The new Minecraft 1.20 update is a huge one that the game’s community has been waiting for. Even though it didn’t have a specific theme or name at first, it now includes more than twelve new things to do in the game.
The people who make Minecraft, called Mojang, learned from their past mistakes, like with the last Minecraft 1.19 Wild Update, where they promised a lot but didn’t deliver as much.
This time, they’ve done a great job! So, let’s learn about all the cool new stuff in the Minecraft 1.20 Trails and Tales update, like new features, places to explore, and creatures to meet.
In this article, you can find information about the cool stuff in the next Minecraft 1.20 update, like new things they’ve said they’ll add and when it will all be ready for you to play with.
Why is the Minecraft 1.20 Update Called “Trails and Tales”?
The Minecraft game got a big update called 1.19. It added lots of new stuff like places, things, and a really tough enemy called the Warden. But many players weren’t too excited about it.
So, the game makers learned from that and gave the following update without an official name and with lots of cool-changing things. Now, Mojang has stopped all the guessing and told us the actual name of the next update, which is 1.20.
It will be called the Trails, and Tales update in 2023. This update will have things like digging up old stuff, two new animals – camels and sniffers, a new place, a way to make your armor and shields look different, and more. You can read about all the new things below.
What are New Mobs in Minecraft 1.20?
Currently, Mojang has three games in the Minecraft series: Minecraft, Minecraft Dungeons, and Minecraft Legends. Even though these games aren’t strictly connected, the people who make them often move creatures from one game to another.
But this time, instead of bringing over a creature from Legends or Dungeons, they’re introducing a new creature to the desert area in regular Minecraft.
Camels Are Coming to Minecraft
Minecraft is adding camels to the game. They will only appear in desert areas. Camels are one of the biggest creatures in the game. When you ride a camel at night, enemies won’t be able to reach you.
If you tame a camel, two players can ride it together. Using a guide, you can learn how to ride a camel in Minecraft 1.20. But remember, camels are slower than horses in tricky landscapes.
However, they can move quickly across flat areas by dashing. They can also jump over gaps using this dash move. You can make baby camels in the game by feeding cactus to camels in desert areas. This means you can make a lot of camels if you want.
Sniffer, the Winner of Minecraft Mob Vote 2022
Sniffer won the Minecraft Mob Vote 2022 with more than half the votes. It will be added to the game in the next update. There’s also a baby version of Sniffer that can be hatched from Sniffer eggs.
This lets players breed more creatures in the game. The main job of Sniffer is to find seeds for new and unique plants in the game world. People are excited to see how players will use Sniffer to create new kinds of farms in Minecraft.
In late January, Minecraft’s official social media accounts showed us the first pictures of Sniffer in the game (photo above). People are excited about it. Sniffer is bigger than the player and has many details, surprising many players.
Even though it’s big, you can’t ride it like other creatures in the game. But in Minecraft 1.20, a new command lets you ride other creatures, so you might also find a way to use it with Sniffer.
Putting aside how it looks, the Sniffer can lie down on the ground, like the new camel character, when it wants to rest. Otherwise, it moves around without a specific pattern.
It moves slowly, and its nostrils move a bit while it searches for newly added seeds like Torchflower and Pitcher Plant. Seeing this new character in action confirms that the community made a good choice in voting for new characters.
If you find this cute and fluffy character interesting, read our detailed Sniffers in Minecraft 1.20 guide. We also have directions on how to find Sniffer eggs and how to make the adult characters breed.
What are New Biomes in Minecraft 1.20?
Over time, Minecraft has shown us previews of different new and improved environments, but they never actually appeared in the game for players to enjoy.
Even though we were expecting updates to the desert, savanna, or badlands areas, the latest version of Minecraft, called 1.20, has surprised us by introducing a brand-new biome full of cherry blossom trees. You can learn more about this new environment here:
The Cherry Blossom Biome
Mojang surprised players on Valentine’s Day by announcing a new addition to Minecraft 1.20: a particular “pink” area called the Cherry Blossom biome. This is like a pretty forest in the game, filled with trees that have pink leaves and pink flowers.
While no new creatures only appear here, you’ll mainly see rabbits and bees if you explore this area based on early pictures. Because this new biome brings cherry blossom trees to the game, there’s also a new set of light pink blocks and items made from cherry wood.
You can also find cherry blossom tree saplings and logs in this biome. It’s important to note that the cherry blossom biome differs from other forest areas – the trees are closely packed together and have unique branches. This makes it gorgeous and a great spot for creating secret bases.
