The Lost Cities Minecraft Mod

Last modified on Jan 3, 2023 in Mods

By Dalton Whalen

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Overview

Minecraft is a vast world, covered in interesting structures, dangerous mobs, and loot. These can be fun to explore, but the generic world may become boring after a while. Many mods exist to quell this issue and add new places, but many do not replicate the sizable nature of the world itself. This is solved with The Lost Cities, a Minecraft mod that adds large abandoned cities into your world. Whether they are scattered or bunched together in one massive city, there are many customization options to tinker with. It may be somewhat difficult to set up this mod for unfamiliar players, so we have created this Apex Hosting tutorial to help you get started.
 

Summary

The Lost Cities is owned by McJty on Curseforge and has been around since 2017. The mod has well over 32 million downloads across versions 1.10.2 up to the latest 1.19.2 at the time of writing. You will spawn in or locate a variety of abandoned cities covered in debris, hostile enemies, and loot.
 

The Lost Cities Download

1. Visit The Lost Cities Curseforge Page.
2. Press Files at the top, to view all available downloads.
   
3. Scroll down and locate the version you wish to download.
4. Press the Download button to the right-hand side.
   
5. Save the file to a save location, as it will be needed shortly.

Client Installation

1. Before proceeding, ensure you have installed Forge client side.
2. Open your Minecraft launcher, then proceed to Installations at the top.
3. Hover over your Forge profile and click the Open Folder icon to the right.
   
4. In the new window, locate or create the mods folder and enter it.
5. Paste the mod .jar file here for use.
   
6. Return to the launcher and press Play to start The Lost Cities.

Server Installation

1. Navigate to the Apex server panel, then stop the server.
2. Scroll down to the Game File panel, then open the dropdown menu.
   
3. Ensure the panel is running a matching version of Forge.
4. Afterwards, enter the FTP File Access on the left-hand side.
5. Locate or create the mods folder, then enter it.
   
6. Press Upload in the top-left, then drag + drop the mod file.
7. Once at 100% uploaded, return to the main panel page.
   

World Configuration

Before The Lost Cities will function on your server, you must first configure our world to run the mod. This is done in two ways, depending on your current server version.
 

1.12.2 and Earlier

For this to work, you will simply need to adjust the level type for you server:

1. Visit the Apex panel, then stop the server.
2. In the left-hand menu, enter the Config Files, then select Server Settings.
3. Scroll down to the Level Type text field.
   
4. Enter one of the following:
    
   lostcities – The normal Lost Cities world mode.
   lostcities_bop – Enables Biomes O’ Plenty if installed.
5. Afterwards, return to the main panel page and press Change World.
6. Enter a new world name, then follow the prompts to restart the server.

1.14.4 and Later

For later configurations of The Lost Cities, the world must be configured in Singleplayer first.
 
World Customization

1. From the main menu, create a new singleplayer world.
2. Choose your desired World Type, then press Cities in the top-right.
   
3. Here, choose a profile template or customize it to your liking.
   
4. Press Done once complete, then continue to create your world.
5. Open the Minecraft launcher and click Open Folder like before.
6. Enter the Saves folder in the new window.

 
World Upload

The next steps will require you to upload this created world directly to your server for use. For a detailed guide on this process visit our guide here.

1. Locate your world folder, then zip it using a program like 7-ZIP or WinRAR.
   
2. Connect to your server using an external FTP program.
3. Upload the world .zip file until it is fully completed.
   
4. Visit the Apex panel and return to the FTP File Access.
5. Checkbox your .zip file, then press Unzip in the top-right.
   
6. Once the unzip is complete, return to the main panel page.
7. Press Change World then enter the name of the uploaded world folder.
   
8. Restart the server once complete to load up the Lost Cities map.

Getting Started

When you spawn into your world, you may soon notice large cityscapes covered in tall and short buildings alike. The size and distance of these cities will change between your configuration settings, but you will find many notable aspects to these areas:
 

Open Exploration

While there are many buildings that are scattered across the cities, there are also many open areas and walkways to navigate. These may be in pristine condition or could be blocked by plants and debris. Visibility will be better outdoors in addition to being relatively safe during the day. During the night however, unfavorable mobs may threaten your safety.

Hostile Mobs

If the night-spawning enemies were not enough, many of the abandoned buildings are fitted with mob spawners, which means danger will lurk around every corner. If you need more convincing, some of the spawners are hidden inside of the flooring, meaning you could walk into a trap without even realizing it.

Underground Tracks

If you’re looking for a high-risk, high-reward transportation method across cities, then the underground subway system is your best bet. The tracks will often connect between cities and are almost always powered on by default. The underground area is mostly unlit though, so mobs may be waiting in the darkness. If you are looking for a speedy getaway, this is the place.

Various Loot Chests

Why visit a dangerous place without anything in return? The buildings within the cities will often have chests of various loot. Some may be empty or have small loot, while others can carry the jackpot. There are many cities around your world with plenty of items to share. This is a great option to get tools early or to avoid mining for hours.
 

Conclusion

After that, you now have the knowledge to install The Lost Cities and explore its contents. While the concept of surviving in an abandoned city is not new, the procedural generation and customization adds an interesting twist to the concept. You can customize many mod aspects including the world generation and city features until it suits your liking. While the mod can be fun on its own, adding other mods could allow you to simulate a zombie apocalypse or simply improve upon the survival aspect. With this in mind, you are ready to set up your Lost Cities server and jump right into the action!
 

Helpful Links

The Lost Cities Curseforge Page
How to Install Forge (Client Side)