Caves & Cliffs



Caves & Cliffs is the name for an upcoming major update that will be released in mid-2021 for most versions of Minecraft, likely as Java Edition 1.17 and Bedrock Edition 1.17.0. It was announced in Minecraft Live 2020. It will include new cave and mountains features, as well as the glow squid, a mob that was voted for during the second Minecraft mob vote.

Planned additions
Please note that the names of many features are currently placeholders.

Blocks

 * Azalea Leaves.png Blooming Azalea Leaves.png Azalea Leaves
 * Part of a new exclusive tree, marking the location of the lush caves.


 * Azalea Roots.png Azalea Roots


 * Part of the Azalea tree.
 * Resembles a dirt block, but with roots textured within.


 * Amethyst geode block.png Amethyst Geode
 * Generates amethyst crystals on top given time.
 * Unobtainable in survival, and probably cannot be moved with pistons.
 * Extremely rare, only generates in amethyst geode structures.


 * Amethyst crystal cross.png Amethyst Crystals
 * Grows on top of geode blocks over time.
 * Break to produce a crystal shard item.
 * These can be crafted into telescopes.


 * Copper Ore.png Copper Ore
 * New ore, found underground.
 * Drops itself when broken, like other metal ores.
 * Spawns in new large ore veins.
 * Can be used to craft a Lightning Rod or a Telescope.


 * Block of Copper.png Block of Copper
 * Block of Copper Age 1.png Block of Copper Age 2.png Block of Copper Age 3.png Develops a patina of pale green copper carbonate over multiple stages, which might be sped up by weather such as rain.
 * The time it takes to age fully is about 16 Minecraft days.


 * Copper Stairs.png Copper Stairs
 * Copper Stairs Age 1.png Copper Stairs Age 2.png Copper Stairs Age 3.png Develops a patina of pale green copper carbonate over multiple stages, which might be sped up by weather such as rain.
 * The time it takes to age fully is about 16 Minecraft days.


 * Copper Slab.png Copper Slab
 * Copper Slab Age 1.png Copper Slab Age 2.png Copper Slab Age 3.png Develops a patina of pale green copper carbonate over multiple stages, which might be sped up by weather such as rain.
 * The time it takes to age fully is about 16 Minecraft days.


 * Restoring clay pots.png Pot
 * Ceramic Shards can be incorporated into an unfired pot.
 * Can be fired by lighting fire under the pot.


 * New Vine.png New Vine 2.png Glow Berry vine
 * Light source.
 * Grows edible glow berries.


 * Spore Blossom.png Spore blossom
 * Sends particles downward when opened.


 * Dripleaf Plant.png Dripleaf Plant
 * A plant that can be used for platforming.
 * If the player stands on top of the plant for a period of time, the player falls through the plant.


 * Baby dripleaf plants.png Small dripleaf plants
 * Appear highly varied in models.


 * Unidentified foliage object.png Moss
 * Looks grassy on all sides and opaque.


 * Foliage carpet.png Moss Blanket
 * Same texture as the moss block, but one pixel thick.


 * Roots bloody roots.png Azalea_Roots_Below.png Hanging Azalea roots


 * Seen in the distance of a lush caves biome, behind a spore blossom.
 * Can also be seen hanging beneath the dirt variant that spawns below the Azalea tree, possibly just a decorational feature of this 'dirt' block.


 * Baby azalea tree.png Baby blooming azalea tree.png Azalea shrub


 * May or may not be saplings.


 * Sculk Block.png Sculk block


 * Generates in the mysterious new biome, referred to as the "Deep Dark" temporarily.


 * Sculk Something.png Sculk Chute


 * Generates in the Deep Dark biome.


 * Sculk Growth.png Sculk Growth
 * Generates in the Deep Dark biome.
 * A layer that generates on top blocks like snow.
 * Some have parts that are transparent, allowing the player to see the block it is on top of.


 * Sculk Sensor.png Sculk Sensor
 * Generates in the Deep Dark biome.
 * Can be used for wireless redstone.
 * Senses block placement, footsteps, or projectiles.
 * Wool can occlude its ability to sense.
 * Can be used with a piston to create a wireless redstone clock.