Minecraft 1.20 Update: Features
In the Minecraft Live event in 2022, they talked about the upcoming Minecraft 1.20 update. This update will add lots of new things to the game. While many cool things were planned, they only told us about a few.
Unlike before, they want to ensure they can do what they promise. They will share more about the update’s features in the next few months. But for now, let’s look at what we know will be in the Minecraft 1.20 update.
1. Archaeology Features
After a long wait, Minecraft is finally adding a cool new archaeology feature to the game. You can explore your Minecraft world to find special sand and gravel blocks.
When you clean these blocks, you’ll discover broken pieces of pottery (Minecraft now calls pottery sherds). If you gather these pieces, you can put them together to make old, fancy pots in the game.
But you can’t cook these pots yet. Maybe in the future! Each pot you make will have a different design that relates to something in Minecraft. Also, this archaeology update comes with a new tool called a “brush” that helps you clean the blocks.
There are 20 different pot designs, and they all look excellent. At first, there were only four designs, but the game has added more since then. Also, Minecraft Live 2020 showed some archaeology excavation sites that were not in the game.
But now, in the game, you can discover strange sand and gravel blocks in places like Desert Temples, Ocean Ruins, and a new area. There’s a new thing called the archaeology system that brings a new structure called Trail Ruins.
To explore it fully, you have to dig around it. Then, you need to find special blocks and clean them off. You can check out our guide to learn how to find these Trail Ruins in Minecraft 1.20.
2. Armor Trims and Customization
In the new Minecraft 1.20 update, you can make your armor look cool! Before, the armor looked the same, but now you can change it. Each part of your armor can have different patterns and colors. There are many choices, so you can make your armor look unique.
You can do this by using something called “armor trim.” You can find it in different places in the Minecraft world. When you have the trim, combine it with your armor and pick a color for a unique table. The new designs you create are just for looks.
For example, using gold trim won’t make your armor friendly to Piglins (a type of creature in the game). But having cool-looking armor will be great, especially on servers where players battle each other.
3. Bamboo Wood and Rafts
Minecraft 1.20 is adding a new kind of bamboo wood to the game. This wood comes with planks and blocks. The game creators wanted to make the different kinds of wood in the game more realistic.
What’s cool is that this bamboo wood has special blocks only it has. You can use these blocks to make fancy bamboo patterns. No other kind of wood in Minecraft has this type of block, so it’s really special. And guess what? You can also use bamboo wood to make rafts in Minecraft. These rafts are like boats, but they look more open.
4. Banner Shields
In the new Minecraft update 1.20, something many players wanted has been included. Now, in the Bedrock Edition of the game, you can put decorative banners onto shields.
This feature that players requested was first seen in Minecraft Preview 1.20.0.20 in April. To do this, you need to make a colorful banner using a special tool, and then you can combine the banner with a shield using a crafting table.
This makes your shield look more unique and adds personality to your character in the game, along with the armor decorations you can already use.
5. Hang & Edit Signs
Solving the problem of not knowing where to hang your signs, now you can hang signs on any block. You can put them on the sides and even underneath blocks instead of only on the ground.
Plus, you can make cool decorations by putting signs under other signs, making something like a wind chime. We’ve made a tutorial to teach you how to use hanging signs in Minecraft.
Also, in the upcoming Minecraft 1.20 update, you can change the text on signs without destroying them. This means you won’t have to break the sign and make a new one to change the words. You can also write different things on both sides of the movement.
6. Chiseled Bookshelf
Finally, bookshelves have a purpose in Minecraft. Once you create the special chiseled bookshelf, you can keep regular and magical books in it. You can put any text in any slot on this bookshelf, but they all look the same.
However, this doesn’t mean each slot works the same way. Each slot in the bookshelf sends a signal like a Redstone, but the signs are different strengths.
If you understand how this works, you can use the chiseled bookshelf to create hidden doors (like they showed in Minecraft Live 2022) and do many other cool things.
7. Creative Inventory Reshuffling
In the new version of Minecraft 1.20’s creative mode, the way items are organized in your inventory is better and easier to understand. It’s divided into different sections:
- Building Blocks: These are regular blocks used to build structures.
- Colored Blocks: These blocks, like beds and candles, come in different colors.
- Natural Blocks: You find These blocks naturally in the game world.
- Functional Blocks: These blocks have specific purposes, like helping with jobs or providing light.
- Redstone Blocks: These blocks are used in circuits that do special things in the game.
- Tools & Utilities: You can use these items for various tasks in the game.
- Combat: This section includes weapons, armor, and other items you use to fight in the game.
- Food & Drinks: Here, you’ll find things you can eat or drink in the game, including potions.
