GamesSurvival & CraftingMinecraftSurprise! Minecraft’s brand new mob has rolled out months before the update we expected it would be inWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesSurvival & CraftingMinecraftSurprise! Minecraft’s brand new mob has rolled out months before the update we expected it would be inWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Mojang)

Minecraftlaunched some new creatures this week in the form of armadillos and eight new types of wolf. If you thought: “Hold on, aren’t armadillos the new mob coming in theMinecraft 1.21update later this year?” Yup, that’s what I’d assumed too. They’d been in snapshots already, but now they’ve actually rolled out not as an experimental feature, but as part of a regular old game update this week (version 1.20.8 for Bedrock and 1.20.5 for Java edition). Surprise!
(Image credit: Mojang)

It’s no surprise that armadillos are bringing those new wolf variants with them too, since their scute (that’s the bony outer hide) is used to craft into wolf armor. Your canine pals no longer need to dive into the mines beside you unprotected. Those new wolf variants (pale, woods, ashen, black, chestnut, rusty, spotted, striped, and snowy) will all spawn in different biomes but appear to be mostly cosmetic variations other than that.
Mojang does note that different types of wolf tend to spawn in different size packs though, which is neat. All tamed wolves now have 20 hearts, which is double their prior health points, and feeding them will renew twice as many hearts as it used to. So they’re definitely getting buffed for battle.
And as if that weren’t enough, several other features that are planned for update 1.21 have been added as experimental features that you can toggle on when creating a new world. The new mace weapon, breeze rod item, and trial chambers are among the additions. Those beta features are also available in Minecraft Java edition snapshot 24w13a.
Armadillos have been added because they won the annual Minecraft playermob vote last year, which decides one of the new creatures coming to the game. But typically those player-voted mobs arrive in the next major game update, which should be 1.21 this year. Mojang has definitely released upcoming mobs as experimental features before, but this mid-update drop is unusual.
Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla
Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla
Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla
Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla

Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla
Minecraft update: What’s new?Minecraft seeds: Fresh new worldsMinecraft texture packs: PixelatedMinecraft skins: New looksMinecraft mods: Beyond vanilla
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In either case, anotherofficial Minecraft post todaysuggests that it’s likely close to revealing the official name for update 1.21. So hang tight for that after you jump in to try recruiting some new scute-producing pals.
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