Caves & Cliffs

Caves & Cliffs, also known as the Cave Update,^[2] is the name of two major themed updates for Java and Bedrock editions. The first part was released as Java Edition 1.17 and Bedrock Edition 1.17.0 on June 8, 2021,^[3][4] which focused on blocks and mobs. The second part was released as Java Edition 1.18 and Bedrock Edition 1.18.0^[5] on November 30, 2021,^[6] and brought major changes to Overworld generation, including new caves and mountains.

Caves & Cliffs was announced in Minecraft Live 2020,^[7] and on April 14, 2021, Mojang Studios announced that the update would be split into two portions due to the amount and complexity of content, as well as team health.^[8] It was later announced in Minecraft Live 2021 that the Deep Dark portion, as well as certain items, of the Caves & Cliffs update would be delayed until The Wild Update to improve quality.

On Java Edition, Part I started development with snapshot 20w45a, which was released on November 4, 2020. The first pre-release for Caves & Cliffs: Part I was released on May 27, 2021, and the first release candidate on June 4, 2021. Part II started development with 1.18 Experimental Snapshot 1, which was released on July 13, 2021, followed by the first pre-release on November 11, 2021, and the first release candidate on November 25, 2021.

On Bedrock Edition, Part I started development with beta 1.16.200.52, which was released on October 28, 2020. Most of the Part I features were behind experimental gameplay toggle until the Part I release and were not included in the full 1.16.200, 1.16.210, and 1.16.220 release.^[9][10] In Part II, development continued with beta 1.17.30.23, which was released on August 25, 2021. In 1.17.10, released on July 13, 2021, non-beta users were able to test out most of early Part II features behind experimental gameplay.^[11]

Both Java and Bedrock editions received Caves & Cliffs: Part I on June 8, 2021,^[3] and Caves & Cliffs: Part II on November 30, 2021.^[6]

Additionally, features from Caves & Cliffs: Part I, were released for Minecraft Education in 1.17.30 on November 2, 2021. Part II features were released in 1.18.32 on August 9, 2022.

For China Edition, Caves & Cliffs: Part I was released on January 21, 2022, and Part II on August 27, 2022.

Amethyst family of blocks:

• Amethyst bud and Amethyst cluster
  • Grows from a budding amethyst.
  • When amethyst clusters are broken, it drops amethyst shards.
• Block of amethyst
  • Crafted with amethyst shards.
• Budding amethyst
  • Cannot be mined using Silk Touch.
  • Used to grow an amethyst cluster.

Azalea family of blocks:

• Bush looking plants that include normal and flowering variant.
  • Flowering variants attract bees.
• Azalea and Flowering azalea
  • Found in lush caves.
  • Can also be generated from using bone meal on a moss block.
  • Using bone meal generates an azalea tree.
  • Can be potted.
• Azalea leaves and Flowering azalea leaves
  • Part of the azalea tree.
• Rooted dirt
  • Generate underneath the azalea tree as a cluster of roots.
    • Can also spawn post-generation by growing an azalea tree with bone meal.
  • Bone meal can be used to grow hanging roots.
  • Using a hoe to harvest hanging roots.
• Hanging roots
  • Found on the undersides of rooted dirt.

Calcite

• Found surrounding amethyst geodes and in stony peaks.

Candle

• Crafted by combining 1 honeycomb and 1 string.
• Unlit when placed.
  • Four can be placed in one block.
  • Can be lit using flint and steel or fire charge.
• Can also be dyed in 16 colors.
• Can also be placed on cakes.

Cave vines

• Found in lush caves.
• Planted by placing glow berries on the bottom of a block.
• Bone meal can be used to grow glow berries on empty vines.

Copper block set:

• Copper ore
  • Found in y-levels between -16 and 112.
  • Drops raw copper when mined without Silk Touch.
• Block of copper
  • Has 4 levels of oxidation and can be waxed to prevent further oxidation.
    • The wax can be scraped off using an axe.
• Cut copper
  • Cut copper stairs
  • Cut copper slab
• Lightning rod
  • Crafted using three copper ingots.
  • Does not oxidize.
  • Used to redirect lightning strikes within a 128 block radius.
  • Can also be hit with a trident with Channeling during a thunderstorm.

