Java Edition 1.12

1.12, the first release of the World of Color Update, is an upcoming major update to Minecraft with no set release date.

General

 * Advancements
 * Replaces achievements
 * Can be customized via JSON files
 * Tab-based UI
 * More tabs supported but only 4-5 planned for vanilla: "mine & craft", "nether", "end", "combat", "engineering", "adventure"
 * Different background per tab, single texture on repeat for now
 * Data-driven UI, including positioning and layout
 * Advancements can execute commands when achieved
 * Pop-up notification for when players advance
 * New sliding effect
 * Comes in two different colors - yellow for normal advancements, and pink for "challenge" advancements
 * Advancement icons allow data values
 * Specifically,  has switched from being a string to an object
 * Within it are a required  string (specifying the item ID) and an optional   integer, specifying the metadata of the item
 * There's a new number display to track progress while completing certain advancements


 * Controls
 * Added keybinding options for Creative toolbar saving


 * Creative
 * Save toolbars in Creative Mode with +/+ and load them with +.
 * Can save up to 9 toolbars.
 * If you save an empty toolbar, it will clear the bookmarked toolbar and put back the 'informational paper' in the respective slot.


 * JSON format
 * Added 'group' to recipe json format, to clump similar recipes together
 * Added new 'keybind' text component, to refer to the player's keybindings


 * Narrator
 * + toggles a text-to-speech engine that automatically reads player chat messages, including the name.
 * There's an option to toggle narrator between: "off", "chat & system", "chat only", and "system messages only"
 * There's a toast notification for toggling the narrator
 * The Narrator will not read commands or command outputs, nor will it read messages produced with.
 * It displays a message whenever the Narrator isn't available


 * NBT tags
 * (long):
 * Stores the tick a chain command block was last executed in.
 * , for breedable entities.
 * Together these record the UUID of the entity that caused a given animal to breed.
 * : A compound tag containing a list of recipes, formatted as JSON, that the player has seen, as well as recipe book information.
 * : Becomes 1 if the player has enabled the "Show Craftable" feature in the recipe book.
 * : Checks if the player has left the GUI open.
 * : Contains information about all recipes the player has seen.
 * : Checks if the player has tried out the recipe in the recipe book before (by clicking it/viewing it)
 * (list):
 * Within are recipe names that the player has unlocked but not viewed in the crafting helper yet
 * Used for remembering to play the animation for new recipes
 * : A list of crafting recipes to unlock for the player that right-clicks while holding a Knowledge Book.
 * If this is not specified, the Knowledge Book will not be consumed.
 * : Changes to 1 if the player leaves the End through the portal.
 * / : Contains entity data about an entity on the left and right shoulders of the player.
 * (byte):
 * Defaults to . If set to , loops can be created, where the same command block can run multiple times in one tick.
 * Defaults to . If set to , loops can be created, where the same command block can run multiple times in one tick.


 * Recipe book
 * Catalogs recipes that are unlocked when the criteria are met
 * When a recipe is clicked, it will appear in the crafting grid, and can be crafted if materials are available
 * A shift-click ability puts all available materials in the crafting grid.
 * A new white-and-gray colored notification pops up when the player unlocks new recipes
 * The pop-up notification that displays upon unlocking new recipes has an icon showing the items that can be crafted with the new recipes
 * If you search "excited" in the Recipe book, your language switches to Pirate Speak


 * Sounds


 * New note block sounds
 * = xylophone
 * = bell
 * = flute
 * = chime
 * = guitar


 * New sound effects
 * Parrots
 * Illusioners
 * Casting a fishing rod
 * Reeling in a fishing rod
 * Throwing an eye of ender
 * An eye of ender exploding or popping back into item form
 * Putting ender eye in end portal frames (dinging sound)
 * Completing the end portal and having the portal spawn (evil sound)
 * Boat paddles


 * Splashes
 * Added "Don't feed chocolate to parrots!"


 * Tutorial hints
 * Will display only in Survival mode, and only upon starting a new world for the first time
 * Saved per player, stored in options.txt
 * Name:
 * List of criteria:,  ,  ,  ,  , and

Blocks

 * Concrete
 * Comes in the 16 traditional dye colors
 * Created when Concrete Powder comes into contact with still or flowing water


 * Concrete Powder
 * Comes in the 16 traditional dye colors
 * Gravity affected (like Sand and Gravel).
 * When it touches water, it turns into a Concrete block.
 * Craftable. Crafting: 4 Sand, 4 Gravel and one of any dye to get 8 Concrete Powder blocks. The recipe is shapeless.


 * Glazed Terracotta
 * Comes in the 16 traditional dye colors
 * Smelt any colored stained clay in a furnace to obtain the Glazed Terracotta of that color (not for regular hardened clay).
 * Can be placed in 4 directions: North, South, West and East.
 * When placed down while facing the right directions, a repeating pattern can be created. For example, the white terracotta will create the pattern of a sun when 4 are placed down correctly.
 * Will not "stick" to slime blocks if attached to the side, top or bottom, but will if attached to the front or back.