 * Stalagmites.png Stalagmite
 * Can be found in the new dripstone caves on the floor.
 * Deals damage when landed on.


 * Stalactites.png Stalactite
 * Can be found in the new dripstone caves on the ceiling.
 * Can fall, but unlike sand or gravel breaks apart on impact.
 * Drips water, which can fill cauldrons placed under it.


 * Unknown speleothem block.png Dripstone

(name is conjectural, based off of the name of the biome which it is found in)


 * Appears to be made of the same materials as stalactites and stalagmites but as a full cube.


 * Lightning Rod.png Lightning Rod
 * Crafted with copper.
 * Redirects nearby lightning strikes to the top of the rod, which can prevent flammable structures from catching on fire during thunderstorms.


 * Powder snow
 * Similar to snow, but entities fall through it, similar to traps or the "snowier snow" announced when the Mountains won the 2019 biome vote.
 * This is how regular snow layer blocks worked in old versions of Minecraft, but it was changed because it created accidental booby-traps when lava ponds generated at the right height to cut out the ground but not the snow.


 * Unidentified Stalagmite Torches.png White candles.png Candle-like blocks
 * Can be up to four in a block, similar to sea pickles
 * Comes in black or white
 * Emits fire particles


 * Unnamed Stone.png Unknown grey stone block
 * Can be found around the deep dark cave biome walls.
 * Can be found in large groups.


 * UnknownWhiteStoneBlock.png Limestone
 * Similar to diorite, but with a smoother texture.
 * Found underground surrounding the outsides of geode formations.


 * Clay or not.png Unknown whitish block
 * Found in lush caves.
 * Might just be clay or sand, although its texture does seem different.

Items

 * Amethyst Shard
 * Drops from Amethyst Crystals.
 * Used to make telescopes.


 * Axolotl Bucket JE1.png Bucket of Axolotl
 * Obtained by using a water bucket on an axolotl, similar to fish.
 * Had no name in the Minecraft Live 2020 demo, showing its translation string "item.minecraft.axolotl_bucket".


 * Brush.png Brush
 * Used to sweep away debris from archaeological items
 * Sweeps debris off archaeological items one layer at a time, but similar to the block breaking animation, does not permanently change the look of the block it is used on
 * Also comes in a blue variant: Brush 2.png


 * Bundle.png Bundle full.png Bundle
 * Can contain one cumulative stack of any number of item types.
 * Stacksizes are sustained: It can hold 8 ender pearls and 32 blocks for example, as enderpearls only stack to 16. Unstackable items like minecarts remain unstackable.
 * Items are added by dragging bundle to an item.
 * Tooltip shows icons of contained items.
 * Items drop to inventory when right clicked.


 * Blue Ceramic Shard.png Orange Ceramic Shard.png Ceramic Shard 1.png Ceramic Shard 2.png Ceramic Shard 3.png Ceramic Shards
 * Obtained with brush at archeological sites.
 * Come in different colors and different designs, each depicting a different picture, such as an ender dragon, Alex, a skeleton, a tree and a vindicator.
 * Can be placed/customized on clay pots.
 * Currently using placeholder art, according to Jasper Boerstra.


 * Glow Berries
 * Can be eaten.
 * May be able to use as a light source.


 * Telescope.png Telescope
 * Crafted from crystal shards and copper.
 * When held, allows the player to see far away through a small ellipse.

Mobs

 * Axolotl.png Axolotl
 * Small, critically-endangered mexican salamanders found in bodies of water within lush caves biomes.
 * Will be the first ever amphibian added to Minecraft.
 * Can be caught in a bucket like with fish.
 * Can be tamed by capturing it in a bucket.
 * Come in different colors (leucistic, yellow, green, brown, and purple/pink).
 * Plays dead when damaged, receiving Regeneration. Appears to turn invisible or teleport after this, although the latter may be just a bug or a glitch.
 * Attacks drowned, guardians, elder guardians and fish.
 * Sometimes can give Regeneration to the player who tamed it.


