What the generator actually solves
The point of a sphere planner is not only to save time. It is to stop the usual moment where you place two or three layers in the world, step back, and realise the curve already feels wrong. The tool gives you the top silhouette, the front silhouette, and the exact current slice before you touch your block palette.
Radius, diameter, and footprint
The main control is radius, not diameter. Radius measures the distance from the center to the outside edge. That means a radius of 7 produces a diameter of 15 blocks, because the center column exists only once. If you build round structures often, this is the first place where scale mistakes happen.
Use the diameter readout as the real planning number when you compare the sphere to doors, roofs, towers, or roads already in your build. Radius is the control. Diameter is the lived size.
Which mode to choose
| Mode | Best for | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Solid sphere | Heavy props, carved volumes, buried cores | Every interior slice is filled |
| Hollow sphere | Domes, observatories, lantern shells, rooms | Only the outer shell remains |
| Upper dome | Roofs, caps, tower crowns | Only the upper half is built |
| Lower dome | Bowls, pits, inverted roofs | Only the lower half is built |
| Filled circle | Floors, plazas, tower bases | One filled flat layer |
| Outline circle | Perimeter guides, border rings | One flat border-only layer |
Solid or hollow?
If the interior matters, hollow is almost always the smarter choice. It saves blocks, leaves room for lighting and stairs, and makes the build easier to decorate. Solid is useful when the sphere is meant to be sculpted later, buried into terrain, or read as a dense mass more than a room.
The shell thickness option is there for the middle ground. A one-block shell keeps the form light. A thicker shell works better when the material needs visual weight or when the inside has to carry windows, ledges, or wall detail.
How to read the layers
Each layer is one horizontal slice through the shape. The widest slice is usually the easiest place to begin in the world, because it gives you the full footprint immediately. Once that anchor ring is down, moving upward or downward becomes a rhythm instead of a guessing game.
The generator keeps both a visual block map and a text copy because people build differently. Some want a second monitor with the layer open. Others want to paste the slice into notes, Discord, or a planning document for another builder.
Why the silhouettes matter
Most bad spheres are not ruined by one impossible layer. They are ruined because the whole shape reads awkwardly from one direction. The top view tells you whether the footprint still feels round. The front view tells you whether the curve climbs and narrows with a natural rhythm instead of collapsing too early.
If the silhouette already feels wrong in the planner, building it in real blocks usually will not magically save it. This is the moment to change radius, shell thickness, or even the mode itself.
Recommended workflow
- Choose radius by the space you actually have.
- Compare the resulting diameter with nearby builds.
- Pick the mode: full, hollow, dome, or circle.
- Check top and front silhouettes before you build.
- Lay out the widest layer first whenever possible.
- Step through the remaining slices with the layer list or slider.
Common mistakes
- Thinking in diameter while moving a radius slider.
- Starting from a random layer instead of the widest anchor slice.
- Using a solid sphere when only the outside silhouette will ever matter.
- Trying to fix a weak curve in-world instead of changing the plan first.
- Ignoring the front silhouette and judging only from the footprint.
FAQ
Should I start at the bottom or the middle?
If you can, start with the widest layer. It is the fastest way to lock the shape into the world.
When is a hollow sphere better?
Whenever you want to enter it, light it, decorate it, or simply avoid wasting blocks on volume nobody will ever see.
Can I use this for towers and circles too?
Yes. The filled and outline circle modes are useful on their own for circular rooms, wells, pads, and tower footprints.
How do I know whether the sphere will feel too large?
Look at the diameter and compare it to familiar structures nearby. Radius is a control value. Diameter is the number that tells you how much space you are really claiming.
Why keep the text export if the grid already exists?
Because text is easy to pass around. It works in notes, messages, and shared build planning when another person is helping with the next layers.