Commands
/advancement grant dinnerbone until story/elytra /advancement revoke dinnerbone everything
 * Execute an entity executed with an arbitrary command, e.g:
 * Can grant, test or revoke advancements, and particular advancement criteria, for a given player
 * There are five modifiers to the command: "everything", "from", "until", "through", "only"
 * "everything" - all advancements, no specification required (same as "*")
 * "from" - this advancement, its children, and their children, etc.
 * "until" - this advancement, its parent, and its parent, etc.
 * "through" - both of the above
 * "only" - this advancement, and nothing else
 * Examples:
 * "only" - this advancement, and nothing else
 * Examples:
 * Can unlock, or lock, the given recipes for the given player
 * If  is specified, it will lock or unlock all recipes for the player
 * Command to reload advancements and loot tables from disk
 * This command is available to all opped players in single player and to all level 4 operators on a multiplayer server.
 * Cannot be run from a command block.
 * This command is available to all opped players in single player and to all level 4 operators on a multiplayer server.
 * Cannot be run from a command block.

Gameplay

 * Gamerules
 * Defaults to true
 * Toggles announcing of advancements, replacing the old  entry
 * Off by default
 * Enabling will only allow players to craft recipes they have unlocked
 * NBT tag, which contains a list of item IDs, will be consumed and unlock the specified items' recipes for any player that it
 * Especially useful when is set to true
 * NBT tag, which contains a list of item IDs, will be consumed and unlock the specified items' recipes for any player that it
 * Especially useful when is set to true


 * Spawn eggs
 * Parrot (new mob): Green with red dots.

Mobs

 * Illusioner
 * New illager.
 * Affects players with for 20 seconds then shoots with a bow.
 * Its blindness spell will only be cast if the regional difficulty is 3 or above.
 * Summons duplicates of itself.
 * All duplicates will show shooting animation, but only the real one can be hit and shoots the arrow
 * Does not currently have a spawn egg, so can only be summoned with
 * Targets both the player and villagers


 * Parrots
 * Tamable with cookies
 * Fly around, but sit when "tired"
 * Follow and crowd around nearby mobs
 * Imitates sounds of other mobs
 * Parrots dance if playing music on a nearby jukebox
 * Right-click action available:
 * Right-click on a tamed parrot tells it to sit down
 * Walking over/through/near a tamed parrot while crouching will cause it to sit on the player's shoulders
 * Will let go if the player jumps
 * Can fly with players during elytra flight
 * Have health.
 * Come in red, blue, green, cyan and gray.

General

 * Achievements
 * Removed and replaced by advancements


 * Controls
 * Pressing will now hide all toast messages


 * Crafting
 * Closing the crafting interface with items inside will no longer drop the items in front of you, but will send them instead to the inventory.


 * Creative
 * Materials tab merged with Miscellaneous tab in creative mode.


 * Java version
 * This is the first version to use, and thus require, Java 8.


 * Movement
 * The player's body now entirely faces to the front, when moving backwards.
 * Prior to this update, moving backwards would cause the player model to rotate one side, making it look like the player was strafing backwards somewhat.


 * NBT format
 * Improved NBT parsing in commands
 * Keys can now (optionally) be quoted, e.g:
 * Unquoted string values are now stricter; they can no longer contain spaces or special symbols, e.g:
 * Indices, which were previously optional in lists, are no longer allowed, e.g:
 * Empty keys and values are no longer allowed
 * Improved error messaging; now points to where exactly the error occurred


 * Splashes
 * "Now Java 6!" changed to "Now Java 8!"

Blocks



 * Banner
 * New palette texture.


 * Beacon
 * Changed beam colors.


 * Beds
 * Now you can sleep when a neutral Zombie Pigman is near.
 * Now you can bounce on the bed, albeit much less than with slime blocks.
 * Now reduce (but not negate) fall damage when landed on
 * The player can survive a 41 block fall onto a bed
 * Any higher, and the second bounce will deal the remaining amount of damage to kill them
 * The player can create a platform around 7 blocks high beside the bed to land on to prevent death, in which case a player can survive a 45 block fall
 * Added colored beds which can be crafted with colored wool or by dying a white bed
 * Now a block entity, and each half can be colored individually using the NBT tag
 * Beds now display as blocks, unlike Pocket Editon beds. Now use a 3D item model instead of a 2D item because of the new colors


 * Command Block
 * Now executes all of the commands in a chain before scheduling them for the next tick.
 * It is now possible to stop/modify the operation of a chain via commands and get results instantly (as opposed to getting them in a 1 tick delay).


 * Fences, Cobblestone Walls, Glass Panes, and Iron Bars
 * Now connect to stairs


 * Hardened Clay
 * Renamed to terracotta
 * It has now unique colors on the map


 * Magma Blocks
 * Are now able to burn infinitely, like Netherrack.


 * Noteblocks
 * When placed ontop of a bone block, wool, clay, packed ice or gold block, the noteblock produces special sounds.


 * Paintings
 * Will now try to place the largest possible in the available space it has.


 * Shulker Box
 * Colors changed in accordance with the changes to other block colors


 * Stairs
 * The rear face and underside of stairs are now considered "solid"
 * Allows for torches, fences, iron bars, glass panes, walls, and snow layers to connect to them properly


 * Wool
 * New palette texture.

Mobs



 * Sheep
 * New color palette for wool on body.


 * Shulker
 * Colors changed in accordance with the changes to other block colors


 * Zombies
 * New  and   tags
 * Contains the UUID of the player that is converting the zombie.
 * Used with the "minecraft:cured_zombie_villager" trigger for advancements.

Unconfirmed features

 * If a piston gets powered and is unable to push, it will emit a smoke particle effect and play a small "clunk" sound.
 * If the bow used to craft a dispenser is enchanted, it makes the arrows fired from the dispenser act accordingly.