Plus, the mod is extensible with a quite powerful API.
Breath and health bar:
Example with some extra HUD bars added via the API:
(Customized hotbar not included!)
Both bars behave similar to the builtin ones, so the breath bar will be hidden automatically if you have full breath. This auto-hide feature can be disabled (use the advanced settings menu).
Classic statbars and “Better HUD”-style statbars are supported, too:

Spoiler
Currently, custom HUD bars will be automatically placed by the mod.
So, with this mod you could easily add custom player attributes and whatnot to the HUD without much trouble.
It is a fork of the “Better HUD” [hud] mod by BlockMen, but with all the stuff which I consider clutter removed, so no hunger, armor support, or modifications of other HUD elements. Just the bars. This should make it easier to integrate this mod with other mods without much hassle.
I consider this mod finished and usable now and its API stable. But backwards-compatible feature requests and bug reports are still welcome, possibly even if this thread has become old.
Works with: Minetest 5.3.0 or later.
Project page with Git repository: https://codeberg.org/Wuzzy/minetest_hudbars
Download: Version 2.3.6
Translations: German, Portuguese, Turkish, Dutch, Italian, Malay.
Dependencies: None!
License for code: MIT License
License for images: Contains some CC BY-SA 3.0 images (see README), rest is MIT License.
List of games using this mod (examples): List of mods using this mod (examples):
- Mana [mana]
- Sprint [sprint]
- Hunger with HUD bar [hbhunger]
- Thirsty [thirsty]
- Armor HUD bar [hbarmor]
- Sunburn [sunburn]
- Beware the Dark [bewarethedark]
- Sprint w. hudbars, hunger, monoids support [hbsprint]