Deepslate block set:

• Dark-looking rocks that generate below y-levels from 8 to -63, gradually replacing stone.
  • Is harder and takes longer to mine compared to stone.
• Deepslate
  • Drops cobbled deepslate when mined with a non-Silk Touch pickaxe.
• Deepslate variants of the 7 existing Overworld ores.
• Infested deepslate
  • Same behavior as other infested blocks, if broken can spawn silverfish.
• Cobbled deepslate
  • Can be used in lieu of cobblestone for most recipes.
  • Can be smelted into deepslate.
  • Cobbled deepslate stairs
  • Cobbled deepslate slab
  • Cobbled deepslate wall
• Polished deepslate
  • Polished deepslate stairs
  • Polished deepslate slab
  • Polished deepslate wall
• Deepslate bricks
  • Deepslate brick stairs
  • Deepslate brick slab
  • Deepslate brick wall
  • Cracked deepslate bricks
• Deepslate tiles
  • Crafted from 4 deepslate bricks.
  • Deepslate tile stairs
  • Deepslate tile slab
  • Deepslate tile wall
  • Cracked deepslate tiles
• Chiseled deepslate

Dripleaf

• Plants with big leaves that generate in lush caves.
• Small dripleaf
  • Can only be place underwater in certain blocks.
  • Can be place on land on clay or moss block.
  • Using bone meal turns it to a big dripleaf.
• Big dripleaf
  • Can be used as a temporary platform.
    • The longer a player, mob, or entity stands on it, the leaf droops down and drops them before returning to its untilted state.
    • If powered, they don't droop down.

Dripstone block

• Found in dripstone caves.
• Can also be crafted using four pointed dripstone.
• Used to grow pointed dripstone.
• Pointed dripstone
  • Found in dripstone caves.
  • Forms a stalactite when placed on the bottom of a block.
  • Forms a stalagmite when placed on the top of a block.
  • Forms a pillar when a stalactite and stalagmite meet.

Glow lichen

• A naturally occurring light source found rarely in caves, growing on any face of a block.
• Obtained with shears, otherwise breaks.
• Up to 6 can be put on the same block space, merging into one block.

Moss block

• Found in lush caves.
• Spreads to adjacent blocks using bone meal.
• Can generate short grass, tall grass, azaleas, and moss carpet.
• Moss carpet
  • Crafted using two moss blocks adjacent to each other.

Powder snow

• Found in groves and snowy slopes.
• Can also be farmed using a cauldron when snowing.
• Causes players and mobs to fall through and move at a slow speed.
  • Rabbits, foxes, silverfishes, endermites, and players or mobs wearing leather boots don't fall through the powder snow.
  • Staying too long in powder snow causes freeze damage.
  • Polar bears, snow golems, strays or mobs wearing leather armor don't freeze in the powder snow.

Raw metal blocks:

• Raw variants of the existing metal blocks.
• Block of raw iron
• Block of raw gold
• Block of raw copper

Smooth basalt

• Found surrounding amethyst geodes.
• Obtained by smelting regular basalt.

Spore blossom

• Found in lush caves.
• Produces green particles from above.

Tinted glass

• Crafted using a glass block surrounded by four amethyst shards.
• Allows the ability to see through the block but blocks out light from within.

Tuff

• Found in blobs sizes underground from y-levels of -63 to 0.
• Can also be found in iron ore veins.

Amethyst shard

• Obtained by mining an amethyst cluster.
• Used to craft tinted glass, blocks of amethyst, and the spyglass.

Bucket of axolotl

• Obtained by using a water bucket on an axolotl.
• Can be used to transport the axolotl to a new location.

Copper ingot

• Obtained from smelting raw copper.
• Used to create copper blocks, lightning rods, and the spyglass.

Glow berries

• Grows on cave vines found naturally in lush caves.
• Restores 2 () hunger and gives 0.4 hunger saturation.

Glow ink sac

• Obtained as drops from glow squids.
• Used to make signs glow in the dark.
• Can also be used to craft glow item frames.

"Otherside" music disc

• Obtained from loot chests in monster rooms and strongholds.
• The music was composed by Lena Raine.

Powder snow bucket

• Obtained from using a bucket on powder snow or a cauldron that is filled with powder snow.
• Used to place powder snow, which does not have an item form.

Raw metal

• Obtained from mining their respective ores
• Smelts into its corresponding ingots.