- Ingredients: You often use these items when crafting and brewing.
- Spawn Eggs: These eggs let you create different creatures in the game.
- Operator Utilities: These blocks can change the game’s work, like adding light or creating barriers. They help control the game world.
8. New and Better Mob Heads
In Minecraft, items called mob heads drop when a unique creeper kills certain creatures. These mob heads have been around for a while, but until now, they were mainly used as masks or decorations.
In the latest Minecraft update, 1.20, there’s a new, more exciting way to use these mob heads. You can attach them to Note blocks, and they will produce sounds related to the creature whose head you used. For instance, using a skeleton head will make a sound like an arrow being shot.
Additionally, the update also adds something new: Piglin heads. You must go to the Nether and defeat a Piglin using that particular creeper to get one of these. Using a Piglin head on a Note block will make sounds like a Piglin and even move its ears when you send a Redstone signal.
9. Calibrated Sculk Sensors
In the latest Minecraft update called Snapshot 23w12a, a new group of blocks called the Sculk family has been introduced. This update also includes something called Trail Ruins, which adds to the new archaeology system in the game. This lets players do excavation activities.
One of the new blocks coming in Minecraft version 1.20 is called the Calibrated Sculk Sensor. This block works with Redstone, a material used to create complex machines in the game.
The Calibrated Sculk Sensor can sort out vibrations based on how fast they shake. You can’t find Calibrated Sculk Sensors naturally while playing the game. Instead, it would be best if you made them by combining Sculk sensors with Amethyst shards.
10. Netherite is Harder to Use
In the new Minecraft 1.20 update, getting Netherite items will be more challenging. This is because they’ve added something called the Upgrade Smithing Template. You must use this template to make Netherite armor or swords on the Smithing Table.
So, besides making Netherite ingots, you must also find these upgrade templates in Bastion Remnants. But remember, they’re not easy to find, and you need one for each item you want to upgrade.
11. Fill in Biome Command
In the latest Minecraft Snapshot 22w46a, a new command is called “/fillbiome.” This command lets you change the type of environment in a specific area of your Minecraft world.
To use it, you need to choose two points that mark the area you want to change, and then you can select any biome to replace the current one. Think of it like using a special command in Minecraft.
Instead of just placing blocks, you can now change the type of environment, like forests or deserts. This new command lets you move these environments from one part of the game world to another. However, these changes won’t cause special effects, like the dangerous exploding beds in the Nether dimension.
12. Fixed Mob Spawning in Nether Portal
In the next Minecraft update, they’re making a big change to Nether farms. These farms will work less effectively because fewer scary creatures appear around the Nether portal.
You know, those bad guys in the game? Well, they need it to be sort of dark to show up. In the update, they’re making it darker around the Nether portal so that Endermen, Skeletons, and Wither Skeletons will show up less often.
Before this update, the light was a bit brighter, like 11, which is the same as the light by the Nether portal. Because of the update, these bad guys can’t appear just next to the Nether portal anymore. If you were using the old way to make a farm, you’d need to find a way to encourage these bad guys to go into the portal on their own.
13. Redstone Changes
In the Minecraft 1.20 update, some new things are happening with Redstone:
- Jukeboxes can now send a signal based on the music disc they’re playing. This signal can be detected using something called a comparator.
- The signals that Redstone makes when things vibrate have changed how they work.
- When you get in or out of certain things like minecarts, boats, or animals you can ride, it will also set off a special sculk sensor.
14. New Default Character Looks
For a long time, players could only choose between two classic character looks, Steve and Alex. But in the Minecraft 1.20 update, players will have some new default characters. These new characters are Noor, Sunny, Ari, Zuri, Makena, Kai, and Efe.
Minecraft 1.20: Release Date & Platforms
At a special event called Minecraft Live 2022 in October, the people who made the game talked about a big update called Minecraft 1.20. They said it wouldn’t be ready until 2023. And guess what? They were right! They spent a lot of time testing and adding new things to the game.
After waiting a while, the Minecraft 1.20 Trails and Tales update was finally released on June 7th. This is the same day last year’s update, Minecraft 1.19, came out. That update brought new places and a tough enemy called the Warden to the game.
The company that owns Minecraft, Microsoft’s Mojang, has now released the new Minecraft 1.20 update on several devices:
- Xbox
- PlayStation
- Nintendo Switch
- iPhones and iPads (iOS)
- Android phones and tablets
- Computers with Windows
- Some types of computers with macOS
- Some types of computers with Linux (only for the Java edition)
- Some types of computers called Chromebooks (only for the Bedrock edition)
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