Java Edition 20w18a

20w18a is the fourteenth snapshot for Java Edition 1.16, released on April 29, 2020, which changes the behavior of redstone and fixes bugs. The snapshot was extremely controversial, as it broke virtually every sufficiently complex redstone contraption built before its release.

Gameplay

 * Death messages
 * Added a new death message for being killed by another player's firework using a crossbow.
 * "[player] went off with a bang due to a firework fired from [item] by [player/mob]"

Blocks

 * Chains
 * Can now be waterlogged.


 * Redstone dust
 * A single redstone wire is now represented as a cross.
 * Redstone will provide power to blocks on sides it shows a visual connection to, and not do so on those sides without a visual connection.
 * A wire on top of a block, which is redirected from below, will now power the sides it is redirected to.
 * Wires that redirect upwards to wires on non-conductive blocks used to only be redirected visually, now this redirection applies to their behavior as well.
 * A wire that is redirected to go over a block will now always provide power to the block. This is most noticeable when the wire has signal strength 1.
 * Redstone dust's hitbox now better adjusts to its shape.


 * Signs
 * Renamed crimson and warped wall signs from " Sign" to " Wall Sign".


 * Smithing tables
 * Changed the "Upgrade gear" title to "Upgrade Gear".


 * Targets
 * Can now redirect redstone wire.


 * Twisting vines and weeping vines
 * Now drop themselves only 33% of the time, increased with Fortune, for a 100% chance to drop with Fortune III.
 * Will always drop 1 vine when broken with shears or a tool enchanted with Silk Touch.

Items

 * Banner patterns
 * Renamed the piglin banner pattern to "Snout".

Mobs

 * Striders
 * Can no longer spawn in stacks of 3 or higher.


 * Zombified piglins
 * Zombified piglins that spawn riding striders will no longer despawn.

World generation

 * Biomes
 * Reduced the number of mobs that spawn in soul sand valleys and warped forests.


 * Ruined portals
 * Made golden apples less common in chest loot.

Command format

 * Changed the failure message for not being able to find a valid biome from "Could not find a within reasonable distance" to "Could not find a biome of type within reasonable distance".
 * Changed the failure message for not being able to find a valid biome from "Could not find a within reasonable distance" to "Could not find a biome of type within reasonable distance".

Gameplay

 * Advancements
 * Added player check to every trigger (except impossible).
 * Due to addition of, existing contents of , , , can now be placed in  field instead of top-level object.
 * Old syntax is still supported, but deprecated.
 * Entity checks in triggers can now use loot table condition syntax.
 * All conditions in top level array must be met for whole condition to trigger.
 * To access new functionality, top level element must be JSON array.
 * JSON objects are interpreted as old notation.
 * Full list of extended triggers:
 * New field in every trigger.


 * Death messages
 * Changed " fell off a scaffolding" to " fell off scaffolding".


 * Debug screen
 * Added a new line detailing mob spawning.
 * represents the number of chunks in which mobs can spawn. It is the same value given in debug reports as.
 * represent the number of mobs for each group that contribute to that group's mob cap. The groups are . They're also in debug reports.
 * In the Targeted Block and Targeted Fluid fields, the coordinates of the targeted block or fluid are now shown as well.
 * The "Looking At" field has been removed in favor of this.


 * Respawning
 * Changed the message "You have no home bed or respawn anchor, or it was obstructed" to "You have no home bed or charged respawn anchor, or it was obstructed".


 * Subtitles
 * Changed "End Portal opens!" to "End Portal opens".
 * Changed "Husk converted to Zombie" to "Husk converts to Zombie".
 * Changed "Zombie converted to Drowned" to "Zombie converts to Drowned".

General

 * Multiplayer screen
 * Changed "Online play is not rated" to "Caution: Third-Party Online Play".
 * Changed "During online play you may be exposed to chat messages or other types of user generated content that has not been rated, and may not be suitable for all ages." to "Caution: Online play is offered by third-party servers that are not owned, operated, or supervised by Mojang or Microsoft. During online play, you may be exposed to unmoderated chat messages or other types of user-generated content that may not be suitable for everyone."


 * Servers
 * Added a option to the server.properties file which if set to  will suppress replies to status requests from clients.
 * This makes the server appear offline in the multiplayer screen.
 * Added control over how much entity data a server sends to clients: server property, controlling how close entities need to be before being sent to clients.
 * Higher values mean entities are visible further away from players but cause more network traffic.
 * Specifies a percentage of the default value so, for example, specifies half of the default range.


 * Tags
 * Added soul campfires to the item tag.


 * World selection
 * Changed "Failed to access level" to "Failed to access world".
 * Changed "Failed to delete level" to "Failed to delete world".
 * Changed "Game rules" to "Game Rules".
 * Changed "Disable Elytra movement check" to "Disable elytra movement check".

Video
Video made by slicedlime:

Trivia

 * The blog post for this update includes an image comparing the prior redstone mechanics to the changed mechanics. Previously, the before mechanics were labeled as 1.15.2 mechanics, despite the presence of a target block, which was introduced later than 1.15.2. The image was later changed to say “Previously” in order to correct this.
 * There is still an error in the caption saying: "Comparison between 1.15.2 and 20w18a"