Minecraft has officially dropped its final content update for this year. From Spring to Life, Chase the Skies, and The Copper Age, Minecraft has had a great run with releasing new content, culminating in the Mounts of Mayhem update. It brings a variety of mounts to tame, unique mobs, and a brand new weapon for players.
With the Minecraft 1.21.11 update now live, you might be wondering what to expect from this year-end content release. Well, we’ve got you covered in our guide below on everything new in the Mounts of Mayhem update in Minecraft.
Spear Weapon and Combat Features
The Spear has shaken up Minecraft’s weapon and combat system in terms of reach, timing, and movement-based damage. You can craft the Spear in Wood, Stone, Copper, Iron, Gold, and Diamond. Then you can upgrade it to Netherite via the Smithing Table.
In terms of combat, the Spear has a longer range, extending from the range of Swords and Axes. Plus, it has two attack modes:
- Jab Attack: Quick poke-like attacks with a Knockback effect
- Charge Attack: High-damage thrusting attacks based on player velocity
Other notes on the Spear include having an exclusive enchantment called “Lunge.” When a player does the Jab Attack, the player is propelled horizontally in their view direction when doing the attack. The downside to this, however, is that it consumes durability and hunger points.
Besides that, Zombies, Husks, Piglins, and Zombified Piglins are mobs capable of spawning with the Spear in hand.
New Mobs and Mounts Added
Nautilus and Zombie Nautilus (New Aquatic Mobs)
The Nautilus is a neutral aquatic mob that players can tame, which spawns across all ocean biomes. It can also be equipped with a Saddle and Armor, bred among other Nautiluses, and ridden by the player, which is an entirely new feature, especially with ocean creatures.
To tame a Nautilus, players must feed it with either a Bucket of Pufferfish or just a regular Pufferfish drop. Upon taming and riding the Nautilus, players gain a “Breath of the Nautilus” effect, slowing down oxygen consumption. Another perk to riding this mob is that players can use a “Dash” ability similar to Camels.
In terms of the Zombie Nautilus, this spawns with a Drowned rider holding a Trident. The Zombie Nautilus, however, is only hostile if it’s ridden by a hostile mob such as the player.
Parched (New Desert Skeleton Variant)
A new Skeleton variant that spawns in Deserts, the Parched behaves similarly to skeletons, but has less health and does not burn in daylight. They shoot Arrows of Weakness and are immune to the Weakness status effect.
Camel Husk
In line with the Parched, you can find it riding on the Camel Husk, which is a new Camel variant. The Camel Husk spawns only in the Desert as well, but with two riders: A Husk with a Spear and a Parched.
Just like the Zombie Nautilus, the Camel Husk can become hostile if the rider is a hostile mob. Additionally, it can despawn with other hostile mobs. Other things to note about the Camel Husk are that it works like a regular Camel when ridden, can be fed Rabbit Feed to heal, but cannot be bred.
Zombie Horses
Zombie Horses spawn in the darkness just like regular zombies and can burn under the sunlight like other undead mobs. What makes Zombie Horses stand out is that they can be tamed after removing their rider, and you can heal them with Red Mushrooms.
Players can also equip Horse Armor on Zombie Horses to protect them from the sunlight and use them just like regular horses.
New Armor and Loot Changes
Nautilus Armor
The Nautilus and Zombie Nautilus have their own sets of Armor tiers, such as Copper, Iron, Gold, Diamond, and Netherite (via Smithing Table upgrade). To find Nautilus Armor, players can possibly find the armor piece in Shipwrecks, Ocean Ruins, and Buried Treasure.
Netherite Horse Armor
A major request from the Minecraft community has been granted with the update to upgrade Diamond Horse Armor to Netherite Horse Armor.
Spear Loot Placements
Other than crafting the Spear, players can loot the new weapon in Villages (Copper and Iron Spears), Buried Treasure Chests (Iron Spears), Ocean Ruins (Stone Spears), Bastion Remnants, and End Cities (Diamond Spears).
Mob Behavior Updates
When riding mounts such as Horses, Donkeys, Mules, Camels, Zombie Horses, and Camel Husks, they don’t sink when being ridden into water.
Parrots can also mimic the new mobs as part of the update to add more ambiance and audio clues in Jungle explorations.
Graphics, Performance, and Miscellaneous Updates
On the more technical side of things, there are new texture filtering options (None, RGSS, and Anisotropic) and revamped graphics presents, giving players better control over visual quality in relation to their hardware. Furthermore, world visuals have also improved with chunk fade-ins, enhanced underwater fog blending, and new sky colors.
Beyond graphics, some UI and quality-of-life enhancements include the following:
- Rebindable debug keys
- Updated advancements
- Performance boosts
- macOS KQueue support
- Reduced packet spam.
Overall, these updates deliver a broader adventure experience, smoother performance, clearer visuals, and cleaner gameplay for Minecraft players.