How to create an Animated Item

This page will not cover how to code an Item from the ground up, only how to add the required Azurelib code for the animations and model to work.

Needed Steps in Item class

To start, you must implement GeoItem

Override getAnimatableInstanceCache and registerControllers

Instantiate a new AnimatableInstanceCache via AzureLibUtil.createInstanceCache(this) at the top of your entity class and return it in getAnimatableInstanceCache

private final AnimatableInstanceCache cache = AzureLibUtil.createInstanceCache(this);

@Override
public AnimatableInstanceCache getAnimatableInstanceCache() {
    return cache;
}

Add any controllers you want for animations in registerControllers

@Override
public void registerControllers(ControllerRegistrar controllers) {
controllers.add(new AnimationController<>(this, "controllerName", 
    event -> PlayState.CONTINUE));
}

Creating the model class

Create a new class that extends GeoModel, then implement all the required methods:

public class ExampleItemModel extends GeoModel<ExampleItem> {
// Models must be stored in assets/<modid>/geo with subfolders supported inside the geo folder
	private static final ResourceLocation model = new ResourceLocation("yournamespace", "geo/yourmodel.geo.json");
// Textures must be stored in assets/<modid>/textures with subfolders supported inside the textures folder
	private static final ResourceLocation texture = new ResourceLocation("yournamespace", "textures/<modeltype>/yourtexture.png");
// Animations must be stored in assets/<modid>/animations with subfolders supported inside the animations folder
	private static final ResourceLocation animation = new ResourceLocation("yournamespace", "animations/youranimation.animation.json");

	@Override
	public ResourceLocation getModelResource(ExampleItem object) {
		return this.model;
	}

	@Override
	public ResourceLocation getTextureResource(ExampleItem object) {
		return this.texture;
	}

	@Override
	public ResourceLocation getAnimationResource(ExampleItem object) {
		return this.animation;
	}
}

Creating the renderer class

Create a class that extends GeoItemRenderer, then just set it like so:

public class ExampleItemRenderer extends GeoItemRenderer<ExampleItem > {
    public ExampleItemRenderer() {
	// Register the Model class to this render
        super(new ExampleItemModel());
    }
}

Registering the renderer

Fabric/NeoForge/Forge 1.20.1+

In your Item class, add:

// For versions 1.21+, Object has been replaced with RenderProvider, and getRenderProvider() is no longer necessary.
private final Supplier<RenderProvider> renderProvider = GeoItem.makeRenderer(this);

// Creates the renderer
@Override
public void createRenderer(Consumer<RenderProvider> consumer) {
    // Accepts a consumer to create a new renderer
    consumer.accept(new RenderProvider() {
        // Your custom renderer instance
        private ExampleItemRenderer renderer = null;

        /**
         * Returns a custom renderer for the block entity, creating a new instance if necessary.
         * This renderer is used for rendering the block entity in a custom way.
         *
         * @return The {@link BlockEntityWithoutLevelRenderer} used for custom rendering of the block entity.
         */
        @Override
        public BlockEntityWithoutLevelRenderer getCustomRenderer() {
            // Check if renderer is null; create a new instance if so
            if (renderer == null) {
                renderer = new ExampleItemRenderer();
            }
            // Return the existing renderer if it's not null
            return this.renderer;
        }
    });
}

/**
 * Returns the render provider, but this method is no longer necessary for Minecraft 1.21+.
 * In versions 1.21 and later, you no longer need to call getRenderProvider() or store the renderProvider.
 *
 * @return The render provider (not needed in 1.21+).
 */
@Override
public Supplier<RenderProvider> getRenderProvider() {
    return renderProvider;
}

Forge 1.19.4 and older

In your Item class, add:

/**
 * Initializes client-side extensions for the item, including a custom renderer.
 * This method sets up how the item should be rendered in the game.
 *
 * @param consumer A {@link Consumer} that accepts an {@link IClientItemExtensions} object to handle client-side item extensions.
 */
@Override
public void initializeClient(Consumer<IClientItemExtensions> consumer) {
    // Accepts a consumer to create a new renderer
    consumer.accept(new IClientItemExtensions() {
        // Your custom item renderer
        private ExampleItemRenderer renderer = null;

        /**
         * Provides a custom renderer for the block entity, creating a new instance if it does not already exist.
         * This method determines how the block entity should be rendered when placed in the world.
         *
         * @return The {@link BlockEntityWithoutLevelRenderer} used for custom rendering of the block entity.
         */
        @Override
        public BlockEntityWithoutLevelRenderer getCustomRenderer() {
            // Check if renderer is null; create a new instance if so
            if (renderer == null) {
                renderer = new ExampleItemRenderer();
            }
            // Return the existing renderer if it's not null
            return this.renderer;
        }
    });
}