Java Edition 13w18a

13w18a is the fourth snapshot for Java Edition 1.6.1, released on May 2, 2013.

Blocks

 * Block of coal
 * Crafted with coal in a 3×3 space.
 * The block cannot be crafted with charcoal.
 * Can be used as furnace fuel and smelts 72 items, the equivalent to 9 coal.
 * Can be used as a storage block for large amounts of coal, similarly to blocks of iron and related blocks.


 * Hay blocks
 * New crafting recipe.
 * Hay blocks are crafted with wheat similarly to mineral blocks.
 * Hay blocks cannot be crafted back into wheat.

Items

 * Leads
 * New crafting recipe.
 * Recipe contains 4 string and 1 slimeball.

World generation

 * Nether Fortresses
 * Added chest generation.
 * Chests generate in corners of interior corridors.

General

 * Texture pack system
 * Start of a new texture loading system.
 * New "missing texture" texture.

Blocks

 * Carpets
 * Can now be placed on translucent blocks.
 * This includes glowstone, glass, glass panes, and beacons.
 * Beacons will still function under carpet.


 * Locked Chests
 * Texture changed to missing texture, due to the new texture pack loading system.


 * Redstone Comparators
 * Now output a signal for cauldrons and end portal frames.
 * A cauldron gives signal strengths that range from zero (empty) to three (full) depending on the amount of water contained inside.
 * An end portal frame would give a signal strength of either zero or fifteen, depending on if an eye of ender has been inserted into it.

Items

 * Cocoa beans
 * Removed from dungeon chests.


 * Horse armor
 * Players can no longer craft horse armor.
 * Can be found in dungeons.


 * Horse saddles
 * Removed from the game


 * Saddles
 * Can now be found in most generated chests.

Mobs

 * Horses
 * Tweaked horse equipment obtainability.
 * Normal saddles are now required to ride horses.
 * Horses now use the same saddle that pigs use.
 * Adjustments related to horses makes them more practical later in the game.


 * Zombies
 * Mechanic whereby zombies spawn more zombies adjusted to be subtle and not as easily visible to the player.
 * Zombies spawn in dark areas far from the player or in caves.

Trivia

 * This snapshot, being the fourth for 1.6.1, was released in the same week of the year as the fourth snapshot for 1.3.1, 12w18a.
 * As with 13w18b and 13w18c, this snapshot was released on the same day as 1.5.2.