Spawn eggs:

• Axolotl spawn egg
• Glow squid spawn egg
• Goat spawn egg

Spyglass

• Crafted using a amethyst shard on top of two copper ingots.
• Used to zoom in from afar.

Axolotl

• An aquatic passive mob that spawns in lush caves.
• Can stay out of water for 5 minutes before it dehydrates.
• Can assist the player in aquatic combat, and grant Regeneration.
• Will play dead in order to regenerate health.
  • In that state, enemy mobs will ignore.
• Comes in five different colors:
  • Lucy\Leucistic
  • Wild
  • Gold
  • Cyan
  • Blue
    • Only obtainable through breeding by 1 in 1200% chance.
• Can be bred with bucket of tropical fish.
• Attacks fish and squids.
  • Always attack drowned, guardian, and elder guardian.

Glow squid

• A variant of the squid that spawns in dark, underwater areas.
• They appear to glow, but does not produce any light.
• Drops glow ink sacs when killed.

Goat

• A neutral mob that spawns in mountain biomes.
• Can jump 10 blocks tall.
  • Takes less fall damage relative to some other mobs.
• Avoids powder snow.
• Will try to ram into a stationary entity, including the player.
  • If successful, the entity takes 1HP to 3HP damage and is dealt 9 blocks of knockback.
• Having a rare screaming variant.
  • Tend to be more aggressive than normal goats.
• Can come in both a normal variant and a rare screaming variant.
• Can be bred with wheat.
  • Baby goats don’t have horns.

Glow item frame

• Crafted using an glow ink sac and item frame.
• Acts similarly to standard item frames, but items and maps are visible in the dark.

• Major overhaul of terrain and cave generation, with a new expanded world height from top to bottom.
• Biomes can now be generated in 3D, with different biomes depending now on y-level.
  • Caves are now composed of two layers depending on depth.
    • A stone layer, found in y-levels above 0.
    • A deepslate layer, found in y-levels below 8.
  • Aquifers, or bodies of water, generate deep underground, independent of sea level at Y=63.
  • Caves now come in three noise generations: "cheese", "spaghetti", and "noodle".
    • Cheese caves are large sprawling caves with stone pillars from top to bottom, and allows for elytra flight.
    • Spaghetti caves are long, thin caves with smaller aquifers.
    • Noodle caves are thinner, and smaller compared to spaghetti caves.
  • Upgrading worlds before this update now blend chunk boundaries from old chunks to new chunks seamlessly.
    • The bedrock layer for older worlds is converted to deepslate.

Cave biomes:

• Dripstone caves
  • Found underground in areas that are the farthest away from any ocean biomes.
  • Generates with dripstone blocks, pointed dripstone, water, and copper ore.
  • Drowned can also spawn here.

• Lush caves
  • Found underground in areas with high humidity, such as jungles.
  • Axolotls and tropical fishes can only be found here.
  • Generates with azalea, moss block, moss carpet, grass, tall grass, vines, water, clay, small and big dripleaf, spore blossoms, and glow berries.

Mountain biomes:

• Slopes
  • Grove
    • Found near slopes of snowy mountains that are near forest biomes.
    • Rabbits, wolves, and foxes spawn here.
    • Generates with snow blocks and powder snow.
  • Meadow
    • An elevated grassy biome, that is cold but filled with flowers.
    • Generates with grass, tall grass, dandelions, azure bluets, cornflowers, poppies, oxeye daisies, and alliums.
    • Sheep, rabbits and donkeys spawn here.
  • Snowy slopes
    • Found near slopes of mountains next to plains or snowy plains.
    • Goats and rabbits spawn here.
    • Generates with snow, snow blocks, and powder snow.

• Peaks
  • Frozen peaks
    • Found in smooth and less jagged peaks in areas with snowy, cold, or temperate biomes.
    • Goats can spawn here.
    • Generates with snow, snow blocks, ice, and packed ice.
  • Jagged peaks
  • Found in sharp and jagged peaks in areas with snowy, cold, or temperate biomes.
    • Goats can spawn here.
    • Generates with snow, snow blocks, and stone.
  • Stony peaks
    • Found in areas that are surrounded by warm biomes, such as jungles and savannas.
    • Generates with stone, gravel, and calcite.

