing expansive structures, allowing them to admire their towering creations from afar.

Once players have acquired the Distant Horizons mod, the next step is incorporating shaders into the game to further enhance Minecraft's visuals.

Given that the Fabric mod loader supports some performance-boosting mods like Sodium, players are recommended to use this mod loader when playing Distant Horizons with shaders.

Here's a simplified guide for setting up a new Minecraft Fabric installation with Distant Horizons mod and shader support:

1. Download the Iris shader installer for Windows.
2. Launch the downloaded .jar file using Java.
3. Check the Distant Horizons box and select the version of Minecraft you wish to play it with.
4. Verify that the Minecraft directory displayed in the installer is correct, then click the install button.

Following these four easy steps will enable players to create a new Fabric installation of the game, complete with a selection of mods optimized for running the Distant Horizons mod smoothly while supporting shaders.

If the user already has a compatible Fabric installation, they are still recommended to follow the above steps and create a new installation. The Iris installer will provide all the necessary mods and a few extras to help run the game better.

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How to enable shaders

Applying shaders (Image via Mojang)

Now that the game supports shaders alongside the Distant Horizons mod, here's how to enable them:

1. Launch your new Fabric installation from the official launcher.
2. Next, navigate to your video settings in the options menu.
3. Under the "Shader Packs" tab, click on the "Open Shader Pack Folder" option.
4. Download a compatible shader pack for the Distant Horizon mod and move it to the directory that opened in the last step.
5. Once you've moved a shader file, reopen the minimized game and select and apply the shader.

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Finding compatible shaders for the Distant Horizons mod can be challenging. Many shaders won't work properly, causing rendering issues with distant chunks. However, Bliss shaders are among the few that work well with this mod.