Harder Than Wolves introduces many new game mechanics. These exist either to fill gaps in the progression or to allow for more interesting gameplay.
Fire pile
Crafted from wooden planks and coal dust, this block acts as a substitute for netherrack. The coal dust is only an upfront cost and wooden planks are a running cost. It can be ignited with a torch or flint and steel. Once ignited, it will create a fire above and burn for some time until turning into a depleted fire pile. The depleted fire pile can be refilled by placing planks into it. The fire pile always drops coal dust when broken, regardless of the state it is in.
Stone bricks
Stone bricks can be obtained by mining stone with a chisel. They can be crafted into decorative blocks and some machines. One important use for stone bricks is the construction of metal forges.
Metal forge
Built from a base block and 4 adjacent stone bricks above, this forge can smelt iron and gold ore into ingots. The ores need to be processed differently before the forge can smelt them. The metal forge requires fire below to function. Up to 9 fire sources can be placed to boost is speed. Stoked fire provides twice the smelting speed. The smelted block does not lose its progress when the fire gone. It is highly recommended to use the fire pile if netherrack is not available.
Special drops for gold tools
The gold axe turns wooden planks into mystical sticks. The gold hoe harvests mystical hemp from hemp crops. The gold shovel digs up mystical pebble from gravel. The gold pickaxe mines mystical cobblestone from stone. The gold sword slices monster cloth off zombies when they are killed. All these items are needed in the gold age, see Ages of the mod for more information.