Amethyst geode

• Found underground.
• Surrounded by smooth basalt and calcite; the inside contains block of amethyst and amethyst clusters.

Azalea tree

• Generates on the Overworld’s surface as a visual indicator to a lush cave below with roots of rooted dirt underground.
• Can also generate when bone meal is used on azalea or flowering azalea.
• Contains azalea leaves, flowering azalea leaves, oak logs and a rooted dirt underneath.

Dripstone

• Generates as cluster of dripstone blocks or with pointed dripstone.

Ore vein

• Large underground veins that usually consist of high amount of iron or copper ores and some blocks.
• Iron vein consist of deepslate iron ore, tuff and raw iron.
• Copper vein consist of copper ore, granite, and raw copper.

Underwater magma

• Generates on underground bodies of water.

Items

• Added sounds for dyes and bonemeal when used.

• Eight new ambient tracks from Lena Raine and Kumi Tanioka were added; all but the tracks by Kumi Tanioka would play on the main menu until The Wild Update.
  • "Stand Tall" by Lena Raine
    • Plays in snowy slopes, jagged peaks, frozen peaks, and stony peaks.
  • "Left to Bloom" by Lena Raine
    • Plays in lush caves, meadows, and any other biome that does not already have a corresponding set of biome-specific music.
  • "Wending" by Lena Raine
    • Plays in groves, jagged peaks, stony peaks, and dripstone caves.
  • "Infinite Amethyst" by Lena Raine
    • Plays in groves and dripstone caves.
  • "One More Day" by Lena Raine
    • Plays in meadows, snowy slopes, lush caves, and any other biome that does not already have a corresponding set of biome-specific music.
  • "Floating Dream" by Kumi Tanioka
    • Plays in jagged peaks, lush caves, and any other biome that does not already have a corresponding set of biome-specific music.
  • "Comforting Memories" by Kumi Tanioka
    • Plays in groves and any other biome that does not already have a corresponding set of biome-specific music.
  • "An Ordinary Day" by Kumi Tanioka
    • Plays in snowy slopes, dripstone caves, and lush caves.

Blackstone, gilded blackstone, polished blackstone bricks, and cracked polished blackstone bricks as well as stair, slab and wall variants

• Slightly changed the texture.

Block of lapis lazuli

• Renamed from "Lapis Lazuli Block" to "Block of Lapis Lazuli".

Cake

• Have a variation called "Cake with Candle".
  • Can be created by using a candle on an uneaten cake.
  • The candle on the cake comes in 17 colors, depending on the color of the candle used to create it.
  • The candle pops off when any of the cake is eaten.

Cauldron

• Can now be filled with lava (previous exclusive to Bedrock Edition) and powder snow.
  • Lava-filled cauldrons can damage players and mobs inside of them, and give off a redstone comparator signal of strength 3.
  • Powder snow cauldrons are formed when cauldrons are under the sky during snowfall.
  • Can also be filled with powder snow by using a powder snow bucket on it.
• Can also fill with water or lava when a pointed dripstone has the liquid on top.

Dirt path

• Changed texture.
• Renamed from "Grass Path" to "Dirt Path".
• Can now be made on top of dirt, coarse dirt, rooted dirt, mycelium, and podzol.

Dispenser

• Can now place powder snow using a powder snow bucket.
  • Can also remove it using a bucket.
• Can be used to wax copper blocks with Honeycomb.

Ores

• Changed textures for better distinction to accommodate colorblind players.
  • Diamond ore kept the classic shape with only some minor tweaks with colorization.
• Iron ore and gold ore no longer drops itself when mined with a non-Silk Touch pickaxe; instead giving their raw mineral form.
  • This permits both blocks to be affected with Fortune for the first time for increased drops.

Signs

• Changed textures to better match with the new plank texture.
• Can now be tinted with glow ink sacs to make the text glow.
  • Glowing signs do not affect the light level, but appear as if the text itself is illuminated.
  • Regular ink sacs can be used to remove the glowing effect.

Change several item textures for consistency:

• Campfire
• Clock
• Compass
• Doors
• Item frame
• Signs
• Soul campfire
• Sugar cane

Axe

• Can now be used to de-wax copper blocks.

Honeycomb

• Can now be used to wax copper blocks.