 * Glow Squid.png Glow squid


 * Originates from Minecraft Earth.
 * Glows in the same way that magma cube cores, blazes and the eyes of spiders, drowned, vexes and endermen do.
 * Lives in flooded caves.
 * Doesn't emit any light.
 * Could be useful for building.


 * Goat.png Goat


 * Spawns in mountains biomes.
 * Can jump very high to avoid obstacles, about 5 blocks tall.
 * Attacks close animals and knocks far away.
 * There is a baby variant and therefore presumably a way to breed them.


 * Warden.png Warden


 * Spawns in the new deep dark biome.
 * It is the first blind mob.
 * When sensing movement, they move towards the source of the movement.
 * When attacked, they head towards the player.
 * Seems to follow the same rules as the sculk sensor when detecting noise.
 * Does not detect players that are sneaking.
 * Incredibly strong (at most damage), bringing full-netherite players to  health points.
 * Has at least health points.
 * At least as fast as the player's walking speed.
 * Seems to move faster when attacked.
 * Seems to have some knockback resistance.
 * Likely spawns in relation to the hut seen in the clip (now called the warden’s dungeon).
 * Can be tricked by snowballs and other throwable items which also count as movement.
 * Its chest shows what is a core as in the video clip heartbeat noises can be heard and it glows and darkens to the rhythm of the heartbeat.

World generation

 * Amethyst geode
 * A tiny underground cave-like feature.
 * Contains geode blocks and the amethyst crystals they generate.
 * Bell-like sounds can be heard here — whether a block emits these or if it's biome-related (like the exclusive ambience for nether biomes) is unknown.


 * Archaeological excavation
 * A new structure where archeological items and ceramic shards can be found


 * Deep dark
 * New biome at the "deepest depths of the world".
 * A warden is found inside.
 * Contains the unidentified stalagmite torches.
 * Contains sculk blocks, a new block which responds to sound.
 * Contains unknown grey stone blocks.


 * Dripstone caves
 * Contain stalactites and stalagmites.


 * Lush caves
 * Generate below azalea trees.
 * Contain glow berries.
 * Can spawn axolotls.


 * The Warden's Dungeon
 * Can be found in the Deep Dark biome.
 * Contains cobwebs and the unknown candles.
 * Stripped spruce log support beam runs across ceiling.
 * Barrels, a double chest, and a blast furnace are included.
 * Appears to be a structure done by a player made for the trailer according to Xilefian during an after-show Twitch stream.

Gameplay

 * Archaeology
 * The player can find items and blocks in gravel and dirt inside the dig site structure by using the brush.
 * Possible items shown in the preview footage include:
 * Diamond blocks
 * Emerald blocks
 * Ceramic shards of varying color which depict different images.


 * Dark flashing
 * While in the Deep Dark biome, the screen occasionally darkens limiting the player's visibility. This serves a warning that the warden is nearby.

World generation

 * Caves
 * Revamped to generate bigger, more adventurous caves.
 * Seems to increase max world height and sea level.


 * Local water levels
 * A new generation aspect has been introduced, which allows for certain areas of a world to generate with a water level different than another area.
 * Allows for the generation of larger underground lakes and connections to oceans.
 * Allows for the generation of many underground waterfalls.
 * Allows for underwater entrances.


 * Mountains
 * Revamped, featuring some new small spruce trees on the slopes and ice or packed ice above the peaks.
 * Contain powdered snow and goats.


 * Mineral veins
 * Will be revamped, at least for copper.

Trivia

 * This is the first update to add a new ore to the overworld since Java Edition 12w21a in 2012 for Java Edition 1.3.1 when emerald was added, and the first to add a real-world metal into the game since Java Edition Classic 0.0.14a in 2009, which brought both iron and gold.
 * Although the axolotl will be the first amphibian mob implemented into Minecraft, it was not the first announced since frogs were announced during the 2019 biome vote and cited during the development of Pocket Edition 0.14.0 by Jason Major.
 * Despite ores being shown to emit light during the reveal of this update, this was later confirmed to be just for demonstration purposes, and not for the final version.

Minecraft Live 2020
Screenshots of the Caves and Cliffs Update from Minecraft Live 2020: