Bees and the Target Block in Redstone Projects
Bees bring life to farms and redstone ideas alike 🧱 They hover between flowers and hive entrances with a calm industry that players have always found endlessly inspiring. In the context of the Target block a playful interaction emerges that helps you craft step by step mechanisms powered by pollination and timing. This piece explores how to use the Target block with bees to create feedback loops and dynamic signals in your builds.
Block profile
- ID 870
- Name Target
- Display name Target
- Hardness 0.5
- Resistance 0.5
- Stack size 64
- Diggable true
- Material mineable/hoe
- Transparent false
- Emit light 0
- Filter light 15
- Default state 20441
- Min state id 20441
- Max state id 20456
- Power values 0 to 15
- Drops 702
The Target block offers a redstone outcome that scales from zero to complete power. Its 16 possible power states let you create multi stage triggers that respond to timing and interactions. When a beam of light or arrow or other projectiles interacts with it in certain setups it can shift the power value up or down depending on your design. In practice this makes the block a neat centerpiece for bee driven builds
Understanding how bees can influence redstone
Bees themselves do not directly power blocks in vanilla Minecraft. Yet clever layouts let their presence and pollination cycles act as catalysts for redstone changes. A popular approach is to couple a bee hive or flower garden with a nearby Target block through a readout circuit that sums pulse inputs. When a bee visits a flower or slides into a tiny chamber a short redstone pulse travels along a line and nudges the Target power upward step by step 🌲
Three practical build ideas
Idea one is a bee driven countdown gate. You arrange a Target block to hold a 0 to 15 scale and use a compact pulse extender to translate bee visits into incremental power steps. Each pollination event nudges the power higher and signals a door or trapdoor to unlock after the final level
Idea two a bee powered scorekeeper for mini games. A central Target block tracks the number of successful bee harvest rounds. A comparator reads the power and feeds a scoreboard that players can chase and beat in a friendly challenge
Idea three a decorative signaling sculpture. Place a line of Targets connected to pillars that rise or lower as bees pollinate. The effect becomes a living art piece that changes with your bee activity and time of day
Building tips and tricks
- Place the Target where it can be easily read by a nearby observer or redstone lamp
- Use a compact pulse extender such as a short repeater chain to lengthen signals from bee activity
- Incorporate a reset mechanism so you can restart the power from zero without breaking the gallery or display
- Design a bee friendly area with flowers and a hive to keep pollination events predictable
For a steady flow of bee input try a small garden that includes sunflowers and lilacs because bees prefer certain flowers. A calm, closed in space keeps their routes predictable and reduces unwanted wandering
Modding and community notes
In modding circles craftsmen frequently explore new blocks and redstone sensors that interact with pollinators. The Target block in this context is a perfect candidate for experimental setups that demonstrate how living creatures can shape a machine in a playful yet purposeful way. If you enjoy tinkering with add on content you will find ready made packs that extend bee behavior and provide new trigger possibilities 🧰
Keep an eye on community builds and challenge threads for fresh ideas The way players adapt the Target block to bee rhythm shows the creative spirit of the game and the enduring appeal of redstone craft
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