Leather armor

• Prevents the player or mob from freezing in the powder snow.
• Wearing leather boots prevents them from sinking.
  • Can also be used to "swim" in the powder snow.

The light level spawn rate of monsters had been decreased to 0.

Drowned

• No longer drops gold ingots.
  • Instead, now drops copper ingots.

Skeleton

• Now converts into strays on a powder snow instead of freezing to death.

Siamese cat

• Changed texture.

Shulker

• If a shulker is hit by another shulker's projectile, it now has a chance of spawning a new shulker. Shulkers are more likely to spawn new shulkers when there are fewer shulkers nearby.

Spectral arrow‌^{[Java Edition only]}

• Changed texture to better match its item form.

Painting

• Changed the back texture to match the new plank textures.

• Increased world height.

• Changed ore generation of all ores making them have a spread value like lapis lazuli ore. Some still retain a linear generation alongside a spread generation.
  • Coal ore attempts to generate twice: once, evenly between an altitude of Y=136 and Y=256; and as a spread, peaking at an altitude of Y=96 and generating between an altitude of Y=0 and Y=192.
  • Copper ore generates between Y=-16 and Y=112, generating the most at Y=48 and like all other ores, uses spread. It peaks at Y=48. Bigger blobs of copper ore generate in dripstone caves.
  • Iron ore attempts to generate three times: once as a spread peaking at an altitude of Y=256, generating above Y=80; another as a spread peaking at Y=16 and generating with a minimum height of Y=-24 and a maximum height of Y=57, and a smaller one spreading evenly between the altitudes of Y=-64 and Y=-32.
  • Gold ore generates between the altitudes of Y=-64 and Y=32, peaking at Y=-16. Also, extra gold generates below Y=-48. The extra gold that generates in the badlands biome was increased, with a top height limit from Y=79 to Y=256, and increased number of blobs.
  • Lapis lazuli ore attempts to generate twice: once, as a spread between the altitudes of Y=32 and Y=-32, peaking at an altitude of 0; and evenly between the altitudes of Y=64 and Y=-64, generating buried like ancient debris.
  • Redstone ore attempts to generate twice: once, evenly between an altitude of Y=15 and Y=-64; and as a spread, peaking at an altitude of -64 and generating below an altitude of Y=-32.
  • Diamond ore now generate as a spread, generating below Y=16 and peaking at depths near Y=-64.
  • Emerald ore generates above Y=-16 as a spread, peaking at Y=256 and decreasing in quantity as the altitude decreases.
• The size and positioning of diorite, andesite, granite, gravel and dirt has been tweaked - there are larger blobs of these blocks but they're fewer and further apart.
  • Diorite, andesite and granite generate less commonly above Y=60.

Some biomes have been renamed:

Old name	New name
Tall Birch Forest	Old Growth Birch Forest
Giant Tree Taiga	Old Growth Pine Taiga
Giant Spruce Taiga	Old Growth Spruce Taiga
Snowy Tundra	Snowy Plains
Jungle Edge	Sparse Jungle
Stone Shore	Stony Shore
Mountains	Windswept Hills
Wooded Mountains	Windswept Forest
Gravelly Mountains	Windswept Gravelly Hills
Shattered Savanna	Windswept Savanna
Wooded Badlands Plateau	Wooded Badlands

• Since the terrain height is no longer controlled by biomes, most of the height variant sub-biomes, along with previously unused biome variants have been removed from the game and had their code merged into the main biome:

Removed biomes
Badlands Plateau
Bamboo Jungle Hills
Birch Forest Hills
Dark Forest Hills
Deep Warm Ocean
Desert Hills
Desert Lakes
Giant Spruce Taiga Hills
Giant Tree Taiga Hills
Gravelly Mountains+
Jungle Hills
Modified Badlands Plateau
Modified Jungle
Modified Jungle Edge
Modified Wooded Badlands Plateau
Mountain Edge
Mushroom Field Shore
Shattered Savanna Plateau
Snowy Mountains
Snowy Taiga Hills
Snowy Taiga Mountains
Swamp Hills
Taiga Hills
Taiga Mountains
Tall Birch Hills
Wooded Hills

• As a result of this change:
  • All deserts are now eligible for village and desert pyramid generation.
  • All taigas are now eligible for village and pillager outpost generation.
  • All swamps are now eligible for swamp hut generation.
  • All snowy taigas are now eligible for igloo generation.
  • Worlds made in previous versions that generated these biomes convert them into their default variants.

Badlands

• Now can generate in mountain peaks.
• Red sand generates a bit higher.
• Red sandstone now generates naturally once again.

Beach

• Now are generally wider.
  • In some places there is a chance where no beaches generate at all, to provide some variation

Stony shore

• Now generate with strips of gravel.
• Can generate alongside any biome instead of just windswept hills.

Fossil

• Now replaces coal ore with deepslate diamond ore when it's on the deepslate layer.

Spring

• Lava springs can now generate amid calcite, dirt, snow block, powder snow and packed ice.
  • These changes allow lava springs to generate in mountains and snowy terrain.
• Water springs can now generate amid dirt and snow block, and don't generate higher than Y=192.

Swamp oak

• Now able to generate in slightly deeper water than before.

Mineshaft

• Now generate with oak logs as pillars, and oak fences with chains as a means for support.

Village

• Now slightly more spread out.
• Now generate in meadows.

1.17

• 1.17.1 made changes to some game mechanics and fixes bugs.

1.18

• 1.18.1 made minor changes to fog and fixed bugs.
• 1.18.2 added the /placefeature command, made significant changes to tags and custom world generation, and fixed bugs.

1.17

• 1.17.1 was released exclusively on Nintendo Switch to fix a bug in which players weren't able to connect to any server.
• 1.17.2 was released to fix bugs related to world generation.
• 1.17.10 added candles, brought additional parity with Java Edition, experimental features for 1.18.0, and fixed bugs.
• 1.17.11 was released to fix some critical bugs.
• 1.17.30 was released to bring additional parity with Java Edition, new features behind the experimental toggle, and fixed bugs.
• 1.17.32 was released to fix some critical bugs after the release of 1.17.30.
• 1.17.33 was released exclusively on Amazon Fire to fix a bug in which players weren't able to launch the game.
• 1.17.34 was released to fix a bug in which owned content did not appear in the inventory after redeeming a retail code.
• 1.17.40 was released to fix bugs and add more features behind the experimental toggle.
• 1.17.41 was released to fix some critical bugs after the release of 1.17.40.

1.18

• 1.18.1 and 1.18.2 were released to fix some critical bugs after the release of 1.18.0.
• 1.18.10 was released to bring more parity with Java Edition and fix bugs.
• 1.18.11 was released exclusively on Nintendo Switch to fix bugs.
• 1.18.12 was released to fix bugs.
• 1.18.30 was released to add new Create New World UI, more parity with Java Edition such as 64-bit seeds, hunger changes, and fixes bugs.
• 1.18.31 was released to add the Spectator mode experimental toggle and fix bugs.
• 1.18.32 was released exclusively on Android, Amazon Fire, and Nintendo Switch to improve game performance.
• 1.18.33 was released exclusively on Nintendo Switch to fix bugs.

Shortly after Part II, a tie-in world was released on the Marketplace. The release involves exploring the ruins of a destroyed village, helping various characters rebuild the town using new features from the update. Throughout the world are guest appearances from YouTubers such as Logdotzip and BigB, using the same character designs featured in the YouTube Creators Skin Pack. The map went on to be promoted itself, with a special animation detailing its backstory.

Coinciding with the release of Part I was a trilogy of short stories published on Minecraft.net. Written by Sofia Dankis, the trilogy touches on various features introduced in the update, including goats, axolotls, and lush caves.

A trailer for Part I was released on June 8, 2021.

Caves & Cliffs Update: Part I - Official Trailer (view on YouTube)

A trailer for Part II was released on November 30, 2021.

Minecraft Caves & Cliffs Update: Part II - Official Trailer (view on YouTube)

Videos made by slicedlime:

What's New in Minecraft 1.17 - The Caves and Cliffs Update Part I? (view on YouTube)

Technical News in Minecraft Java Edition 1.17 - The Caves & Cliffs Update Part I (view on YouTube)

Custom World Changes in Minecraft Java Edition 1.17 (view on YouTube)

What's New in Minecraft 1.18 - The Caves & Cliffs Update Part II? (view on YouTube)

Where Are The Diamonds? Ore Distribution in Minecraft 1.18 - The Caves & Cliffs Update (view on YouTube)

Texture Updates in Minecraft 1.18 - The Caves & Cliffs Update (view on YouTube)

Technical News in Minecraft 1.18 (view on YouTube)

Caves, Cliffs & Other Updates: How We Make Minecraft - Episode 5 (view on YouTube)

The Secrets of Minecraft: Caves & Cliffs Part I (view on YouTube)

Dev Diaries: World Generation (view on YouTube)

Dev Diaries: Caves & Cliffs Mobs (view on YouTube)

Dev Diaries: Community Collaborations (view on YouTube)

Caves & Cliffs Special: Blocks (view on YouTube)

Caves & Cliffs Special: Mobs (view on YouTube)

Minecraft 1.18 - But what happens to my old world? (view on YouTube)

Minecraft 1.18 - Candles cancel creeper parties?! (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "Stand Tall" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "Left to Bloom" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "Ancestry" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "Wending" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "Infinite Amethyst" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "One More Day" (view on YouTube)

Lena Raine - "otherside" (view on YouTube)

Kumi Tanioka - "Floating Dream" (view on YouTube)

Kumi Tanioka - "Comforting Memories" (view on YouTube)

Kumi Tanioka - "An Ordinary Day" (view on YouTube)

• Mojang Studios employees explored real caves to research for the update. This helped give inspiration and ideas for the update, including for the noodle caves (previously called mesh caves).^[12][13]
  • Henrik Kniberg also recalled memories of past visits to caves around the world.^[14]
• The art style of the concept art for Caves & Cliffs was inspired by the concept art of the Adventure Time episode Diamonds and Lemons, which was a crossover with Minecraft.^[15]
• Archaeology, bundles, the deep dark biome, sculk blocks, the warden, and goat horns were originally planned to be added in this update, but were delayed to a later version when the update was split. Sculk, the deep dark, the warden, and goat horns were added in The Wild Update, archaeology was added in the Trails & Tales update, and bundles were added in the Bundles of Bravery drop.^[16]

• 
  Caves & Cliffs release logo
• 
  Caves & Cliffs: Part I artwork
• 
  Caves & Cliffs: Part I artwork without logo
• 
  Caves & Cliffs: Part II artwork
• 
  Caves & Cliffs: Part II artwork without logo
• 
  The reveal of the Caves & Cliffs: Part II artwork
• 
  The logo used at Minecraft Live 2020, which uses the former "Minecraft" logo, also used in promotional images for Caves & Cliffs: Part II (see above)

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  A view of the lush caves
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  Big dripleaves
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  A player boating inside of a spaghetti cave, showcasing a subterranean water feature.
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  A path of glow lichen in a cave
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  A large underground lake in a cheese cave
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  One of the only pictures of a mesh cave
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  In an image from a developer, a likely prototype for calcite strips can be seen as well as tuff strips that never ended up being implemented
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  The full screenshot that the previous image was cropped from with a prominent floating village
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  A view of the dripstone caves
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  Multiple goats, showcasing jump height
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  Inside of an amethyst geode
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  A copper roof house with weathered copper
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  Lightning striking a lightning rod
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  A few axolotls in a lush cave
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  An axolotl army attacking an elder guardian
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  Lush caves
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  A leaked screenshot showing "waterlogged-rail" in the title
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  Several Caves & Cliffs features around a cozy cabin

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  Lush caves and its vegetation
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  Lush caves
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  Lush caves at night
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  Dripstone caves and pointed dripstone
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  Lake caves
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  Flooded caves
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  Axolotl and the warden
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  "Cutie in a Bucket" - concept art of axolotl
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  School of axolotls
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  "Scale of Cuteness". Concept art of the axolotl, goat, and the warden
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  Concept art of underground crystals, which was later reiterated into the amethyst geode
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  Concept art of a crystal cave, which was later reiterated into the amethyst geode

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  Goat and powder snow
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  Copper ore and copper block
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  Amethyst and spyglass
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  Axolotl
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  Original artwork from where the individual assets came

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  Revised cave generation
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  Changes to ore distribution and introduction of ore veins
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  Aquifers providing local water levels
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  Changes to world height from Y=-64 up to Y=320
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  3D biome distribution
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  Biomes now adapting to any type of terrain generations
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  World blending between old and new chunks
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  Mob spawning changes

• Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Update | Minecraft (Archive)